Review

A convergence of game genres is always nice; a convergence of top publishers and designers is great. Field of Glory brings together well-known publisher Osprey, creative developer Slitherine and a leader in server-based, Hexwar.com. Osprey provides the popular miniature rule set while Slitherine uses its talent in computer programming and design. Hexwar lend its experience in accessible turn-based game servers for fine multiplayer experience.

Fig Glory

I love science fiction gaming.  Be it massively multiplayer extravaganzas or more sedate single player 4Xers, there is just something eminently suitable about using a technology-loaded PC to simulate technology-loaded vessels atomizing each other with plasma death beams.   Guess I’m just quirky that way.   Fortunately, there never seems to be a dearth of game developers willing to feed my appetite for death amongst the stars.  The most recent entry to this genre is Cliff Harris’ Gratuitous Space Battles, a game that promises to bring “over-the-top explodiness” back into space games.  Does is succeed?  Read on….

Get Out the Blueprints

Every fantasy MMOG released within the last five years inevitably gets compared to Blizzard's behemoth World of Warcraft, and Aion is no exception. Developed and published by NCSoft, Aion was released in South Korea nearly a year ago where it gained immediate success. With over 450k copies sold even before launch, it is obvious there is excitement and anticipation for Aion.  In determining its success, two questions need to be answered:  can it withstand the pressure of being compared to the most popular MMO in the world, and was NCSoft successful in making the necessary changes to appeal to the western audience?

Getting Started

I believe 2009 to be one of worst years for PC gaming in a long time.  While console gamers have fared better, PC gamers have had to put up with one poorly executed console port after another.  Is there no hope?  Where is our knight in shining armor? 

Look there!  On the horizon!   A figure clad in plate mail, mounted upon a great steed!  It’s…it’s…Ser BioWare!

Okay, that might be a bit dramatic, but it pretty much sums up how I feel about BioWare’s latest role playing game, Dragon Age: Origins.  Delivering one the finest fantasy RPG experiences in a long time, Dragon Age: Origins has rescued PC gaming’s fair maiden with its deep gameplay, visceral combat, and engaging story.  In short, it is the game that saved 2009.

Character Creation

Piranha Bytes is best known for the Gothic RPG series, three games that are highly touted for their unique gameplay, large expansive worlds and unusual story. The Gothic series has received its share of criticism as well, for issues such as poor performance, clunky controls and a plethora of bugs. Due to publisher JoWood retaining the rights to the Gothic name after the two split up, Piranha Bytes latest title, Risen, will be seen by many as being the spiritual successor to the Gothic series. In reality Risen is more that a spiritual successor, it is Gothic 3, and is one of, if not the most, uninteresting and unoriginal RPG’s to date.

Story & Questing

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising is the official sequel to Bohemia Interactive Studios’ 2001 release, Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis. This time around Codemasters has taken the reigns as BIS has moved on to bigger and better things including developing their own milsim shooter known as ArmA. Long missions and intense firefights give Dragon Rising an unquestionable sense of realism, but bugs, bland visuals and horrendous AI hinder what enjoyment there is from the game’s realistic setting.

Lock ‘n Load

The year is 2010 and the global economic crisis is the worst seen since the great depression. China takes the hardest hit as consumer demand for the nations goods plummet, causing massive rioting as China’s oil reserves begin to deplete. Seeing no other alternative, the communist government mobilizes its troops along the China-Russia border as it invades the tiny oil rich island of Skira. Russia seeks the aid of the United States and convinces the American government that a surprise US invasion to liberate Skira Island from China would be the best course of action.

The Marvel Civil War is perhaps one the most memorable stories in recent memory and Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 loosely follows the events of that epic struggle. You'll hack, slash and web sling your way through various areas like Latveria, New York City and the African nation of Wakanda as either the Pro-Registration or Anti-Registration side. But not all is well with this tale as the game does suffer some frequent frame rate issues, the occasional glitch, and an oversimplification that hinders what could have been the best Marvel action RPG to date.

The story in MUA2 is an amalgam of two separate plot lines in the Marvel Universe, The Civil War mini-series and The Secret War mini-series. Vicarious Visions has done a wonderful job at combining both mini-series into one cohesive story, but comic book fans may not be appreciative of the liberties that were taken in order to get that story to fit within the confines of the game. The story is played out in three acts: Act I begins with the Secret War and events leading to the Civil War, Act II is focused solely on the Civil War, and finally Act III is supposedly dealing with the aftermath of the Civil War.

What do you get if you mix a solid, well-known developer, add some ideas from other MMOs, toss in elements out of a pen and paper role playing game, and top it all off with a release day patch that mucks everything up? You get a slightly buggy and somewhat unfinished game that is extremely fun to play. The game in question is Champions Online, a super hero themed massively multiplayer online game from developer Cryptic Studios. If the words ‘super hero’ and ‘Cryptic Studios’ sound familiar, it's because Cryptic happens to be the developer of the only successful super hero themed MMO to date, City of Heroes. The challenge that Cryptic faces will be if Champions Online offers gamers something completely original, or if it's just merely City of Heroes 2.0.

Playing Dress Up