The Growth of Twitch

When Twitch.tv branched off from the less focused Justin.tv back in 2011, it was predominantly used for eSports and general broadcasts. Now, in the year 2014, every John, Dick and Harry has a stream up showing off their gameplay for their favourite titles.

For streamers, the challenge is to make their channel stand out from the hefty crowd, and with Twitch playing host to around 1 million unique broadcasters a month during 2014, getting noticed is no easy feat. Streaming is a very competitive business and it takes a lot of effort and guile to keep the audience engaged and the viewership growing.

It’s usually a fresh idea that gets an audience growing but the vast amount of broadcasters it’s hard to be noticed. A good recent example of playing outside the box was “TwitchPlaysPokemon”. The channel allowed gamers to watch a full playthrough of Pokemon Red by inputting commands into the stream chat. It took 16 long days of sporadic commands, from 120,000 users, to finally beat the Elite Four but it became a thought provoking experiment for many (even those that didn’t take part). 

The three most popular games on Twitch are, and have been for a long time, League of Legends, Starcraft II and Dota 2. These are all cornerstones of competitive PC gaming so it’s hardly surprising that the output reflect the games popularity. However, the launch of the current console generation has seen many PlayStation 4 and Xbox One exclusives taking a seat at the table. Because broadcasting can be particularly casual it’s easy to grab a few viewers or to see how a game plays before picking it up yourself – it’s more difficult to make it into the big time. Most serious Twitch channels are expressed through Twitter as well as Facebook and Reddit. The PlayStation and Xbox One crowds have added 1 million additional broadcasters to these numbers so we can only expect for the volume of channels to get even bigger. 
Personally, I don’t think streaming works as a substitution to playing games but rather an addition to make gaming even more fund.

Streams like TheJustinFlynn has over 70,000 followers and is one of the most prominent success stories to come out of the medium. In fact broadcaster Justine Flynn, an aspiring Pokemon X and Y pro has used Twitch to teach others the mechanics of the title and its deep battle systems. It’s not being used to make him a better player, but also his audience.

Another well-known channel ManVsGame, from Jayson Love, now has 140,000 Twitch followers that watch him beat particularly difficult games. His stream has seen him conquer the Dead Space series, Splinter Cell: Blacklist and, more recently, Outlast on its highest setting. It sounds like every gamers dream to play games and to make them fun but, and Jayson shows this, you need a certain amount of charisma to keep the crowds entertained – and therefore coming back for more.

The more Internet traffic shown to Twitch, the more views and channels are bound to come up. Rajakaru Games are now streaming – not excessively – as are many other publications. It’s a great concept that has made the founders a whole lot of money, and many more gamers very, very happy.

Do you stream? Do you watch Twitch? If so please let us know your thoughts below. In fact, if you have an aversion to Twitch please also let us know why.

Read More

Content Announced for the Destiny Final Release

The Destiny beta for the PS4, Xbox One, PS3, and Xbox 360 is now finished, but the Bungie Community Manager David “DeeJ” Dague has been answering some questions about what will be included when the 9th September global release comes around. 

On a recent 2old2play livestream, Deej confirmed that each planet will have one location to explore when the game launches - much like the section of Russia we saw during the last couple of weeks.

“We’re calling them destinations. You go to Mars, you go to the moon, you go to Venus, you’ve got Earth,” DeeJ explained.

“We’ve revealed everything that you’ll explore in the first version of the game,” he continued. “You’ll be [going to] Earth. Your story takes you from the wastes of the Cosmodrome, which was essentially our Cape Canaveral of the Golden Age. It’s where we launched off as a global society, where we rushed out into the solar system to colonise and use what the Traveller gave us.”

Even though there’s only one area to explore per location, the beta showed that there is a large amount of area to cover on Earth alone. As most of you are aware parts of Old Russia were blocked off by barriers or by Fallen and Hive enemies that were "immune" to combat or much higher than the level 8 cap of the beta. In the brief 2-hour period that the Moon was made available in the beta on Saturday night we were able to explore deep into the Hellmouth for almost an hour before hitting these same barriers so we're very excited about what is included within these "sandboxes".

In all, there are seven different “destinations” in Destiny for players to explore — the Earth, the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, and The Reef (a part of the asteroid belt), plus the Crucible multiplayer maps. DeeJ also confirmed that the areas seen in the Crucible maps for Mars and Venus during the beta will be part of the regular destinations for the single/coop section of the game as well.

It's also be found, by Reddit user DestinyDB, through data mining some more information about the missions and destinations. This is by no means everything, or at least we don't believe it is, but even so it's a lot of information and therefore missions to take part in (and remember there are also "harder" versions of most assignments too).

Warning: The below could be considered spoilers so avoid direct eye contact for safety if you're worried....

Earth Story Missions
Old Russia, Earth – The cradle of humanity – a world of ancient glory, waiting to be retaken.
A Guardian Rises (level 1)
Restoration (levels 2, 5)
The Dark Within (levels 3, 6)
The Warmind (levels 4, 7)
The Last Array (levels 5, 8)
Earth Story Challenges
The Queen’s Wrath (Kill Order; level 24)

Earth Strikes
Nightfall: The Devils’ Lair (levels 22, 26, 28)
The Devils’ Lair (levels 6, 8)

Moon Story Missions
Oceans of Storms – An ancient evil stirs beneath the shattered surface of our moon.
The Dark Beyond (levels 6, 9)
The Sword of Crota (levels 7, 10)
The World’s Grave (levels 7, 10)
Shrine of Oryx (levels 8, 11)
Chamber of Night (levels 8, 11)

Moon Strikes
Nightfall: The Summoning Pits (levels 22, 26, 28)
The Summoning Pits (level 12)

The Reef Story Missions
The Reef, Asteroid Belt – Dare to strike a bargain with the ruthless Queen.
The Awoken (level 10)
A Key Awaits (level 12)

Venus Story Missions
Ishtar Sink – The jungles of Venus conceal great treasures – and terrible power.
A Stranger’s Call (levels 10, 12)
Ishtar Collective (levels 10, 12)
The Archive (levels 11, 13)
Scourge of Winter (levels 11, 13)
Eye of a Gate Lord (levels 12, 14)

Venus Strikes
Nightfall: The Nexus (levels 22, 26, 28)
Nightfall: Winter’s Run (levels 22, 26, 28)
The Nexus (level 14)
Winter’s Run (level 14)

Mars Story Missions
Meridian Bay – In the sandswept carcass of a lost city, dark forces gather for war.
Exclusion Zone (levels 15, 17)
The Garden’s Spire (levels 16, 18)
A Rising Tide (levels 17, 19)
The Buried City (levels 17, 19)
The Black Garden (levels 18, 20)

Mars Strikes
Nightfall: Cerberus Vae III (levels 22, 26, 28)
Cerberus Vae III (level 18)
Dust Palace (level 18)

Confirmed Crucible Maps
Earth
Twilight Gap
Rusted Lands
Exodus Blue
Moon
First Light
The Anomaly
Mars
Bastion
Firebase Delphi
Blind Watch
Venus
Asylum
Shores of Time
Mercury
The Burning Shrine

Read More

Destiny Beta Overview

The Destiny Beta is now opened to everyone and the Rajakaru team have been playing through the content over the past few days (none of us own PlayStation consoles so we’re a bit behind). The application gives, in most cases, gamers the first chance to see a generous slice of Bungie’s long awaited sci-fi FPS since they left Halo to 343 Industries.

I’ve now played about 10 hours exploring the Cosmodrome and have taken part in everything the beta has to offer – as such I felt it would be good for you all to see a rundown of what is being offered this week. Which, by the way, is now open to everyone – no codes necessary.

After choosing whether to play as a Titan, Warlock or Hunter (see Fighter, Rogue and Wizard) you’re going to be treated to an introduction session of how to play and what to pay attention to. There are also three options on race but as far as we can tell this is aesthetic only. The opening cinematic is quickly followed by an introduction to your new AI Ghost; voiced by the fantastic Peter Dinklage. Whom, for those that care, is far from the terrible audio many had lead me to believe.

You get to run through a section of the game that, if you’ve seen the video, will be very familiar. After discovering your ‘ride’ for the beta zones you’ve shipped offer to the traveller and it’s hub before being allowed to explore in the PvE sandbox (which fantastically doesn’t include any loading screens despite a substantial offering).

In fact you’ll get 4 full story missions that introduce the different enemies scattered through the lands, a handful of flavoursome weapons and even the Sparrow hover-bike to zip around on. The foes come in various different sizes and the Fallen are the first to be introduced. The Dregs are similar to Halo’s Grunts, easy to take down, while their counterparts the Vandals put up a fight similar to that of Jackels. There are also some tougher foes which can be linked to Elites and Brutes.

After a while you’ll also get treated to the Hive – a bit like the Flood, again from Halo (can you see where I’m going here?). They aren’t nearly as annoying but again come in forms that are easy to take down and go up to Elite standards.  Finally, and for the life of me I can’t remember at what point, you’ll also come up against Shanks that are little floating robots; they only take a few shots to go down but they can be nimble and catch you from a vertical height too.

The Hive and the Fallen aren’t the best of friends and you’ll often see firefights between the two parties. Each race has a specific set of ‘special’ enemies too which you’ll see sporadically through the story missions and also in free-roam (where short missions and bounties are optional).

Between missions you’ll be able to explore The Tower, Destiny’s central hub that acts as a place to buy upgrade, make friends and exchange glimmer – the in game currency – for new armour and emblems.

Probably the most enjoyable section of the beta, for me, was the Devil’s Lair Strike mission. If you’re lucky enough to get up to a suitable level this quest is designed for cooperative gameplay and clocks in at around 20-30 minutes in length. You’ll fight against various enemies in large volumes and a lack of communication will end in failure (grab some like-minded friends). This is, I believe, the only chance you’ll get to face off with a Devil Walker (a Fallen tank).

When that’s all said and done you’ll be able to start again with another character or explore the Cosmodrome some more. Some areas are impossible to traverse (with immune enemies to ensure you don’t get outside the available areas) but you’re almost never stuck for options. If you can see if, generally, you can go there. You’ll see other player, fight in momentary one-off tasks, and find new weapons and armour to try out. The beta peaks at level 8, which took me around 4 hours to reach but that didn’t stop my drive to continue playing one bit.

You’ll also get one PvP section at level five carefully titled, The Crucible. This is a three flag conquest style game-mode with teams of 6 facing off. There is only one mode but the beta does come with four very aesthetically distinct maps.

Unfortunately there isn’t any news yet on whether you can transfer progress into the final game – due for release globally in September – but if you’re playing at 9pm GMT on Saturday night then you can expect something cool to be handed out to you when the final release comes around (no news on what this is though)

The beta closed on 27^th July so you all have a few days to enjoy it.

Let us know what you’ve thought of it, or leave us a question, in the comments section below.


------------------------------------------------------------

You can follow Richard on Twitter by clicking here.
You can follow Rajakaru Games on Twitter by clicking here.

Read More

Watch Dogs Review: Hack-a-lacking

I’m going to break this review down into a single questions – it’s the one on everybody’s lips – “Is Watch Dogs as good as the hype suggests?”

 

Frankly its neither the tragic failure some expected nor the introduction to a 'proper' next-gen others craved, Watch Dogs is instead best thought of as an open-world sandbox: Chicago Edition. As with other titles from the publisher – Far Cry and Assassin's Creed being the obvious examples – it is almost compulsively appealing, thanks to Ubisoft Montreal's tried and true onslaught of collectibles, missions, sidequests and other bite-sized reward loops.

 

The gameplay is as fluid as the best parts of Assassin’s Creed where the systems complement the player rather than hindering them. I’ve played around 20 hours of the title so far, and honestly haven’t made it to the end, so feel I am in a strong position to tell you that I haven’t been bored yet. Sadly, I haven’t been thrilled very often either.

Watch Dogs is set in a fairly large, populated, sandbox but doesn’t catch the intrigue of Creed or the appeal of Far Cry – instead feeling like the love child of GTA and Driver. Critically the title is let down by not feeling like a living “breathing” world. NPC’s walk the streets but seem, largely, like robots out for a stroll in a world they don’t really understand. Thankfully, this is somewhat saved by the titles focus on giant corporations and social inequality; which the world does very well to diversify in its five moderately different districts.

Probably the strangest element, and the one most people are interesting in, is the fact the Hacking plays a relatively small part in the proceedings. The morally dubious activities undertaken by Aiden are a stark contrast to the main storyline and the abuse of power he deals with in it. The interface for interacting with the city is exciting, at first, but quickly fall’s foul of Watch Dogs own marketing features. You’ll blow out lights, hack road signs and lift bridges but it never gets any more involved than that. It’s like the bonus perks of GTA with a little but more spice added in.

At some points you’ll hack the bank accounts of the very people you are looking to “help”. It’s a strange decision that’s made worse by the fact that every action has a negative quality to it and it makes Aiden less enjoyable to play as.

Watch Dogs does take a lot of pointers from Ubisoft’s other titles and fills the world with many enjoyable activities for the player to enjoy outside of the main quest. Side-missions and activities are fun to complete and are the right length that they don’t get boring before you get to try something else new. The only nuance to this is the relatively samey main quests as the drive/hack/escape dynamic can only last so long without feeling repetitive.

The online portions of the game work exceptionally well. The hacking and tracking gameplay is interesting but can get a tad tedious when you are on the receiving end for any length of time. Patience is a virtue here and sometime just playing the “waiting game” holds more than its fair share of rewards. It also has a nice twist on the Assassins Creed multiplayer ideas and if you are a fan of that set-up then you’ll certainly find a lot to enjoy here.

In practice the game works: it’s fundamentally interesting, at times looks amazing (especially the water effect on the next gen system), has good shooting/cover gameplay and AI that seems to learn your movements. The problem with it is that we have seen most, if not all of, this before. It hits the high benchmark we expect from AAA titles but it doesn’t push the boundaries in any directions.

6/10. Good, but not Great!

Read More

An Honest Advert for Trials Fusion

Trails Fusion is not a game for stressed individuals.



You can follow Richard on Twitter by clicking here.
You can follow Rajakaru Games on Twitter by clicking here.

Read More

Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes - The Rajakaru Review

So, I’ve had a rant about my initial interpretations on Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes and, while I’m still convinced this is a poor attempt at a sale product, I do feel there the need to review this as the title it stands to be.

As Metal Gear games go, “Ground Zeroes” is a stripped down feature that avoids the typical norm by dropping lengthy cutscenes, climactic boss fights, and the usual frayed and tangled plot strands. Instead Hideo Kojima has played for a more action orientated title with smart, tactical gameplay and a central campaign that shows of the superb, effortlessly crafted sandbox style due to come with Phantom Pain.

While the central campaign is very short – hitting the steady heights of two hours – it does have a multitude of additional campaign missions to encourage replayability. Again these are set in the same locales but have different daytime cycles (some taking place during the day – while the main campaign is set during a rainy night) and weather condition (one particularly fun side mission sees you take to the camp during the height of summer). It’s an interesting dynamic that effectively changes the mechanics of each mission – enemies see clearly during the daytime, while rain muffles the sounds of Snakes movement. The weather genuinely changes the feeling of Omega Base too and it’s in these details that Ground Zeroes is most impressive. The world is wonderfully realised and presented sharply both indoors and outdoors.

For the first time in a Metal Gear game, Boss’ adventure is a non-linear one, played out in the US Naval Prison Facility known as Omega Base. It’s a small sandbox, where the corridors and rooms littered with conveniently placed containers we’ve grown so familiar with have been replaced with a sprawling, functional ecosystem, full of open industrial areas and heavily populated camps surrounded by a raging sea.

As this is the prologue for the upcoming, and full access title, Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain (due 2015), you can see glimmers of previous demo titles in its structure. The tanker section from Sons of Liberty jumps straight to mind although with a much more expansive setting.

The plot here is a lot darker in tone than what we’ve come to expect from Hideo Kojima and that desire to make Metal Gear into a grittier, more provocative, series can be seen from the outset. While I do appreciate these ambitions – and the series had been a little cartoonish before – I found the ending, which features some horrendously graphic cruelty, quite uncomfortable (although I’m sure that is exactly what they wanted). In fact it’s in these cinematic moments that the Fox Engine doesn’t hold up so well. I agree with most fanboys (and girls) arguments that this is when the Engine is most stretched but the main gameplay looks far more interesting; with long draw distances, clear textures and individual personalities for each area.

But the problem here, and for a full retail priced title (as in the same as Rayman Origins that has 50+ hours of gameplay), it is over far too quickly. When I rushed through it, I was finished in less than an hour, but taking my time still only took my just under 3. The length might not bother those coming into the title knowing what it’s like but the casual gamer may not be so happy.

Ground Zeroes is so adept at generating tension that at times it felt like I was playing a survival horror game. While Boss has never been more flexible; able to roll and jump and shoot in line with today’s top third-person action-adventure games, enemies are smart and plentiful too. In the harsh light of day - and played on Hard mode - they possess cruel 20/20 vision, and react to every little movement or shifting shadow by becoming more efficacious in their patrolling.

However, you’re given a couple of helpful gameplay mechanics to counter this high pressure stealth system – on Hard mode these are essential. Firstly you get a pair of binoculars that allow you to ‘tag’ enemies to track their movements and also the Boss’ iDroid which provides map and mission information.

Obviously, with Ground Zeroes being an open world game, you can skip the sneaking completely and go in all guns blazing. It’s chaotic but immensely pleasurable at the same time; especially when you blow everything to hell in a tank.  

A few of the ‘side missions’ drop the action gameplay a little too hard – with one seeing you mow down enemies off the side of a helicopter – but they also give us a sense of the diversity being offered in the Phantom Pain title.

Otherwise, and it pains be slightly to say it, this is a fairly rounded but short offering. Yes, the title holds up well and looks lovely to boot but, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being short-changed. If I had to sum up Ground Zeroes in one attempt it’s like waiting for a train and then not being able to sit down when it arrives. You know the title has the gameplay you expect but by the end of it you feel like you’ve paid for more than you, as a minimum, deserve.

[I can’t quite believe I compared Ground Zeroes to Southern Rail]

Read More

Assassins Creed IV: Black Flag - Video Review

Dave has been playing a lot of the new Assassins Creed game, you should see what he thinks about it.



You can follow Richard on Twitter by clicking here.
You can follow Rajakaru Games on Twitter by clicking here.

Read More

Plants vs. Zombie Garden Warfare - Video Review

Dave has been playing a lot of the new Plants vs. Zombie game, you should see what he thinks about it.



You can follow Richard on Twitter by clicking here.
You can follow Rajakaru Games on Twitter by clicking here.

Read More

Sales Expectations - Xbox One vs. PlayStation 4

It has been predicted, my an analyst far superior to myself, that the Xbox One will enjoy higher launch window sales than its PlayStation 4 counterpart. Colin Sebastian of Baird Research had created this forecast of an industry insight.

He says, "While many forecasts still give an edge to Sony/PS4 in North America sales, we continue to expect similar or even slightly higher sales of Xbox One by the end of the launch window.”

The conjecture is backed up by data from eBay listings, which shows Xbox One mark-ups 60% north of the console's $500 price tag (in the US) whilst those of PS4 are just a tick lower at roughly 50% more than its respective $400 asking price.

The analyst divines the platform holders will collectively move between 5 million and 6 million units globally by the end of the year and that the earlier release date will give Microsoft a slight edge as well. He also foretells that retailers will have a hard time keeping stock on shelves.

"Retailers in our checks indicate there is consumer demand well in excess of supply, as evidenced by fast sell-outs of incremental unit allotments, such as at GameStop," Sebastian noted.

5 or 6 million units a month before Christmas would certainly be a feat for both hardware distributors. This result would easily surpass the expected volume of available consoles in store fronts across the planet.

Read More

What Should I Buy? PlayStation 4 or Xbox One?

The next Xbox and PlayStation hardware are a little over a month away from being released in the UK and if you haven’t already now is the time to pre-order them to ensure you’ve got one this side of the Christmas.

However, the real question is which one do you choose?

Initially I would recommend that, if you have one of the current consoles, then you stick to upgrading your favourite one. But the real issue is which one do you buy if you’re a first timer or if you can only get one and have no real preference on the current generation?

Controllers

Probably the most important thing to consider is the controller itself. Both consoles are relatively similar in their gaming quality, what will be offered and its features so consider the thing that will be strapped to your hands the majority of the time you’ll be using it.

If you have small hands or want something lightweight then the PlayStation 4 is probably where you should look first. The new controller has been tweaked to expand the space between each button, implement a touch pad but has also managed to maintain its standard ‘feel’. I’m a larger fan of the Xbox – obviously – but having played the PlayStation 4 regularly over the last few weeks I have to say the new style is a massive improvement.

On the flip side; if you have larger hands or want to feel like you are actually holding something then the Xbox One controller has tweaks all the is great with current generations offering. The new controller has been micromanaged in over – and I quote - ‘500 improvements’ to just perfect the formula already created. It’s smooth but at the same time it grips onto surfaces to reduce the likelihood of damaging the hardware from being dropped.

Incidentally the Xbox One also comes with Kinect; the motion sensor and body movement tool. All the consoles will automatically come with this piece of hardware and I can confirm, first hand, that this is a massive improvement over its predecessor. The system is even capable of reading your heart rate through your clothing by reviewing contours of the skin, colour, exertion and sweat. I played Kinect Sport Rivals at EGX last month and am happy to report that this is exceptionally responsive and clearly tracks everything from fingers to eye movement.

Games

Unfortunately, even when choosing a Video Games console, the actually decision in purchasing a specific option cannot be considered too greatly on the actual software offerings that are available. 80% of the games being released on the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One will simultaneously release on the other console anyway. However there are a few games that you can guarantee will only hit one or the other and these are the ones to keep in mind before purchasing the next generation hardware.

Halo has always been a Microsoft title and with the fifth instalment due some-point early in the lifecycle you can expect that this won’t be making its way over to the PlayStation. On the other hand Naughty Dog seem to have a glowing reputation with Sony and since ‘The Last of Us’ and ‘Uncharted’ have been such massive hits I doubt they’ll give up their exclusivity too soon.

When it comes to release day titles the only ones that spring to mind are ‘Knack’ on the PS4 and Forza on the Xbox One. Neither of these, for me at least, are game changers – I’d look forward rather than what’s due to hit on the doorstep on day one.

What do you currently own?

Chances are, if you are a hardcore gamer, you will have a console already and would have a preference for which offer you’ll be going for. Most current generation owners that are thinking about switching are probably Xbox 360 gamers that are worried about the internet rumours that plagued forums following the Xbox One release. My advice – ignore it! Most of the hellish comments doing the rounds were completely wrong or incorrectly interpreted. Xbox One does not always need to be online and you can trade in your old games as normal.

Everyone has a favoured current generation console and the updated/next gen version from the same developer should be where you go next.  Have you ever tried playing FIFA 14 on your non-home console? It’s a nightmare. Stay with what you’re used to.

What are you using it for? Just Video Games?

This is probably one of the areas that will only affect some of you; but it is a valid consideration. Xbox One comes with a lot of additional ‘entertainment’ options compared to its PlayStation counterpart. Both will feature the standard apps like BBC iPlayer, Skype and Netflix but the Xbox One will come with quite a lot more.

Coming build with the standard panel features of Windows 8 you can snap applications to different sections of the screen. Xbox One lets you quickly jump from TV to a movie to a game. And then snap them side by side to do two things simultaneously. Music and games together or Skype video calls and live sports – it really is easy. Split your screen to do everything, you want, all at once.

You can also connect you cable, satellite or other HDMI hardware through the console allowing you to drop in an out of each to create your own personal hub.

PlayStation meanwhile will feature online options, applications too but not the hub that the Xbox One supports. Its primarily a Video Games console in the truest form of the word.

Overall

You probably know what you’re after, you probably have a favourite anyway – but, if not, follow the guide above and you’re sure to get exactly what you are after.

Comment below if you have already ordered your console, we want to know which you went for and why? Otherwise what are you thinking about getting? Do you want some advice? What games did you or are you going to pre-order? Let’s get this next gen discussion flowing.

 

 

Read More

Diablo 3 - Personal Review

I played a lot of Diablo, and its sequel Diablo 2 back on my old PC. In fact I pumped so many hours into both titles that the franchise is on my shortlist of favourite all time video games. Having said that, I have not once played the PC version of Diablo 3; therefore my first experience of the title came with the Xbox 360 release.

 

Let’s get the negatives out of the way first – or should I say negative. The story in Diablo 3 is by far the titles weakest element. Fortunately, in the case of these action adventure titles, it isn’t that important anyway. Purely giving you a reason to slay the masses of evil creatures sprawled across the lands. Essentially it’s the same stuff you saw in the first two titles; the evil demon Diablo and his Prime Evils are threatening to consume the world again. It’s the player who has been employed to stop them. It’s nothing new and nothing exciting.

 

 

On a different note, if you scroll through various forums it has been noted that the graphics of the 360 version aren’t quite up there with the PC counterpart. However, it’s a massive achievement to show off this game, still with a high quality pallet, running at 60 fps and holding up to 50 characters on screen at once – and never once in my playtime have I experienced any form of lag. So personally I feel it looks great.

 

The sounds that complement the graphics are top notch too. Each direct hit feels weighted and strong due to the clatter of swards, explosions from spells and cries from vanquished creatures. The whole experience feels brutal and perfectly suited to the gameplay style.

 

Speaking of gameplay, this is exactly the area that the game excels in. You start by selecting one of five available characters: the Barbarian, a melee heavy brute; the Monk, a fast, agile and deadly martial artist; the Demon Hunter, a professional archer that can employ some traps; the Witch Doctor, a voodoo summoner of undead and other minions; and the Wizard, an arcane magic wielding powerhouse. Each can be made to be female or male, unlike the gender sets of the previous titles.

 

I’ve always been a fan of the ‘tanks’ in cooperative games so I’ve instantly found myself wandering around with a two-handed axe wielding Barbarian. Although I have seen the other characters played, or have tried them myself, so I can be sure that they offer a varied set of abilities and traits that set each of them apart.

 

Diablo 3 is set in the same isometric action-based devises of the previous titles and you can easily find yourself exploring every crack and crevice for each of the ‘out of town’ combat areas. Most sets of enemies drop gold, weapons, armour or other forms of loot for you to add to your inventory and upgrade. The groups of enemies are frequent, but not to the point that map exploration ever becomes a chore, so each ‘loot’ quest becomes completely exciting and unexpected.

 

The maps, this time around, are not truly randomly generated like they were in Diablo 2. The geography, meaning the shape and borders of each map, is always the same, but which dungeons are open as well as their placement and contents are randomised.

 

 

The game focuses on raiding dungeons, collecting the aforementioned loot and boss encounters. Your character levels up, unlocks new skills and goes from townsman (or a woman) that struggles with Skeletons to a demon hunting god that makes short work of any foe. And it’s this constantly moving, and improving, platform that keeps you playing. You can even craft weapons and armour, and upgrade them, to push the character growth even further.

 

The lifespan of this game is massive; I’ve played through the campaign twice now and still haven’t scratched the surface properly. There are four difficulties to choose from, ranging between Medium and Inferno, as well as the opportunities to jump in and out of online co-op with the flick of a button. You can also, if you wish, play through Hardcore mode; which gives your poor character only one life.

 

Probably, and again I’ve heard it mentioned on forums, the biggest change between the 360 version and its PC parent is the control system. Each face button, or trigger, relates to a specific skill, which can be assigned on the fly. Each option opens as the player levels up and each skill comes with its own distinct advantages and disadvantages for you to be aware of. The menus are now set up in a radial style and allows for quick and simple navigation.

 

Additionally, the 360 version of the game features a dodge ability, linked to the right control stick, which I am told didn't exist in the PC version. When you're going toe to toe with a really nasty boss and getting yourself ground to a pulp, it helps to be able to roll out of the way or do a back flip to evade that next strike. It can by you some time to let your skills power up or use a badly needed health potion, and I have no doubt that effective use of the dodge ability is the key to surviving and winning Hardcore mode. It's a great addition to an already great game.

 

Diablo 3 kept pretty much all of the best parts of Diablo and Diablo 2, and has been upgraded dramatically from its PC outing based on fan feedback. The game itself has been nothing but a blast to play, and I can already predict my girlfriend is going to end up hating this game for the amount of time that it's going to suck away from my life in the next few months.

 

 

Read More