Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Video game update

Sorry that i haven't been able to post in my blog lately, fellow followers. But between work and other stuff, I really haven't had much time to do anything else.

So here goes my update:

Quake Live:
Quake Live recently had a recent update that added 4 premium maps!
It also moved around some spawns and power ups if I am correct, but i can't totally remember which ones.
Either way, it's still very fun to play!
You should all go check it out: it's completely free!(if you haven't already)


For more information on the update, and Quake Live, go here:

http://www.quakelive.com/forum/showthread.php?4165-Site-Update-September-28-2010


Halo Reach:

Halo Reach has proven to be a worthy title. But with playlist problems, such as Swat and Snipers, people, such as I, became easily irked at the fact that we can't enjoy our favorite gametypes and have to put up with people who want to play Call of Duty in Halo.


BUT NOT FOR LONG!
On October 7th, Bungie will release a playlist update that will remove Swat from all playlists and make it its own playlist. With other updates to, many of us are eager to once again enjoy matchmaking. :)

For more information on the playlist update, and Halo Reach, go here:

http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx?postID=49468605


Free Microsoft Points:

Microsoft is having a current offer that can get you some free Microsoft points, and it's pretty easy to do. Apparently, Bing is not doing as well as Microsoft planned for it to do. So what does Microsoft decide to do? Bribe people into using it! Win- win for some people! By installing the toolbar, you automatically get 250 points. Searching 16 things on Bing will give you a total of 10 points, and they have little "offers" that give you 3 points for just clicking 1 link. How awesome is this?

For more information on Bing, Microsoft Points, and Microsoft in general, go here:

http://gizmodo.com/5647150/microsoft-bribes-you-with-rewards-to-use-bing





My Rant:

You know what i hate about Call of Duty games?
How I have to CLICK the mouse, MY mouse i bought with money, in order to ADS.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Quake Live

So after deciding to play Quake Live in a while(I've been playing too much Halo Reach), I just realized that I'm missing out on a free premium event.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Halo Reach Review(unfinished)

Bungie's most recent project, Halo Reach, for the Xbox 360, has officially been out for a week now. Since then, most players have been able to get accustomed to the newest installment in the Halo franchise.

So what does Halo Reach do to differentiate itself from the previous installments? Many things, but at the same time, it does not stray away too much the core gameplay that the previous Halo games have established. The biggest, and most noticeable change to Halo Reach is the addition of Armor Abilities and Loadouts.  Loadouts, are chosen when a match starts, which consists of an Armor Ability and a weapon set. But, Loadouts can be changed only in the beginning of a match, round, or if you're waiting to spawn. Armor Abilities are exactly what the title implies; they add abilities to your Armor. These armor abilities are all different and work different in each scenario.

Armor Lock gives the player temporary invincibility, but the player becomes immobile as long as Armor Lock is active. It's really good for taking out vehicles, such as a Ghost, that are rushing towards your direction, or EMP'ing multiple enemy shields if you're surrounded. Also, if you're near death, you can extend the time it will take to kill you, giving you the opportunity to ask for support- though this is usually frowned upon the community, and is seen as a cheap tactic. 



Active Camouflage is exactly what the title states: the player, upon activating the Armor Ability, becomes invisible. This works really well if the player is trying to play stealthy or trying to assassinate an enemy going by. Though sudden movement causes the player to lose their camouflage, this can be avoided by crouching. Beware, this jams your radar and can confuse you!

A squad inside a Drop Shield, restoring their health.
The Drop Shield is a mixture between the Bubble Shield and Deployable Cover, both found in Halo 3. The Drop Shield retains the same bubble shape from Halo 3, but like the Deployable Cover, with enough damage, it can be destroyed. But, that's not all it does; the players inside the Drop Shield restore their health, that would otherwise have to be restored with Health Packs found around the maps.



Evade and Sprint, like the Armor Title state, give Spartans and Elites the ability to either Evade by rolling, or Sprint for a certain amount of time. Both can easily cover ground in seconds, but the downside is that the user is unable to attack while using either ability.



Jet Pack gives the user the ability to use a Jet Pack and reach higher places. This Armor Ability is great to give support from the air to your teammates that are on ground. Beware though, since Halo Reach has fall damage, your Jet Pack fuel is not unlimited and you'll have to use it wisely if you're not planning on landing on top of high ground.
ODSTs using Jet Packs to reach and clear high ground.


The final Armor Ability, Hologram, creates a Hologram of the user that runs in a straight direction. Though the Hologram cannot shoot, and will only walk in a straigh line, wherever directed to, it creates great distraction between multiple users. This can be used to deceive a sniper that may have you pinned down, and give you time to escape through an alternate route.




Now, the Armor Abilities and Loadouts in Halo Reach aren't "stealing" perks from the Call of Duty franchise; you don't have to level up and unlock Armor Abilities or unlock weapons and make your classes- or upgrade them for that matter. Armor Abilities and Loadouts solely depend on the gametype you're playing. For example, if you're playing playing Team Slayer Pro on Countdown, you'll only be able to choose from 2 loadouts: a DMR(Designated Marskman Rifle) with a pistol as a secondary and two Frag grenades; or the loadout that has a Needle Rifle, with a pistol as a secondary, and two Plasma grenades. Both these loadouts only have the Sprint Armor Ability. But, in contrast to Team Slayer Pro, BTB(Big Team Battle) Slayer consists of all the Armor Abilities. This gives variety to the players and each one can benefit from the other, if teamwork is present.


Many of us are familiar with this.

Breaking from the old, unhealthy habits that Halo 2 and Halo 3 established, Halo Reach, much like ODST and Combat Evolved have fall damage. If the player falls from a place too high, he or she will take damage for falling. But, with enough practice and timing, fall damage can be negated if the player crouches when they're about to land. Also, much like Halo 1 and ODST, the player will not regenerate health, to an extent. Health only "regenerates" up by thirds, on certain occasions. But if the player has red health, then he or she will have to scavenge for a health pack.

The shooting mechanics are similar to Halo 3, but not a rehash of it. Bungie decided to give bloom to weapons in order to give weapons their appropriate role and not be abused in other ranges. Though weapons like the Assault Rifle can still be effective at longer ranges, the bloom makes the player carefully burst- fire for successful hits.


to be continued...