Monday, October 26, 2015

Here's when the New Xbox One Experience and Backwards Compatibility Releases

Hey Guys, Major Nelson has revealed that the highly anticipated backwards compatibility feature and New Xbox One Experience will release much earlier than originally thought.

Check the tweet here.
 I'm sorry I didn't post anything yesterday. I'm kind of feeling terrible after what happened on last night's Walking Dead episode. I'm not going into full details as I don't want to spoil anything.
Till Next Time!!

Saturday, October 24, 2015

Get Fallout 4 22% off on Steam

Hey Guys, sometimes I wish I was a PC gamer. I was on Destructoid and apparently there is this coupon code you can use to get Fallout 4 22% off as well as a number of other games on Steam.

I'm not so sure how true this is, but it wouldn't hurt to use the code as it's only for the weekend. If you do use the code, then Fallout 4 should be $46.80 instead of $59.99.

I'm sorry that there is nothing really new for today, so I had to find something to post about.
Till Next Time!!

Friday, October 23, 2015

Fallout 4 Has Gone Gold!

Hey Guys, great news has come from Bethesda about Fallout 4! The game has finally gone gold meaning the game is ready to ship.

You can check out the original tweet here
Although the game is ready to be shipped, I don't want Bethesda to release it any earlier because there are probably some tweaks that they might want to do with the game to make sure it's in the best state possible. 

If you didn't know this by now, but Dell will be selling an Xbox One bundle that comes with Gears of War: Ultimate Edition and Fallout 4 for just $300.
Till Next Time!!

Thursday, October 22, 2015

Xbox 360 Sales Declining: My Thoughts

Hey Guys, I hope that all of you are having a great day! I'm posting a day earlier because I feel lazy and I actually have something to talk about! Seriously, I wonder why this is even news.

Anyways, Microsoft announced that their revenue from gaming grew 6%; however, their software sales were offset by Xbox console sales.

There are positives to this article, but you can check it out here. I just want to get to my thoughts.

What I find funny about this article is the fact that Microsoft didn't try to justify the reason why Xbox sales are down. At the same time, it would be even funnier if they came up with an excuse, but it's as if they knew that there is no way they would come up with an excuse that isn't obvious.

It's simple why Xbox 360 sales are slowing down. the Xbox One is out. I don't know how many times I have to say this, but last-gen consoles are pretty much going to be obsolete as people will have no choice but to upgrade.

The Xbox One is even going to have a price drop on Black Friday, so why would anyone even bother trying to buy an Xbox 360? I know that the Xbox 360 is a cheaper alternative, but it's losing AAA support dramatically.
Till Next Time!!

Monday, October 19, 2015

Check out the Limited Edition Fallout 4 Xbox One Controller

Hey Guys, I know that I have a schedule that I said I would stick too, but I have to make up for the missed articles over the weekend. Anyways, I thought this was a cool thing that I have to share.

Before I say anything about the controller, Bethesda is having a sale at their online store. It's only lasting a week and these are probably the coolest Fallout merchandise that I've seen in a while. I believe it's like a 20% most products besides video games.

Take a look at the controller,

Remember, this is literally a limited edition controller

Only 5,000 of these will be made for sale starting tomorrow. The price hasn't been revealed, yet. Keep in mind that this controller is wired, so you won't even have to worry about charging any batteries.

This is a cool-looking controller. If you can get your hands on it, I would highly suggest buying this controller before it's gone because it will become a collector's item.

There's also this Great War t-shirt that looks awesome as well. You can get it for $16 or get it for free if you pre-order Fallout 4 through the online store. That's actually a pretty good deal considering the design of the shirt.

Don't forget to sign up for the giveaway that the store is doing as it's literally going to giveaway Fallout 4 merchandise to people every Monday until November 9th. All you have to do is give your e-mail address.
Till Next Time!!

Sunday, October 18, 2015

This is why the COD: Black Ops III Loyalty Program kind of sucks...

Hey Guys, sorry it's been about a day since I last posted. I've actually been out of the house almost all day and didn't have the time to post anything. Fortunate, nothing major has happened yesterday. However, I do want to talk about this loyalty program that Black Ops III will have and why it kind of sucks. No, I'm not saying this is important either. I just ran out of things to talk about.

Is this appealing? 

This offer applies to players who have played Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Call of Duty: Ghosts, and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. You do have to reach the levels presented in the image above and link your account by November 5th, 2015.

Although I may sound like a hypocrite, but I do find it unfair that this is only for current generation console owners and PC. It's just a calling card, some reticles and a camo. Will it really make a difference to give it to last-gen users as well? I'm actually surprised they didn't make this an exclusive to PlayStation 4 users.

However, that's my main complaint. It's just a calling card, some reticles, and a camo. If this "loyalty" program really wanted to thank players for playing past Call of Duty games, why not give some free map packs or discount them at the least? Seriously, this is coming from a company that can afford this due to how much money they will make on just this one game.

Why in the world do people have to link their account anyway? I know it doesn't take that long to link your account, but Call of Duty: Ghosts calling cards or background designs to players who have played Black Ops II or Modern Warfare 3.

I'm sorry I can't go on any longer. I'm feeling pretty tired as I'm writing this pretty late at night. In all seriousness, this still sucks.
Till Next Time!!

Friday, October 16, 2015

EA has no Interest in HD remakes: My Thoughts

Hey Guys, this has to be one of the most funniest things that I have read all year. What exactly makes this so funny? The irony.

If you want to check out the article for yourself, check it out here on IGN. I'll be using the most hilarious quotes or at least I find them pretty hilarious.

EA COO Peter Moore revealed he isn't fond of HD remaster of old video games as he states, "It feels like pushing stuff out because you’ve run out of ideas".

If you aren't laughing at this or even feel the slightest bit of disgust, then you are officially an EA fanboy. Want to know why this is so hilarious? This is coming from the same company that released Battlefield 4 way too early with game-breaking bugs and glitches. May I remind you of the cops-and-robbers re-skin that is Battlefield Hardline?

Seriously, Battlefield Hardline felt more like an afterthought rather than a full retail game. This game was pushed out because EA felt like their wallets weren't big enough.

If you thought the first quote was hilarious, you should read this one. "I don’t know where we find the time to do remakes...We’re a company that just likes to push forward" (Moore).

If you had the time to finish Battlefield Hardline as well as Star Wars Battlefront, then how do you not have the time to finish an HD Remake? Unless, they actually become a "new" game or have additional content!

This is coming from the company that overcharges for DLC as well as having $70 "Deluxe" Edition for their games. $50 for a season pass? Please, next joke.

Most HD remakes actually are more than just remakes. Tomb Raider, Metro Redux, and Gears of War: Ultimate Edition are games that come to mind that are very different from their original state especially Gears of War. It's not "running out of ideas". It's arguable, but if developers actually take the time to make it better than the original then it's not "running out of ideas".

I don't even think EA is aware of their faults. Remember when they had online passes? That was the only thing in recent memory that they took the time to fix. Battlefield 4 is a different case scenario as it took EA about 4 years to get rid of their online passes.

Will we ever see a Mass Effect Remake? Probably not. However, I'm pretty sure they will do HD remakes if they see a trend that HD remakes actually sell well. We'll see if they truly are a company that "just likes to push forward".
Till Next Time!!

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

These are the prices for the microtransactions in Destiny

Hey Guys, most of you are fully aware that Destiny now has microtransactions. These microtransactions only apply for players who want to purchase emotes, which allow players to do certain actions in the game like blowing a kiss! How interesting!

It's way too hard to be sarcastic at this. I predicted that the emotes wouldn't cost more than a dollar or the currency used to buy the emotes wouldn't cost more than a dollar. You want to know how close I was?

Image provided by IGN

Yeah, I wasn't even close to the actual price. As a matter of fact, you can only pay for the Destiny Silver that come in a certain amount. I'm fully aware that there is a 500 Destiny Silver that is probably $4.99, but that's still too much for some emotes!

Just look at how many emotes that are available!

Image Provided by Forbes

There really isn't many emotes that people will even find interesting. If you want to see the full list of emotes, check it out over at IGN. The silver may be low, but imagine how many people will still buy like all of the emotes.

Seriously, Grand Theft Auto Online has emotes and they are free. I'm even positive they'll add even more in upcoming DLC whenever that would release! I know these are optional, but it's still wrong to even put microtransactions in AAA games! People already paid $60 or more into this game, so why would they want to pay extra for content that should already be part of the game!?

Destiny fanboys just don't understand how much damage this is actually doing. Don't buy these emotes. Period. If you want to make sure Bungie doesn't add more microtransactions into Destiny that could potentially get out of hand, then just ignore them.

It's okay to but like 1 or 2 emotes, but overdoing it will only support this awful business practice.
Till Next Time!!

Monday, October 12, 2015

Rise of the Tomb Raider has 300 microtransactions: Bruh....

Hey Guys, how many of you are tired of microtransactions? Yeah, not enough to get rid of these microtransactions. This is about a day or two old story, but it hasn't gone mainstream, yet. Anyways, Rise of the Tomb Raider will have 300 microtransactions and will continue to receive more after the game is released.

This is what Noah Hughes, the creative director of the game, told Xbox Wire, (Note: I will be only including what he says about the microtransactions themselves which are known as "Expedition Cards" in the game),

You can check out the full article here.

He also goes onto to explain that there are two types of cards: Foil and Common. A Common card is used once and must be purchased using credits to use them again- I'll go over what this means a bit later. A Foil card can pretty much make you stronger and can be used whenever you want.

Now, onto my thoughts.

Before anyone does react, just know that you can buy these Expedition Cards with either in-game credits you get from playing the game or real-world currency. However, there really shouldn't be an option to actually pay for these cards. You want to know why?

Nobody is going to even care for the multiplayer portion of the game. Does anyone really believe that game's multiplayer will be any good? Most people really shouldn't be putting their hopes up for the multiplayer especially after the last game's multiplayer mode. As a matter of fact, the multiplayer was critically panned by both fans and critics, so what's the point of even having a multiplayer mode?

Regardless, there shouldn't be microtransactions that will effect gameplay in any significant way! Seriously, someone can buy some over powered Expedition Card and pretty much be unstoppable as they have an unfair advantage since they put the money in for it. What kind of cruel tease is that?

The only way microtransactions will end is if players literally stop using them or outright protest against them! Please, you're aren't special if you do use microtransactions! If anything, you are only supporting this kind of behavior to happen! You might not know it, but companies only really care what you can invest in their game through microtransactions.

Can we end microtransaction? The answer is simple. No. There is just way too many ignorant people who believe that they can do whatever they want with their money despite the fact they are supporting an evil.
Till Next Time!!

Saturday, October 10, 2015

Metal Gear Online Impressions

Hey Guys, I feel that I put in enough time to give a fair impression on Metal Gear Online. I didn't start on the first day it released because I didn't want to deal with bugs or glitches. However, I heard that people had technical problems with the game, but I haven't dealt with any major bugs yet. I had a couple of small bugs with the game itself as well as the CQC, but I'll get to that later.

Let me begin with the character customization,

Trust me, there really isn't much..

How can I put this in the most simplest terms without sounding bias? The character customization sucks. In essence, there really isn't much variety starting out. Yeah, you get to unlock more items and weapons as you level up, but there is going to be a high possibility that someone will have the same character appearance as you since your starting character's appearance will be based off the avatar you created in Metal Gear Solid: TPP.

You can even change your character's voice. I don't think many people know about this as I'm always hearing people who have Big Boss's voice as their own.

There are a total of 3 classes you can play as which are Scout, Enforcer, and Infiltrator. The Scout is recommended for beginners, but I hardly see anyone using this class. Infiltrators are pretty much everywhere since they have a stealth camo and Enforcers are ideal for people who are into fast-paced gameplay. There is variety in the game, but it's really nothing special.

Now, let me talk about the game modes,

Yes, you can play as a female

Bounty Hunter is your basic team deathmatch with a twist. You can either eliminate your enemies with lethal weapons or use non-lethal weapons and takedowns to Fulton them. Basically, whoever has the most tickets (indicated the numbers in the circle), wins the game. When you Fulton an enemy, you gain a certain amount of tickets based on their bounty.

Exactly where does the bounty come in? Well, if you kill enemies then your bounty increases and your position is revealed. Let's say that you killed 8 players in the game. If someone were to Fulton you, you would gain 8 tickets back. This could be good or bad for your team. Basically, you're a walking hazard if you kill too many enemies. Your bounty can be reduced if you Fulton enemies.

However, I find this to be the most enjoyable mode.

I'll talk about the stealth camo later

Cloak and Dagger is pretty much Search and Destroy. However, it's pretty fun because you will get a true Metal Gear experience because you just have to use stealth to win!

I really don't like to play this game mode because there is always that one guy on your team who doesn't play stealthy! Well, except for the defender side because they are given the lethal weapons and the attackers are given the non-lethal weapons. The stealth camo will only work if you know how to use it. It doesn't muffle the sound of your footsteps, so don't even bother to sprint or even stand for the matter. I would recommend crouching or lying on the ground behind a wall or in grass to make it harder to spot you.

If you're going to play this game mode, please use stealth if you're on the attackers side and coordinate with your team. Otherwise, you will have little to no chance of winning. Nonetheless, it's pretty fun.

Does this look familiar?

Comm Control is pretty much your typical domination game mode. It's actually pretty fun and it rewards a lot of XP, so you can count on this mode to help you level up a lot faster.

However, it can be really frustrating if your teammates focus on trying to get kills rather than actually going for the objective itself. At the same time, it could be very helpful because you still have the potential to win if you have a lot of points. I'll explain this shortly.

Now, let me talk about the gameplay itself,

Wow, this REALLY looks familiar!

The spawn system works very similarly to Battlefield, but it has one problem. You can spawn next to an enemy on accident! This could either work with you or against you. You could spawn next to your buddy or spawn point, and the enemy will be right next to you. You do have spawn protection, so you will have to be quick to get ready to kill the other player, but you could only shoot once you're out of the spawn protection. Overall, this could be both frustrating and helpful.

Now, let me talk about the biggest problem with the online component to Metal Gear Solid V. People just don't want to use the stealth elements. I'm not going to lie as I mix between going loud and going silent. However, people really should play stealthy especially in Bounty Hunter and Cloak & Dagger. The game doesn't necessarily punish you for not playing stealthy, but you get more incentives for doing so.

I'm not one to dictate what style of gameplay you should be using, but think about your team. If you go sprinting or firing your weapons, then the enemy is going to know your exact location. The mini-map is what really kills the experience as well! If the mini-map wasn't available, then the game would keep players on the edge of their seats and encourage them to play stealthy.

There is a reason why I'm not giving this game a number. There is going to be more content, so it wouldn't be fair to judge this online mode without really seeing its full potential. However, what we got was very enjoyable. It's not great, but it's pretty good. Please, don't even bother reading critical reviews of the game as it's still too early to judge this.
Till Next Time!!

Friday, October 9, 2015

Phil Spencer admits he isn't sure Xbox One could beat PS4: My Thoughts

Hey Guys, I'm sorry that I haven't posted. It's kind of difficult to juggle between school and leisure time. I'm still busy with Metal Gear Online and the Star Wars Battlefront Beta just released. I'll probably focus on the Star Wars Battlefront Beta now because it's only available for a limited time. Anyways, onto the main story.

Still keep the price in mind... The PS4 is still cheaper....
If you want to check out the article from Gamespot, you can check it out here. When he was asked about the possibility of the Xbox One selling the PS4, Spencer stated, "You know, I don't know. You know, the length of the generation... They [Sony] have a huge lead and they have a good product. I love the content, the games lineup that we have".

I'm positive most people have stopped reading from here and make assumptions that "Xbox Sucks because _____"! or "PS4 can _____ what can Xbox One do?". However, there is still more to this story and I'll still give you my thoughts.

Spencer isn't sure what caused the Xbox One to be outsold by the PS4, but he does admit that Microsoft has "fundamentally lost... the trust of our most loyal customers". Although he is fully aware that customers are beginning to lose their trust with Microsoft, Spencer concludes with, "... So I would never question the ability of our organization, but I'll say we're not motivated by beating Sony, we're motivated by gaining as many customers as we can".

Now, onto my thoughts. The PS4 has sold over 25 million units and this number is still rising. The Xbox One has sold at least 10 million units, but Microsoft hasn't updated the sales number in a year.

In all honesty, I do feel that Spencer is somewhat correct that customers are just losing their trust with Microsoft, but there is just more behind this. When you really look at it from the customer's perspective, it all comes down to numbers.

The PS4 is more powerful and affordable than the Xbox One. I feel that these two have to be the biggest reasons why people would buy a PS4 over an Xbox One and the recent PS4 price drop isn't going to make anything easier for Microsoft.  Imagine buying a console for a friend or family member on a budget, you're obviously going to go for the PS4!

When you really get into things, the PS4 isn't noticeably more powerful than the Xbox One. Seriously, the normal human being will not notice an immediate difference between the two consoles if you were to compare them side by side.

The game lineup for both consoles are subjective. Some people will prefer the PS4 exclusives over the Xbox One exclusives or vice-versa. There is still a high chance that a lot of people would probably base their choice just by the exclusives alone.

However, the Xbox One still has a chance to break 20 million units due to the fact it will have backwards compatibility whereas the PS4 does not. Maybe it could at least gain an extra 2-3 million?

At the end of the day, it's still a good thing that they are aware they pretty much have a longshot at outselling the PS4 this console generation. They just really care about their own customers. Personally, I really don't believe that the Xbox One will sell more than the PS4 this time around. It will for sure reach that 20 million mark some time this year or next year.
Till Next Time!!

Monday, October 5, 2015

Destiny now has optional microtransactions - Just why?

Hey Guys, I just stumbled upon an article about 15 minutes ago about Destiny. I was just baffled as to what I saw. Destiny will be getting in-game microtransactions with the return of Tess Everis. You can check out the full article here.

Essentially, you have to pay about $1 or less on emotes if you want to use them. Actually, I'm not even sure if I'm even close to the actual pricing as I'm just making assumptions. Please, do keep in mind that I am fully aware that these are optional. However, it still really doesn't justify that you have to pay for some decorations that really won't effect the way you play.

Here's what community manager DeeJ had to say about it, "If you’re not interested in what Tess has to offer, you won’t ever be forced to pluck an item off of her shelf. You’ll still receive updates to the game, and you won’t lose a Crucible encounter or fail to clear a Raid because you didn’t have the right Eververse Trading Company emote equipped".

Want to know the problem with this? If it's not going to effect the way I play the game, then what's the point of me paying for it!? Why can't I just put in the effort and actually earn the emotes? As a matter of fact, why not just include both? Is Bungie seriously this cheap to actually allow people to work for something?

I don't think microtransactions are really that bad. They are very useful for people who just don't have the time to invest in a video game especially in RPGs and MMOs. However, there are a lot of times where microtransactions just get out of hand. For instance, if they are used for either paywalls and/or useless items such as these emotes thing in Destiny.

I don't play Destiny often anymore, so excuse my ignorance on these emotes. I'm being 100% honest that I have no clue what they are. However, I can still be credible with my argument because Destiny shouldn't have microtransactions like this!

I really don't feel strongly for DLC unless it really has meaning to a game, but even that's subjective. It's my opinion that The Taken King DLC is a overpriced DLC that rips off users who have bought the game along with its Expansion Pass. Seriously, you can't defend this. You can't even defend the $40 price tag for the download only version! However, I'm just digressing at this point.

Who is to say that Destiny will just get more microtransactions? Trust me, video game companies are becoming more greedy throughout the years and supporting microtransactions will just make it worse.
Till Next Time!!

Sunday, October 4, 2015

Will Star Wars: Battlefront Fail?

Hey Guys, this is a topic that I really do feel like talking about. I'm not a big fan of Stars Wars, but Battlefront did catch my eye when it was first announced. Honestly, I became attracted to it because it looks pretty similar to Battlefield. However, it's been recently leaked that Battlefront is broken, but it's not really known yet. At the same time, it's EA who's publishing the game.

I'm not even being pessimistic here. I'm just being realistic. Do we really trust EA to release game that will function? Sure, it's cool that they are releasing a beta on October 8th, but it's still just a beta. EA already has a feedback system if I remember correctly, but they don't even pay attention to it anyways which explains why they were the worst company in America.

You can just tell that EA is confident that the game will be successful. They even predicted that the game will sell between 9 million and 10 million units by the end of 2016! Want proof? Check it out here.

I'm confident that the game is going to sell like hot cakes! However, these are the people who either don't care about supporting an evil company or are taking their chances. I'm positive the game will be good. Actually, let me change that statement. I'm positive the game will be excellent, but it will probably experience game-breaking bugs and glitches in its first few weeks of release or maybe even longer then that.

This is a game that has so much potential, but who is to know if this game will release broken? Please, don't pre-order Star Wars: Battlefront! Let the reviews start coming in before you buy this game in particular or otherwise you spent your money on a poor excuse of a video game.
Till Next Time!!

Friday, October 2, 2015

1TB Xbox One Fallout 4 Bundle Announced - Is it worth a buy?

Hey Guys, before I give you guys the news story of the day I'm letting you know that I'm still working on my Rainbow Six Siege Beta impressions. Hopefully, it will be ready either later today or sometime tomorrow. Anyways, back on topic.

In the recent trend of Xbox One game bundles Microsoft has announced a new 1TB Xbox One console bundled with Fallout 4 coming this holiday season. Specifically, it will release on November 10th.

Interesting design?
This bundle will come with a download code for Fallout 4 as well as Fallout 3. Fallout 3 should be able to work due to the fact that Xbox One will have backwards compatibility by the time this bundle releases. 

Before I go on to why or why you shouldn't buy this console, I have to say that this design does not look appealing at all. I literally gave the same criticism to the Gears of War: Ultimate Edition Xbox One bundle. Sure most people will look past this since it's Fallout 4, but a lot of people without that knowledge of video games will probably look past this.

Should you buy this bundle? It's a 1TB hard drive with a game that has an insane amount of value for just $399. It may not come with Kinect, but does that really matter? If you don't have an Xbox One, please buy this bundle.

Fallout 4 is already worth its asking price of $59.99. Additionally, Fallout 4 will be having weekly updates as well as the ability to have mod support, so I'm positive that 1TB hard drive will come in handy.

If the Fallout 3 download code came with all its DLC and if it came with the Fallout 4 season pass, then there would almost be no reason not to buy this bundle. However, I feel that the biggest downfall are these two exact things as well as the fact that they don't include the physical copies of the game.

Regardless, this is a pretty good bundle. If you haven't pre-ordered Fallout 4, please do it! However, if you're like me trying to wait for a good pre-order bonus then wait it out a bit.
Till Next Time!!