Minecraft (PC/Mac) review

Some people spend time off work learning a language, whereas others...

Why do kids love Lego? It may well have something to do with the freedom it allows, in particular the freedom of creation. It presents a playing field in which the child is the master of their own universe and where the spoils of their labour come fast and easy. Minecraft cleverly utilises these aspects that made it's real-life, bricky counter-part so popular and creates an even more expansive building experience but is this recent, pixelated explosion worthy of its hype?

The more observant of us will have noticed that modern gaming appeals to the inner child. Look at the best sellers; thousands of fully grown men and women are lining up to play as spies, soldiers, cowboys and knights (at the best of times). All this made socially acceptable through the medium of tv and graphics. Let's be honest, how many successful games are mature by nature? Sure the dialogue and plots have become more sophisticated but in reality, the heart of gaming is childish. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. The industry has remained enthralling, there are no RPGs in which you control struggling housewives during the recession and even the more action-packed real events are omitted, who would want to confront the war in Afghanistan during their leisure hours anyway? Instead we have games like Minecraft, made popular because it is truly the first successful Lego-like gaming adaptation. You are once again a child, armed with building blocks and honestly speaking the experience is liberating.

Are those soil blocks in your pants or have you just seen a creeper?

Now the first thing that most will notice are the graphics. It has become an ongoing joke throughout Youtube to compare video quality to Minecraft graphics. What is so refreshing is that the game is not self-conscious of this, in fact it truly embraces the pixelation as an art form. You gradually stop noticing that your hands are square and the trees are Rubix cubes. In fact, the blocks are detailed just enough so that a coherent world can be realised. Despite yourself, you might even occasionally think "yes that mountain looks good" or perhaps, "these caves feel intimidating". It is in fact the atmosphere of the game that compensates for it's lack of graphic quality.

It is clear now the game has a strong following. Loyal players from all over have pledged themselves to these quadrilateral lands and this only spurs the adventure. You can browse for countless hours and find PvP arenas, mansions, castles, kingdoms, I was fortunate to stumble upon an oversized skatepark at one point. For this reason the game is unlimited in scope and just as with Littlebigplanet a fulfilling online experience. It is exciting to think, that after discovering an island and creating a home, passing travellers may visit or even, god forbid, invade your lands. This considered, the game is also enjoyed more, just as with Lego, shared with a friend. When two people work together, not only is it easier and faster but the experience is made social and more unpredictable. Despite many perceiving Minecraft as being an oversized lazyman's building programme, it is undoubtedly a legitimate multiplayer experience.

As you can see, the Aztecs took Minecraft very seriously

The gameplay itself is something else entirely. It wouldn't be unfair to brand it as a side-aspect to the creating mode. The weapons and armour are limited, the combat very simple and certain features i.e. the swimming leave much to be desired. That said, those who have gathered the courage to actually mine and to mine deep, will find a lot of joy in navigating through the murky and unpredictable depths of the world. It is in this feature the game is at it's best, the game worlds are more or less impossible to map. So vast are the different servers that even via minecart, you could be travelling for weeks to get from A-Z. For this reason, no one can resist the excitement in discovering your first island home, your first mountain cave or even your first netherworld (yes they exist, no don't ask) because it is something no one else has done. A novel gaming experience and that's not common anywhere. With the help of the evocative and strangely calming music, it can often be quite an emotional journey.

It's popular for a reason, because it's good. The game is as casual as you want it to be and the freedom here is unparalleled but Minecraft has been met with some gaping flaws. Despite latching onto a winner, the team have missed out on some crowd-pleasing howlers. Take for example the multiplayer feature. In order to create a server, players must go through a time-consuming, brain racking, off-browser coding gauntlet in order to simply build a randomly-generated world. No noob-friendly features here. In addition to this, something as simple as a realm-finding feature is not included. Instead you are sent to the forums or the server list, from which you must copy and paste an i.p. address. It is as complicated as it is to read. Moreover, usable items are limited and furniture in particular is sorely missing. You are welcome to attempt your own make-shift pieces but they'll make your living room look like a trash heap, or worse modern art, and the option to build a fridge or at least a table should be there from the start. Perhaps more of everything is needed to flesh out the game, there's only so many times you can kill a creeper and laugh, where are the hordes of critters or indeed where are the dragons?

All said, the game is ultimately a breathe of fresh air and a reminder that graphics, though pleasant to look at are in no way correlated with a fun gaming experience. If you haven't already, treat yourself to some perpendicular goodness.

8.3/10

A note on 'ideas'

"Guns don't kill people robbers do". It is a phrase that has unwittingly evolved into a modern cliché and one that reflects the ethos of many employers. I've come here today to rant. Here's why.

If you look closely, Activision spells Massive dickheads backwards.

It is painful to admit but undeniably true, Call of Duty is the hottest game on the market to date. Why? Because of an idea, because some smartass decided it would appeal to the American psyche if a game exploited real-life, savage, blood-spilling world events. Converting grave conflicts into a crude, arcade-like experience, with a title as savagely insensitive as 'Modern Warfare'. A game where explosions and bodies are thrown around like coins in Super Mario, where you're awarded points for ending the lives of opposing soldiers and where American soldiers yell 'fuck yeah' as enemy villages explode in an orgasm of napalm and human ashes. And yet, only a collective group of obnoxious individuals such as those at Activision who would green light such a concept, would be stupid enough to fire the people who thought of it. As tasteless as the franchise is, Call of Duty 4 was a well-made title. It was an idea. A fresh, innovative, horrible idea. And it seems within Activision that an idea is worth more than an idealist because now due to the lack of pay, the original developers have split and left.

Blizzard entertainment, at it from day 1.

Let's imagine someone famous, oh let's say Heath Ledger, was still alive. A talented actor, few would deny. Do we believe his final role would have been his best? Some do. But the point here is, if you can create brilliance once, you can do it again. Heath Ledger was fantastic as the Joker in 'The Dark Knight' but had he survived the ordeal, I believe he would have continued to create brilliance again and again. He should be noted for his acting ability, not his ability within one role. Just as the designers of Cod4 should be valued for their ability to create ideas and not perceived as having outlived their use. In the case of video games, one idea lasts a short time creating loads of money. An idealist lasts until death, creating even more. Example? Blizzard entertainment. Consistently excellent and continuously feeding the nerd community wonderfully addictive games. Starcraft has all but evolved into a national sport within Korea, World of Warcraft is real-life in the eyes of twelve million subscribers and Diablo is a critics favourite. Blizzard are more valuable as people then WoW is as a franchise, there's a scary thought consumers. Have a think about that little mind-fuck on the way to work tomorrow.

A blast from the past: Age of Empires 2

Nothing shouts trebuchet like a walled wonder.

The chances are, if you have been playing video games for longer than ten years, you are well acquainted with the screenshot above. Age of Empires 2 marked a golden age for the RTS genre. It was at a time when thousands of nine year olds were tricked into learning history by the most popular exclusive of it's time. Parents and children alike finally met in harmony over what appeared in the eyes of an adult as a Medieval learning programme and in the eyes of the kids as a knight on knight bloodfest.

What was fun about Age of Empires? Within the game you were god. It allowed people to control other people in a very perverse way, with sweet looking graphics. The Sims had recently exploded, having exploited our inner power-freak already and Ensemble were following (in many ways) a similar route with their second instalment. How many of us can claim they didn't build jaguar pens on the 'create mode' and watch sadistically as villagers got torn apart. Or create opposing armies of thousands and make them charge each other, just out of curiosity or boredom. There's probably more wrong with a game like this than with Grand Theft Auto but under the glossy appearance of an educational experience, funnily enough no one seemed to care. Besides, playing a dark age tyrant is pretty fun.

Dictatorial undertones aside, Ensemble also did a beautiful thing by this game. It's difficult to listen to the theme tune without having to breathe a heavy sigh of nostalgia. It was so immersive, you could lose yourself for hours constructing giant cities, exploring the hundreds of units and buildings. The graphics were intelligently implemented and gave the game a look that still holds substance today. What's more, conquering an enemy would involve destroying their pain-stakingly created villages, one by one and for this reason was a savagely glorious affair. Nothing can beat setting each house alight, before laying waste to them all with a single round of flaming catapult fire. As a child, there was also plenty of information to soak in. You could stray from the action for a while to visit the history pages. Yes, to learn! Although I often spent more time wondering how an overweight king could outrun my best cavalry.

The recent instalments, although undoubtedly accomplished games, lack the pure brilliance of this little gem. Maybe it's time to start bringing back the old methods. Whad'ya say Microsoft?

Mario Kart 7: 3DS review

Mario is infuriated as multiple slow moving fish overtake his water-clogged kart.

The basic formula for racing games has indeed become well established within modern gaming and in no title is the hideous theme of repetition more apparent than in Mario Kart. The functions of a red shell or a smiling banana are now integrated strongly into general knowledge and yet the love of the franchise continues to grow exponentially. Will Mario Kart provide a revolutionary step forward in the series? Probably not but it might be worth reading anyway.

What is the point of 3d, I hear nobody ask? It seems the pure futility of such a feature as 3d is beyond the notice of the public. Unlike with the addition of colour or sound in cinema, 3d does not in any way contribute to the evocative impact of creative media. You could argue the inclusion of sound in film empowered actors with speech, thus increasing emotional depth and you could also say that colour helped clarify on-screen events and added a new level of artistry to the industry but what exactly does 3d contribute? Except for tremendous migraines. I was hoping that here in the UK there would be an uprising of sorts in response to the increase of cinema prices, there was no such reaction. It's not surprising then, that following James Cameron's 'Avatar' and the inevitable popularity of 3d and anything related, that handhelds would follow suit.

So what you are looking at now is the result of a 20 year old video game converted for the new era. It is incredibly difficult to take such a concept seriously, especially as the protagonist of said game is a middle-aged plumber who shares his race track with an Arabic mushroom and vomit-yellow caterpillars. Mario Kart can be celebrated for these reasons however. It is very much a light-hearted and accessible experience. There are few games, even now, that rival the pick-up-and-play facilities of Mario Kart 7, especially as the online system and tournaments are so easy and efficient. The interface is basic and the mechanics more so. And yes, the use of 3d is about what you would expect, nothing particularly necessary here and just as good with the feature turned off.

The bigger surprise for fans than the 3d, will be the inclusion of two new kart features in the form of gliders and propellors. Credit to Nintendo, as they have attempted to progress the racing format in this sense. A glider will allow you prolonged air-time after launching off a cliff or high jump, whereas the propellors, wait for it, allow you to move through water. Let's think about that for a second. When in the history of video games has the inclusion of underwater levels been beneficial? It should be made punishable by death for modern game developers to include underwater content but here we have it again, in the form of Mario Kart 7. One of these features was a welcome addition. Despite being a seemingly small addition, it has a strong and noticeable impact on the gameplay. The glider can be controlled, meaning that whether you dip or fly higher, hit or miss obstacles, your finishing spot will be affected. This has led to moments of brilliance, for example you may, with a touch of luck, hit someone mid-air with a forward thrown banana, thus knocking them 5 places back. I wish I could reiterate the same sentiments towards the propellor but like an appendix, it's presence is almost entirely useless and should have been cut out before the game was allowed to live.

The online feature is a joy and one of a handful of gameplay options. Players' mii and nationality are exhibited and represent you in the loading screens, while your customised kart and racer do the same within gameplay. Naturally, there are plenty of competitors in the international arena that have invested too many hours into honing their racing skills but with this level of luck-based gameplay, you might find that a star is all you need to make 1st place. Other new features are the '7' weapon, which is a combination of seven of the items, the fire flower, a fun bouncy-flame launching item and the handy tanooki tail, a manually controlled melle attack/defence item. There are also a multitude of new characters and kart customisations, which help add to the depth. Most impressive are the maps. They're often recycled versions of old favourites but there's new stuff here as well, some of them delightfully inventive and despite the occasional unfair glitch positive influences on the game.

It's polished. There's no doubting that. For many, a casual pick-me-up game is essential to their collection. Look no further than Mario Kart 7 if that is the case, it's an old contender, remade to near perfection and provides a perfect distraction in times of need. That said, don't expect anything fresh, you know what you're buying with Mario games but this is an assured example of repetition done right.

8.0/10

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Multiplayer review

Infinity ward programmers attempt to escape missiles fired by their angry fans.

Life is bittersweet for Infinity Ward. On one hand, they've created the most successful first person shooter franchise of all time, earning billions and creating widespread hysteria within the media. On the other hand, they have become the Justin Beibers of the gaming world, hated by thousands of outraged fans who make constant, sardonic comparisons to the all holy Call of Duty 4: Modern warfare. The apple has fallen far from the tree and here's why.

The defining feature of CoD in the past has been it's electrifying multiplayer. There is no doubting that Infinity ward, before their collapse, created something completely influential. Customisation, killstreaks and a variety of attractive game modes made the first Modern Warfare original, incredibly addictive and vitally, competitive. It seems that the more you analyse the initial game, the more you find reasons to compliment it. Most importantly, it was innovative. It brought 'new' to FPS and if there is one thing that your £100 Modern Warfare 3 exclusive box set doesn't include, it's 'new'.

Firstly, it must be pointed out that the graphics and interface are almost completely identical to Modern Warfare 2. An unavoidable fact. Many will argue 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' but remember we're talking about a full retail game here. It begs the question, who would be willing to pay the ludicrous sum of £40-£50 if the game was just an oversized DLC? The changes are small but instead of improving on the game, they simply change it. New killstreaks are simply variations of old ones, indeed in their wisdom IW have opted to restrict players further by forcing them into a particular branch of killstreak. Meaning there are now offensive or defensive specific killstreaks. In order to complicate the game further they have added unnecessary, arcade-like gun improvements such as 'kick', which reduces recoil. Whereas previously perks were a life or death, success or failure decision to make on the part of your class, players are now patronised to the point where they can have every perk they need within a single class.

Game modes are the same, the guns are the same but look different and the maps are limited in quantity so the cracks are beginning to show. I don't think anyone will deny, the original Modern Warfare was great but a desire to return to their roots has resulted in IW shooting themselves in the foot. The tempered but boisterous attitude of the original was attractive for male audiences and in an attempt to recreate this you can now read 'A juggernaut is not so tough with a missile crammed down his throat' whilst your game loads. Personally I enjoy a game more when it doesn't feel like it was made by a sexually frustrated 13 year old drill sergeant.

If you're okay with the minimal change policy now associated with CoD then look no further. It's Modern Warfare 2.5, you'll get new maps and you'll have a whole set of new guns to play with (kinda) but for those who were hoping it might be a new or even better experience this year, you might want to buy 'Just Dance' instead. That's far more likely to get you off your seat.

4.3/10

Skyrim review

Brilliance always comes at a price. There's no doubting the humongous 'Skyrim' is an attractive prospect for any fantasy gamer. Bethesda's latest instalment stages one of the biggest virtual worlds ever created however a few weeks on and it seems that with great quantity comes great technical difficulties. Does Elder Scrolls V make the cut?

So an overall picture of the game at hand; it could be daunting for a humble writer to attempt to assess such a deep and complex experience within the space of a few paragraphs. In fact, I doubt very much that any external site on the web could successfully collect enough information to do the game justice. If you haven't got the point already, the game is massive. So big in fact, the map is comparable in size to a small borough of London.

The world
Perhaps the most perfected of all of Skyrim's aspects is the environment. A sprawling, hostile
world of strange creatures and breathing habitats. The trees sway with the wind, the rivers
flow with gravity, birds inhabit the clear skies and dragons emerge from hurricanes. It's breathtaking stuff. Even the most critical of us will agree, the place is beautiful and Bethesda should be congratulated. It's rare, if not unheard of for a world to be so damn immersive that a player can enjoy him or herself just by strolling to and from locations. As you wander off, the chances are some random occurrence will stop you in your tracks; a stag will fumble by only to spot you and dart away or the sun will set to reveal a lake riddled with fireflies (or glowbugs as they're known in the world). Even if sentimentality isn't your thing, this world is the stage in which your journey is set so it'll play a part in your experience whether you like it or not. Even the towns and cities have been skilfully designed and are bustling with citizens carrying out seemingly significant activities everyday. I want to be able to tell you there are glaring faults here, I want to be able to tell you this isn't the greatest interactive environment i've seen but I can't. If you have a problem with the domains of Skyrim, it's a subjective problem. You might argue the creatures and architecture are too close to Earthen reality to create the attractive charm needed within a fantasy game but most will disagree. It's a virtual world a gamer can get lost in.

Combat
Somewhat of an Achilles' heel for Bethesda previously, has been the clumsy combat system as featured in both Fallout 3 and Oblivion. It's no surprise that it has come under intense scrutiny this time round. Clearly in this sense there have been drastic improvements. The combat, though not as slick or coordinated as a game like Assasin's creed, is now far more engaging. Almost self-consciously, the 3rd person animations have been honed to perfection. And now character models swing and are swung at with gritty realism, blood effects and a far more emphasised recoil. Improvement is not perfection though and if you really struggled to come to terms with the washy movement controls and health bars of Oblivion, you might have to think twice with this year's instalment. But the non-linear fighting system also works as an advantage; there is a sense of liberation to be gained from the unscripted nature of the combat, unlike with most blockbuster titles, the animations do not run in concordance with your opponent so in a strange way it can be more realistic, every fight is different. There's certainly no doubting that as you level up, it's incredibly satisfying to see the spoils of your labour acted out on the battlefield.

Inhabitants
Even the most lush and colourful environments are desolate playing fields without inhabitants to fill them. Let us, for a moment, pretend that Oblivion was nothing more than a taste of things to come. There were aspects of Skyrim's predecessor, which seemed to capture the imagination of it's players. Namely, the interactive quest experiences in which you would develop relationships with the in-game characters. The 'dark brotherhood' are a name to boot, most successful because of the intense levels of drama within their story lines and relationships, displaying rare levels of depth for a videogame at the time. Now Skyrim is the development of that, with the help of a dozen actors and a hardworking team of scriptwriters there are an uncountable amount of distractions and stories to enjoy. It can be as simple as approaching someone on the street, to sparing a coin for an Inn's bard but the sequences in which new relationships are created are incredibly natural and often quite exciting. The amount of dialogue is staggering and the potential consequences of your conversations can be anything from the creation of a feud to marriage. Quests are everywhere, players are skilfully led from one to another and will probably find a lot of enjoyment in the number of cults and guilds. Less so perhaps, from the main storyline. What should be the most rewarding and indulgent of Skyrim's paths happens to be a short and as a result unfulfilling experience. Perhaps this is owing to the quality of what was included, you're left with a slightly disappointing sense of anti-climax when you realise the mission is over. Strangely, this hardly detracts from the experience at all, as the game is so big that any one of the other large stories compensate for it.

Generally you'll find that humanoids are the most recurrent of NPCs but players will discover soon enough they are among the more boring of Skyrim's creatures. It's difficult at times to ride from one location to another without spotting a dragon of some breed attacking a helpless camp or to flee in panic as a bear emerges from behind a rock. To begin with, you are the prey and it's not until you have gained in power that you can truly engage with the wildlife as a predator.

Dragons are worth mentioning for their significance in all aspects of the game. Everywhere you go there is evidence of their existence, passing guards will moan about their straw huts being decimated or giants will be seen fleeing across fields in an attempt to save their mammoth herds. Not to mention the role you as the 'dragonborn' have in their existence. Spoiler alert, it's your job to kill them. The creatures are ferocious, they've been masterfully programmed, almost like birds they'll glide around swooping in to pick off enemies like worms and then if you're lucky enough to bring one down to earth there's the matter of their firebreath or snapping jaws to deal with. It's clear that dragons were a favourite game aspect for the developers and they stand tall as a highlight within the game.

Sound

It makes my dragonblood boil when good soundtrack or voice acting is forgotten amongst a game's success. Partly what makes Skyrim such a captivating experience is the remarkable use of audio throughout. The peaceful, often catchy melodies that play as you ride through villages and mountaintops are very reminiscent of the first elder scrolls game and the thunderous main theme, which was a great selling point is used sparingly and to great effect. It's moralising as you battle a dragon to hear the soundtrack bellowing out and what it essentially creates is a sense of epicness that frankly, most games lack. It's not only the music but the much improved voice acting, which makes the game so appealing at first. Although most will agree that after a certain amount of time, players will tire of the same accents and actors.

Negatives

I feel a particularly strong urge to pour all my malice into this paragraph, as despite the game having many great assets, here there are also colossal negatives to match. Let us start with the worst of them, being the glitches. Yes, the glitches and bugs are so numerous that every single player without fail will be gritting in frustration as they watch hours of gameplay slip through their fingers. At times, quests, including the main ones are blocked from completion due to curious technissues such as NPCs changing race or profession. You'll find yourself stuck at times, or riding through mountains, running on thin air, replaying entire sessions in order to progress and the list goes on and on. What must be appreciated is that a game this big will never be exempt from bugs and such but if money had been allocated into fixing them in time for release, the levels of angry backlash that are threatening to crash the internet could have been avoided. This problem alone is going to detract from every player's opinion and it is often just short of soul-destroying to see your hard labour and progress hindered by something that is in no way your fault.

You can't help but feel that the auto-save feature could be used to much greater effect. It's typical within a dungeon to fight to the end only for a final boss to send you back to the last save point; the beginning of the dungeon. The save functions are entirely at the disposal of players, so it is partly your own responsibility to make sure this doesn't happen. Still, when you're deeply engaged and concentrating on the game it can be difficult to avert your attention, or remember.

Verdict

Despite it's drawbacks, if you're lucky enough to have a bug-lacking experience, this game will impregnate your real life and slowly devour it from the inside. You can't help but feel given the immeasurable size and beauty of it all, we could look back on Skyrim as an all time great.

A year's worth of food rations - check

Portaloo - check

Hydration drip - check

You're ready for the new world.

9.7/10

(Super) Scribblenauts review

It was only fair that we should provide alternatives to the overly publicised mainstream titles (not pointing fingers... Infinity ward) and 'Super Scribblenauts' is exactly that.

5th cell had an idea; it was 2007 when the small company had gathered the support from 'WB. Interactive' to develop what would ultimately become one of the more highly anticipated of handheld games. Scribblenauts. So let me explain why it's here. The general principle here is that you can create anything, you're given a writing pad and on it whatever you write will come to life. Each of these objects being interactive and therefore interactive with each other. Daunting? Yes. Impossible? No. At the time of it's revealing, the gaming world was in awe. And now almost five years later we're playing a sequel. The only question now, was this ingenious idea well executed?

Scribblenauts 1 was a tantalising prospect. From the various trailers and demonstrations we saw dragons fighting robots and rode unicorns through space, it appeared every bit as joyously unrestricted as we'd hoped. When the game hit the shelves however, there seemed to be an air of slight disappointment. A few rookie errors, such as the wrong mapping of controls, boring level design and replication of models seemed to steal from what should have been the handheld title of the year. The sequel, Super Scribblenauts is very much a stitch up job and designed to be everything that Scribblenauts the original, wasn't.

Why was this not the first game? I'm so glad you asked, because three hours of playing and i'm hooked. If like me, semi-colons excite you, then you'll excel in creating imaginative and sometimes worrying fantasies. Even with that said it really is an all-rounder, the game for once does appeal to all ages and is about family-friendly enough to be a worthy christmas present for 7 year olds and 70 year olds alike. The idea is to collect starites, which are effectively your character 'Maxwell's' crack cocaine. In order to collect these, you must use your imagination and combine it with the scribblepad in order to uncover the solution. The standard example is that the crack, your starite, is stuck in a tree. In response to this you could create a hatchet and cut it down or if you were more imaginative you might create a beaver in the hopes he would eat the tree... eventually. The possibilities are endless, but as long as Maxwell gets his fix, you unlock more content.

So where the first game faltered, the second one is masterful. With the inclusion of adjectives, many more objects and models and a charming new interface full with new nintendo-esque music it's finally the full package. Even with that said, the single player can sometimes be lacking in addictive value, which is important for a handheld title and the hundreds of glitches throughout especially during the 3rd and 4th level sets are infuriating. It's not going to take from you as much time as Pokémon would for example. At a glance though, it really is mesmerising and worth owning if you don't have the first. Such an innovative idea should really be appreciated, especially when, despite the shakiness of the campaign, it is at times absurd fun. Ultimately, the game could still use some further expansion but is enough of an improvement on it's predecessor to be hailed a success.

Is it worth buying? If you don't own the first one, certainly yes but if you're shopping for the sequel, I wouldn't bother.

7.6/10