(null) review not found

Star Trek Online: Uniforms

2012-02-21T22:30:00.002-05:00

In Star Trek Online, if you haven't guessed already, it is possible to edit your uniform by visiting a tailor. The tailor allows you to edit the uniform of you and your crew. This is accomplished by picking a template, choosing a colour palette, and swapping the palette, in some cases. Every week, I will post a new canon uniform guide. The uniform guide this week is from the episode All Good Things and Endgame, the last episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Voyager, respectively. That's all for now, folks.

Command Uniform:

Sciences Uniform:

Operations Uniform:

MotorStorm Artic Edge

2012-02-21T20:10:00.007-05:00

MotorStorm is a series of aggressive racing games. Since I never played any of the other games for more than an hour this will not be judged against any of the other games. Likely for all you folk, I have played it on PSP andPS2 so I know both sides of the game. The game is like a see saw. The gameplay is great since all vehicles are fun to play and have different attributes. The small vehicles are fast but crash easily. Trucks and snowplows are slow but can run over the small vehicles.

The maps are fairly large but not too large that you drive for minutes before you actually reach the finish. Even if that happens (which it shouldn't) the boost makes forward driving faster. The AI makes the difficulty slope quick for finishing minutes before everyone to finish with nanoseconds ahead. Even the easy AI is hard since you can still crash from the maps. They have cliffs, mud slides, avalanches, ice, random pieces of metal and really bad respawn points. An example of that is I was doing a speed race. I didn't make a turn quick enough and they threw me in front of a jump, I couldn't get enough speed to jump so I hit the edge of the jump, killing my car and I fell into an abyss. This made me rage quit. Back to the subject, there is enough to keep you winning in the maps.

The controls are good. The only problem is looking around, since you can't look back and steer since you either use your steering thumb to look back or your boosting hand which slows you down. This results in them passing you or you crashing. I hope you are too distracted to turn back and look at the on coming wave of things trying to A) run you over B) kick you C) push you to your doom or D) win the race. One problem I noticed on PS2 and not on PSP is the screen shots. I used to get pictures of random things but the PS2 can't do that.

The graphics aren't half bad. Remember, you'll be comparing this to the PS3 if you seen one. This is the PS2 the slower older brother of the PS3. The music is catchy and never gets old. I'll just let it stop there.

I give this game 90/100 flying cyclist

Star Trek Online Review: Part II

2012-01-27T20:33:00.001-05:00

The types of ships available through the C-Store are mostly redresses and refits, but some features are exclusive and cannot be obtained in any other way, such as the ability to replace "NCC" with "NX" on your ship's hull. Another interesting feature I noticed is the ability to change the ship's pattern (the design that is visible from the bird's eye view, on the saucer section). It is also possible to use parts from other ships in the same category, such as using a Constitution-class hull, but Vesper-class nacelles and Excalibur-class struts.

Star Trek Online uses multiple types of currency, but the most widely used are Energy Credits. The other types are: Dilithium Crystals, Gold Pressed Latinum and Cryptic Points. Cryptic Points aren't required, but they do make things easier on you. In order to obtain Cryptic Points, you either need to trade for them using Dilithium Crystals, or purchase them with a credit card. From what I've found out through the game's forum, things aren't terribly expensive. Many things in the game that are purchasable with Cryptic Points (CP) are 400-600 points, which is roughly 2-4 dollars, depending on your currency. Energy Credits (EC), are what you get when you sell weapons/equipment. You can also use your replicator to recycle items to free up inventory space or earn EC. Dilithium Crystals (DC) are refined from Dilithium Ore, obtainable through some missions. You are limited to refining 8,000 DC per day (24hrs), which sucks, but the DC you are allowed to refine can be exchanged for CP, which are roughly 250-60 DC.

Overall, the game is worth it, if you are willing to invest a lot of time (I mean, A LOT) into it.

Graphics - 90/100 (on max. setting)
Story - 85/100
Personality (custom settings, ships, characteres) - 100/100

Overall - 92/100

*Download link is here*

Star Trek Online Review: Part I

2012-01-27T11:34:00.002-05:00

Last week (1/18/12) was, as you should know, the Wikipedia blackout. However, a lesser known fact is that Star Trek Online went free-to-play the day before. Although STO is nothing new, (their 2-year anniversary is next month) I thought it would be interesting to give it a try. So I downloaded it, hoping it would provide me some entertainment to make up for the time I would usually spend looking up random astronomical phenomena on Wikipedia. Little did I know, it was going to be more than just a little entertainment...

The graphics are dependent on your hardware, but other than that, you are able to run free. You can choose your character's appearance, gender (I would hope so...) and career (Tactical/Command, Sciences/Medical, and Operations/Engineering), and later on in the game, you are able to choose to be a Klingon character. The game's leveling system is fairly simple. There are 7/8 ranks (I'm not quite sure how many Admiral ranks there are), and you gain skill points by completing missions. Each rank has 10 grades, and each rank grants you an additional ship, and a new officer. Your ship is set by default to a Centaur-class, a Miranda-class or a Shi'Kar-class vessel. After advancing to the rank of Lt. Commander, you are able to switch to a Light Escort, Cruiser or Light Science Vessel, and are able to choose between:

Cruisers:
Constitution refit-class (like the movie version of the Enterprise)
Constitution-class (like the Original Series, but this requires Cryptic Points, but I'll get to that later)
Excalibur-class (viewable in the background on the main STO website)
Vesper-class (like a mix between Excelsior and Constitution-refit)
Exeter-class (requires Cryptic Points, a refit of the refit Constitution)

Light Science:
Nova-class (like the USS Equinox, for those who watch Star Trek: Voyager)
Nova refit-class (essentially the same, except for a bit of added armour)

That's pretty much it for Part I, I'll either get Archaen to do Part II, or finish it when I don't have to leave for exams.

Australia Day

2012-01-26T15:19:00.002-05:00

Today is Australia day or something along the lines. It is a little know holiday so I thought I'll give a shout out to all the Australians that visit our site. You guys are our third country with the most views. Also, the sniper in Team Fortress Two is from Australia. Sorry for that somewhat random fact.

Half-Life 2: Lost Coast Review

2012-01-12T21:12:00.004-05:00

I promised to review some games so here is a start. (reminder, lazy readers should read last paragraph) I'll start with the pros before the cons. The first pro I see the title itself. Anyone who knows the Half-Life series should be delighted to play another one of their, crow bar bashing games. The "2" part of the title isn't unusual since there is about, six games that start with "Half-Life 2:" The "Lost Coast" part is a bit odd but with reading you find out it is an alternate path that you can take which gets you pumped. A Half-Life 2 alternate path, which means there must be so much to do.

The sound and graphic quality is at it's peak. This is what you expect from Valve and more, complete with scenic views and calm open water to gaze at, but not to swim in (learned by experience). The colors are a bit soft but it fits. I want to explain more but it's just good to look at but not in a way that it stops you from killing the enemies so you can stop and view the ocean and get shot tons of times. This game takes advantage of your graphic and sound card in a very intense game.

Now for the cons, game play is a minor one since it confuses you with different weapons from the story that normally are there at that point. The enemies are the same as the story, combine overwatch and a hunter chopper. There is no new enemy so don't expect much, but since this is a separate game they should have made at least one new enemy. Besides the weapon thing, there isn't anything new. The biggest issue to me is the game length. Even though I tried exploring every corner I still finish the game in about 45 minutes. It's not a quite a full game nor a demo. The puzzles are way too easy, which I found by mistake and the end is a let down.

The quality is nice, it displays nice visuals and audios. There aren't any surprises so don't expect any. The game length is enough to satisfy most people so don't delete too many things to download it. It's a good demo of the physics engine which shows Half-Life without any bugs.

Overall 80/100 crowbars

Emulators

2012-01-04T11:36:00.000-05:00

Over the Christmas holidays when I wasn't playing Cave Story 3D or watching Star Trek movies, I found myself playing Pokemon Crystal on my phone. I downloaded an emulator from the Android Market, link is here:

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.bslapps.gbc&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5ic2xhcHBzLmdiYyJd

Anyway, emulators work well on most computers with a decent amount of RAM and most Android devices running 2.2+.

If you don't have an Android phone, you're pretty much out of luck. But if you have a Mac or PC, you can go to http://www.coolrom.com/ and download most emulators and ROM files there. If you want to play Pokemon Diamond or Pearl, you need to tweak the emulator a bit, but it works if you know how to do it. Sadly, there is no app to download ROM files on the Market, so you have to use the above website, or another source to transfer them to your device. Anyway, that's all for now, thanks for reading and remember to follow us on Twitter and Google+.

A New Year

2012-01-04T11:01:00.003-05:00

This is a new year and a fresh start. First of all I'll like to congratulate you viewers for giving us 1,029 viewers in the month of December. 2012 will be filled with many good games hopefully if not, well, we won't talk about the ones that aren't good. The Mayan calendar is a good topic to talk about too. First of all, I probably live in a different time zone than you so if you live west of me, you'll meet your possible doom first. Now that's out of the way, I want to announce that I have a boat load of PC games from steam great gift pile. Look forward to many reviews.

Admin Account

2012-01-03T22:04:00.002-05:00

Hello there Mortals. This is actually just Archaen, but I'm on the Admin Account, which also happens to be the blog email address... yes, it does exist, and yes, someone does monitor it, so feel free to drop a question our way via email...

Uh... That's it.

Halo 2 Review

2012-01-03T20:23:00.000-05:00

Hey, its Thor here again, and I know I said I would post more regularly, and i haven't been doing that due to lots of work, and other things(Okay, I was Watching Stargate and Flashpoint). i have finished a new logo for (null) and will get it up soon (well, not really...) but now into what game i will be reviewing today.

Halo 2, the Sequel to the game featured in my first review, Halo: Combat Evolved {which is being re-released in remastered HD with Xbox Live, available November 15, 2011, w00t![AND Now that is tomorrow](AND now that is today...)[And now that is last year :P]} I never got to play the Xbox live online feature before the servers went down last year, probably my only video game related regret, as I hear it was very fun.

Anyways, on to the review. The graphics have obviously advanced, with environments that are even more seamless than the original. the campaign story line is short, but good, continued on from the last game. I'd like to tell you a play by play of the first level, since that seemed to be my thing based on my one review, but I haven't played it recently, and completely forget what happens.

Some new features and weapons were introduced in this game. The original magnum pistol was replaced with an insanely crappy new one... and Duel Wielding was added! (and or course the Assault Rifle was removed and replaced with the 3 round burst Battle Rifle, and the 60 round full auto, dual wield-able SMG) Dual wielding basically made it possible to carry two weapons, one in each hand, as well as a back up. when you switch weapons though, you drop one of the guns. One gun is fired with the left trigger, the other with the right, making grenade throwing while dual wielding impossible.

Story-line wise though, It continued the story just slightly after you destroy Installation 04 in Halo: CE, and John117 is back on earth (more accurately, above it). Oh, and completely on topic, I just remembered the first level! ya!

You are standing in the armory of the Earth Defense Station 'Cairo', basically a giant MAC (Magnetic Accelerator Cannon) Platform that float in orbit above Earth. the MAC Platforms are placed 3 in one area, in a all in a giant grid; with the Cairo's Sister Platforms, the 'Athens' and the 'Malta'. you are talking to the Master Sargent who is working in the armory (Okay, you are standing there, and he is talking to you). he is complaining about the amount of damage that you did to your MJOLNIR MK5 armor. Lucky for you, he just got the MK6 model for you, so you have to do the Standard Inversion "Better this way, or This Way" test again. Right after you finish the test, Sargent Johnson comes out of an elevator to pick you up for an awards ceremony aboard the 'Cairo'. you follow him and the elevator goes down and sideways, while Johnson gives you a brief history of the MAC Platforms. As they get out of the elevator Johnson says to you "You told me you were gonna wear something nice." As you two walk over to the next set of doors a floating Press camera follows you. Chief looks at, and then replies "You told me there weren't going to be any cameras..." Blah blah blah, more story stuff you'll have to find out about yourself, Some bits with The Arbiter, being branded and what not. Back on the MAC platform, you are receiving a medal, and Miranda Keyes (Captain Jacob Keyes Daughter) is receiving a medal for her father. The Covenant attack, laying waste to one of the MAC platforms using a bomb. You know there is a bomb somewhere aboard 'Cairo', and you set out to find it, killing everything that isn't human on your way. you get to the bomb, Cortana stops the detonation... but then you decided to use the Covenants own bomb against them. You open the airlock doors and jump out, pushing the bomb out with you. You fly through a hole in a Covenant Battle Cruiser that was opened up by a Longsword, and set the bomb in the power core of the ship, and then push of, hurtling away where you are picked up by the Frigate In Amber Clad.

That's basically a not so quick synopses of the first level...

Overall I'd have to give this game a 85/100. I had a lot of fun with this game, and I hear the online multi-player was very fun, but I only got to play the offline multi-player (still, really fun), but they replaced the Magnum and the Assault Rifle. I do like the Battle Rifle and SMG, but I really liked the 60 round MA5b. They also added the dual wielding capability, so that is a plus.

Cave Story Three-Dee

2011-12-29T22:03:00.001-05:00

I celebrate Christmas, as I'm sure some of you do, so It is logical to assume that I got something for Christmas. And, in doing so, you would be correct. I got 200$ from my uncle, who lives in Montreal. 100$ was for Christmas, and the other half was from my birthday, which was in October (the 9th, to be exact). I decided I would go out and get a 3DS game. At the time, I didn't really know what I wanted, but when I saw that Gamestop only had one copy of Cave Story 3D left, I decided to buy it.

Anyhow, this is my review of the game.

The game has a nice classic feel to it, while adding the new effects nicely. You have two options for graphics. You can choose to play with the new 3D characters and objects (such as Life Capsules and Save Points), or you could play with a 3D world, but with the original 2D sprites, and thankfully, both are amazing.

The gameplay is just what I had expected it to be. The characters have exactly the same lines, and unfortunately, Balrog doesn't say "HUZZAH!!!" when he appears in the shack. Other than that let down, the game is a good amuser, at least until I feel like hauling my lazy ass out to buy another iTunes gift card.

I give Cave Story 3D 89 Huzzah's or lacktherof out of 100 Huzzah's or lacktherof.

Club Nintendo 2011 Platinum Reward Unboxing!

2011-12-18T23:38:00.001-05:00

So, two reviewers here on Null (Rinzler and myself!) recently got their hands on the latest Club Nintendo elite status reward! Platinum, no less. There's really not much more to say, so check out our unboxing videos down below! Just click a link and have a good four minutes of your life. It's time well wasted, folks.

My Unboxing (Fiftybottles):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNv0FXjXrR0

Rinzler's Unboxing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fzzT5hJwts&context=C3495d3dADOEgsToPDskKwmrk0Br019HwJVOiAOzo6

Sorry for the Last Post

2011-12-16T22:07:00.003-05:00

As you can see, the title is what I mean. I have deepest regrets for doing something so childish. I'm just expresses my inner emotions through pictures that I created. Like a poet with his or her poems. Like an artist with paint or an author with words. I am just a follower of these great people. I may have missed some of the great people who express their feelings. If you thought I would make more of those, well too bad. I'll only give you one more though.

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Sad Face

2011-12-16T22:00:00.004-05:00

A picture I drew, technically typed. Hope you like it. Sad face.

#####-----------#####

---O--MMMMM---O----

-O--///--------\\\--O--

--///-------------\\\---

It's me with emotions and depression. Sad face.

Just Some Stuff...

2011-12-15T15:06:00.001-05:00

Okay, so recently a few things have happened... Thor has recently retrieved the password for our YouTube/Gmail/Blogger account, so I took the liberty to upload a video review, which is kind of crappy, for the Club Nintendo Platinum Reward... Which is being uploaded as I type this on my phone.

The other info I had to inform you about, is that our fellow blogger, Chi You has been temporarily demoted to an author for posting a poll asking who was right, me or him. Not to worry, he has been informed and will be fully reinstated as a full admin before the turn of 2012.

Another quick note, I will also be making a video review for Mario Kart 7 as well as Super Mario 3D Land.

Thanks for reading,

~Captain Picard

Minecraft Requests

2011-12-07T17:48:00.004-05:00

I am taking Minecraft creation requests if you don't know. It has to be something you won't censor or look like something you will censor. So, I will be able to make a lot of thing. I would prefer if you gave Minecraft city ideas. Sad face.

I have an emergency station, if you don't know, I have a visual tour of it. I have a church, inn, observatory, indoor shooting/bomb range, therapist, a brewer stand, a vendor, a well, a soup kitchen/homeless shelter, hunting store, cafe, a lighting shop and a color wool store.
Well, if you want to tell me a request either e mail me with the e mails at the side or post a comment.

Sad face.

Lucky Number 7

2011-12-06T22:33:00.001-05:00

So over the weekend, my dad was supposed to buy me Mario Kart 7 from the NWS in NY City, but he ran out of money, so I was forced to get it today, after school. Anyhow, I ended getting it on the 6th instead of the 4th, like I was supposed to. I did however, get the 2 pin set from Gamestop (and an Yellow Bird plush) with the game.

Overal, the game has its many ups and downs (literally, with that damn hanglider), and one strong point the game has is something I have admired about Mario Kart since I used to play my N64, which is probably collecting dust somewhere in my basement, was the music used in Rainbow Road. The developers and composers that helped with this game gave it a unique feel, but the classic fanfare kicked in about halfway through the first "section" (longer courses, such as Wuhu Loop, Maka Wuhu and Rainbow Road have you complete three segments of the course, but only one lap). The way the music blended with the graphics almost made me cry myself to the finish line.

The gamplay that Mario Kart 7 has to offer is truly one-of-a-kind, in the sense that is has the virtue that it hasn't been done before. The 3D effects really add depth (pardon the pun) to the game, and the first-person-racer mode allows you to use the gyro controls to race. I still can't forgive Nintendo for putting Mushroom Gorge in this game...

The only area I think that this game lacked in was the characters. The game has some new characters, and the ability to customize your kart, but the characters you'd expect to be there have been replaced by some useless characters from Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario 64. Otherwise, this game was among the stars (literally, again with the hanglider), and is bound to be like it's predecessor, which has only dropped in price by 5$ in almost 4 years.

I give this game 99.5 hangliders out of 100.

Our opinion on Minecraft

2011-11-29T20:37:00.006-05:00

Sorry that no one posted anything about the Minecraft Official release. Well, here it is, we've only been out for about a year now, so we said stuff about Minecraft since Feburary of this year. We continued to say things about Minecraft, me posting lots of things about it. In the month of July, I posted Minecraft Traps for everyday, and currently I'm making a city to show off to you, the viewers. Overall, I have posted the most about Minecraft, I never really stood there and valued it. Yes Fiftybottles posted things that were cool, like a cavestory texture, Minecraft movie, Minecraft videos and stuff no one really cared about. He just improved the Minecraft appearance. Sad face.

I on the other hand will take requests for what you want to see about Minecraft. I will mold Minecraft into whatever, and make this a Minecraft experience. Minecraft is about observing natural structures on you computer and not in real life, it's about bragging about awesome generating bugs, building huge things because you have no life, and just having fun with mods. Sad face.

In short, Minecraft is awesome juice straight from a semi awesome fruit. Half the awesomeness is from what you make of it. Whether you build or mod, Minecraft is what you make of it. This is not Null Review's official review of Minecraft but it is close. Sad face.

Voxatron Review

2011-11-26T22:09:00.009-05:00

Ohmigod, it's Fiftybottles! (resounding applause) Thank you, thank you. As you obviously noticed, that whole "Freebies and Betas" died a loooong time ago. But anyways, I'm back, and I'm here with another review. It's a bit shorter this time, but let's hope you still enjoy it!

Voxatron was released originally with the "Humble Voxatron Debut", a day before Halloween. It's obviously over now, but I managed to pick it up (on the last day, no less) and I figured, hey, why the hell not? Let's review this mother!

Voxatron is an old-school shoot-em-up with a twist. Sure, you're still blasting away at hordes of demons, monsters, and giant pigs with fists that could break Chuck Norris, but the entire game is made of voxels. Don't know what voxels are? Ever heard of Minecraft? Then you know what voxels are. They are essentially 3D pixels. Minecraft uses a completely voxel-based engine (which is how it achieves the whole "block-building" effect), albeit on a much larger scale than "Voxatron". A.K.A. The voxels in this game are much smaller. This means that you can run around, blasting tiny chunks away from buildings with your pea-shooter, and watching them collapse in a pile of rubble before your very feet and eyes! It's immensely satisfying to shoot the stilts off of a cage containing hundreds of little monsters, and watch them pour out of the remains to tear your face off. There are really no limits to what a voxel-based engine can do, and there's really no better showcase for that than this game.

Voxatron comes with a 27-room sample level, labelled "Adventure Mode". It's very fun to play through, and shows you just what can be achieved in the impressive engine that Lexaloffle has crafted. The real bulk of the game, however, comes from the "BBS Levels" game mode. Every single user-created level is stored in here, an you can play them at your will, save them to your favourites, browse character models, filter which levels you want... it's just great. There's already a tremendous community in this game, with already 441 user-made levels having been uploaded to the BBS (one of which is mine. "Onslaught Arena", look 'er up on the BBS!). That's pretty incredibly considering how long the game has been out.

Voxatron comes with a tremendous, easy-to-learn level editor that will have you blasting baddies in your own stages within no time at all. It's a bit clunky, and I wish there were some more options, but with the promised updates and the sheer amount of customization options, this part of the game is an absolute blast. Design your own dungeon, then litter it with items and power-ups to slay the evil army of tear droplets that approach from the hallway in front of you. Trap the player in a cage and force him to shoot his way out into a post-apocalyptic mad-world that wants nothing more than to see you dead. The possibilities are endless, and you really have the ability to flex your creative muscles and let your talents shine.

In conclusion, Voxatron is an awesome game that is definitely worth the current asking price of $15. Hell, if this game was $30 it would still be an incredible buy. Without hesitation, you should head on over to the website and download this sucker A.S.A.P.!

Voxatron gets 88 "Swords of Fortune" out of 100.

Super Mario 3D Land

2011-11-24T23:20:00.001-05:00

SUPER MARIO 3D LAND

Hello peeps. So... a few weeks back I got Super Mario 3D Land, and I must say it is my favourite game of 2011 so far. And we still have December left. So, the bottom line is, that if you have a 3DS and $40, you need this game. You actually NEED it. This game has AMAZING graphics, keeping you in constant awe. The other great thing about SM3DL, is that it is an amazing blend of SMG/SMG2 and SMB3/NSMB. There is that sense of nostalgia you get when you first see the Tanooki Leaf, or when you hear the familiar underground theme, and the sense of adventure when you grab a Boomerang Flower.

Graphics - 100%

Playability - 100%

Music - 100%

StreetPass - 100%

Throwback Factor - 100%

OVERALL - 100%

I should probably do my Business homework now...

If I told you that you looked stupid not visiting this blog, would you believe me?

2011-11-21T22:40:00.001-05:00

Hey guys, I'm back, and in case you are wondering who I am, I am 16 Bit, but now I am Captain Picard. Don't know who Captain Picard is? Go watch Star Trek: The Next Generation, you'll find out.

...Anyhow, since we are all busy with school, (I think) the amount of posts has almost completely flat lined, and we hope to solve that...

Because I got Super Mario 3D Land.

Now you will bask in the glory of my epicosity, and you will also wait until whenever-the-hell-I-feel-like-it for a review.

Polls

2011-11-14T19:14:00.002-05:00

I made another poll for all of you to know. Only the cool people can click "my fist and break both disc"

Minecraft City

2011-11-07T19:19:00.008-05:00

I have lots of time on my hands on certain days so I thought about installing Single Player Commands mod and builtng a city. I have an emergency response team ready and I built their headquarters. Here's a look at the main lobby and counter.
This is the detective's office. He has the best name
This is Detective Poopenstanky Mcpolicemanson's office
This is the doctor's office
The patients go on the bed, put their stuff in the chest and eat cake for instant health.
This is the emergency team sleeping place, bunk beds for space.
The top of the emergency tower, it is a lookout over the city. In the corner is netherrack, light it in emergency like a creeper take over.

Minecraft Livestream

2011-10-20T19:53:00.002-04:00

Probably none of you know of this, but PortalFTW and I did a livestream last night, of both of us playing in a private minecraft server I hosted (no, you can't join, don't ask, random viewer. I'm a jerk, I know). Here's the link to that, and have fun!

http://www.livestream.com/nullreviewnotfound/video?clipId=pla_23ad632d-91ce-4ff4-9c20-6b5e27cc96a1&utm_source=lslibrary&utm_medium=ui-thumb

The Quest for McQuack

2011-10-11T21:08:00.001-04:00

Not only does this video feature absolutely mind-blowing minecraft parkour, but it also features awesome music. The DuckTales moon theme, to be precise. Be amazed...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huuidZ3tBok&feature=player_embedded

Team Fortress Two Review

2011-10-06T18:59:00.002-04:00

Team Fortress Two or TF2 is the sequel to Team fortress classic, if you don't know. I never played Team fortress classic but good games shouldn't rely on the prequels for support. So, without further a due, here is my short review.

The graphics of TF2 is amazing thanks to the many updates that enhance many things. They are the best. The cartoonist look to all of the characters gives a charm to them to make them unforgettable. Nothing is out of place, except the few bugs but they don't get in the way of the game.

The weapons are exciting with special things for all of them. No two weapons are a like. Some are community made so more can come. Only certain weapons randomly picked up. This makes for annoying doubles taking up space. But because certain things are picked up, crafting becomes necessity in getting the weapon you want. So, the doubles are helpful. On the topic of crafting, items are very nice things to get. Besides weapons, you can get hats, badges or things that do things in games. They are exciting to get and fun to add to your character. A tedious thing about the items is that there is limited space. You can only get 50 items unless you buy the big backpack. But it's $5.00, it depends on how rich you are. Somethings can't be crafted unless you buy something. A really annoying item is the Mann.Co supply crates that requires $0.50 to open.

I can't really say anything about the sound. They both whatever they come with but I don't play that much with sound. When I do play with sound it is great. The dialogue of the characters fit and are hilarious.

The gameplay is typical for it's genre. Multi player first person shooter. The typical awesomeness from Valve. The achievements and weapons keep making come back so there's always something to do. There are nine classes: scout, soldier, pyro, demoman, heavy, engineer, medic, spy and sniper. Each with their every own special abilities and weapons. So, once you're bored of a class simply switch.

All in all, Team Fortress Two is a game like no other with funny dialogue and characters. Stunning visuals and sound along with achievements and weapons making doing nothing extremely hard.

I give this 99/100 Sandvichs because the small bugs here and there plus the updates where no server works.

We're back, Partly

2011-09-25T18:30:00.002-04:00

The blog is back and running but a slow pace. We'll need you to help us with feedback and ideas. Right now I am all out of ideas for blog post. I already posted how to contact me so don't expect me to post it in this post.

If you follow this blog then you should know I lost my PSN account to some bureaucratic system. So, I replaced all my Playstation ideas with PC ideas. So, I won't be on PSN at all and I'll be on steam or random MMOs and what not. I got Portal and Team Fortress 2 so expect a review by me to come up soon. Remember, e mail me ideas for posts or complaints.

P.S. Fiftybottles, your other post is dead. I have a hand in it.

Freebies and Betas

2011-09-22T22:19:00.002-04:00

So, as I'm sure you ALL know by now, the Battlefield 3 Open Multiplayer Beta comes out next week, and ANYBODY CAN PLAY IT! Hence the "open" before the "multiplayer". Oh, and if you pre-ordered (or do decided to pre-order before that time), you get access TWO DAYS EARILER. SO WHOAH. And since I use Linux, I must first wait to see if it'll even work first under Wine with the Beta. Then, and only then, may I buy it. Yay.

Next week also marks the release of The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition on the DSiWare store and eShop. So, anybody with a DSi, DSi XL, or 3DS can get this game ABSOLUTELY FREE from September 28th up until February 20th. SO YEAH THAT'S AWESOME. It's also going to feature some anniversary levels, which are basically throwbacks to the original NES, SNES, and GameBoy Zelda titles, one of which I reviewed a while back. And since it's free, I'm sure WAY MORE people will be buying it this time around. Which is awesome, because I actually happen to own the original cartridge, WHICH NOBODY FREAKING PLAYED WITH ME. But that was mainly because they didn't have it. So damn.

Anyways, that's it in the way of Freebies and Betas this week.

YES IT'S A WEEKLY THING NOW SHUT UP

Do a barrel roll! (in 3D) + My formal apology for Summer Laziness

2011-09-13T16:00:00.007-04:00

First off, I want to apologize to those who follow our blog, however few people you may be, for the lack of posts over the summer months. This was mostly caused by our unfamiliarity with being away from each other over a long period of time, which hasn't happened in the life of the blog.

So, anyway, over the weekend I picked up my preorder of Star Fox 64 3D, the second of hopefully many more N64 remakes for the 3DS. So I'm using this opportunity to try my new review style.

-Control 5/5-100%

Generally, the controls are relatively easy to get used to. Since I am new to Star Fox, I'm not familiar with the original control scheme, so I am not one to judge its similarity or lack thereof to the original game.

-Content/Singleplayer 4/5-80%

This game, despite it's many routes to the finish, has a limited supply of content, mostly because of the fact it is more to be considered as a re-release, more than a remake, despite the small changes that were made content-wise.

-Multiplayer 4/5-80%

This game has exceptional multiplayer, be it you face Falco, Peppy and Slippy, or your friends turned rivals this game has an amazing multiplayer experience, because you all have to admit that bombing Slippy is something you've always wanted to do. The only lacking feature of multiplayer is the absence of Wi-Fi.

-Graphics 7/5-140%

This game has amazing graphics, and in 3D, they will blow your mind so much, you will give them 2 bonus points for how amazing they are, and that is all there is to it.

-Overall 20/20-100%

What this game lacks in multiplayer and content, it fully makes up for in graphics. So in this easy to control-content lacking-Wi-Fi lacking- amazing looking game, you will find a glory that will most likely reboot the Star Fox series, possibly leading to games on the 3DS and Wii-U. Now, we will look at Nintendo to re-release Mario Kart 64, Super Smash Bros, and TLoZ: Majora's Mask

Retro Review: Quarth (Game Boy)

2011-09-09T22:14:00.008-04:00

Let me get started by saying this: I know, I have been away from the blagospehere, or blagoblag, or blogonet, or whatever the hell you want to call it, for quite a while now. But hey, I'm back in business baby, and I have a retro review flying your way and most likely annoying the hell out of you, because well, that's just my style.

If you aren't interested in reading the whole review, just skip to the bottom to read my final thoughts. There's ice cream in it for you if

you read the whole thing though. I swear.

Quarth was originally released in November of 1989 as an arcade game, and was later ported to the Game Boy in on June 16 a year later, and the MSX2 in Japan a year later. The game is known as "Black Hole" outside of Japan, which means that I myself actually have my hands on the original Japanese cartridge, and I didn't even know it before looking it up. Hmm, neato. I guess that makes me lucky then?

Oh, and more thing before me get started; the cartridge that I have is apparently published by Ultra Games, but all the labels and all the box art I can find online says the game is published by Konami. I have no idea...

Now, I'm not gonna lie, you've probably never heard of Quarth, Black Hole, or whatever you want to call it. I don't blame you. Hell, the only reason I own it is because it came with the copy of Metroid 2 I purchased for $2.50 as a free game pak. But the question is, are you really missing out on anywthing? Is Quarth a hidden gem? Is it worth picking up, or spending the money on, even if that money is simply $2.50? Well, to put it quite simply, hell no!

The basic idea of Quarth is pretty simple. You shoot blocks at shapes descending upon you to create rectangle and squares. Upon doing so, the shapes disappear. You can speed up the drop speed of the shapes, much like in Tetris, and there are also a variety of power-ups that can be acquired, depending on the size of the shape you "phazed" away. Now, there is a small problem with this. It's actually pretty much impossible for you to get power-ups without adding to the default shape; in other words, you can't just shoot the minimum number of blocks. You have to sometimes shoot a ridiculous number of blocks onto the shape to make it large enough, and by the time you're done doing this, you're already dead, because the shape has already hit your own damn self and triggered the "game over". And worse yet, you always seem to get the same two power-ups, even though the "power-up field", as I call it, as room for way more than just 2. And don't think that you can stack up on multiple power-ups of the same kind, because you can't. You can only hold one of each type of power-up at a time. But you know what, for me, really takes the cake with these damned power-ups!? Not only are they useless, hard to get, and just plain not worth it, but if you have more than one type of power-up, you cannot, repeat, CANNOT, change between the types. I tried every button, and I wasn't able to switch between my fast-shot or my screen-clearer. That's just freakin' ridiculous! Why would anyone ever do that!? If I need my screen clearer, I have to get rid of my fast-shot, and if I need my fast-shot, I need to get rid of my damned screen clearer! Does that make any sense to you!?

Beyond my rants on useless power-ups, this game is just plain repetitive. I found myself slightly entertained at first, shooting blocks at shapes and watching them disappear, while tapping my fingers to the kinda catchy music. And then I played for another five minutes, and I realized that, oh shit, the music loops every 30 seconds, the same exact shapes that you just destroyed and filing down yet again, and you freaking fingers are hurting because the level designers never thought to place one shape directly next to another. No, you always have to be constantly fidgeting around all over the place if you even want to think of beating this damned game. And yes, I checked, the levels are pre-defined. No random generation here folks, which makes an already grinding, aggravating, and repetitive experience all the more so!

The sound is annoying. I found myself leaving it off most of the time, and do I really need to explain why? Annoying beeps and bloops and music that loops every 30 seconds is not pretty. The graphics are nothing to show off either. I know this is GameBoy, and that you don't have much to work with when it comes to a game like this, but come on! At least give us some differently designed blocks, or some interesting ships with nice little details here or a few neat pixels over there. But no, we're looking at the same crap over and over and over, and the sip designs are uninspired and lazy.

All in all, Quarth is just not worth the price of admission, even if that price is a simple 2 dollars. It's extremely light on content, and what you do get is repetitive and boring. Stay very far away from this abomination.

I give Quarth 43 poorly-designed labels out of 100.

Boredom

2011-09-01T19:19:00.002-04:00

If you feel bored because we didn't post much in the summer, just play the games we reviewed as good things. We will make more post once the school year comes up, Minecraft updates, or if a new system comes out. Speaking of which, the PS vita has many interesting launch games like Little Big Planet. A new Uncharted is due to appear for both the PS3 and the PS vita. Though the PS vita will appear in early in 2012. Ridge Racer is also coming out for the PS vita, so it's nice to see some 3DS titles in the PS vita lineup. So, just wait for more post.

3DS

2011-08-17T13:43:00.003-04:00

There has been big talk of the 3DS in the last three months and sadly there is no review for it. I must say that the 3DS isn't getting a review. Before you start complaining or booing us, it wasn't my fault since I don't have a 3DS. Blame all this on 16-bit, PortalFTW, Fiftybottles, and Chillin416. That is all, you may start booing and hate the following contributors.

Nintendo 3DS Ambassador Program, 3DS Price Drop and Dumb GBA Limitations

2011-08-13T20:43:00.003-04:00

Good news for the early adopters of the 3DS. Nintndo is allowing you to receive 10 free NES games from the eShop, before they are available to the public, as a reward for buying the 3DS early, if you connect to the eShop before midnight on August 12th (that means you are late, unless you go back in time) you are automatically registered. Now, if you don't have a 3DS,now is the time to get it if you want it, because Nintendo is dropping it's price by 80 dollars to 170$, starting August 12th. The GBA game that were also announced, which are available only to ambassadors, which are most likely coming in early December, have dumb limitations, which include no restore points, no wireless features, such as StreetPass or Spot Pass, and no sleep mode. so, the system pretty much treats itself like an original GBA, but despite these limitations, they are exclusive to you, but you still have to pay for them.

Counter-Strike 1.6 Look-Back

2011-08-13T18:19:00.002-04:00

In honour of the recent announcement that a new Counter-Strike game is in development, I thought I'd take the time to do a short look-back on the franchise, starting with the first entry in the series, simply titled Counter-Strike.

Counter-Strike began life as a community made mod for Half-Life in 1999. It quickly became quite popular, to the point that Valve took notice of the mod themselves. They ended up ultimately buying it and improving upon what was already there, releasing the game under the name “Counter-Strike 1.6”. This is the version that many people still play to this day, which is a testament to just how well the game was designed, and ultimately this is what boosted Counter-Strike right up there, what gave the series a name and style all its own.

I have never played the original mod, and I'm not even sure if it's still available anymore. I would imagine not, seeing as how it's really a retail game now that one can buy on Steam, a service run by Valve itself. So, I'm going to spend some time talking about Counter-Strike 1.6 in this look-back.

Counter-Strike 1.6 balances what some might call realism with that whole arcadey, fast-paced, shoot-em-up kind of action. You still run fairly quickly, and the game is very similar to games such as Quake in this regard. Running around and jumping frequently will definitely keep enemy bullets from hitting you, unlike in the newer Call of Duty or Battlefield franchises. However, when a bullet hits you, you'll slow down and you won't be able to jump as high for a sort period of time. It only takes a few bullets to end your life entirely, even if you're wearing body armour, and once you're down, you won't even be able to respawn until the next round. It added a lot of tension to the experience, and it ensured that players would act as a team. Anyone who tried to go it alone without some sort of backup was a goner for sure.

2011-07-11T17:32:00.004-04:00

This trap is also a suffocation trap.

Materials: 2 pistons
dirt (if the biome isn't desert) if the biome is desert use sand.
redstone
2 pressure plates
slimeballs
Optional2
(Obsidian)

First, dig a hole one block wide and two blocks long. The depth is any. Once done, look at the side that is two blocks wide. Go to your crafting screen and create sticky pistons. Extend that wall by one block wide, two blocks tall and two blocks long. At head level, dig something two blocks long but one block wide.Insert pistons there. Place pressure plates where the sun come in or, at the bottom of the hole. Wire up the pistons and the pressure plates accordingly. The left plate goes to the left piston and etc with the right. Now, make a way to escape the trap yourself because if you follow correctly, the pistons should be one block away from you when you step on the pressure plate. When you have that done, make no way to escape the trap except for the one I said before. Don't make it too obvious. Now that you have that, attach a block to the piston. If someone steps on your pressure plate the block should suffocate them. Make the block obsidian if you want to make it nearly impossible to escape. With the dirt (or sand) try to cover up the existence of the trap, except for the opening. if you use sand for this, place a sandstone block under where you want sand and fill it with sand.I removed the blocks so that it wouldn't hide the pistons. I use a mod to make me fly so I didn't trigger the pressure plate.

pressure plates and redstone. Note that I put sandstone to stop the sand from showing my redstone.

Minecraft Traps

2011-07-10T14:13:00.004-04:00

As I said I am making these daily. To save time I'm only going to post one picture. It will be of the finished project. This trap is a piston suffocation trap.

Materials: 2 pistons
sand (any amount)
redstone
pressure plate (optional)

First, dig a hole. It should be 2 blocks long and 1 block wide. Dig however you want. At the bottom, place the pressure plates. Next to the hole, place the pistons. They should face the hole but when they extend, they shouldn't pass the hole. Wire the pressure plates to the pistons. In front of the pistons, place the sand. So, when someone walks onto the pressure plate, sand falls on them and the suffocate.

Zelda: A Link to the Past Review

2011-07-10T02:35:00.005-04:00

Okay, as you can see by the post title, and the picture, I am doing a review on the SNES Game Zelda: A Link to the Past, which was released in 1992 (as you can see by the screenshot) for the SNES, and later re-released on the GBA. I was GOING to review OoT3D, but fiftybottles did, I'm just going to review this game instead. This is a good game, it's only major drawback is that is rare, unless you use emulators like me. The game is fairly easy to control, despite the control scramble-up from the emulators, being that it is a top-down game, so the controls are pretty much identical to the controls for Pokemon, except Link (or whatever you named him) runs automatically. This game is in my opinion the best Zelda game, because of the main reason that I can actually have a fighting chance of beating the game, as for OoT3D? I suck. This is a game that would be simply amazing if Nintendo remade for the 3DS or Wii, however the would probably do the same stupid mirror thing like they did in Twilight Princess for Wii, (which pisses me off, because I am one of the only people they didn't consider making that game, because I use my left hand for the Wii remote, and my right. for the nunchuck.) But, back to the game. With simple controls, and simply great overall, I give A Link to the Past 99/100 rupees (which fills the child's wallet in OoT3D)

16 Bit

Minecraft

2011-07-09T11:26:00.007-04:00

I will make traps and ways to kill NPCs or players a daily post on Null. Here I go, my first trap for players or NPCs.

Materials: pressure plate/ button
lava
piston
redstone

Place the piston pushing side ways like in the picture in the ceiling.
Put the lava above the piston. Make sure you have walls around your lava. You don't want it flowing around.

Next, add the switch. Connect the switch with the piston. I got the pressure plate because NPCs or players can walk onto it and die.

As you see in the picture, a wooden or TNT room just makes disasters. Plus, the lava almost killed me.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D Review

2011-07-02T10:42:00.007-04:00

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (which I will, from now on, be abbreviating as "OoT3D") has been out for a couple of weeks now, so I thought that it deserved a review from yours truly! If you just want a quick summary of what I thought, skip down to the final paragraph. If not, read your brains out below!

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is widely considered to be the best game ever made. Period. So when it was announced that this very same game was coming to the 3DS with bonus modes, enhanced graphics, an orchestrated bonus musical track, and 3D support, it's pretty safe to say that, across about half of the world, roughly 8 million peoples' heads exploded. And that's not counting the ones who only got seriously injured. Well people, the wait was long, but it was worth it, and I'm here to tell you why.

OoT3D is the same OoT that you all know and love. It still has all the same temples, all the same charm, all the same interesting characters, and the very same Navi. Yes, that's right, Nintendo decided to leave Navi's annoying tendencies in the game for "nostalgic purposes". I'm not saying for Nintendo to just outright pull Navi out of the game. That would be a ridiculous notion. Just... give us some more varied sounds, please? "Hey, Listen!" can get quite annoying after hearing it the thousandth time (trust me, I'm not exaggerating). Aside from that however, there are quite a few notable changes. First of all, colours seem to be more vibrant and... well... colourful. The character models have a much higher polygon count (which really isn't surprising in the least), the frame rate has been significantly improved, textures are light years ahead of what was offered on the N64, and animations are much smoother and really just much more realistic. There is a nice anti-aliasing effect that was put into the game, and it makes things seem smoother and more realistic, however this effect is turned off when 3D is switched on, which really isn't actually that big of a loss. In fact, I barely ever noticed it. Speaking of 3D, it's a quite noteworthy addition to the game, and makes everything come to life even more. IF you buy this game, then playing it in 3D is a must, because it really does a much better job of immersing you in the world, and, quite frankly, to me it feels as if some of the cutscenes were originally designed to makes use of this kind of technology... without Nintendo even realizing it!

The controls in the game are, like every other Zelda game, awesome. I know that many people complained about the controls not being preferable to the N64 controls, however I had absolutely no problems with them, and considering the fact that the two controls are completely different, I think that Nintendo did quite an admirable job at making them work. There's now a button dedicated to your Ocarina, so you don't have to keep swapping it in and out of your inventory anymore, and now you can equip four items. All of this makes for a much better inventory system overall. My only problem is that you have to really use your thumbs for the touch screen button (seeing as how the 3DS' stylus was position on the top left hand of the system). Reaching for the stylus is impossible when trying to act fast like you always are in a game like this, and when using my thumbs, sometimes the buttons wouldn't read it properly. However, this is a drawback of the 3DS system design, not the actual game itself. When Nintendo inevitably releases their second version of the 3DS, I'm sure there will be some notable design improvements, and that most people won't have this problem anymore. For the time being, however, you have been warned.

There are a few bonus modes in the game, most notably the "Master Quest". This is basically the same game, except the overworld is now just a mirror image of itself, enemies take off twice as much damage, and all of the dungeons have now been remixed. Oh, yeah, and they're mirrored too. It may not sound like much, but these things all make the quest infinitely more difficult, especially if you've already beaten the game, like I had. I found myself going left to get to Kakariko Village instead of the left that is required in the new mirrored world when I was exiting the castle, simply because my mind was trained to just do that. Suffice to say, the new quest will make you think a wee bit harder than before. There's also a boss rush mode that is unlocked about halfway through the game. It's interesting, but it's not really going to keep your attention for too long.

The sound and music are amazing in this game. True, none of the music has actually been changed, and there's only one bonus track that's been fully orchestrated (you'll have to figure that one out on your own, guys... sorry!), but that doesn't really matter, because it's all so amazing! From the Lost Woods to the infamous Windmill Hut (that Nintendo ingeniously decided to call "?" when you enter it because of its sheer weirdness), all of the music here is absolutely mind-blowing. The music makes Hyrule Field as epic as ever and the Forest Temple as creepy as ever, and its definitely not something you want to miss out on. Leave that sound slider "up", children. When it comes to sound effects, I noticed that a few things were changed. Link's classic screams and cries are still here (Yah! Hah! Hyah!), and as mentioned eariler Navi still pisses you the hell off, but most of the footstep noises in the game were changed, some enemy cries (as well as friendly cries), were changed, perhaps most notably the Goron sound. Instead of the Gorons going "Hmm? Hyyaaammhhhhaa" Like they did in the original game when standing up, they now only go "Hmm?". This is actually slightly disappointing to me. I found that, believe it or not, the "Hyyaaammhhhhaa" at the end of their cry added a lot to their personality. Aside from this, however, the sounds have overall been improved in a good way.

The graphics have, as mentioned above, also been drastically improved. You already know what I like about the graphics, and how much they've been improved (a lot!), but there are some things that I think weren't quite touched up enough. All of the staircases are still flat, which is mostly forgivable I think. It's not really all to noticable, although a fully rendered 3D staircase would've been nice. But, the things that stuck out the most to me were the environments themselves. I noticed that not much was done to floors, ceilings, walls, mountains, rivers, or fences when it comes to polygons. In fact, most, if not all, of the environments looks almost exactly the same polygon-wise (because obviously the textures have been improved, as well as the particle effects and various other things). Things are still all jaggy and rugged, and really things don't look too smooth. It's pretty much the same environments that were featured in the N64 version, albeit with better textures, which is a slight disappointment. It is forgivable however, and the game still looks quite nice. It's just not pushing any boundaries when it comes to the 3DS hardware.

Ocarina of Time 3D is an absolutely must-own classic game for anyone with a 3DS. Yes, that's right, even if you have the original. The graphics have been drastically improved, and even if they're not pushing the hardware to new heights, it still looks pretty durn gewd. It's music is mind-blowing, and it's scale is epic. The Master Quest will keep you coming back, and its the kind of game that you can just play over and over again simply because of the massive number of secrets that are within the game. Some of the glitches are interesting to check out as well, and according to some of the developers of the game, most glitches were left in for nostalgic purposes. Awesome? Anyways, This is an epic game that everyone should own. Simple as that.

I give The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D 98/100 Master Swords.

Polls

2011-06-29T21:05:00.001-04:00

Hahahaha, I'm declared the best contributor to this blog!

Graduation

2011-06-26T20:42:00.002-04:00

The majority of the Null staff will be graduating and going to different high schools. Thor and 16-bit will be going to the same school. PortalFTW and I will be going to the same high school as well. fiftybottles, Vaibhav and Sysreal will go to different schools altogether. Chillin416 had failed his current grade and will be repeating it for all we know. So, Fiftybottles, Vaibhav, Sysreal and the people who won't be going to my school next year, I hope you will still in contact with me. As for Chillin416 go repeat whatever grade you are doing because you're not going to high school with us. I'm not even sure if he even is in middle school.

We're Back

2011-06-25T21:42:00.001-04:00

Alright, Chi You posted that we were going to be away all week and that no one would be posting. So now I just wanted to say... We're back. Please hold your applause till the end... Alright now you can clap.

Radio Silence

2011-06-19T15:00:00.002-04:00

Most of the staff on Null will be at Ottawa or Montreal. Perpare for a week of boredom if you are dependent on this blog. Chillin416 and Vaibhav will remain since Chillin416 isn't old enough to be cool and Vaibhav is being cool in India. So, this will be our last post for about a week good bye.

Stanley Cup Game

2011-06-16T17:58:00.001-04:00

As you know, we had a poll to see which NHL team was in favor of winning. The Vancouver Canucks were in favor. Sadly, the real results of the game were far from that. The score was 4-0 for the Bruins. Considering all the excitement Vancouver built up over this, the aftermath was horrible. Riots erupted through the city. Cars were turned and burned. Well, everything in their reach was burned even jerseys. I just want to alert you to know that the G20 was some competition.

Minecraft Comic

2011-06-14T19:55:00.002-04:00

Minecraft Cr1tikal

2011-06-13T18:21:00.007-04:00

If you haven't watched the youtube channel cr1tikal. He is a very funny gamer. He commentates lots of games with very funny things inside. One of the many games he commentated was minecraft. Careful, don't let any little children watch this some subject matter isn't appropriate for children. Without further a due, here is the link. http://www.youtube.com/user/penguinz0?blend=3&ob=5#p/u/0/n6YWbTSGFLQ After you watch this, you will understand the joke in the picture above.

Storm Over GTA

2011-06-09T18:02:00.003-04:00

If you don't know, majority of our contributors are in the GTA area (not the grand theft auto area). Because of this, we recently experienced a very serve storm. In this storm, hail fell, thunder struck and trees toppled. Many of the contributors were lucky and avoided any trees falling on their properties. Unfortunately a tree did fall on mine. We will try to make a way so you can donate money for my cause and others. We will most likely donate all the money to the Red cross. I just don't feel like writing right now so I'll just end it here.

Epic Bob-omb & other stuffs

2011-06-07T16:30:00.004-04:00

Okay, so I am a fan of LEGO and Star Wars, so I am going to post a review of LEGO Star Wars III, but that isn't the point here. I was browsing a site called MOCPages, a site for LEGO Fans. So the MOC of the day was... A Bob-omb made of LEGO. Link here if you want it:

http://www.mocpages.com/moc.php/218324

Onto the main article. Recently, Nintendo had it's press conference at E3 2011, and two major games were officially announced: Mario Kart 3DS and Super Mario 3DS, and a 3DS update was released, adding an online store (that hopefully won't get hacked *cough* PSN *cough*), a browser and the ability to transfer data from a DSi or DSi XL. So for all you people out there that still have a DSi, you must download an app from the DSi shop to transfer system data. So far, two titles have been released that are free: Pokedex 3D, and Excitebikes (original). But you can only get Excitebikes free until July 7th (at least in North America), so get it quickly.

Canadian Video Game Awards

2011-06-05T21:03:00.004-04:00

EDIT: This was supposed to go up a while ago, back when the CVAs were still relevant. I had the whole thing written up in OpenOffice, but for some reason, I never got around to publishing it till now. So yeah, it says they ended like 15 minutes ago, but no... quite a while ago. Just prepping you for that.

If you've been following the event (and if you haven't, shame on you!), then you'll know that the second annual "Canadian Video Game Awards" just ended roughly 15 minutes ago. It was only an hour long (not as long as I expected, honestly...), and all the games that won rewards truly deserved them. In case you didn't catch it, here are the winners in each of the categories, as well as the nominees:

Game of the Year – Mass Effect 2 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood

Dead Rising 2

FIFA 11

Mass Effect 2

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Best Console Game – Mass Effect 2 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood

Dead Rising 2

FIFA 11

Mass Effect 2

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Best Game on the Go – Osmos for iPad (Hemisphere Games)

Lil’ Pirates

Osmos for iPad

Scrabble for iPad

A Space Shooter for 2 Bucks

Trainyard

Best Downloadable Game – Deathspank (Hothead Games/Electronic Arts)

Dead Rising 2: Case Zero

Deathspank

HOARD

Shank

A Space Shooter for 2 Bucks

Best Audio – Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal)

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood

Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising

Mass Effect 2

Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Best Social/Casual Game – Pocket God on Facebook (Frima Studio/Bolt Creative)

Dex Hamilton: Bug Quest

GardenMind

Mercenaries of War

Pocket God on Facebook

Pot Farm

Best Game Design – Mass Effect 2 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood

Deathspank

Mass Effect 2

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Trainyard

Best Technology – Kinect for XBOX 360 (Big Park Game Studio/Microsoft)

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood

Kinect for XBOX 360

Mass Effect 2

Scrabble for iPad

Your Shape Fitness Evolved

Best Visual Arts – Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal)

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood

Mass Effect 2

Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Tron: Evolution

Best Writing – Mass Effect 2 (Bioware/Electronic Arts)

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood

Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising

Mass Effect 2

Prince of Persia – The Forgotten Sands

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

Best Student Game – WOMP! (XnEh?/Centre for Digital Media)

Codex

Ginkgo

Hootlin

WOMP!

Innovation Award – ModNation Racers (United Front Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)

Kinect Joy Ride

2011-05-23T18:36:00.001-04:00

Playstation network

2011-05-23T17:41:00.002-04:00

I tried again and again but Playstation network won't let me sign in for LittleBigPlanet. I know I'm getting angry even though I said that the Playstation Network being down could be a good thing. Somethings are playing good single player games like Patapon and PC games. While, Patapon has its bad things like I said, there are no action levels where you battle the Zigapon. It is only boss fight after hunting and again. The PC games are long but I finished Portal, Half-life 2 and Plants vs Zombies. They are good games but after you finish the campaign they get old. Even GLaDOS gets old after a while. So, right now, I'm yelling at my PSP for not getting into Playstation network. I hope you enjoy the truth and Good Bye for today.

Polls

2011-05-22T14:32:00.004-04:00

I am wanting for multiple things, one of them is the Playstation network and store. However, this post is about the polls thus the title Polls. In lay man terms, I like thing where you click box and add another vote for Chi You. So, easy vote for me, when had PortalFTW post something? About a month ago. I do something almost everyday. I post on the Playstation network updates, post posters of help wanted and the game review every so often. (Okay, the Black Mesa one was bad but I did it at school because I was bored). A vote for me is a vote for someone who actually does something. PortalFTW, I doubt you even have Portal 2.

Playstation Network

2011-05-21T09:56:00.002-04:00

Racism! That's what I have to say. Playstation network said that restoration started but that is only in the U.S.A. for North America. I figured this out by trying to get online for LittleBigPlanet and the same error happened a month ago. The same thing happens with the playstation store. It says that they signed me out of playstation network for no reason. This is big racism, they restore the Americans so they can sit on their butt all day and play PS3 and grow fat. I hate this! I want to download LittleBigPlanet Levels! This is so biased! I pretty sure we'll also get playstation store last if it weren't for less popular countries.

Poll

2011-05-18T20:38:00.002-04:00

I'm kicking off the school year by ending the best contributor poll on the last day of school!

Playstation store free games

2011-05-18T20:23:00.003-04:00

In the words of a not so famous singer, "we so excited" that clearly expresses how I feel. I feel this way because Playstation network has released the game titles of the free games they're releasing. If you own a PS3 you can get two games and the choices are, LittleBigPlanet, inFamous, Wipeout HD plus Fury expansion pack, Deadnation and Ratchet and Clank Quest for Booty. Unless you're in Germany, instead of infamous and Deadnation you get Super Stardust HD and Hustle Kings. For PSP you can get two out of the following: LittleBigPlanet, Modnation Racers, Pursuit Force and Killzone Liberation which I am getting. In Germany instead of Pursuit Force and Killzone, you get Everybody's Golf 2 and Buzz Junior Jungle Party. I own LittleBigPlanet for the PSP and it is amazing. I can't really rate or review it since most of the levels are made by other people. I even create some cool things like tanks and farming vehicles. If you want to suggest the other I can get besides LittleBigplanet and Killzone for my free game, please leave it in the comments. (that means I can get either modnation racers or pursuit force)

Poll Results

2011-05-17T20:18:00.003-04:00

The votes are in, and the winner for the best contributor is! [drum roll please] It's a tie between PortalFTW and Chi You. We'll be opening a new poll to declare the winner.

Playstation Network

2011-05-17T20:07:00.002-04:00

Okay so the network and multiplayer works. I'm still pretty angry at this since playstation store isn't up. It's just very annoying quiting your game to go to playstation store for some demos or games but when you get to the main Playstation menu, you remember it's not up! I go to check if the Playsation network decided on the games to give to the users for free, and guess what isn't up? The United States playstation blog! That's right, I just checked it and it isn't up. This might not happen to you because you might read this at a different time. What else can they screw up? The playstation production? The games? Or the hiring development hiring people from LJN!

playstation network

2011-05-16T15:41:00.002-04:00

So, as you may have heard, the playstaion network is back up. This doesn't include the playstation store so don't expect to have your free month of Playstation Plus or your load of free games. I think that the playstation store is back up but don't count on it. So, you might have tried playstation network and it crashed, that's because stupid people tried to change their passwords all at once. The new system couldn't handle it so it crashed and now it should be back up. I will enjoy being back on the internet shooting people online.

Our 100th post is an old-school review...? AWESOME!

2011-05-14T22:08:00.004-04:00

Yup, it's Fiftybottles, back from the virtual grave to give a review of a truly classic gem of a GameBoy game called The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. It came out in 1993, and it's pretty rare to find now if you didn't already own it (I picked mine up at a garage sale four years ago for 50 cents. Lucky me! :D), but if you can find it, it's worth the 30 bucks they'll most likely make you cough up for it.

Link's Awakening was the first portable Zelda game. Ever. And it's kind of funny that it's called "The Legend of Zelda", because while it's true that you play as Link throughout the game, Zelda isn't anywhere in it... In fact, she's only ever mentioned once, at the very beginning of the game, as Link is recovering from a head injury and thinks the girl helping him recover is Zelda. Anyways, the story isn't too big here, but it's enjoyable enough, and it helps keep the quest moving along nicely. An owl keeps you up-to-date on events, and points you in the right direction, and if you ever forget what he's told you, you can open up your map, choose the location you found him (as indicated by an icon. Yay!), and he'll recite it all over again. Pretty nifty, b-boy. Anyways, the ending was a kind of "jump the shark" moment, but it was still surprising and somehwat cool, so I won't ruin any more for you in that regard! Anyways, the story starts as follows: You're Link. You're in a boat. Storm comes. Boat crashes. You're unconscious on an island. You wake up in a strange house with a strange man and woman. You get a shield. You explore beach. You get a sword. You walk back into village. You meet owl. Head into forest. Get keys and items that you need. Head on back to the beach. Beat first dungeon. Owl comes back, and explains that the instrument you found in the dungeon will help you wake the "Wind Fish", the island's guardian, and that doing so is the only way to get back home. You need instruments in all to wake this slumbering ass. I won't go into any more detail, and that's pretty much the gist of it, so there ya go.

The gameplay is classic Zelda, although slightly more linear. You can't explore pretty much every nook and cranny at the beginning (obviously), and the dungeons can only be completed in order. However, much like a Metroid or Castlevania game, exploration is still a huge part of the formula. You must explore the areas you can reach to find entrances, hidden items, chests, hints, clues, etc. for your journey to continue. And trust me, some of these things are just evil in the way they've been hidden. I had to use a walkthrough multiple times to get through this game. I was stuck for hours in some parts, all because I missed one tiny thing! That can get annoying, although it's mostly forgivable when you get back into the action and into those dungeons. Suffice to say, I don't really enjoy exploring the Overworld in this game, however it's still relatively fun. The dungeons are what save the day, though. The satisfying puzzles, the intense boss fights, and the smooth action and item collection all make it worthwhile. It certainly is fun, and there's a a lot of meat here to keep you busy for quite a while. Don't expect to blaze through this thing in a day or two. It'll take you at least a week, and that's if you're really good. Trust me, it's taken me 4 years to beat this sucker.

The graphics and sound were great for their time, and they still hold up pretty well today. The sound effects sound kinda tinny and bleepy and slightly screechy, although the music is still great (although at times a bit repetitive). Although, I must say, that sound swipe noise is awesome! I still can't get enough of that... The graphics resemble "A Link to the Past's". It's kind of like they took "A Link to the Past's" graphics, and ran them through an 8-bit generator, then tried to see what came out of it. At least, that's the best that i can explain it. It looks better than the NES standard (albeit in B&W), but it's still nothing too special. However, that's not to say it's hard on the eyes. It looks clean, and it's easy to navigate and get around. All in all, it's pretty nice, even if it is in Black and White. Yes, I know there's a DX version with colourized graphics and an extra dungeon, but I'm talkin' the original here.

All in all, Link's Awakening is a great game that still hold up well today. Some of the exploring in the Overworld can be a bit boring and slightly tedious, and some puzzles are just unfair/unclear. However, the dungeons are great fun, and the gameplay is still great even in 2011. Just, be prepared to open up a walkthrough once or twice on your quest.

I give The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening 85/100 Guardian Acorns.

Post

2011-05-09T20:13:00.002-04:00

We are nearing our 100th post so I'm just giving a heads up. There will be a big celebrating post for the 100th. Please tune in for our 100th post and I will send an e-mail to those I know.

LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga

2011-05-08T14:34:00.003-04:00

Okay, earlier this week there were a few issues with this blog and members, but it is all good now, so I ended up getting LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga for Wii, and despite being LEGO Star wars on Wii, it's actually pretty good, The controls are easy and the multiplayer is entertaining, except for the retarded camera angles, but other that that it is a good game, and if anyone still plays this game, I have three codes that I memorized here to unlock things in the shop:

General grievous PMN576

Admiral ackbar ACK646

r2-q5 EVILR2

Overall, this game is a good one. It has drop in/drop out gameplay meaning the second player has full control on the game, just as the first player does. This game gets 80/100 midi-chlorians.

Also: Video review for LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars and Pilotwings Resort both for 3DS coming soon(whenever I feel like it).

Patapon review

2011-05-08T14:27:00.002-04:00

It is an awesome game. I sound is the base for it, without sound you are struck. Because of that, the sound is great. The graphics are simple circles for the most but fits once you know the story. The story is a bit confusing to follow since it is entirely of text. For gamers who just want the action its best to skip it. The controls take a little to get used to and a few of commands to memorize. The levels are just the right length, a big with this is that after you've done an adventure level, you can't do it anymore. The enemies are same but feel as if their different. The customizations are amazing. You can chose weapons for every solider and switch the ones you don't want with the ones you do. The tree of life lets you make your soldiers and depending on the material, it gives you different things. The mini games will keep you at the PSP for over an hour trying to figure them out. I'll give this 90/100 megapons search them your self

Playstation network

2011-05-08T14:13:00.004-04:00

Day18

I can't take it! 18 days without multiplayer! My whole Resistance Retribution is for multiplayer. Sure it has skill points and other single player stuff but once you get them all it's over. Games that are only single player and don't have multiplayer are the greatest in these situations. Sadly, Playstation focuses way too much on the multiplayer. All the games I own have multiplayer except for one, Patapon. Now that I think about it, I should really play it.

Playstation network

2011-05-07T19:56:00.003-04:00

day 17

Dear Null
They're everywhere. Ravenholm was supposed to be the only place with playstation network. I heard this from my "new best friend". Little did I know that Ravenholm is crawling with zombine. They are humans taken over by the combine. I don't have enough time or an I.P. address to connent to the Playstation Network. Lucky for me, I found a couple of shotguns to use. Wait, how did I get onto this website? Not engough time to discuss, I got things to shoot. Lack of ammo makes this all the harder.

-Survivor of Ravenholm