Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare

There were many great games that came out during 2010 but one of my favorite was Red Dead Redemption. I found the game incredibly immersive and fell in love with the lonely Old West as did many.

I was a little skeptical when Rockstar announced Undead Nightmare, however, as at that time zombie-mania was at a high and I found myself disliking several zombie games already including Dead Rising 2 and Left 4 Dead 2. Well I’ve just finished Undead Nightmare and I can happily report the game is as awesome as Red Dead.

So, what’s going on in Undead Nightmare? Well the game should be considered a narrative arc; it takes place before the ending to Red Dead. During this arc something has gone terribly wrong and the undead have risen. Having no concept of zombies, as it is 1910, you can imagine the populace is panicking something fierce. When John Marston’s family become infected he sets off to find a cure.

You’ll quickly learn two things about Undead Nightmare; ammunition is very scarce and no-where is safe. Every town and bandit hideout you remember from Red Dead has now come under siege from the walking undead and it is within your own interests to help the survivors there.

By liberating towns you’ll gain access to a small amount of ammunition, a new weapon (including new ones not in Red Dead) and a place to save your game, fast travel or change outfits.  After a town is saved it’ll have about three days, game time, before it’ll be attacked again. It is best to go back and save them especially if you’re a trophy/achievement hunter. Due to this I found myself relying more on the in-game autosave as manually saving the game will advance time by six hours.

Saving different towns will also gain you access to the main story missions and Survivor side missions. There isn’t as many as in Red Dead but as Undead Nightmare is an add-on and not a full game so you shouldn’t expect it to be as long. Those missions are as fun as the original game though, even more if you’re a big zombie fan. Challenges also make a comeback and are just as fun as the original with a nice zombie twist. Besides hunting zombies in a variety of different ways you’ll also take a crack at hunting undead animals too.

Did I mention all of the animals from the original game are now undead as well? That includes horses and it’s here I have a small problem. You’ll start the game with a regular horse but if it dies you’ll end up with one of the ‘beautiful’ beasts you see to the left there. These are the most annoying of creations. They constantly veer off to the left no matter how hard you try to steer them otherwise. Considering the horse is the only mode of available transport in this game being stuck with one that has awkward steering is very irritating. You will have the chance to capture some mystical horses throughout the game but even they can die if you’re careless. Care for a little, under the table, tip? Sometimes you’ll see a survivor riding a normal horse… you know what to do.

Lets move onto the graphics; they’re basically the same as in Red Dead. The zombies are rendered very well and a headshot produces a satisfying gory explosion which is always fun. I really can’t say much about the graphics but I do have two criticisms. The first involves the rendering of fire; it could be much better. Comparing fire in GTA IV and Red Dead Redemption and I believe GTA IV comes out on top which makes me wonder why it couldn’t be recreated in Red Dead? Secondly, the map whether zoomed out all of the way or zoomed in all of the way is fuzzy. It can be hard to pick out details because of this and it’s even replicated on the compass. I know, I’m nitpicking at this point.

All in all Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare is an awesome add-on to an already awesome game. Through games like this and GTA IV I’ve become a huge fan of Rockstar. If you enjoyed Red Dead you’ll enjoy this and if you’re a fan of zombies then you’ll really enjoy the rare combination of zombies and gunslingers.

The 2011 Wishlist

We’re well into 2011 with January soon drawing to a close and I’ve decided to share my personal 2011 wishlist of games new and old.

The other games I’m looking forward to this year, but I can’t find covers for, include The Elder Scrolls IV: Skyrim ,Final Fantasy Versus XIII and L.A. Noire. I’ve been hearing rumors about a GTA V as well but that’ll probably be a 2012 release. 

Gran Turismo 5: In Depth Review

Taking a whopping five years to fully develop gran turismo 5 is simply hands down the best racing game ever, normally i’d come to the conclusion on how good or bad a game was at the end of the review but instead i’m going to do a run down of the features of the game and why its a must own for ps3 racing fans. i originally wanted to review the game just after the launch in November but i got too caught up in racing goodness and wanted to get most of the trophies and win the events.

The original gran turismo series was spawned in the 90’s and upon playing it i was an instant fan. back then the method of play was simple, buy a cheap car and enter it into some low level races then use the money on said car to improve it for higher races and so it went. of course the option of a licence test was there too and in many cases you level up quicker by completing these tests first, i tried to do this but i was too much of a crazy driver to apply the calm finesse needed to pass these tests instead i went straight for the races.

In gt5 its a different story, the licence tests are still there only this time i have the skills and quite calm to execute the complex manoeuvres needed to pass the tests. and this is where gran turismo starts to make the most sense, if you are not grown up enough to play the game properly then don’t complain when you get no where, it does require a mature enough approach especially with its professional learning curve.

Gaming Modes

gran turismo 5 is split up into two major modes with a number of other modes or events thrown in. the main mode is A-spec and this as you might imagine is the heart of the game, its you yourself racing against computer controlled opponents, at first its easier but as the game progresses your opponents become more aggressive and more skilful in their driving.

the second major mode is B-spec and this is more like a driving managers take on the game. the car is driven by the computer against the computer but you issue commands that determine the outcome of the race, at first i wasn’t at all interested in this because i thought of it as lazy and boring buts its not. B-spec offers its own rewards such as credits for buying and improving cars and even cars themselves which can be very necessary when competing in A-spec.

there are like i said a number of special events included in the game such as TopGear challenge's (which are as you would imagine pretty zany) rally courses and races, mercedes AMG academy, Nascar racing, go Karting and many more – most of which get unlocked as you progress through the game.

Other Features

photo mode

being a photographer its no surprise that photo mode is probably one of my favourite added features to the game. this mode allows you to shoot your car either on the track or in a location mode that shows of the beautiful graphics that truly do the cars justice. photo mode gives you the option to choose between shooting modes and to generally experiment with very similar controls as you would find on a real SLR camera .

course maker

included is a fairly standard track editor which allows you to modify sections of a track or to simply build your own but given the amount of courses already available its not really needed.

arcade mode

plenty of racing fun to be had here be it local 2 player one on one racing, one player time trials or even drift trials.

online mode

the game boasts 16 player races, chat & lobbies, an online photo gallery where you can share your images or even your tracks and even a garage which can be used to share or exchange cars with other gt5 players.

The Cars

cars in the game are sorted into two categories premium and standard, no points for guessing what the difference here is. premium cars have detailed interiors and can be used in photo locations – in short they look stunning inside as well as out. standard cars are cars which look great on the outside but have no interior, standard cars are either won or bought in the used car dealership while premium are bought brand new for a lot of credits in the new dealership – very straight forward.

the number of cars in the game is a staggering 1000 with almost 200 of them being premium models. each car not only looks amazing but they are modelled so close to the real thing that they drive and perform as they would in real life. being no stranger to luxury cars offline i tested many of the top cars in the game to see just how well they performed to their real life counterparts and the results were as you would expect. Ferraris, Mercedes, BMW’s, Audi’s and many sports cars all looked like sounded like and drove like the real deal. the work put into the cars is phenomenal but it doesn’t end there. gran turismo games have always allowed the player to tune and customize their favourite cars be it in looks or pure speed. this time around it seems easier to tune a specific car from a purring kitten into a roaring lion, and you will need to if you plan on winning races.

Graphics

the graphics are astounding and probably the best i have seen on any system or console. the cars kick up spray as they race along a wet track, mist hangs in the air as cars cut through it at high speed, the sun and clouds reflect not only on the car exterior but also on the interior making it look so close to the real thing that sometimes on long endurance races i’d forget i wasn’t driving in real life. the new physics engine may not be to everyone's liking when it comes to damage, as the game progresses the cars take on more damage both cosmetically and physically – sparks will fly, dents will appear, exhaust fumes blacken the paintwork and even tires will wear out all of this completing the ultra realistic wonder of the game.

Sound

sound is a crucial part of the game and it wins here too. everything has been fine tuned to sound just as it should, the first thing i noticed about the sound was i could actually tell the difference between a V6 or a V8 engine. the sound of each car is simply put clear and distinct, cars not only sound like they do but they change depending on how you tune or modify them. the music included in the game is surprisingly fantastic with a huge selection of rock/jazz/pop and a bunch of other tunes, for the first few days i used classical but then i took advantage of the games ability to read the games off your ps3 and i let it synch up to my 320gb ps3 – there were a few issues with repeat and shuffling songs but all in all it works.

Conclusion

inclosing there really are not enough great things i can say about this game, i expected a nice little racing game to keep me busy for a few days maybe weeks but now its getting daily plays and my stack of new releases are just building up – most of them unplayed. gran turismo 5 is a game that takes time patience and even more time, its got a steep yet fun learning curve and you won’t be earning that dream car on your first few plays. i have been playing it ever since it was released on November 24th of 2010 and its only recently that i bought up most of the super cars by spending an insane amount of money. if you want a simple enough racing game then pick up one of the need 4 speed titles but if you want a real game that is challenging and rewarding at the same time then go for this. it may only be a racing game but its got so much on offer that if played right you will get hundreds of hours worth of play from it.

i’m giving gran turismo 5 a much deserved 10 out of 10 – it may have a minor flaw here or there but it does what its supposed to do with unprecedented style and elegance all beautifully wrapped up in the body of a fuel injected dream machine.

Top 5 for 2010

2010 has seen a big rise in gaming for myself and I’m very fortunate to have had access to a great selection of games right from the get-go.

As such I’ve decided to choose my top 5 from the games that I’ve played throughout last year.

And here they are in alphabetical order in both text and a cover art display:

• Assassin’s Creed II
• Batman: Arkham Asylum
• Bioshock
• GTA IV: Episodes from Liberty City
• Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X.

As far as 2011 goes, well it’s already off to a great start with Final Fantasy XIII. One of these days I’m going to have to get my hands on a PS2 and go on a Final Fantasy binge.