Borderlands

Ah, the sweet lure of loot. More and more loot. I'm addicted to the need to get another item. Whatever will the game give me next. Will this revolver fire bullets that electrocute my enemies, or will this rifle fire rockets. The possibilities are endless.

Welcome to the game Borderlands, which takes place on the planet of Pandora (a real box of tricks it is to.) Drawn to the planet, like many before you, by rumours of a mysterious 'vault' that grants untold power you discover that the planet is a haven for bandits and deadly wildlife. You quickly begin to fight for your life and progress through this strange world. Killing enemies, or finding loot caches, gives you access to guns and this is one of the games highlights. The random generator means that there are literally thousands of combinations of weapons to discover. From pistols to shotguns and all the way up to rocket launchers.

Gameplay is standard FPS with a RPG engine running underneath it. The story and characters are fun in a wild-west-in-space kind of way. It's a little stereotypical but in the end they're just window dressing and the gameplay's the thing.

The cell-shaded look is also a highlight. Brought about by the artists working on the game getting sick of the generic look it originally had and leading a revolt. Well done, it looks so much better know and the looks suits the gameplay as well.

Overall this is a fun package with many hours of grinding to get through. But enough from me I've got some loot to find.

Batman: Arkham Asylum

Have you ever wanted to be Batman? Well here's your chance. This amazing game which I'm playing on PS3 puts you in the shoes (or utility belt and cape) of Batman as he battles with the Joker and his minions who have taken over Arkham Asylum. Along the way you also bump into members of Batman's Rogues Gallery like Bane, Poison Ivy, Killer Croc and the Scarecrow. You also get the chance to solve riddles posed by the Riddler as you enter a new area.This game captures perfectly the stealth aspect of Batman as well as his fighting ability and his funky gadgets ie Batarangs, explosives, and Batclaw. Now don't worry, this isn't the movie Batman (with Christian Bale's ridiculous Batman voice), this game is firmly set in the world of the comics. Fans will find lots to like about this game and should have hours of fun capturing the Joker and his goons, before they even start on the challenge rooms.

Special comment must be made of Mark Hamill's great work as the voice of the Joker, a role he played on the animated series of Batman. Overall, a must play.

Game Boys

Michael Kane has written an interesting book about competitive videogaming, more specifically about the clans that play Counter-Strike in the USA. Game Boys: Triumph, Heartbreak and the Quest for Cash in the Battleground of Competitive Videogaming looks at the bitter rivalry between two of the top US clans 3D and CompLexity as they battle it out to be the top clan. 3D are the reigning champs at the time this book was written, the team with sponsorship and salaries, CompLexity are funded straight out of their managers pocket and need to keep win to maybe get some sponsorship.

It is a cut throat world where dirty tricks aren't unheard of and accusations of cheating are rife. Professional Counter-Strike players only have a relatively short time at the top, like all sportspeople, so they need to make the most of their talents, which can lead to all sorts of anxiety and stress.

A very well written book, Kane doesn't patronise his subjects, nor does he dismiss what they are doing as simply wasting time. By taking them seriously, Kane is able to show the many sides of the members of 3D and CompLexity as well as the other clans he talks to. Overall an intersting read. For more information visit the GotFrag eSports homepage.

Bourne

Robert Ludlum may never challenge Tom Clancy for complete multi-media takeover, especially now that he has passed away, but Ludlum's creations live on especially Jason Bourne.
Bourne has been the subject of spin-off novels, movies and now has his own video game. The game follows the story of the first novel and uses flashbacks to fill in the details about who Bourne is, as he remembers previous hits he completed.
Thankfully the game does not use the likeness of Matt Damon (or Maaaattt Daaaaamoooon as he is also known) which I think is a good move, Bourne should not be defined by the movies, Ludlum described how Bourne looked before Damon played him.
Anyway play the game and become a 30 million dollar weapon.

My criminal ways

Yes, Grand Theft Auto IV was released worldwide today, no I wasn't waiting at midnight for my copy. While this may show a distinct lack of commitment on my part, I will be picking up a copy in the next few days.

I am sure we will hear some outrage about this game, the others in the series have provoked some, so this one will be no different. Yes you can beat up cops, hire hookers than beat them up and steal their money, do drive by shootings, bomb houses, kill, run over pedestrians etc. But if you look behind this you will find a series of games that takes its inspiration from the world around it. If it is possible to do it in real life, then you can try and do it in the game.

I will enjoy playing this, and if the reviews are anything to go buy (average of about 99 out of 100) it will be amazing.

Energy

Taking its cue from current events, Frontlines: Fuel of War is a game about what happens when the world's oil runs out. Set in 2024 it follows an embedded journalist who is working with Western Coalition soldiers as they fight the Red Star Alliance over the few remaining oil wells left in the world.

OK the story isn't anything new, but it is good to see games trying to build on real world events. Fun to play, it is actually a little depressing hearing about events in the game world as countries plunge into anarchy, because they have no fuel to power things like electricity.

Assassin!

Assassin's Creed by Ubisoft Montreal is an amazing game that takes predominately takes place in the Holy Lands in the year 1191 during the Third Crusade.

The character you play Altair (الطائر, Arabic, "The Flying One"), a member of the Hashshashin cult, is tasked with killing nine prominent people who are propagating the crusade.

The story takes place in Acre, Jerusalem, Damascus and Masyaf. Each city is accurately depicted and true to the period the game is set in. Also all the people that Altair assassinates are historical figures who either died or disappeared in 1191, though not necessarily through assassination.

The game itself is outstanding, and the producers should be highly praised for the inventiveness shown in this game. The way Altair interacts with the environment and the slowly unfolding conspiracy all point to the amount of work the programmers have put into this product. I cannot recommend this highly enough.

And if you are looking for more information on the Hashshashin cult try reading The Assassins. A radical sect in Islam by Bernard Lewis.

Playing Video games

OK, I'll admit it, I like to play video/console games. For some reason mainstream society cannot seem to admit that this is an acceptable pastime and yet and some point nearly all of us have played one.
And the industry has come a long way since Pong, Space Invaders and Frogger. More and more designers are trying to push the boundaries of how computer games work, trying to increase the immersiveness, and trying to tell interesting stories.
One major hurdle to this is the lack of a proper rating system for games in this country. The government repeatedly refuses to bring in a system similar to movies that would include an R rating, rather than banning games it considers to be too violent etc. Statistics show that the average age of gamers is 25-35 and getting older, yet these adults cannot chose for themselves whether they would like to play certain games. Who said censorship was dead?
But, I can hear you saying, violent video games lead to violent children! This old canard has been brought out many times, yet there is no concrete evidence to support it. But you will continue to hear it. Using myself as an example I've killed millions of people/aliens/robots and God knows what else and feel no urges to go on a killing spree. In fact I think I'm calmer because of this. I've also driven thousands of cars at high speeds, and through pedestrians (in Carmageddon), and have yet to incur a speeding ticket, or be involved in an accident.
I consider myself a fairly average member of society, and I can tell the difference between reality and fiction, just like the millions of other people who play video games.
Now I'll get off my high horse and tell you about some great blogging that's being done about games. One of the best, and one I'll add to my blog roll, is by N'Gai Croal and called Level Up.
Croal is a great writer whose passion for his chosen topic is evident in every post, and it is a great way to find out what is happening in the world of video games.
So approach gamers, and video games with an open mind and you may just be surprised.

Interactive Storytelling

I am currently enjoying a wonderful storytelling experience that is a great example of how current-generation computer and console games are stretching themselves.

Programmers are using the technology available to them to stretch the limits and involve the player in new and more wonderful adventures.

The game I am currently playing is Bioshock and it is a revolution in involving the player in a story they have control over. The game is set in 1960 and the plane you were traveling in has crashed somewhere in the Atlantic ocean. You escape the wreckage and enter the underwater city of Rapture.

Rapture was built in 1946 by industrialist Andrew Ryan who wanted artists and scientists to live in a city without government controls, were they would be free to create bigger and better things. But when the player arrives it is clear that something has gone drastically wrong and society in Rapture has collapsed on New Years Eve 1959.

The game is atmospheric with the city of Rapture created in a wonderful Art Deco style and the steady collapse of its society shown in the way the city is starting to crumble and fall into disrepair.

I have not finished the game yet but look forward to many hours of enjoyment in this wonderfully created world.