While I was browsing the interwebs the other day I came across this sweet site that brings together tech, PC and console game reviews into one tight package. I know, there are a million of those around already (ahem..), but that’s where this site gets it’s coolness from: It’s called TestFreaks.com and they draw their reviews and product tests from sources all around the net to give you a comprehensive look at whatever tech toy/game you’re looking for.

It’s still in it’s beta stage so not ALL the content you’re looking for is there but from what IS there I can tell you that it’s a pretty well constructed, easy to navigate site that gives you the straight dirt on what you’re researching. They offer professional critic and user contributed reviews on all kinds of sweet stuff. They’ve created a easy to read chart for each item giving a clear picture of an items strengths and weaknesses, which being a visually oriented gamer freak type, I like. Here’s an example ofwhat I’m talking about.

They also have a sweet real time search module that pops up search results as you type. Awesome, I’m all about the instant gratification. And speaking of gratification, they even offer you links to multiple retailers with their price for each item listed so you can get it NOW and still not pay too much. What else do you want? Someone to come to your house and unwrap it too? Wait, that actually sounds ok…Anyway go give it a look, it’s TestFreaks.com, I give it two highly calloused thumbs up.

The Gamer Hero

Yep there’s another Lego/Lucasfilm licensed title on the shelves and this time they’ve tried to draw from a different well. This time instead of Star Wars they’ve given the Indiana Jones trilogy the full Lego treatment. Now I’m a lover of the Lego game formula and the Indy movies but this one just didn’t grab me the way the Star Wars games did.

At first I didn’t know if it was just the jaded gamer in me or if the cut and paste gameplay just got to be tedious, but there is definitely something missing. Then it hit me, the Force! There are no Jedi in Indy’s world! The thing about the Lego Star Wars is that there is this huge universe of characters and locations to draw upon to make a deep and engaging game but the IJ universe just isn’t as deep.

The fun gameplay aspects from the previous Lego games are all here in full force. Breakable environments, hidden areas in each level that require multiple playthroughs to reach, secret characters and drop in/out co-op make for a well designed and fun game. But lets face it, the locales in the IJ saga tend to veer towards the BROWN end of the spectrum. Frankly after finishing the first movie I was a bit bored with the visuals.

Indy is a great movie franchise and, in my opinion, one of the best characters ever created for film, but there’s a reason why you haven’t heard about the mega-hit Indy videogame, there isn’t one. The fact that the only successful Indy game is a Lego game should be your first clue. Making a good Lego title requires a LOT of source material and Indiana Jones just doesn’t have it.

The gameplay mechanics of Lego titles hasn’t changed much since the series’ inception, and let’s be honest it’s not a particularly challenging system. The problem with that is that the lack of depth is felt more in this game since the story elements and characters are a bit on the weak side. I know I said Indy’s great in the last paragraph, but Indy’s only one character, and there are sixty unlockable characters in the game! So if you add in each movie’s sidekicks, girlfriends and bad guys we’re still only up to about fifteen characters.

What this means in that unlike Lego SW where you had literally dozens of different characters to choose from this game gives you about fifteen and then dresses them in different outfits to fit the movie. Not that Lego SW didn’t do that but at least there the different costumes had different special abilities. No dice here, just diffierent clothes. Boo.

I know this is starting to sound like a rant but bear with me I’m almost done.

I’ll say this, Indiana Jones fans: buy this game (it’s the ONLY good Indy game out there). Parents with young, impressionable kiddies to entertain: buy this game (you can play with them and not feel like an ass). Hardcore gamers out there: skip it (or rent it and squeeze it for some easy achievement points, you whores). Everyone else? Well if you find yourself in one of gamings’ many dry spells and haven’t tried this one yet, give it a try, at the very least it’ll kill a couple day’s worth of time until the next big game drops.

Gamer Hero Score: 5/10

“Would you kindly..”

The Gamer Hero

Wanna cosplay as master chief? Maybe you want a set of Mark IV MJOLNIR armor to make your own live action version of “The Trilogy”. Or maybe you’re just tired of the same old crap costumes and instead of another Halloween as Captain Jack Sparrow, this year you want to go partying as someone REALLY tough. Well look no further halo heads. I’ve found the Halo costume for you! This isn’t some cheap store-bought thin plastic junk it’s thick molded plastic and comes with a black knit jumpsuit for underneath the armor plates. Sweet.

There’s a sick two piece helmet, gauntlets and boot tops as well so you won’t look like a noob wearing an incomplete set of spartan armor. These are official, Bungie-licensed Master Chief costumes here folks. It’s not cheap (around $800) but if you count yourself a true Halo fan you’ll be saving your pennies to snatch this one up. You have just over two months before Halloween, so get on it! And remember, a licensed Master Chief costume beats a stupid homemade covenant getup any day. The website to get it is called buycostumes.com and they have all kinds of good stuff to choose from for kids and adults.

Enjoy!

The Gamer Hero

I recently reviewed the original Condemned and though it had some technical issues it was a pretty great game. And as with all pretty great games the inevitable sequel has landed on store shelves. So being the mindless sequel munching drone that I am I picked up a copy to get back down to the business of beating down thugs, bums and various other ne’er-do-well types. I figured that since the original was essentially a good game that any dev team worth it’s salt would make the follow-up even better right? Right. Well almost right. Well…ok so it seems they got off track somewhere just between Batshitcrazyburg and Frustrationville.

I was pretty psyched to play this game since I like the first so much but pretty much right off the bat I could tell I was in for quite a different experience. The simple melee controls from the first game were pretty much thrown out the window for a “deeper” (devspeak for more complicated) interface which I’ll be honest, I didn’t even use. You still have the problem of being basically unable to play this title during the day unless you live in a cave (fuck you Osama) or a fallout shelter (mmm… Fallout…) since the game is so freakin’ dark. I guess that adds to the “horror” aspect of the game but to me it’s just annoying. Who wants to have to turn the bright up on their tv to max just to play a game? Weak.

The graphics were also hit or miss with me. The original was one of the first 360 games released so a certain amount of slack was given in the graphics department, but this is now 2008 and the dev team has had plenty of time to fix this. Don’t get me wrong, the character animations look pretty good and Ethan Thomas, the main dude, looks downright spooky, but the environments were somewhat derivative of Half-Life and Silent Hill.

The story picks up almost a year after the end of Condemned: Criminal Origins and takes off pretty quick with the action and tension. I was really getting into it until around the last third of the game where the story took it’s big detour to the aforementioned Batshitcrazyburg. I don’t know if the writers did this on purpose or if they were under a deadline and had to rush this one out, but wow. I like to think they were held hostage by the nefarious Weakplot pirate-ninja clan and forced to finish out the story with the lamest addition of unnecessary superpowers in gaming history. Weak. Then you have the obligatory setup for the third (and hopefully final) installment of the series. You know it’s coming.

They even tried to up the replayability of the game by adding online multiplayer but this seemed like an afterthought that was tacked on at the last minute. The idea of the game is survival-horror, it doesn’t really lend itself to multiplayer in the first place, but since the combat in the game is mostly melee anyway, online deathmatches always degenerate into players chasing each other with sticks or pipes and bashing each other. And that’s only if you get lucky enough to find someone else to play with online. Boooo-ring.

I guess I was ruined by the goodness that was Condemned: Criminal Origins because I just couldn’t find a whole lot to like about it’s successor. Condemned 2: Bloodshot is inferior in just about every way. They moved away from the things that made the original so good and replaced it with a hastily polished turd sprinkled with glitter. Pass.

Gamer Hero Score: 4/10

Our UAV is online!!!

The Gamer Hero

I play a lot of video games, natch, and since not all games (or gamers) are created equally I usually find it necessary to use various websites designed to give me a hand. I found a pretty good one the other day, it’s comprehensive and from what I’ve been able to discern, skips the bullcrap. I am personally tired of having to search through loads of text to find what I’m looking for. Like just the other day I was looking for GTA 4 Cheats and came across the site. I was immediately impressed with the layout of the site, it’s fun and chock full of good info you need to know.

I found myself looking around the site and digging the content for so long I almost forgot I was looking for GTA IV CHEATS. Cheat Planet is the cheat/FAQ resource section of a larger site called GamesRadar dedicated to all things gaming from news and reviews to cool polls, lists and random funny junk. The Cheat Planet side is mostly user contributed and is well organized and easy to navigate, a must for short attention span folks like me. There’s also a file download area where you can get sweet old school titles for free and even get some current-gen gamesave info for you achievement/trophy whores out there.

For those out there with a need to make your voice heard to the rest of the gaming universe there’s also a forum where you can”discuss the latest in gaming, news, YouTube videos, breakfast meats, and everything in between.” awesome. Best part? It’s free baby! Yep most jerk sites demand a signup fee or even a monthly membership to access all the really juicy bits but not Cheat Planet, all you have to do is register and you’re good to go.

I gotta say I was blown away by how good this site is. I’m usually pretty hard to impress when it comes to these things and this on really lives up to it’s potential. So if you’re like me and are looking for GRAND THEFT AUTO 4 CHEATS, or just a daily dose of all things gaming, give cheat Planet and GamesRadar a shot. GH recommended!

Keep on pwnin!

The Gamer Hero

For as long as I can remember I have been critical about my games. We all are right? I mean come on, how many times have you played a crappy game and thought to yourself “C’mon, I could have made a better game than this!”? We’ve all been burned by a over-hyped game that fails to live up to expectations. There are dozens if not hundreds of websites and magazines devoted to reviewing games to prevent that from happening (ahem..), but inevitably we all get burned from time to time. That said, why not become part of the solution instead of just bitching on internet forums? I know, bitching is easier.

But for those of us, yes us, I’m digging into this one too, motivated enough to get a real job should check this site out! It’s a game tester guide and it’s a sweet site devoted to helping the uninitiated break into the awesome, if a bit daunting, world of video game testing. I know you are like me and probably think you need some fancey schooling or special degree to get a job in “The Industry”, but unless you want to be a programmer that’s just not the case. All you need is a love of gaming, good communications skills and a large dose of patience. I read all about this on the site and then did some further research just to see if they were legit and it all seems to be true!

We’ve all seen Grandma’s Boy and wondered “Hey if those stoner idiots can be testers, why not me?”. But in real life it takes a bit of work to make the contacts needed to become a game tester. I know I’m just kinda getting into the whole thing myself but this site really does have lots of good tips and advice to make the process as smooth as possible. And that’s just the website! For a very reasonable $39.95 you can buy the entire guide to getting a testing job. Check out the site to see what kind of juicy info you can expect to find in the guide. They go into detail about making contacts within the biz, and what you need to do before you even get started. Awesome.

Look at it this way, you know all the little bugs and glitches in your favorite games anyway, why not get paid to find them before the game even comes out? Yes that means you’ll be in the uber-enviable position of playing killer new titles before they even hit the shelves. Just imagine the gamer-cred you’ll have with your friends, they’ll be asking you for advice and insider info all the time and you can totally stonewall ‘em and be like “No way man.”. Sweet. Not only that, but you get to do it from home in most cases so you won’t have to worry about that pesky sun burning your pale, pale (I speak from experience) so very pale skin.

So all this sounds pretty awesome to me, frankly I’d take a testing job if it paid peanut butter and ass sandwiches but surprisingly testers make pretty good money. According to the Game Tester Guide testers regularly pull in anywhere from 8 to 12 bucks and hour. Not too bad if you’re like me with no degree and a poor work history. After putting in enough time with a company you can potentially get up to $120 and hour! No joke! This guide is the real deal and I highly recommend that you shell out the loot to get the full guide if you’re serious about getting one of those cushy game tester jobs. Game Tester Guide.com Check it out.

Game on!

The Gamer Hero

I know this one came out about two years ago but I just got around to playing it this week and so here is my shiny new review of a slightly old game. Condemned: Criminal Origins is a first-person shooter/ survival-horror/ action title from Monolith studios. Though it might sound like a bit of a genre mash-up it actually turned out to be a pretty sweet game. I know I’m jaded when it comes to violence in games and movies so I’m sure some of the shock value of the game was wasted on me but that isn’t to say that I couldn’t appreciate it. I have to say that even though I didn’t get “scared” while playing I did get creeped out by some of the sound design and the sheer darkness the game is wrapped in.

So that said I’ll jump right in with the visuals of the game. Considering the 2005 release date of the game you have to be a bit forgiving. Monolith did a great job making the baddies in the game look scary as shit but when it came to the regular people in the game, including the main character, well, weird rubber mannequins come to mind. It’s no big deal though since the vast majority of people to actually see are the effed-up dudes you bash in droves with everything from a pipe to a shovel to a sub-machine gun. My only real complaint about the look of the game was how DARK it was. I mean, even with the bright turned up on my tv I still found I was only able to play after the sun went down. I know this may have been intentional by the developers to add to the “scare” factor but they would do well to remember that not all of us are insomniacs or live in the light-deprived basements of our parents. Oh well.

The story of Condemned is told from the perspective of FBI agent Ethan Thomas, one tough dude, all things considered. You start out at a crime scene and over the course of the first mission you learn that Ethan isn’t just any G-Man, he’s a top investigator and works serial killer cases. Nice. So then the game takes a left turn and heads straight to crazy-town. No not the sucky band, the place where scary things live and people like Leon Kennedy are populous. I love this genre so I won’t ruin any of the game’s many twists and turns, but now that the sequel’s out I feel safe in saying that the end’ll leave you wanting more.

Gameplay in this title is interesting and fun if a bit repetitive. You basically are in a first person shooter environment at night, with only a flashlight to light the game. And even though you do have the first person perspective, considering the very small number of guns to be found in the game and the even smaller amount of ammo for said guns, it seems more appropriate to call this one a first-person-brawler. You basically can pick up and swing just about anything you came across. Pipes, electrical conduit, 2×4 with nails or bolts, the list goes on and on. It’s a fun mechanic that when combined with the visceral feel of combat makes for a satisfying playing experience. That’s not to say that it’s easy, you do have to time your attacks and blocks pretty precisely to take on some of the later foes. All told though, you will get a real sense of accomplishment after finishing this one.

Sound design in the game is one of this title’s high points. The dark, claustrophobic feel of the game is intensified by the score, which is noticeably absent at times leaving you with only the sounds of your own footsteps and the odd crunch or laugh from the scurrying dark. Sweet. Voice work was on par with what you’d see on any network tv drama so I give it a pass.

All-in-all the good visuals, excellent sound, and balanced gameplay make condemned an easy thumbs-up for me. If you dig horror games and dark, dark FPS’s, give this one a shot. you won’t regret it.

Gamer Hero Score: 8/10

Keep on keepin’ on

The Gamer Hero

I know I promised a comprehensive, bi-weekly update of BSG this season, but I’ve been both really busy AND really lazy so I’ve decided to just do one big half-season wrapup and be done with it. So until that’s finished, I give you a new reveiw to view. A nice cheap 360 title to keep some coin in your pocket and still be entertained. Dig it. Sorry it took so long. I’ll be posting new shit more regularly so keep your eyes peeled.

The Gamer Hero

This is the best first person shooter on the market today. I know I’m not making any friends with the Halo crowd here but I’m sticking to my guns on this one (sorry). This is one of those rare titles that not only lives up to the hype surrounding it but far surpasses my expectations. I’m just about as jaded a gamer as you’ll find out there folks and even I found very little to complain about with Call of Duty 4. Ok enough mindless praise, let’s get to the meat of this review shall we?

So the first thing you notice when you put this one in is how good the graphics look. And boy do they look good. The level of detail really helps immerse you in this hot, dry dust-choked part of the world. If you’re anything like me you’ll find yourself just looking at the game, probably getting shot in the face for your trouble. Hands down, this game looks great.

The sound design is great too. The explosions and gunfire sound realistic and the score is well done. The music isn’t constant, it’s filtered in and out as you reach certain story point in the game, pretty cool.

The single-player campaign is very compelling entertainment. The standard US soldiers hunting terrorists to prevent World War three aspect is there in full force but this time you actually see consequences for US military SOP and are forced to play the rest of the game from the British perspective. A welcome change if you ask me. Not to say that the Marines in the game are any less badass, but their sacrifice makes the rest of the game’s narrative that much more effective.

The game really shines however when you delve into the online multiplayer. All the standard online FPS bits are there: multiple maps, game types, character classes and weapons in abundance. But the addition of a experience points system for unlocking weapons and upgrades and challenges within the online mode to increase your rank make for a truly addictive experience.

I didn’t play any other games for about two weeks after getting this one people. I fully expect those of you who haven’t already done so, to go out immediately and pick up the game of the year edition of Call of Duty 4 and stop reading this stupid blog. Now soldier!

The Gamer Hero

Gamer Hero Score: 10/10

I’ve got it pre-ordered and will be online tonight! Flash3×3 is the gamertag. Look for me.

Review will be up in a few days.

Happy Gaming

The Gamer Hero