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#4 Mass Effect 2 (360, PC, PS3)

Publisher: Microsoft – Developer: BioWare

Our Review

Mass Effect 2 has earned its spot on this list due its outstanding storytelling, rich characterization and exciting combination of adventure and combat. Additionally, Mass Effect 2 boasts an impressive musical score, a vast array of weapons and abilities that can be tailored to any play-style and a variety of ethical and personal quandaries that players must endure, which essentially guarantees a unique experience with every campaign played. (more…)

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Chris Park spent all of last week running around Los Angeles to cover the Electronic Entertainment Expo. He started Monday, June 14, with Electronic Arts’ E3 Press Conference. Though E3 didn’t properly open at the Los Angeles Convention Center until Tuesday, EA took an early opportunity to show off many of its upcoming games, in this case at The Orpheum Theatre. Park reports…

The first title shown was Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit, the Criterion Games-developed racing title. A proper mix of Burnout and Need For Speed, Hot Pursuit is scheduled for release Nov. 16, 2010, and returns to the high-speed and intense chase racing of the previous titles. While little more information on the title was revealed, a major function called Auto Log was introduced. It acts as an online hub connecting friends. Tracking stats and progress, Auto Log looks like an extension of what Need For Speed: World plans to do for free-to-play online games, only this time on console. (more…)

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Title: “Kasumi’s Stolen Memory” DLC for Mass Effect 2

Platform: 360 (PC)

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: BioWare

Review by: Dan Braun

The brief encounter in “Kasumi’s Stolen Memory” focuses on the not-so-elusive master thief, Kasumi, who hires Shepard to crash a “who’s who” party within the criminal underworld of outer space in order to obtain a precious item tied to her personal back story. The mission varies from the Mass Effect norm in the sense that only Shepard and Kasumi may participate. Additionally, the first half of the mission is more focused on dialogue and infiltration than battle, with the latter half making up for any perceived lack of action. This variation in mission types is really what makes this downloadable stand out, as the battle encounters offer nothing new, with the exception of Kasumi’s special abilities. (more…)

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Title: Dragon Age: Origins Awakening

Platform: 360 (PS3, PC)

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: Bioware

Review by: Dan Braun

“If it ain’t broken, don’t fix it” seems to be the motto of Dragon Age: Origins Awakening, as the game features the same story-based role-playing, controls and combat as its predecessor. The only real changes come in the form of new equipment and skills, which are always welcome to such an expansive RPG world. Unfortunately, the game doesn’t offer enough new content to entice new gamers to the series, and fans of Dragon Age: Origins will find themselves simply wishing these additions were present when the original game shipped.

The new story focuses on the rebuilding of the Grey Wardens and their attempts to confront a new breed of blighted creatures. Players can either begin with an Orlesian Warden or load a character from Origins. There are some interesting plot devices that will keep players wanting more from this series, and there are several moments when seemingly innocuous choices lead to drastically different outcomes toward the end of the game. Because of this, the game is genuinely fun for players who follow the narrative. (more…)

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Game of the Month – January

Mass Effect 2 (360, PC)

Publisher: Electronic Arts – Developer: BioWare

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Mass Effect 2 was chosen as our “must-have” for the month of January because of its superb storytelling, its deep characters and the fact that it is just so damn fun to play. Despite its technical issues, this is a game that can easily consume more than forty hours of a gamer’s life and then get him to do it all over again, if only to see the game from an alternative perspective. BioWare made every attempt to streamline the game and eliminate the flaws that plagued the first Mass Effect, and have succeeded for the most part. For fans of both shooters and role-playing games, Mass Effect 2 is an outstanding game that holds a lot of appeal.

–Dan (more…)

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Title: “Return to Ostagar” DLC for Dragon Age: Origins

Platform: 360 (Also PC)

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: BioWare

Review by: Dan Braun

“Return to Ostagar,” the latest downloadable content for Dragon Age: Origins, provides an unfulfilling homecoming to Ostagar. It is skimpy on substance, length and content. The DLC allows characters to jaunt back to the original launching point of Ostagar, where the main plot is set into motion after a tragic betrayal. The strangest thing about this content is that there is no real reason to return to Ostagar after the game is completed. To start, the weapons and armor that can be found upon return aren’t really worth much for anyone who has played through the main plot and some side quests. Secondly, there aren’t many options for dialogue, which is where most of the significance and soul of the game is established. The entire episode is just one brief combat encounter after the next, for less than one hour’s worth of gaming. Finally, there aren’t even new enemies, save for the final boss and some variants of familiar foes. It may be only $5 to download, but only Dragon Age junkies will be interested in this lackluster package. (more…)

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Title: Mass Effect 2

Platform: 360 (Also PC)

ESRB: M

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: BioWare

Rating:

Review by: Dan Braun

The highly anticipated Mass Effect 2 lives up to its lofty aspirations as both a shooter and role-playing game. It is a masterpiece of storytelling, character exploration and moral quandaries. But it turns out the actual gameplay can be buggy and erratic, and its inconsistency mars what would be an otherwise near-perfect title. Despite its successes, its failures are too numerous and prominent to ignore. (more…)

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Title: Dragon Age: Origins

Platform: 360 (Also PC, PS3)

ESRB Rating: M

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: BioWare

Rating:

Review by: Dan Braun

With titles like Baldur’s Gate, Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect under its belt, story-driven role-playing games are not unfamiliar territory for BioWare. The developer’s latest epic fantasy, Dragon Age: Origins, is replete with the strengths of its predecessors. Excellent voice acting, a robust plot, complex characters and simple (yet deeply detailed) gameplay make this an outstanding experience for fans of the genre, but it is easily recommended for beginning role-players who are willing to learn the nuances of the game. The game has a few shortcomings, but they are easy to ignore while traversing the immense fantasy world that it has to offer. (more…)

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From Comic-Con Part 8 – Dark Horse and Gerard Way

By Bill Jones

Dark Horse set out to mix things up at its panel this year. Instead of sitting at the table, running through stories and taking questions from fans, Dark Horse founder Michael Richardson stood throughout the meeting and ushered in a slew of guests to help with a long line of announcements from the company.

The first of those announcements was a new logo for Dark Horse’s 25 anniversary, which the publisher is approaching next year. The publisher also announced a partnership with Challenge Online Games to incorporate Dark Horse characters into baseballboss.com, a free-to-play online virtual baseball card game. Nineteen of Dark Horse’s published characters now appear on cards. Players can take on the Dark Horse team to earn cards.

Umbrella Academy writer Gerard Way then hit the stage along with editor Scott Allie to talk about the next arc of Umbrella Academy, dubbed “Hotel Oblivion.” Way said the Umbrella Academy will have a new logo once again, and fans can expect to see the least amount of the Academy ever, as he is planning to explore more of the villains this time around in a setting compared to Arkham Asylum. (more…)

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