Baldur's Gate enhanced: relive the old-school adventure

Classic role-playing video game, with clever iPad update, withstands the test of time
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What you need to know A remake of the popular 1990s role-playing game Baldur's Gate has been released as Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition. The new game, the first from the franchise in nine years, has been released for Microsoft Windows and iPad, with Mac OS X and Android versions to follow. Like the original, the enhanced edition takes place in the fantasy setting of the Forgotten Realms and uses a modified version of the rules from the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons game. Players can become characters including a monk, an elf magician and an orc, who explore the countryside around Baldur's Gate (a large and prosperous city). The enhanced edition includes new side-quests and campaigns, while the iPad edition offers improved viewing features and touch-screen functions. What the critics like If you're looking for old-school adventure, this "serves up a veritable banquet", says Daniel Tack in Forbes. It's "light on story, heavy on combat" and offers "back-to-back battles with some of the nastiest creatures around". Perfect for players looking for "that old RPG feel" without all the wizard conversations. Baldur's Gate was - and still is - a "beautiful, enormous, ambitious and seminal RPG that remains without equal", says Paul Dean on Eurogamer. The enhanced edition offers improved resolution and graphics, and the new Black Pits side-quest is a well-written adventure in its own right. The good news is that this complex game "works surprisingly well on a tablet's touchscreen", says John Bedford at Business Insider. The clever iPad edition brings a host of new refinements to "one of RPG gaming's finest moments". What they don't like At times this "enhanced" business feels like a load of hogwash, says Leif Johnson on IGN. Higher resolution and updated animations improve the visual experience to a degree, but "the project still looks its age". Source: The Week UK

Read More........→February 07, 2013

Anarchy Reigns: a 'superbly orchestrated' combat game

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Wacky characters, endless fist fodder and great music make this an online action gem

What you need to know: Online action combat video game Anarchy Reigns from Japanese games developer Platinum Games has been released in the UK. Platinum are best known for their ultra-violent combat game Madworld, as well as Bayonetta and Vanquish. Set in a post-apocalyptic world plagued by mutants and gangs, Anarchy Reigns allows players to control a variety of fighters, including Jack Cayman from Platinum's earlier Madworld game. Fighters use their outlandish hand-to-hand  or  weapons  skills  to
defeat their opponents in a series of melee-style battles. Anarchy Reigns includes both single player and multi-player modes. What the critics like: This inspired reinvention of multiplayer brawling offers plenty of cheap thrills, says Roger Hargreaves in the Metro. It offers a substantial single-player mode but it's the "superbly orchestrated multiplayer action", favouring fists over guns, that makes it "one of the best multiplayer games of the generation". Platinum Games delivers another "action gem" that's full of wacky characters and even wackier moves, says Jeffrey L. Wilson on PC Mag. Insanity and a "constant stream of fist fodder makes it one well worth your dollars". Anarchy Reigns is a bit like a 'greatest hits' from Platinum's previous game releases, says Chris Carter on Destructoid. But it also has enough of its own charm to make it unique. The 16-character cast offers something for everyone, and the soundtrack is "incredible". What they don't like: Platinum fails to deliver "a coherent or distinctive experience", says Phil Iwaniuk in Official Play Station magazine. The chaotic action will leave your poor neurons frazzled, and while Anarchy Reigns borrows characters from Madworld, it has "none of the gripping visuals". Source: The Week UK

Read More........→January 26, 2013