Call of Duty 4

Theres a reason this game was given the "game of the year" award for 2007
This game is fast paced, covers a wide variety of game play, and is designed to never be thrown in the "Boring" category. This is also one of the first FPS' that doesn't have HP. You're wearing Kevlar so when you get hit it knocks the wind outta you. Getting hit too many times in a row without stopping to catch your breath= asphyxiation.

Story Line: You follow the lines of a USMC and an SAS operative.
The story mostly happens in Iraq but has a few flashback missions. No plot mind blowers but the story in an integral part of the game play




Fun Factor: As part of different military operations you can't exactly do whatever you want mostly because you're off to save the world (or a stranded tank) and you don't have the option have fooling around. But theres so much to this game that is amazing. They copy real tape footage of those satellite planes as you provide cover for troops. Theres even a mission where all you gotta do is snipe 1 bad man, but you gotta take wind factor, Coriolis effect (the fact that gravity doesn't affect the path of a long distance bullet as much as it does something that's touching the earth. In other words shooting someone a mile away when he's standing still makes it trying to shoot a moving target), and bullet flight time into account. Only downside is: it's too short, I wanted to keep playing and playing.

Graphics: Schweet. Not an overkill but they fleshed it out pretty nicely. They also used a sweet graphics engine. You won't be blown away like you will be with "Crysis" but you will say "niiice" a few times.




Weapons: Tons of them, realistic, fun. GET SOME!







All in all "Game of the year"



Wikipedia on Gaspard-Gustave Coriolis: The coordinate system that is used to specify the location of the point of firing and the location of the target is the system of latitudes and longitudes, which is in fact a rotating coordinate system, since the Earth is rotating. For small arms, this rotation is generally insignificant, but for ballistic projectiles with long flight times, such as extreme long-range rifle projectiles, artillery and intercontinental ballistic missiles, it is a significant factor in calculating the trajectory. During its flight, the projectile moves in a straight line (not counting gravitation and air resistance for now). Since the target is co-rotating with the Earth, it is in fact a moving target, relative to the projectile, so in order to hit it the gun must be aimed to the point where the bullet and the target will arrive simultaneously.

When the straight path of the projectile is plotted in the rotating coordinate system that is used, then this path appears as curvilinear. The fact that the coordinate system is rotating must be taken into account, and this is achieved by adding terms for a "centrifugal force" and a "Coriolis effect" to the equations of motion. When the appropriate Coriolis term is added to the equation of motion the predicted path with respect to the rotating coordinate system is curvilinear, corresponding to the actual straight line motion of the projectile.

Hellgate: London

Lets face it: everyone played "Diablo 2", we all loved it.
We all stayed up till 2 in the morning re-killing one of the boss monsters hoping he'd drop that rare sword or whatever.
So if you want to play a Diablo 2 game that has guns as well as swords then this is the game for you.
I personally couldn't play it beyond the first few nights (in all fairness to really get a taste, otherwise I would have quit 2 hours in).

You can pick from 3 major Class types: shooter, swordsman, and mage; which have 2 subcategories each (shooter: sniper or engineer, sword: lithe/2 swords or pure defense shields guy, Mage: summoner or caster)

Story Line: Hell is taking over, one dimension at a time. They met resistance in ours.
Which boils down to: go here shoot all these demons, go there shoot all those ones, repeat steps 1 and 2.



Fun Factor: 100% RAILED!!!
Start at point "A", kill all baddies as you walk down the hall till you reach point "B". New level loads, repeat process. You enter Stations and have 7 areas sprouting off each one but they're all "shoot your way from point "a" to point "b")
Reasons why I gave it 2 of 6: like diablo 2, monsters are are rolled for from a table appropriate for your level. Even though there are only 4 types of levels (destroyed city, dungeon, sewers, building) the monsters can be different each time you re-enter. Boss monsters which re-appear after a time will load randomly rolled loot. That and you can totally customize your weapons (think gems on diablo 2 swords only more intricate) . The only fun I had was sitting in town tinkering around with making better and better machine guns. You enter Hell at different points, which is a flat stone courtyard with a broken rail running around the edges EVERY SINGLE TIME!!

Graphics: Decently done. They spent alot time fleshing out the game. Some monsters you fight are 25 feet tall, some are tiny. The game also adjusts the graphics (if your playing on a vista machine) to accommodate your card (a.k.a.: turning up the graphics when theres 3000 monsters running around so that you can lag like a monkey, or dumbing it down when your in a room talking with a lone guy... which genius added this factor can help himself to a full serving of kick-in-the-pants)

Weapons: The only fun part of the game! Nuff' said!
All futuristic, and theres no such thing as ammo (even in the assault rifles)
Almost worth d.l.'ing just to fool around with them.... almost.
The sniper weapons are completely useless in this game due to all your encounters happening around you. The game was designed for sword and close range gun users, they shouldn't have bothered with long range stuff.




All in all they should have put less time in the choices of which chin you want and more time in making the levels funner. This game has sooo much potential to have been the greatest game ever made, but we demand more from a game since Diablo 2. This game should have been a Diablo 2 mod, not the game that we've been waiting a year for its release.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadows of Chernobyl

You play a man who wakes up with no memory of who he is, but has a tattoo telling you to whack some unknown guy. The setting is in the post Pripyat disaster, where radiation has twisted some animals and scared away normal civilization.

Story line: There are so many factors fighting over dominance of the different zones that you can choose to work with anyone (or no-one). Every Tom, Dick, and Ivan has a side quest for you which makes for practically unlimited play, and the ending has a twisted end movie (Something I'd have written as opposed to that Captain America plop). You fight only people and slightly mutated animals (not bizzare alien looking weirdos)


Fun Factor: Arena play AND arena decisions let you do whatever you want. You'll decide to finish the main storyline and end the game before you explore everywhere. This game was designed to cater to the user. You can enter a "mad max" arena and battle for prestige (moneys a joke in this game, why pay for it when you can off someone and get it for free). That or join both sides of a faction war and help them battle each other out. Only downside is having to re-clear popular faction hangouts. Not rating it 6 0f 6, because you spend the entire game using the shoelace express (No vehicles or planes).

Graphics: Not a lot of extras. Houses are filled with mostly models you can't interact with. The general landscape (inside and out) seems rather bare. Not alot of extra trees and non essential stuff added (It may be how Chernobyl is in rl, who knows)



Weapons: The only game I've played where you actually need to check the condition of your weapons. That and a game that ammo actually has weight!
Before you embark off on an area that doesn't tend to use the weapon your using you need to see what you can drop to see how you can carry more ammo (Bullets are heavy son!). WIDE variety on the weapons PLUS finding ways of salvaging and combining/ upgrading gun parts.


All in all: re-playable

Crysis

Since I play a host of games, heres the skinny on them (to judge download-worthy or not).

Crysis:
This game is basically part deux of FarCry. The game has the same feel, you spend a lot of time hiding in the jungle and busting up little barracks scattered over a Korean island. You end up fighting a modern day attempt of an invasion by aliens.

Story line: a spec op's soldier in a new suit that can do special power ups. You can choose with a drag of the mouse: strength mode (high jumps or Arnie melee), speed mode (run faster then you can zoom on a Bushnell $800 scope), cloak mode (insta-invis man), or bulletproof armor.



Fun Factor: Arena play lets you choose your own approach to any scenario (since you can only carry 2 rifles you can snipe out the million man march or rush in), areas aren't hack and slash, but are needing small amounts of planning, and using all your suits different abilities in combos. Only serious downside is getting caught in a giant asteroid for 3 levels.



Graphics: AMAZING! Tons of detail, just like FarCry but even better.
Huts are filled with junk you'd find in any given Korean barracks.
When you fly a plane the distant dogfights can affect you.





Weapons: Everyone carries the same things, you can snipe with a silenced U.S.P. handgun.
The complete lack of attention is in stark contrast to the amount dumped into graphics.
2 assault rifles (AK type 56, G36), 1 shotty, 1 pistol, 2 long range rifles, 2 heavy machine guns (1 is the alien one), 1 smg, and a l.a.w. make the games arsenal.

My Christmas Joke

Joseph and Mary are in the stable, the angels are glowing all over, the place reeks like sheep poop from the shepherds clothes, and the newborn babe is sleeping.

The wise men are making their dramatic appearance; when as one of them walks in he hits his head against the stable roof. "Jesus Christ" he says, and Joseph turns to Mary and says "Quick write that down; it's better then Greg".