Welcome to the elite combat world of Special Tactics, an intense, simultaneous turn-based tactical action-shooter and debut game from US indie developer Beast Mode Games. Special Tactics is set to gain a full release on Steam for PC out of Early Access on 26th April priced at £10.99/$14.99.
Behind a finely tuned combat system designed specifically to allow a wide array of strategic approaches and combat engagement styles, Special Tactics delivers a balanced and nuanced tactical action experience across multiple single-player and multiplayer modes including Campaign, Survival and Squad-based Multiplayer.
Select from five main classes including Sniper, Shotgun, SMG, Assault and Shield and choose your custom loadouts. Lay out your strategies ensuring the balance between offensive and defensive tactics will give you the best chance of success. Achieve your mission objectives and earn gold and trophies to unlock custom weapons, attachments and equipment.
Key Features
Single Player story driven campaign mode – missions include puzzle based take-down missions, hostage rescue, assassination, hostage escort and stealth
PC exclusive Squad Based Multiplayer – 2 vs. 1 or 2 vs. 2 – select your specific weapon for each class, choose your soldier classes then either plant the bomb or defuse it
Epic 1 vs. 1 PvP and Survival modes
PC exclusive Custom Match Rules such as Snipers only or Hardcore Mode
Five Main Classes – Sniper, Shotgun, Assault, SMG and Shield
Six Equipment Types – Smoke, Frag, Flash and Fire/Incendiary Grenades, Sonar Detector, Throwing Axe
Custom Weapons and Attachments – Silencers, Scopes, Foregrips and rare finishes
Replay Analysis System – Review your strategic successes and failures after every mission
Four Boosters – Armour, Range, Damage and Speed. Select one person per turn to give to a soldier
Featuring full Steam integration including Friends lists, Achievements, Trading Cards and Leader boards, Special Tactics also features a cross-platform multiplayer feature with the iOS version of the game across eight strategically designed maps at launch with more to follow.
Get ready to kick some asteroids in the first trailer and poster arrives for Ratchet & Clank, blasting into cinemas on 29th April.
Based on one of the best-selling PlayStation video game series of all-time, the film has a fantastic supporting voice cast including Paul Giamatti, John Goodman, Bella Thorne, Rosario Dawson and Sylvester Stallone.
What do you think of the game being turned into a new film?
Are you ready for your next dose of Hitman? lets get the agent out of the bag. Or his tuxedo. Get it? Because he often wears disguises? You know what I’m trying to say.
We can look forward to trying out Hitman – Episode Two, Sapienza, on the 26th April.
Deep Silver and Dambuster Studios today revealed the unique ‘Hearts and Minds’ feature that powers player progression in Homefront: The Revolution and released the latest gameplay trailer titled ‘Ignite.’
Playing as freedom fighter Ethan Brady, the ultimate goal in Homefront is to inspire the people to rise up against the brutal military occupation and ignite the revolution.
‘Hearts and Minds’ represents the state of uprising across the oppressed Yellow Zones of occupied Philadelphia, and will increase as the player performs acts of resistance, such as destroying KPA infrastructure.
The open world dynamically transforms around the player as Hearts and Minds increases – a once cowed civilian population will join the player in acts of defiance, and the entire Zone will evolve from a state of lockdown to open revolution on the streets.
Here is the first look at “Criminal” which stars Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool, The Proposal) and Oscar-winner Kevin Costner (Draft Day, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit), CRIMINAL follows a CIA operative (Reynolds), whose memories and skills are implanted into an unpredictable and dangerous death-row inmate (Costner) in a last-ditch effort to stop an international terrorist plot.
The first clip from the film shows Jericho Stewart (Kevin Costner) meeting Jill Pope (Gal Gadot) the widow of the CIA operative whose memories are now within him.
CRIMINAL will be released by Lionsgate UK in cinemas across the UK & Ireland in 15th April 2016.
The follow up to Bravely Default see our heroes old and new taking on a new foe. Can the sequel live up to the ground work laid out by its predecessor?
As mentioned earlier, Bravely Second: End Layer is a sequel and here we see our heroes get attacked by the new bad man in town, Kaiser Oblivion. As with all evil guys that show up at the start, our heroes couldn’t even touch him, resulting in their behinds getting handed to them and the kidnapping of Pope Agnes, one of the previous game’s protagonists.
After waking up from a coma induced by the attack, it is now up to our young knight Yew Geneolgia to assemble a team capable of saving Pope Agnes and restore peace once again in the land of Luxendarc.
Now for a game like this a story is needed, however I don’t believe it’ll be the main thing you’ll be invested in as it seems pretty basic. It follows the whole brave knight saving the kidnapped princess routine and therefore comes across pretty bland. During your journey, the game tries to fill in the gaps through something called Party Talk. This is completely optional, but basically what it does is allow you to listen in on conversations the characters would be having that you otherwise would not know about. I so far have not found a use for it and with the not so great voice acting, it became more of a pain after a while, however it could contain useful bits of information that could help you out further down the line. It could also be a way to keep the player constantly engaged during the periods of moving around certain areas.
The narrative may not be a whole lot to get into, but what makes Bravely Second: End layer the real deal is its gameplay which we’ll be getting into next.
When I started playing it felt very old school to me. It just gave off that feeling and to an extent, it has exactly that in its gameplay, topped up with more modern innovation in the RPG arena. For instance it follows the safe formula of turn based combat in which you and your opponent take turns to perform moves on each other similar to a chess match. In this case the person with the strongest attack or most health would come out on top; however there are a few other options that you are given which makes battles such as these more tactical.
One gameplay tactic I found interesting was using Default. This allows you to defend against enemy attacks while also earning something called BP or Brave Points. Brave Points can be used to allow a character to land more attacks during a single turn and can prove useful in finishing an enemy off in one go. You can also give up future turns by using more points than you have, however this comes with the consequence of becoming a sitting duck until it resets itself. I found that using the latter tactic is ok for random encounters, but when it comes to a boss, its best to save those BP up.
Another interesting addition to the battle is Agnes Pendant which allows you to communicate and cooperate with players from other worlds. You can register other players you like to play with as friends, summon them in battle and even share abilities. Of course as you are playing so will the others who own the game, so if you want to keep up to date on their abilities and attacks, you can download that data from the menu.
Items can be bought from the shops using PG or by finding treasure chests scattered around the world. Defeating any monster you encounter will also allow you to earn both of these.
A mix of both 2D and 3D graphics makes for an interesting blend to the game. While I’m not too fond of the static 2D you see when it came to the towns, it did help it stand out against other titles in its genre. To an extent it brought about an almost painted visual which was pleasing to the eye. This effect was deepened even further through the use of the 3D function on the 3DS; now I can’t speak for everyone, but even at full strength I still found it pretty comfortable to play with the visuals given that extra little pop.
Bravely Second: End Layer goes beyond the standard turn based RPG and brings with it new innovations that breathe life in to a continuously used game mechanic. I found the Brave aspect really refreshing as it just opens up a whole other possibility when it comes to strategically planning out your battles and I also liked the idea of the game letting you know what level you should be at when tackling an area or dungeon.
I’m not the biggest RPG fan, but I enjoyed playing this one, however if you are, Bravely Second: End Layer is a must have.
The first episode since the Wither Storm finale, Episode 5: ‘Order Up!’ is available digitally worldwide today on PC and Mac from the Telltale Online Store, Steam, and other digital distribution services, on the PlayStation Network for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3, on the Xbox Games Store for Xbox One and Xbox 360, for iOS devices via the App Store, and for compatible Android-based devices via Google Play and the Amazon Appstore.
The episode is also available today for season pass disc owners via online update.
This episode will bridge the gap between the Wither Storm story arc, and three all-new adventures that will continue as post-season episodes set to release in the coming months of 2016. These continuing Adventures of the New Order of the Stone will follow the additional escapades of Jesse the group as they explore new and unfamiliar worlds beyond their own. All three of these episodes will be add-ons to the season, so players will need to own at least the first episode of Minecraft: Story Mode in order to purchase and play these three chapters in the series which will include episodes 6, 7, and 8.
In Episode 5: ‘Order Up!’, on a tip from Ivor, Jesse and friends head to an abandoned temple holding mysterious treasures. Ambushed by former Ocelot Aiden and his crew, our heroes find themselves in an entirely new world: Sky City! As they explore, the Order finds that resources are at a premium, and nothing but ‘The Void’ exists below the known world. When Aiden convinces Sky City’s ruler that the New Order of the Stone are up to no good, you’ll need to make some tough choices to clear your name, and keep Aiden from destroying an innocent world.
Here is the official first look image for the action adventure, Wonder Woman.
Directed by Patty Jenkins (“Monster,” AMC’s “The Killing”) and starring Gal Gadot (the “Fast & Furious” movies) in the titular role, Wonder Woman made her big screen debut this Easter weekend in “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” but the new film will mark her first time headlining a feature.
The film is being produced by Charles Roven, Zack Snyder and Deborah Snyder, with Richard Suckle, Stephen Jones, Wesley Coller, Geoff Johns and Rebecca Roven serving as executive producers.
Joining Jenkins behind the camera are director of photography Matthew Jensen (“Chronicle,” “Fantastic Four,” HBO’s “Game of Thrones”), Oscar-nominated production designer Aline Bonetto (“Amélie,” “A Very Long Engagement,” “Pan”), and Oscar-winning editor Martin Walsh (“Chicago,” “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit,” “V for Vendetta”), and Oscar-winning costume designer Lindy Hemming (“The Dark Knight” trilogy, “Topsy-Turvy”).
Set to open in 2017, the Wonder Woman feature film is based on characters created by William Moulton Marston, appearing in comic books published by DC Entertainment. It will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.
With Bridge of Spies released on Blu-ray and DVD today, we have a Q&A with star Amy Ryan.
A dramatic thriller set against the backdrop of a series of historic events. BRIDGE OF SPIES tells the story of James Donovan (Tom Hanks), a Brooklyn lawyer who finds himself thrust into the center of the Cold War when the CIA sends him on a near impossible mission to negotiate the release of a captured American U-2 pilot.
Below is a behind the scenes clip:
What originally attracted you to the project?
I was hooked from the first page of the script…the dialogue just jumped right into the story. Most screenplays take 10 or 15 pages before you get a sense of who the characters really are, but we find out that James Donovan is a fast-talking lawyer in the first few pages. At that time I didn’t know who James Donovan was, and while I don’t necessarily like to use film in lieu of a history lesson, there was something so powerful about the story that made me want to research and learn more. Plus, I liked the fact that this woman, Mary Donovan, wasn’t just a “Yes dear, of course dear,” kind of wife. She had things of substance to say and really good, strong, smart opinions about the world in which her husband was stepping foot into, and I found that genuinely appealing.
Tell us what the film is about.
The film takes place during the Cold War when there was a palpable fear of the Russians and communism in America, and is the story of James Donovan, played by Tom Hanks, who was an insurance lawyer. He takes on a case representing Rudolf Abel, a captured spy here in America, which was a case no one wanted because it meant defending the enemy. He had the incredible foresight that, should America ever be in a similar situation, the Russians would remember that we treated one of their citizens fairly and, hopefully, do the same with one of ours in return. So when the plane of Francis Gary Powers, an American U-2 pilot, is shot down over Russia, Donovan ends up negotiating an exchange between Abel and Powers, as well as Frederick Pryor, an American student arrested in East Berlin at the same time. While everyone was telling him to just focus on Abel and Powers, he decides that, regardless of how stressful it may be, he won’t go home unless it is with both men.
Tell us who you play in the film and how you went about researching the role.
I play Mary Donovan, the wife to James Donovan. I had an opportunity to meet Mary’s granddaughter before filming began, who gave me some background on the real Mary, which made everything all the more real. We had lengthy phone conversations where I found out that Mary was born in Bay Ridge, raised in a strong Irish Catholic family, graduated from Marymount College and eventually settled down in Park Slope. I saw her family’s wedding albums and vacation photos and heard first-hand stories of her grandfather, who apparently loved what he did, worked constantly, and was old fashioned in the sense that he was a firm believer in truth and justice. While Mary was proud of what her husband was doing, it also made her quite nervous as she didn’t like the attention it drew to her family and didn’t want their children to be in any danger. Back then, people were very much of the mindset that we should not be defending our enemy and should just lock them up because they were guilty, but Mary realizes that our judicial system stems from the belief that everyone deserves a fair trial. Her husband was not allowed to tell her about his involvement with the CIA and the mission in Berlin, so he told her he was on a fishing trip, which Mary knew wasn’t true. She was proud of him, but just wanted to hear that he wasn’t going to be in any danger.
Can you talk about the look of your character and of the film itself?
There was a great deal of freedom in creating the look of our characters, because we weren’t playing iconic people anyone would recognize. The head of our hair department, Kay Georgiou, and I decided I should wear a wig, and I also wore glasses similar to ones I’d seen on her in photos, as a small tribute. As for her clothes, the costume designer, Kasia Walicka-Miamone, created these beautiful looks for the time period, and even though my costumes were more casual in style, each was more beautiful than the next. The undergarments were far more constricting than what I’m used to wearing, which, believe it or not, helped me get into character since I had to move differently. I’ve always loved New York history, so it felt like I was a bit of a time traveler when I was on set. When I walked on the street or moved throughout the house, it just felt like the home of a perfect nuclear family, which in so many ways characterizes the Donovans.
How was it working with Steven Spielberg?
I grew up on his films, many of which I still enjoy today as an adult, so Steven has had quite an impact on my life. I mean, I got disqualified from my first race with the Holy Family swim team for refusing to let go of the side of the pool, as I was convinced I had seen a shark. Steven is so enthusiastic about what he does that it’s infectious. There were times when I was observing him at work and all of a sudden his eyes would get big as saucers, almost as if he was this 12-year-old boy making films in his backyard. And he’s the same with his actors. He gets very excited and wants you to try new things and bring in the behavior of your character, and there’s incredible freedom with that. But in addition to being this amazingly-proficient filmmaker, he allows every other department to be at their best, at all times. He trusts them, and you don’t always see that on films. There was a sense of calmness on the set because every person on the crew has the confidence to do what they do so well, so no one is second guessing their choices. They’ve been given that freedom by Steven.
Tell us about working with Tom Hanks.
Tom Hanks is generous, both in spirit and energy. I was very impressed with the amount of enthusiasm he was able to bring to each scene, and he’s had so much experience as an actor that I tried to listen and observe as much as I could. In addition to all the technical sides of knowing where the camera is going to be and where the lights are, he is still able to inhabit the scene so fully and truthfully…that is an amazing skill. In the story, the love between James and Mary is really apparent, and in those scenes, especially, where you could see that his character’s heart was breaking because he couldn’t tell his wife and his family what he was doing, his performance was just so powerful.
Tell us about the casting of Mark Rylance as Rudolf Abel.
I have seen Mark perform on stage numerous times, and he is a phenomenal actor, a phenomenal performer, and is truly, a chameleon. When I first met him in the makeup trailer, he had this beautiful, joyous smile on his face and was so soft spoken, and I said, “Mark, it’s very nice to meet you, and obviously I don’t know you, but I have to confess, I’m seeing flashes of you in ‘Jerusalem’ and ‘Twelfth Night,’ and those characters are just over your shoulder, and it’s kind of tripping me out,” to which he laughed. He has this way of instilling a sense of calm in everything his character does, which was amazing to witness.
BRIDGE OF SPIES IS AVAILABLE ON DIGITAL HD ON 14TH MARCH AND BLU-RAY AND DVD ON 28TH MARCH FROM TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT
With only a few days to go until Nintendo first ever smart device application, is rolling out in several countries across Europe this Thursday 31st March. Miitomo, which recently launched in Japan and has already passed one million downloads, is a free-to-start social experience that lets users spark one-of-a-kind conversations with friends in a whole new way using Mii characters.
Getting started with Miitomo and being a part of this Nintendo milestone is easy. After downloading the app for free from the App Store for iPhone, iPod touch or iPad,along with Android devices, users create a Mii character and customise facial features like eyes and hair, as well as voice and personality. Users can also use the camera on their smart devices to snap a photo of themselves, which can be used to create a Mii, or they can simply import their Mii from their Wii U or Nintendo 3DS using a QR Code.
Once their Mii is ready, users can add friends who already have the app in person, or by linking the app with their existing Facebook or Twitter accounts. After that step is complete, it’s time to answer some questions! Miitomo creates conversations and turns discussions into a form of play by prompting users to answer all kinds of fun questions. How would you define your fashion style? What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever eaten? If you were given ten grand to spend in one day, what would you do? The answers get shared among friends, sparking interesting conversations – part of the fun is discovering unexpected facts about your friends. When users hear how their friends respond to questions, they can give answers, a “heart”, or a written or picture comment.
To preregister for Miitomo, sign up for a Nintendo Account at https://miitomo.com before 31st March to receive an email when the app is ready to download*. People who create their Nintendo Account and preregister before 31st March will also receive Platinum Points for the new My Nintendo rewards programme, which will simultaneously launch with Miitomo. My Nintendo is much more than a rewards programme: it’s a comprehensive service that also rewards users for interacting with Nintendo products and services in a variety of ways. Miitomo users who link the app to their Nintendo Account will be able to take advantage of My Nintendo to enhance their experience. Platinum Points can be earned by interacting with Nintendo apps and services, including Miitomo. Gold Points are earned when purchasing downloadable games from the official Nintendo website or Nintendo eShop on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS. Both Platinum and Gold Points can be redeemed for rewards like games, download content, in-app items and Nintendo eShop discounts.
Users who sign up for a Nintendo Account before the end of April will also be able to download Flipnote Studio 3D to their Nintendo 3DS system for free. To claim the download, users must link their new Nintendo Account to the Nintendo Network ID they use on their Nintendo 3DS family system, then use the download option on the Flipnote Studio 3D page on the official Nintendo website between 31st March and 30th April.
In addition to Miitomo and My Nintendo, from the afternoon of 31st March users with a Nintendo Account and linked Nintendo Network ID will be able to purchase select Wii U and Nintendo 3DS software, using their Nintendo eShop balance, from the Nintendo of Europe website.
The user’s purchased software will then be downloaded via SpotPass and installed automatically, ready for play the next time they pick up their system. This new purchase option serves as an additional resource to the Nintendo eShop on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS, and makes purchasing software and earning My Nintendo Gold Points even more convenient
Thursday 31st March is set to be an exciting day for Nintendo fans, with the following key launches:
Miitomo will roll out in several European countries throughout the day*. Stay tuned to Nintendo’s official Twitter account to find out when the app is available in your country.
Stikbold : A Dodgeball Adventure is a rather interesting arcade title that focuses on the Dodgeball, a sport that requires players to throw balls at each other. What makes Stikbold standout is how this rather basic sport has been turned into a unique but extremely fun title.
This preview event was also unique as instead of the usual ‘watch trailer play demo’ approach, this time I was actually playing the developers, Game Swing, literally at their own game. Developers who have taken Stikbold from a student idea and taking three years to turn it into a fill game being published by Curve Digital.
So what exactly is Stikbold. Well it is a game set in a 70s inspired world where any disagreements are settled by playing a match of dodgeball. Just imagine having an issue in real life and the only way to settle it was to drop everything and play a game of five a side to determine who wins the argument!
The story campaign will see you play as the team of Bjorn and Jerome as they progress through the world taking on various other teams and characters at Stikbold. With boss matches and a very charming sense of humour, I found the story mode, which is comprised of twelve levels, to be fun and enjoyable both as a solo experience but even more fun in co-op as a friend can control the other character and become your partner.
As someone who plays a variety of sports titles including FIFA, I was happily taken back by just how easy it was to pick up and play, even if you are unfamiliar with how Dodgeball works as a game. Essentially the match has a single ball which teams battle to control. The aim is to knock out the players of the opposing team or teams by throwing the ball at them with successful hits lowering their health and knocking them out. The winning team will be the team left standing. Matches can feature 2 vs 2 vs 2 scenarios.
Passing the ball is fluid between players and can rival games such as FIFA, with good communication being the difference between winning and losing. Loose balls can be dived for in true John Woo dramatic fashion, stealing the ball from the grasp of the other team in truly satisfying moments. The arenas add a real extra dynamic with the various hazards that can be real game changers in a match. From avoiding speeding buses to giant land sharks, there is a real fun quirkiness to Stikbold that is so appealing.
Visually Stikbold has a familiar but not inspired ‘Block’ look of Minecraft. The cartoony feel and animation would make this a great title for a younger demographic but the gameplay is right on the money for fans of sporting titles. The characters are all varied and fun to play as. Sadly there is no option to create your own characters with all teams being pre determined but they are all stand out teams in their own right.
Stikbold really is great fun but it lacks the more mainstream polish and appeal that has made Rocket League such a popular success recently. But Stikbold: A Dodgeball Adventure should not be ignored and will take many by surprise and bring smiles and joy to players once released on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on Friday April 1st.
The long running PC Trackmania series has finally arrived on consoles and Trackmania Turbo is perhaps the best version yet to make the jump across. Faced with established heavy hitters in Forza, Drive Club and Project Cars, can it rev its engine loud enough to get noticed?
Straight away it has to be noted that the main focus of Trackmania Turbo are the time trial courses it features instead of the more traditional competitive races console players will be used to. The aim is to complete each track in the quickest time possible, with a successful run allowing the player to unlock and move on to the next track in the campaign mode.
To help inspire players to do better, each track uses a medal system; bronze, silver and gold to as time markers for the track with the goal to drive a fast enough time to win gold. Before you start your engine you can pick a medal target which will place a ‘ghost’ car on the track which serves as a pace car which will use the best racing line to hit its medal time. As a ghost car there is no interaction so no possible collisions with the car and act as a superb way to improve your track times as they become more challenging.
As you progress the tracks become more testing with an intelligent track design that increase the difficulty carefully each time. Ranging from the addition of jump ramps, intricate turns and bends, environmental changes and obstacles, trying to improve your best times is a compelling racing mechanic. With the ability to instantly restart the race with a button press, should you make the slightest mistake which spoils your time, the player is always made to strive to achieve the perfect clean run.
Trackmania Turbo is a true arcade racer and though it doesn’t visually compete with the strong big name racing games, it still looks great with colourful locations and a real arcade feel to the tracks. The cars are well drawn with some cosmetic customisation options only, but the action is smooth and fluid with some impressive race moments throughout the tracks. I however did find the soundtrack of techno beats and dance tracks appealing and eventually had to turn it off via the main menu.
For those looking for an online challenge Trackmania Turbo features both online and local multiplayer game modes. Online will have special tracks to compete with other players to set the fastest time possible. Local multiplayer modes offer up to four player split screen action but also a rather delicious and genius ‘Doubles’ mode where one player controls the steering and a friend handles the acceleration and breaking. This mode is both a fun test of team work skills but also a very effective and powerful friendship test!
One of the most popular features of the Trackmania series has been the track builder mode which continues in Trackmania Turbo. This mode is a very user friendly and easy to use mode that allows players to create their own race tracks and after testing your creations to make sure they work well enough by going for a test run, they can be uploaded and shared with the community. With the core game already featuring over 200 tracks, this mode really brings an almost endless variety of tracks to enjoy and best.
Trackmania Turbo is just great fun to play with a degree of challenge that is compelling and brings out the competitive streak in every player. I enjoyed the fact that the toughest opponent is ultimately yourself. Though it never feels than an arcade title and never reaches the Trials Fusion challenge heights, it is a solid experience that embraces what has made the series so successful over the years.
Turtle Cream’s well received title 6180 The Moon finally made its way to the Wii U with a new console specific feature. Will this be enough to warrant playing through this space adventure?
One day the Sun goes missing and the Moon decides to go looking for it. This kicks off a fairly simple story where the Moon meets other planets as it continues its search for the supersized star in the solar system. Each of the planets encountered by the Moon has a different personality and at least that makes the dialogue somewhat interesting. Just don’t expect an intergalactic adventure of epic proportions filled with dramatic story twists. Most of the story development happens through dialogue text – usually when starting and getting to the end of each area.
6180 The Moon makes use of the well known side scrolling platform genre with a twist. The character is given the basic ability of jumping from the start. The whole purpose of each level is to touch a round object at the end. Getting in the way are pointy spikes and other deadly shapes that the character must avoid at all costs.
Now one of the more unique features in this version of the title is how it uses the Wii U’s GamePad controller. In other versions, jumping high enough or falling would mean appearing in the other end of the screen. The GamePad is used to extend this experience and show the character either on the TV screen or the GamePad screen, after jumping or falling off the other screen. In theory this is a clever idea that should make for a more unique experience and bigger levels.
However, this is certainly not the case when attempting to play through the levels. It soon becomes apparent how difficult it is to keep up with the character’s current location when constantly switching between screens. There is an attempt to solve this by adding a line on the screen the character isn’t currently in that shows the position of the Moon, but it only really helps when it isn’t moving too fast.
The character has a habit of falling faster after doing 2 trips through both screens whilst falling down. This use of the two screens unfortunately only gets worse as it becomes ridiculously difficult to follow the Moon. This is because of more advanced levels, such as ones in the Mercury area where the screen platforms automatically move upwards as the Moon moves forward. It can get disorientating to try and keep up with the Moon’s movements. There is no doubt that it would have been a fantastic idea if it had been implemented properly.
It essentially demonstrates that such an idea doesn’t work as easily as it would on a Nintendo DS/Nintendo 3DS system where both screens are similarly sized and placed next to each other. This effectively makes it not very enjoyable to play most of the advanced levels, where completing them comes down to making use of a frustrating trial and error method. This is a shame as there is a decent amount of levels and the use of two screens isn’t so bad at the beginning. At least the game introduces checkpoints and that does lessen the blow when dying due to not being able to keep up with the Moon quickly moving between screens.
Each new area attempts to introduce a new gameplay idea. For example, the Earth area makes use of bounce pads that are destroyed after a single use. This does make it more appealing to try and get to later areas in order to find out what other surprises lie ahead.
Now for some reason the game isn’t overly fond of giving much information in terms of instructions. This makes it rather frustrating at times. It’s easy to initially not even realise both screens are used if only starting the game only using the GamePad.
The visuals are very basic and it’s clear that the developer is aiming for a minimalist approach. The use of the monochrome palette is a clever idea given the them of space. Although it does make for a somewhat repetitive experience after seeing similar looking environments in later levels. Keeping the whole concept together is a pleasant soundtrack that plays along as the Moon continues on its quest to find the Sun.
It’s a shame that in trying to make better use of the GamePad’s screen, the developer made what could have been a memorable experience, into one that isn’t particularly enjoyable. Not giving the choice of switching to the gameplay screen mechanics found in other versions of the title just makes it worse. It highlights the reality that making effective use of 2 different sized screens isn’t an easy task and one that Nintendo itself must have struggled with since the launch of the Nintendo Wii U.
XCOM: Enemy Unknown made a bit of a name for itself with some of the most expansive DLC ever. Aside from the massive additions made by Enemy Within there was plenty of customization packs for those who like to spend too long customizing their soldiers. Consider me guilty on that one. So it makes sense that the first DLC for XCOM 2 is also a customization pack. Besides, I don’t think we’re quite ready for the inevitable ‘XCOM 2: Enemy Within’ just yet.
Anarchy’s Children is the first of three DLC packs to add a little extra flavour to your time on XCOM 2. There’s a lot of new stuff that spans all of the different level armours and tech available so there’s not much of a value for money issue as far as quantity goes. Helmets, patterns and even complete sets of armour all make for a packed DLC. Although it is entirely cosmetic.
Which is a real problem because they look terrible. There isn’t a single item I’ve found that I would use over the options the standard game comes with. True enough cosmetics are extremely objective, more so than any other element of a game. If you like the style of Anarchy’s Children then there is no problem with it at all. But it just doesn’t fit with XCOM.
I love the new style of XCOM given their latest rebel foundations. But painting my guy with a ridiculous clown face instead of what I usually do, like in the picture below, is not something I was crying out for. Maybe mine lacks originality but I’d say he looks cooler. I never really had the desire to make my XCOM soldiers look like bikers from the 70’s, just simply insane or both. I can’t imagine many of us do. XCOM is just not the kind of game were this style works and I fail to see the logic behind the designs.
A rough start to XCOM 2’s DLC marks the first bad DLC since the remake. The ALIEN HUNTERS and SHEN’S LAST GIFT DLC packs that will follow sound far more promising and add more than just cosmetic changes too. There’s no need to lose faith in XCOM’s DLC just yet but consider giving this one a miss.
