Category: Games

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Hitman On The Go!

Hitman-GO

Before Hitman Absolution I pretty much loved every Hitman game ever made, but I was skeptical when Square Enix Montreal made a turned based puzzler out of the franchise, and then they put it on mobile devices.  Still somehow this game gets to the core of what Hitman is all about.  Finding a way to take out your target.

This game doesn’t have a story it has a series of boards, and Agent 47 is now a piece on that board.  You need to move him from one location to another without getting killed.  It is easier said than done, and a few of the boards are super aggravating.  Still 47, a plastic piece or not, is up to the task.

The game is on its surface is very simple.  You move 47 one space, and then the computer moves all its pieces based on their type.  Blue Guard pieces don’t move, but always stay looking forward; Yellow Guard pieces move one space in a straight line until they hit a wall or something and then turn around;  Green Guard pieces just spin every turn, and the Grays are back to back, so you have to stay to the side of them.

Now you will get tools to help take out these guards, and they are placed all over the game board.  If it is gun it lets you shoot to a specific location, cans and rocks let you make noise one space away from you to attract the guards to that location, and costumes that disguise you as one of the guard types.  Though once you land on a space with an object on it you have to use it right away, so timing is everything.

What I love about this game is that it understands what makes the Hitman games great.  Problem solving.  In the main line games it is how to sneak around to get that prefect kill, but in this game it is how to move your piece properly.  It is pretty much the same thing, just it is a very distilled experience with Hitman Go.  Now with Go there is pretty much one right way to do things, but in the big budget games there are lots of ways (in the good ones anyway).  Still, it feels the same and that is what matters.

This game is always on sale for like a buck, and that is more than reasonable for what you get.  If you love the Hitman franchise like I do, or you just want a mobile game that makes you think and isn’t always asking for your credit card, Hitman Go is a must own.  For everyone else, you should get it anyway because it is a great game.

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Is Costume Quest 2 A Trick Or A Treat?

Costume-Quest-2

I love games made by Double Fine, and even more than that, I loved the original Costume Quest, so it was only a matter of time before I played Costume Quest 2.  It took a few months, and a sale, but its day finally came.  While I still found the sequel charming, I just wish that they would have done more with the game in its four year hiatus.

This game takes place right after the events of Costume Quest.  Wren and Reynold jump through a portal that will hopefully lead them home, and it does, but their evil dentist is traveling though time to ruin Halloween forever.  Wren and Reynold will have to don their costumes and take the evil Dr. White down.

The story is easily the best part of this game.  It is creative, and is a great way to get the kids back in action.  The problem is that there isn’t enough other ideas to keep even a game with Costume Quest 2’s minimal run time interesting.  It took me about six hours to complete this game and that felt padded.  Like in Costume Quest, this game involves Trick or Treating, but 2 forces you to do it in like six different areas with minimal breaks in between.  It makes the middle three hours of this game quite a slog.

The game mechanics are very similar to the first game, but with some tweaks.  It is a simple turn based RPG, and your options are: a basic attack, a super attack or heal when a character’s meter is full, or playing a Creepy Treat card.  The cards do all sorts of things like double damage or heal teammates.  Your attacks change depending on the costumes your group is wearing.  Also during battle if you time things just right you can do more damage, attack twice, block, or counter attack.  It is nice little detail to keep you more in the game, but it still gets a bit repetitive.

This game almost felt like an expansion to the first one, and maybe it would have been better that way.  Pretty up the first game and add in the new combat system, and then tack on a new three hour adventure.  To try and force this game to be six hours was a shame, or they should have thought of more things to do, but still this game is cute, and if you played the fist one it is a good excuse to go back to the world of Costume Quest.  I just hope if Double Fine makes a third one they can think of a few more activities.

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Shmee Glides With The Logitech G402 Hyperion Fury!

Logitech-G402-Hyperion-Fury

It was a sad day around the Shmee household.  Their trusty Logitech MX510 wasn’t gliding well, and it was coated with gross human skin deposits.  I tried to clean it, but it just wasn’t working like the same mouse I bought ten years ago, so I had to replace it.  As you can tell by my recent computer build, I am fairly brand loyal when it comes to computer parts and accessories, so if a mouse has served me well for over a decade, I am going to replace it with a member of its family.  I selected the Logitech G402 Hyperion Fury.

Besides the terrible name.  I mean really, Hyperion Fury?  This mouse has everything I could want:  A super high 500 image per second (IPS) rate, up to a 4,000 DPI resolution that you can change on the fly, and a built in processor to keep all that info heading to the computer without any lag.  Though by far the best part is just how it feels.  It is the perfect weight, and it glides like a dream.  I don’t know how Logitech does it, but their gaming mice make everything else feel like trash once you have used them.  I almost grimace every time I grab my mouse at work.  A good mouse makes all the difference.

There are mice with better specs out there, and even some in Logitech’s product line, but after awhile they are just flashing big numbers that you will never use.  You are never going to be able to control a mouse with 8,000 DPI well.  4,000 is even pushing it.  The big deal is the IPS.  The higher that is, the less chance there is of your mouse missing a movement, and at 500 IPS the Logitech G402 isn’t missing anything.  The only good reason to get a different mouse is to get a different button layout, or the super nifty braided cable on the Logitech G502.

I know spending $50.00 on a mouse seems a little steep when you can get a mouse for under $10 these days, but trust me if you use your computer a lot a good mouse makes it much more enjoyable.  Thanks to my job I get to try out a lot of different mice, and the Logitech G402 Hyperion Fury is by far the best one I use.  You may have good luck with some of the cheaper or fancier gaming mice out there, but for my money it is Logitech all the way.

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Xbox One Has A Big Opportunity This Fall!

halo-5

We know the date of Halo 5: October 27 2015.  It is shocking to think that the Xbox One will have gone two years without its own Halo game, but Microsoft is finally giving Xbox fans what they want.  What is also surprising is that all of Sony’s big exclusives have been delayed until next year.  The big exception to that is Bloodborne which I hear is amazing, but it is super hardcore and it will only appeal to a certain crowd.  Halo’s appeal on the other hand is near universal.  It is no secret that Sony has been kicking Microsoft’s butt in the console battle (never release a console with less power for $100 more), but if Halo 5 gets to come out by itself Microsoft may take back some ground.  The PS3 proved that you are never out of the console war.

Microsoft will not be able to fumble this release like they did with Halo: The Master Chief Collection.  Halo 5 will have be near perfect, and something tells me Microsoft knows this.  With the super early multiplayer betas, and kicking off the advertising in March.  Microsoft is playing hardball with this one.  The two new trailers have gotten me intrigued, so I may actually have to watch Halo: Nightfall, and see for myself how Locke’s story plays out.  I have been putting it off until I completed Halo 4 (I know I am way behind), but I am almost there.  Here are the two trailers:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHQiYPiNVEE&list=PL0il2l-B_WwZ9sXU3L69ZJ_1ycnbNVKYC&index=0

And just so you don’t think the Chief is going down without a fight, here is his version:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rd8FWUCCZk

I am guessing they are both wrong, and that Locke and the Chief are working together, but we will see October 27th!

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Batman: Arkham Knight Looks Incredible!

I was disappointed to hear that Batman: Arkham Knight was delayed again, but after watching this trailer I don’t feel so bad.  It is not often that you get a game of the year contender coming out in the summer, but it looks like Warner Brothers and Rocksteady are going to give us something to play on those long warm summer nights.  Good job ladies and gents.  This looks special.