Variety is always a good thing so I’m pleased to say that Charlieee22 has kindly agreed to be embedded on the site. Enjoying a wide variety of games her streams as with MrXbob’s are an entertaining mix of genres. Be sure to check out her channel directly at http://www.twitch.tv/charlieee22

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While there are a number of changes to FIFA 12 it is the introduction of three major gameplay changes that will make or break whether you love this year’s instalment.  Known as Trinity the three changes include precision dribbling, tactical defending and a new impact engine.

Arguably the hardest to come to terms with is the tactical defending engine which, rather then mapping tackling to one or two buttons and focusing entirely on pressure defending, requires a more strategic approach. Rather than rushing blindly the new system will see defenders jostle and jockey for position allowing for a more measured approach to your defensive play, going in to quickly or not accurately enough will result in the attacker having far too much space and leaving you in his dust. If you do leave yourself wide open you can now use the new jostling system that allows you to pull back on the shoulder or shirt in order to get back the advantage. Naturally if you abuse this new system there is an added chance of yellow or even red cards. For the more defensive minded players from previous FIFA titles this can be a blessing or curse. While it allows for the more tactically minded to work players into channels and gain the upper hand the new jockeying system does not make players put a foot in and instead requires more button presses for a successful defensive strategy. Long-term as  players get used to it should be a system that truly shines however should you still be struggling thankfully the game does give you the option to switch back to “Legacy defending,” in other words the same defensive system from previous games.

Attack minded players are not forgotten either as the new precision dribbling system allows for far closer control when on the attack, even going as far as having the AI assist you in certain areas on the pitch. For example when running along the wing should you get too close to the touchline the player will naturally keep a tighter control to prevent the ball from going out of play. This also helps when going up against the new defensive system allowing for small close control touches to keep the ball out of the defenders reach, or even if you are lucky getting the chance to nutmeg them.  From a personal standpoint this is arguably the greatest improvement this year, as even though I’m not the greatest of players it has allowed me to beat players using skill moves on a more regular basis and with greater ease.

The third change is the new impact engine which works in the number of ways. The most noticeable way in which this works is that any contact between players will be more accurately represented with players reacting to contact to a specific body part in a more realistic fashion. This engine is not just restricted to visual accuracy as particularly heavy contact with a certain body part can cause an injury. While injuries were commonplace in previous titles this new system makes things feel a lot more natural. Speaking of injuries and realism instead of just contact injuries FIFA 12 introduces a new non-contact injury system. Abuse of the sprint button will see your player do the hamstring hop. While this will not necessarily need a substitution it will drastically affect your performance and result in you needing a spell on the sidelines.

The way in which FIFA 12 is presented is a vast improvement this year. Even whilst in the menu screens the game feels more alive than ever. Using the ever increasing gaming trend of a social networking appearance while not in game you will receive constant updates of your friends activities. This can range from your friend’s improvement of their pro by completing accomplishments, results from their matches and even breaking news style system at detailing events in their career mode such as them selling a well known player, winning a tournament or even the progress of the youth player in their ranks. The social network appearance doesn’t end there as all information is accurately mapped to a newsfeed and a new leaderboard system keeps tabs of your progress against your friends as well as the  “support your club” feature that is new this year. As with previous years when initially starting game you will select your favourite club, however this year rather then just being a quick selection tool for your team it’s a far deeper system. This time everything you do from simply firing up the game to playing matches and improving your professional will earn you experience. This experience is then averaged out amongst all supporters of those clubs that feature in the game, these averages then allow the game to accurately map who the best teams are for that day awarding points accordingly. Rather then having a simple system following current real life league tables it allows for even the lowest placed team in the league to become champions. It is certainly a nice way for players who do not necessarily like multiplayer to still feel as if they’re in a competitive field without dealing with the potential hassle the online play can bring.

In terms of gameplay modes EA Sports have taken more of a tweak approach rather than sweeping, drastic changes. Most importantly this year sees the first time in which Ultimate Team becomes part of the retail package rather than DLC. The mode itself has hardly changed at all taking a FIFA 11 UT presentation. Although it is worth noting that the game now attracts real-life progress of players with a team of the week. Sticking with the subject of real-life one new feature to the game is the introduction of Challenges. These challenges are accurate representations of real-life footballing events. For example one of the challenges so far took an EA Sports prediction video of last weekend’s North London derby and our suppliers to recreate the prediction’s scoreline.

Career mode now incorporates everything from pro to manager. While not drastically different small changes and tweaks that potentially offer far more polished experience. You can now set up a scouting network which allows you to scout youth players from around the world. The better the scout more expensive the network. Scouting is very much a risk versus reward system. Your Scout will return with a list of players from whichever region you send him to and each player carries a potential rating, initially this rating is a rather wide band but the longer your scout keeps tabs on the player the more accurate that potential will become. The risk versus reward comes in with exactly when you approach to sign the player, for example if you move too early the plan may end up being at the low end of the potential ratings band leaving you with a player that will never be good enough your first team, however leave it too late and other clubs make in their first. While this is not exactly groundbreaking it is something that adds to the realistic feel. That being said career mode is still not exactly perfect. If you’re playing it as an individual pro the rating system is still very very flawed arguably worse than FIFA 11. In almost every example the pro match but I have experienced so far plans rating will haemorrhage without any reason whatsoever, while this may not cause problems for an outfield player as you can call for the ball any time and forcibly improve your rating school playing as a goalkeeper is now even more frustrating than FIFA 11 when trying to get a decent score. On more than one occasion with the ball at the opposite end of the field my be a keeper pro has seen the starting rating of 6.0 drop 5.0 or less in under 10 minutes of match time. Hopefully a patch will be released to remedy the problem but for the meantime at least it remains extremely frustrating for anyone who enjoys playing as a keeper, and of course can potentially cause problems when trying to complete some accomplishments that are goalkeeper specific.

Online modes still, at their hearts, the same as they have always been, once again though it is a simple case of a more polished presentation. Rather than the random ranked or unranked matches of previous instalments you can now take part in head-to-head seasons. Instead of this being a simple case of working on a level of skill each result you obtain while playing online matches will now count towards an active league. The more wins you obtain the more points you get and after a set amount of matches you can then be promoted to a higher level league against the better level of opposition. These links will also include cups added bragging rights.

All in all FIFA 12 may not be a massive change from the previous year however there is certainly enough in terms of polish and new features to make it more than worthwhile purchase for fans of the series. As with almost every new game a patch is needed to address some major issues such as the ratings drop, however not forcing players to go down the route of the new systems such as tactical defending by allowing them to choose the “legacy defending” does pull back some of those brownie points. As with most sports games recommending FIFA 12 is simply down to a matter of taste. If you love the series the chances are you will buy the game regardless of review and it is unlikely that FIFA 12 will disappoint, however for those of you that may have missed last year’s instalment then FIFA 12 it’s a great place in which to pick back up with the series.

The Good
The best presentation of a FIFA game yet.
The “social network” aspect works beautifully with this type of game
The new systems allow for more strategic play
Being able to revert back to the old style if the above proves too much.

The Bad
Ratings dropping like a stone for no reason at all
Not a massive advancement in modes to keep a casual FIFA player engaged if they have recent instalments.

The Ugly
Tevez rendered accurately into the game is enough to give even the bravest of us nightmares

For those of you that missed pretty much all of the previous Saint’s Row articles and videos, Saint’s Row The Third will see you play in the new city of Steelport. The city itself is controlled by the Syndicate and  in turn the Syndicate employ various gangs to protect their interests. One such gang being the Luchadores.

This of course is Saint’s Row so each gang has it’s very own unique quirk and the Luchadores’ is their pro wrestling background and the fact that each and every one of their members wears a Mexican Lucha wrestling mask. Headed by Killbane the Luchadores deal in drug smuggling and gambling scene. What better way to take down a gang full of wrestlers? Why, have an ally that has the same background of course! This is where Angel De LaMuerte comes in. Desperate to earn back his mask he’ll team up with you both on the streets ,and seemingly in the ring also, in order the “hurt a lot of people.” Does his voice sound strangely familiar? Well if you’ve ever had even a passing interest in wrestling over the years then it certainly should. Angel is voice by none other than aging wrestling icon Hulk Hogan.

A gang full of wrestlers, a wrestling match and a character voiced by an 80’s-90’s wrestling icon….yup it’s certainly worthy of the Saint’s Row name.

Taking the stage at Gamescom Dice showcased co-op in action as a two man team worked it’s way through an apartment building at night in order to secure a HVT. Using silencers to avoid undue attention, using the enemy tagging system and then coordinating attacks to take out 2 enemies at once and even dealing with cameras. Ok so it’s not exactly a Tom Clancy game in it’s presentation but it works as you can see below. Securing the target the action then moves back out to the streets as he is loaded into an AI controlled Humvee and the two man team then take point to secure the streets ahead. Naturally it isn’t smooth sailing as the streets then erupt into a massive firefight with thermal vision being used to spot, tag and take out the threat. Co-op play may not be original anymore, hell even this style of co-op play may have been seen before, but the whole point is that it’s something different for Battlefield players to get stuck into. Expansive single player, Dice’s glittering history of multiplayer and now co-op missions to boot, it’s all looking like a treat this October.

Naturally the reveals didn’t end there either.

When it comes to multiplayer we’ve only really seen the Paris Metro level that was recently rigorously alpha tested on PC. Well we now have another map teaser to drool over that shows off jet combat at long last. Caspian Border based on the trailer below will quite literally have something for everyone. Wide open plains, tree lined areas with rocky outcrops, a small built up area in what is fair to assume is the centre of the map. Vehicles galore ranging from jeeps through tanks, attack choppers and finally jets. Whatever your preference in terms of FPS tools of destruction it seems like a map that will deliver by the bucket load.

If MW3 can come back with an announcement or reveal to rival the above two I’ll be mightily surprised. Of course I’ll also be mightily surprised if in the short term BF3 outsells MW3. In terms of quality there is no gap and hasn’t been for a while however Battlefield 3 is certainly shaping up as the title that may well break the back of the CoD sales dominance of recent years.

So why should you consider buying Rage? What better way of helping you decide than showing the dev diaries?

First up a history lesson. With  id Software the driving force behind Rage it’s certainly been in very prestigious and experienced hands. With some 20 years in the business id Software are the Kings of the FPS, boasting such names as Doom, Quake and Wolfenstein under their belts and their id Tech engines being used on games from Call of Duty, Medal of Honor and American McGee’s Alice. The longevity and quality of the developer’s work bodes well for Rage and allows it to deliver impressive graphics at 60fps.

Naturally a good game is not dependant on how nice it looks or how smooth it runs. While id’s games are a “who’s who” of classic FPS titles they aren’t exactly dripping with rich storyline or even diverse gameplay but Rage will aim to change all of this. Instead of point A to point B style gameplay ,maybe changing  the textures from time to time, Rage instead will offer a large more open world experience that is rich in story. The devastation to Earth comes from the very real comet Apophis that is set to pass Earth in 2029 and then again in 2036. While in real life the comet’s chances of hitting Earth are a less than scary 1 in 250,000 Rage gives a “what if” scenario in which talented individuals are put into stasis to protect the future of mankind. You emerge 100 years later into a perverse version of what you once new, alone and not sure what your purpose is. Progressing from odd jobs for locals you’ll see the story open out around you as your knowledge of the tribes round you increases and people start to take more of an interest in your history.

Now while having a rich story in an open world is a great thing, if you don’t have the action to back it up then you’re wasting your time. While id have excelled in this regard throughout the years it is a new generation of gaming since their last internal solo effort. Being willing to move with the times is paramount to success (just look at the failure of Duke Nukem Forever for a case in point) and it’s a point that hasn’t been ignored.

Rather than restricting you and limiting your options Rage will increase them with each new environment you encounter. Be it an entirely new weapon, ammunition type of tool of destruction, such as the explosive RC car or spider turret seen in previous videos,  each comes with options  and offers a gratifying and visceral result as you are “treated” to feedback from the weapon and seeing your efforts rewarded with impressive death animations.

As shown the emphasis is truly on personal choice. Not only in terms of what weapons and ammo types best suit your play style but also in what depth you want the gameplay to be. Want to be slow and methodical and plan things out with gadgets galore? Go for it! However if you want to just grab a shotgun and go off on a tear then you aren’t going to be penalised for being more in your face. Same with the ingame economy where despite collecting items and cash your not forced down any specific route of encouragement to try to use these items in a specific ay. Don’t want them at all? Sell them and buy your favourite ammo type for your favourite gun. All of this (if accurate) will ,as id say, offer huge replay value to the game.

Now to claim player choice in an FPS world is new and original would be a lie. Games such as Borderlands,  Fallout 3 and New Vegas all offer freedom and depth. What Rage does however is to give the sort of narrative depth of those games mentioned but remove the need of all that long pre mission giving natter. While Rage has a whole host of unique characters that will be able to interact with if you’d rather just restock and move onto the next mission you can. What makes Rage stand further from the crowd than most is it’s diversity of modes. Solo play sees you delving in to the above, co-op play much the same but with slight differences to keep things fresh while competitive multiplayer takes advantage of the vehicle combat. By having each experience differ in varying degrees is a smart move and far more appealing than having solo and co-op tackle the exact same thing while competitive rolls out the usual FPS deathmatch and capture the flag modes seen over and over and over again.

Part 5 is all about your enemies. Understanding that “killing the same enemy for 12 hours” gets boring ,id have been careful in making even this aspect fresh. From the feral mutants attacking hand to hand or with clubs, or just scaring you with the supersized variety, through to the super high tech military unit The Authority and even making each of the bandit tribes unique in approach. Each offers a new experience and each comes with a tonne of movement options and reactions to being hit, as well as reacting to WHERE they are hit. Toss in the AI being unpredictable and you have an experience that should remain fresh throughout while also offering a fresh experience each and every time you play.

Offering an FPS experience that stands out is no mean feat, offering one that has the potential to tap into the CoD/BF market, even tougher. However with that said if Rage delivers on all of the above then it will do exactly that. While the longevity for games such as Call of Duty and Battlefield come from the multiplayer experience alone Rage has the potential to keep players coming back for more on EVERY mode.

Rage arrives October 4th in North America and 7th in Europe.

While Heller may start out as just an ordinary soldier hell bent on revenge the sequence of events that follow then turn Heller into a Mercer  like supermutant complete with a whole range of death dealing powers. These powers range from being able to turn his arms into blade-like appendages, or huge club like fists, that can be used to slice, or smash, through infected mutants, elite Blackwatch soldiers and heavy duty military with relative ease.

One such power available to Heller is the power of the Tendril. While Mercer could reach into the ground and form a shockwave of spikes to appear, Heller has been given something far more interesting. Tendrils have a variety of uses ranging from straight forward yet grisly hand to hand possibilities such as tearing and enemy in half, to drawing enemies and objects around you slamming to one point at great force. How about stringing things up like some angry revenge filled Spider-Man? The possibilities as shown in the trailer below are impressive.

Still some time to wait before you can lay waste to what is now simply known as New York Zero while hunting down Mercer, as the game is set for release in North America on the 24th of April. No word on a European release date as yet but it’s fairly safe to assume it will arrive the same week.

While The Darkness II is something fresh and original in terms of the FPS market, from a business standpoint releasing an FPS around the same timeframe as Battlefield 3 and Modern Warfare 3 is an extremely dangerous strategy. When you also add to the mix the likes of Rage, Assassin’s Creed, Saint’s Row, Forza and even FIFA the chances of Darkness II getting the attention it may deserve is slim. In the same token with such a wide range of potential AAA titles in such a variety of genres a brief respite until after Christmas will no doubt be welcomed by many gamers and of course the novelty also fades somewhat from the shorter games that sell simply due to carrying a name.

As a result The Darkness II will now arrive in February 2012. The 7th in North America and the 10th in Europe.

Having previously stated that they were paying close attention to EA’s “Project Ten dollar” ,now more commonly known as the EA Online Pass, Ubisoft have taken the next step in confirming their own version of it. As with other companies versions the Uplay passport is coming into place to recoup some of the money lost through the pre-owned market, by packaging the code in new copies only and charging 800 MS points to those who don’t. This won’t stop bargain hunters from being able to play the games but as with the online pass it will hold back certain in game bonuses and more importantly multiplayer access.

So there you have it folks another major publisher follows suit starting with Driver San Francisco on the 30th of August in North America and the 2nd of September here in Europe.

Two items on offer one in game and one Avatar.

Master Chief Avatar Armour – Heroes never die, and to honour the 10th Anniversary of John 117, you will finally be able to transform your Xbox LIVE Avatar into the iconic hero by outfitting it with Master Chief’s signature MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armour.

“Grunt Funeral” Skull – An exclusive, game-modifying skull that changes the rules of the game for an explosively humorous experience, “Grunt Funeral” sends “Halo’s” most lowly and lovable enemy out in a blaze of glory. And plasma. And then more glory. Once the skull has been activated, every grunt’s methane tank will explode like a plasma grenade when killed. Watch out for the grunt chain reaction!

So come November 15th you can expect your Halo playing friends list to be rammed full of Masterchiefs

Rather than the usual FPS map focus of one overall feel, be it a sprawling map that favours long range engagement and vehicles or a infantry friendly map with an almost claustrophobic feel, Metro takes us on a tour of all the senses. From an open air park where you will have to reach out to touch somebody with your favourite weapon of choice, into the dark tight tunnel of the Paris Metro complete with torch light, echoing shots and face to face combat, before bursting back out onto the streets with your head on a swivel as you have to watch the buildings and street corners to prevent someone getting the drop on you.

Not bad for the first Multiplayer map on show. Naturally with Alpha testing on PC being offered to players around the globe there are videos breaking the NDA appearing on Youtube. You won’t be seeing them here as I respect their wishes and besides it’s not long till we will be able to test it out for ourselves anyway.