Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Review!

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is around about  4-10 hours long  (depending on difficulty). In that time you will be blown away fighting all kinds of brilliant enemies in spectacular style,  it's a tight action game whose campaign moves as quickly as its excellent combat.

With a boss battle on average every 45 minutes, you really are in some serious badass fights regularly. Traditional Metal Gear games have relied on the element of stealth, although this game does feature that, the main focus is melee combat. Combos gracefully fall together, with a combination of sword strikes, kicks and aerial attacks. The animation for these look stunning to say the least, I have never been this excited for a game like this which obviously had so much work put into it.

With unlockables you can easily get past that 4-10 hours and sink many more into the game. With a ton of moves, one of which answered one of my main problems, a dodge ability! Which I really enjoyed using.

Once Raiden slays enough cyborgs, he can enter the time-slowing Blade Mode and slice his sword in any direction, this will slice parts of enemies of in a jaw-dropping way. It also adds a new twist on the game in terms of strategy, slicing  weapons of cyborgs to leave them vulnerable, or slicing armour to reveal weak points.

This game's soundtrack is also one of the best I have heard in a game in a while, each boss theme is unique and makes fights even more awesome. Hands down the big winner for best soundtrack this year, simply put it's outstanding.

Other unlockables are available, in a way I love by defeating bosses you gain their weapon. The only thing is these weapons are rather bad, they replace some of your attaks and can restrict some combos.

The camera is the only real major problem that I have with the game, it seems to keep altering itself all the time in the worst possible moment. It can take away from combat and can actually get you killed from time to time. It is only a minor splinter in an otherwise fantastic game.

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is a brave move and certainly pays off, Raiden is finally back and more badass than ever. It's always entertaining, even if you are new to the franchise, I'm sure anybody can love this brilliant masterpiece. - 9/10

Art of Castlevania Lords of Shadow Video Review

Just a quick video I put together for a book I received from the very kind Titan Books! Feel free to check them out and my video review to see if it's something you want to own!

http://youtu.be/SWDMm4-Y3xM

This is the End Review!

This is the End could very well have been one of the biggest disappointments this year in terms of films. Instead what the audience got is one of the biggest surprises in film history, the audience are in for a treat, one that you would be mad to miss.

The premise for the film is Seth Rogen and his buddy Jay Baruchel meet up and end up going to a party at James Franco's house. Rogen, Baruchel, James Franco,Jonah Hill, Danny Mcbride, Craig Robinson and a handful of other celebrities such as Emma Watson play themselves. It turns out all these guys are brilliant as simply portraying themselves on screen and create a real special feel to the group of actors and have brilliant chemistry on screen. In a world filled with terrible comedies such as Scary Movie it's nice to see that gems still exist.

The group are the last survivors in an apocalyptic world and the film simply follows them and their hilarious adventure. It's basic, but perfect. Each character has a place that fits perfectly for them and not a single joke went flat for the entire film, even having some rather surprising and hilarious moments. Danny McBride for me was the best character in the film and stands as a rather bizarre but brilliant character. It works perfectly as a hilarious conflict point in the film.

If I had to pick out a very minor flaws with the film (which they are rather minor for the overall product). The humour is not smart humour by any means, which is still brilliant and hilarious however all the dick related jokes may not be for some viewers.

However if you are a fan of straight up comedy, this film is for you. Overall the package is brilliant and in my opinion this is probably Rogen's and Goldberg's finest film yet. With some VERY minor flaws which in no means should take away from the whole film. This film will go down as a comedy classic and I really can't wait to watch it again.

9/10 - Brilliant

Wreck-It Ralph Review!

Wreck-It Ralph has proven to be one of the greatest animated films of 2012, (2013 in the UK). Wreck-It Ralph took the task of creating a film around gaming culture, as you can tell from my blog I'm a huge gamer myself! So coming from somebody that this film is aimed at, I can say it has completed the task with great success. I found myself chuckling at so many inside jokes which my friends did not understand, they really did work hard to include some references that gamers would find special.  From Sonic to Street Fighter and even the unexpected Metal Gear Solid, Wreck-It Ralph is bursting  with these gaming references!

Wreck-It Ralph is set inside the world of a video game arcade, a bright and stunning world where game characters can hang out together, it was rather funny to see some odd characters hanging out together. The story revolves around Ralph, a bad guy who wants to win a medal so he can be treated like the hero of his game. He sets out on an adventure to finally get that medal and become the good guy , the only way possible is by leaving his game and going elsewhere.

The world of Hero's Duty was my favourite location in the film, inspired by modern FPS games such as Halo or Call of Duty. The use of Skrillex, even though I usually hate him, actually worked rather well, it fitted in with the scenery and the action on the screen. The world of Sugar Rush I thought was not as impressive as Hero's Duty, it kind of lost its game feel, although it did give a feeling of Mario Kart. Gaming references also seemed to have stopped at this point and the film kind of lost its uniqueness to an extent, the film was still enjoyable though with the rather funny Oreo guard scene!

 The film's supporting cast are rather strong also, Fix-It Felix, Jr is the hero of the game Ralph inhabits, he is certainly a character inspired from the likes of Mario. Sergeant Calhoun, is the stereotypical FPS character, coming from Hero's Duty. A bad-ass soldier, who is usually paired with Felix as a love interest in the film.

King Candy is also a rather strong villain for the film and the 'end boss' you could say. His happy characteristics hide his true evil intentions and serves for a brilliant plot twist and fits in well with the rest of the story, leading to huge pay-off.

Vanellope is probably the weakest character in the film, she does provide some nice moments but her humour brings her down. Her jokes at times did seem a little childish and clearly made for the child audience to enjoy, they made a genius film at times look rather idiotic. Shame on you for whoever thought they were funny.

Wreck-It Ralph is a bold and risky move that certainly paid off for Disney, it's a brilliant and well-crafted film filled with gamer goodness. With originality comes success. - 8.5/10

Dead Space 3 Review

Dead Space 3 was met with some mixed feelings back when it was first shown at E3. Have these worries been adressed in the game? Does it live up to the high standards of the original 2 games? The game has certainly taken a turn from fright factors, it instead heads towards breathless entertainment. The campaign's story will grab you and involve you straight up to the final credits.

We are yet again put into the shoes of Isaac Clarke, this time to destroy the Necromorph origin, a Marker, on an icy planet called Tau Volantis.  Before you start, the game makes a decent attempt of filling in the back story through the use of a short cutscene which talks about the events of the previous 2 games for new players to the series.

Dead Space 3 still sounds brilliant, with gruesome noises such as the snapping of bones been clearly heard. It adds to the horror of the game as you hear silence being broken as a Necromorph smashes through a vent. With headphones it certainly provides a sense of horror and panic for the player, so if possible experience Dead Space 3 with a set of headphones.

Dead Space still keeps the focus on well-thought out shooting mechanics and strategic dismemberment of your Necremorph foes.  Once you reach the frozen planet, the game does seem much more open than previous titles. This shifts foxus away from constant suspense and more towards a more action-based experience. This is not bad though, we still get them moments of horror, but this time it feels like a blockbuster experience.  With a large portion of the game set in on an open planet rather than claustrophobic corridors, Dead Space 3 still manages to capture a wonderful sense of atmosphere. 

With constant strong blizzards you never really know what is ahead, even in an open world, an enemy can be a couple feet in front and you won't know till it's too late.  Scenery is stunning with huge variations in every chapter, each giving their own sense of danger.

But perhaps the most blatant statement of  an intent to focus on action comes is with the new co-op mode. The second player takes the role of John Carver, a hardened soldier. Co-op is certainly fun and probably the most amazing thing is the changes in the story with co-op, it will make you want to play a second time to see the changes.

Dead Space 3 has taken in some new features to help with the action style, rolling is one. Isaac can now roll out of the way of attacks, but it feels very clunky and unreliable at times and proves hard to roll out of the way of incoming attacks. The cover system, although it works, does seem a little underwhelming and could do with improvement to help combat feel more epic against the marines.

Probably the best new feature is weapon crafting, a much bigger improvement from the former simple weapon upgrades. You can now mix and match weapons together to create the ultimate killing machine, the pieces are available throughout the campaign or crafted with resources. This certainly adds more replayability to the game as players will want to collect and build the ultimate Isaac.

For anyone who was worried about Dead Space 3, you really are worrying over nothing. Dead Space 3 still lives up to the high standards set by the first 2 games and delivers on every level, the move away from horror was not as obvious as I thought, I still found myself getting scared by a surprise Necromorph attack. If you look past the very minor problems of the cover system and rolling, you’ll be rewarded with one of the best sci-fi shooters of all time and a game of the year contender. Dead Space 3 gets a solid 9.5/10, a must buy for any gamer.

The Walking Dead "Sick" Review!

The second episode of Season 3 kept up the momentum, with the continuation to save Hershel and the introduction of new characters in the form of prisoners. Some really good performances from these prisoners also, most notably Tomas and Axel.

We see Rick develop even further this episode yet again being the character that stood out this episode, everytime we see his darkside growing bigger and this episode does it on a huge scale. The interaction between Rick's group and the prisoners was by far the most interesting aspect of this episode, like a time bomb which ended up going off very quickly.

Many viewers felt worried that season 3 would slow down just like season 2 did for the first half, but episode 2 certainly disagrees with this and shocks viewers multiple times. It is extremely hard to say if "Sick" was better than "Seed" both are really close, for shock factor "Sick" wins hands down with so many unexpected moments. The talking scenes that dragged down last season are shorter and punchier, with greater impact in less words.

Lori yet again takes small steps in redeeming herself, showing that she is not always screwing over Rick, so far I have not rolled my eyes at anything Lori has said which is a good start. The Walking Dead has entered a new era, it feels like a new show. Every character feels revamped, Carl has now became a favourite of mine with some really stand out moments this episode. Everybody now feels like they have a spot on the show, T-Dog for example no longer feels like a character sitting in the background, even being a main focus this episode.

The Walking Dead has upped its game, becoming unpredictable maybe even the most unpredictable show on television, when I believe I have predicted what will happen I'm completely wrong everytime. I now have no idea what will happen and as a reader of the comic that is a great feeling to have.

Verdict - 10/10
+Otstanding Rick moments
+Rvamped Walking Dead
+Unpredictable
+Character development

The Walking Dead "Seed" Review! *spoilers*

Some viewers thought Season 2 was too slow-paced, the season 3 premiere will answer this problem,  Walking Dead began this season with a bang. We get action right from the start, with non-stop zombie killing and still delivering a very convincing story.

Season 3 jumps ahead a few months from the past events, this really was a good idea as it explains why everybody has turned more badass, with Chandler Riggs being a growing boy it needs to be done as he will be changing every season getting much older.

The group finally arrive at the prison (they did not see it after all this time?) some really nice shots followed with the group running between two prison fences filled with zombies, which I think are my favourite shots for the episode. We then get some awesome zombie killing, I do believe everybody in the scene killed a zombie even Beth, this was a real action packed scene to say the least.

We then get a scene with Beth and Maggie singing around a campfire, I will be honest this was a little cheesey for my liking but it was interesting to see some of the interactions in this scene between characters.

We are now at the best scene in the episode and maybe one of the best scenes of the show yet, the final prison assault to get inside, I loved every second so many great moments. We can tell the detail really went into making these zombies spectacular in this scene. The riot gear zombies are maybe the highlight of the episode or as me and my friend called them "boss zombies" I actually laughed at scene, it was rather funny in a way which I think is what the creators wanted, they also felt like the stakes had been raised for the survivors even though it would be hard for the riot gear zombies to bite. Maggie soon realised how to dispatch with a simple knife straight up from the bottom of the chin, she then lets out a cute line, “Did you see that?!” this whole scene was incredible. We also get a rather gruesome zombies whose face comes off with its gasmask which made me feel a little sick but still I loved it.

 

 

Time to party everyone, Lori seemed kinda less iritating than usual in this episode, we even got a rather scary thought about the baby being dead inside her by a small chance, then eating her and ripping out from the inside.

 

Michonne and Andrea get very little time this episode, it was effective though as you do feel they are really cut off from the rest of the group and alone. Michonne though really did leave her mark decapitating two zombies at once with ease.

Fast forward a little we get the real big shocker of the episode, Hershel getting bitten and then having Rick cut his leg off to save him, I really did not expect this at all and I'm glad that they manage to shock a die hard fan like me so easily! The chopping of the leg was done well though, it had me looking away a little as Rick gave hack after hack to the leg.

As the episode ended, and Rick and his group, in a serious situation, we then see surviving prisoners, we get a funny line to end the episode  “Holy s**t” by a prisoner that pretty much sums up the entire episode.

 

 

 

 No real faults at all with this episode, absolute carnage all episode while still keeping an interesting story, this episode really raises the bar for the rest of the season. This episode proves we are in for a hell of a season!

 

Final Verdict - 9.8/10

+ZOMBIE KILLING EVERYWHERE!!!!!!!!!
+Awesome riot gear zombies
+shocking cliffhanger
+great character development
- cheesey campfire scene
-Did not see prison for all them months

Looper Review

Looper, the third feature film from writer-director Rian Johnson (who previously brought audiences the neo-noir thriller, Brick, and caper-flick, The Brothers Bloom) is a powerful, clever and swiftly-paced sci-fi film that you'll want to see time and time again - if just to try and understand it.

The Walking Dead Episode 4: Around Every Corner Review!

Telltale Games has yet again raised the bar for The Walking Dead game series, Episode 4: Around Every Corner does what a good pre-finale episode should do, set up the most intense cliffhanger I have seen in a while.

Episode 4 takes place around 12 hours after Episode 3, the survivors arrive in Savannah and ready to make that final journey to find a boat and get the hell out. Events take the group on yet another adventure though.

This episode actually does not focus so much on the voice we heard on the walkie talkie at end of episode 3, instead the focus is the mystery behind the Crawford group who we learn are pretty evil people. This episode offers the finest conversations between Clementine and Lee, it is weird how every episode makes you love Clementine more and more (did not think this was possible)

This episode had  really nice gun scenes in which Lee would go into first-person perspective, these moments really felt badass and handled much better than the Episode 3 gun scene; the gun scenes felt like my shots made in impact in terms of if I mess up it may cost lives.

Ben gets some really awesome moments which had me wanting to kill him, but in the end I realised what he did was all a huge mistake. Telltale Games did a great job with this sudden change of heart for me just like they did with Kenny in the past episodes.

Voice acting is at its best yet again, Clementine well on her way to winning character of the year, we feel the emotion coming out of the characters and straight into our cold heart.

Yet again this episode suffers from the slight lip syncing and screen loading in intense scenes, but this is forgivable as it really does not take away from the overall experience.

We can tell by the final statistics that our choices really have made a huge impact on the finale, I feel regret in some decisions I made this is not a bad thing as it means I'm invested in the rich story.

Overall, Episode 4 sets up for an epic finale to this amazing series, I cannot wait to play it! Episode 4 has maybe the most epic scenes yet and shows how The Walking Dead is not just a zombie story, but a story filled with emotion and it really is something special. If you have not played Telltale's The Walking Dead then this is the best time to start!

Final Verdict: 9.5/10
+Epic scenes
+Great way to end ready for finale giving a powerful cliffhanger
+Most interesting Clementine scenes yet
-Slight technical issues

Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn - "Part 1" Review!

Episode 1 is available now, you can watch it on YouTube or the official Halo site, so go watch it before reading this review!

Bungie attempted to bring a live-action for Halo call Halo 3:Landfall, but with 343 they have been more ambitous in promoting Halo 4. Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn is an episodic webseries that acts as a prologue to Halo 4, but this first episode acts as much more than a promotion.

The budget for Forward Unto Dawn is very good you realise while you watch this, it is up to the quality of most shows shown on television. Some areas you are able to tell the divide between, digital and reality in the footage, but what do you expect for a webseries? The armour and scenery really give off that Halo vibe, you can tell the props really had some time put into them.

The main problem I had was that every single marine in this seems like they could not make it into the UNSC, I know that it is a training facility so they would be young, but none of them really give off a badass feeling like the marines in the Aliens film. They really have no qualities that you would expect to find from a soldier.

The episode takes place just before the war between humanity and the Covenant, in this time rebels are the only threat. It's a very good place to start with as newcomers of Halo who may watch this.

Right from the start we can tell who the main characters so far are, Tom Lasky played by Tom Green seems to be made out as the main character, with Chyler Silva who is played by Anna Popplewell who you may remember from Chronicles of Narnia. Nobody else in this first episode really stuck out that much, we still have plenty of time for the other characters to develop though. Green and Popplewell do good at being characters with determination and vunerability to their roles, unlike Master Chief who is made out to be a god among soldiers.

"part 1" really was a strong episode in introducing us into this webseries, the final cenes are the strongest as they develop our emotional attachment to the main two characters. I'm confident though that this opening episode shows that we are in for a real treat, this series has huge potential to be something special, not just a advertisement for Halo 4.

8/10
+Outstanding costumes andd set designs which give off that Halo feel
+Strong performances
-Secondary characters fail to stand out

Guild Wars 2 Review!

Guild Wars 2 is supposed to be a revolution for those already embedded in the massively multiplayer roleplaying world, ArenaNet is aiming for this and they may not be at that position, but it’s close. The main thing is no subscriptions are required, I love this because now I can leave and come back whenever I please.

Tweaks have been made wich really give the game a sense of pushing forward, everything I do gives me expirience crafting, gathering, dynamic events, killing, questing and exploring which may not be new but the way they do it with Vista points really encourages you to explore.

Dynamic events are a real nice feature, they have been seen before in Rift for example but vary much more with events to defend, collect and kill mostly, the most fun I have seen being killing a undead dragon! These kinds of things really bring the players together to help each other as they themself benefit. The little changes make a big difference such as anyone who attacks a target will get expirience, unlike World of Warcraft with its system of whoever gets first hit will gain the rewards, this stops them long waits for enemies to respawn just for the kill to be stolen.

Rather than forcing you to talk to NPCs for odd jobs, Guild Wars 2 has them standing out in the open, screaming their predicament for all to hear. Hearts appear on the game’s map; initially hollow, you can fill them by performing certain tasks for their owner without you ever having to click through a single dialogue box.

The game features five total races with eight proffesions to pick from, each having their own skills and abilities, the most interesting change is that the weapon you hold determines your skills; this allows for some real different playstyles from players.

Each race has its own unique story until around level 14, these then branch out on multiple ways that you can pick, they are all voice acted which really adds to the story also.

GW2 has a dodge – double-tap a direction – and it’s expected you’ll use it to avoid attacks before they connect in realtime. It’s not an action game, but it’s closer than the genre’s got before, so battles demand a new level of focus. The combat feels much more skill based, unlike other games in the genre you cannot just sit and wait, you will be moving a lot.

Particularly when combat is so tough. Bosses in the game’s dungeons – currently eight story-led runs through gauntlets of tough enemies each with some serious boss battles. PVP also is real nice with your standard PVP modes, but what shines is the world versus world versus server, which means in Guild Wars 2 server versus server vs server, sounds confusing right? It is frantic fun with constant large scale battles occuring, as armies of players try siege castles while the other server defends.

Guild Wars 2 is a few brushstrokes short of a masterpiece, then, but ArenaNet has succeeded in trying to paint over the worst of the genre’s cracks. Only problem I had was that no trade system exists, I don't mean auction house kind but between two players,the only way is to send mail this can lead to many problems as you may know.

This aside, the game is amazing for only $60 or £40 roughly you will get at least 100 hours of gameplay from this masterpiece, for that price I have to tell you to buy this game!

10/10
+100 or even more hours of fun
+Combat system
+Class variety
+Expirience system
+No subscription
+Fun PVP
-No trade system

Walking Dead Issue #102 Review!

 

The Walking Dead issue 102 is the sixth part of the Something To Fear storyline, yet again this is a much more quieter issue reflecting back on what happened in issue 100. Robert Kirkman succeeds in further building this feel that Negan is even more deadly than The Governor for the group.

 

 This issue is mainly for character development between the comics main characters,Some complain that The Walking Dead never really gives us any memorable new members of the main group anymore, the Jesus character though has proven to be a real interesting touch to the series. I believe that Jesus will be a big part of the comic in the future.

 

The issue gives us a very nice glimpse on just what exactly we can expect in the near future for The Walking Dead, this build up to the final showdown is really paying off for building anticipation.

 

Charlie Adlard may have had a tough time this issue due to the fact the entire issue is characters talking , the facial expressions though really represent just how members of the group are feeling in this situation they are facing.

 

Even though issue 102 is not a all out war, it really has the reader excited for the future of The Walking Dead and the rivalry between Rick and Negan, though this issue does lack any defining moment really to help it stand out from other issues.

 

8.5/10

+Character development

+Good build of tension

-No defining moment in this issue

Mini-Reviews - Volume 1: The Hunger Games, The Dark Knight Rises and More

Because Two and a Half Penguins is such a new site, we've got a lot of catching up to do. Yesterday, I posted my review of Doctor Who's series 7 finale, The Angels Take Manhattan, and today I'm launching what will be a recurring feature here: Mini-Reviews.

The name says it all; I'm going to be reviewing some of the most noteworthy (for good or bad) films and TV episodes of the past year or so, in a few salient paragraphs. Today we start with Liongate's The Hunger Games, Pixar's first fairytale, Christopher Nolan's Batman finale and the stellar series 2 closer of Sherlock. Check out the four mini-reviews after the jump break.

Doctor Who: The Angels Take Manhattan Review

*The following review contains spoilers - do not read unless you've seen the episode or don't care about having it ruined for you*

So this is how it ends. Say what you like about the recent series of Doctor Who, but the chemistry between Matt Smith's Doctor and Karen Gillan's Amy Pond has always been phenomenal. The Rose Tyler to Smith's Doctor, Amy Pond has kept the Doctor grounded. Though she often borders on the annoying, the addition of her über loveable boyfriend/husband, Rory (Arthur Darvill) to the team made the leading trio an entertaining force to be reckoned with. But nothing lasts.

Bad Piggies Review!

From the creators of Angry Birds, Rovio has kicked off a new franchise in the Angry Birds universe with Bad Piggies. It switches you over to the side of the pigs, with a very different style of gameplay compared to Angry Birds


Rather than asking you to kill pigs, you have to transport them safely to a certain location. You do this by creating a pig-housing contraption out of boxes, balloons, wheels, engines, fans and other such bits and bobs. The game much like Angry Birds is all about the physics, you must predict how your various creations will work for getting the piggies to safety.

 

The game will start simple with easy levels and not many gadgets to pick from, eventually you will gain a variety of gadgets, at this point the game will begin to really challenge the player to find out how to do the level.

 

Bad Piggies feels much less casual than Angry Birds did, so maybe it won't be a game you will pick up and play on a bus ride home, but it remains addictive. The game can be frustrating though at times due to some real tricky levels, don't let this put you off though so much fun can be had with this game!

 

 

 

The game features 60 levels, starting quite simple, all the way to levels which will make you use your brain. The game also features sandbox to let you go wild with creations also adding some fun once you finish every level. The game has plenty of potential to expand with more levels in the future, so expect some interesting features later on

 

8/10

+Creative

+Fun

+Requires thinking

-Can prove to be frustrating sometimes

 





The Walking Dead Game: Episode 3 Review!

 

The Walking Dead has yet again added another medal to the list, episode 3 shows just why The Walking Dead is the fastest rising franchise in the past couple of years.

The first two episodes of The Walking Dead: The Game slowly introduced players to a twisted world filled with zombies and crazies that forced us to make tough decisions based on how we thought our version of Lee would take these various scenarios. These different decisions that we have had to made in Episodes 1 and 2 have been able to give us a general outline of a “good and bad” way to do things. Episode 3 takes all of those defined lines and blurs them completely.

The more I play The Walking Dead: The Game, the more I feel my humanity slip away. I now feel like I make my choices on survival, they still are painful for me to make but I justify it by saying "I do this for Clementine".

As Lee, we see our group through some seriously screwed up and emotional moments, as well as a whole bunch of conversations and light gameplay problem solving. We see the most emotional scenes yet, my eyes teared up a few times but I remained strong!

We get introduced to more characters who add some interesting story and bring in some freshness to the game. It’s a harrowing fact but one that you won’t escape in a zombie-survival situation, the longer you survive often times will lead to fewer things to live for.

The game still suffers from the minor frame drops again, this time it was not as bad as usual though. This factor though is not a huge problem, if you have not purchased this game series yet now is the best time. If you love a strong story then this is for you, this game puts heavy rain to shame in terms of story.

9.5/10
+ Great emotional scenes
+Entertaining story
+Tough choices
-Frame rate drops

Double Dragon: Neon Review!

Way Forward brings a HD remake of a popular side-scrolling beat em up, in Double Dragon: Neon. Taking the original story and infusing new levels and features. This game made me remember the fun I had on the classic Double Dragon games many long years ago. From the start, there is no doubt that Way Forward has put in some serious care in reflecting the source material in this remake.

For those new to the Double Dragon universe, the story revolve in rescuing Marian, the love interest of both playable characters, from a gang that has kidnapped her. This game was made to play with a buddy with countless fun little combo moves you can make with each other, it really brings back old school beat-em up action; In a modern gaming world filled with countless shooters it really is a nice chance to sit back and relax.

The sound is what made this game for me, every single unlockable move has its own song and some did make me smile; The music also has a very 80's feel which fits into the background perfectly in a very 80's feeling world.

The worry is that the game is really hard to play by yourself, unless you have a friend you really will not enjoy this game as much as you could; What make it harder is if you die you must restart the level, which is really frustrating to do. Unless you are hardcore for Double Dragon then you may want to avoid until you find someone to play with.

6.5/10
+ Beautiful update graphically
+ Great Sound
- Forced to have a friend

Borderlands 2 Review!

I remember the fun I had in the first Borderlands, constant fun with friends shouting at each other over who gets weapons and celebrating when we defeated a boss and a spray of loot went in our faces. Yet again Borderlands 2 brings them moments back in an even bigger way!

The huge feature which I love in this game are guns, some people unfamiliar with Borderlands may think I'm a moron right now considering the game is a shooter; What you may not know is Borderlands has million of guns, you will never find a player with the same gun as you, the joy from finding a overpowered gun such as a submachine gun with fire damage, 100 bullets in a magazine,a fire rate which will fire half a magazine in a blink of an eye and a satisfying sound when I shoot this baby. It is a great feeling to show off your new gun to your friends, if they don't agree you can duel them to find out who has the better guns.

The highlight is the multiplayer. Two people can play on the same split screen, but four (online) players will have the most fun, with four classes to pick from you can mix and match playstyles to create a badass team together with each class adding something to the table.

Each class feels much more like the Borderlands 1 characters but on steroids bringing wacky abilities with them;  There's Salvador, the Gunzerker, a raging slab of muscle whose special powers is dual-wielding weapons. There's Maya, the Siren, who is able to project a forcefield around enemies and haul them out of cover. There's Axton, the Commando, who can deploy a machinegun turret with a barrel that can swivel in a 360 degree arch. Finally, there's Zero, The Assassin, whose powers involve turning invisible in order to slide up close to enemies and then dismembering them with a katana.

The skill tree you can tell has been really worked on for this game, at low level they provide small stat changes but higher up they can completely change how a character ability works such as Maya being able to revive people.

The world of Pandora is much more varied now compared to Borderlands 1 with new areas such as snow covered landscapes far as the eye can see, the interesting part is areas from the first are still in the game but have changed due to the storyline; Hyperion have taken over Pandora and are now trying to take complete control over everybody on the planet.

Handsome Jack is the main villian which players will soon find is extremely funny while also being a total jerk, this is by far my favourite villian this year in a videogame as I found myself chuckling now and again to his rather childish yet weirdly funny jokes.

the player finds themselves joining up with a rebel movement – led by the four characters from the original game, they want to stop Handsome Jack from unleashing a true evil on Pandora. The plot is used mainly to hold together a constant insane fight with insane weapons while adding a dash of humour to the mix, it is a great combination.

Alongside their skills, the player also has a list of Badass Challenges to complete – these can be from simple things such as pistol kills all the way to killing a real badass boss. These challenges give badass points for the player, these can upgrade stats which actually go across all your characters.

It's also worth noting that it's best to play this game only with players who you trust to work as a team, hogging loot can be a real pain and has caused arguments in the game. The game lacks a loot system which is needed as greedy players will steal everything; a simple loot system such as the system seen in World of Warcraft should of been implemented.

This aside the loot really is awesome, unlike the first game you can really tell a gun manufacturer  apart, such as the Bandit manufacturer which have huge magazines or the Jakobs which have huge power but are single shot guns. This is a really nice feel as you can tell you will sucked into the game with all its vast loot.

Now to the last feature being the awesome graphic style, the world makes you feel like you stumbled into a comic book, it is beautiful and also helps give the humour of the game a nice warm place in players hearts. It gives this shooter character unlike the countless bland looking shooters we are used to today.

Altogether to put it bluntly, Pandora feels even bigger and more badass than it did in the first Borderlands. If you have not played the first game then this is your chance to try something spectacular! Simply put this game is awesome and well worth a buy

9.5/10

+ Bigger and more badass

+ Awesome new variety of guns to find

+ Better classes

+ Beautiful scenery

- Lack of group loot system