Doom (2016) videogame review

666 out of 10 

 

There comes a point in nearly every fantasy novel when the hero (usually some kind of pseudo-viking or barbarian), outmaneuvered and outnumbered, takes up his sword and flies into a red rage: the world shrinks, time slows down and they become an unbeatable, unstoppable killing machine. Now, never having been in the midst of a full-on sword and sandals skirmish, I'm not sure if this is something real soldiers experience or just a persistent piece of literary invention, but I do know that I felt something similar whilst playing Doom 2016. This is a game unafraid to throw players in at the deep end, burying them in seemingly endless waves of brutal beasties. Each skirmish passes by in a blur of exploding shells, fiery blasts and gouts of blood; you cut down demon after demon and desperately scramble around the arena in search of health pickups and precious ammo. You feel like that fantasy hero; outnumbered and outgunned but utterly impervious. You become a whirling dervish of death.

Yes, Doom 2016 is the kind of no-frills, unashamedly old-school FPS that seems to have been swept under the rug in our post-Call of Duty world. It hearkens back to a time when the genre was more concerned with sprawling, labyrinthine levels that were stuffed with secrets and things that wanted to kill you, than it was with crawling through narrow corridors and  shooting bad guys that pop up like paper targets at a range. There are no lengthy cut-scenes, or bits where you jump into a helicopter from the roof of a collapsing building, or take control of a satellite in order to microwave terrorists from the heavens in Doom; there's just you, thousands of demons in need of killing, and a weapon wheel's worth of big, loud, ugly guns with which to do it.

Luckily, while this new entry in the Doom saga may lean heavily on its pixellated past, it doesn't ignore the many advances made in the FPS genre since hell first came to Mars over two decades ago. Sometimes developers forget that there's a difference between being inspired by your heritage and being beholden to it. Doom, thankfully, doesn't suffer from this problem, and feels fresh enough to avoid feeling like yet another soulless rehash of a once-revered gaming franchise. Naturally, the formula has been streamlined, the fat has been trimmed, and the presentation overhauled, but the core of Doom remains intact: you ramble around, plucking keycards off corpses, and killing anything unlucky enough to wander across your path.

While that may not sound particularly diverting, the gameplay loop that carries Doom through its surprisingly generous 8-10 hour campaign (longer if you like to scour every nook and cranny for geegaws) is supremely satisfying. The game moves at a good clip, and the shooting mechanics fairly sing. This is one of those rare games - like Mario 64 and Halo CE before it - in which the mechanics feel so fine-tuned that simple act of navigating environments and shooting enemies is a joy. And developer  Id really puts those mechanics to the test - particularly in the later portions of the game - regularly throwing enemy combinations at the player that forces them to take full advantage of their arsenal and the environment.

There are moments when Doom feels almost like a character action game, challenging players to adapt to new enemy types and configurations on the fly. Some enemies are simple cannon fodder, but others require a little more skill to take down. There are pinkies whose armored carapaces deflect bullets, summoners that whip from one location to the next drawing more minions into the fight as they go, and lumbering Hell Knights that will chase you all over the map. The odds can be overwhelming, but Doom always gives you the tools to succeed. It may sound odd, but there are stretches (mostly in the second-half ) when Doom feels like an exercise in resource management. Using the right tool for the job, or waiting until just the right moment to snag that quad damage power-up, can be the difference between kicking ass or getting yours handed to you.

It would have nice to have different enemies combinations on the harder difficulties, especially as earlier levels lack the nerve-sapping intensity that comes to characterise the latter parts of the campaign. Thankfully, a mission select option becomes available after beating the game, so you can skip straight to the more savage skirmishes, if you so wish. This also makes hoovering up any collectibles or secrets you might have missed less of a chore.

And Doom is a game that likes it secrets, with each knotty labyrinth littered with easter eggs, stat-boosting microchips and adorable lil Doomguy bobbleheads. It's worth exploring, too, as doing so will net you upgrade points for your weapons, unlocking yet more devastating mods and access to some game-changing secret abilities for your arsenal. It's also an example of how the game's systems interlock in surprising and intelligent ways. Even when you're not in combat, that feeling of always moving forward, always making progress, is there, and is a large part of what makes Doom so satisfying to play.

Big, dumb and most definitely fun, Doom is a stunning revival for a franchise many of us thought  dead in the water. The gameplay is crisp and eye-wateringly responsive, and the generous campaign is stuffed with secrets to uncover. There's also a refreshing lack of flab or pretension, leaving players to concentrate on the important things - things such as eviscerating hellish hordes of rampaging beasties, and ripping and tearing their way through some of the most intense encounters ever seen in a first person shooter.

Preacher Pilot audio commentary w/ Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg released

Fear in a handful of dust

AMC's Preacher - the wild, wonderful and appallingly violent adaptation of Garth Ennis' classic comic book - got off to a phenomenal start last week. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, the creative minds behind the series, wisely haven't attempted to just transplant Ennis' comic to the screen panel by panel, but are using it as a jumping off point to explore these beloved characters in fresh, exciting ways.

Diehard fans will probably be drowning their sorrows in a bottle of Ratwater following some of these chnages, but I always think its good to see an adaptation that manages to preserve the spirit and (most crucially) the atmosphere of the original, while having the confidence to follow its own path.

If you want to find out how Goldberg and Rogen managed this balancing act, you can treat your ears to the audio commentary they recorded for the series' inaugural episode. It's available to listen to on AMC's website and will tell you everything you need to know about the process involved in turning this fudged-up funny book into an equally fudged-up hour of TV.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan review round-up

From shell 

 

The look on Leo's face says it all.

When it was first announced that Platinum Games were partnering with Activision to bring the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to current-gen consoles, the news was greeted everywhere with much joyous cheering and spontaneous throwing of pizza parties.

With a CV that includes such gems as Bayonetta 1 & 2, Metal Gear Rising, The Wonderful 101 and Vanquish, Platinum are one of the few studios operating today that can scratch that character action gamr itch. Sadly, far from being a match made in heaven, Platinum's attempts to thrust the TMNT back into the gaming spotlight has been met with almost unanimous disappointment. So far, it's looking less heroes in a half-shell and more like a half-assed attempt to cash in on the new Turtles movie hitting cinemas next week.

With just 9 reviews, Mutants in Manhattan is currently sitting on a combined Metacritic score of 46, making it the worst reviewed Platinum game of all-time. GameCrate awarded the game 68 out of 100, admitting that while the game makes for a solid co-op experience and contains plenty of fun references and easter eggs for diehard shellheads, it is too repetitive to justify its price tag.

USgamer claim that though the game shows glimpses of that ol' Platinum magic and contains some good ideas, it feels too underdeveloped. IGN were less charitable, calling the game a 'slog', and Polygon slapped the brawler with the low, low score of 3/10, citing the repetitive encounters and lack of depth or challenge as crippling flaws.

As a big TMNT (as well as Platinum) fan, I have to admit this has all come as something of a bitter shock. My rampant fanboyism will probably prompt me to pick this up somewhere down the line, but for the time being it sounds like gamers would be better off throwing their hard-earned pesos at some of the other great games that have released in the past couple of weeks.

Godzilla 1984 finally getting a Blu Ray and DVD release

Time to party likes it's 1984 

Godzilla Returns, the kaiju flick that kicked off the Big G's heisei (or eighties) era, is finally coming to Blu Ray and DVD.

For the longest time, this prime slice of monster mashing action has been a nightmare to get hold of due to various licensing and rights issues. Previously, the rights were held by New World Pictures who closed their doors in 1997, barring the release of the film on DVD and Blu Ray.

Thankfully, that deal has finally come to an end, leaving the door open for Kraken Releasing to snap up the rights and squeeze this much sought after film onto DVD and Blu Ray disc. For many - myself included - this will mean finally completing that collection of heisei-era Godzilla films.

There's still a ways to go - the release won't be until September 13th - but it's still heartening to know that this rare entry in Toho's kaiju series is, at long last, on the way.

Is a new, more powerful Xbox One coming in 2017?

Sources reveal that a beefed-up Xbox is on the way

Not just one, but two new Xbox One consoles will hit the market next year, according to a new article from Kotaku.

Sources close to the gaming portal revealed the existence of the two new Xbox SKUs, one of which will be a substantial upgrade over the current model, boasting a increase in overall graphics processing power, as well as full support for VR device Oculus. Currently, this beefed-up Xbox is going by the codename of Scorpio.

In addition to Scorpio, Microsoft will release a revised Xbox One console, presumably with a smaller form factor, increased storage space, and access to things like 4K streaming.

Scorpio's specs still haven't been nailed down, but third-party publishers have been made aware that the new SKU is heading their way.

All of this seems to suggest that console manufacturers are moving away from the tradition console cycle and towards more iterative hardware. It's been successful for Apple, whose product launches are met with frenzied consumer demand, but it will be interesting to see if console buyers are willing to make that transition. After all, part of the appeal of a console is that you have fixed piece of hardware under your TV that you know will see you through the next five gaming years or so. Gamers who want to juggle hardware and tinker with iterative upgrades have long since migrated to the PC space.

As ever, I suppose it will come down to the software - hopefully console manufacturers and game developers will be able to leverage all that extra power into more exciting, innovative games, games that offer new experiences (not just the same old tired franchises) that justify the move to a more expensive, powerful machine. If all they're offering is the same games just with higher pixel counts, frame rates and optional graphical effects, it might be a much harder sell.

Excitingly, this leak also hints that Microsoft will unify their console and PC gaming sides, meaning PC gamers will finally be able to get their hands on some upcoming Xbox One exclusives.

With Sony planning a similar move with their own PS4 upgrade, tentatively named NEO, this is shaping up to be one of the most explosive E3s in a long, long time.

Shadow of the Beast videogame review

It was the beast of times... 

The original Shadow of the Beast is an odd game, one that has become a cult icon despite its sadistic difficulty, and fussy, oft-frustrating gameplay. A lot of this had to do with the game's graphics, which - for the time - were unparalleled in all their parallax-scrolling splendor - and David Whittaker's score; an unforgettable OST that managed to be incredibly unnerving and deliriously catchy
at the same time. The main reason I like to think Shadow of the Beast's legend has endured so long, however, is because it was so bloody odd - here was a game that mixed low-fantasy with high-tech, a game that asked you to explore underground warrens that - for reasons still unknown - were filled with discarded rockets and other, similarly incongruous pieces of technology. Intentionally or not. Psygnosis had created an incredibly textured and diverse world, one that stuck in the imagination long after players had vanquished the final boss and stepped out of the beast's shadow.

Now, in 2016, we're visiting the quixotic climes of Karamoon once more, this time under the guidance of developer Heavy Spectrum, who have managed to craft an experience that strips away much of the clunkiness and obscurity of the original, while fleshing out that deeply fascinating and richly realised world. There's a depth of visual storytelling here that compliments the newly expanded mechanics and beautiful graphics, and players who like to soak up every piece of lore and unlock every optional cutscene will find a wealth of fascinating content to explore. 

Players assume the role of Aarbron, a former-human who has been transformed into a living weapon  by Maletoth, an evil sorceror who looks a bit like Swamp Thing suffering from a serious case of malnutrition. As a slave under Maletoth's control, you begin the game, essentially, as a villain, with the sorcerous dictator's second-in-command, Zelek, leading you around on a leash and siccing you on anyone unlucky enough to cross your path. You're on the trail of baby, whom the sorcerer wishes to turn into another beast so he can cement his power and tighten his stranglehold on the world of Karamoon.

Things get a little more complicated, when Aarbron buries his spiky fists in his own father's guts, triggering a flashback that restores his memories. Finally, aware of who and what he is, Aarbron is able to shake off Zelek's control and attempts to kill his former tormentor. Unfortunately, Arby is unable to finish the job and the wounded mage manages to flee with the squealing babe in tow. So begins a chase that will change both Aarbron and Karamoon forever.

Aarbron's quest for vengeance takes players on a journey through seven side-scrolling stages that combine gore-drenched combat with stretches of platforming and puzzle solving. As a piece of virtual tourism, Shadow of the Beast, much like the Amiga original, is a triumph. The environments you'll visit feel incredibly distinct, each rendered in eye-watering detail and filled with all manner of surreal alien flora and fauna. Despite taking place on a 2D plane, there is a tangible sense of depth to these rolling vistas, and the camera often pulls way back to let players soak in a particularly pretty view.

While everyone can appreciate a shimmering sunset or the awesome sight of a giant mech soaring through the heavens, Shadow of the Beast's combat is sure to be more divisive. While initial encounters pass by in whirl of bloodletting and button-mashing, later skirmishes require you to make full use of all of Aarbron's abilities, which include a dodge, stun move, grapple, a kind of leap-frog maneuver, and various blood abilities that allow you to regain health, buff your score or recharge your wrath meter. The game never feels unfairly difficult, but early on, while you're still learning the ropes, the combat can feel somewhat stiff and unforgiving. Initially, I found myself getting frustrated - often I'd get tagged by an enemy while in the middle of a combo, or catching one between the shoulder blades when I tried to block an attack - but the more I played, the more I became acclimated to the game's idiosyncratic, almost rhythmic combat mechanics. 

These mechanics will reward those players who take the time to learn their ins-and-outs and - in terms of 2.5D games - the combat, encounter and enemy design herein is a definite step above most retro retreads. There's even an incentive to crack the game's most difficult setting and bag a gold medal in each encounter - doing so will let you witness the game's true ending, unlock a couple of additional epilogues, and even a playable, Sin and Punishment-esque mini-level. Still, while most players will appreciate this more deliberate approach, it is hard to escape the feeling that the game's slightly off-center gameplay and adherence to old-school difficulty will alienate more casual audiences.

My other main gripe would be that foreground elements sometimes obscure the action. This may not sound like a big deal, but for a game that's built around such a rigid scoring system, placing elements within these arena-like spaces that make it difficult to keep track of your opponents is a major oversight. The same can be said for the blood splatter effect that accompanies the game's more gratuitous gibs - it adds nothing to the game's presentation and, on occasion, can make encounters harder than they already are.

Luckily, while Shadow of the Beast is no pushover, it does make a few concessions for those players who are less well versed in the vocabulary of action games. On all but the highest difficulty setting, you can respawn an unlimited number of times, and the easiest option also allows you to get right back into fight without losing any progress. When you're not unleashing the beast, you'll often be tasked with solving simple, yet satisfying puzzles. Unlike the arcane brain teasers found in the Amiga original, these sequences are designed more to give you a break from the action than they are to pummel your gray matter.

This balance between bruising fisticuffs and puzzle-solving is struck perfectly in the Hydrath Castle stage, which, apart from being the most complex level in the game, is chocked with optional puzzles, unlockable combat encounters and branching paths. Sadly, the game's penultimate level feels somewhat lacklustre, consisting of a series of unconnected gauntlets that feel wholly divorced from the five artfully constructed, beautifully paced stages that preceded them. Thankfully, the final stage is a joy; a surreal on-rails boss encounter that takes one of the most bizarre moments from the 1989 original and turns it into a fittingly epic conclusion.

And that isn't the only nod to the original - here we have a game that goes beyond simple fanservice and acts as a sort of digital monument to a bygone classic. Delve into the Crypt of Shadows and you'll find a written retrospective of the series, in addition to scads of unlockable artwork, an in-game audio player that lets you bop along to David Whittaker's lauded OST, and even a emulated version of the Amiga original. That's all on top of the various upgrades for Aarbron, bestiary entries, optional cinematics, talismans and concept art you can spend your hard earned points on. It's a generously appointed package, as well as a heartfelt tribute to the days when games were measured in pixels, not polygons.

Shadow of the Beast may not tickle every gamer's fancy, but for those who can adapt to the rhythm of its deliberate but brutally satisfying combat, there is much here to enjoy. Not only is it stunning to look at, it features a huge amount of optional content, easter eggs and secrets. The scoring system also offers plenty of incentive to run through each of the beautifully paced levels again and again, and completionists will appreciate that the game's many unlockables, which - far from being mere padding - serve to enrich the already impressive, confidently mythic storyline, a storyline which paves the way for a sequel we're already desperate to get our hands on.

New details about Witcher 3 expansion Blood and Wine leaked

Sounds like this expansion will pack quite a wallop

 

 

According to a Steam listing, which quickly appeared and disappeared yesterday (not before Twitter user Wario64 managed to nab a screengrab, however), Blood and Wine, the long-gestating expansion pack for The Witcher 3, will make its debut on May 30th.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Blood and Wine out on Steam May 30 https://t.co/cyxsehDKdD pic.twitter.com/cRxDTW4ZGb

— Wario64 (@Wario64) May 8, 2016

The Steam listing includes an extensive description of Geralt's continuing adventures and reveals, among other things, that players will have access to their own vineyard. Hopefully, this won't prevent them from staying sober long enough to tackle the expansion's main quest, which involves bringing down a wicked-sounding beastie that is terrorising the remote and peaceful realm of Toussaint.

Being a Witcher game, in which the monsters are often misunderstood and line between good and evil is blurry at best, we imagine the plot won't be as simple as all that. We do know, however, that the expansion brings with it at least 20-hour's worth of fresh content.

Aside from featuring new quests to embark on and new beasts to cleave in twain, Blood and Wine will also allow players to participate in a grand tourney, and supplement their supply of Gwent cards with a whole new Skellige-themed deck. You can even add a dash of colour to your old gear courtesy of a new mechanic that lets you dye your Witcher armour.

All in all, it sounds like quite a generous slice of content, made all the more enticing by the fact it will only set you back around £16. Not bad for an expansion that's double the length of most full-price games. Hopefully, we won't have to wait long to find out whether or not that rumoured May 30 release date is accurate.

Shadow of the Beast remake to include surprises for fans of original game

The remake will include an emulated version of the original game

 

With all the excitement for Uncharted 4, it's easy to forget that there's another PS4 exclusive waiting just around the corner. Based on the 1989 Amiga title of the same name, Shadow of the Beast is a 2.5D platformer - interspersed with moments of puzzle-solving and bloody combat - that takes place on a surreal alien world that looks like it was ripped straight from the cover of a seventies prog record. This isn't actually too far from the truth - the original game featured contributions from Roger Dean, an artist who built his reputation on the back of album covers for bands like Yes, Uriah Heep and Gentle Giant.

If you've seen any of the dev diaries that have been released the game so far, you'll know that Heavy Spectrum, the developer responsible for ushering SotB out of retirement, has a massive amount of respect for the cult Amiga title, and are attempting to be as faithful to '89 original as possible. Players will be able to judge just how faithful the translation to the current generation is for themselves, as the developer has revealed that an emulated version of the original game will be available as an unlockable extra.

That isn't the only retro easter egg for fans to look forward to, either. They will also be able to unlock the original SotB soundtrack (one of retro gaming's greatest OSTs), and a high-res scan of the artwork painted by Roger Dean for the game's initial release.

Shadow of the Beast arrives exclusively on PS4 on May 17.

Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens shows off some news trick in fresh gameplay footage

Nothing can stop the Lego juggernaut; every year sees the release of one, maybe even two, of these kid-friendly collectathons, and every year they sell by the (Lego) bucket-load. This summer's upcoming installment will likely sell even more, mixing as it does the irresistible lure of Lego with the franchise to end all franchises: Star Wars.

We've had Lego games based on George Lucas' Galaxy Far, Far Away before, but this will be the first based on the new trilogy. As such, the game will allow players to revisit key locations from The Force Awakens, as well as relive some of the film's most explosive set-pieces. Of course, one film doesn't provide much content for an entire game, but developers Traveler's Tales are plugging the gaps with some original new levels that pre-date the events of the film.

If the footage is any indication, this will also be one of the most diverse Lego games in recent memory, adding cover-shooter mechanics, an increased focus on building objects, including enemies that can use the Lego bricks on the battlefield to build their own gadgets, and epic space battles to the usual mix of bashing, building and light puzzle-solving.

Scope out the footage for yourself below.

Mark Millar comic Empress coming to the big screen

Spacewalk Empire

Few comic writers have found as much success in the world of film as Mark Millar. To date, the Scottish scribe has supplied the framework for Kingsman, Wanted, and Kick-Ass, and his groundbreaking work on The Ultimates helped shape the direction of Marvel's Cinematic Universe. Now, Millar's back at it again, with the Hollywood Reporter revealing that the rights for his Empress comic have been snatched up by producers Joe Roth and Jeff Kirschenbaum.

The new series, which only debuted (and sold out) last month, is a collaboration between Millar and artist Stuart Immonen, and concerns the titular Empress, who - tired of her Galactic Emperor husband's nefarious ways - abandons the Empire with her three children and the help of a sympathetic bodyguard. Far from spelling the end of her troubles, however, this causes ructions with her teenage daughter, who, it turns out, would rather remain with daddy dearest. To make matters worse, the Emperor wants her back and she becomes the focus of a galaxy-wide manhunt.

All in all, this is a far cry from Millar's other film adaptations (if not his comics output) and could pose some interesting challenges for Roth and Kirschenbaum. Then again, there's definitely a gap in the market for films that mix domestic drama with a dash of space opera.

Empress isn't the only of Millar's projects currently working its way through development. Starlight is apparently still on the cards, as is an adaption of the subversive superhero comic Superior. We're also getting a sequel to Kingsman, entitled The Golden Circle, in June 2017.