Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Releasing November 8 2011

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJcOHNnXI3jnuuAcih1qVkds-4Pjh-GyKjVSn456071Jqk8YY-tGdZ4jJ-4avsSBKvI8c0vJri6trkkp4a7RFrlkTNFG757sWXVkbcQ3k6dulowA3bAMhD0QmIx-0KLLAPynWkmcDPYsF/s1600/calldt3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJcOHNnXI3jnuuAcih1qVkds-4Pjh-GyKjVSn456071Jqk8YY-tGdZ4jJ-4avsSBKvI8c0vJri6trkkp4a7RFrlkTNFG757sWXVkbcQ3k6dulowA3bAMhD0QmIx-0KLLAPynWkmcDPYsF/s1600/calldt3.jpg" /></a></div>My partner went down. The auto turret I set up earlier in the fight could only do so much against wave after wave of enemy soldiers. Snarling dogs rushed my position as I pushed forward through a cloud of dust and debris. I bled ammunition in an attempt to punch past a pack of armored targets. There was nothing I could do as I crumpled to the ground just a few feet in front of my wounded ally. The screen blurred to a halt after enduring nine heart-pounding waves of enemy fire. I was told afterwards that nine waves is a respectable accomplishment for a first-time player of Modern Warfare 3's Spec Ops mode. I'll go with that. <br /> <br /> Here at E3 2011, I wouldn't have expected to drool over Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. I lost interest in the series after enjoying the original Modern Warfare. Even the recently released trailers that showcase the impressive scale of Modern Warfare 3's single-player campaign didn't do anything for me. But after just one go at Spec Ops, the cooperative survival mode of Modern Warfare 3, I'm ready to sink some serious time into this shooter. <br /> <br /> The basics are easy enough to wrap your head around. Two players team up to survive against an endless series of enemy waves. This can be done online or via split-screen on consoles. As you play, you'll unlock armories that can be accessed at any time mid-game to restock on ammunition, purchase new weapons, or call in support. All these options cost money, which you raise by scoring points for kills. Each wave is separated by a short break to give you and your partner a chance to regroup, reload, and wreck shop. <br />                                         <br /> <br /> <div style="width: 480px;"><center><iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="266" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CblUvlZDio8?feature=player_embedded" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="320"></iframe></center></div>At the start of the game, things are easy enough. Enemies rush you with shotguns and your only defense is a pistol. But we all know a pistol is more than enough to handle a few chumps. After the beginning waves, things get more interesting. Dogs start showing up and they don't like you one bit. Soon after, the dogs will start charging you with explosives tied to their bodies. Similarly, enemy soldiers get more aggressive and come better equipped. <br /> <br /> Fortunately, the money you save up can be spent on lethal knick knacks like automated turrets and explosives. You can even pay a little extra and call in a helicopter which will drop friendly troops into the frenzy to help you and your partner out. <br /> <br /> Spec Ops, like other survival-based modes, is fun because each wave is a burst of adrenaline, followed by a brief break to catch your breath and coordinate with your buddy. Multiplayer modes that only call for two players don't suffer from the disorganization of larger team games (just <i>try</i> to coordinate 16 strangers during combat). With just two participants, the only chaos you need to deal with is coming from the enemy and not from your own ranks. <br /> <br /> With solid communication and the right weapons, Spec Ops is a blast -- even when you know you're going to lose. Battles don't feel hopeless and deaths aren't frustrating because there's no real end goal -- you're playing for the thrill of the fight. It's the kind of mode I could see myself playing all the time, especially if I find a reliable partner. It was enough to ignite my interest in Modern Warfare 3, and it's something any Call of Duty player should check out when Modern Warfare 3 hits retail this November.

Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Releasing November 8 2011

My partner went down. The auto turret I set up earlier in the fight could only do so much against wave after wave of enemy soldiers. Snarl...

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Star Wars: The Old Republic Releasing December 31 2011

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIGKZJnX6otWpOJNAtXsVW6k3aeVw9k6LfTWbGtqUuXxbPup3wYTfEai2mWMbIx1xQDuG3T1rjQVKk_A8nkfKuWWZp8rJdfxZbhO8Oc5yjE8XqdKWfUqzFUJyZkvY2Z_rIDvLHJBted2UY/s1600/star.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIGKZJnX6otWpOJNAtXsVW6k3aeVw9k6LfTWbGtqUuXxbPup3wYTfEai2mWMbIx1xQDuG3T1rjQVKk_A8nkfKuWWZp8rJdfxZbhO8Oc5yjE8XqdKWfUqzFUJyZkvY2Z_rIDvLHJBted2UY/s400/star.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><strong> What you've got here is basically Mass Effect, set in a Star Wars universe and massively multiplayer-enabled. So when you're not talking to a human-controlled player, you get fully-voiced cutscenes and interactions, with the same conversation system that Mass Effect uses so convincingly. This applies to every non-player character, making this the first fully-voiced MMO. Fact.</strong><br /> <br /> Play Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ and forge your own Star Wars™ saga in a story-driven massively-multiplayer online game from BioWare and LucasArts. Explore an age thousands of years before the rise of Darth Vader when war between the Old Republic and the Sith Empire divides the galaxy. Choose to be a Jedi, a Sith, or from a variety of other classic Star Wars roles, and make decisions which define your personal story and determine your path down the light or dark side of the Force. Along the way you will befriend courageous companions who will fight at your side or possibly betray you based on your actions. Together, you will battle enemies in dynamic Star Wars combat and team up with other players to overcome incredible challenges.  <strong><br /> </strong><br /> <br /> As if that wasn't enough, the choice structure in conversations has permanent effects on the story. We see a demonstration of the player killing the captain of a ship (and got a pinbadge saying 'I killed the captain' to prove it) and, sure enough, he really does die. Irreversibly so, considering there's no possibility of reloading a previous save. Later, in our hands-on time with the game, we let him live - and the story and action branches accordingly.<br /> <br /> Story's all well and good, but how does it play? The answer is very well, right from the off. Your attacks are mapped to the number keys so, if you're playing as a Sith character (as we did), 1 is your standard lightsaber strike, 2 is a harder melee strike, 3 can be used to jump in from above or from a fair distance away, 4 impales your target, 5 hits many foes all around you and 6 is the famous Force Choke, which is time limited, but leaves your foe clutching at their throat, ready to be impaled.<br /> <br /> Crucially, there's no auto-attack. Some moves build up your attack points to allow other moves to charge, ready for use. During all of this, you can still move around with WASD, making for essentially real-time combat, even if it does have an RPG-slant.<br /> <br /> It's smooth, fast-paced, and very rarely degenerates into protracted melee exchanges as you wait for moves to charge. There are also some neat touches in combat, such as your avatar automatically blocking attacks from behind with his lightsaber.<br /> <br /> You can raid the bodies of fallen enemies, which allowed us to pick up a second lightsaber from a defeated Jedi Knight, allowing for some impressive (wait, scrub that - try 'awesome') dual-wielding action. The sense of power as you carve through Imperial Troopers in a blur of coloured light is superb.<br /> <br /> There is a basic cover system in place, with translucent green 3D representations of your character which appear whenever you're near a cover object, showing you the positions of cover that are open to you. There's also a healthy mix of weapons, ranging from Star Wars favourites like the blaster and lightsaber through to some rather unsubtle flamethrowers.<br /> <br /> While the draw-distance and misting are superb and the characters look good in combat, the environments and character models currently look a tad basic and low-res, especially if you're used to the sheen of Mass Effect. While this could well change before release, the art style itself won't - and that's where the controversy may lie.<br /> <br /> It sits somewhere between the stylised look of The Clone Wars CGi film and the realism of Mass Effect. Characters' proportions are realistic, but their skin and eyes in particular are noticeably cartoony. It works as a cohesive style, but we're a bit disappointed they haven't taken the ultra-realistic approach as it looks a bit 'kiddy' in places. And we've already got Lego Star Wars for that.<br /> <br /> All that said, BioWare has done a great job in bringing the Star Wars universe to an MMO. And when you consider the entire game is different for each of the four player classes (Sith Warrior, Bounty Hunter, Smuggler and Trooper) with zero repetition of quests between them, you're looking at a doubly massive MMO.<br /> <br /> Fans may have been put out that they're not getting a true sequel to Knights of the Old Republic 2. But with the story-telling elements of this MMO so comparable to dedicated single-player experiences, BioWare had an easy answer for them at the end of the Gamescom presentation:<br /> <br /> "This is Knights of the Old Republic 3. And 4. And 5. And 6. And 7..."

Star Wars: The Old Republic Releasing December 31 2011

 What you've got here is basically Mass Effect, set in a Star Wars universe and massively multiplayer-enabled. So when you're not ...

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