Mirror's Edge

STORY:
In a city where information is heavily monitored, agile couriers called Runners transport sensitive data away from prying eyes. In this seemingly utopian paradise, a crime has been committed, your sister has been framed and now you are being hunted.

You are a Runner called Faith - and this innovative first-person action-adventure is your story. Mirror’s Edge™ delivers you straight into the shoes of this unique heroine as she traverses the vertigo-inducing cityscape, engaging in intense combat and fast paced chases. With a never before seen sense of movement and perspective, you will be drawn into Faith’s world. A world that is visceral, immediate, and very dangerous.

Live or die? Soar or plummet? One thing is certain, in this city you will learn how to run. From the makers of the groundbreaking Battlefield franchise, Mirror’s Edge is an action-adventure experience unlike any other.
Hardware Requirements:
Disk Drive : DVD Rom Drive
DirectX : 9.0c
Operating System : Windows XP/Vista
Processor : Pentium 4 @ 2.4 GHz/Athlon 64 2800+
RAM : 1 GB
Video Card : 256 MB (GeForce 6 Series/ATI Radeon X1350 or HD2400)

FALLOUT 3 PC GAME RATING

OVERALL RATING:9.2/10

Gameplay: 9.0

You can use your honed FPS skills to play and then switch on the fly to the VATS targeting system making it play more like a turn-based RPG. There is an absolute ton of things to do and you simply cannot find and complete every quest in one go round. This is a game that you can play over and over at least three times.

Graphics: 9.2
Very clean, very dialed in, very desolate and very, very bloody. The game has great characters, gruesome mutants and a heck of a lot of things to interact with, inanimate or not. Tons of things to find and places to explore and it all looks really top notch.

Sound: 9.6
A fantastic example of perfect voice work and actors, great sound effects, and killer soundtrack, this is a really great sounding title.

Difficulty: Medium/Hard
You can approach things several ways, and sometimes that's the hardest thing to do. Utilize your charisma and talk your way out of a really tough situation, or go guns a blazin' and let your ammo do all the talking.

Concept: 9.0
Its a great idea for a game and those ideas are fully realized. I can't a wait for Fallout 4, this thing can keep on going for as long as it wants to.

Overall: 9.2
Fallout 3 is the best PC game I have played all year, the developers did a bang up job of making the series come alive once more and I for one couldn't be happier.

FALLOUT 3 PC GAME REVIEW

I would be lying to you if I told you I wasn't amped up about this game. Having played the first two RPGs featured exclusively on the PC, the Brotherhood of Steel third-person adventure on the original Xbox AND the game Wasteland on the Commodore 64 like, 20 years ago (if you know your games, you'll know this was actually the first in the series). Regardless, the game series is actually very, very good due to its original story lines, innovative combat and leveling systems and some really cool humor. Well, the third in the Fallout RPG series isn't so much an RPG anymore, more of a hybrid RPG/first-person shooter, and the result is nothing short of gaming magic.Wow, its hard for me to get started as I have been waiting so long for this title. So I'll start at the beginning: the Fallout games are all based on the concept that before the third world war, which basically launched the nukes, there was a series of Vaults built around the USA where "supposedly" the human race would continue. Well, unfortunately many of the vaults were stocked with people of "ahem" questionable moral fiber and in some cases, faulty equipment. So while the first two games involve peoples from vaults further West, Fallout 3's vaults, and surrounding cities/locations take place in the area formerly known as Washington DC.

And it seems all is not well in the land of our former leaders. Raiders, slavers, super mutants, ghouls, mutated creatures, robots, a really big bomb and all sorts of other nasties await you as you attempt to save the people of the DC wasteland from a really, really bad fate. And only by following in the footsteps of your father will you be able to discover the mysteries and complete the missions the game throws at you. And, let me tell you, the game has a very distinct open-endedness to it that makes playing the game such a treat. 

In fact, the game is set up so you can pick your characters look, abilities and attributes. You make the game your own by answering questions and having conversations with the different NPCs you run into. If you answer certain ways, new options to deal with problems and even new missions will appear. The point is the game has a certain charm to it where you think you are speaking with a homeless vagrant of the wasteland and it turns out that he needs you to help him out. Regardless, the game is gonzo-crazy and there is all sorts of crazy things happening. It turns out, that in an apocalyptic wasteland, people don't really treat one another well - go figure.The game can be viewed in either the first- or third-person perspective, and it all looks fantastic. If there was ever an apocalyptic game that convinced people how awful (in a good way) things were, well the bar has now been reset. This is the greatest-looking nuclear, blown-out world ... ever. The whole world is one giant outdoor environment, where you can walk across it and run into all sorts of interesting things. Old trailer parks, the Library of Congress, a whole series of subway tunnels, destroyed freeways, rocky areas and about a gazillion other things and places. Heck, there is supposedly an crashed alien ship somewhere out there. But the game just looks fantastic, beautiful character sprites, smooth textures, brilliant lighting as the game's real time reflects the daylight or night light. You can see things in the dark that you can't see in the day and even missions are time specific. The in-game targeting system called VATS, is a clever way to target specific body parts on enemies and, in some cases, is the only way to hit monsters that have only one weak area. In-game menus are clean and appropriately rusty and dirty looking. The various armor and clothing you find and wear reflects on your character's appearance, the blood flows deep red and flows often as the game and the franchise is known for the over-the-top violence; if that isn't enough, there is an actual character perk that increases the chances of very bloody, gruesome deaths.

To go with all the great-looking graphics, the audio is really cool as well. Using your PIP boy (a computer on your arm that assists you in your adventures) you can access all sorts of information including recordings you find around the wasteland that you can play like a CD and various radio frequencies that are playing songs or propaganda or even requests for help. There is a ton of familiar voices in the game including Ron Perlman, Liam Neeson and Malcolm McDowell as the president of the U.S. All of the voices are done with great care to the material and quite frankly, it helps move the creative storyline forward. The music, too, is cool in a retro sort of way since the music featured is a lot of big band-era style music. This, too, is a trait that has followed the game's progression through three iterations. Very slick, very cool

The gameplay of the game can be pretty exciting too. Fortunately walking across giant landscapes in real time can be daunting and painful if you are low on health and stimpacks (like a health pack) are no where to be found or bought. Thankfully the game has a really neat way of helping avoid that particular nuisance. Once an area has been discovered, and the GS location locked into your PIP boy, you can instantly travel there rather than walk the sometimes very-long distance. So oftentimes I would battle my way to a new location and then instead of trying to complete the mission, I would teleport back to my own home (you'll need to discover this) and heal up by spending the night in my bed. Then I can sell some of the things I have scavenged off my enemies or found in one of the bazillion places I have discovered and then buy more health and ammo from any one of the shop keepers or roaming traders that you can have business with. One quick teleport back and now I'm fully healed, fully armed and ready to tackle the mission. The game is awesome.

There is much to see and do in the wastelands of DC, so don't let the pesky main mission stop you from having fun. With all of the additional perks and skills you can level up, you can play the game several times answering some things as radically or as safely as you want. But inevitably you will have to deal with the game's main problem, good or bad. The Fable games owe a lot to the Fallout series since you have been able to play like this since day one. Perks that increase your attractiveness to the ladies, perks that make you a kill machine when your health falls so low and tons of other crazy and really cool perks that make the game so much fun to play. I suspect that Fallout 3 will win some awards this year and is a strong runner for game of the year on at least a couple different platforms.

PRINCE OF PERSIA PC GAME RATING

OVERALL RATING:8.8/10

Gameplay: 9.0

Well set up, because you set it up, but an effective and fun combat system. Some control issues if you don't get the mouse the way you like it, but the options are there so you can have a smooth controlling game. Don't worry, you still do the Prince's patented wall runs and some other new nifty moves that make you wish you lived in a land with no real physics.

Graphics: 9.0
Gritty cel-shaded beauty. I like the new look of the franchise and I like the design of the monsters and villians. The game is sharp.

Sound: 8.5
It sounds good, the voice acting is good, but more audio options are needed for those of us surround sound-less.

Difficulty: Medium
You can choose your difficulty and depending on what kind of gamer you are, you will find some challenges, nothing horrible but just enough to keep things interesting.

Concept: 8.5
Its a given that the Prince will run afoul of some really nasty folks and other things, but the game never makes you feel bored. A decent enough plot, even if it is a rehash of many other games; still, this is what it looks like when you have a committed dev team.

Overall: 8.8
This is a heck of a good time to be had on your PC.

PRINCE OF PERSIA PC GAME REVIEW

The Prince of Persia series is something of an aberration in the gaming community. Each new title in the series seems to change things up in one way or another. The prince has taken on decidedly darker tones in some games and in others is practically a comedian. And while I have never obsessed about the series, I always associated them with some well developed talent behind the scenes who were always giving it a good try to make a fun game.So in this iteration, our man the Prince, doesn't seem too princely. He starts off the game getting lost in a sandstorm and losing his donkey that just happens to be loaded down with treasure. The Prince seems more of a vagabond adventurer than a prince, but hey, who am I to complain? The artistic new style of the game melds nicely with the look of our man the prince. Well, no sooner does the storm lift and the Prince is smack dab in a situation that has need for his particular uses.

Prince of Persia takes the series into a whole new visual and gameplay direction. The game has a cel-shaded look to it but with an almost gritty feel to it. The clothing worn on our characters has seen some time under the sun and in the sand. A battle hardened claw glove good for fighting and navigating the terrain gives the Prince a look of somebody who should probably not be messed with. In fact, once the sand storm dissipates and the Prince is face to face with his new partner, Elika, we learn how to use the combat system and exactly what sort of trouble our newly formed pair needs to deal with. And it all looks really cool; the smooth fluid motion of both the Prince and the different enemies is well mapped; the Prince's acrobatic movements as well as Elika's magic, which really lets the sprite effects pop, comes together really nicely. Combined with some genuinely wicked-looking bad guys complete with body parts merged with light in lieu of muscle, and this is shaping up to be a real kick in the pants. 

It seems Elika is a member of a magic-wielding family who has been charged with keeping the Tree of Life temple safe and the mystical tomb of Ahriman in place because, as luck would not have it, the seal has been broken and Ahriman escapes infecting his evil across the four lands. Further death and destruction will occur unless you and Elika restore the lands and Ahriman put back into place. Not an easy task but somehow these things never are. Fortunately for all of us, once you get things going you and Elika work as one, taking on enemies with a combination of sword, clawed hand, acrobatics and Elika's magic. Controlling this is surprisingly easy once you have mapped all the keys to your liking but when applied into actual combat, you can daisy chain combat moves from here to the bottom of a grave (you enemies, that is) and so things don't become boring or repetitive, you can mix and match these moves as well creating even more stunning attacks.

When you aren't in combat, Elika acts as your de facto guardian angel, always snatching you if you miss a jump and begin falling, or in some cases adding to your jumping ability. She is the perfect partner, never in the way but only a button push from aiding you. In all my Prince adventures, this has never worked better, as far as a combat and adventuring control scheme goes. Nice to see a high-octane adventure on the PC working as well as it does here.

Now I did have some problems with the audio portion of the game, I am only running a stereo setup on my PC and with the limited amount of options on the in-game audio, could only hear the voice acting minimally and had to turn down the sound effects and music substantially to do so. I know, I used to have a surround setup on my PC, and clearly this game is designed for that, but there should have been more audio options for those gamers who have a average sound setup. I would probably be praising the audio to no end had I had the 5.1 setup, but in this case I can't, even thought the voice acting was actually quite good, if I did not have the subtitles to read as the characters spoke, I would have been lost in terms of the plot. Other then that hiccup in not having enough options, the sound effects and adventurers score sound loud and well made. Good hard clangs when swords meet and a full lush sounding music theme.

Interestingly enough, the game really scratches that itch for those players out there looking for some big time adventure. I have always thought that the Prince series was a sort of Indiana Jones style adventure only made into a video game. The mystical cities, the magic, the locations filled with danger, yeah, I know that sounds cheesy, but I always thought of it in that way. My current version of the game was downloaded from Steam and I have never been happier with a game from those folks than this time. I've got plenty in my library, but this one is top dog now.

WORLD OF WAR CRAFT WRATH OF LICH KING PC GAME RATING

OVERALL RATING:9.5/10

Gameplay: 9.0

While it could use some balancing, the new Death Knight hero class is awesome and offers up some great abilities and a unique quest arc. Northrend is also a blast and chock full of excellent new quests for those looking to hit the new level 80 cap.

Graphics: 8.5
While not the most technologically impressive MMORPG out there, World of Warcraft is unmatched when it comes to art direction. The new areas in Northrend boast some impressive new details and lighting effects, and are a sight to behold.

Sound: 8.0
Basically unchanged since the original game launched, but still sounds pretty good.

Difficulty: Medium

Concept: 9.5
While it may not stir up the pot too much from the original game, Wrath of the Lich King offers some fantastic new story elements and tons of excellent additions.

Multiplayer: 9.0
Shortly after the expansion’s launch, queue times to get onto servers has been pretty high, proof that the game’s community is still going strong after four years. 

Overall: 9.5
While the majority of the content is geared towards higher-level players, there is still a lot of fantastic content for any WoW gamer. If you’re a fan, then there’s no reason that you should not have this expansion.

WORLD OF WAR CRAFT WRATH OF LICH KING PC GAME REVIEW

There’s no denying that Blizzard’s MMORPG title, World of Warcraft, is the most successful MMO in the history of the genre, as well as one of the most successful titles ever. Pulling record numbers for a subscription-based online game, World of Warcraft is a title that transcends its genre to become something that gamers and non-gamers alike can get together and enjoy. Early last year, Blizzard launched the first expansion for their beloved MMO, The Burning Crusade. The Burning Crusade not only added in two new classes and allowed for Horde players to play as a paladin class (as the Blood Elf race), but also added in some great new areas to explore, including some fantastic new high-level areas in the new Outland area.The latest expansion for the game, World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King doesn’t add any new races, but adds plenty of fantastic new elements that no WoW player should be without. From the new Death Knight class that can be accessed by players with character level 55 and higher, to the great new story elements involving the return of the fallen king Arthas, and an awesome new continent to explore, the frozen land of Northrend. While you will need to be at level 55 or above to really begin to take advantage of the major updates that the expansion brings to the table, its added content makes it more than a worthy purchase for any WoW gamer.

Wrath of the Lich King adds some compelling new story elements for fans of the Warcraft universe, reintroducing the land of Northrend and the fallen king of Lordaeron, Arthas. For those unfamiliar with the story arc presented in Warcraft III and its expansion, The Frozen Throne, Arthas is somewhat the “Darth Vader” of the Warcraft franchise, a once promising paladin and prince who was corrupted into becoming the evil Lich King, ruler of the Undead Scourge and the frozen continent of Northrend. The Lich King’s powers are increasing and getting ready for a new assault on the land, thus requiring you to travel to Northrend in order to stop the onslaught.One of the biggest new features introduced in Wrath of the Lich King is the first of the Hero Classes, the Death Knight. Once you have a character who hits level 55, you’ll unlock the ability to create a separate Death Knight character on the same server (you need an open character slot to do this). Your Death Knight will start out at level 55, and will have their own quest arc to follow that is unique to the class.

The Death Knights are a great new addition to the Warcraft class list, with some great new abilities and a unique gameplay feel to them. Death Knights can utilize heavy plate armor, making them suitable tanks, while they can wield a good variety of strong weaponry and are good at attacking as well. The real difference between them and other classes is their class-specific ability to use runes. Death Knights can use magical runes that function a lot like enchantments, allowing your Death Knight to perform more powerful melee attacks and spells.
Additionally, the quest arc for the Death Knight class that gets you started is very well done. Presenting a good mix of story and gameplay, the starting arc is excellently done, and very compelling from all fronts. The new phasing function, which basically allows players on a certain quest to experience environmental changes that are only visible to them, adds a great element to the world and shows the effects of your actions.However, there are some problems with the new hero class that will require some bugs to be ironed out down the line. The Death Knight class needs some more balancing, as they seem to be a bit too powerful at this point and don’t fit in terribly snuggly with the other classes in the game. However, this issue can be fixed through upcoming patches, and chances are that whatever Hero class Blizzard debuts next will be spot on.Additionally, players who are level 68 and above will benefit from a brand new continent to explore, Northrend. The frozen landscape that is the home of the Lich King himself, Northrend is filled with great new quests and tons of new features to explore.

Graphically, World of Warcraft hasn’t changed a whole lot over the years, but boasts a few subtle improvements. The game’s art direction is still unrivaled in the MMO genre, with excellently conceived environments and colorful areas. There are some improved lighting details in the expansion, especially apparent in Northrend, which is certainly a site to behold for fans of the game.World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King provides the majority of content to upper-end players who’ve hit the previous level cap of 70 and are looking for a great new class to try out or an awesome new continent to explore. If you’re just starting out and haven’t hit on the game’s higher level features, then chances are you won’t be able to get to the real meat of the expansion until you’ve done some leveling. Still, with the great new content, there’s really no reason for any WoW fan to not pick up this expansion.

THE LORD OF THE RINGS ONLINE:MINES OF MORIA PC GAME RATING

OVERALL RATING:9/10

Gameplay: 8.8
There is a linear progression that you must go through that is not too well explained at times. And the new upper-level content is fraught with cut scenes, but if you enjoy the fantasy the lore of Tolkien, you will likely eat this up.

Graphics: 9.0
The halls are magnificent to behold, and the lighting effects are very well rendered.

Sound: 9.0
The musical score is sweeping and grand, epic in nature, and the voice work is very good.

Difficulty: Medium/Hard

Concept: 9.0
The overall design does not deviate from what has been seen before in other dungeons, but the graphical realization of this region and these mines is – at times – breathtaking.

Multiplayer: 8.3
The community seems relatively sparse and while reasonably helpful, it too seems to be exploring this new region.

Overall: 9.0
Ok, it is a tad linear, and there are a fair amount of run here and talk to this person quests, but if you are a LotRO player, this is a must-have expansion. There is a lot to do here and Turbine has done a very good job in expanding the game.