Category: Video Games

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Angrboda and Thor: Breaking Down the Controversy Around God of War: Ragnarok

Artwork by Rafael Grassetti After 2018ÔÇÖs God of War released to critical and commercial success, fans have been eagerly waiting to hear more about its follow-up. During last months Playstation Showcase, those fans got their wish with a trailer and presentation for God of War: Ragnarok. And of course, they found a reason not to be happy. The controversy focuses on how two particular characters … Continue reading Angrboda and Thor: Breaking Down the Controversy Around God of War: Ragnarok

alexwhiteman
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Battlefield is back – now how will it dethrone a reinvigorated COD?

ItÔÇÖs been a while, but this year will see the return of the Battlefield franchise. Remember it? Most recently, developers DICE went old school with Battlefield 1 and Battlefield V, both set in the World Wars. While the historical settings didnÔÇÖt prevent excitement from the massive maps and set pieces the series is known for, it did feel like DICE were falling behind. Behind who? … Continue reading Battlefield is back – now how will it dethrone a reinvigorated COD?

Marcus Yeatman-Crouch
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Is Returnal the start of the PS5 Era?

ItÔÇÖs been 7 months since the PlayStation 5 released, and itÔÇÖs safe to say that thereÔÇÖs not been an avalanche of exclusives just yet. But thatÔÇÖs nothing to worry about – the PS4 only launched with a few big titles, though itÔÇÖs understandable fans will have been getting a bit impatient waiting for some games that really push the boundaries of the system. WeÔÇÖve had … Continue reading Is Returnal the start of the PS5 Era?

Marcus Yeatman-Crouch
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Mario Party is finally online, but are Nintendo late to the show?

By Marcus Yeatman-Crouch ItÔÇÖs been three long years, but Super Mario PartyÔÇÖs latest update will have many thinking itÔÇÖs a brand new game. Since its original release in 2018, the iconic couch co-op game has been restricted to, wellÔǪ just the couch. 10 out of 80 mini games were available to play online with friends, and it was impossible to play the main feature ÔÇÿMario … Continue reading Mario Party is finally online, but are Nintendo late to the show?

Marcus Yeatman-Crouch
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Abandoning Animal Crossing: Guilt And Redemption

words by Lewis Empson In our recent article discussing completionists versus casuals, I admitted that although Animal Crossing was definitely the game to keep boredom at bay during the first major lockdown, I swiftly dropped it as soon as lockdown rules relaxed and never returned to my island paradise that I had spent hours trying to pay off from the greedy capitalist paws of Tom … Continue reading Abandoning Animal Crossing: Guilt And Redemption

Lewis Empson
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Dead Game Franchises That Need Reviving

Words by Lewis Empson and Marcus Yeatman-Crouch There are some game franchises that release new titles annually like clockwork; Call of Duty and Fifa are series that drop a new title at the same time, every year, without fail, regardless of quality. However, some fan favourite franchises donÔÇÖt get to relish in this luxury, as they are relegated to fresh instalments that are few and … Continue reading Dead Game Franchises That Need Reviving

Contributing Writer
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Casuals vs Completionists – Where do you stand?

By Lewis Empson and Marcus Yeatman-Crouch Two words that will often crop up in the gaming lexicon are ‘casuals’ and ‘completionists’. Pretty obvious terms, and total opposites: the casuals who will play through a game, finish the story then put it down; the completionists who will vampirically drain a game for all its worth before they move on to the next. We all know someone … Continue reading Casuals vs Completionists – Where do you stand?

Marcus Yeatman-Crouch
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Back to Basics: How MMOs are Rebooting their Fanbases

Some of the biggest MMOs (massively multiplayer online games) have been around for a while. World of Warcraft has entered its 17th year, while RuneScape is clocking in at the grand old age of 20. MMOs are a bit different to regular games, of course. TheyÔÇÖve got ÔÇÿlive serviceÔÇÖ, continuous updates and maintenance to the world so you can always expect more when you log … Continue reading Back to Basics: How MMOs are Rebooting their Fanbases

Marcus Yeatman-Crouch
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Google Stadia: Let It Die

By Lewis Empson, cover image by Cristiano Pinto (Unsplash) Google entered the mainstream gaming market with what could graciously be called a whimper at the end of 2019 with Stadia. It looked to broach the industry with a fresh, cloud-based approach with no physical ownership of a console or games; all youÔÇÖd need is a laptop, computer, tablet, smartphone or Chromecast to get started (Google … Continue reading Google Stadia: Let It Die

Lewis Empson
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From Flop to Film Star: Sonic in the 2010’s

By Marcus Yeatman-Crouch ItÔÇÖs been a rough ten years for Sonic, the legendary SEGA mascot who once went head-to-head with Super Mario. Looking at him now of course, in the wake of a Hollywood film, youÔÇÖd think Sonic was back on the rise. That may be true, but the more recent news of the mascotÔÇÖs English language voice actor Roger Craig Smith leaving the role … Continue reading From Flop to Film Star: Sonic in the 2010’s

Marcus Yeatman-Crouch
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Remakes, Remasters and Reboots – Do Gamers Want Innovation Or The Classics?

by Lewis Empson and Marcus Yeatman-Crouch Nostalgia is arguably the strongest influence within the gaming industry. Classics from decades ago are never far from the limelight as remakes and remasters dominate the scene almost every year to the joy and sometimes dismay of gamers. The real question is: do gamers want all of these remakes of the classics or would they prefer new and innovative … Continue reading Remakes, Remasters and Reboots – Do Gamers Want Innovation Or The Classics?

Contributing Writer
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Voice Acting: The Gaming Industry Making its Mark

By Lewis Empson and Marcus Yeatman-Crouch A lot goes into making a modern video game. The programmers, graphic designers, writers and creative directors all deal with the gutty works and behind-the-scenes of a game. But, in a story focused game like Uncharted, The Last of Us, or God of War, who are we really hearing from? The character – or, more specifically, the voice actor. … Continue reading Voice Acting: The Gaming Industry Making its Mark

Marcus Yeatman-Crouch
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The Best and Worst of Gaming Controllers

By Lewis Empson The humble controller is arguably the most important component of the gaming experience. It is our main point of interface with the virtual world (if youÔÇÖre a console gamer, that is) and therefore its important for a controller to tick all the boxes to be favoured by gamers. There are a few controllers that spring to mind that blend comfort and features … Continue reading The Best and Worst of Gaming Controllers

Lewis Empson
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Handhelds: They Don’t Make ‘Em Like They Used To

By Lewis Empson ItÔÇÖs hard to believe that the gaming scene was onced ruled by the handheld console. However, in a world of conveniently portable smartphones and tablets, mega powerful home consoles and PCs, and a global pandemic thatÔÇÖs got us all stuck at home; it feels like the handheldÔÇÖs once pivotal position has been lost amongst the more powerful gaming options. This appears to … Continue reading Handhelds: They Don’t Make ‘Em Like They Used To

Lewis Empson
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The KFConsole and Other Weird Console Ventures

When asked to think of a ÔÇÿconsoleÔÇÖ, most of us have two easy answers – Xbox and PlayStation. Throw Nintendo into the mix and you have the three biggest consoles on the market, sitting alongside PC as the core platforms for gaming. There is, however, a bit of a market for niche, third party consoles that have been attempted by different parties. HereÔÇÖs just a … Continue reading The KFConsole and Other Weird Console Ventures

Marcus Yeatman-Crouch
Download, Video Games

Dungeons, Dragons, Space and Starships: A Look At BioWare’s Past, Present and Future

By Gregor McNeill Out of all the great developers on the production line that pumps out video games to play on our platforms of choice, I daresay that Bioware has provided me personally with the greatest amount of entertainment.  For a lot of people, Skyrim has always been the genre defining, flagship that introduced them to ÔÇÿfantasyÔÇÖ games. And on the other side of the coin, any mention of ÔÇÿsci-fiÔÇÖ is probably most associated Halo, or more recently … Continue reading Dungeons, Dragons, Space and Starships: A Look At BioWare’s Past, Present and Future

Contributing Writer
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Download’s Most Anticipated Games of 2021

By Lewis Empson and Marcus Yeatman-Crouch ItÔÇÖs a big year for gaming. After 2020 saw a massive amount of delays to highly anticipated titles, many of them shifted their release date to 2021. A loss in the short term, but now weÔÇÖve got a whole host of huge games to look forward to this year! WeÔÇÖve picked the ones weÔÇÖre most excited to get to … Continue reading Download’s Most Anticipated Games of 2021

Contributing Writer
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Thoughts On: The Xbox Series X – Should You Get One?

By Lewis Empson IÔÇÖve taken a look at the PS5 and now it’s time to consider its ÔÇ£competitionÔÇØ for this generation, the Xbox Series X. Microsoft have learned from their early Xbox One mistakes and have subverted my expectations as someone who wasnÔÇÖt enamoured upon first sight of the Series X, to produce a powerful, fast, yet slightly bland attempt at the next generation. HereÔÇÖs … Continue reading Thoughts On: The Xbox Series X – Should You Get One?

Lewis Empson
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Spider-Man Miles Morales | Review: Gorgeous Graphics and Innovative Inclusivity

Spider-Man Miles Morales reviewed by Lewis Empson | ÔÿàÔÿàÔÿàÔÿàÔÿå Consider Spider-Man Miles Morales as a Spider-Man 1.5, it’s not quite a sequel but instead a smaller scale title to tide fans over until the inevitable sequel to MarvelÔÇÖs Spider-Man on PS4. Although it may be small, it is still incredibly mighty as it features the trademark great-feeling web swinging found in its predecessor, a refined … Continue reading Spider-Man Miles Morales | Review: Gorgeous Graphics and Innovative Inclusivity

Lewis Empson
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Download’s Game Awards

By Lewis Empson and Marcus Yeatman-Crouch In this seemingly endless year there’s been a massive amount of games released, including triple A blockbusters, sleeper hits and derailed hype train disasters. If you read last week’s article, you already saw our thoughts on the official Game Awards winners of this year, but we decided to do our own spin on the awards, with some different winners … Continue reading Download’s Game Awards

Marcus Yeatman-Crouch