Bluestacks app player for PC

I bet few of you heard about this program. Well, it's really handy when you don't have the money for the newest Samsung or Iphone, but still want to play Android and IOS games or apps.

South Park: Stick of Truth

Genre: RPG
Developer: Obsidian Entertainment
Released: 4. March 2014

Who doesn't know South Park? Well finally the videogame came out! It is hilarious, it is epic, and it is South Park!

Elder Scrolls Online Beta Weekend

Genre: MMORPG

Developer: ZeniMax Online Studios

Release Date:  April 4, 2014

I had the opportunity to try out the Elder Scrolls Online Beta this weekend. It was amazing, I was always a fan of Elder Scrolls games since I first played Morrowind, and although I am not a huge fan of MMO, this will be a great game.

The Yawhg

 

Genre: RPG, Adventure

Developer: Damian Sommer, Emily Carroll

The good:

- beautiful artwork and soundtrack

- replayable

- many varieties in the adventures and outcomes

 

The bad:

- short

 

The mysterious Yawhg is coming. Your chosen heroes have 6 weeks to prepare for the arrival. Can you save the town?

This is a one-to-four player game. There are several locations in the city, where your heroes can do activities, like chopping wood in the forest, or tending the sick in the hospital.While doing these activities, they gain skill points, magic for meditating, persistency for fighting in the arena, etc. Plus every time you make an activity, a special scenario appears, and if you choose well your character gains additional points, or if you make the wrong decision you lose points. All your decisions are influencing the final outcome, the fate of your characters and the town. Although don't expect a 100% happy ending even if you think you did everything right.

It is a fairly short game, but can be replayed many times. One playthrough is around 10 minutes, even if you read everything carefully. The scenarios that come up are varied, and even if the same one comes up multiple times, the outcome depends on your already gathered skill points. When I finished first, I wanted more and more. I replayed many times, tried many variants of the activities, and every time I was surprised and excited about the ending. It can be played as a single player, or multiplayer. Both types can give a great experience, but with more people the game is more convincing, and you can imagine you are really there waiting in tension for the unknown.

The game is like a beautiful drawing, and you get involved in the fantastical town's life, choose leader for talking rats, become a werewolf, or if you are lucky dance through the night with a druid. Emily Carroll did a great job with the artwork. The soundtrack is gorgeous, after I stopped playing I couldn't stop listening to Halina Heron's song.

 
All together, the music, the illustrations give a special, fantastical mood, which just draws in the player into this magical world.

Final Score:

9/10

Plague Inc.: Evolved (Early Access)

 

Genre: Strategy, simulation

Developer: Ndemic Creations

Release Date: 20. Feb. 2014

EXTERMINATE!!!EXTERMINATE!!!EXTERMINATE!!!

Who wouldn't dream about destroying humanity? Who isn't affraid that someday a new virus appears that wipes us out? Well in this game you can create your own pathogen, mutate it and spread it so it kills everyone on Earth.

This game was developed from the earlier mobile game, Plague Inc, and adds a couple new features. Create a pandemic that started from a single little bacteria or fungus or virus, choose whatever you would like and mutate it into a serial killer. One person doesn't wash hands, next one already infected and so on. It's a simple simulation, if not played on harder difficulties it's not too challangeing.
WARNING! The games content is not full, still early access, but it is stable, and they are planning in the next weeks to add multiplayer.

The overall look is beautiful and detailed, 3D models of the viruses, pretty pictures of cities, many diagrams ad graphs, nice color scheme. So name your epidemic and the apocalypse can begin.

There are three ways you can customize it, collecting evolution points and using them to mutate symptoms, resistances and other aspects which help you make it spread faster, make it more lethal and slow down the cure. Yor only "enemy" is the CDC, where they are developing the cure. It is your job to be faster than them if you don't want any nasty remaining humans to survive.Spread it continentally, through water and air, infect those rats and flies.

I think it will be worth to wait for all the components, just hope a Unicorn virus doesn't attack us till then.

Final Score:

6/10

Reaper - A Tale of a Pale Swordsman

Genre: Platformer, RPG, hack and slash

Platform: IOS, PC

Developer: Hexage

Release Date: 9. Sept. 2013

 

 

The good:

- artistic style

- story

The bad:

- choosing a side is not that important

- battles get boring

- the sound

I have to tell, I'm not a fan of IOS games to play on PC, or a version of them for PC, and this is not an exception. They are either too short, or too repetitive, or interesting but not challangeing enough, so I get bored, and there are so many game that are soo similar, it's not even worth it after the third Temple Run copy. I know it's hard for a game to come up with something original, and for mobile games are even less options, but still there are some original games, so it's not impossible. I have to admit, this game has some original mix of elements.

At first I only tried it because it looked cute. I don't know how it plays on a phone, but for a PC game it's a little dull. It's a simple game, with a mix of RPG elements (leveling, choices, inventory and equipment, XP), combined with action, hack and slash (couple of combinations for battles). Although this is not too innovative. The enemies come in waves or attack you by walking near, and they get harder to kill as you level up. At first it's is nicely balanced, but later on it gets boring that too much XP is needed for the next level, and after a couple of levels you can't buy much many new stuff and you loose interesting, since there is not enough reward. 

Every level you get to shoose a new skill, you have to choose from several cards, but it gets annoying that in one level-up you get two cards you want, in the next neither is good for you and you can't go back to choose from the last cards. All in all it's a pretty casual game, and I don't think it needed a PC release.

The best thing in the game is the artistic style, and the story is kind of interesting, that's the only thing that kept me playing. A lone pale little cutie knight (although everybody in the game notices how sickly and ghostly he looks) gets caught in a war between the local tribes of the Wilderness, the magic users, and the soldiers who want to take their land and oily thing (oh the irony). You can take sides, choose who to be friends with, although not always, and if you want to level you have to make quests for each sides, plus there is your friend, Old Grey Beard, who helps you the whole time. 

The graphics are nice, there are a variety of enemies, everything looks in place, the colors as well. The levels are varied, they have diversified backgrounds and matching enemies, so they did a nice job with that. The only thing that bothered me was the music. I don't think that's the music you choose for a game like this. But that's only my opinion.

I don't recommend buying this game for PC, although for phone it's acceptable, and it's better than the other games I have recently played, or unless you like simplier little RPG games, maybe for a little relaxing to turn your brain off.

Final Score:

5/10

Journal

Genre: interactive adventure game

Developer: Locked Door Puzzle

Release Date: 17. Feb 2014

This isn't a game for masses, not a first person shooter with high quality graphics. It isn't a whole world of role-playing with monsters, weapons and magic. This isn't a strategy game with huge armies to control. If you only play games because of these, then back away slowly from this game. This is just a simple story about a young girl, and how she struggles with some events in her life.

With all the Telltale Games (Walking Dead and Wolf Among Us) interactive stories are becoming more and more and more popular. This game is not that great neither with story, neither with gameplay, neither with graphics, but it crawls into your heart. In it's 1-2 hour gameplay, you control a girl and have to rebuild her somehow-erased journal, walking through the sketchy, but beautiful hand-drawn pages of the journal. I have to admit the surroundings and 3D elements could have been made better, but the journal parts were weird in a lovely way and the narrating circus parts were just magnificent.

I think indie game maker, Richard Perrin, did a great job with this game's story. You are in a fog the whole game, you don't know the most important thing, and it is seldomly mentioned. The game focuses on speaking to other character, and deciding how the girl should behave. There are a couple of bigger decisions, but you can't change the major storyline. Because you are a little girl nobody wants to tell you anything, your parents don't want to tell you why they separated, plus you have troubles at school, struggling with anxiety, and depending on how you behave with your friends will decide how they treat you in the end. Just like in real life. The story deals with these things, which might seem difficult even for an adult, but how these things are even more difficult for a child. Meanwhile there is another storyline with shadow figurines, which at first might seem like it has nothing to do with our young girl, but in the end integrates slowly into her life.

I highly recommend this game, although as I mentioned it before, not for anyone who can't appreciate a simple but makes-you-think story.

Final Score:

8/10

Big Bad Wolf Among Us

Genre: point-and-click graphic adventure game

Developer: Telltale Games

Release Date:11.oct 2013 episode 1

                      14.febr 2014 episode 2

Telltale Games's new hit after award-winning Walking Dead series. We get the usual Telltale game mechanics. This exciting story  introduces us to Fabletown's exiled fairytale characters' struggle with the mundane life. For now there are two episodes released, and 3 more planned. Prepare for a lot of smoking and fighting!

World of Fables

 The story is based on Bill Willingham's Fables comics, Vertigo, actually a prequel to it. The game can be played without any knowledge about the story, anyway you get info while the story unfolds, in the Book of Fables. The exiled fables set up Fabletown, they have their own little government, with huge hidden caves and everything. In order for a fable to stay there, they need a human form, or to be able to buy glamour, a spell which transforms them into human (this is very expensive so they sometimes do stuff to get it), or if they can't afford it the are deported to the Farm. The government itself has serious workforce and money problems, their only sheriff is Bigby Wolf (the wolf from Little Red Riding Hood, Three Little Pigs)

He is the main character of our story, ironic how the big bad wolf now has to protect the fables. There are many more famous fable characters, Snow White now working for the governor, Ichabod Crane, the problematic marriage between Beauty and Beast, the now thugs Tweedle Dee and Dum, bartender trolls, and many more surreal situations. This gives a certain humour to the game, Bigby's occasional roommate, Colin the pig, who says he owes him because he destroyed the three little pigs house, and my personal favorite, Bufkin, flying monkey from Oz, drunkard librarian. I loved this new, more mature and violent approach to fairy tales, everybody knows that originally they were more gory and horroristic, and I always wondered about those versions. Another interesting aspect, that these fairy tales are connected, they have the same wolf for example. Bigby has a hard time, even after the general amnesty the other characters look at him the same, they are afraid, and this is why his moral decisions are so hard to make.

The graphic style is typical Telltale game, little cartoony, much contour. It's like we enter of of those detective novels with a noir mood, but with really vivid colors mixed with darkness. Although the animations could be smoother the overall aspect is great, and with the music and sound effects perfectly match it. Taken the characters and fairy tales, we would expect a charming story, but in fact it is a violent, mature thriller. One of the three little pigs crushing on Bigby's couch, while smoking and drinking his booze, this gives a great style of humour. This lightens up a mood a little, Bigby standing in front of a soda machine giving us his idea of healthy lifestyle: "This shit will kill you", while he is lighting a cigarette every 2 minutes.

The basic game mechanics are similar to the Walking Dead game, three basic parts: point and click for object and puzzles, but less than in the Walking Dead, fighting scenes, where you have to react quickly, and the talking, with choices. Bigby's moral code is far from perfect, so the player will have a couple of hard choices. These affect the game, even in later episodes. You are faced with decisions to choose who will die and live, even if you don't realize it at the moment of decision. The game itself is very short, 2-3 hour per episode, so you have to wait long before the next part.

Final verdict

This game shows you how not even the fairytale life isn't just magic, and princes, and happy endings, and you can't get comfortable before something bad happens. It is a mature detective noir game, in spotlight with big bad wolf's difficult morale choices. I highly recommend playing it, like every other Telltale Game it's a hit.

Score: 10/10

Jazzpunk - We are everywhere and underwear

Genre: first-person adventure

Developer: Necrophone Games

Release Date: Feb. 7

Cold War World. Agent Polyblank goes to take up his next mission in a wornout trailer. Oh I forgot to mention the psychedelic intro. Sits down, fart chushion, laugh. This introduction is as clear as the game itself.
This is the weirdest game I have played. Well at least this year's weirdest, but it is in the top 3.  This weirdness is mixed with a little old-fashioned humour, robot secret agents and high-tech gadgets, and surprisingly it gives a not-that-bad-as-we-would-expect result. It's not a long game, max 3 hours to play.

The Good:

- the jokes (if you are into this kind of humour, but seriously who wouldn't laugh, or a little chuckle at least, for sitting on a whoopie cushion?)
- the artistic, cartoony style
- not like any other games I have played

The Bad

- too many minigames in the end

Retro Cyberpunk Futuristic Jazz

The game's mood is an interesting mix of a noir detective pulp-fiction + James Bond styled secret agent + there was an episode in Tom and Jerry, where Jerry had a funky jazz band playing and Tom (poor Tom) was tortured by their loud artsy music + a handful of simple puns and jokes.

Wedding Qake and Edward Scissorhands making NSFW hedge statues

One of the many things I liked about this game, the many small easter eggs hidden, which all make part of some kind of joke. There are the floating texts, (plus a couple of other things) which reminded me of The Stanley Parable, Polyblank arriving in a "guitar" case, like in the gangster movies the guns, Edward Scissirhands' hands, etc... (plus who knows how many I didn't even get).

Also there are countless minigames, mostly parodies of existing games, for example a bridal edition of Quake. After a while you will notice that it even makes fun of the player itself.

To get the full experience out of this game you have to explore every single object laying around, and find the many puns good jokes. This humour is the cohesion of the game, beside the simple story of going to meet you boss, having you to make a couple of top secret missions, and trying to defeat the Antagonist (yes that's what it says on his business card). Although near the end it gets frustrating that there is not even a decent story, and too many minigames. But it is hard to maintain the fun from the beginning, once you do things too many times it looses it's humour.

You travel through a wide variety of scenes, from japanese sushi restaurants (take your shoes off, robot!) to futuristic spacy apartments. There are lots of details, like a playbot magazine while you are waiting with your bosses secretary.

The game has a unique art style, well a unique style in everything, which is very brave but in a good way. For many gamers it is a must for a game to have high quality graphics, but there are so many games which don't need that, have their unique art style and I appreciate that (of course there are some games which require high graphics). It creates a stronger mood, and a better experience.

The End

It is an interesting, great indie game. If you decide to play it be prepared for a weird, but comical experience, with cartoony humour.

Final Score:

6/10

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Review

Genre: Adventure

Electronic Arts, 2001

Trailer

It was a cold, rainy night. I was sitting alone in my room and I just had a brilliant thought. Why not replay the first Harry Potter game? So I spent the night playing it. When I was younger I could never defeat Voldemort in the end so I never actually finished the game. But this time I made it. Yaaaay for me!

Bad:

- I wanted to say there is no bad in this game, but I don't like when I can't skip cutscenes...

- also a little short

Good:

- I'm in Hogwarts!!!

The Graphics

The graphics aren't perfect, but remember it is a game from more than 10 years ago... 

The gameplay

I love this gameplay. I never saw gameplay like this before. I like the collectable magic cards, the quidditch, learning spells, collecting beans... It's just a perfect combination. 

The story

Well if you don't know the story shame on you. Go buy the book or if you are to lazy to do that watch the movie.

The mood

The game gives us back exactly the mood from the books. The music is sooo cute and amazing. The only thing I missed a little is a snowy level. (snow is the best!!!) The castle, the dungeons, Hagrid's Hut, everything fits into the HP universe.

Final Verdict

Old but gold.

Final score

10/10

Guardians of Middle Earth review

Genre: MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena)

Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment, 2013

Trailer

To begin with I am a huge LoTR fan. But I hate games like LOL. So this is a hard one. The graphics and the whole game just looks absolutely beautiful. I didn't play it too much, so I can't say much about the gameplay. You have a team, your hero, abilities, potions, commands, etc... and you have to defeat the enemy team.

Bad:
- it is a MOBA

Good:
- beautiful graphics
- about LoTR

Final Verdict

If I would like MOBA's it would probably be one of my favorite games

Final Score

5.5/10

Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands

Lately I've been a little nostalgic about some games, and I was playing the new Tomb Raider. I was climbing on a rock and I suddenly rememberd how much I liked jumping and climbing stuff in Prince of Persia so I installed the Forgotten Sands. I remembered playing the Sands of Time, which I liked veeeery much in it's time. But now I wasn't too impressed with the Forgotten Sands.

Here's the trailer if you don't know this game (what I think is simply impossible):

The story revolves around The Prince (of course) in time placed between the Sands of Time and Warrior Within. Then comes Malik, his brother, to release the Sand army (what a fool) to save his kingdom (with good intention), creating a little problem for our hero here. 

The graphics are pretty good, it's a game from 2010, I know it can't look like a game from 2100. The characters and everything are made quite well. Love the style and artwork of the games as well. 

The gameplay is pretty simple, it's like any other action game with a sword. You have basic attack, some special attacks, later some pretty awesome powers with sand and time. You can climb, roll, jump and make some awesome parkour moves. There was only one problem. After like half an hour I got bored. I know the beginning it's like a tutorial, and it needs to be simple to get to know the keys, gameplay, etc. But still it seemed too simple for me, and I was playing in normal mode.

Here's a little gameplay video, if you're like me and like to know how to play a game to see if you will like it: (have to mention I didn't made the video)

The puzzles are too simple (of course I will keep playing, I know later will be harder), but this made me pretty dissapointed at first. 

I have one more issue with the game. The area, where you can move freely is pretty single-lined. There aren't really any sidetracks, (again maybe because I haven't played it enough), and that really bothers me. Maybe this is only me, I looove games with huge maps where I can choose my own destiny. I'm a free bitch, fuck yeah!!! 

So in conclusion I won't give up and keep playing after a little foodbreak, and I really hope things will be getting harder (if you know what I mean).

Other tehcnical infos that you might need to know:

The game is availabe on PC, PS3, Xbox 360 and some other platforms (exclusive only and I don't really know what that means). I can only play it on PC, I don't have any other platform, so I can't tell you how it works on them.

The game is made by Ubisoft, and I really love them one of my faves. 

Minimum System Requirements

Supported OS: Windows XP/Windows Vista
Processor: Dual core processor 2.6 GHz Intel Pentium D or AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ (Intel Core 2 Duo 2.2 GHz or AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ or better recommended)
RAM: 1 GB Windows XP/2 GB Windows Vista
Video Card: 256 MB DirectX 10.0-compliant video card or DirectX 9.0-compliant card with Shader Model 3.0 or higher (see supported list)*
Sound Card: DirectX 9.0 or 10.0-compliant sound card (5.1 sound card recommended)
DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0 or 10.0 libraries (included on disc)
DVD-ROM: DVD-ROM dual-layer drive
Hard Drive Space: 8 GB
Peripherals Supported: Keyboard, mouse, optional controller (Xbox 360 Controller for Windows recommended)
* Supported Video Cards at Time of Release:
ATI RADEON X1600*/1650*-1950/HD 2000/3000 series
NVIDIA GeForce 6800*/7/8/9 series