The Last Of Us Review

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When you’re feeling like saying everything that’s going through your mind in just a few words, you have to take a big breath and stop. It’s impossible to write a proper introduction for The Last Of Us. I don’t know if it’s the last great game of this PlayStation generation, hopefully not, but it’s so overwhelming that’s almost impossible to express every emotion you’ve felt while playing it. We can start with what it is. The Last of Us is a story-driven survival game. Some would add horror, but I think it’s more like a good apocalyptic thriller with less horror. It’s not Dead Space by any means, but more like the sequence towards the end of the first Uncharted, when you had to fight that mutated crew.

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If Valve made a used games AH it would be called SUGAH

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This is not some April Fools’ day joke. It’s something I was thinking for a while, so I thought I’d give it a funny twist. The battle for supremacy between Sony and Microsoft that culminated with the E3 announcements made me write this and expose a system that could work in a world without disc-based games. There are many people out there already hating Microsoft and Xbox One for not allowing them to sell used games to any third-party they’d like, be it person or company. Sony won us over with their policy, but I soon realized it’s something we’re really going to miss seven or eight years down the road, as it applies only to disc-based games, which will probably vanish with the next console cycle. Download-only games are usually tied to your account and it’s nothing you can do, once you paid for them.

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Sony, PlayStation 4 and the low-cost value proposition

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You’ve heard the news. You know the details. Maybe you’ve even made up your mind and you already know which console you’re going to get this holiday. I know I did and that’s why I’m writing this piece, instead of watching all those lovely streams from E3. I realized what I am getting into and I’d like to spread the message. Behind all this hype and excitement, there is a piece of hidden truth that you should be aware of, so let’s see what’s this all about Sony, PlayStation 4 and their low-cost value proposition.

“There’s no such thing as problems, Mr. Green, only situations…”

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Cum ar fi daca ai putea cumpara Xbox One azi in Romania?

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Daca Microsoft tot a clarificat partial cateva dintre aspectele legate de licentiere, conexiune si confidentialitate, cred ca e timpul sa analizam putin toate aceste informatii in contextul situatiei speciale din Romania. Dupa cum bine stiti, la noi nu se comercializeaza Xbox 360 pe cai oficiale si nici nu beneficiem de serviciul Xbox LIVE. Hai sa vedem ce inseamna asta pentru viitorii posesori de Xbox One din Romania.

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Meet the Game XBOX Special Edition – material intern (RO)

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Cu ocazia emisiunii Meet the Game XBOX Special Edition de azi 21 mai ora 19:30, de pe ComputerGames.ro, am pregatit un material pentru consumul nostru intern ca sa fim toti cei din redactie la curent cu cele mai noi versiuni ale zvonurilor vehiculate de-a lungul lunilor care au trecut. Dupa ce l-am scris, m-am gandit ca ar fi indicat sa-l impartasesc si cu voi, asa ca vi-l redau integral mai jos, discutiile de azi care vor avea loc inainte de startul conferintei de presa bazandu-se pe acesta. Va astept pe ComputerGames azi, incepand cu 19:30.

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What if next-gen consoles kill the online pass?

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Budgets for developing and marketing AAA titles are increasing. You need bigger development teams or multiple studios working on a single project. You need to bring your title to a worldwide market and that’s why you need really big sales, not just one or two million units. There are many quality titles out there that have underperformed in terms of sales, as they haven’t met those numbers that companies hoped for. It’s a situation that has dire implications for publishers all over the world. There are counter measures though, some taken by the console manufacturers to restrict piracy or second-hand sales and some taken by publishers themselves. One of these fairly criticised measures, albeit a succesful one, is the famous online pass.

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Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon Review (RO)

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Dupa ce am avut parte de cateva “scapari” in luna martie, Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon a fost anuntat de catre Ubisoft pe 1 aprilie, ca si cand ar fi fost o gluma. Din fericire, nu a fost sa fie asa si o saptamana mai tarziu a fost confirmata si data de lansare a acestuia, 1 mai 2013. Jocul este disponibil deja de ieri pe Steam (15 EUR), insa daca mai aveti putina rabdare il puteti lua cu 40 RON via GameShop incepand cu 20 mai. Cu ajutorul celor de la Best Distribution am intrat in posesia unui cod Steam pentru testa jocul, deci ceea ce urmeaza sunt cateva dintre gandurile si impresiile mele pe marginea lui. Ramane de vazut daca la finalul acestui mic review veti considera ca Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon merita banutii mentionati mai sus sau nu.

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We are all Ghosts infected with a preorder disease

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Activision today announced Call of Duty: Ghosts. This is not news. We’ve expected it for a while now and it happened. There’s a press release and a teaser trailer that you can watch, there is no gameplay footage, as well as any more details other than the obvious PR description, but you can already preorder it. “Call of Duty: Ghosts ushers in the next generation of the franchise. The new title delivers a riveting all-new gameplay experience built on an entirely new story, setting and cast of characters, all powered by a new, next generation Call of Duty engine.” PREORDER NOW!

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Cum arata PlayStation Store Bulgaria si ce se poate face pentru Romania (RO)

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Azi am fost intr-atat de curios incat sa-mi fac un cont SEN de Bulgaria. Nu mica mi-a fost mirarea sa vad ca PlayStation Store BG este plin pe partea de gaming, aceasta fiind si sigura disponibila comparativ cu UK unde mai ai si filme, show-uri TV sau muzica. Sunt ceva diferente fata de UK, de ex in ceea ce priveste continutul pe segmentul de gaming, dar pana la urma era si normal sa fie asa. Interfata este integral in limba engleza (meniuri, titluri, descrieri), singura diferenta fiind preturile afisate (si implicit moneda).

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Lansare Injustice: Gods Among Us in Romania (RO)

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Din cate se pare, sambata ne caftim la mall. Injustice: Gods Among Us isi va face loc cu brutalitate pe rafturile din Romania si ii va forta pe jucatorii pasionati de fighting games sa devina eroii de care avem nevoie. Media Galaxy va oferi locatia, Best Distribution aduce bunatatile, in timp ce colegii mei de la theGameCAST.net vor intretine atmosfera, inclusiv la concursul de infractiuni virtuale organizat cu suportul Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. Cafteala incepe pe la 16:00, iar pe langa posibilitatea de a incerca jocul veti putea participa, cum ziceam, si la un turneu cu premii. Cica ar fi bine sa va prezentati din timp deoarece inscrierile se vor face la fata locului, iar numarul de locuri este limitat la 64. Nu, nu va trebuie cazier. Mi-as dori sa fie bataie pe locurile alea, asa ca vreau sa va vad in numar cat mai mare pe acolo, daca nu de dragul turneului, macar sa speriem pitipoancele de mall. Pentru mai multe detalii (ce premii se dau, ce alte facilitati aveti, ce si cum se da moca, etc) am pus comunicatul de presa mai jos. Injustice 4 all!

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Beyond Xbox – A glimpse of what’s to come and it’s not a gaming console

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I think time has come to look into Microsoft and their upcoming Xbox console. There are already lots of leaks, some more believable than others, but I’m not going to bother you with hardware and specs, part of it because they may very well change. We have all seen trailers for upcoming engines like UE4 from Epic Games, Frostbite 3 from EA and Kojima’s FOX and I’m sure that both next-gen consoles will be able to run any game based on any one of them. So, today I’m trying to understand what lies behind the specs and hardware of Durango, what it really is and what it will be able to offer us. PlayStation 4 is all about gaming in a social environment. Everything Sony has done, starting with the console’s announcement back in February, evolves around gaming and sharing. We already know that PS4 will get free to play games (like Blacklight: Retribution) and I’m sure that more will come, even big MMOs. I can also bet that PS4 will deliver some other content like music and video, but for now the focus is on gaming and I’m really happy if it stays this way. If the price we have to pay is called “social interaction”, then I think it’s still a small price to pay for having this kind of focused strategy, built around the phenomenon we all love, gaming.

So, is Microsoft following a similar strategy? Will they build their Xbox around gaming or will it be something entirely different? They have been so silent during the last few months, that they have practically allowed Sony to drive an incredible amount of buzz on the PS4. This is a very dangerous situation for Microsoft. They either have some wild card in their hand, or this could very well be their last, suicidal game. Let’s see!

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KONAMI announces METAL GEAR SOLID V: THE PHANTOM PAIN

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Next Chapter of METAL GEAR SOLID Franchise is revealed in all-new trailer (screenshots inside)

Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH today announced the next chapter in the METAL GEAR SOLID franchise. METAL GEAR SOLID V: THE PHANTOM PAIN, will be released on the Sony PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system and the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. To reinforce the announcement and address all the questions fans have been asking all year, Kojima Productions unveiled a brand new trailer for the new title at this year’s Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco.

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Fiti urniti! (RO)

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Nu cred ca am mai intrat in fostul cinematograf Floreasca de mai bine de 20 de ani. Intre timp, cred ca a devenit ceva club sau “venue” daca ar fi sa ma iau dupa ultimul racnet in materie. Am fost insa azi (27 martie) acolo, la un eveniment organizat de Sony si intitulat sugestiv Be Moved. A fost atat de sugestiv inca habar nu am avut ce urma sa vad. Lume… puhoi. Pardon, presa… puhoi. Televiziuni, Cabral modest intr-un colt, o roscata autohtona pe numele ei Elena (sorry, nu am auzit de ea) care ne-a povestit cum a folosit un Xperia Z si cum i-a placut ei atat de mult telefonul pentru ca e mooooooov, alti hipsteri care probabil venisera la un eveniment monden nu la prezentarea a unor produse de larg consum, pitipoance, ceva presa IT si noi astia din gamingul romanesc, insa pe noi ne numeri pe degetele de la vreo 3 sau 4 maini, in timp ce restul cred ca erau peste o suta.

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God of War: Ascension Review

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God of War recorded sales of more than 20 mil. units since it first showed up on the PS2, back in 2005. Two of the titles, God of War 1 and 2, were released for the PS2 and later remastered for the PS3, while God of War 3 and Ascension are available for the PS3. There are two more titles for the PSP, Chains of Olympus and Ghost of Sparta, also released for the PS3 as the Origins Collection, as well as one title for mobile phones, Betrayal, released back in 2007 as a 2D scroller. The Ascension game thus marks 8 years of God of War and lets you experience the events that took place after Kratos killed his wife and child, basically the beginning of it all.

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God of War: Ascension First Boot

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The God of War series is one of my favorites, so I was eager to play Ascension as soon as possible. My review copy arrived yesterday afternoon, so last night I managed to play it a bit. I didn’t get that far into the game, as I’ve played the single-player campaign for almost an hour, but I can already say the demo doesn’t do it justice and the game gets better and better the more you play it.

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It first downloaded a 107mb patch (v1.01), which presumably fixes some single-player and multiplayer issues, and then you can fire up the game without any mandatory installs. It could just be my enthusiasm, but I think this version looks better than the single-player demo I played a while ago. Everything seemed sharp and I even think there is some degree of anti-aliasing applied, while the game felt smooth, without any frame rate drops whatsoever, so I can safely say it’s one of the best looking God of War titles to date.

I’ll play more (including multiplayer) and hopefully, sometime during the next weekend I’ll post my review for God of War: Ascension. First impressions are positive and let’s just hope they don’t change, but you never know. I’ll just have to play and see what’s next.