Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel - Quicky Review

 

I'm rather disappointed by this new Borderlands. I was hooked from the day they released info on the playable characters and that Claptrap was actually one of them. Being my favourite character and all, I was excited to get my hands on it at this years EGX, only to feel that the game wasn't as smooth as I hoped. "Perhaps that's because I'm playing on a PC that has a really low sensitivity setting" I thought to myself. Alas, I was wrong. The game has an awesome premise. Jump back to the beginning with the introduction of Jack before he became Handsome Jack - The Hyperion boss.
My problems stem more from that actual gameplay and its lack of change. If something works, don't fix it seems to be what was going through their minds on creating this. The game has had many issues with it through the years and nothing has been done to really address these issues. One of this issues are the image and texture rendering. I run the most recent Xbox 360 and hasn't incurred any damage to give it reason to run slowly or have any issues but it was having huge problems loading in textures and left some areas resembling smeared feces. It was always something that bugged me with the previous games. Although they are quite old now and software was different, I just let it slide but when you have the huge increase of technology in consoles in preparation for the next gen releases, things like this shouldn't be happening more often that you find a hooker in the red light district. The style of the game is great and with them working with Telltale games to create an episodical based game is something that could really flourish but the here and now is rather disparaging. Its not just wandering about the map and loading in areas poorly, its also mid combat where the game cannot cope and begins to grind and drop frames rapidly, albeit momentarily, it is another common occurrence that severely hampers the flow of the action.

Now combat also had its fair share of problems. The slowness of movement does little to help with my play style and comfort but my main angst is with the balancing. Playing as Claptrap, a robot, you would think rigid aim with weapons would be something rather standard but aiming down the sights of a rifle will only aid you if you wish to hit anything a mile away from your target in an attempt to scare them off. As a character, he has always been funny and I will always choose him over anyone else, yet he seems extremely underpowered. Combined with his Vault Hunter.EXE power and skill tree it can all do more to screw you over rather than the ones you should be killing. From Claptrap to general enemies, you won't find anyone actually level with you for a fair fight. If the enemy is equal to below your level, you waste them faster than Charlie Sheen with some 7gram rocks and if the enemy is higher than you, run. Run like the wind. If you can't get into cover quick enough, get riddled by every single round they fire. Their aim is impeccable and enough to kill in seconds. The balance for everything is grossly disproportionate. Some bosses where hard as nails while the very last boss only took a pistol and a repetitive action to kill.

So, terrible balance, the accuracy of a blind man firing a 50.Cal and a piss poor skill tree that hinders more than benefits. What do we really have left? squat. Sure the story was quite good and a nice insight into who Jack was prior to going crazier and the process that unfolds but it does become a real pain in the ass when you feel you've reached an end only to be slapped with another thing that requires you to run back and forth for another hour just so you are at a level equal to the quest. Its not something that has sat very well with me. I enjoyed the first 2 but I'm seeing nothing exciting, innovative or game changing in a series that was growing in popularity so well. I'm thoroughly disappointed. With huge potential, came great disappointment. At the price of £30, its not too bad but I suggest, no, I implore you to get it when it drops into the 15-20 range to tide you over between releases that are going to be far better. 6/10.

Bioshock Infinite REVIEW! -POSSIBLE SPOILERS-

Here it is guys!, the long awaited sequel in the Bioshock series. As I have already stated, I have had this game on pre-order for exactly a year on it's release day and it was so worth the wait!

We enter the game on a small rowing boat with two cloaked people chatting away while a storm rages on around you. One of them hands you a small box with a pistol inside on the approach to a lighthouse, it's easy to see the similarities to the previous games within the first few minutes.

Once we arrive at Columbia, we are greeted with some stunning set pieces, reminiscent of Rapture and in perfect Bioshock style. The game is a visual masterpiece that truly takes your breath away on your first site of the floating city. The 1912 era of graphic design and advertising was a time of vibrant colours and simple typography which is reflected brilliant in and out of the game. If you follow me on Instagram, you will probably see the cover mixed in with the collection of photos of my dogs. If you were vigilant enough, you would notice that you can swap the cover around to reveal a stunning new piece which depicts the Songbird (Big Daddy of Columbia) towering over the floating city. As you can already guess, I liked the visuals and the character design was exactly the same with the fresh face of Elizabeth to the rock hard faces of the police that you will inevitably burn to a crunchy crisp. From visuals to sounds, you notice the crackles of the vinyl over the phonograph and the buzz of the classic microphones of the time. The flick of a coin is so simple yet so satisfying to hear. The selection of music is much like the previous with some Creedence thrown into the mix. The tension builders moved from "How much is that doggie in the window?" too new pieces created for the game.

Compared to previous entries, Infinite has an increased focus on character development that really grips you and allows you to develop a connection to both Booker and Elizabeth. Booker is a man with a past full of darkness and incredible fighting capabilities that gives him the typical badass protector persona throughout the game. Juxtaposed against Elizabeth, who spent her life locked away reading and has become quite unaware of life outside of her walls, therefore becoming quite innocent. The story starts off quite gradual and simple yet a couple hours in, the twists start to kick in in true fashion with an ending that catches everyone out and leaves you reconnecting your jaw back to your skull... Elizabeth's powers become vividly apparent but can also really help in combat scenes. Unlike most female accomplices in games, I actually like Elizabeth. She doesn't get in the way, she doesn't get attacked (All combat comes your way) and doesn't bitch on...Looking at you Resident Evil 4.

Combat is fluid and with Elizabeth's abilities, it helps to ease the onslaught of enemies when you are dry on ammo. She even finds money, health and salts for you throughout to aid in combat. A few little glitches allowed me to take out some of the baddies far easier. One being a collection of them getting stuck in a door only to be blown into pieces with my flaming shotgun. Weapons range from the original to the wacky, much like the characters you go into battle with. Fighting a robotic version of Washington with a Gatling gun is a terrifying experience and can come as a shock when they appear in groups. It is a shame that certain enemies didn't appear much throughout the game, only appearing once of twice, but this may change in the upcoming DLC.

With a game length of approximately 12 hours, it can be easy to smash out a day but it's a game that draws you back into the story to see if you can better yourself or if those decisions you made will effect the outcome of the game. HINT - It does in 1999 mode (Unlocked once you complete it on normal). It may be my Xbox but there was some laggy moments which slowed down the game for me but didn't affect combat. Surprisingly they have also removed the multi player mode which I actually quite enjoyed in Bioshock 2 and could have had potential.

Overall I loved the game, I'm a hardcore fan and would love a sequal (if possible of course). With its astonishing visuals, sounds, fluid combat and story, I give this game 10/10!
Now I can go to bed!