SKATE 3 Confirmed, May 2010

It's official- Skate 3 will be on the shelves by MAY 2010. Great news for all Skate fans, but it does beg the question: Why are they releasing so many Skate titles in so little time? Of course the answer is for the money, obviously, but I'm still having fun with Skate 2.

Personally I think that they should work on some more DLC. It couldn't be that hard to make updates to add more tricks into the game, an option to buy more levels or open up new sections of the map or even make new multiplayer modes- a free roam split-screen would suit me just fine.

(This was a bugger to get a hold of, as the official UK site for SKATE still hasn't been updated, and the American one just re-directs you back to the UK...)

But all this said, I will probably buy this title straight off. As much as I'd prefer DLC, there are some major flaws on Skate 2 that could be fixed or improved- namely the crappy physics when you're off your board...

--BIZNITCH--

Top 8 FREE Demos!

I remember when I was younger avidly awaiting the next issue of a gaming magazine to come out, just so that I could get my sticky child fingers on the latest demo disk for the PSX. And now that we live in the future, with our electric cars, robotic hoovers and Twitter, all our needs are catered for without ever needing to leave the house!

Like I've always said- the best thing about the new generation of games consoles are the freebies, so I thought I'd dedicate today's article to my top list of demos from the PS Store. Some old, some new, all worth a look.

BATMAN: ARKHAM ASYUM
Okay, so it's safe to say that I've been raving about this game for some time now, but for good reason! The build up to this demo has been intense- could it really live up to expectation? Well it's safe to say yes, yes it has! The game play it's very fun, the fighting dynamics look and flow very nicely and the sneaking, detective aspect of the game play is incredibly satisfying. I've already played the demo a few times over without ever getting bored, so I'm hoping the full game will be just as exciting.
The only downside is that the full game could end up being a bit repetitive, with limited attacks, moves etc. However, from reading various preview's written by people that have had a chance to play the full game, the game remains interesting an varied throughout. I suppose only time will tell, but for the time being this demo has definitely kept me, and hopefully all of you, occupied.

WOLVERINE
I used to live with a bunch of lads and often came back to find new demos installed on my PS3. So after a hard day of student life (drinking, lounging around in the sun, shirking off essays etc.) I came home to find this in my games folder.
Great demo- slashing Wolverines foes with those claws of his is gloriously satisfying. The fighting is really easy to master and is quite varied- leaping over a bad guy and slashing him in the face before giving him a colonic irrigation with your spiky fist, to picking up a flaming man and throwing him across the room onto a spike.
The demo can be played a few times over before it loses its appeal, which is why I wouldn't suggest buying the game. Reviews have stated that the graphics are brilliant and the fighting is varied, but the game itself lacks in longevity and ultimately becomes a repetitive chore- constantly re-tracing steps, lazily repeating levels (the level in the demo has to be completed several times throughout the game) and a bafflingly confusing story.
So my advice- just stick with the demo.

NARUTO
This one I only downloaded for a friend I was living with. He's a big Naruto fan so I thought he would like this. After it was installed it sat unplayed for months. Eventually, after playing all the other demos I had downloaded, I thought I'd finally give it a try- and thought it was great!
I've never been a Naruto fan so I wasn't exactly brimming with excitement to play, amusing I'd be lost, not knowing the characters or the special moves they use. But after playing it I found it to be very easily accessible, colourful and very fun. The fighting dynamics work really well (after a few attempts at least to figure out the controls) and moving around the beautiful scenery worked well.
The style reminded me a lot of the Dragonball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi games, with colourful graphics and the camera behind the player rather than the traditional side on, 2D view.
I'm not sure if I would pick up the game itself, but the demo is definitely worth a look in.

SKATE / SKATE 2
Anyone that reads my articles (all 3 of you out there) know that lately Skate 2 has slowly taken control of my PS3. It's a great game, providing you stick at it for a while. So my advice is to give you that extra edge once you get the game, is to practice with the demo first. If you're used to the old Tony Hawks games then this is a bit of a shock to the system- the controls are vastly different and much harder to master. But because of this, finally nailing that hard trick you've been working on is far more satisfying.
This demo is a must have.


UFC
This demo most definitely worth downloading if you have friends, or ever plan on making any. When I lived in a house of 5 lads, this was one of the games that we played the most. There is nothing more satisfying in this world than sitting around, having a drink and beating the crap out of each other on a FREE game! (Albeit a demo, but free never the less).
This is another game that takes a while to master, as I still don't fully understand how the grappling works, but is still open to casual gamers who just want to punch and kick their way to victory.
This is a great fighting game, brilliant with friends and definitely worth downloading. Now.

MOTORSTORM: PACIFIC RIFT
Once you and your friends, imaginary or not, get bored of smashing each others faces in, then the next step up is to smash each others cars in! This beautiful racing game has been played many times over on my console and still gets asked to be put on when friends come over.
Whereas in the UFC game you only get to choose between two characters, this demo allows you to play with 3 very different vehicles; a Buggy, a Motorbike and a Monster Truck- each giving a very different style of game play.
There's nothing more I can say really. It looks incredible, game play is fun and varied and is brilliant fun when friends come over. Get this one downloaded immediately.

PIXEL JUNK EDEN
This game is beautiful. It is so beautifully simplistic and simplistically beautiful. Doesn't look too bad either. And I think it looks pretty.
This is a small, 2D game with only one button- Jump. And the directional buttons to control the jump. So that's two buttons really...
You (and a friend if they bore of smashing things up) jump around the 2D world, collecting what can only be described as "colourful dots", making plant-like towers grow.
Jumping and swinging around this little world is very relaxing. This game has to be experienced by all. And the price of this demo is just right- nothing!

TRASH PANIC
This is the latest demo to call my console home. I saw it when I was searching for the new Batman demo and noticed the tag for it said "FREE". So after I played the Batman demo several times over, I noticed this sitting in my demo folder, forgotten and alone... So I thought I'd bite the bullet and give it a go.
First thoughts? WOW- This is fun!!
Brilliant little game, very basic game play and VERY addictive! It's a bit like Tetris, you have objects coming in and you have to place them all into the trash container to make them fit. Sorry, did I say place? I meant SMASH! There are all sorts of objects- barrels, violins, teddy's, toilets, statues, motorbikes, flaming torches- all of which have fit into the bin. Wooden objects can be smashed and burnt to make room, but objects like toilets and washing machines are harder to to break, as well as letting out water that puts out fires.
This game is seriously addictive, and as the full game is only £3.99 I'm seriously tempted to splash out on the full game. And as you may have already gathered from this article, I'm quite tight with my cash!
So what are you still sitting here for? Download this demo now!


So that's my list of free demos I recommend you to download, currently installed on my PS3.
Before starting this article I asked around to see if anyone else had suggestions for demos to try. I had a few suggestions (@Dude2Devil suggested the Wanted demo) so decided to search through every nook and cranny of the PS Store for any demos that caught my eye. I now currently have about 20 demos downloading, so hopefully I should have a new list of demos for you to download soon.

If anyone has any suggestions of demos they would recommend, send me a message or leave a comment below. Or, if you're all modern and that, try Twittering me!

Now- go forth and download to your hearts content!


-- BIZNITCH --

(My friend @bols made me a new Gaming Avatar- so I thought it would be appropriate to post it here! Cheers Jen!)

Skate 2 Review (and a cameo from the Fresh Prince of Persia)

Biznitch- Sunday, 01:09am

Hello out there all the avid readers of PlayStation Blogger UK!
The one-man-band leading this whole operation has stretched out his hand to ask other for input on this fine website- so here I am!

I've written some stuff about gaming (mainly mindless rambling) so I am now here to inform you all about some of the games available for the PS3- and hopefully help you stay clear of the bad ones.

I thought the best way to start on this blog would be to talk about the games I've been playing recently, those being PRINCE OF PERSIA and SKATE 2.
I got the games from Amazon.co.uk when they had a PS3 sale, so snatched them both up for around £30.

So what follows are my initial reactions to the games and how they held out....

First up-

Skate 2-
HARD. I'm slowly getting the hang of it, then it tells me to do a "Revert to pop shuvit" and I couldn't figure out how to revert. It's not on the trick menu and I presume its no longer the good ol' "R2 on a half pipe" like back in the day when Tony taught us all.....
Each time I play I find myself getting better, but then a simple sounding challenge comes along that makes me realise just how terrible I am. Another instance came up after finally learning the controls and attempted a "S*K*A*T*E" challenge. I knew al the moves, but sadly it appears the omputer players do too... As far as I see, its impossible.

On top of this, the camera angle is so low that when you pick up speed you hit that jump you've had your eye on, your characters monstrous arse takes up so much of the screen that it becomes no more than a guessing game. Then if you hit the jump you still have to time your ollie just right. It very quickly becomes a trial and error effort- the same jump over and over and over again until you finally nail it and move onto the next jump/trick/sequence that you have to try over and over until you ask yourself "Why am I still playing this?" It feels like more of a chore at times than a game.
"Easy to pick up, life time to master" -> But missing out totally on the "Easy to pick up." Its almost as if the game doesn't want YOU to play. This isn't for you, its ours.... It's an exclusive party. But for some reason, the more I play, the more I want in. Why?!

However, the developers seem to have foresaw this inevitable tediousness of the game by adding an incredibly addictive mini-game. "The Hall of Meat". Basically, every time you bail it shows you your fall in slow motion and gives you points on how much you managed to cripple your character. Beautiful. Now, every time you get frustrated when you can't get that "Boneless to 360 spoon fuck" you simply throw yourself off a building, curl into a ball and aim for a passing car. And if your friend isn't any good in 2 player, let their downfalls become an advantage and play them at this instead!


Physics faults aren't common, but are HILARIOUS! (NOTE: ALL VIDEOS ARE MADE IN GAME)


FRUSTRATION soon lead me to try the other game-


Prince of Persia-
GOD AWFUL. As a fan of the previous instalments I was foolishly stricken down by something called "expectations". Dialogue is horrible, slap googly eyes on the characters and they look like they belong in a pokeball and the old fashioned smooth free-running from the old games?
OVER.
The Prince's new claw slows things down hugely- instead of running up a wall you jump-claw-jump-claw, assuming you haven't fallen asleep before you reach your destination- assuming some more that you haven't stabbed a knitting needle through your ear just to silence that TERRIBLE dialogue.


I know the video is crap- but imagine a whole game of THIS DIALOGUE!

On top of this the camera angles changes incredibly sporadically. It proves to be extremely irritating when you try to jump from a wall-run and the camera cuts to an "Uh-oh, you're falling down a hole!" above angle, as if the game itself is mocking you for almost failing. This then means you have to guess your jumps towards the end of the wall and I can tell you now- Blind Faith, although a fine name for a disabled Christian rock band, is a terrible idea for a free-running game as it breaks flow.
I stopped playing, promptly.



The next day however the strangest thing happened- I woke up and really wanted to play SKATE 2. It frustrated me so much, but I was getting better.
The day after I took a look at my games collection- SAINTS ROW 2, MGS4, LBP etc... And all I wanted to do was play SKATE-BLOODY-2.

It seemed that the more I played, better I got. The better I got, the more I wanted to play. It's actually great to find a game that you struggle with at first because eventually, once you finally master that move that's been taunting you for so long you actually feel a sense of accomplishment. And the rag-doll physics of throwing your skater from the highest building was tremendously, and eerily, relaxing!
The 2 player version of this brilliant too. Eventually everyone with a game like this becomes "That Guy" that no-one can beat because they've played it more. But with the "Hall of Meat" means that the worse your mates are at this game, the better chance they have! (Today I was actually beat by my 3 year old niece.... TWICE!!!)


So I think now is the time to wrap this little (little?!) review up. So, what have we learnt? Well, nothing really, but if my opinion is anything to be listened to I recommend people STAY AWAY from PRINCE of PERSIA. Although, if you really think it looks good and you REALLY love cell-shading (the EASY way out of graphic designing) then I say try renting it for the weekend.

And as for SKATE 2- well... Go for it! Or at least download the demo. Give it a chance. A friend asked me if they should get it after I first played it. I said "No! But try renting it..." and now I honestly think it's essential in a collection (I actually have it on pause now!) at least for variety if anything. It's a challenge, and although aspects are bad (one of which being the terrible off-board physics) the positives are great (the ability to move ramps/environmental objects off board and the sound track) and eventually brilliant (the on-board physics and the option to edit your own skating videos with ease- very fun!).

I recommend it. That's all I can say really.


Thank you for your time and please tip your waiters.


-- BIZNITCH --