PS4 vs Xbox One The Review

PS4 vs Xbox One The Review

By KamiKaze Dee

Last Gen I always sat on a level ground with PS3 and Xbox 360, both console offered something and stood strong. I have never limited myself to playing on one system to not miss out on anything. I was hoping this New Generation was going to be the same but sadly one console has had the earth rumble beneath it and fallen into a dark hole which I hope it can one day climb out of.

Both Consoles looked to be on a Level playing Field Launch title wise, Xbox One had Forza, Dead Rising and Ryse, PS4 Had Killzone, Knack and Drive Club. Sadly Sony Delayed Drive club leaving a big hole in their Launch line up.

In the end none of the Launch titles won me over on either console, I found Dead Rising and Ryse just to short and Forza was not my thing, Knack was enjoyable to start with but after the 4^th chapter it became apparent this game was getting tired on me very quickly. Out of both consoles exclusive Launch line ups I think Killzone was my winner but it did not have much competition.

Exclusives aside I also have played most of the multiplatform titles and 3 if them on both consoles to get a comparison. COD Ghosts this game for me ran the same on both platforms but seemed a lot easier to get into an online game on Xbox One during off peak hours. Assassins Creed Black Flag… Xbox One it was so shiny and bright still stunning but  when I tried it out on PS4 I was blown away more, the textures were more pleasing to the eye it was not as bright as Xbox One but looked a hell of a lot better been toned down. Even playing with the Contrast on the Xbox One version it always had this shiny bright appearance. Now for Battlefield 4, I cannot rate this game much on either console due to how broken it is to play on all platforms, I can say PS4 did look better visually but the constant crashes from no fault of either console made this game unbearable and put on to the Will buy when this shit aint broke list. A few titles I only have played on one console were Need for speed Rivals on Xbox One looked stunning, the online only gameplay was a bit of a downfall when there were morons in the lobby. Lego Marvel and Skylanders on PS4 they look good a definite step up from the Last gen versions.

PS4 has a lot more to offer with their downloadable titles, War Thunder, Contrast, Resogun were the free titles I picked up on PS4 good little games if you have a free moment to give them a go. Xbox One did not seem to have much to offer on the market place while I had it… Killer Instinct was the only free title they had but looked to require a lot of micro transactions.

Both Consoles introduced new controllers, Xbox One’s controller was a lot more comfortable than the 360 with the angled Triggers and flat battery pack it was a lot easier to hold with smaller hands it is a nice weight and holds battery charge for a decent amount of time. The PS4 Controller has had a big step up I found the old Dual shock 3 was a bit to small leading to hand cramps and I cannot imagine how Guys with bigger hands dealt with it. The Dual Shock 4 is the perfect fit for my hands and the new R2 and L2 Trigger shape actually makes me use them in shooters where on PS3 I was using R1 and L1. The only Downfall for the DS4 is the battery Life, hopefully Sony release a Patch to let you turn off the Light which seems to drain the power within 4-6 hours.

Xbox Ones biggest downfall for me was its Glitchy OS, Not only did I have a lot of issues with crashes but they have removed a lot of stuff that 360 has and people loved, cross game chat is no longer available you can party chat but everyone must be on the same game.  No notification when friends come online this has been removed from both Xbox One and PS4 but it is easier to check your friends list on PS4 then Xbox One.

My PS4 and Xbox One

The DVR on both consoles works fine, only problem with Xbox One it was a lengthy painful process to upload a clip which half the time for me crashed the whole system so sort of gave up on it. Xbox one really needed an upload to Facebook option imo.

The biggest problem I have with gaming is Updates and the size of them, Launch day for Xbox One for me was spent doing updates and installing discs, the updates were ridiculous and then the install time on discs it took me nearly 12 hours + 15gig to get the console and games set to play, Updates on PS4 are a lot smaller and the install time at least 80% faster.

In conclusion the better console at this point in the Next Gen war is PS4 by a mile, with its simple interface, smooth running OS and smaller Patch sizes it’s a key point for me with low data allowances. Xbox One does have promise but they need to fix the party chat system and The OS needs a big overhaul, hopefully they learn simple is Better. I have traded my Xbox One in due to Ongoing crashing Issues and Hope they release a fix or new model in the next year so I can jump back on, for now its just not a finished Product for me.

Now its just a waiting game for those must have titles to be released.

Overall Ratings

PS4: 8.5 ‘An All-round good gaming experience’

Xbox One: 7.0 ‘A little work will go a long way’

PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royal

PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royal
By KamiKaze Dee

Gameplay

If you love fun and party games then this is a must have for you, Although it is not a game I can sit and have a marathon session on I am happy enough to pop it in a few times a week and play right through one characters Solo campaign. The variety of characters means the All Stars has something for every gamer.

The easier setting make this game accessible to everyone you can team up with a friend, Child or any Relative and have a fun session, With so many characters everyone can find something they like, be It Nathan Drake with all his Guns of Sackboy with his Pop it each character brings a different element to the Gameplay.

Some characters move faster than others, for instance Nathan Drake can be slower while using weapon where if you use one of the smaller character you can get in there and get some quick combo’s going. Each Character has 3 Super powers you can choose to save up the Power meter getting you to level 2 or 3 which are 99% of the time guaranteed Knockouts or keep hammering with your level 1 power which maybe 10% of the time will get you a kill if you are in the right position. The level 2 and 3 powers really are where it is at and really do show what each character can do, for example at Level 3 Sack boy turns all character into orbs and then goes on to collect them each time you collect a character orb you get a kill. I strongly suggest holding out to get the Level 3 powers as it can be what wins the game in the end.

Levelling up you character’s does not seem to do more then give you unlocks, you can unlock costumes, backgrounds and Icons for you player card and also team titles. Some of their unlocks will look near impossible unless you are a hard-core fan and can get all the character up to level 300.

Graphics
The setting of the levels are taken from each character games and the all look exactly like they have been taken straight from there full games, The character models are excellent they look clean and smooth. Cut scenes are more of a Comic style with still Pictures and a voice over but they still look amazing.

Sound

There is a Great soundtrack as you play each level, you can unlock music from each character game so can customise the music around a bit to suit your character. The sound effects are spot on and clear, very crisp and great when turned up loud with a lot of base… It feels like Fight club in the Basement!

Voice acting is right out of each game, they sound like who they are supposed to be and they say what you would expect them to. You will get the classic one lines and can customise what they say during before and after fights as you level up.

Controls Interface

A well rounded control system that can vary in style from character to character, Moves are easy to pull off and remember and the Button layout is easily accessible. Some moves can be more tricky then others and with so many different moves you will find yourself doing the wrong ones but once you get use to the character it all comes together.

I did notice an Arcade setup in the control scheme so am not sure whether this mean you can plug in an arcade stick but I do see this as something that would work exceptionally well in this game.

Story Presentation

Pretty simple, run through each Solo mode with your character fighting everyone, they can come at you in groups of 1 – 3, and then you take on a big boss which is pretty easy. It is a basic story line being what it is but you get the cut scenes which can fill you in on the character if you are not too familiar with them.

The more characters you run through on solo mode the more you will get out of the stories, but you can always skip the cut scenes if you just want to get right in there and start the fight.


Multiplayer

Multiplayer is both hectic and fun and a great laugh, You can play from 2-4 players it is better with 4 but probably also best to be one to play with friends as the search tend to put you in games with red bars against Americans. 50% of the time I have found myself disconnected form the server after the match started due to excessive overseas lag, which is a shame. I have looked for local search options but so far have not found anything hopefully this will be sorted soon.

Overall

This game is the perfect addition to any PlayStation fan its every Sony Exclusive rolled into one, a great game to play with friends online and at home. I highly recommend it to every gamer out there. My overall experience has been pleasant and have not found myself to get a Rage meter going as of yet, when knocked up to the hardest difficulty you really will start to feel the challenge but it is worth it.

Ratings

Gameplay 9.5/10
Graphics 8/10
Sound 9/10
Controls Interface 9/10
Story Presentation 8/10
Multiplayer 8.5/10
Overall 9/10

Girl Gamers: The Good, The Bad and The Bitchy

I have been gaming for around 20 years and have been playing online for 7. In my 7 years of online gaming I have come across many Girl Gamers, Some I Still play with others have disappeared into the gaming community and then there is the small handful I can consider as my real life friends and have met that I would not give away.

When Xbox first launched the official Xbox community set up a group for girls called Gamerchix, with nearly 10’000 members before it shut down there were a lot of different personalities. While I spent some time with this group a Clan was set up called Trixies GamerchiX (TGC), this was one of my first experiences of playing online with a group of girls. We played a lot of COD2 and to start with it was great fun, then the personalities clashed, we had certain members who were very competitive and very in your face with the other teams to insure them that they were beat by girls. In the end the Clan Split up and some of us left attempted setting up a new Clan away from GamerchiX called Girlz are Legendz (GAL). Due to this clan been an American based Clan I was unable to keep up with their game times so in the end had to leave.

After my experience with those 2 Clans I went back to just casual playing with my friends I had found while spending time in the Australian Xbox Forums, These guys were always polite and friendly and not competitive at all and like myself jut enjoyed having fun and a laugh. I have got one good friends left from the GamerchiX and she is a lovely lady from Florida who I use to stay up all night with playing the first Saints row and having a laugh.

2 or 3 years ago I decided to give the Girl gaming community another chance and venture over to the PMS/H20 forums, although this was an American group they had an Australian division for Halo 3, I went through the trial and made it and made my new PMS gamertag ,PMS Domino was born. Although due to work I didn’t play as much as some of the girls and guys when I did I felt very welcomed, I Never really had the skills like a lot of the girls in PMS but they never made you feel inferior. I love having a few games of Halo with PMS/H20 although they were organised it was still fun. The Australian Division of PMS has now disbanded but I still do have a few of the PMS Girls and H20 Boys on my Friends list today.

Since PMS I have not joined another Clan on Xbox I found myself just wanting to play with friends casually and having a laugh. All the Girl clans I looked at a while ago were either very competitive or there forums were full of bitchy remarks. So during my time in the Girl Gaming Community I have found there seems to be 4 types of Girl Gamers

Type One: The Casual Girl

This is the group I play with now, we are the girls who just play for a laugh, we play anything, we play with the boys and don’t go advertising that we are girls and are not arrogant enough to go screaming out YOU GOT BEAT BY A GIRL. The casual gamer girl just slips in with the gaming community and gets along with all the Casual players be they male or female.

Type 2: The Shy Girl

This is where I was when I first started gaming, This is the girl who’s gamertag does not show she is a she and who will not use a mic in public games as she does not want to put up with constant abuse and guys cracking on to her. You will find her mostly in the single player world but when she does go online it is with a muted mic and she normally only stays one match. The shy girl just needs a bit of a nudge to come out of her shell so don’t give up on her.

Type 3: The Bitch

I have come across a few of these types in my time in the girl gaming community, These are the girls who make sure they announce to everyone in the lobby they are a girl and they will kick your ass, these are the girls who crack onto random guys in the lobby trying to make herself look cool even if she is in a relationship. These girls spend more time bitching about other players then talking tactics and are out for themselves, teamwork is the last thing on their mind.

Type 4: The Competitive Lady

This is one I have only ever experience when playing with PMS/H20, these girls are cooptative but they are polite about it, they hold their heads high in the gaming community but they do not put people down. They help the Casual gamers out and give them some tips, they are always happy to play for fun but they also are ready for a battle.

I know everyone has their own personality but from my view this is the main 4 types of girl gamers I have run into over the years in the Xbox community, For some reason the PS3 community has not shown me much in the Female gamers, but I have been in my Clan SPT for around 4 years so have not really ventured out to have a look.

So next time you run into a female gamer remember she does not want to hear about how big you penis is, she does not want to sleep with you, she is there to game just like you and should not have to put up with been told to get back in the kitchen and make you a sammich.I mean if you can't get into the Kitchen to make yourself a sammich you must look like this (see not everyone like stereotypes)

So in conclusion we are all gamers we all love to play, just get on with it and stop and think before you speak being polite goes a long way and will earn you a lot more respect in the real world then you KDR

To Finnish of I have some Quotes from The Men of SPT about how they see Girl Gamers

Axe99 -  "brutal, and you'd better watch your back"

Not really, of course, bumped into a few in my time, and girl gamers tend to be like most gamers (at least to blokes - may well be some bitchiness between each other, I've never really understood that m'self, but seen it between women plenty IRL).

Rocket - Had a great girl gamer in the HellFish back in the day, but sadly lost touch with her. She went by the name Dafunkette. At first she was just using her BF's account Dafunk, so we all started calling her funkette, so when she finally made her own account she just went with that. Wasn't the strongest player, but we always had great fun with her in Socom 1 & 2. Had us all in stitches one particular game when we were all dead and the only player left on alive on our team was camping it out. We were all just talking crap, and all of a sudden funkette starts telling us about a certain piercing she had. Funny as fuck.

My Undead Gaming

Zombies, Undead, Walkers, just few of the many names given to the living dead. Over the years Zombies have become very present in the gaming world and have made for me some of the best gaming experiences out there. In this article I will be writing about some of my favourite zombie experiences gaming has to offer.

Left 4 Dead 2

Okay so Australia sort of got shafted with L4D2 with a piss weak version with no blood and bodies that just vanished, when I first played this watered down version I just couldn’t get into it. It wasn’t until I imported an uncut copy from the UK that I really got into and enjoyed playing this game.

L4D2 is another game made for playing with friends, AI controlled team mates are useless at times, especially when a clown is up your ass honking its stupid red nose, Sorry I have Clown fear. My most memorable moment playing this game with friends is carrying around the gnome in the carnival level only to get right to the end and run the wrong way and get nailed, Laughs all round but it was annoying having to do that final battle again.

Up to 4 friends can jump into the action, with a vast arsenal of weapons from Guns to Fry pans and my personal favourite the gold club, The Zombies can be a little repetitive and when you here the crying of a witch you find yourself inching around the map trying not to wake the red eyes whore up... or in my case trying to get as close as possible and running away before she give chase.... ahh good times.

L4D2 is a good all round Co Op experience with the right fun gamers, I highly suggest importing the uncut version if you can and not playing this on your own it just doesn’t hold up as a single player game.

7 Undead Chickens out of 10

Dead Island

Another zombie game made to lay with friends, unlike L4D2 this game can hold its own when playing solo but I still preferred having a bit of backup when taking on the armies of the Undead. This game can be brutal at times I did find myself bolting to the exits on many occasions just to get away from some mad Undead bitch who was about to take a chunk out of my ass.

Dead Island has some great weapons from guns to Melee, you will find bullets are hard to come buy so don’t go wasting them all at once especially on a zombie that could easily be whacked in the head with a paddle.

I loved the game and have put a lot of time into it with my friends but alas had not had the time to finish it. I recommend this game to anyone who has a good amount of time on their hands love large open worlds and love having things jump out at them from every corners. You can play this on your own but it is awesome to play with your mates as well

8 Undead Chickens out of 10

Resident Evil 5

 Out of all of my Zombie games RE5 feels like it is the serious one of the bunch.  You play as Chris Redfield or Sheva Aloma.  If you are familiar with the latest Resident Evil movie you will see a lot of familiar faces from Jill Valentine to Wheska and a few areas seem similar like the movie may have taken some pages from the RE5 book. I found the similarities to tie the games and movies together a lot more.

The combat in RE5 can take some getting use to with not been able to move while looking down sights or shooting can make this feel awkward to start with.  I tend to run in to bad situation without thinking which in RE5 is not the best move in this game, take your time line up your shots and make sure you watch your back.

You will come across a lot of different enemies during you time in RE5 I was especially welcome by the giant Crocodile in chapter 3-2 who decided to give me a big love bite 5 or 5 times, apart from gunplay in this game you will also have a few cinematic scenes which will give you prompts to press button combination, be quick and don’t stuff up as they can change when u try again.

RE5 is a great survival horror game and has left me rubbing my hands together or the upcoming Resident Evil 6 and I only hope it is as good even better then RE5

8.5 Undead Chickens out of 10

Red Dead Redemption Undead Nightmare

I love RDR, I have put a lot of hours into the campaign and have legend 5 times during my Multiplayer wanderings, When Undead Nightmare was Released I was more than happy to part with some points to get some Zombie Cowboy action going on.

Combat in Undead Nightmare is similar to the combat in RDR apart from you must get head shots so having aim assist does not help as much just remember to try aim high when you shot, I found the shotguns to be more reliable in zombie killing until I got my hands on the blunderbuss but you don’t get that tile halfway through the game.

You can wander the full RDR world during this expansion head up to Tall trees to hunt some zombie grizzlies or even hunt the mythical Sasquatch. During you wandering you will 5 mythical creatures there are 4 horses of the apocalypse and a unicorn to be found and they can be used as mounts during the game.

This expansion has a decent length and I recommend it to any RDR fan, it also opens up a zombie survival game mode online and zombie characters, but there moaning got on my nerves after a while.

9 Undead chickens out of 10

Call of Duty Zombies

Zombies were first introduced to COD in World at War and then again inn Black Ops; there have always been fun expansions to the game and a nice break from the online MP modes of the game when needed.

COD Zombies is a Wave mode Survival you can only go through doors and unlock weapons as you earn more money, it is best to play this with friends and not randoms as most randoms are all for themselves. Conserve your ammo there is nothing worse then been chased down by a hoard of zombies with a few pistol rounds.

If you want to get the most out of Zombies on COD I suggest getting BLOPs it had several zombie DLC expansions come out after release including one where you could play as some famous faces like Buffy and Freddy Kruger. When you play Survival on Modern Warfare 3 you will really miss the lack of zombies bring on BLOPS 2

7 Undead Chickens out of 10

                                                        

So in conclusion of my Zombie loving rant, there are a couple of Zombie games on my radar this year, First of Resident Evil 6 the follow up to RE5 I am rubbing my hands together for this and have already got my copy ordered Also PS3 owner keep your eye out for a game called Last of us, this game looks very promising from the makers of Uncharted it can’t go wrong.