Ahhh, Mass Effect, it’s a series we all love, lets be honest. Commander Shepard’s adventures, whether male or female, across the galaxy are something that we can all sink our teeth into and enjoy, whether it’s the epic storyline, or galactic freedom. And while the first Mass Effect was good, Bioware hit the nail on the head with Mass Effect 2, taking all the bad elements from the first game and making them good, whilst making all the good ones even better.

As such, I was really intrigued to see Mass Effect 3. It’s not a foreign scenario that a game can easily shoot itself in the foot, change too much and our precious gem that we all fell in love with is now some ugly, misshapen stool that will only end in tears.

Is this the case for Mass Effect 3? The answer to that question is a huge resounding no. In the past, I’ve blamed games for being too samey, for not pushing the boat out with their sequels and generally being more of the same, and I could say the same thing about Mass Effect 3. Everything that was offered to me upon playing the game was what we’ve seen before. Similar enemies, similar characters.

The huge difference here is that Bioware got the formula right the second time around. Mass Effect 2 was fantastic and there was very little to improve upon to make the experience Mass Effect 3 offers any better.

Beginning a new game, I had the option of Action, where the game’s cutscenes played themselves, Role Play, where I can have a few choices in how conversations went (the classic method we’re all used to), or Story, in which all the conversation options you choose actually effect how the story progresses. Whilst it does allow for a whole new level of depth, and also a whole new level of mistakes, I played on Action. Not only did I want to get to the action, I love getting immersed in the storyline, rather than making choices every 2 seconds. I understand why people would want to chose from a vast array of different story paths, and it allows you to create a unique experience, it just doesn’t interest me. So this was a well received feature for myself (don’t hate me).

To start with, we’re shown a clip of Shepard being called into a urgent conference. Following the cliffhanger showing thousands of Reapers waiting to pounce every planet known to mankind, it appears they have well and truly pounced. Assuming Shepard to be the only man (or woman) who has come into contact with them, they hope he can shed some light on surviving and beating the monsters.

Just after Shephard’s positive response of “All you can do is hope” the planet is attacked by several Reapers, destroying towns, people and vehicles alike. Making a quick escape with Anderson they race through the crumbling city to the Normandy.

Without failing, Mass Effect 3 immediately provide us with drama, action and even a heart wrenching scene, in which a small boy I attempted to save whilst running through the carnage boarded a ship that is destroyed by a Reaper as it tries to fly away. A world that is in desperate peril is easily conveyed by these opening scenes alone. The scene is set within seconds, and the game takes no time in bringing you back to where you left off.

Making our escape, the Normandy is told to take a trip to Mars to recover what could be information regarding the Reaper’s one and only weak point. Turning up, we’re treated to a fantastically red sunset, with a dust storm brewing in the distance. I don’t want to be the one to spoil (Yes, spoils this early in), but you meet up with an old friend and traverse a base in which your information is located right in the centre.

If there was one complaint I may have had, it would be with a certain element in this section. To get to a passing room, you need to head past a huge, auto locking, heavy firing, ceiling mounted turret, which will obliterate you without hesitation. It’s the second level of the game, right? This can’t be too difficult. Using a run and cover system, your aim of getting from one cover to the next whilst following Ashley appears to be simple and relatively easy. However one mis-step and it’s a swift death you’ll be receiving.

This was when I started noticing the games odd difficulty curve, which of course could be purely personal. Everybody tackles situations differently, and it’s no secret that shooters aren’t games I excel in at the best of times, but one moment I was clearing rooms with ease, and then would have several enemies asking if I wanted pepper with my backside.

Combat is just how we remember it, as is traversing through the levels, maybe things in this game were a little less clear then before, but after a few minutes of looking around I figured out most of the challenges put in from of me. The Skill system has had a revamp however, being replaced by a tier system; you level up on skill that opens up a path to two other skills, closing the path to several others. This method means that min-maxers or people with a fear of making decisions need to get their heads around it quickly. A large amount of different cominbations will be available, as per usual, but this will literally cut you off from being able to get skills further down the line, so choose carefully.

At the end of the day Mass Effect 3 is pretty much what we’ve seen in the past, just extending the story. Usually when I end a play session feeling like that, it’s a negative thing, but Mass Effect doesn’t need to change. The game is familiar, and it will allow you to pick up the controller and wonder if the gap between the two games actually happened. The foundations were built, and they were already several floors up; Mass Effect 3 just takes us even further.

If you dislike the fact some games are too samey and you’re hoping for a completely different experience, then I would still suggest you pursue Mass Effect 3 very closely, because it’s looking like yet another masterpiece. Yeah, I’m that sure.

Mass Effect 3 is due to be released on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC on March 6th in North America, with the European release to follow on the 9th of March.

Let me be honest dear reader, I’ve only ever had one past experience with SSX, and that was with SSX Tricky way back in 2002. I was pretty young at the time and whilst I found the game enjoyable, it wasn’t exactly something I was letting my PS2’s laser burn to death over. Like most people, I had seen a few trailers, videos, and ideas behind what the game was and in what direction it was heading, but that was all I really knew about SSX going into my hands on experience at EA HQ.

However, the premise of SSX isn’t something that’s alien to me. Picking tracks and traversing down snowy mountainsides is where SSX lies, and it does it well. Tricky kept me engaged for some time with the tracks it did provide, but it felt like it was all over a little too quickly, which is most likely the reason I didn’t keep the game in my console for more than a few weeks.

Getting my hands on the upcoming SSX was a bit of an odd one for me. One part of me really wanted to experience what the game had to offer, and another part of me didn’t really have a clue as to what was going on. I almost felt out of my depth, but despite this, it quickly became apparent that my misgivings and worries were actually helping me in the current situation.

SSX is a complete reboot, taking what the series has offered gamers in the past, it has redefined itself in many ways. However the most obvious one was in content, and my, how SSX has grown. Boasting a huge world, 29 of the Worlds Mountains with 150 event drops and tracks, each with unique challenges means that SSX won’t be boring its audience any time soon. The replayability it something that the team have obviously been going for and I can definitely see why.

The tutorial alone was enjoyable, having you spinning infinitely through the air to learn how to control the board. Every wiggle of the thumbstick reveals a different way to grab your board, which in turn allows for hundreds of different combinations to pull off whilst flinging yourself to what should be certain doom. It then drops you onto the ground, allowing you to practice controls and to get your player swerving from one ledge to the next, combining it with the tricks you learnt freefalling.

Once you’ve got the hang of that, you’re put into a race with some AI, to storm down a mountainside and beat the others, showing off your skills while you’re at it. Basic SSX stuff, veterans won’t be disappointed. This is where the game really shines. Without any need for incentive, we found our characters flinging themselves off cliffs, grinding down pipes; on their heads and performing death defying stunts.

The game excels in so many areas it’s hard to know where to start. The beautiful updated graphics fit nicely in the current era of HD, creating realistic and some jaw dropping moments that definitely get you caught in the moment. The snow covered mountains – despite all sharing a glaringly common factor (they are white) – are all unique and have been designed in a way that no two tracks, at least of the few I played on, felt the same. Level design has definitely been upped several notches.

The soundtrack is, as always, a beat thumping adrenaline ride, with actual songs from actual artists some you may recognise. SSX is semi-famous for its fantastic choice in music that is sold on the shelves yet fits perfectly into their game. Despite no headphones, so a lot of noise mixing together, the sound was crisp and clear, every grind, leap and fall felt real, with the voice acting and menu swapping helping the flow of the game in its entirety.

The game itself was easy to understand and follow, especially for someone who had distanced himself from the only exposure he had to it for such a long time. With responsive and understanding controlls, it was easy to pick up and play, whilst it was also obvious that experts and hardcore players of the series would be able to develop tricks and techniques that people like myself could only dream of. The balance is nice, and whilst I was happy plodding along at my own speed, people were equally enjoying speeding past and doing things as they wanted.

This started to show me that, despite the aim to make it to the other end in one piece, the game offers a very diverse experience depending on who is playing it. Everyone will find different ways to explore the levels, but you’ll also find the game changing as you start to learn more and develop new techniques, allowing for a completely different level, and a whole new game.

Whilst I enjoyed it as a whole, I couldn’t help but feel SSX was running purely for the fans of the series. The tutorial levels were good and it was easy to pick up, but there wasn’t a lot to help take you to a new level, and further your skill. The levels seemed to randomise in difficulty, the first I played being easy, the second excruciatingly hard, and the third easier than the first. While veterans will easily traverse these levels in a matter of seconds, newcomers to the SSX world (and let’s be honest, there could be a lot of them) may be turned off by the sporadic difficulty curve, and be left with a confusing experience, giving up on a solid game early on.

But a solid game is definitely what they’d be missing out on. While SSX doesn’t bring much new to the series apart from a few interesting tidbits here and there, it is bringing an old series back to life, and a second run in an industry that is much more open to new ideas and fresh innovation. As such, I think SSX will fit that gap perfectly. Since its absence, there’s been a hole that no extreme sports game could really fill, so what better game to fill SSX’s boot’s than SSX?

SSX is due for release on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in North America on February 28th with a European release following on March 2nd.

I am always sceptical when a new shooter comes onto the scene, and as far as I’m concerned, that’s through no fault of my own. First Person Shooters have come bursting onto through the gaming scene as of late, bringing with them an audience that claim the latest CoD is the greatest thing to grace our consoles.

And that’s because those games very rarely create a sense of community, or a feeling of belonging that a good MMO or multiplayer platformer does. In a FPS title your team is expendable, or worse still will insufferably baby you through levels, online modes promote run and gun solo gameplay, no matter how many people you’re teamed with.

With Future Soldier, we have one of those rare moments where a game – or more specifically a development team – has put its foot down. Ubisoft has recognised this flaw and said ‘No!’ They have twisted the genre to change the solo mentality it sells.

From the get go, Ghost Recon: Future Soldier is about trusting your team and playing a core role in a squad. You won’t get very far in Future Soldier if you decide to use your run and gun method; your team mates are key to survival.

Which is fine when playing with an intelligent human friend, right? But we’ve all seen the appalling AI in past video games. The team-mate in Army of Two that would be more interested in that brick wall way over there than helping eliminate the twenty enemies aiming their guns at your arse. However it seems that guy didn’t make it into the Ghost Recon squad.

No, Future Soldier’s AI is really something to bask in. Your team-mates won’t stand in the middle of bullet fire or forget where that pesky revive needle has gotten to. They’ll be efficient, sharp and on the ball, regularly spotting things you miss, or rushing to your aid. However in return, they require your help.

With a quick tagging system you can tell team mates what enemies to take out. While this is handy mid combat, where a team-mate is in a better position to take out the turret raining bullets onto you, it’s also perfect to tag a bunch of enemies before engaging them and either avoid a potential shoot up, or drastically change the tides before hand.

Teamwork to the max; you can also tag fellow endangered team-mates, and the remaining members will do their best to revive/aid the selected comrade. Whilst I didn’t see an option to tell them to take cover, the AI position themselves in the most optimum positions and are flawless during stealth missions.

Along with the impressive AI is a string of interesting gadgets, aptly designed to enhance this team-play mindset, including my favourite: Intel grenades. Lob one of these bad boys into a crowd and upon digitally exploding, it will tell you who is a threat and who is a civilian, without raising any sort of alarm. Whilst a quick scan of the area usually does the trick, this helps quickly identify soldiers to tag and take down.

We’re also given drones, which act very similarly to the Recon Drones in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 online, allowing you to tag several enemies from a safe distance and then command team mates to take them out.

Also included is a cover charge (similar to the system from the Gears of War series) in which your character charges from one point of safety to another, allowing for quick cover swaps for maximum stealth and protection. It also provides the only method of swapping cover without deactivating your camo shield.

The aiming of where you’re cover charging to seems incredibly quick to punish. A slight margin of error sent my soldier charging straight into enemy view, or directly into an oncoming threat. In one mission, I had the ultimate joy of having to take down a tank. When charging to a spot that held tank destroying turrets, I found myself standing face-to-turret with said war machine. Within seconds my body had been pierced to an unrevivable extent, before adding insult to injury by running me over.

Ubisoft told us that there are a few bugs still in the game and glitches we’d probably encounter and that the day was just about showing the game off, rather than having a perfect build. However, there were noticeable and frequent framerate drops which I’m sure will be fixed by actual release.

But despite the glitches (one of which included my character jumping through a wall and having him wade waist deep through the floor) the games main attributes pulled through in the demos. Ubisoft’s aim of creating a team based First Person Shooter where co-op is an actual element rather than an added afterthought shows.

The love for the genre is apparent through the game, and learning that since the beginning of Future Soldier’s journey there have been four special forces troops on board, showing the development team how a squadron acts on the battlefield, recreating scenario’s to bring a level of reality to the designers, really shows in the demo alone; how the squad act as a real, genuine team rather then a bravado, Hollywood laden testosterone-athon.

Future Soldier is looking to be a solid FPS that could define the genre. Along with the hard hitting blockbuster titles that are ready to lead 2012 on a gaming revolution, it could find itself a nice little niche to fill. With the dust finally settling on the Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3 war, there’s plenty of room for Ghost Recon to take the stage.

There’s no doubt that this game will raise the bar. Let’s just hope it lives up to the high expectations.

Ghost Recon Future Soldier is set for a May 25th release date on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, with a PC release to follow at a later date.

If you’ve been on Facebook at any point in the last year or so then you will have no doubt noticed just how many of those time management games there are on there. You know the kind, the FarmVille’s of the world, those games that drain your life away without you even knowing there was anything wrong; and that’s coming from a World of Warcraft player.

Considering just how many of those types of games litter the internet, with the majority of them being concentrated on Facebook, it could be seen as a surprise to find out that not many of them are any good. A handful of them are worth anybody’s time, with The Sims Social topping that list for a lot of people. 8 Realms is another game in that same vein, some nice changes make it a little bit different but, for the most part, people that have played those games before will feel right at home.

8 Realms is developed by Jagex, a name that may be familiar to those of you that have played their other popular time-sink, Runescape. With a hugely popular MMO like that under your belt you can rest assured that they know how to get your attention and keep it. 8 Realms takes the expertise that they gained developing and maintaining Runescape and puts it all in a wrapper that makes it accessible to just about everyone.

The first thing you’ll notice when you start up 8 Realms is just how good it looks, there’s a nice cartoon feeling to the whole world that you’ll be playing in and that helps to keep the target audience of the game aimed squarely at the general market. You’ll be given a set of tasks that you have to complete as well as plenty of instructions in order to help you along your way to absolute domination. Before long you’ll be doing everything without much prompting from the game. If there was anything to criticise about this early part of the game it’s that the world that you’re given to play in feels a little small. The size of the game world is probably just about right for people that don’t play games on a regular basis but those of us that spend almost every minute of free time with a controller or a keyboard and mouse in our hands will feel like we want to get out and do a little bit more exploring; this isn’t possible. This small issue isn’t a game-breaker though and even the most hardcore gamers will probably find themselves coming back from time to time to check on how their civilisation is coming along, finishing off some quests and maybe invading some nearby settlements for those ever-so-precious raw materials.

At this point a lot of people may be asking “where’s the game part of this game?” and that would be a good question, while the casual players – those that are used to simple Facebook games and other games of that ilk – will be more than content clicking around in the starting area, doing the odd task here and there and maybe progressing a little bit, the hardcore gamers in the audience would feel left out if there wasn’t something to work towards, a proverbial pot of gold at the end of the rainbow (ask Colm, he knows) and for those people there are the different ages that you can work through. Just like in the Age of Empires games players can progress through their current age by completing tasks that are given to them. This will give the people that aren’t content with just clicking around something to aim towards, and it’s always a good idea to have a goal in mind.

There’s not much more that can be said about 8 Realms, it’s close enough to something that we’ve seen before that people will feel comfortable moving across to it and there’s something here that everyone is going to enjoy. The casual players will be happy doing their normal tactics of clicking around, upgrading their structures, researching different things and generally tending to their little towns; and being damn proud of it too. The players that require a little bit more substance will find what they’re looking for too in the sense of advancing through the ages, raiding nearby villages and towns and working through their required tasks in a strategic, methodical way in order to do what they need to do in the most efficient way possible; just as gamers tend to do.

If you’re looking for a time-management game with definite real-time strategy leanings then you should give 8 Realms a go. With a name like Jagex attached to it you know that you’re getting quality and the fact that you don’t have to go to Facebook in order to play it can be nothing but a good thing; especially if the aforementioned website is blocked at your place of employment. This genre of game screams for the touch interface of something such as the iPad and while there isn’t a dedicated app on the iTunes App Store (please Jagex, release one!) the web version of the game at www.8Realms.com works perfectly fine on the iPad through the Safari browser; it’s a little slow at the moment but it works. That’s more than can be said for 95% of those Facebook games I was talking about earlier.

8 Realms is set for release this year, be sure to check the official website at www.8Realms.com for more information.

For all of today’s military shooters that preach of realism and promise accurate representations of warzones past, present, future, fictional and non-fictional; the Call of Dutys, Battlefields and Medal of Honors of this world do little to show the player that war is not always about gung-ho heroes and run-and-gun tactics. I would imagine that transferring the playstyles of these games to a real-world warzone would at best, end in injury; at worst, death.

Sometimes it takes patience and proper planning to win a war; choosing your targets selectively and thinking of the bigger picture before a shot is fired. It just so happens that the previous sentence could be used to accurately describe Sniper Elite V2.

Veteran British developers Rebellion took an interesting approach to war with the release of the original Sniper Elite in 2005 for Xbox, PC (and later, Wii). The concept of becoming an Allied sniper in World War II, with stealth and environmental awareness serving as more effective weapons than standard firearms, is one that set it apart from the many other World War II-themed games available at the time. A console generation later, V2 brings back these ideas to create a more cerebal combat experience.

Returning as Karl Fairburne, the player finds themselves in Germany near the end of the war. The Nazis are practically making a last stand, as forces from both the Allied Nations and Russia begin to roll into Berlin. Secretly, the Germans have been developing the V-2 rocket; the first long-range combat-ballistic missile ever created. Fairburne has been tasked with ensuring that the Allies obtain the V-2 technology, while keeping it out of the hands of the Russians; by assassinating V-2 scientists who intend to defect to the Russians, or rescuing scientists that can be turned to the side of the Allies.

Sniper Elite V2′s Senior Producer, Steve Hart walked us through sections of two of the game’s eleven missions. Beginning with the second level, he strolled through the decimated streets of Berlin, to assassinate a Nazi scientist and retrieve some V-2 intel from his corpse. Gameplay is in the third person, with an emphasis on stealth; players can walk while crouched, to move around without being detected. Right from the start of the mission, Steve demonstrated one of the game’s more low-tech items; a rock that can be picked up and thrown to distract and lure enemy soldiers, while he sneaked past them, undetected.

Upon reaching a suitable vantage point, it is possible to use a pair of standard issue binoculars to survey the environment. This enables the player to take a closer look at enemies for further information such as rank, weaponry and their distance away from them. Enemy soldiers can also be tagged with a marker, to make it easier to keep track of enemy movements. While inspecting the area, an enemy sniper was spotted from their own vantage point, it was highlighted that there are situations where the player will need to decide what targets need to be taken out first: Do you take out the closest enemy that is likely to notice you are there and raise the alarm, or do you dispatch the sniper that is just waiting for you to make a mistake. There is then the issue of protecting your vantage point, which is where landmines and tripmines come into play, these defences are suitable for placement in doorways and corridors, acting as an early warning alarm, should an unnoticed enemy try sneak up from behind.

Once the targets had been identified and the plan of attack had been decided, it was time to “Go loud” as Steve exclaimed, switching to the sniper rifle, a typical scope view appeared. From here it is apparent that sniping in this game takes a different approach. When targetting, the player needs to think about the distance and enivonmental factors before pulling the trigger, plus in the bottom-left side of the screen the player is given a heartbeat reading in beats per minute (bpm). The faster your heart beats, the more difficult it is to focus on a target; in times like this, you need to exhale and expel the air from your lungs; this calming action helping to steady your aim before you take that deadly first shot.

Once the trigger is pulled, there is no turning back. Should the sniper’s aim be true, the game’s defining KillCam feature triggers, showing a bullet’s journey from muzzle to target. Depending on how good the shot was (the game scores you on your accuracy), an X-Ray view is shown of the bullet piercing through skin, shattering bones and sometimes, utterly destroying vital organs. Watching a well placed chunk of lead, puncture a human being’s lung in slow motion is surprisingly shocking, showing the player a grisly consequence of their actions. These sequences are calculated on the fly, and are not canned animations; at one point, a soldier was shot in the hand, his finger bones crumbling upon impact.

Once the KillCam has done it’s work, it was time to dispatch the rest of the enemies. A flurry of KillCam sequences after (we were told that the demo triggers KillCams more than usual, which will be rectified in the final game) it was time to move to the next objective (a dynamic music system indicates whether enemies are still in the area); placing explosives to set a trap for the German scientist’s convoy. Once completed, it was time to travel to the next vantage point, to oversee the convoy roll into position.

After the explosives had been triggered, chaos ensues and a Tiger tank rolls in, to come after the player. Steve points out that this particular kind of tank had it’s own Achilles’ Heel; the fuel tanks on it’s rear, with their bright red caps practically screaming “Shoot me”. A well placed shot later, and the tank was toast; with only a few German soldiers in the way, it was only a matter of time until the Scientist would be assassinated, and the Intel recovered.

What impressed me about Sniper Elite V2, is the idea that the player actually has to think like a sniper. A popular sniper tactic is to wound an enemy, so that their colleagues will leave their post to retrieve their fallen comrade (and turning them into an easy target in the process) – This is a valid tactic that can be used in the game.

When walking us through the tenth level of the game (set in the trenches, in the middle of a battle between Russian and Nazi troops), thunder and lighting pounds the battlefield. An icon in the top-right of the screen will flash up when a crack of thunder is heard. This allows particularly smart snipers to use the thunder to their advantage, taking shots that would otherwise be so loud it would alert the enemy.

It’s these details, that make Sniper Elite V2 an interesting alternative to the modern day military-themed game. The emphasis of stealth and encouraging the player to think before they act, makes this game one to watch when it is released sometime in May. Keep an eye on GodisaGeek.com in the coming days, for an insightful interview with Senior Producer, Steve Hart.

Snipe Elite V2 is due to be released for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC at some point in 2012. As soon as a firm release date is announced, you’ll know about it from GodisaGeek.com.

Whilst there are many words that make up what video games should be, ‘depth’ is probably one of the most important. Maintaining a high amount of detail, care and attention all under one simple term means that “depth” is a number one priority for developers when creating games. Having had the chance to preview some heavy hitters coming in the next few months/year such as Metal gear Solid 3D and Guild wars 2, I find it’s something that was lacking in these AAA titles.

Whilst the games weren’t necessarily bad, there were certain elements to the games that were missing, be them console limitations or genre discrepancies. As such, on the way to try Skullgirls, the latest 2D fighter in development, I told myself to be ready for the small nuances that make the previews fun, yet annoying. Those small parts that on their own, wouldn’t make much difference, but piled together certainly shows the lack of depth in a title.So it was an incredible shock when I picked up the controller and was lost in a world of absolute wonder for 2 hours straight.

Let me be clear, Skullgirls is a game that has depth, to a point that I’m pretty sure the pit is bottomless. The amount of care and affection that has gone into creating this game is seen from the get go. A clean, smooth menu with a Hollywood feel greeted me into the game, with each option clearly, and beautifully, labelled.

The menu continued being gorgeous as we flicked onto the character selection screen, each avatar of the selectable ladies positioned in a square, and three pedestals on each players side. “Three, you say?” Three indeed. Skullgirls allows you to chose the amount of characters you want to use, a single, powerful character; two less powerful characters or three even less powerful characters. This leaves players choosing between Power and Stamina, combos within one character or several.

However it’s when actually playing the game you really get to see much of the love, albeit a slightly disturbing love. From the get go, each character has its unique style, a certain way of fighting that makes them stand out from the crowd. One lady, Painwheel, uses her bones and mutilated body to bring the pain, while Parasoul relies on gadgets and bombs for a tactical style of play.

Whilst not an avid fighting fan myself, as such I couldn’t perform the more advanced moves without a bit of practice, however Skullgirls understood that. Instead of penalising me for not being able to perfectly execute quick hand gestures, I could play at my own pace and was met with an enjoyable and unrepetetive experience. This is because Skullgirls doesn’t ignore its genre. It doesn’t use it purely as a device to categorise itself, but takes onboard everything the genre comes with, including new, or inexperienced players, and shows them how to play. To further this is an extensive tutorial system, that unlike many heavy hitters within the genre, such as Tekken and Super Street Fighter’s mid-game, ‘hit these buttons’ tutorials, Skullgirls takes you through many lessons, starting from simple jumping and attacking, all the way through to performing huge combos and pulling of super attacks. Skullgirls takes its time to make sure everyone is on a similar footing before plunging them into the thick of battles.

Whilst I didn’t get to see it, the game will be coming with a story mode which will revolve around each characters journey to receive the elusive Skull Heart and avoid the Skullgirl, a terrible force that consumes a person after attempting to use the Skull Heart with an impure soul. Though I didn’t see any storyline, the characters each had a story to tell, purely through how they looked and the moves they used. Each character holds a certain secret behind them that can only bring video game gold when tackled through story lines.The style of the game is fresh and different, with detailed backgrounds (one including a scenic neighborhood which had each developer and their pets) and extensive character designs, which is only made more impressive knowing that everything is hand drawn.

With smooth transitions, and the highest framerate possible, the game is a pleasure to just watch, let alone actually play. One small downside, which was pointed out both verbally and visually, is that some things work slightly too fast. Some graphics – Peacock’s moves most notably – happen so fast I didn’t see the entire effect until it was repeated a few times. Whilst so much effort has gone into these cheeky animations, it’s a shame to see them go to waste, therefore hearing that there may be a mode that lets you play all of the characters moves in slow mo is very welcome. To add on top of all the already inviting details the game has to offer, the score, written by Michiru Yamane, best known for composing music for Castlevania: Symphonia of the Night, just adds the icing to an unfinished cake. Each stage having a piece that keeps the mood perfectly.

It’s not often that I get to say this, but Skullgirls has got me incredibly excited. And I’m not even someone who reaches for the fighting games (apart from the 3DS launch, for the lack of anything better). Playing Skullgirls made me want to have it then and there. I still do in fact, and the wait, with an undetermined date of release, it’s killing me, and I only had a couple hours with it.

The game literally has endless combinations and caters to an entire audience rather than specific people. With its anti-abuse built in system, it will be perfect for competitions. Competitions will benefit from this game, in fact, as rather than mastering the game, the game moulds itself to fit you, and as such, you’ll never know what you’re up against, separating the truly skilled from the ones who have just played a bit too much.

Skullgirls is set to physically define, change and mould the genre, all for the better. I’m surprised this has been allowed to slip through as a Marketplace download rather than hitting our shelves, because it certainly deserves a place next to Dark Souls and Skyrim. In a pool of samey, almost stagnant fighting games, Skullgirls is a fresh blast that takes the categories flaws and throws them away. I can’t stress enough that the depth and love that is in this game has no limits. Be ready.

Skullgirls is set to be available on Xbox LIVE Arcade and PlayStation Network in early 2012. As soon as there’s a firm release date you’ll hear about it on GodisaGeek.com.

As some of you may be aware, Starhawk has had a closed beta running for a few weeks now and fortunately for us at GodisaGeek.com we have had a chance to play this eagerly anticipated title. Having played the frankly excellent Warhawk previously, this reviewer was very excited to get his hands on the next title in the series, albeit a beta version. For those of you who have never heard of Starhawk, the game is set in the future and humans have begun to colonize other planets, the events of the game take place in a distant colony known as the Frontier which was home to a massive battle after an event known as the Rush.

The Rush occurred when all of the rift energy miners (or Rifters) mined for the valuable rift energy, the power source now used by humans for their every day purposes. This rift energy is incredibly powerful and transformed a lot of miners into mutants which are commonly known as Out. These became extremely protective of the rift energy and will gladly kill anyone who attempts to harvest it. So begins a series of massive battles between the Rifters and the Outcasts, all set on Frontier as well as up in space around the planet!

The beta doesn’t have any of the story mode in it, but it has the multiplayer functions for you to play. First of all, in the options you can set a series of different things like preferred faction (Rifter or Outcast) or even how you fly a hawk. The two online modes available to you through the beta are Capture the Flag and Team Deathmatch. You have two locations where you can use these modes, one in a place called the Acid Sea which is a rocky area surrounded by (yes you guessed it) a perilous acid ocean and the second map available to you is called Space, which is a massive space station above the planet Frontier, and falling off the map will have you burning through the atmosphere of the planet to your death.

In terms of gameplay, Starhawk can be described as a third person shooter with RTS elements to it. When in the game, you can collect rift energy by either standing next to a dispenser in your spawn area (which takes a long time) or you can explore the map for barrels which contain a decent amount of rift energy. The more rift energy you have allows you to build many items all over the map, whether it be a simple wall, an auto turret to defend your area, to a jet pack dispenser, ammo bunkers, sniper towers, landing pads and massive beam turrets. All of these allow you to attack/defend against the enemy not only at your home base but anywhere on the map, which can make for some interesting battles!

The maps available on the beta are tagged as small maps but to be honest these are absolutely huge, and I cannot wait to see what the developer’s definition of “large” is! To get around these spacious maps, you have a series of vehicles such as a jet pack for your character, up to a Razorback, which is a kind of off-road all terrain vehicle. All of these vehicles require you to build a dispenser to allow you to access them. You’ll be thankful to hear that the Hawk vehicles are available as well by first building a landing pad, then, on entering the Hawk, you can either have it as a bi-ped Mech or by pressing the circle button you can take off and fly around the map gunning down your foes. You can also collect extra weapons for your Hawk which are scattered around the map, then you can rain hell down on your enemies whether they be on foot or in their Razorbacks or Hawks.

Having played this a fair bit over the recent weeks, Starhawk is a very interesting and fun title to play, although it can take a while to get around the maps if you don’t have some form of transportation, however, with a little patience and ingenuity, you’ll be driving/flying in no time. The multiplayer modes can have 32 player online battles with a variety of different structures to build and a bucket load of weapons at your disposal to destroy your enemies with. It plays very well for a third person shooter and its RTS elements give it that extra dimension when playing. This separates it from all the other third person shooters out there. Graphically it looks pretty good, though there were some rough edges to it but as this is a beta you can imagine that these will more than likely be cleared up by the time this game is released.

So far, Starhawk is brilliant fun to play and a great multiplayer experience to boot.  The future prospect of a campaign mode, even bigger maps, more things to build combined with even more multiplayer modes makes Starhawk look like a very promising title indeed and it will be one to watch for 2012. Make sure you keep a “Hawk”-eye on GodisaGeek for the future review.

Starhawk will be released as an exclusive for PlayStation 3 at a date to be confirmed in 2012.

It’s the final day of WildStar Week here at GodisaGeek.com and instead of being sad why not cheer yourself up with the last character interview; this time the interview is with the human member of the dynamic trio from the amazing WildStar trailer, Buck. Buck is a Spellslinger with a quick wit and, as can be seen in the aforementioned trailer, an even quicker trigger finger. I’m sure that by now you’ve experienced Buck’s witty ways in the trailer as well as Troy Baker, the voice actor behind him, in the Audio Devlog that we posted yesterday. If not, why not head over there now, then come back and read the last feature of WildStar Week.

Before we get started with the interview why not remind yourself how Buck sounds by listening to the snippets posted in the Audio Devlog that was posted yesterday, or watching the trailer embedded below.

Character: Buck
Race: Human
Class: Spellslinger
Path: Explorer

Q: So! You’re Buck! I have to say, I’ve been looking forward to talking with you.

A: Oh, yeah? Why’s that, friend?

Q: Let’s just say that your reputation precedes you.

A: Heh. Can’t say I’m surprised. Guy like me, people tend to tell stories.

Q: Are they true?

A: I guess that depends on the story and who’s telling it.

Q: Fair enough. Let’s talk about you. Where exactly are you from?

A: Well, us humans from the Fleet ain’t really from anywhere. We been wanderin’ out in the Fringe for a long time, lookin’ for a place to set down roots.

Q: So you don’t have a homeworld?

A: Well, technically we come from planet Cassus. But it’s been a long, long time since we left. Seeing how things turned out there, I think we got the better end of the deal.

Q: Cassus. Wait! Isn’t that the Dominion homeworld?

A: [Puts hand on gun] I don’t recommend you say that again.

Q: Moving on. Let’s talk about those pistols. Are you always packing?

A: You bet I am, mister. And they ain’t for decoration. Growin’ up out on the Fringe like I did, you learn pretty quick that your best friends are the kind that you wear on your hip. They’re loyal, dependable, and they don’t talk your ear off.

Q: Do you find guns useful in your line of work?

A: Well, if by ‘your line of work’ you mean exploring, then I’d say ‘sure as a head shot’, friend. You don’t want to be venturin’ into uncharted territory without a little insurance. And if that insurance is the kind that puts holes into things, all the better.

Q: What other kinds of tools do explorers use?

A: That’s a big list. But I’d say that the most important piece of equipment for an explorer is something we call the Locator.

Q: Sounds interesting. Tell me more about it.

A: Well, simply put the Locator is kind of like a compass. Except instead of pointing you east, west, north and south, it points you to things like secret mountain passes, hidden valleys, and subterranean caves. Since those are the kinds of things that explorer’s are lookin’ for, it turns out to be one of them tools you can’t live without.

Q: Speaking of exploring, I understand that you were recently on Nexus.

A: Yep.

Q: What can you tell me about it?

A: I can tell you that it’s my kind of place, friend. It’s a whole planet full of unexplored frontiers, deadly beasts, and mysterious ancient ruins. You can’t take three steps down there without something trying to rip you to shreds or blast you out of existence.

Q: That sounds dangerous!

A: Oh it’s dangerous alright. A man needs a stiff backbone, steely resolve, and hair-trigger reflexes just to walk off the ship down there. Good thing I’ve got all three in spades.

Q: You sound pretty sure of yourself, Buck.

A: I wouldn’t be very good at my job if I wasn’t, mister.

Q: Why don’t you tell about what happened on your last mission?

A: It’d be a pleasure. The Explorers Union sent me planetside to map out an uncharted sector, so I hitched a ride on an Academy research vessel with an Aurin Scientist and a grizzled old Granok Soldier. Nexus being Nexus, it didn’t take long for things to get interesting.

Q: Do tell.

A: Well, I ain’t exactly supposed to be talking about it, but I think it would fair to say that my two associates got themselves into a heap of trouble, and then I stepped in and saved their bacon. For most people, it would have been quite an adventure, but it’s pretty much a regular day for someone like me.

Q: That’s not exactly the story I heard. But let’s talk about these ‘associates’…

A: Surely. The Granok was about what you’d expect. Armed to the teeth, and he definitely held his own when things got hot and heavy. But just between you and me, he wasn’t exactly the sharpest tool in the shed.

Q: Probably best if we keep that to ourselves. And what about this Aurin Scientist?

A: Liara? Now she was a character, no doubt about it. You know the kind. One of them true-believers. Circle of life and all that nonsense. You could tell she liked to hear herself talk.

Q: Interesting. Let’s move on. Here’s a hypothetical situation: you’re sitting in a bar, and an intergalactic bounty hunter has a gun aimed at your heart. Would you shoot first?

A: Do I really need to answer that question?

Q: I suppose not.

END

That’s all we’ve got from Buck and, unfortunately, all we’ve got left of WildStar Week. We hope you’ve enjoyed reading these little articles and that they give you an insight into what you can expect from WildStar when it launches in 2012. Head on over to the forums and let us know if you’ll be getting it, pre-ordering it, where from and all the usual, or comment below about what you thought about the interview with Buck, will you be rolling a human or something a little more exotic?