Saturday 28 September 2013

Got it!

Got the Gold Collar for Chop in the iFruit app. Yesterday I mentioned that to earn the Gold Collar, you will need to achieve a Gold medal in each of the 3 Chop Mini-Games and today I proudly present to you...



I have no idea why the background has changed overnight though.. Don't remember installing an update for the iFruit app..

Anyway, yes I have earned the Gold Collar for Chop and here he is in the game..

It isn't too difficult to score in the mini-games but scoring is a little tricky. Still.. very achievable if you ask me..

Thursday 26 September 2013

It has begun! - Well almost..

With GTA V's release last week, I almost forgot about this...

But the second season of Mortal Kombat Legacy Season 2 is almost here.. in fact just 2 hours away! Unlike the first season, Season 2 will see the release of all 10 episodes together at the same time.

Check out the first season in the mean time..



Wednesday 25 September 2013

Trying out iFruit

No it's not a type of fruit nor is it the new iPhone.. iFruit is the companion app for Grand Theft Auto V. So what's inside the app? Worth downloading even though it's free?

Let me show you some of the features..

The first feature is customizing your ride. This can be done in-game as well with better visuals on your customization. But if you choose to do so, while on the go, for whatever reason.. you can do so too..


At the Top Left is the LS Customs tab, click on it to bring up the Los Santos Garage. You choose one of the 3 characters and the vehicle that is currently saved in that character's Garage will be available to customize. Do take note that only the vehicle that is saved in your garage will be available for customization. 

Good news is that your first customization order will be FREE! So do take full advantage of it. You might want to wait a while longer into your GTA V story so that you will have access to more/better customization options.

It's still fine if you can't wait as there are plenty of options from the start anyway. You can change almost everything from the wheels of your car to even the colour of the smoke it emits.

Once you have chosen your add-ons, click on the Order button at the top and you will get an invoice for your order showing your total.

Me making the most of my first order ;) 

Once you accept, you will get a pop-up saying that your order has been successful. You will get another notification the next time you load up your GTA V safe that your order has been processed and all you have to do is pick up your new pimped-up ride from your Garage. 

Subsequent orders will cost you the price quoted, in your GTA V game so do make sure your character has enough cash to complete the order. The app does not show you how much your character has in hand at the moment so it can be a guessing game if you didn't observe that before you last quit. 

If you didn't have the cash to complete the order, just head on to the Los Santos Garage in the GTA V game to complete the order after you have earned the cash.

Edit: Also forgot to mention that you can customize your very own license plate on the app itself and here's mine..

---
Another feature is Chop the Dog, this tab allows you to interact with Chop the Dog, Franklin's pet dog. 

You can feed or give Chop a drink when he's hungry..

Teach him new tricks which he can do in the GTA V game...
Buy him a new collar..
Clean up after him.. 

Or play ball with him! Try throwing the blue ball around and Chop will fetch it back to you. Also, try throwing the ball out of the screen and see the amusing stuff Chop brings back..


You can also play mini-games with Chop.




There are 3 mini-games in total where you are required to swipe across the screen to direct Chop to fend off other dogs from his err.. bitch, fend off attackers from Franklin's car and the best of all.. get Chop to rip off bikinis! To unlock the gold collar for Chop, you will need to get a gold medal in each of these 3 mini-games so get practising! (I just found this out now.. so I got to put more effort in the games now lol)

You can also access LifeInvader, which is essentially GTA V's version of Facebook where you can "stalk" people and pages. It's pretty cool as you can get more info on the various characters in the game and even discounts on your GTA V in-game purchases.

There is also other links to various Rockstar stuff, including your Social Club profile. It's a decent companion app for the extras, especially since it's free but I hope there will be more features added in the future to keep it interesting..

Hope it helps you get a better idea of what iFruit is all about and whether you should download it. I believe it's only on Apple devices at the moment but might be coming to the Android due to the demand.

Edit: I also forgot to mention that the ease of syncing with the GTA V game is very good. All you need is a social club account that is linked to your PSN ID/XBox Gamer Tag. The rest is automatic. As long as you have an internet connection, you can use the iFruit app anywhere and anytime.

Saturday 21 September 2013

GTA GTA Everywhere!

It's been a couple of days since the biggest game in videogame history got released. In fact, it has the potential to be the biggest thing in entertainment. The news is everywhere, you don't have to be a gamer to have heard about GTA V. Almost everyone you know have heard/seen something about GTA V at least once in the past week.

GTA V is in the newspapers, on the internet, on Facebook, ads on the streets, on TV. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick called it a "Cultural Phenomenon" and he is absolutely right. GTA V has become so huge that even your mum might have heard about it. When I went to collect my game on Sep 17, I saw dads, mums, girlfriends, wives, sisters queuing up to collect a copy. On Facebook, I have seen "non-gamers", cousins, relatives, who otherwise would have never batted an eyelid for any other game release, talking about GTA V. 

In fact, it's so huge, other publishers are even acknowledging it.. I saw this pic on the Watch_Dogs Facebook page..


I think it was pretty cool of them to do that.. 

Obviously, it's just not all talk.. the stats are there. At US$256 million, GTA V is the highest costing video-game to produce and in fact, even costs more than any other movie film, except for one Pirates of the Caribbean 3, which had a US$300 million budget. 



It's reaping the rewards of course. Making US$800 million on release day alone and that figure quickly rose to US$1 billion in the first 3 days! It could be the fastest any entertainment property has reached the $1 billion mark.

Sure, the hype and popularity has helped bring in lots of Day 1 sales, especially with the"non-hardcore" gamer crowds but it would never reached these heights if it wasn't an awesome game.

I have been playing it and the game is exceeding expectations. There are so many things to do in the game that I have hardly time to even do the missions. The map is epic-ly huge and there's always things to see or do. I can't tell you everything in 1 post so what I'm going to do a GTA diary for the next week or so, probably until GTA Online starts up. 

Rockstar has given a "unofficial deadline" till Oct 1 for us to complete the story mode so we will see how it goes. I'll try to do a post each day on my "day" in San Andreas. I will be leaving out the story missions so there won't be any spoilers and just note down the extra stuff that I did. You might still want to avoid it if you want your experience absolutely spoiler-free, but it might also show you some stuff that you have missed. For me, however, I want my experience spoiler-free so I will appreciate if you guys don't post stuff about what you have seen :)

Click here to see my GTA V Diary

Hope you like it!

Thursday 19 September 2013

Asia Collector's Edition for Assassin's Creed IV revealed?

Local retailer Qisahn just put up a post on their Facebook page with this image asking fans if they will be interested in this Collector's Edition at SGD$100.

This is the same image that has been used to promote the UPlay store's exclusive Black Chest Edition though the full contents are much more than that..

But wait.. before you get excited that we are going to get the same edition for less than half the price, Qisahn's order page on their website shows another image.

and the description states: "Includes PS3 Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag and a 55cm-high diorama of Captain Edward Kenway leading the charge on his ship’s bow, the Jackdaw." at a price of $159.

Hmm.. so is it SGD$100 or SGD$159? A little confusing there..

Also is the CE only going to contain the game and statue (although it has to be noted that this is the "better" variant of the 2 statues included in the Assassin's Creed IV CEs around the world.) What about DLCs? Steelbook?

No concrete info yet and the Asia CE editions for the Assassin's Creed series has always been a downsized version of other CEs. I'm pretty sure it will be available in most other retailers as well if it indeed is the official AC IV CE for Asia. Will update with more info if there is.

Wednesday 18 September 2013

Some really cool GTA V stuff

This cool video shows some cool guy getting some really cool swag from the awesomely cool Rockstar Games.



Cool stuff eh? I would love to get my hands on all of those cool stuff, so if any one of you out there wants to sell them at a cool price, let me know at my email, jveron004@gmail.com. This cool blogger would love to add these to his cool collection.

Cool!

Today's word of the day: Cool

Tuesday 17 September 2013

Looking forward to GTA V!

Post is coming in late since quite a lot of you out there already have your copy of GTA V already.. How am I spending my time while waiting to end work and collect my copy..

By watching all the trailers again & again!









Hope you enjoy the videos in the wait to get your copy. Almost there guys! Hang on!

If you already have your copy, hope you are enjoying the game!

Oh and some thoughts of mine before I start playing..

...









....

....

It's gonna be awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Sunday 15 September 2013

PlayArts Connor & Edward Kenway figures Revealed

The latest 2 figures in the PlayArts Assassin's Creed line have been revealed.

Connor









Edward Kenway







Look pretty good. Couple of months back I wasn't too interested in the PlayArts figures but I think the Assassin's Creed ones look pretty good. I don't really like some of the paint app on some of the figures. Maybe it's due to their heads behind mostly covered so we won't have the same problem with these figures. 

I'm a little disappointed with the released pics though. Both Connor and Edward have the option to remove their hoods and replace it with "hair" for the unhooded look. However, the pics don't really show clear pics of the figure's faces. I'm considering 2 of each but not too confident on how the face sculpt will turn out so might stick to 1 each for now.

Pre-orders at most sites are open now if you are looking to get these.

Friday 13 September 2013

Mortal Kombat Legacy Season 2 coming on September 26!

We finally have a premiere date for the 2nd Season of the Mortal Kombat Legacy Web-Series.. The tournament will start on March 26!

Here's the trailer..



It's looking good, despite the very contemporary modern theme. It's a little disappointing as some of it seems to be moving away from the source material & origins but the action looks awesome.

There's going to be fatalities and some new characters which we didn't see in the first season. For some of those characters returning, but with different actors, I can't make up my mind who I prefer.

It's too early to say anyway considering Season 2 hasn't even started, so I'll reserve my judgment.

For more details on Season 2, you can check out IGN's article

Still no updates on the feature film yet but I'm really crossing my fingers for it to be awesome.

Thursday 12 September 2013

More Details on GTA Online.. Goodbye Social Life!

More details were revealed on the upcoming GTA Online and it's proving the fact why Rockstar named the multiplayer feature, "GTA Online" and not just GTA V's Multiplayer mode.



GTA V is set in San Andreas and so will GTA Online.. at least only for now.. Other famous locations like Liberty City will be added to GTA Online sometime in the future (Vice City as well?!). This emphasizes the promise that more and more content will be added in the future to GTA Online.

That doesn't mean we fans have to wait for a while before we get the full experience of GTA Online.. With over 500 missions at the start, it will be a while before you even get bored. Some missions can be done alone while others will need you to gather a couple of friends. (That's why you will need a crew, come join Temasek Thugs, in what I hope will be the largest Singapore Crew.)

Almost all activities from the Single Player mode will be available, including the important ones: Robberies, heists, assaulting gang hideouts, hijacking vehicles & even tennis, golf and base jumping. 

Many GTA fans have been clamouring for 2-player co-op modes in GTA. We want to play and Niko and Roman! Rockstar answer: Play as a crew!

GTA Online almost looks like a MMO from what I've seen of it so far. 

So Good Bye Social Life or.. maybe I can meet with all friends online in GTA Online!

Source: IGN

Tuesday 10 September 2013

Beyond: Two Souls Trial Event in Singapore

Ok.. so I just got back from the Beyond: Two Souls Trial Event in Singapore, organized by Playstation Asia & IGN Asia. Headed there early to the event, with a friend, but it seemed there were already people there ahead of us. 

Before I continue.. Just to share some thoughts of mine before I attended the trial event...

A year ago, I was a little confused after E3 2012 about The Last of Us and Beyond: 2 Souls. Probably, largely due to the fact that both games seemed to have a character that looked like the actress, Ellen Page. To me.. one was a game with a post-apocalyptic setting with Ellen Page and the other was Ellen Page with powers.. Well, to be honest I had finished watching the first trailers and haven't been checking out what the games were really about. Of course, I figured out the differences later..

After playing The Last of Us, I think of it as a great game with an intriguing storyline and Beyond: Two Souls seems to be in the same vein. Even though the differences are clear, at the back of my mind, I still do compare the 2 games and while TLOU has lived up to the hype, so much so that it's very likely to be a contender for GOTY, it remains to be seen if Beyond will match up. With the issues of TLOU using Ellen Page's likeness in their game, without her permisson, I think it's safe to say, there is some pressure for "her game" to do better than the other.

Anyway, back to the event..

Held at Shaw Theatres Lido, the venue was much bigger than the one they had for The Last of Us. 
With a larger group, several stations were setup for attendees to try out the game. Upon picking up the controller, I felt that the controls were quite similar to Heavy Rain, not surprisingly as both games were by Quantic Dream.

Stations set-up and ready...
I started off with Jodie (Ellen Page's character) doing some fight training. Though somewhat similar to Heavy Rain, it wasn't exactly the same. When Jodie fights off attackers (training as well as later on in the game), the game goes into slow-mo and this is when you, the player have to move the right analog stick in the right direction based on Jodie's motion.
For example, Jodie has to block off attacks by moving in the opp direction of the attack and when she hits, say downwards, you follow through the motion by moving the right stick down.

Action buttons are hinted by a white spot on the screen. Let's say Jodie is moving from the left to a door. So when the white spot appears on the door, you move the stick towards the right so Jodie will open the door. If she is climbing up a cliff and the white spot prompt appears above her, you move the stick upwards. Pretty simple..

And then there is Aiden.. an entity that is connected to Jodie since birth. This entity is the reason behind Jodie's problems but it's also what helps her in tough situations. You can control the entity to harass people or even choke or possess enemies to protect Jodie. More on this entity later..

Gamers trying out the game..
There was ample time for most of us to try out the game, with several Playstation staff guiding us through the game.

Almost 2 hours later, we were brought up to the theatre to meet the man himself, David Cage, CEO and Founder of Quantic Dream as well as the creative director behind Heavy Rain and Beyond. 

David Cage started off by comparing his latest project to the critically-acclaimed Heavy Rain. Quantic Dream have created a new engine from scratch for this game, implementing some of the features that have actually been designed for next-gen. (So I guess that's a confirmation that they have already started work on something for PS4?) While Heavy Rain's storyline was set over a preiod of a few days, Beyond will take place over 15+ years. 

The game will not move in a chronological order though, instead jumping from different phases of Jodie's life, from being an 8-year old girl to an adult. While David Cage admits that this could be a little dis-orientating to some, he feels that this pattern is ideal for the experience.

David Cage also goes on to say how he feels that he wants his games to move away from the "Game Over" screen but instead to have different consequences for "failures" or decisions that the player makes. These decisions shouldn't be obvious to the player as choosing A or B. It should be organic so that even the player wouldn't know when or what will change the course of the game. Consequences can vary.. It could be something minor, or local, let you see or miss a cutscene, or drastic enough to change the game's ending. (Yes, there will be different endings to this game. Not mentioned how many exactly though).

For example, when we tried the demo, there was a scene where Aiden had to wake Jodie up to warn her of guards approaching. With the help of the Playstation staff, I knew where and how to wake Jodie. Afterwhich, Jodie fights through some guards before making her way up to the roof of the moving train.
But.. what if I hadn't woken Jodie? David Cage shows a cutscene where the guards actually sneak up on Jodie and handcuff her before locking her up in a room. Jodie then has to figure out a way to escape from there. Different consequences for my actions..

Similarly, another part of the game has Jodie arrested and loaded into a van while a different scenario would have her threatening a bruised and bloody guard.

And what about Aiden? David Cage explains that Aiden isn't a power or pet but an entity of it's own that has feelings and a mind of it's own. Aiden is connected to Jodie so it can't travel too far away from her. It is like a ghost where it can travel through walls and ahead of Jodie to assist her. It was said that you will be able to switch between Jodie and Aiden freely, though I was not aware of this while trying the demo.

David Cage goes on to share his own experiences, while working on the game, including the inspiration behind the story of Beyond where he lost someone close to him, and he channeled that loss into something positive and created the story of Beyond. Likewise, for Heavy Rain, where he used his experiences as a young father. It was very heart-warming to hear him talk about his experiences.

Also on how he got actors, Ellen Page & William Dafoe to come on-board and how Quantic Dream used Performance-capture technology to record the actor's movements, facial animations, voice-acting all at one go. Apparently, Quantic Dream were also the first to be invited to the Tribeca Film Festival to showcase a video-game where it wowed certain audiences with it's wonderful blend of story-telling and interactive design.

David Cage also shares that the reason behind getting actors to play the game's characters was about the realistic performance and not for marketing or having popular-names on the box and I feel it works perfectly. The convincing performances adds to the immersiveness and emotional aspect to the game.

Quantic Dream has also taken experiences from gamers who have played Heavy Rain while their friends, wives/girlfriends, parents and even grandparents watched. With that, they have included a mobile app named BeyondTouch (not sure on the spelling) where the 2nd player can actually have a hands-on approach. Using touch screen features, the 2nd player can help out by possibly playing as Aiden. The 2nd player won't be limited to a mobile device but can use a controller too. 2 Controllers, 2 Mobile Devices, 1 each.. any combination works.. and the app will be free to download!

It was really really great to have David Cage come to the event to share his views & experiences. He was also very friendly and obliging. Took some photos with all the attendees and even did an autograph session.

Not the best pic of him.. :(

There he is! Not my item though..

Very cool of him to stay all the way. Definitely great to see Playstation Asia taking our feedback seriously at the TLOU trial event to see some personalities behind the game coming down for the trial events. 

It was much more enjoyable and it didn't even feel like they were just doing it to promote the game like Hey! We got a new game. Try it, pretty cool eh? Ok go down to these stores and pre-order it, you get free goodies!

It was well-planned with a larger group but plenty of time for everyone to try the game, a good and lengthy feature by the Creative Director. Even the freebies were awesome!

Free HotDog & Drink!
An invitation ticket!
I thought this was pretty cool. A good-quality invitation ticket that will serve as fantastic memorabilia to remember this event. This is what I'm talking about when I ask for some proper freebies at trial events like these. 

I just had to make it more awesome...
David Cage's autograph on my invitation ticket!
That's 2 autographs in 2 weeks!

A Playstation-themed pillow
Would serve as a good back-rest for gaming I guess...

And a Beyond 2 Souls Camera strap
which I have to collect at another place.. Not too sure if I understand the reasoning behind this though. Why couldn't they just give it out at the event? Oh well..

Oh and here are some photos of the Director's Cut Edition contents.

The Collector's Edition book..
Director's Edition packaging..
Steelbook Edition
Standard Edition
Fantastic stuff! Yes.. I had to watermark the pics after the last time when my TLOU pics popped up all over the internet, especially with even some retailers using my pics to advertise their items.. (I'm still waiting for my commission you guys! )

After my trial, I'm pretty convinced on this game. Not sure I'll be pre-ordering it, mainly due to GTA V but the Director's Edition is pretty tempting for the extra content. I'll definitely be getting this game though. I'm a sucker for games with intriguing stories and this is definitely one of them. Saw a few emotional scenes and with certain scenes on a little Ellen Page, it's definitely going to be interesting. It seems that games these days (The Last of Us as well) are deliberately focusing on the softer side of me, with me becoming a father to a little girl last year... Hmm..

Also had a chat with the Playstation Asia guys and they hinted that success of pre-orders for their games will lead to better promos and exclusives in future games.. So what you guys waiting for? Go make your pre-order!

Hoping to keep seeing more trial events like these and hopefully for non-Playstation exclusive games as well. Assassin's Creed IV and Watch_Dogs perhaps? Ubisoft Singapore might be keen. And crossing my fingers for a Infamous: Second Son event sometime next year. 

Anyway kudos to Playstation Asia and Ign Asia for organizing this trial event which was fantastic. It gives us gamers a chance to try games that we might not normally have. The Last of Us and Beyond 2 Souls were not in my radar at the start of this year but having attended both trial events, I'm convinced of both.. Already played TLOU, now for Beyond...

Playstation Asia 2 - My resistance to Gaming Pressure 0