A New Website

This is my second website that I worked on in class.  It's a script of a game that involves a DEA agent named John stopping a big time drug lord named Juan.  In the game, there are five levels, the first four involving four different drugs and getting more difficult as they progress, and then a final boss battle against Juan himself.  Being played via a computer, in each level other than the last, the player will shoot bags of drugs until Juan runs out and has to get a different drug more effective than the last.  In the last level, Juan will hop into his truck and a battle against him will end the game.  This is just a short summary of what's written in the script.  In the script, there's flashbacks that the main character will have displaying why he wanted to become a DEA agent and they will ultimately lead up to the final climax (a final boss battle against Juan).  Also, the gameplay mechanics are explained and facts on the drug war currently going on between the United States and Mexico are seen in the game and can be read in the script.  If this sparks your interest, check out my full script at http://fs.finearts.utah.edu/~tbrimley/drug_war_site/.   For a direct link, click here.

My Website

I didn't realize that a post was required last week.  I thought that there was one due this week but not last, so I had them reversed.  Anyway, I figured I would post this week to make up for not posting last week.  This week, I wanted to post a link to my site and talk about it.  I have a description on my homepage, but I didn't think about the fact that nobody would be able to comment on it.  So, here's a link to my site: http://fs.finearts.utah.edu/~tbrimley/project1_site/.

My site is on the Bipolar disorder with a little bit of personal experience attached to it.  Give it a view and let me know what you think.

Modern Warfare 3's Success and Launch of Elite

Call of Duty:  Modern Warfare 3 has been officially announced as the biggest entertainment launch of all time, period.  It sold approximately 6.5 million copies within its first 24 hours of release, which involved $44 million in sells.  It's difficult to compare game sells to movie launches due to price of admission differences.  Games are normally released at $60 a piece, which is obviously a lot more than that of a movie ticket.  Still, Modern Warfare 3's success is difficult to match.  It's first week sell numbers will be insane and that doesn't even include the new Elite service, which costs an additional $50/year.  In short, Modern Warfare 3 has broken the record for fastest-selling game of all time for any system, and will probably break the record for best-selling of all time.

With that said, the launch of Elite was pretty much a total failure.  Their most optimistic impressions of how many people would join the service weren't enough to match that of how many signed up.  The servers became overloaded and Elite wasn't able to function.  It has since been fixed for me, but others are still facing issues.  It's almost been a week since Modern Warfare 3's launch, so it should be completely fixed relatively soon.  The good news of Elite not working properly is that now, everybody who signed up gets an additional month of Elite for free.  I talked about what Elite is in the last post, so there isn't that much to say.  I just wanted to touch on how bad the company messed up and how unprepared they were.  Still, this goes to show just how successful this Call of Duty launch has been.

To check out what Elite's all about, visit http://www.callofduty.com/elite.

Modern Warfare 3 - Buyer's Guide

As many of you know, Call of Duty:  Modern Warfare 3, probably this year's biggest launch, is being released this Tuesday (11/8/2011).  Now, I know a lot of dislike is aimed towards the Call of Duty series.  Most are saying that the series has finally reached a dead end and that there is no way that fresh ideas can come with a new release.  I can agree with part of this statement.  Sure, this Call of Duty will be very like the previous ones in the sense that it's more first-person shooting, ranking up in the same manner, and playing a single-player campaign that may come of as bland and unoriginal.  With that said, I have some information that may persuade you into seeing that it may be worth the money picking it up upon release.  Here's why MW3 may prove to be better than its predecessors:


New Modes:  A new mode that I'm looking forwards to is Kill Confirmed.  In this form of gameplay, the player will run around killing people all the same.  But instead of the experience being based off of actually only killing the enemy, now you will be forced to pick up a tag that they will drop after being killed to "confirm the kill".  If you don't do this, you won't gain experience points.  Also, if you kill a person and then somebody kills you, the kill you weren't able to confirm can be picked up by the teammate of the person you killed in which will result in not allowing you that kill.  I know this sounds confusing, but it's really understandable in video format while hard to explain in plain text.  With that said, here's a video showing how this new mode works:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=035qb_IHuZQ.

Also, there's a mode called Spec Ops.  Yes, I realize that this mode was seen in Modern Warfare 2, but now playing the missions will help you rank up.  It also comes with a survival mode, which should be pretty cool.  In this mode, a currency system will be used in which will allow you to purchase different weapons, airstrikes, armor, and more.  These are two modes that I'm definitely looking forward to.

Another thing to look forward is the new addition of Call of Duty Elite, a computer-integrated system for MW3.  This will allow you to go online and update your multilayer classes along with starting clans.  This will mean you can now set up tournaments through the web.  Also, signing up for tournaments will sometimes result in rewards (if you win them off course).  Call of Duty Elite will take the social aspect of gaming to the next level.  The down side of it:  Call of Duty Elite will cost an annual fee of $50.  The positive side of it:  If you purchase the hardened edition of the game, it will come with a one-year subscription of Elite, for $10 cheaper.  The regular game is $60 while the hardened edition is $100.  I'll let you do the math.  Also, a reason to upgrade to Elite is DLC-based.  Infinity Ward/Sledgehammer Games has promised to release 12 DLC packs, once every month.  This will include new multiplayer maps, spec ops maps, weapons skins, titles, etc.  How does this make Elite worth the purchase?  All the DLC packs will be free if you have an Elite subscription.  If you like extra content like I do, this will make Elite well worth the purchase.

One last thing I wanted to bring up is that an upgraded engine is being used, which will help improve the graphics of the game.  The graphics have always been top notch in Call of Duty games; now they will look even better.

So, what I'm trying to say is, pick up the game.  Call of Duty games always come with addictive multiplayer elements and compelling campaigns that will make the game well worth the price of admission.

For more information on Modern Warfare 3, visit http://www.callofduty.com/mw3

A Look at What's to Come Before the Year's End

I haven't been able to get a whole lot of gaming in this week (I haven't even been able to touch Battlefield 3 yet), so I'm just going to list some games along with some downloadable content that will be coming out soon in which I'm looking forward to.  First, I just wanted to mention some games that are coming out before this year comes to an end in which I'm definitely looking forward to.  Also, I'll list some games that others may find interesting.  

Here's what we're looking at:

-Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 - 11/8/2011 (I'm definitely not missing out on this game)

-The Elder Scrolls V:  Skyrim - 11/11/2011

-Assassin's Creed Revelations - 11/15/11

-Halo:  Combat Evolved Anniversary - 11/15/2011 (I'm not a fan of Halo, but I know a lot are)

-Saints Row The Third - 11/15/2011

Those are just some of the games that are going to help wrap up this year's game releases.  There are obviously a lot I didn't mention, but I listed some popular titles that are sure to spark some interest.




Moving onto some DLC release dates, here are some that I'm looking forward to:

-The Horde Command Pack (Gears of War 3) - 11/1/2011

-Nightwing (Batman:  Arkham City) - 11/1/2011

-Robin Bundle Pack (Batman:  Arkham City) - 11/12/2011

-Bloodbath Arena (Dead Island) - Mid-November

-RAAM's Shadow (Gears of War 3) - 12/13/2011

-Back to Karkand (Battlefield 3) - December (Comes with free code if bought new - Limited Edition)




A Battlefield 3 review will most likely be forth coming, once I get a chance to play it.  Until then, happy gaming.

Battlefield 3 Releases Tomorrow

Battlefield 3, one of this year's most anticipated game, comes out tomorrow.  I've had it preordered for quite some time now, so hopefully it lives up to the hype it has been bombarded with.  Dozens of trailers showing it off have been released, and people have been eagerly anticipating its release.  Battlefield:  Bad Company 2, a game released by DICE (the same company behind Battlefield 3) last year, was compared to and even said to be better by some then Modern Warfare 2 (pretty impressive).  I definitely enjoyed Bad Company 2 more than MW2 myself.  So far, the reviews have been fantastic, at least for the PC version, so only time stands in the way until I get my hands on it and get to try it out myself.  The open beta, released on the XBox Live Marketplace a few weeks back, was quite the buggy (glitch-filled) mess, so we'll have to see if those have been fixed when the final copy is released tomorrow. 

As for information on what comes with the game, there is a lot more to say.  If you preordered the game, you were automatically upgraded to receive the limited edition for free, which comes with the DLC (downloadable content) "Back to Karkand".  This comes with four maps from Battlefield:  Bad Company 2 remastered with the Frostbite 2 engine as well as weapons from Bad Company 2 and unique awards/achievements.  I enjoyed almost all of the maps from the previous game, so I'm actually really excited that they're bringing a few of them back.  Other bonuses were also given to those who preordered the game from certain retailer stores as well.  For example, if you preordered the game from Gamestop, it comes with the Physical Warfare Pack, which includes a few additional weapons that can be used in Battlefield's competitive multiplayer.  Anyway, I'm looking forward to the game for sure.  I'm sure it will eat up quite a bit of my time as I'm sure I'll be playing it quite a bit.

For more information on Battlefield 3, see http://www.battlefield.com/battlefield3.

Batman: Arkham City Releases Tomorrow

Batman:  Arkham City, sequel to Batman:  Arkham Asylum, is being released tomorrow (Tuesday, October 18).  After playing the incredible first experience, I'm very excited for this one.  After looking into the game and reading the reviews it has received, the game looks as if it has lived up to the hype.  For those of you who played the first game, you know that the combat was smooth, there were a ton of places to explore, upgrades to unlock, riddles to solve, and challenge maps to master.  Arkham City sticks to its roots while making an even better experience, based on what I've heard.  The story sounds great, the voice acting is superb (Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill return as the voices for Batman and Joker), and there are several side missions to keep you even busier.  There are tons of upgrades to unlock for Batman as you rank up as well, including unlocking new abilities and gadgets (many more upgrades than those seen in Akham Asylum).

If this doesn't sound like enough, Arkham City is supposedly five times larger than the asylum explored in the first game and there are 400 riddles to solve (around two times those found in the first game).  This makes for a longer and much more involved experience, which makes the game all that more fun.  That is, if you're into hunting for these "collectibles".  I know I enjoyed finding/solving the riddles scattered across Arkham Asylum.  If you're still not sold on the game, there are challenge maps where you can earn medals and master Batman's combat abilities.  I loved mastering the maps found in the first game.  Also, if you buy the game new, Catwoman comes with it as a bonus character, who has her own missions and riddles to solve/find as well as new upgrades to unlock.  Also, after you beat the game once, New Game Plus becomes unlocked.  This new feature allows you to carry over the upgrades you unlocked for Batman and play through the story again.  Of course, the enemies become harder because of this, but this allows you to play through the game again and unlock more of Batman's abilities.

Batman:  Arkham City is sure to take up a large chunk of you're time and should be well worth the purchase.  I'll be picking it up for sure.  For more information on the game, see http://community.batmanarkhamcity.com/.

For a professional review on the Arkham City, see http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/119/1199706p1.html.