RUST Review for PC

RUST:

Fending off Angry Cavemen Looters

is Actually Pretty Fun

From the creator of the smash hit indie game Garry's Mod come another wild success: RUST, a survival game similar to that of Minecraft or the extremely popular DayZ mod for Arma II, which now has a standalone release. In RUST, you are a caveman-like being out in the wild. Your goal is to survive. In doing so, you must build shelter and hunt, along with defending yourself from the creatures of the night. When you do not encounter severe amounts of lag, the game is quite enjoyable.

A Personal Experience from the Game

After a couple hours into the game, I found myself with a small shack in the middle of the dense forest. I figured that I would live out there, due to the fact that I did not want to be found by other players, because that runs the risk of "friends" who will steal your supplies. I worked my way up and acquired a bow, along with some other items. One day when I was out looking for supplies, though, I heard noises in the area in which my home was located. I walked around the area and everything seemed fine. I just brushed it off, convincing myself that it must have just been an animal running by. The next day, I went to go and find more supplies, and when I went back to my house, I was surprised to find another player waiting inside. I pulled my bow and asked what he was doing. He said that he had not seen anyone in the house the previous day or that day, so he claimed it. So, I decided to make a deal with him. I let him stay there, in exchange for him gathering supplies for me. We built a huge house with many rooms. And then we were looted. That is how RUST works. It is about surviving. The game is completely unpredictable, due to the thriving multiplayer community of all different kinds of players. Rust is an immersive experience best played with friends.

RUST Screenshot showcasing what a house looks like in the game (left)

My only issue with RUST is that at times, the game can be extremely laggy. Sometimes when I am in the middle of doing something very important, the game will just start to lag out on me. It ruins the experience, but since the game is still in Steam Early Access, I'd imagine that Garry Newman will fix it before its official launch.

The NERDict

+ Immersive Survival Experience

+ Extremely Enjoyable with Friends

+ Unpredictable "Story" Every Time You Go On

- Very Laggy (at times)

Rating: 8

Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag Review for the Xbox One

Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag
An Amazing Next-Gen Experience

Set sail for the high seas in Ubisoft's newest entry in the Assassin's Creed series. This game puts you in the role of Edward Kenway, a pirate seeking fame and fortune. In Assassin's Creed 4, you spend a good deal of your time out at sea exploring the vast open ocean and listening to the shanties sung by your crew as you go. You encounter many other ships that carry cargo, and you can pillage as you please. Kenway and his men can engage in naval battles with these ships, and plunder all the loot along with lowering notoriety or including the ship in your fleet. In my experience, I had the best time just sailing the ocean and being a pirate.

Black Flag is most definitely a cut above Ubisoft's last entry, Assassin's Creed III. I felt very limited in Assassin's Creed III, and felt like I never really left the game's tutorials. I felt more of a sense of freedom in Assassin's Creed 4, and never felt restricted as I ran the rooftops in Havana and explored the Caribbean sea. Also, the game looks amazing on my next-gen console. Everything runs smoothly and makes me feel even more like my $60 was well spent.

Blackbeard (pictured left) and Edward Kenway (right)

Assassin's Creed 4 also features both competitive and cooperative multiplayer modes. I've thoroughly enjoyed every one I've tried so far. My personal favorite has to be the Wolfpack gamemode, in which you and 3 other players work together against AI targets. The multiplayer is a great experience, but I was more sold on the game's campaign.

Screenshot from the Wolfpack gamemode, in which the players have to
defend the chests from the enemies trying to open them

The NERDict

In my opinion, Assassin's Creed 4 is probably the best launch game for the Xbox One. It is an absolute must have for anyone who purchased a next-gen console. I've climbed many viewpoints, fought many battles, and sunk many ships and hours into Ubisoft's best game in the franchise since Assassin's Creed II. Black Flag does great things for the story, and I cannot wait to see where Ubisoft takes the franchise next.

+ Vast Open World

+ Intense Naval Combat

+ Amazing Multiplayer

- James Kidd: The Most Irritating Character in

any Assassin's Creed game so far

Rating: 9.5

Terraria Review for the Xbox 360

Terraria

One Crazy 2D Journey

Part 1 of 2: Discovering Terraria

I first discovered Terraria the day after Easter this year. All of my cards had been opened and I had some money to play around with, so I went onto my Xbox 360 to look around the Marketplace. Then, I got an invite to a friend's Xbox Live party. We talked about Easter and I told him how I got Need for Speed: Most Wanted. He told me what he got, and then he asked me if I had heard of Terraria. I hadn't, but then I went and looked it up in the Xbox Live Marketplace, and I found possibly the best Xbox Live Arcade game out there.

After it downloaded, I was invited to my friend's game. He taught me the basics and gave me some weapons and equipment to start off with. I got the hang of things pretty quickly. Then, I started to explore the open world. I started building houses and getting NPCs (Non-Player Characters) to move into them. I had a blast playing the game. My friend and I played through several days and nights in the game, recruiting more NPCs, getting more hearts, more manna, and more abilities. Then, a couple of my other friends joined our party, discovered Terraria, and later joined our game after doing a couple things in their own worlds.

Part 2 of 2: The Review

Terraria is a game you could get lost in for hours. It is amazing, but time consuming. It took me a couple tries to get my world started and get a house built before night crept upon me and the creatures of it killed me. After I had an established house and a table and chair with some torches, my first NPC moved in with me. Then, after fighting some enemies and getting coins, the shopkeeper moved in with me, making it easier to buy things like boomerangs or ammo for if you are fortunate enough to have a musket like I am.

In Terraria, you can have many things from grappling hooks to laser guns. The possibilities are truly endless. I had a great time playing the game with my friends, and single player is also a blast. It is like a 2d version of Minecraft, but with boss fights and more equipment. (and also NPCs) Overall, Terraria is a great experience and definitely something an Xbox 360 gamer should check out if they have $15 to their name.

The NERDict:

+ NPCs

+ Boss Fights

+ Exploration and Creation is Key

- Rough Beginning

Rating: 9

Need for Speed: Most Wanted Limited Edition Review for the Xbox 360

Need for Speed: Most Wanted
Open World Racing Has Never Felt So Good

For Easter this year, I was happy to find a copy of Need for Speed: Most Wanted Limited Edition in my basket. After getting home from Church, I fired up my Xbox 360, opened my tray, and started up possibly one of the best games I have played in a long time.

When the opening cutscene began, I was completely blown away by the stunning graphics. And then when the cutscene ended, it threw me behind the wheel of a white Porsche Aston Martin. As I was cruising through the streets of Fairhaven, I noticed all the life and depth of the city itself. The city has a variety of cars driving around the vast open world. I had never seen so much depth in a free-roam racing game in my life!

I had a blast just exploring the map itself. From the city to the towering mountains to the scenic overlooks and bridges, this game looks all-around amazing. The lighting effects look beautiful, and the game looks its best when the sun is setting and you are speeding across one of the bridges in the huge world. The lighting looks perfect on the bridge, and the car's shadow is also spectacular.

Now, I'm going to talk about gameplay. At first, the cars feel a little hard to handle. But, after a good 5 minutes, you really get the hang of things. In terms of racing, this is the best that the Need for Speed franchise has ever been. Every race feels fun and very smooth, but now and then after a big crash, I would experience framerate issues. Now, that didn't happen too much, so it is nothing to worry about.

Overall, I would say that this a very high quality game that you could definitely sink a good deal of time into. And nothing is more rewarding than beating the most wanted cars, wrecking them, and getting a nice new ride after such a challenging race. Need for Speed: Most Wanted sets a whole new standard for driving games, or just open world games in general.

The NERDict:

+ Stunning Visuals

+ Smooth Gameplay

+ Gripping Police Chases

- Sensitive Driving Controls

Rating: 9.5

Batman Arkham City: Game of the Year Edition Review for the Xbox 360

Batman: Arkham City:

The Bat is Back and Better than Ever

After being a longtime Batman fan and a huge fan of Batman: Arkham City, I was very excited to see what Rocksteady's next project, Arkham City, would be like. I read all of the rave reviews for the game, and figured that I would hold out for the Game of the Year Edition of the title. So after waiting for it's release, I went to the local GameStop and got the game for about $30. And after ripping it open in the car, within a few seconds I realized that it was well worth the money.

Batman Arkham City: Game of the Year Edition contains a load of extra content. The game comes with two discs, one being the core game, and the other one made up of all downloadable content. Here is exactly what the Game of the Year Edition contains:

• Harley Quinn's Revenge: After the death of her beloved Joker, Harley Quinn takes over for him. She goes crazier than she even was before and is seeking vengeance against the Caped Crusader

• Catwoman Pack: Adding to the story of the core game, follow Catwoman as she roams around the city on the prowl for her loot that was stolen from her by Two-Face's gang. Fight your way through 4 different missions as you see what Catwoman was doing throughout all of Arkham City.

• Robin Bundle Pack: Play through all of the Challenge Maps in the game as Robin, along with two new challenge maps - Black Mask and Freight Train

• Nightwing Bundle Pack: Play through all of the Challenge Maps in the game as Nightwing, along with two new challenge maps - Wayne Manor and Main Hall

• Arkham City Skins Pack: Play as Batman, Catwoman, Robin, and Nightwing in all new costumes from Batman: Long Halloween, Batman: The Animated Series, and many more.

• Challenge Map Pack: Play through three new Challenge Maps - The Joker's Carnival, The Iceberg Lounge, and the Batcave.

Batman: Arkham City is probably the best superhero game ever made. From the character animations to the gritty lighting effects and terrific voice acting, Batman: Arkham City is the must have game for any superhero fan or just all-out nerd in general. The characters are believable and Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill are back to reprise their roles as Batman and his arch-nemesis, the Joker. Batman Arkham City: Game of the Year Edition is definitely worth the $30, because that pretty much just covered the downloadable content if you bought the original on release day.

The NERDict:

+ Great Voice Acting

+ Spectacular Combat

+ Gritty Environments

+ Extremely Cheap

Rating: 10