PC Features

The Importance of Episodic Gaming

Jan 16, 2011 | Justin Moody | PC Features

Episodic gaming over the years has become more and more popular. You could credit this to either the economic slowdown, or the pressure from publishers to release content quickly, but no matter the cause, episodic gaming is now a reliable and valuable way to release games. In this feature, we’re going to look at what exactly makes a game episodic, the pros and cons of episodic gaming, some examples of episodic gaming, and what the future holds for this release strategy.

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Gray Matter Preview

Jan 14, 2011 | Justin Moody | PC Features

Back in the 90’s, the point and click genre of PC gaming was all the rage. It was a time when four megs of video RAM was state of the art, so shooters and real-time strategy games were still rather primitive. The technical requirements for adventure games, on the other hand were minimal; just enough horsepower to show a static background image, and one moving character. Unlike the glut of mindless Doom clones that filled retail shelves, adventure games emphasized story-telling, writing, and characters. One of the most popular franchises was Gabrial Knight, which had three installments that ran from 1993 through 1999.

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Can’t Wait for Dead Space 2? Try These Games

Jan 10, 2011 | Justin Moody | PC Features

Dead Space 2 is due to be out before the end of the month, and fans of the original are more than ready to play as Isaac Clarke once more. If you can’t wait to fight monsters and danger once more, but have already played through Dead Space one too many times, here are some games you’ll enjoy.

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DC Universe Online Preview

Jan 7, 2011 | Justin Moody | PC Features

Sony Online Entertainment is known for its huge cache of MMORPGs, with titles that stretch all the way back to the great-granddaddy of the genre, Everquest. With such a library, SOE has shown no sign of stopping as the latest game, DC Universe Online, is set to be released next week. It hopefully will reveal itself as a game that takes in the lessons of its elders and contemporaries; it has trumpeted several innovations to the genre that is supposed to shake up the online landscape.

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Fun-Per-Dollar vs Fun-Per-Hour

Jan 7, 2011 | Justin Moody | PC Features

How do you quantify whether or not a game is worth playing? When developers boast that their new RPG has “Over 300 hours of gameplay” and “Over thirty possible endings”, their goal is to boost sales by promising a large amount of Fun-Per-Dollar. Role-Playing enthusiasts will be quick to point out that getting a hundred hours of entertainment from a sixty dollar game is a good deal. They’re correct on that, but my question is: Can we get the same amount of enjoyment, but concentrated in a much shorter experience? In short: What about the amount of fun players have per hour?

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Does Your Shooter Really Need Single-Player And Multiplayer?

Jan 4, 2011 | Justin Moody | PC Features

I like my games how I like my women: Cheap. The current generation of games costs sixty dollars a pop if you buy on launch day, and publishers have all sorts of pre-buy bonuses to justify jumping on early, yet I still rarely buy games when they first come out. It’s much too easy to predict the pricing cycle, and just wait two months for the first online sales to roll around, or wait a year until the “Game of the year edition” is in the bargain bin at Best Buy. The bonuses for buying early don’t outweigh the 40 dollars I can save if I’m patience and frugal.

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Can’t Wait for DC Universe Online? Try These Games

Jan 3, 2011 | Justin Moody | PC Features

It’s a little over a week before DC Universe Online hits store shelves. Are you dying to create your own online Green Lantern, or Batlad, but just can’t wait for the game to come out? Well, here are a few other super-powered titles for you to focus your super impatience on until DCU’s drop date of January 11^th.

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PC Games We Can’t Wait To Play In 2011: Part 3

Jan 2, 2011 | Justin Moody | PC Features

When I was a child, the year 2010 seemed like the distant future. An amazing technologically-advanced utopia where people could play games on mechanical thinking machines connected to each other via a vast electromagnetic web of digital entertainment! Looking back on last year, the real 2010 far exceeded my expectation; my childish dreams of what a video game might be were dwarfed by the realities of projects like Mass Effect 2. As of today, 2010 is part of the past. Henceforth, I’ll look back on that time as a primitive period when Dragon Age 2 wasn’t available, and subhuman savages entertained themselves with primeval entertainment software.

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PC Games We Can’t Wait To Play In 2011: Part 2

Dec 31, 2010 | Justin Moody | PC Features

2010 was a great year for the PC gamer to be sure, but as always in the gaming industry, the future looks brighter with every new announcement. 2011 may be a bit lean on PC exclusives, but there sure are games to be preferably played on a keyboard and mouse. The games on this list have both the potential to be great or disappointing, but I can’t wait to see how they turn out.

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PC Games We Can’t Wait To Play In 2011: Part 1

Dec 31, 2010 | Justin Moody | PC Features

The coming year brings with it a bright future for PC games. As I’ve previewed some games that are planned to come out next year, I’ve come across several that have definitely piqued my interest and that I’m sure will be hits. First up is the tantalizing Dragon Age II, a game that sounds like its dealt the original’s problems and reformed the style of play to encompass a set of much deeper RPG mechanics. Also on my horizon is another Bioware title, Mass Effect III. After the seamless and beautifully cinematic Mass Effect II, an amazing improvement over the issues of the first game, Mass Effect III will doubtless be even more improved and balanced. The last game I’m interested in is Star Wars: The Old Republic, which also happens to be a Bioware game; it just goes to show the quality of the releases is consistent and well-developed across the board. SW: TOR follows a legacy built up in Bioware’s other TOR single-player games, allowing for expansive lore to draw from for material, as well as solid mechanics that they can rely on.

The Importance of Episodic Gaming

Gray Matter Preview

Can’t Wait for Dead Space 2? Try These Games

DC Universe Online Preview

Fun-Per-Dollar vs Fun-Per-Hour

Does Your Shooter Really Need Single-Player And Multiplayer?

Can’t Wait for DC Universe Online? Try These Games

PC Games We Can’t Wait To Play In 2011: Part 3

PC Games We Can’t Wait To Play In 2011: Part 2

PC Games We Can’t Wait To Play In 2011: Part 1

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