These games aren’t easy and some take more micromanagement than we would have liked but with the recent release of Abbey Games’ stripped down god game Reus, things have taken a more light hearted and simpler direction.

In Reus you basically play as a planet Earth that has become laden with wastelands and it’s your job to renovate it and make it lush and habitable with the help of your own personal elemental giants.

Planet Earth has become a scene of devastation with the entire planet covered with wastelands and the job of restoring it to its former glory is yours.

With the help of elemental giants that possess magical abilities that can shape and mould the planet’s surface, players are required to attract and sustain life on their planet by combining the powers of each of their giants.

The story acts as a backdrop to the overall experience as stages get more and more challenging and is an unusual but interesting one. No narration, dialogue or cut scenes to carry the story forward makes Reus not much of a story driven campaign, but more of a continuation of stages steadily getting more difficult which certainly isn’t a bad thing especially for a god game.

Reus sees players controlling several playable giants which represent the elements such as water, rock and forestry amongst others.

Each giant can be swapped between at will and are controlled with the mouse and the frustrations start with the speed of the giant’s movements especially when directing one to the other side of the planet.

It’s understandable that giants move slowly however a speed control would have made things a hell of a lot more bearable as you could literally direct your giant to the opposite side of the world, go and make a cuppa and maybe some toast, then come back and it will be just arriving to its destination.

Each giant has a number of abilities at its disposal which can be combined to create forests, deserts, mountains and seas that attract humanity that settle on the planet’s surface as well as animals. This is the basic aim of the game, sustaining life and maintaining their needs and once you begin exceeding with this demanding task, you begin getting rewarded with ambassadors that can be mounted on one of your giants which unlocks more abilities which makes Reus a deep strategy game.

The interface is simple as the planet is circular with the surface separated into patches however the learning curve is steep, it’s very easy to get lost in this game and forget what your current task is. It’s also easy to accidentally destroy settlements by giving your giants the wrong tasks to do but it’s not an often made mistake.

Reus’ look is just as unusual as its gameplay with it taking on a 2D cartoony art style.Giants are intimidating looking entities border line scary looking.

The hand drawn graphics are nice to look at with fine details on the planet’s surface especially when you have villagers and animals roaming around. I liked the look of Reus and playing on a high definition monitor sharpened every detail and the entire game is very colourful but with more greens, blues and greys than anything else.

Summary

Reus is a deep god game that requires a degree of thinking to succeed however it is not without its flaws. The slow moving giants bog down the games pace and ease of accidentally ruining things causes many frustrations but overlook these and you have a nice looking challenging strategy game.

• Reus
• Developers: Abbey Games
• Publishers: Abbey Games
• PC
• Genre: God /Interactive
• Release Date: 16^th May 2013
• Graphics – 3/5
• Gameplay – 3/5
• Story – 3/5
• Overall – 3/5

For more game reviews and news visit www.theleet.co.uk

The five piece, who shot to global fame after appearing on the X Factor, have today announced they will open the UK leg of their world tour at the Stadium of Light next May.

The SEGA Mega Drive Arcade Ultimate Portable is basically a handheld SEGA Mega Drive and it has a number of unique features including 20 built in 16-bit Sega games.

For around £50 you get a pretty definitive Sega games portable with a nice clear 2.8 inch LCD screen, a rechargeable battery and an SD card slot (card not included)

The SEGA Mega Drive Arcade Ultimate Portable can be plugged into a TV via an AV cable and looks pretty good on the big screen.

Personally I am not really into retro gaming, yet this console has some real classic games that are still fun to play, it’s a great introduction to younger gamers who missed these the first time round.

There has been a fair bit invested in getting this product right, starting with the packaging which looks good and the console itself is nice and compact with six buttons and a Dpad which comes in very handy for the more complex games .

The console comes with an SD card slot so you can download more games which is a bonus, plus it’s rechargeable via a usb cable, again another good idea.

With such classics as Alex Kidd, Alien Storm, Jewel Master and of course four great sonic games this console has something for everyone.

Shape wise The SEGA Mega Drive Arcade Ultimate Portable looks like a cheaper version of the PSP and is comfortable to hold and even though the screen is only small it is very clear and works well, it comes in black with blue or orange trim, also mini usb, headphone, SD card and AVout sockets positioned top and bottom, and an easy to reach volume button.

There’s a low battery indicator light mounted on the front along with the start/pause and menu buttons, the Dpad and six action buttons work well and the build quality is pretty tough, with access to the rechargeable battery on the back this is handy if you need to replace them instead of throwing it away when the battery won`t charge anymore.

The graphics are the usual 16 bit Sega type that we would expect from a retro console and are bright and cheerful, sound isn`t brilliant yet on these old games sound was never that good anyway and with an earphone socket it does improve with headphones on, and is probably less annoying for people around you.

The SEGA Mega Drive Arcade Ultimate Portable is well made and compact its worth buying it for the sonic games alone.

Summary

The SEGA Mega Drive Arcade Ultimate Portable is a nice little budget console and with the ability to download more games and with its rechargeable function make this a great little item for younger gamers.

If you’re a fan of retro gaming or just someone who wants to relive those innocent days of 16 bit gaming this is ideal with really sharp graphics and that good old repetitive arcade music.

The SEGA Mega Drive Arcade Ultimate Portable does exactly what it says on the box and for the price you can`t go wrong.

• The SEGA Mega Drive Arcade Ultimate Portable
• Manufacturer: ATGames
• 20 SEGA 16-bit games
• Rechargeable battery
• 2.8” LCD screen
• SD card slot
• Available from www.funstock.co.uk
• Price: £49.95
• Usability: 5/5
• Comfort: 5/5
• Value for money: 4.5/5

For more gaming product reviews and news visit www.theleet.co.uk

Well this is what protagonist Sam McRae faces in Digital Tribe Games and IndiePub Entertainment, Inc.’s new retro style side scrolling game Bad Bots.

It takes players on a trip back in time to when these kinds of games were everywhere but not half as polished as Bad Bots is. Its style and story makes the game engaging told with comic book style animations and speech bubbles which adds to the games overall design.

Sam McRae is a mechanic aboard a cargo ship called the “Titan Hauler” and awakes from his cryogenically induced slumber to find, to his horror, robots have killed everyone on board and have took over the ship.

Sam also finds that the robots have changed the ships course to collide with planet earth and it’s up to Sam, as the only survivor, to stop them.  The story is told cleverly in a retro style similar to a comic book strip laden with colour; Sam is a badass mechanic that seems to have a knack with guns who stops at nothing to achieve his goal.

He is fun to play and reminds me of video game legend Duke Nukem. An enjoyable story that makes Bad Bots a joy to play.

Bad Bots is your traditional side scrolling adventure game where the W, A, S and D keys walk Sam left and right as well as crouch and jump. The mouse is used as Sam’s aim, wherever the mouse is on the screen, Sam will shoot when the left mouse button is pressed.

This control scheme can be confusing but once mastered; you will be able to see how well it works for this style of game as the aiming is precise. Sam can also open doors with the E key and use his axe with the right mouse button which can break open crates to find collectables or ammunition.

There are a total of eight weapons to find with Sam only being able to carry two at a time from a standard Rifle to a robot busting Pulsar gun and each carry a hefty weight thanks to the superb sound effects and the nice robot death animations.

Robots come in a variety of sizes and colours which climax at the seven boss types you will encounter throughout the game each with their own battling style, red robots charge at you with blades, yellow ones use cover to try and kill you and the green ones tend to stand sternly with their shotguns as they are heavily armoured.

Bad Bots is fun to play and I never once got bored all the way to the end as the simplistic gameplay and the nice retro visuals kept me playing.

The style of the game will appeal to anyone who played video games in the 90’s as Bad Bots takes on a 2D cartoony artistic design.

The entire game is brightly coloured with blood splatters and bodies of your crew spread all over as well as destruction caused by the robot menace. The cut scenes emphasise Sam McRae’s badass feel and you forget he is a mechanic rather than battle hardened soldier and survival expert.

I’m a fan of retro games as I loved the style of Bad Bots however fans of modern games may struggle to come to terms with the simple design.

Summary

Bad Bots offers simple but fun gameplay reminiscent of platformers from the 90’s with a protagonist that is comparable to the likes of Duke Nukem. The story is good and easy to follow and told in a nicely styled comic book design and the metroidvania level design will appeal to the players who like to look in every nook and cranny.

• Bad Bots
• Developer: Indie Pub
• Publisher: Digital Tribe Games
• PC
• MAC
• iOS
• Android
• Genre: Side Scroller
• Release Date: 17^th May 2013
• Story – 3/5
• Graphics – 4/5
• Gameplay – 4/5
• Overall – 4/5

For more game reviews and news visit www.theleet.co.uk

I have always thought of Poker as a game played by cowboys in sleazy saloons usually ending up in a gun fight, I am aware that this is a multi-million dollar industry with some players winning outrageous amounts of money, and there certainly are plenty of online poker sites where you can fritter away your hard earned dough.

Poker night 2 is an interesting concept and a sequel to Poker night at the inventory and includes some interesting characters brought in from other games for example there’s Claptrap the wise cracking robot from Borderlands, Brock Samson ( venture brothers), Ash (Army of Darkness), and Sam from Sam and Max with Glados (portal) as dealer, an unusual mix of characters that works really well thanks to great writing and voice acting using the original actors ( apart from Ash) which really brings this game to life.

The banter between the characters is funny and keeps the game interesting although it does get repetitive after a while.

There are two types of poker available the classic Texas hold `em and Omaha hold `em which deals out four cards instead of two this is the easier option as us newbies need all the help we can get.

If you know your poker then it’s the usual stuff calling, checking, raising or folding and of course you have to keep your eye on your opponent’s faces to see whether they are bluffing or not, you can buy them drinks with your tokens to loosen them up and increase your chance’s but at the end of the day it’s down to the luck of the cards.

There are a number of unlockables available like premium themes and Borderlands 2 heads which is fine if you know the game, all of which can be won when you complete certain tasks within the game.

Gameplay is solid perhaps a little glitchy at times and the menus and interface are simple to understand and work well.

Summary

Although Poker night 2 is a budget game with some fairly decent rewards on offer it does appear to be aimed at Borderlands 2 players for some reason, yet for the likes of non-poker players like myself it is an easy way to learn how to play the game and have fun as well.

• Poker night 2
• Developer: Telltale Games
• Publisher: Telltale Games
• Xbox (XBLA)
• Playstation 3 (PSN)
• PC
• MAC
• Genre: Card game
• Release Date: 1^st May 2013
• Gameplay: 3/5
• Graphics: 3/5
• Story: 3/5
• Overall: 3.5/5

For more game reviews and news visit www.theleet.co.uk

With the MMO crown still proudly worn by Blizzards World of Warcraft, the gaming headlines last week showed us that this is slowly diminishing with players simply stopping playing. This makes way for new MMO games to give World of Warcraft a bit of competition such as Panzar Studios new entry Panzar.

This free-to-play MMO game takes on a similar interface to the likes of Warcraft and the more recent Guild Wars 2 and turns it into an action packed adrenaline fuelled battle arena game played from the third person perspective. Panzar utilises Crytek’s Cryengine3 which makes Panzar one of the best looking MMO games out there.

Panzar doesn’t really deliver a single player campaign which diminishes all signs of a story apart from four races at war. There is a brief introduction sequence at the beginning of the game corresponding on what race you choose to play as but this is just to learn the basics rather than build a backstory or reason to play.

The four races are Orcs, Dwarves, Elves and Humans and players must choose one of two possible classes from each race for example if the player chooses to play as the Orc race, they can either be a Tank, which are slow but hold a huge shield and has powerful weaponry or the Berserker who are masters of double handed weapons and have a power which temporarily makes them tougher adversaries. It’s this freedom of choice which gives Panzar its degree of depth but choice is the easy part, playing is where things get difficult.

Panzar takes on a third person viewpoint where players control their character whom can be named anything you desire using the W, A, S and D keys, jump being the space bar and the mouse freely alter the characters direction with the mouse buttons being the characters standard and secondary attacks.

The numbered keys are used as the characters special attack whenever they are unlocked and more abilities are unlocked by levelling up. The only NPCs in Panzar are at the introductory training stage and once it’s done, you will only be up against other human players (until Horde mode has been introduced at a later date).

The gameplay is very reminiscent of World of Warcraft and Guild Wars and veterans on these series’ will be right at home here. The controls are nice and responsive and the attacks feel meaty however the game itself is very difficult as it’s very easy to get killed but it’s fine as you are able to respawn and get right back into the action, for newbies though this can become frustrating quickly at least until your character levels up.

Battles are hectic no matter which game mode you choose to play, currently on offer is Domination, which sees two teams trying to keep control of a point on the map for a certain time scale, King of the Hill which sees teams trying to capture points on the map without getting it taken from them, Siege which is your basic attack, defend and Meteor mode which is similar to capture the flag on other games.

Each mode is fun to play and is just as frantic as the other and each character class caters for your own particular play style such as close quarters combat or ranged and there’s even the opportunity to craft your own weapons and items so there’s something for everyone here.

Panzar excels with its visuals taking full advantage of the Cryengine3 which we saw in the most recent game in the Crysis series. The graphics are super sharp and utterly realistic and are gorgeous to behold however it is bogged down by slow texture rendering and popping but thankfully this doesn’t happen too often, to be honest I only saw it in the training mission.

The graphics impressed me; environments are beautiful and make the game feel bigger than it actually is. Definitely one of, if not, the best looking MMO game available.

Summary

Panzar Studios have created a noble and formidable entry to the MMO scene which is constantly growing audience wise and may become one of the best ones out there. Panzar already has an impressive degree of depth with regards to character choice and a great combat mechanic, give it a few months and this will become a tough contender.

The visuals are to die for thanks to the phenomenal Cryengine3 even though some minor graphical issues exist. Not much of a story present though making playing Panzar feel a little bit empty.

• Panzar
• Developers: Panzar Studios
• Publishers: Panzar Studios
• PC
• Genre: MMORPG
• Release Date: 22^nd April 2013
• Story – 2/5
• Gameplay – 3/5
• Graphics – 4/5
• Overall – 3/5

For more game reviews and news visit www.theleet.co.uk

This year there’s another impressive line-up set to entertain. During May bank holiday weekend, Sunday 26, and Monday 27, some of the most influential and exciting names in popular music will play at NewcastleGateshead Quayside.

Paloma Faith and The Vaccines will headline and other exicting acts include Jake Bugg, Ellie Goulding, Bastille, Rudimental and AlunaGeorge plus many more.

You can enjoy all this for less than £40! Here’s the full line-up:

Sunday 26th May

Spillers Wharf Stage

The Vaccines
Ellie Goulding
Rudimental Live
The Strypes
Arlissa
The Lake Poets
Rossi Noise

Ballast Hills Stage

Modestep Live
Lethal Bizzle
Loadstar
Delta Heavy
Dismantle
Decibel
Gentleman Jonny

Monday 27th May

Spillers Wharf Stage

Paloma Faith
Jake Bugg
Bastille
AlunaGeorge
Lulu James
Drenge
Eliza & The Bear

Ballast Hills Stage

Sub Focus Live
Mista Jam
Zinc
Bondax
Gorgon City

P Money
Chroma

Tickets are At £29.50 for a day ticket or £39.50 for the weekend. For more information and to book tickets visit: www.evolutionfestival.co.uk

Twitter: twitter.com/#!/EvolutionFest Facebook: www.facebook.com/evofest

For tour tickets visit www.kililive.com/artists/bastille.

Ubisoft have brought us a vision of the future from an 80’s kids point of view complete with Cyber Commandos, lasers, neon environments and……….oversized lizards?

Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon is laden with 80’s film references and pop culture and never takes itself seriously whilst retaining Far Cry 3’s game engine at its core which is fully intact and untouched bringing us one of the most fun downloadable games on the market.

In the year 2007, after and apocalyptic nuclear war, Cyber Commando Sergeant Rex Power Colt and his partner Spider travel to an unnamed island to investigate Colonel Sloan who has gone rogue.

Rex soon teams up with female scientist Dr Darling and finds that Sloan is trying to harness the blood of huge brightly coloured but lethal lizards that roam the island called Blood Dragons to turn the world into a prehistoric state.

The story starts off fairly cliché however it takes multiple twists and turns which keeps things interesting as more characters are thrown into the fray. The plot is told through dialogue during gameplay and amusingly retro style cutscenes that will definitely take you back if you’re an 80’s and 90’s kid.

The gameplay is untouched Far Cry 3 keeping its first person shooting and stealth as well as driving elements just with a different skin over the world and its occupants. The weaponry has been overhauled visually introducing out there weapons from laser pistols to huge miniguns each with its own characteristics and animations as well as the takedowns which now sees Rex use his laser knife to take out enemies and instead of throwing knives, Rex now throws ninja stars.

The AI is also untouched which is a good and bad thing as Far Cry 3’s enemies run all around frantically when in combat making them easy prey whereas sometimes they can be smart enough to jump into a nearby vehicle to use its turret.

Side missions and Base liberation missions from Far Cry 3 are present here with enemy bases easier to see thanks to the red neon laser shooting up high into the air. Liberating them enables more missions and weapons as well as Rex’s abilities which are no longer upgradable through spending skill points.

Now Rex’s abilities and perks as well as weapons and their attachments are unlocked through mission completion. The best thing about Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon gameplay is the new ability to use the Blood Dragons to your advantage. Killing enemies allows Rex to loot their bodies for their Cyber Hearts which can be used to lure Blood Dragons towards enemies to do all your dirty work for you although I would cross paths with one yourself as these things are seriously tough.

Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon look fantastic, everything is neon coloured with a purple sky which brings out the colour even more. The dialogue is constantly amusing and most of the time it’s hilarious with Rex’s one liners like when he kills someone with the Bow and he says “I think he gets the point”. This humour is consistent all the way through and pointing out films that some of them have been ripped from is half the fun.

The Blood Dragons look great with their colour changing corresponding to their angry status and are just a fearsome to look at; you know to stay away from these when you see them.

Missions are great fun and are never boring with a mish mash of exciting combat, stealth and breath taking vehicle sequences with lots and lots of explosions. Cutscenes as I mentioned earlier are 16 bit style are fun to watch and mix with the gameplay seamlessly.

Summary

Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon is a relentless throw back to the 1980’s complete with Neon visuals and over the top characters and weaponry with constantly funny dialogue and references that even show on the loading screen.

Even though Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon uses the Far Cry 3 engine, it feels unique and fresh and keeps the player hooked from start to finish just to see what’s next.

Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon is a fantastic standalone game that should be played by everyone, especially 80’s and 90’s action movie fans.

• Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon
• Developers: Ubisoft
• Publishers: Ubisoft
• XBLA
• PSN
• PC
• Genre: FPS
• Release Date: 1^st May 2013
• Story – 4/5
• Graphics – 5/5
• Gameplay – 5/5
• Overall – 5/5

For more Games reviews and news visit www.theleet.co.uk

Well that has been broken with Namco Bandai and Digital Extremes new game just titled Star Trek. It takes on a third person shooter along suspiciously similar to the likes of Gears of War and Army of Two which also adopts a co-op element as well as different styles of play.

This game is released back to back with the new film Star Trek Into Darkness and both iterations have the fantastic casting stars like Karl Urban, Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto as well as our very own Simon Pegg with his outstanding role as Scotty.

Star Trek sees Captain Kirk and Mister Spock teaming up to take down a new enemy known as The Gorn who is capable of infecting humans with a virus that turns them into unpredictable enemies. They are also after a device that has been manufactured by the Vulcan race that will help them speed up the Vulcans process of survival on a new found planet claimed by them which has been named New Vulcan. The plot is a generic one of one race attacking another race and it’s up to your race to save the day, it’s bland and boring unfortunately not really helped by the mediocre dialogue and feeble acting.

Gameplay takes on a third person perspective with scarce stealth and platforming elements thrown in. At the beginning, players choose whether they want to control Kirk who is more of a soldier archetype or Spock who takes on more of a subtle approach to combat with his Mind Meld and Vulcan Nerve Pinch abilities.

Other than their abilities, both characters play identical movement wise. Even though Star Trek takes place in the far reaches of deep space and features a fair few Starships, The game doesn’t explore other styles of gameplay like vehicle sections or space fighting which causes the third person shooting become cumbersome and stale quite quickly.

Factors I can applaud however are Star Treks cover system and partner AI which work wonderfully and play quite a huge part in this game. The cover system is identical to Gears of Wars but not a polished and responsive but it does work and makes the shooting more tactical and regardless to which character you choose, your partner is handy in combat and will do whatever orders you give whilst never straying too far.

Star Trek oozes authenticity from the actors to the U.S.S Enterprise itself as well as the races and planets; it all captures the Star Trek mood and ambience in a way that would make all you Trekkies drool. Character models look brilliantly detailed and recognisable and the planet environments are breath-taking however indoors, things look textureless and ugly which diminishes some of this games charm.

Another aspect that I disliked about this game is the lack of character movement during most of the dialogue. Characters facial expressions and movements are robot like with just their mouths moving during a lot of the speech, this stops the game from being engaging especially when the banter between Spock and Kirk should be entertaining to watch not just to listen too.

Another player can control the other character locally or online which makes the game easier (depending on your partner’s skill) and the co-op element works brilliantly and to proceed both players must work together, think Army of Two without the badass masks.

Summary

Trekkies rejoice, we have a fairly decent Star Trek game worth playing with all the authenticity intact however non-fans, even though they will find a good sci-fi shooter, it gets boring and bland fairly quickly.

Outside, the game looks superb, step inside though and things get slapped with an ugly stick which can be overlooked. Great cover system and AI and a nice co-op element doesn’t do a lot to hide the awful motion capture (or lack of) and sub-standard plot.

• Star Trek
• Developers: Digital Extremes
• Publishers: Namco Bandai
• PC
• Xbox 360
• Playstation 3
• Genre: Third person shooter
• Release Date: 26^th April 2013
• Story – 1.5/5
• Graphics – 3.5/5
• Gameplay – 4/5
• Overall – 3/5

For more game reviews and news visit www.theleet.co.uk