So back at E3 2012, a couple of weeks ago, I was delighted to get the chance to sit down with an industry veteran, Christian Allen, who’s now becoming responsible for bringing the hardcore tactical shooter back to the market, where more casual shooters have left a large subsection of the gamer audience clamouring for more depth, more realism and better tactical gameplay. Project Takedown reached its Kickstarter funding goal back at the beginning of April, and the team at Serellan is now getting stuck into the development, working to reintroduce the genre, eschewing certain elements of modern FPS design that have begun to compromise the shooter experience, in favour of a more old-school approach.
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DayZ Preview – Interview With Dean ‘Rocket’ Hall (E3 2012)
DayZ, Dean “Rocket” Hall’s zombie survival mod for Bohemia Interactive’s Arma II, has exploded over the face of the internet’s games community. This is not just ‘some zombie game’ to add to the pile of industry’s most ubiquitous theme – it’s what everyone, from the word go, has been asking for from a zombie game: open-world realistic survival.
Still in alpha, as its creator is eager to stress, DayZ is drawing an inordinate amount of gamers into its harsh world simply by providing a large open island filled with villages and towns, Chernarus, a selection of scavenge-able weapons, medical supplies and food, scattered throughout the empty buildings and 30-50 other players, who may or may not be willing to try to survive alongside each other. With 1:1 time, food, drink and blood meters along with the occasional need for realistic first aid treatment and full-on unrestricted PvP, DayZ’s vision of the zombie apocalypse is bleak and satisfyingly simple in its realism.
[Read more…]
E3 2012: Games & Press Events Review (LA Gaming Conference)
It’s here. Electronic Entertainment Expo 2012, better known as E3, has kicked off in Los Angeles and just like last year’s E3, it’s the games industry’s annual D-Day. The announcements have already started rolling in, even though the show floor has yet open. Zath is in attendance once more and will be giving you daily summaries of all the news of the day as well as in-depth game previews and interviews over the next 3 or 4 days. We’ll begin with a summary of the various press conferences of the day.
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HTC Sensation XL With Beats Audio Review
When I took a look at the original HTC Sensation last summer, I was left impressed by its qHD display and the speed at which the phone carried out tasks, thanks in no small part to its 1.2GHz dual-core processor. Apparently, I wasn’t the only person who enjoyed using it either, as it’s proved popular enough for HTC to partner with Beats Audio and release the new HTC Sensation XL with Beats earphones bundled in.
After setting the bar so high with the original model, though, can the Sensation XL live up to its name? Let’s take a closer look and find out! [Read more…]
Invisor For Mac Review
I really dislike optical media. This partly stems from the fact that I am incredibly clumsy and tend to have a tech-related accident at least three times a week, and it also stems from the amount of space that optical media takes in cupboards and on shelves and underneath televisions. You get the idea.
So for any one of the reasons listed above, I do my best to keep optical media at a minimum. To ensure I don’t compromise on quality, a big part of this effort involves remuxing (ripping, without compression) my blu-ray discs with MakeMKV whilst keeping the original video and audio tracks uncompressed and at the best quality possible.
[Read more…]
Nokia Lumia 800 Review
After a much hyped launch, many Windows Phone 7 devices saw underwhelming sales figures in their first year on the market. With the inability to apply custom skins and unique features to devices, manufacturers such as HTC have so far failed to turn Microsoft’s new mobile operating system into the storming success as they have done with Android, but that hasn’t stopped Nokia from going all in with Windows Phone.
Following a lacklustre performance from Symbian devices up against competitors such as the iPhone, Nokia certainly needs to side with the right software provider for their latest generation of smartphones, and Microsoft seemed like the only logical choice outside of Google’s Android, which the Finnish company seems reluctant to consider.
The first flagship Windows Phone 7 device to come out of Nokia is the Lumia 800, which is available on Three here in the UK. With Nokia’s hardware and Microsoft’s software this phone should blow the competition away, but does it live up to expectations or fall flat on its face? Let’s take a closer look… [Read more…]
Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S Review
You’d be forgiven for not noticing the arrival of Sony Ericsson’s Xperia Arc S in the smartphone market when it was launched a few months ago. After all, it’s becoming harder to differentiate between the phones that carry the “Xperia” name as the branding is used on more models every quarter.
The last time we took a look at a Sony Ericsson device was back in September 2011 when we reviewed the Xperia Neo and although it felt like an Xperia Play without the ‘Play’, it definitely hit the mark for its price point. [Read more…]
iPhone 4S Review
If the blogosphere was to be believed in the build up to Apple’s new iPhone, I should be sitting down to review an incredibly thin new device right now. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case. From afar, the iPhone 4S is indistinguishable from the iPhone 4. In fact, it’s indistinguishable up close as well, except for a slightly altered antenna around the edge of the device.
That doesn’t mean to say that this upgrade is insignificant, though. Far from it, in fact. Shipping with the brand new iOS 5 and improved internals, the 4S makes for a solid upgrade to what many consider to be the world’s best smartphone. If you’re thinking of making the jump yourself, read on to see what I make of Apple’s latest and greatest. [Read more…]
Swann DVR-460 Waterproof Mini Video Camera Review
Whether you’re a keen photographer or not, the chances are you’ll take some snaps or some videos once in a while, whether it be on a fully-fledged DSLR, or just the camera in your smartphone, so you can easily relive your memories. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t recommend slipping into the sea or a swimming pool with your smartphone or camera attached to your hip, it could have disastrous consequences.
Fortunately, there are cameras designed for that very purpose, and today I have with me the Swann DVR-460 SportsCam, which claims to be able to do it. So let’s take a look, shall we? [Read more…]
TP-Link TL-WR1043ND Router Review
I’ve been in the market for a new router myself recently, and I have to say it’s an increasingly tricky decision to get right in this modern world of dual-band, gigabit and all sorts of other mind-boggling jargon. Anyway, once you’ve figured it out, you might realise that this router from TP-Link, despite being labelled ‘ultimate’, falls short of the competition as it is just a single-band. That means it’ll only operate on the 2.4GHz frequency, neglecting the 5GHz frequency that other rival routers use to gain a clearer path to half of your devices amongst other things.
Interestingly, though, unlike many of the competing entries to the market, the TL-WR1043ND features a trio of antennae fixed along the back of the router, similar to the dual antennae found in the Netgear DGN2000, which are useful for really maximising the range and strength of that single signal. It’s noticeable, too, with the range far outstripping that of my recently procured Belkin PlayMax router. [Read more…]
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