NG Crew Top 5 Of 2012 – Dave’s List

2012 was an amazing year of games. Every year we think, “How can last year be topped?”, but it somehow seems to be topped every single year. With the next consoles just over the horizon, we are coming to the end of the Xbox 360 and PS3’s life cycle, with them both at 8 years old, it’s hard to see what 2013 will bring to the consoles as developers will be hard at work on new hardware. It will be an interesting year, one I am very much looking forward to, the major releases of the later year will be released on both consoles, see Call of Duty next. It’s a huge install base that can’t be ignored, 70 million strong for both the PS3 and 360.

Now, lets look back on 2012. These games in no particular order, were my top 5 games of the past year. Keep in mind, I did not have the time or money to play all the releases of the year, but I still plan on getting to some of the great games I’ve missed over the past year.

1. Borderlands 2

Oh, Borderlands, you had me at Claptrap. It’s the game I have spent most of my time with this year, and having come out in September, that was only 3 short months that I’ve blasted many of hours in. I get some of the complaints from people, it’s a hell of a lot like the first Borderlands. Sure, you have a good point. It is, but it’s so much more refined, and they really nailed the writing this time to take it to that next level. It doesn’t do anything revolutionary to the series, but what they did do, they got it so right, and it keeps you coming back for more and more. It’s the coop really, a few buds and I get online and do the raid bosses, or new DLC, it’s amazing how they just keep you coming back into their world. I love it! They are doing great things with the DLC this time around, with 2 pieces out already, and 2 more to come that we know of, the DLC adds so much more to the main story. Great challenges and new characters make everything so fresh to get into, and plus, MORE GUNS!! With the inclusion of the Mecromancer character, who knows what Gearbox could cook up with some great DLC characters!

2. Diablo 3

Diablo 3 was a great game that I constantly have in the back of my mind to get right back into the middle of that land. I am a huge fan of the series, and Diablo 3 just took what we knew of its classic gameplay and just improved it so well. The game is constantly evolving and the drop in, drop out coop was perfect. It made everything so streamlined to make it so easy to kill some monsters with some buddies. I know there were a lot of naysayers out there against it, but I thought Blizzard deserved my money.

3. Need For Speed: Most Wanted

Most Wanted was an amazing game. Taking some of the best elements from Burnout Paradise and blending them with the best elements of the Need For Speed franchise. In my review you can see I was a tad bit letdown with the single player portion of the game, which still was a blast, but it sure made up for it in its multiplayer. The multiplayer was amazing and seamless. It would create a playlist for you so you’re always in the action. Even the lobby system in the game was great. You never stop driving! The billboards and speed cameras were a great addition to the social aspect of the game as it always keeps you looking at the leader boards to stay atop of your friends.

4. Far Cry 3

Far Cry 3 just grabs you right away and takes you on a great ride. The story is great, even though it may drop the ball here and there, put it will pick you right back up. The island as a whole feels alive. From the animals just waiting to be hunted, to the many enemy outposts to take over. The little nooks and crannies you find all over the island are amazing and immerse you right into the world they have built. The couple of things I wish Ubisoft had taken more time to flesh out would be the coop and multiplayer modes. They had such potential they could have done with coop especially, but you’re left feeling letdown once you see what they have done. All in all, it’s one game I can’t put down for it’s amazing single player campaign.

5. Halo 4

343 Industries had a huge shoe to fill. There was doubt, excitement, fear. I wont lie, I was a little nervous now that Bungie was out of the question. What 343i delivered was an amazing package. The single-player was great and kept you on the edge of  your seat, and the muliplayer was top notch. I keep going back to it because it’s so solid. The controls are great and the progression system makes you want to just get that next level. What they did with the Spartan Ops was great. Keeping the story going on a weekly episode is a great idea, and well executed by them.  I am very excited to see what 343i will do with the next installment in the Halo franchise. Until then, Halo 4 will keep me occupied for a long time.

Honorable Mentions:

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

Forza Horizon

Xbox SmartGlass: What it is today? What can it become?

As of today Xbox SmartGlass is available on every windows 8 computer, tablet, phone as well as all iOS and android devices. This article is split into 2 sections, what smart glass is today and what this new technology can become.

What SmartGlass is today?

Recently the NovaGamer crew was invited to attend a Windows 8 launch event in Halifax. While we were there the folks from Microsoft gave us a good walk through of what SmartGlass is today.

Right now if you install the app on any of your devices you can control your Xbox with the remote option. This allows you to swipe through the dashboard panels and select something by tapping the screen. While neat, this really is impractical unless you just want to watch Netflix and you can’t find your controller.

With the addition of Internet Explorer in the last Xbox update you can now browse the web through your Xbox 360. SmartGlass aids this by turning the screen of your device into a touchpad that you can control the cursor with. Also when you need to type a full keyboard will appear on your devices screen. The full keyboard feature is nice, but too be honest the IE app works well with a controller and if you own a controller keypad you will most likely just use your controller.

In the SmartGlass app you will find sections for Xbox Music and Xbox Video which when purchased can be pushed to the Xbox from your phone tablet or PC. With Xbox Video you have access to a movie guide on your mobile devices while watching the movie. This currently works with most movies that were released this year. With Xbox Music You can import songs bought on iTunes but these features will not work for media that was not purchased. Sorry pirates! The new Xbox Music looks very slick and would be great to run in the background during social events.

But screw social events! We’re gamers after all and if you’re like me you’re wondering how this new appendage of your Xbox will help you when you’re gaming until 2am with no pants and Cheeto stains everywhere….. Seriously, I hope you’re not like me. Anyway, there isn’t much news on the game front as of yet. As of right now only 7 Xbox games have SmartGlass integration. Some titles include Halo 4, Forza Horizon, Dance Central 3, and Madden NFL 13. Halo will push information about weapons and events in the game to your device while Forza Horizon shows your map screen so you won’t be constantly pausing to check your location. Dance Central 3 allows you to setup playlists via your device which would be easier than navigating the Kinect menus. Finally Madden NFL 13 lets you draw up and even execute plays with your SmartGlass enabled device.  Not a lot of titles, but it’s a start.

With the exception of Madden these application of SmartGlass to games is an extra, which is how it should be. This should never be a feature that you feel you NEED to use but if you want to drive around in Forza without ever opening a map then it would be handy.

What SmartGlass can be.

When using the SmartGlass remote feature on my iPad or Android phone I can’t help but wonder why I can’t see my dashboard on my device as well. This would make navigation easier as you could just swipe between tabs and select the tile you want. Not to mention anything would look nicer than that god awful remote screen, damn that’s ugly.

Internet Explorer works well enough but multitouch gestures could use some tweaking, I often am trying to 2 finger swipe to scroll down the page and the thing is going haywire thinking I want to zoom in or out. Also why can’t I view the page on both devices at the same time or at least pull the page to my tablet and walk away.

Xbox Video and Music works pretty well and this is probably why they have talked about this more than anything else. Hold up, this works well if you want to buy your media from Microsoft. If you are one of the millions of iPhone customers and you have 10GB of music your iPhone you will not be able to push any of that over wireless to the Xbox. Same goes for video and pictures (luckily you can buy an AppleTV for $109 that will do all of this shit.) Microsoft keeps talking about how Xbox is becoming the hub of the entertainment experience. Now that they have Apps on virtually every device out there, they should let us share all of the content from every device to the Xbox regardless of the files origin. If they were to do this then Xbox would truly start to become the entertainment hub for gamers.

Now onto the games. This is the most important feature, as it is why most of us own an Xbox 360. In this Microsoft actually did a great job at least with the 4 titles I’ve mentioned. The added content or the easier way to interact with menus and maps is the perfect place for SmartGlass to start. These innovations are simple yet practical and enhance the gamer’s experience. I am looking forward to more of the same and would kill to be able to access my Borderlands 2 menu on my iPad. Imagine being able to check the map, change your load out, and manage your inventory from a second screen that you already own. Make it happen Gearbox!

Will it sink or swim?

I am concerned with how few titles this has launched with and how little it is being talked about. It is not even noted as a feature on the back of the Halo 4 case. When we asked the Microsoft reps what we could expect for SmartGlass in the coming months they were quick to deflect the question saying that the tech is out there and now it’s up to the developers to use it, this is worrisome. If Microsoft does not create a buzz around this feature then developers may not see the need to create the content for it. The amount of game content that is developed in the coming months will ultimately be the deciding factor in determining whether or not SmartGlass is a gimmick or a game changer.

Forza Horizon Preview

Forza is hands down my favorite racing franchise ever. Period. I am the most hardcore Forza fan on the NovaGamer crew, they will all agree. Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate on others. Need For Speed: Most Wanted (the original) is one of my favorite games ever. I’m totally stoked on the new one coming out later this month. Forza just always “felt” amazing. The controls were tight and what you expect when you are drifting through a corner at high speeds. The cars felt different from what kind of drive the car was, front, rear, maybe even all wheel drive. Everything just felt like it should. It was a true “sim”.

Now, Turn 10 decides to hand the reign over to Playground Games, a UK based development studio. I won’t lie, I was worried. A new studio? Not to mention it was not a full simulation game like I am used to from the Forza franchise. That’s what Need For Speed is for. I didn’t follow the development cycle like I do on a regular Forza game. Watched trailers here and there, but not really focused on it. Honestly, I was more focused on the Need For Speed: Most Wanted reboot.

Turn 10 released a demo this past Tuesday (October 9th) so I decided to spend some quality time with it to see if my skepticism was warranted. The demo starts you out on the open road heading toward the Horizon Festival with the previous years winner just ahead of you. Your start car is a 2013 Dodge Viper GTS. Not a bad car to start off with. One thing Turn 10 nailed on the head repeatedly was that the complete Forza engine is intact in Horizon, and yes, yes it is. The Viper felt great as I whipped down the Colorado highway. You can really tell it’s all Forza under the hood. Once you get to the end of the first race you will be directed to your first real event, a off-road challenge. Off-road in a Forza game?? It works great. You’ll be in the seat of a Mitsubishi Lancer EVO GSR. All-wheel drive at your fingertips while you blast around dirt corners. I couldn’t believe it was a Forza game I was playing. Their work really paid off. Nailing the drifts around the corners in style, while earning your points that will help boost your characters bragging rights and popularity.

Next, you’re thrown in to a “win the race, keep the car” situation. The car? A ’70 Ford Mustang. The opponent? A Mustang airplane. You race a friggin’ airplane! It’s great how it keeps you on the edge of your seat as you see the plane racing toward the next checkpoint, hoping you are there just in the nick of time.  Once this race is finished you are told to go to one last race. High stakes, big money for the winner. You hop back in your Viper and make a mad dash for the finish line for the big purse.

Now you are free to roam. See just a small snippet on what Forza Horizon has to offer. The environments look amazing. The cars, in true Forza fashion are stunning. Wrap all of this new, arcade style racing in the Forza 4 engine, and you color me impressed. I went in very skeptical to this new formula for the Forza franchise and come out very intrigued. Turn 10 has done something very smart here too, release a demo just a couple weeks before release to try and sway those who are on the fence in their direction. Well played Turn 10. I know it may help me in my decision.

What do you think of it all? Leave your comments below!