FEB 2012 - issue (14) by GoGuide Magazine

LOCAL BAND FEATURES - REVIEWS - GIGS - EVENTS - INTERVIEWS - GAMING - MOVIES + MORE FEB 2012 - issue (14)

MUSIC COVER BAND SPECIAL ALMA FIERA CASH from CHAOS G I G F LY E R S GAMES CHARTS THE WORLD OF P L AY S TAT I O N ONLINE MUSIC

GAMING VITA

MASHUPS

Launch Special

2 0 1 2 B A F TA V I D E O GAMES AWARDS

MOVIES

NEW RELEASES MOVIE QUIZ JACK AND JILL R A M PA R T THE MUPPETS

ANNO 2070 LITTLEBIGPLANET KARTING KINGDOMS OF AMALUR: RECKONING

Cover Photo by Patrick Hoesly

O U T &A B O U T C a r t i n g, B o w l i n g, Pa i n t b a l l , I n d o o r golf, Skateboarding, BMX , Play areas, museums, fun parks... yada yada yada

www.goguidemagazine.co.uk

SAINTS ROW - THE THIRD

CONTENT Contents

GAME CHARTS (pg44)

FEB 2012 - issue (14)

Top 10 games across PS3, Xbox and PC.

PLAYSTATION VITA SPECIAL (pg45)

News floods in about the latest hardware realease from Microsoft.

- - - - - - - MUSIC - - - - - - MASHUPS (pg3)

2012 ‘GAME’ BAFTA VIDEO GAMES AWARDS (pg53)

For get Glee but lets look at the world of Mashups.

The BAFTA’s hit the games scene..

COVER BAND SPECIAL - Feature

KINGDOMS OF AMALUR: RECKONING (pg58)

We take a look at 2 of the best covers bands around the local music scene..

Has Elder Scrolls and Fable met their match?

SAINTS ROW - THE THIRD (pg60)

With no GTA on the horison for another year (or 2) we loom at the latest in the Saints Row series.

CASH FOR CHAOS (pg4)

The classic sounds from the Punk era.

ALMA FIERA - Feature (pg5)

GAME FLYERS (pg62)

Much more than just a rock covers band.

Posters for some great games released this month.

THE WORLD OF ONLINE MUSIC (pg6)

Do bands need to up their game in the online market?

OUT & ABOUT (pg73)

GIG FLYERS (pg11)

CLASSIC MOVIE POSTERS (back page)

All the best shows from local venues and bands playing around the area.

- - - - - - - MOVIES - - - - - - -

Some great indoor and outdoor stuff to get up to.

We take a look back at some classic movie posters.

Who are GOGUIDE...???

MOVIE NEW RELEASES (pg20)

All the new releases in cinemas this month.

MOVIE QUIZ (pg21)

(Answers on inside back page)

JACK AND JILL - Review (pg22)

The latest Adam Sandler release, has he still got it?

THE MUPPETS - Review (pg23)

GOGUIDE is a local online magazine for the West Lothian area. We are trying to be less focused on local ‘news’ and more a, ‘what’s on’ or ‘happening’ guide to the local area. At the moment we are heavily focused on the whats going on in the local music scene, whats on and good @ the movies and what is happening in the world of PC/Console gaming.

Woody’s back and this aint no toy story...

We do have a pretty modern approach to GoGuide content and eventually hope to produce articles on subjects outside our usual stuff such as Clubbing, Internet, Lifestyle, Sport and Fitness etc.

MOVIE FLYERS (pg26)

www.goguidemagazine.co.uk www.myspace.com/goguide Facebook Search For: GoGuide

Does the Muppets revival starts here.

RAMPART - Review (pg24)

Posters for some of the latest cinema releases.

- - - - - - - GAMES - - - - - - ANNO 2070 - Review (pg44)

How will you cope with the loss of earths resources?

With the vast majority of our content sourced from local contributors we are always on the lookout for new people to bring onboard to help us provide input to this content hungry mag so if your keen on writing stuff and getting it published in the mag feel free to drop us a message at content@goguidemagazine. co.uk

Click on the orange page number link to go to that page. Although we hope to ensure our information is correct before uploading some details on these pages are subject to change. Please check online or with each location directly for fully up to date information. Page 2

FEB 2012 - issue (14)

MUSIC

Feature

ashups are songs or compositions created by blending together two or more songs into one new track that are sometimes classed as better than the originals... now can we forget GLEE while we do this feature. Their mashups are just cover versions that have been blended together, what they do is completely different from what we are discussing here as the idea is to use the artists recorded tracks to mix with. Now remixes of tracks is nothing new or even rapping over some old 80’s hit has been done to death but Mashups theoretically have had very little done to the actual tracks and consist usually of purely an overlay of one track over another or say the vocal track of one song seamlessly over the music track of another. Sometimes this may require a small amount of speeding up, slowing down, repeating sections, adding loops/beats or some other basic DJ mixing techniques to achieve the desired results but usually both songs can be heard very distinctly rather

than a completely remixed version that has been massively changed from the original. One of the best sites for examples of these mashup tunes is ‘GoodBlimey. Com/tunes’ where you can find a staggering collection of tracks for your enjoyment. For me some just don’t work at all, to my untrained ears it sounds just too much of a mess, but on others the mixing has been done incredibly well and its amazing how someone can manage to get 2, or sometimes 3 and 4, completely different tracks to sit so well in a mix and make them sound so good together. Nowadays computers and specialist music recording software plays a massive part in gluing all these individual tracks or sections together quickly and accurately with tool suites such as Ableton Live and, most popular of all ACID Pro. These packages and others have all being tweaked in later versions to accommodate the needs of this new “scene”. The biggest changes being features like beat-mapping (a technique which simplifies the synchronization of samples of different tempos) and online previewing (allowing the composer to audition a sample, playing at the right pitch and tempo, alongside their existing composition) have all made it

easier for many people with musical ability but little professional studio experience to knock together new combinations in a fraction of the time it would take with traditional tools, such as the old tape methods that artists such as Coldcut and John Oswald had to endure in the beginning. Mashup tracks come in numerous guises but can usually found tagged as ‘vs’ tracks. Some mashups have been so successful that the artists have actually re-recorded the tracks and released them to great success. Check out the Linkin Park/Jay-Z collaboration ‘Collision Course’ as one example of this. More recently mashup DJ’s have been unhappy with just an audio track for their creations and have branched out into the video world and actually mashed the video tracks together for their audio, mostly to great effect. Checkout www.mashup-charts. com for a massive jukebox of video mashups. My top 5 songs are listed below and are selected using the truest sense of the mashup ethos (meaning without any pro re-recording etc). Paste them into Google to check them out or jump on to one of the sites mentioned and spend a few hours, days or even weeks enjoying these talented guys creations…

5: No Wonderwall Diggity by DJ Schmolli 4: Crazy In The Deep by Dark Ninja 3: She Sells Grapevines by Irn Minky 2: Poker Kids by Lostdimension (checkout Weezer doing exactly this mashup LIVE on YouTube - serach for ‘ weezer mgmt pokerface‘) 1: Did You See Me Moving Along - by Marc Johnce Mashup Links: GoodBlimey - http://goodblimey.com/tunes/ Mashuptown - http://www.mashuptown.com/ Mashup Charts - http://www.mashup-charts.com/ FEB 2012 - issue (14)

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MUSIC

Feature

CASH

ash From Chaos have been riding the wave of the punk revival over the past 4 years or so after they began back in April 2007. Now for the purist out there I know that there hasn’t been a punk revival because PUNK never went away..!!!! For the sake of argument though let’s say that it has definitely seen a lot more popularity in the mainstream again in the past few years. This has enabled acts like ‘Cash From Chaos’ to thrive and deliver their flavour of punk tribute to our doorstep. The good thing about punk for a covers band is of course the massively diverse catalogue to choose from. The punk and spin off new wave scenes had many, many different styles of music crammed under their umbrella so is an ideal picking ground for top notch tunes. Page 4

COVER BAN S O A H FROM C

Paying tribute to those days the ‘Cash From Chaos’ with Skid (vocals), Lizzie (drums/vocals), Mark (bass) and Paul and Simon (guitars) are not just a typical covers band but more pay proper tribute to those days with not just you typical Pistols or Ramones cover but delving much deeper into the punk scene and into those catalogues of The Stranglers, The Rezillos, Stiff Little Fingers, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Adverts, X-Ray Spex etc. to bring a real sense of the punk and new wave scene back then. Live ‘Cash From Chaos’ have Supported many of the original punk masters including Stiff Little Fingers, Sham 69, The Rezillos, Uk Subs, Henry Cluney (SLF), Anti Nowhere League, The Members, The Vibrators And The Business. Their travels have taken them far and wide from the stage of the famous ‘Hope and Anchor’ in London to the ‘Nice’n’Sleazy Festival’ in Morecambe for the past two years running and even taken things state side with a gig at the FEB 2012 - issue (14)

‘Double Down Saloon’ in Las Vegas. They have shared bills with classic pub punk band ‘Eddie and the Hot Rods’ and the legendary punk poet that is ‘TV Smith’ (Adverts) as well as playing with the ‘Sex Pistols Experience’ and the ‘Threats’. Times are good for the guys with plenty of big shows coming up so catch them if you can, you will defo be blown away by their amazing ability to transport you back to those chaotic days. www.cashfrom-chaos. com Images: Kim Ayres @ www. kimayres.co.uk

ND SPECIAL

lma Fiera are not your typical covers band that you book for your wedding, party or event, well actually they are and sometimes you can. But they are oh so much more than that, for one they don’t particularly look like your average covers band and their catalogue doesn’t quite shout out covers band either. Covering songs from artists like Alanis Morissette, Blondie, Kings of Leon, P!nk and Tina Turner would be fine for most events but then Alma Fiera can turn a little bit nastier by letting their hair down and slam-

ming us with audio treats from say AC/DC, Guns ‘n’ Roses or Led Zeppelin, Pearl Jam and Rage Against the Machine. I’m sure my mum would have fainted at my wedding had RATM been blasted across the room. It is these heavier ditties that lift this band into another league as far as covers bands are concerned and they pretty much guarantee that no-one leaves a gig disappointed! Brett (guitar/vox), Graham (guitar), Lynda (bass/vox) and Pete (drums/vox) formed the band back in 2005 when they finally came together having first played for years in a variety of other covers and original bands. They brought together their varied influences and have a set list with so much range that it is hard to disappoint anyone who comes along to see them. The band has worked hard over the years, and as such have amassed a rather large fan base among the rock and biker community through regular gigging and their many slots over at local venue ‘Dreadnought Rock’ FEB 2012 - issue (14)

along with appearances at various bike rallies and festivals. As a female-fronted classic rock band Alma Fiera do a great job and in particular Lynda on main vocals stands out as a great front woman and for the oldies among us the obvious comparisons to Suzie Quatro are bound to crop up… pity they don’t actually do any of her stuff, well not that I know anyway, would love to hear them do ‘Can the Can’ or ‘Devil Gate Drive’.

Being a covers band they kinda wear their influences on their sleeves but even when doing a cover you can still hear little snippets of their own personalities coming through both in their playing and in how much of a good time they have on stage. Check them out if you can. Info over @ www.almafiera.com www.myspace.com/almafiera PAGE 5

MUSIC

Original Source @ http://a1.grovo.com/img/infographics/the-world-of-online-music_1000.png

Although taken from a US perspective its not to difficult to imaging a UK type scenario and remember music is a GLOBAL medium now so why shouldn’t our smaller local bands target the global market? Interesting reading and hammers home the need for bands to think carefully about what is needed in the music industry now. I’ve been saying for the past 5-6 years now that all bands need an extra ‘nonplaying’ person who should be thought of as an integral part of the band to push all of these areas just as hard as the band reheares or play live - the two are NOT mutually exlusive...!!!!

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MOVIES RELEASES

NEW RELEASES THIS MONTH

Chronicle (TBC) / 20th Century Fox Best Laid Plans (15) / Vertigo Films Bombay Beach (TBC) / Dogwoof Carnage (15) / STUDIOCANAL Jack And Jill (PG) / Sony Pictures Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (3D) (PG) / Warner Bros. Man On A Ledge (12A) / Entertainment One UK

Martha Marcy May Marlene (15) / 20th Century Fox

Young Adult (15) / Paramount Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom MenaceÂ (3D) (U) / 20th Century Fox American Evil (15) / Metrodome Big Miracle (PG) / Universal Pictures A Dangerous Method (15) / Lionsgate UK Girl Model (TBC) / Dogwoof The Muppets (U) / Walt Disney Rampart (15) / STUDIOCANAL The Vow (12A) / Sony Pictures The Woman In Black (TBC) / Momentum Pictures

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (12A) / Warner Bros. Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance (3D)

(12A) / Entertainment One UK Hadewijch (TBC) / New Wave Films Position Among The Stars (12A) / Dogwoof The Adopted (15) / STUDIOCANAL This Means War (TBC) / 20th Century Fox The Woman In The Fifth (15) / Artificial Eye Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls (TBC) / November Films Blood Car (18) / Left Films Black Gold (12A) / Warner Bros. Deviation (TBC) / Revolver Entertainment Laura (R/I) (U) / bfi Distribution One For The Money (TBC) / Entertainment Film Distributors

Red Dog (PG) / G2 Pictures Safe House (TBC) / Universal Pictures

IN SELECTED CINEMAS NOW !!!!!

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Some details are subject to change - please check online or with cinema directly for latest information. FEB 2012 - issue (14)

MOVIES

GG Quiz

1 NAME THE MOVIES ?? 4

5 on Answers ck inside ba page ! FEB 2012 - issue (14)

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MOVIES Review

Director: Dennis Dugan Cast: Adam Sandler, Katie Holmes, Al Pacino

JACK JILL and

asically I am a pretty big Adam Sandler fan and for me his movies are usually a good bet for a few honest laughs in a way that only he seems to have been able to produce over the past 10 years or so. Every now and again though he seems to slip into the darker side of comedy which is where I don’t think he lives very well. Stuff like Reign Over Me, Funny People or even Spanglish just don’t do it for me even though they are some of his more critically acclaimed movies. I prefer Gilmore or say The Wedding Singer or even Click as a more Sandler’esque title to enjoy. In Jack and Jill Sadler plays Jack Sadelstein, a successful director of commercials who lives in Los Angeles with his wife Erin (Katie Holmes) and their two children. It is ThanksgivPage 28

ing and the movie kicks off with the arrival of Jack’s dreaded twin sister Jill (Sandler in drag), a single woman with a much exaggerated New York drawl. The Sadelsteins are Jewish, a point that Jack reminds us over and over again with his often stated paranoia regarding anti-Semitism which he tends to confine to his unfortunate assistant (Nick Swardson).

The character of Jill is offensive to be blunt, she’s domineering, oblivious to social etiquette and has rather incestuous feelings towards her brother, which apparently first started back when they were infants and she would spoon Jack in their crib and she would place little hand on his rear. As a grown woman she still harbours longings to do the same, creeping up behind him as he naps. “Why can’t you lay with me?” Jill whinges huffily when Jack retreats away from her. Some of the movies main plot revolves around Jack’s efforts to find his sister partner of her own to deflect these unwanted attentions on to. He turns to first your typical FEB 2012 - issue (14)

dating website, then via Craigslist (a centralized network of online communities in the states). When he has exhausted all other efforts he tries to hook her up with Al Pacino who plays himself in the movie. What Jack has failed to notice is that his nice Mexican gardener Felipe (Eugenio Derbez) is smitten with her. Felipe invites Jill to join him for a regular Mexican family pastime – picnicking in the park, playing soccer, eating chimichangas and “stealing white people’s wallets.” I’m sure you will really want to forgive Jack for hating his sister because I’m sure we all want to hate her too. The most cringe moment in this movie is when, like so many, it insists on attempting to shove the case for sibling bonding down our throat with the two eventually carrying out a weird declaration of love, the climax of which is done entirely in the twin’s own secret language. Not one of Sandlers best movies but defo one for the fans i suppose.

MOVIES

Review

ack in my day the Muppets, created by puppeteer Jim Henson, were massive. “The Muppet Show” ran for five seasons in the UK, between 1976 and 1981. The series format was one of a manic collection of puppets mixed with massive guest stars from across all areas of the entertainment industry. Once the series ended it spawned half a dozen film spin-offs with varying degrees of success. The first Muppet movie boasted cameos by Bob Hope, Mel Brooks, Edgar Bergen, Milton Berle, Steve Martin, Richard Pryor and Orson Welles. This was a line-up that cemented The Muppets standing in the industry and positioned Kermit and co. as the natural successors to a half-century or more of prime-time slapstick musical entertainment. Since those heady days the brand has fallen rather sharply into decline and its fair to say that the chances of any kids nowadays know any of the

Muppets if you were to hit them on their cute little heads with a Kermit, Fozzie or a Miss Piggy never mind a Scooter, Chef or Gonzo. Just when you thought it was all over a knock on the door comes in the form of Forgetting Sarah Marshall star Jason Segel, who admitted to a fetish for singing puppets in the movie and who seems to be tasked with the mantle of taking Jim Henson’s fabric-and-thread creations into the next generation. The Script, also panned by Segel with his Sarah Marshall director Nicholas Stoller, takes us on a strange standpoint by telling us initially that the good old days are over for the Muppets. This tactic is a dangerous ploy as it clearly risks turning this movie into too much of a farewell move and tagging it with the ‘nostalgia’ badge thus alienating the younger elements of its target audience. So the story goes that Gary and Walter are brothers, but no ordinary brothers. Gary (Segel) is your typical homosapien while Walter is more,

FEB 2012 - issue (14)

well, more of a material person… made of material of course. Not only that but he is a massive Muppets fan. So when Gary invites his girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) for a romantic break to Los Angeles, it’s only expected that Walter would come along too because it has been both their dreams to visit the Muppet Studios. A little problem crops up when they get there; they find the building is run-down and about to fall into the hands of crooked oilman, Tex Richman (Chris Cooper). The only way to save it of course is to try to persuade Kermit to get the old crew together and host a telethon, a comeback comedy special to raise funds to save the studio. Musically the tunes are mostly for novelty value, like the barbershop rendition of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and Chris Cooper rapping, badly. The new Muppets isn’t the best or the worst of the big-screen outings so catch it if you’re in the mood for some harmless fun with the 4 year old.

GGG

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MOVIES Review

RAMPART

Director: Oren Moverman. Cast: Woody Harrelson, Ben Foster, Sigourney Weaver.

ampart is a movie that centres on a special division of the LAPD in which were the subject of a major corruption scandal back in the late 1990’s. The Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums (or CRASH) antigang unit of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Rampart Division had more than 70 officers implicated in misconduct, making it Page 30

one of the most widespread cases of documented police misconduct in United States history. The offenses include shootings, beatings, evidence planting, framing of suspects, stealing and dealing narcotics among a host of others. The Rampart Scandal is more notable in interest due to the fact that three Rampart officers were found to be on the payroll of hip-hop big shot Marion “Suge” Knight of Death Row Records, LAPD investigators also alleged that Rampart CRASH ofFEB 2012 - issue (14)

ficers were thought to have been involved in the 1997 drive-by murder of recording artist Notorious B.I.G.. So, with a little background on the department over with, the move features Woody Harrelson as dirty cop Dave Brown. Harrelson has perhaps never been better than he is in the this seedy, shocking mix-up of a movie. Set in 1999, the movie is set in a time when public trust in law enforcement on a whole has been brought down by the scandal involving the Rampart precinct. Director Oren Moverman and crime

novelist James Ellroy have created a story around one particularly bad cop who seems to have carte blanch to run riot in Rampart. Officer Dave Brown (Harrelson) doesn’t need anyone else to cause a whole host of trouble he manages it quite effectively on his own. Reminding me a lot of Richard Gere’s character Dennis Peck in movie Internal Affairs, Brown has many layers one of internal decay, the product of many years of bending the rules to breaking point. This is apparent in not only his work life but also in his life outside the precinct. With two ex-wives (Anne Heche and Cynthia Nixon) and a daughter from each marriage we see in his character all of that conflict, housed inside his head competing for space along with what’s left of his moral compass. The movie kicks off with Brown in his true home, his beat. Looking the part in his nicely pressed uniform, the sun glinting off his classic aviator

sunglasses, he is checking out the gang ridden streets he calls home. Quickly you have a glimpse of his warped view of the world as he instils his wisdom on the younger cops. Before long we are shown exactly what Brown is with his first on screen arrest where he is seen gently forcing a confession from a convenience store thief. We then have him caught on camera in a Rodney King-style beating where he leaves the guy inches from death. Before we even have time to recover from these exploits he is next involved in a suspicious shooting. Christened ‘Date-Rape Dave’ by a date rape suspect he got rid of under dubious circumstances, soon finds himself in trouble with the department already plagued with problems and may face having his hand tied or maybe even forced to retire. Some light relief is had while watching Dave try to worm his way around the assistant district attorney (Sigourney Weaver), along with the awareness that the problem for is FEB 2012 - issue (14)

bosses isn’t so much what he’s done but the embarrassment he’s become by getting caught. All civility is left behind In Rampart and Harrelson is a credit to the character he has to portray and the fact that you feel anything for him by the end is a testament to his abilities. As the action progresses Dave meets strung-out defence attorney Linda Fentress (Robin Wright) in a bar and he seems to have found a weird solemate that matches his scepticism and sexual desires. Hartshorn (Ned Beatty) as the retired cop who’s been covering for Dave for years, handles his own black soul with such evil grace it’s chilling. Lots of this movie is shot in a fashion relying on heavily on handhelds and the use of large amounts of natural lighting, by director of photography Bobby Bukowski’s, which adds greatly to the overtly primitive feel of the movie.

GGG

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GAMING

Review

n 2070 our world has changed. The sea’s rising level has harmed the coastal cities and climate change has made large stretches of land inhospitable. The latest in the award-winning strategy series, Anno 2070 offers a new world full of challenges, where you will need to master resources, diplomacy and trade in the most comprehensive economic management system seen yet in the Anno series.

While adhering to the fundamentals that made the Anno franchise a success, the near-future setting will brings numerous new gameplay mechanics, architectural breakthroughs, and all new challenges. Additionally, you can build massive cities, the scope of which has never been seen in prior Anno games so why not become an architect of the future? Face the current world challenges to positively shape the world of tomorrow. Choose either an industrial and efficient course by joining the Tycoons or a more sustainable and environmentally-friendly direction by siding with the Ecos.

Build your society of the future, colonize islands and create sprawling megacities with multitudes of buildings, vehicles and resources to manage. Engineer new production chains such as Robot Factories, Oil Refineries and Diamond Mines and trade with a variety of goods and commodities.

Smuggle wares between harbors without being detected by the coastal patrols or forge alliances with powerful figures to expand your influence... its really all up to you. So... Whats are you going to do today?

Your decisions will have an impact on the environment, the architectural look of their world, and the needs of populations. New depths are there to be discovered. Take advantage of the transport systems of the future and develop a powerful economy.

GG GAMES CHARTS GG GAMES CHARTS

PS3 Fifa 12

The enhanced Anno with new features to master

The Top 10 games for Playstation, Xbox and PC as voted by GoGuide

The Top 10 games for Playstation, Xbox and PC as voted by GoGuide2

1 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 2 The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim 1 3 Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception The Elder 3Scrolls V: 4 Battlefield 5 FIFA Skyrim12 6 Batman: Arkham City Battlefield 3 2012 7 Pro Evolution 8 F1 2011 Call Of Duty: Modern 9 Sonic Generations Warfare 3 Reloaded 10 GoldenEye:

X-BOX

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 The12 Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Fifa Battlefield 3 The Scrolls V: FIFAElder 12 Forza Motorsport 4 Skyrim Batman: Arkham City Battlefield Kinect Sports: 3 Season Two Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure Call Of Duty: Modern Gears of War 3 Rage Warfare 3

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

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PS3

X-BOX

Call of Duty:Manager Modern Warfare 3 1 Football Football Manager 2012 2012 Battlefield 3 The Sims 3: PetsThe Old Star Wars: The Sims 3 Republic The Sims 3: Generations Rage Elder Scrolls V: The The Sims 3: Late Night Skyrim LA Noire Assassin’s Creed: The Sims 3 Forza Motorsport 4 Revelations Kinect Sports: Season 2 Call Of Duty: Modern Uncharted 3: Drake’s Halo: Combat Evolved Warfare 3 Deception Battlefield 3 Anniversary Need For Speed: The Saints Row: The Third The Sims 3: Pets Run The Sims 3: Kinect Sports Saints Row: The Third Generations Need For Speed: The Rayman Origins Anno 2070 Run Sonic Generations 10 10 The Sims 3: Late Night

GAMING PlayStation®Vita

SPECIAL FEATURE

ony’s new handheld console ‘PlayStation Vita’ stole the headlines at E3 2011 with a triumphant unveiling of the system, games and services. It will be known as the ‘PSVita’ when it finally arrives in UK shores at the end of Feb or maybe ‘PSV’ or perhaps ‘PSP2’… only time will tell. It is the successor to the PlayStation Portable (PSP) and was released in Japan and parts of Asia on December 17, 2011.

The handheld includes two analog sticks, a 5-inch (130 mm) OLED multi-touch capacitive touchscreen, and supports Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and optional 3G. Internally, the Vita features a 4 core ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore processor and a 4 core SGX543MP4+ graphics processing unit, as well as LiveArea software as its main user interface, which succeeds the XrossMediaBar. The device is fully backwardscompatible with PlayStation Portable games digitally released on the PlayStation Network via the PlayStation Store. However, PS One Classics and TurboGrafx-16 titles were not compatible at the time of the primary public release in Japan. The Vita’s dual analogue sticks will be supported on selected PSP games. The graphics for PSP releases will be up-scaled, with a smoothing filter to

AL I C E P S H C N U A L

reduce pixilation. The device features a “super oval”shape similar to the design of the original PlayStation Portable, with a 5-inch (130 mm) OLED capacitive touchscreen in the centre of the device. The device features two analogue sticks (unlike the PSP which features only a single analogue “nub”), a D-pad, a set of standard PlayStation face buttons ( , , and ), two shoulder buttons (L and R), a PlayStation button and Start and Select buttons. The device also features a rear touch pad, two cameras (a front and a rear), stereo speakers, microphone, Sixaxis motion sensing system (threeaxis gyroscope, threeaxis accelerometer), three-axis electronic compass, built-in GPS (only for the 3G version) as well as Wi-Fi, 3G, and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR connectivity. The two cameras feature the abilities of face detection, head detection, and head tracking. It also allows for customization and personalization. The PlayStation Vita will have 512 MB of system RAM and 128 MB of VRAM. The amount of RAM allows cross-game chat to be used on the system (in contrast to the PlayStation 3, which only has 256 MB dedicated to system RAM and 256 MB dedicated to VRAM).

as augmented reality software. The 3G service will be partnered with Vodafone. Unlike the PSP (2000 and 3000), the PlayStation Vita will not support video output or contain a removable battery. Sony also confirmed that the battery would last 3–5 hours of gameplay (no network, any sound, and default brightness level), 5 hours of video and up to 9 hours of music (listening with the screen off). An external battery option was announced in an interview by SCEA Worldwide Studios President Shuhei Yoshida. PS Vita is equipped with a storage media slot in addition to the PS Vita card slot, so that users can choose their memory capacity based on their use. Software for the PlayStation Vita is distributed on a proprietary flash memory card called “PlayStation Vita card” rather than on Universal Media Discs (UMDs) used by the original PlayStation Portable. PSVita memory cards will be available in size from 4 GB to 32 GB, with 4 GB versions currently available. 5–10% of the writeable space is reserved for data added by the user after purchase, such as game save data and patches. The size and form factor of the card itself is very similar to the SD Card. Some media applications and games will require a proprietary PlayStation Vita card inserted to be used.

The PlayStation Vita will be released as two different versions: one with 3G support, and a cheaper version without 3G support. The more expensive 3G-version will also come pre-loaded with some special applications that take advantage of 3G’s “always-on” capabilities, such FEB 2012 - issue (14)

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GAMING PlayStation®Vita

SPECIAL FEATURE

ind out what video game industry experts are looking forward to most when PS Vita launches this month. “I want to see how people will react to the new ways to play that PS Vita brings such as the rear touch pad, Augmented Reality features and AAA titles on a portable device with a real game interface. Plus, I’m interested to see how developers will take advantage of the potential of PS Vita. Looking at the Japan launch titles, the future looks very promising.” Shuhei Yoshida, president, SCE Worldwide Studios

AL I C E P S H C N U A L PART 2

“Escape Plan: it appeals to my aesthetic and auditory senses like few games do. Seems like some great opportunities for fresh gameplay on a new device.” Dayne McClurg, community manager, Gotham City Impostors “I’m looking forward to Wipeout 2048, Little Deviants and MotorStorm RC. They’re all great games that I’ve really enjoyed playing this year, and my teams have done a great job bringing them to PS Vita. Apart from those titles I can’t wait for people to play Uncharted Golden Abyss and Escape Plan.” Mick Hocking, vice president, SCE Worldwide Studios “Other than our own F1 2011, I’m keen to tinker with some of the AR features and just drool over that amazing screen.” Nick Craig, vice president, Codemasters

“It’s going to be great to see consumers get their hands on PS Vita. I believe it will really shake up the whole portable gaming space with richer, deeper and more immersive experiences than before. There are lots of fantastic games coming that deliver true dual analogue stick action, as well as existing series that have been reinvented for PS Vita and great, new, innovative games and apps that show off many of the system’s other cool features.” Michael Denny, senior vice president, SCE Worldwide Studios, Europe

“I’m really looking forward to the launch of PS Vita. It is a great device and there are loads of games that I can’t wait to get my hands on.” Simon Bursey, art director, BigBig Studio “Escape Plan looks like a great little game with interesting and unique gameplay; Gravity Rush seems to be a new concept with a cool style to go with it; and, Uncharted: Golden Abyss seems to push PS Vita to the max – it will be interesting to see how Drake plays on a handheld.” Tore Blystad, game director, Hitman: Absolution “Definitely Resistance: Burning Skies. I know it sounds like I’m plugging my own but that’s why I got into this business – to finally see the games on the shelves when they’re done.” Daniel Brooke, producer, SCE Worldwide Studios

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PLAYSTATION VITA FEATURES

Designed for games: With a stunning screen and dual analogue sticks, PS Vita is every gamer’s dream come true. Always connected: Take your pick from an always-on 3G Mobile Broadband or a Wi-Fi only model. Social gaming: Locate, connect, discover, share and play with your friends wherever they are Power and performance: PS Vita uses the latest technology to deliver the best performance and graphics. PlayStation Network: PS Vita is fully compatible with PlayStation Network, as well as connecting with PS3. Innovative games: Built-in cameras and GPS help create augmented reality and location-based experiences

“I’m really excited about Unit 13, which we recently revealed. I think it’s going to be one of the most successful titles during the launch window.” Ara Demirjian, assistant producer, SCE Worldwide Studios

PS Vita launches in Europe on 22 February 2012.

GAMING FEATURE

THE

2VIDEO 0 GAME 12

BAFTA AWARDS

he 2012 GAME British Academy Video Games Awards takes place on 16 February at the London Hilton hotel on Park Lane and, for the fourth year running, will be hosted by comedian and gamer Dara O’Briain. Games were entered by both developers and publishers into all the award categories and were initially voted on by BAFTA’s video games members and a carefully selected panel of industry experts via a secure website. The titles with the most votes went through to specialist juries who receive the games prior to making their nominations. Each juror signs confidentiality papers and casts their votes on paper. The results in each category are not known until the envelope is opened on the night. GAME is Europe’s leading specialist retailer of pc and video game products. With 11 stores in the UK, it has grown to a chain of over 1,300 outlets and operates stores in ten countries supported by its eCommerce website.

The Academy today announced the nominations for the. 48 different games have been recognised and together they represent some of the most popular, innovative and cutting-edge creativity in today’s gaming industry.

AND GAM and Story. Deus Ex: Human Revolution received nods for Action, Original Music, Story and Strategy. Assassin’s Creed Revelations and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 both have three nominations.

Batman: Arkham City and L.A. Noire are both nominated for Artistic Achievement, Best Game, Design, Original Music, Performer and Story. In addition, Batman: Arkham City is nominated for Action and Audio Achievement.

Bastion, Battlefield 3, Dance Central 2, Dark Souls, FIFA 12, From Dust, Kinect Sports 2, Monstermind, The Nightjar, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Super Mario 3D Land, and Total War: SHOGUN 2 all received two.

L.A. Noire also got the nod for Debut Game and Game Innovation. Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception and LittleBigPlanet2 both received nominations for Artistic Achievement and Performer. Uncharted 3 was also nominated for Action, Audio Achievement, Original Music, and Story. LittleBigPlanet 2 received additional nods for Design, Family, Game Innovation, and Online-Multiplayer.

This year’s Awards will also include the publicly-voted category – the GAME Award of 2011. The shortlist was compiled by a panel of gaming journalists and enthusiasts, and comprises of Batman: Arkham City, Battlefield 3, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, FIFA 2012, L.A. Noire, Minecraft, Portal 2, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception.

Portal 2 is nominated for Action and Performer. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim received nominations for Artistic Achievement and Original Music, and both games are also nominated for Best Game, Design, FEB 2012 - issue (14)

Read on to see the full nominations list for ALL categories. We gave marked with a GG who we think should win and in next months issue we will bring you all the results in full. PAGE 53

GAMING FEATURE

THE

ACTION Assassin’s Creed Revelations Martin Schelling, Darby McDevitt, Raphael Lacoste Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft Batman: Arkham City Jamie Walker, Sefton Hill, Adam Doherty Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games/Activision Blizzard Deus Ex: Human Revolution GG Jean-Francois Dugas, Antoine Thisdale Eidos Montreal/Square- Enix Portal 2 Valve/Valve Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception Evan Wells, Christophe Balestra, Amy Hennig Naughty Dog/Sony Computers Entertainment Europe

2VIDEO 0 GAME 12

BAFTA AWARDS

ARTISTIC ACHIEVEMENT Batman: Arkham City GG Jamie Walker, Sefton Hill, David Hego Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment L.A. Noire Simon Wood, Cheekin Chan, Ben Brudenell Team Bondi/Rockstar Games LitteBigPlanet 2 Development Team Media Molecule/Sony Computers Entertainment Europe Raymans Origins Michel Ancel, Celine Tellier, Christophe Villez UBlart Montpellier/Ubisoft The Elder Scrolls V – Skyrim Todd Howard Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Game Studios Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception Evan Wells, Christophe Balestra, Amy Hennig Naughty Dog/Sony Computers Entertainment Europe Batman: Arkham City Jamie Walker, Sefton Hill, Nick Arundel Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Battlefield 3 Stefan Strandberg, Bence Pajor, Carl Vikman Dice/Electronic Arts Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Development Team Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games/Activision Blizzard

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AND GAM

B A F TA ‘ O N E S T O WAT C H ’

in association with Dare to Be Digital Joust Digital Knights Dreamweaver Evolved Ape

Tick Tock Toys Swallowtail

AUDIO ACHIEVEMENT

Dead Space 2 GG Andrew Boyd, J White, Steve Papoutsis Visceral Games/Electronic Arts The Nightjar Nick Ryan, Paul Bennun, Daniel Jones Somethin’ Else/Somethin’ Else

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception Evan Wells, Christophe Balestra, Amy Hennig Naughty Dog/Sony Computers Entertainment Europe

FEB 2012 - issue (14)

DEBUT GAME

Bastion Amir Rao, Greg Kasavin, Darren Korb Supergiant Games/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Eufloria Rudolf Kremers, Alex May Omni Systems Limited/Omni Systems Limited Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet Michel Gagne, Joe Olson Shadow Planet Productions/Microsoft Studios L.A. Noire GG Brendan McNamara, Naresh Hirani, Alex Carlyle Team Bondi/Rockstar Games Monstermind Development Team Bossa Studios/Bossa Studios RIFT Scott Hartsman, Russ Brown Trion Worlds/Trion Worlds

G A M E I N N O VAT I O N

Bastion Amir Rao, Darren Korb, Gavin Simon Supergiant Games/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Child of Eden Tetsuya Mizuguchi, Takashi Ishihara, Yuki Ichiki Q Entertainment/Ubisoft From Dust Eric Chahi, Guillaume Brunier, Bruno Gentile Ubisoft Montpellier/Ubisoft L.A. Noire GG Brendan McNamara, Oliver Bao, Franta Fulin Team Bondi/Rockstar Games LittleBigPlanet 2 Development Team Media Molecule/Sony Computers Entertainment Europe The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Development Team Nintendo/Nintendo

MOBILE & HANDHELD

Dead Space iOS Development Team Iron Monkey Studios/Electronic Arts Magnetic Billiards: Blueprint John Pickford, Ste Pickford Pickford Bros/Zee-3 Limited Peggle HD JP Vaughan, Paul O’Donnell, Sukhbir Sidhu Popcap Games/Electronic Arts

DESIGN

Batman: Arkham City GG Jamie Walker, Sefton Hill, Ian Ball Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment L.A. Noire Brendan McNamara, Alex Carlyle, Andrew Hamilton Team Bondi/Rockstar Games LittleBigPlanet 2 Development Team Media Molecule/Sony Computers Entertainment Europe Portal 2 Development Team Valve/Valve Super Mario 3D Land Development Team Nintendo/Nintendo The Elder Scrolls V - Skyrim Todd Howard Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Game Studios

FA M I LY G A M E

Dance Central 2 Development Team Harmonix/Microsoft Studios Kinect Sports 2 Development Team Rare and Big Park Studios/Microsoft Studios LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean Development Team TT Games/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars Jon Burton, Kellam Eanes TT Games/Activision Blizzard and LucasArts LittleBigPlanet 2 GG Development Team Media Molecule/Sony Computers Entertainment Europe Mario Kart 7 Development Team Nintendo/Nintendo

Quarrel Gary Penn, Aaron Puzey, Sean Taylor Denki Games/UTV Ignition Games Super Mario 3D Land GG Development Team Nintendo/Nintendo The Nightjar Development Team Somethin’ Else/Somethin’ Else

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GAMING FEATURE

ONLINE – BROWSER

ORIGINAL MUSIC AND

GAM

Gardens of Time Development Team Playdom/Disney Interactive Media Group I Am Playr GG Oli Madgett, Steve Didd, Dan Mayers We R Interactive/We R Interactive Monstermind Henrique Olifiers, Mike Bithell, Ric Moore Bossa Studios/Bossa Studios Resistance 3 Development Team Insomniac Game/Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure Development Team Toys for Bob/Activision Blizzard The Sims Social Development Team Playfish/Electronic Arts

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations Jesper Kyd, Lorne Balfe Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft Batman: Arkham City Nick Arundel, Jamie Walker, Sefton Hill Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Deus Ex: Human Revolution Michael McCann Eidos Montreal/Square-Enix L.A. Noire Andrew Hale, Simon Hale Team Bondi/Rockstar Games The Elder Scrolls V – Skyrim GG Jeremy Soule Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Game Studios Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception Greg Edmonson Naughty Dog/Sony Computers Entertainment Europe

PERFORMER Aaron Stanton (Cole Phelps) – L.A. Noire

O N L I N E - M U LT I P L AY E R Assassin’s Creed: Revelations Martin Schelling, Darby McDevitt, Raphael Lacoste Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft Battlefield 3 Fredrik Loving, Joakim Bodin, Oskar Gabrielson Dice/Electronic Arts Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 GG Development Team Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games/Activision Blizzard Dark Souls Development Team From Software/Namco Bandai Games Gears of War 3 Development Team Epic Games/Microsoft Studios LittleBigPlanet 2 Development Team Media Molecule/Sony Computers Entertainment Europe

Mark Hamill (The Joker) – Batman: Arkham City Nolan North (Nathan Drake) – Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception Stephen Fry (Narrator) – LittleBigPlanet 2 Stephen Merchant GG (Wheatley) – Portal 2 Togo Igawa (Dipolomat, Advisor and Military General) – Total War: SHOGUN 2

2012 BEST GAM

Batman: Arkham City Call of Duty: Modern Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Warfare 3 Interactive Entertainment Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Battlefield 3 Games/Activision Blizzard Dice/Electronic Arts FIFA 2012 Electronic Arts/Electronic Arts

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L.A Noire

Team Bondi/Rocks

Legend of Z ward Sword

Nintendo/Nintend

SPORTS/FITNESS

STORY

DANCE CENTRAL 2 Development Team Harmonix/Microsoft Studios DiRT 3 Development Team Codemasters Racing Studio/Codemasters Fl 2011 Development Team Codemasters Birmingham/Codemasters FIFA 2012 GG Kaz Makita, David Rutter, Aaron McHardy Electronic Arts/Electronic Arts KINECT SPORTS 2 Development Team Rare and Big Park Studios/Microsoft Studios YOUR SHAPE FITNESS EVOLVED 2012 Stephane Decroix, Igor Manceau, Philippe Baude Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft

BATMAN: ARKHAM CITY Jamie Walker, Sefton Hill, Paul Crocker Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment DEUS EX: HUMAN REVOLUTION Mary DeMarle, Jean-Francois Dugas, James Swallow Eidos Montreal/Square Enix L.A. NOIRE Brendan McNamara Team Bondi/Rockstar Games PORTAL 2 Development Team Valve/Valve THE ELDER SCROLLS V – SKYRIM GG Todd Howard Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Softworks Europe UNCHARTED 3: DRAKE’S DECEPTION Evan Wells, Christophe Balestra, Amy Hennig Naughty Dog/Sony Computer Entertainment Europe

S T R AT E G Y DARK SOULS Development Team From Software/Namco Bandai Games DEUS EX: HUMAN REVOLUTION GG Jean-Francois Dugas, Frank Lapikas Eidos Montreal/Square Enix FOOTBALL MANAGER 2012 Development Team Sports Interactive/SEGA FROM DUST Eric Chahi, Guillaume Brunier, Bruno Gentile Ubisoft Montpellier/Ubisoft GHOST RECON SHADOW WARS Julian Gollop, Stefan Dyulgerov, Borislav Bogdanov Ubisoft/Ubisoft TOTAL WAR: SHOGUN 2 Development Team Creative Assembly/SEGA

BEST GAME - JUDGES VOTE Batman: Arkham City Jamie Walker, Sefton Hill, Nick Arundel Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment FIFA 2012 Kaz Makita, David Rutter, Aaron McHardy Electronic Arts/Electronic Arts L.A. Noire Brendan McNamara, Naresh Hirani, Alex Carlyle Team Bondi/Rockstar Games Portal 2 Development Team Valve/Valve The Elder Scrolls V – Skyrim GG Todd Howard Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Game Studios The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Development Team Nintendo/Nintendo

E - PUBLIC VOTE

star Games

Zelda: Skyd

Minecraft

Portal 2

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim GG

Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception

Mojang/Mojang

Valve/Valve

Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Naughty Dog/Sony Computer EnterSoftworks Europe tainment Europe Vote NOW for your favourite game LIVE @ www.baftagameaward.com

FEB 2012 - issue (14)

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GAMING REVIEW

ould EA’s ‘Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning’ be their stab at a contender for the Elder Scrolls and Fable franchises? Comparisons will obviously be made, and considering the genre, these allegations may well be right on the money. Like any other RPG in the genre, you are able to customize your character such as deciding on is which race you want to play as. These are broken into 4 for you to choose; Almain (noble Humans) the Ljosalfar (Light Elves), the Dokkalfar (Dark Elves), and the Varani (nomadic Humans). Each race has its very own individual stats and abilities. Once ‘Race’ has been decided, you then move on to customizing your character in basically anyway you prefer. One of the most enjoyable aspects of this game for me was the fighting as it seems that this area has been Page 58

looked at by the programmers and tester in order to produce something incredibly easy to use and intuitive. With all of the tools at your disposal from weapons, to magic, to potions, and all easily accessed from the controller layout which is setup in a very convenient way for battle (on a PS3 anyway). Square is your primary weapon, triangle brings secondary weapon up, and L1 is for your shield which still comes out regardless of weapon type. When you need to use either magic or potions, you are able to do so with ease. Another great feature of KOAR is that while you are fighting, you are still able to jump between attack classes. Thus, there is no need to stay as say the mage or warrior class throughout the game. The system allows you to switch between them and others countless times. Let’s say you enter a fight and find that your main weapon isn’t having much effect on your foe, so you swap to your secondary weapon to find the same thing… Ahhhh…. no FEB 2012 - issue (14)

need to worry in in this game you can actually change those as well. Pressing >Start and editing your weapons allows you to easily switch out your primary and secondry weapons for say a two handed sword, or a pair of daggers, or one of the other 5 weapon types mid battle. Curt Schilling, 38 Studios founder, described the style of the game as “a marriage between God of War and Oblivion.” We say he is pretty close on that and the creators have done a great job at marrying the two titles/genres. Fighting works based on the age old scenario of correct timing of button presses, similar to the style of any action RPG, with occasional QTE’s (Quick Time Events) appearing as they would in the God of War series or any other game from the past 10 years. Graphically the game is made up of sections which are really excellent

and the areas that are perhaps not as good but never at any time bad. Parts remind you of Fable while the fighting episodes are increasingly more awesome as you build up your abilities and character, with your powering up to provide a commanding knockout punch to any enemy you might come across. Add to that some simply astonishing cut scenes and you don’t really have much to gripe about. KOAR does have one little niggle considering we are now into 2012 and that is the lack of a real character voice, instead you are left with a simple dialogue box. For me that leaves me with a feeling of no real connection with my creation and it seems bereft of any possible personality. This seems strange as the other characters throughout the game are voiced brilliantly and it is just a pity that we couldn’t choose what we wanted to say and then have your character speak them for you. It would I’m sure have made

an already superb game a good deal better. Although the combat element of the game is a big plus the other areas are on a par and using maps; mini, local and world, are all done with ease. Access to the 3 maps lets you zoom in or out and move around the local and world maps. Using these maps you can actually teleport to places you need to go to rather than go through the old RPG route of revisiting places repeatedly as you try to get to somewhere else. Like all RPG the game relies heavily on numerous quests with varying degrees of difficulty. KOAR does a good job of branching these off into main, side and then into quests that solely belong to your chosen faction. The game directs you in what steps and directions you must follow to complete the quests. With regards to quests a nice inclusion is that an in game character who perhaps issues you a quest can be KILLED by those who attack you, so beware. FEB 2012 - issue (14)

If you are still not convinced that this game is worthy of your purchase, I suggest you play the demo. The demo lets you do nearly everything you can without actually having to buy the full game. You are able to level up, buy potions, and try magic and various weapons. This is easily one of the most comprehensive game demos I have ever played. Of course, you can only complete 5 or so quests but the demo is worth downloading. As we said at the beginning of the review Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning could be seen as EA’s, or even the PS3’s, answer to Fable or Elder Scrolls. Even if it doesn’t quite reach those dizzying heights at least EA has added yet another cracking RPG title to its roster.

GGGG PAGE 59

GAMING

REVIEW

eing tagged as just a GTA clone the Saints Row games, despite their numerous differences and colourful faĂ§ade have constantly been barraged with accusations and criticism of its level of innovation in the sandbox genre that it resides in. Now that we have the 3rd in the series, Saints Row - The Third, released and the next GTA title not available until well in the future Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m wondering if it can finally shake that monkey well and truly off its back. In the new game the Third Street Saints have somehow achieved international status and are reaping the benefits of this stardom with stacks of movie deals and endorsements to their name. With this fame comes the reward of street dominance and with no genuine competition on the streets to defy them, as you might expect, get sloppy and complacent. This eventually leads to a takeover by some Belgian banker and his buddies, who in time have brought the Saints Empire crashing back down to a small street level gang again.

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Gamers are put in the predicament of once again working their way back up the street hoodlum food chain, much like they did in Saints Row 2. Proceedings accelerate from small engagements into the bigger jobs of reclaiming of territories and eventually to full scale wars using every resource at the gangster’s disposal including genetically grown human tanks and clones. Sure it’s nothing that we haven’t seen before and a tad predictable with some of its characters portrayed of low-grade gangster film stereotypes. But that may not be a bad direction to take for SR3 as it is seen to not be taking itself too seriously and keeps the in game action well and truly on the higher end of the scale during the story. Your cast of characters embraces everyone from an auto-tuned voice infatuated pimp to a Mexican wrestling themed gangster so be warned and get ready for a good few cheap jibes and plenty of laughs along the way despite the lack of any real plot or twists anywhere to be seen. On the odd occation we do see Saints Row 3 taking things a little too far, which can be seen sometimes to be bordering on obnoxious and pretty naff from an overall story point of view.

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GAMING REVIEW

All the typical Saints Row gimmicks and trademarks have been carried over to this game, from theft and insurance fraud to the good old prostitution rackets, they are all there in their messed up glory. Not content with that though SR3 has some new ‘activities’ for you to enjoy, players can take part in a manic Japanesestyle game show where killing is the no 1 tactic, or some Tron inspired motorcycle races. At SR3’s heart is still the core gameplay of Saints Row which has you earn cash, buy properties and gain discounts, while initiating a plentiful supply of chaos so that your reputation meter keeps climbing to enable you access to more story missions and grow your character abilities. As usual you start the game by choosing your character and customising to your heart’s content, not only at the start but throughout the game you can pop in and tweak at any time you feel the need to. There is also an upgrade option which alPage 62

lows you to play around with things that might just help you survive on the Stillwater mean streets. As you play you will hopefully become more powerful and thus your gang increases in stature too, which means even more options to customise stuff for your gang. You can kit them out with weapons, dress them up, organize them, the choices are yours and with a good gang behind you rebuilding an empire shouldn’t be too difficult and rewards you with a sandbox area that really lets you to discover your inner psychopath. Numerous set pieces and scripted events keep the game fresh, and they range from the fun and diverting to the truly spectacular, while also giving the gameplay a much needed boost when events become a bit too similar to the previous Saints Row game. A new co-op mode further compounds the craziness as you and FEB 2012 - issue (14)

a friend cruise around Stillwater delivering all kinds of carnage, while “Whored Mode” pits you against waves of attackers while asking you to do so with some gameplay gags that limit or enhance your experience. It’s a decent mode, but it doesn’t truly add anything to the experience, and could have done with a little more polish. Gunplay hasn’t really evolved at all in the interim since the last Saints Row game, so don’t expect any sort of cover system for when fire fights quickly escalate into small skirmishes between well armed militias on either side. Instead, you’ve got ample, regenerative health that can be upgraded, plenty of unlockable weapons and enemies who will throw themselves at you hoping that you’ll run out of ammo before they run out of body parts to blast off, while a few enemy variants are thrown in to the mix to keep things interesting.

You can’t have a Saints Row game without some kick ass vehicles and SR3 is no different and you will pleased to know that the handling has been tweaked a good bit and there is an abundance of different modes of transport to choose from. Steering is tighter and you grip the road better but without losing the all-important fun factor of course. The GPS system hasn’t changed much and makes anticipated turns and utilising shortcuts much simpler to use, this is probably an area that some other titles should look at as it really does ad to the game.

Graphically, as you probably already know from previous Saints Row games, SR3 replaces realism for something they can use a little more artistic integrity on. Stillwater is bathed in a neon glow which works for the most part with only a few glitches along the way. The voice casting and integration is done really well in SR3 with most of the characters successfully portraying a typical low grade plot seem to push the story along admirably, while the obligatory selection of tacky compilation albums blare out of your car stereo.

FEB 2012 - issue (14)

Overall Saints Row 3 doesn’t really disappoint and is a more polished and better experience all round than SR2; the all-out gun battles to the melee combat sections, the sometimes odd camera angles, the slightly irritating weapon selection and the hordes of mutant freaks to do battle with. Definitely not an innovation more of tidy up and ‘wipe it’s *rse’ as they say in the home improvement shows. Defo worth the investment if you liked SR2.

GGG

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The Bennie Museum The Bennie Museum opened in 1989 as a museum of Bathgate’s history and life. It is run entirely by volunteers under the management of a Charitable Trust. It has been commended by the Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions. www.benniemuseum.org.uk 11am - 4pm (Apr to Sep) & 11am -3.30pm (Oct to Mar) - FREE 9-11 Mansefield Street, Bathgate, EH48 4HU 01506 634944

Almond Valley Heritage Trust, Almond Valley is operated as a popular leisure destination that appeals to a diverse audience and promotes learning through discovery, family interaction and play. We also operate a formal education programme. www.almondvalley.co.uk Millfield, Livingston, EH54 7AR 01506 414957

The Garage Skatepark Stu Graham and co have decided to open a new skateshop at The Garage Skatepark in Livingston! The shop is still in it’s early stages but should be open for business right now.

FACEBOOK: The Garage Indoor Skate Park Mon - Sat: 10am - 10pm - Sun: 10am - 8pm 5D Grange Road, Houston Industrial Estate, EH54 5DE

Bankhead Mountainball Like many ‘extreme’ sports, Zorbing, Orbing or Sphereing was created in New Zealand back in 1994. The concept is quite simple, you build a human sphere which can accommodate up to two fully grown adults, secure them inside then let them roll down a hill in it (hamsters have been exercised for many years in a very similar way!) www.bankheadmountainball.co.uk Contact for opening hours Bankhead Farm, Dechmont, Broxburn, EH52 6NB 01506 811209

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OUTABOUT &

IN WEST LOTHIAN

Funtastic Fantasy Golf Limited Miniature golf arena but it’s one with a difference it’s BLACK-LIGHT UV which means that not only do the 3D prop’s glow in the dark but also the golf balls and art work on the wall do too. This facility is a fantastic family day out for all ages & abilities with a cafe that sell homemade food made onsite at their cafe ‘Dino Bites’

Mon - Sun: 10:00 am - 10:00 pm 3 St Andrews Way, Livingston, EH54 8HQ 07935 576943

Racing Karts Racing Karts quickly established itself as a force in Indoor Kart Racing due to its attention to safety, cleanliness and customer satisfaction. They like to call themselves ‘The Friendly Circuit’ www.racingkarts.co.uk Times: Booking required - call to arrange Arrol Square, Deans Industrial Estate, Livingston, EH54 8QZ 01506 410123

Livingston Skate Park The Livingston Skatepark opened in 1981, at a time when most commercial skateparks were closing and was one of the most important facilities in Britain during a critical period in the development of skateboarding. It is an example of a free, unsupervised facility which achieved international status. Daylight access all year round FREE 16 Northwood Park, Opposite Almondvale Shopping Centre, Livingston, EH54 6HR

Deer Park Ten Pin Bowling Deer Park Bowling Centre is a 16 Lane Bowling Centre with the capacity to hold 128 bowlers. There is a bar and food served throughout. At ‘Late night Glow Bowling’ the lights are dimmed and the lanes come alive with GLOW IN THE DARK, ULTRA VIOLET lighting effects and music. www.deer-park.co.uk Mon-Thur: 4pm-10pm / Fri: 12pm-midnight / Sat: 10am-midnight / Sun: 10am-10pm Golf Course Road, Livingston, EH54 8AB - 01506 446699 Page 76

FEB 2012 - issue (14)

OUTABOUT &

IN WEST LOTHIAN

Delta Force Paintball Delta Force Paintball provides world class paintballing in Scotland. In addition to the scenery, incredible game zones provide players with an adrenalin-fuelled day of paintball action all year round. www.paintballgames.co.uk Weekends + 1 Weekday - check online for details Off Burnhouse Road, Dechmont, Livingston, EH49 6PL 0844 477 5050

Go Ape - Beecraigs It’s not in the dictionary, but if it was, Go Ape would be described as a ‘tree top adventure’. A dollop of breathtaking scenery; a smattering of tree-top wires, crossings and wind-in-your-face zip wires; finished off with a liberal dose of people in search of their inner Tarzan. www.goape.co.uk Check Web Site for opening times and bookings The Park Centre, Beecraigs Country Park, Linlithgow EH49 6PL 0845 643 9215

Five Sisters Zoo The Five Sisters Zoo was established in 2005 and is the only wildlife attraction centre in West Lothian. With over 100 different species of animals, birds and reptiles from all around the world your visit will be a fun, enjoyable and educational one - all ages. www.fivesisterszoo.co.uk Open 7 Days a week - 10am - 6pm (5pm Winter half of year) Gavieside, West Calder, EH55 8PT 01506 871 111

Overboard Soft Play Overboard Soft Play is an exciting indoor Soft Play and entertainment venue for kids aged 0-11 yrs. They have it all, from chutes to ball pits to go-karts to ball cannons. With an underwater theme and seperate play zones for different age groups and abilities, your children are sure to have a great time from the minute they arrive until it’s time to go home. www.overboardsoftplay.com Wed - Sun: 10:15 am - 6:00 pm 3 St Andrews Way, Livingston, EH54 8HQ - 01506 873888 FEB 2012 - issue (14)

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MOVIES QUIZ

ANSWERS

The Assassination of Jesse Jame s by the coward Robert Ford

Trainspotting

Company Men

Twiligh t

: New M

Zombieland

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FEB 2012 - issue (14)

oon

CLASSIC MOVIE POSTERS 101

Creature from the Black Lagoon is a 1954 monster horror film directed by Jack Arnold, and starring Richard Carlson, Julia Adams, Richard Denning, Antonio Moreno, and Whit Bissell. The eponymous creature was played by Ben Chapman on land and Ricou Browning in underwater scenes. The film was released in the United States on March 5, 1954.

Creature from the Black Lagoon was filmed and originally released in 3-D requiring polarized 3-D glasses, and subsequently reissued in the 1970s in the inferior anaglyph format (this version was released on home video by MCA Videocassette, Inc. in 1980). It was one of the first Universal films filmed in 3-D (the first was It Came from Outer Space, which was released a year before). It is considered a classic of the 1950s, and generated two sequels, Revenge of the Creature and The Creature Walks Among Us. Revenge of the Creature was also filmed and released in 3-D, in hopes of reviving the format. FEB 2012 - issue (14)

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