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Hands-On: Star Trek Online (PC)

Words by

Steven Wright

Posted on February 1, 2010

Endless loading bars. Percentages slowly ticking by. Not the greatest start to my first ever MMO experience. Once I got the initial download out-of-the-way (and the patch) I ventured into the universe of Star Trek Online.

First things first, create your character. The customisation is very impressive, choosing from Engineering, Science and Tactical officer forwards you onto your race and appearance. From a large and alien list of races I chose Bolian, no idea who they are but they do look very smart – blue skinned with a cartilage ridge running down the middle of their head. As usual in an RPG I created a female, I do not know why but it is something I have always done. I think I just have a soft spot for blue skinned female aliens, whether it be Avatar or Mass Effect.

Now I had me a sexy alien I got to choose from a wide variety of traits that bolster your ship and ground skills. Nothing new to any seasoned RPG/MMO veteran but I was a little taken aback by the amount of options. Taken aback but impressed.

Now you just have to dress your character up and name your ship. I of course dressed her up in purple leather and named her ship the U.S.S Purple Stevius. I can just hear the die-hard Star Trek fans cursing under their breath. Now that the lengthy character creation was completed it was time to head out into the unknown.

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Review: VVVVVV (PC)

Words by

Jennifer Allen

Posted on January 21, 2010

In an increasingly shallow world, it’s fantastic to see a game like VVVVVV. It forgoes the things we are so used to now such as fancy graphics and complicated game mechanics, all in favour of a simple premise which works perfectly. It’s not surprising really considering it comes from accomplished indie developer, Terry Cavanagh, who has already impressed with the likes of Don’t Look Back and Pathways. Much like those titles, VVVVVV wouldn’t look out of place on a Commodore 64 or ZX Spectrum but look past its basic exterior and you’ll find a terrifically clever puzzle platformer that is also one of the most challenging games I’ve played in years.

It’s a credit to the game’s development that even though the graphics are basic, I still felt a strange amount of endearment to the main protagonist, Veridian. He reminded me slightly of Sackboy from Little Big Planet while also harking back to my memories of the Dizzy games back in the 1980s. Constantly smiling away, nothing seems to get Veridian down despite being faced with many, many perils. His mission? To save his crewmates who have been scattered across a strange dimension after their spaceship crash lands. VVVVVV is a 2d platformer at heart with each of the levels not being overly long to complete, assuming you know what you’re doing. It sounds simple, it isn’t. Veridian only has one ability at his disposal: the ability to invert gravity. It might not sound like much but it makes for some very intriguing puzzles.

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Review: Tales Of Monkey Island: Rise Of The Pirate God (PC)

Words by

Derek McEwan

Posted on January 15, 2010

Review: Tales Of Monkey Island: Rise Of The Pirate God (PC)

At last I can tell you what I couldn’t in the last review, yay. Guybrush has been killed at the hands of the still human LeChuck….see we all knew he was evil this whole time. LeChuck had only just absorbed the accumulated evil of all the pirates and is back to his usual zombie/ghost/demon/something or other type self and wastes no time in converting Elaine into his Demon bride. Guybrush must now navigate his way through the crossroads of the dead in order to win back his love and ultimately his life with the help of a few deceased characters he has met in previous episodes and of course from the Voodoo lady who has been his main source of questy goodness throughout all of the Monkey Island series.

This is what we have been playing towards, the accumulation of all the games combined. All the puzzles are fiendishly tricky but easy to solve when you know how. The pace is fast and intense with so much happening you may have to pause the game from time to time just to take stock of everything and get back on track. While playing this one through the first time I ignored the majority of the speeches and totally missed the plot, so I played again and I’m glad I did because the story all comes together and almost everything is wrapped up rather nicely, items you carry with you throughout the game but appear to have no purpose are all used here. See, that ring Elaine gave you didn’t mean divorce at all.

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Review: Tales Of Monkey Island: The Trial And Execution Of Guybrush Threepwood (PC)

Words by

Derek McEwan

Posted on January 14, 2010

Review: Tales Of Monkey Island: The Trial And Execution Of Guybrush Threepwood (PC)

Yes you read it correctly, the Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood! Now if like me you are an avid follower of the Monkey Island games you will know that it is impossible for Guybrush to die. I mean come on, this Mighty Pirate has survived this far after defeating LeChuck in his various forms and having so many voodoo spells thrown at him he should by rights be a smoking crater with a faint greasy stain bubbling at the bottom of it, yet still he survives. He can even hold his breath for ten minutes for goodness sakes. So when I read this title my first thought was how is he going to get out of this predicament?

Well, I could tell you but I won’t, at least not till the next review. I actually found this to be one of the weakest of the series as it was based mostly in the courthouse with a lot of lengthy discussions about the various charges brought against our hero. The discussions while funny became a little grating to be honest and this felt like an episode which was written while the animators were off doing something else. I mean, the fact that the first episodes island was used may be part of the story but there was very little difference other than the courthouse being open and Stan the salesmen (another classic Monkey Island Character returning) has his own stall on the island and lastly you are somehow able to go into Club 41 without a blindfold with nothing saying why you are no longer a probationary member and why other pirates can get in without a membership card now.

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Review: Tales Of Monkey Island: Lair Of The Leviathan (PC)

Words by

Derek McEwan

Posted on January 13, 2010

Review: Tales Of Monkey Island: Lair Of The Leviathan (PC)

Oh Guybrush, what have you got yourself into this time? The Belly of a giant manatee it appears. When you begin this episode you should really take a look around and enjoy the effort that has gone into producing what the designers would think a post modernistic manatee interior would look like.

Things start to get a little odd with this episode to be honest, but not in a bad way. I mean, in what other game are you going to find a men’s club situated just above a bile pit in a manatee gut? And in what other game are you going to find a bunch of explorers/pirates who have become addicted to drinking Ichor in varying colours? None I would suspect, but as per usual Monkey Island is a game filled with oddities and wonderful little scenes that make the usual gamers go….err what? Oh and there is a welcome return from a fan favourite…Murray yaaaaaaayy!

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