Gameplay modes include those from Killzone 2. A nice touch was the ability to play a match where each round was a different gameplay type. There is an experience system where points are earned for kills, performing actions on levels, achieving special feats during the match, etc. Some of these have immediate effect like doubling XP earned, or improving accuracy. The immediate part was nice but depending on the skill of the player could lead to some un-fairly matched teams since these items would be unlocked early on providing a continuously sliding skill disadvantage. Some have complained about the weapon sway that was in the second game, but I find the new implementation to work really well, and now just following suit as Call of Duty or Medal of Honor. The final game is supposed to support Move, but since I have not plunked down the cash for this peripheral, no input on whether the beta supports it and if so how it would actually operate. Due to a lack of players with headsets, I was unable to query others for their response on this topic. The same applies to 3D.

The Better-Be-Fixed-By-Release
While labeled as a beta, the in-game banner clearly states “Alpha Code”. Whatever, as a software developer I know that the difference between Alpha and Beta is nothing more than a title assigned at the release. That being said, some of these “features” will hopefully be addressed before the gold disc is pressed and retail editions are wrapped in their shrink-wrap sarcophagi.

While the graphics were beyond detailed, one consistent and nagging issue was pop-in. Yes, that age-old feature that we thought we left with last console generation is rearing its ugly head. It’s even more unnerving since its odd in its behavior. One particular repeatable instance included peering around a corner and not seeing any obstacles in the distance, but as I moved further out from the corner a noticeable distance from me some other structures just popped into view. Not cool.

So here we have one of the first instances of Move support for a FPS. Awesome, 1-to-1 tracking means headshots galore for those who invested the add-on. Would it be too much to ask for native keyboard/mouse support since the PS3 already has USB ports on it be default. Other titles have done this, and half of the effort of the input should be already be there for supporting the Move.

As I played more, I became accustomed to this but was still set off by it. With similar coloring and shapes for both teams there were numerous instances were I died by the hands of the other team, because I thought they were my team. And no, they were not cloaking to look like one of my team members. Yes, I get it that we want realism, but would it hurt to have an option to help the newbies become more accustomed?

Match-making was smooth but further options would be great. My first matches were epic in size. This lead to frequent deaths, cats and dogs sleeping together, mass hysteria. After a few long sessions, I got my head on straight for the game style and started making traction. Another night ended up with a smaller group of only 4v4, maxing out at 8v8. This proved to be less crazy and more fulfilling from actually feel like I was accomplishing something.

The next complaint is less of the game but just of standard PS3 players: out of all my hours spent playing I only met a handful of players who used a headset. It’s team-based gameplay, get in the game people! Having this as an option for match-making would be greatly appreciated. In the large team matches, voice communication is essential and nothing short of frustrating when you feel like that clown in an empty forest and the tree falls on you.

Final Thoughts
From the multiplayer aspect, Killzone 3 looks to be a strong contender for the FPS of the PS3 platform. For FPS fans on the PS3, this is definitely one to keep on your To-Watch list.

A Mystery Wrapped in an Enigma, Trapped in a Meotorite
First, let’s dig into the interesting back story based upon true events. On June 30, 1908, which coincides with 102-years prior to the Wii game’s release, an explosion over the Tunguska region of Russia resulted in an energy blast roughly 1,000 times that of the atom bomb dropped on Hiroshima. We know this equation all too well: throw in an epic explosion that fell a lot of trees and explain it by a meteorite exploding in air. What does this leave? Why a hole in the idea large enough to land a 747, or at least that’s what all the conspiracy theorists think. And now we come to the basis of the story: something else happened and our main protagonist’s father knows all about it.

The game starts off with an introductory video of an old man being kidnapped, followed by his younger daughter showing up to find him missing. Cliche’d, I know, but hopefully the only time this well is tapped. Alas, while no full background is fully explored on our main character, as some of the James Bond-esque scenes play out, she feels out of place. Noting this, the game does not hesitate to heckle other entries to the adventure game genre with witty retorts to interaction with objects, or the environment. So maybe the plot holes are on purpose and over-the-top for full-effect.

Point, Click, and Thankfully No Waggle
Controls couldn’t be more straight forward or geared towards the Wii. The Wiimote controls an on-screen cursor that is used to click on object and interact with your inventory. While the attempt is made to keep things easily found and not buried five menus deep, the unfortunate button placement on the Wiimote lends itself to some awkward situations. Interacting with the inventory uses the arrow-pad, but this proved to be uncomfortable and I resorted to using a two-handed approach with my other hand using the arrows. As far as point-and-click titles go, the urge for developers to bury the essential items with only a single indiscernible pixel was thankfully subdued by the addition of a button that highlights all interact-able entities.

Say what, Watson?
Now let’s dig into one of the worse parts of the game: audio and video. Now, for all you detractors who hated on Heavy Rain’s voice acting, you owe yourself a play-through here. At times the voice-acting is passable, and others it’s just atrocious and grating. Thankfully, there are subtitles and you can skip through it. There is the occasional musical piece which were pleasant, or ambiance, but both tended to a shorter length meaning repetition whilst one is perusing the scene to solve a puzzle. The graphics while not bad for Wii standards clearly show their age as a three-year old title. Overall the scenes were well illustrated. But, the most jarring experience was some of the pre-rendered cut-scenes where the motion of the characters was stiff, no dynamic lighting took place, and the 3D models started to show their polygon edges.

The house from Evil Dead? Oh, this can't end well

Or Maybe, Point, and Click, Click, Click…
As far as adventure titles go, this game has all its bases covered: revisiting scenes, affecting other characters, modifying items in the inventory, distinct separate locales, and plenty of click-able objects. While the aforementioned control mechanism does alleviate the hunt-for-the-pixel problem, there is still plenty of indirection and obfuscation with extra items that can be collected or cannot actually be used in puzzle solving. The really sad part is that a few puzzles have obscure solutions that require you to be a subject matter expert in MacGuyver’ing. Yes, I did just invent a new title to encompass what is required from some of the odd puzzles in the game.

Final Thoughts
As one of the final holdouts against the zombie invasion of FPSs, or, in the case of the Wii, just plain shovelware, Secret Files: Tunguska tries to hold the ground known as classic point-and-click adventure gaming. Which is rather unfortunate, since a few flaws keep this title from being truly classic. Still worth the play through for any die hard P-and-C fan, but a risky endeavor for the neophyte to the genre. Hopefully, the second title in the series will see the light of day on Wii and satiate our appetites for classic adventure gaming on the Wii. Like a meteorite from the sky, this one falls in at 3.5 out of 5 Aeropausonauts.

For this and other reviews, check out TestFreaks.com

Well, sorta free. Thanks to our good friends with the MLG, we’ve got your entrance fee covered for your team. That’s right, you and 3 of your best gaming companions can compete at the MLG Combine in Denver the weekend of July 23-25 for free. Think you got what it takes to run against the best? Then drop us a line, at tips@aeropause.com with the subject “Send me to the Combine!”, explaining why we should choose you to taste pro-gaming for, mostly, free. The better the pleading, I mean, coercing, the better your chance. Oh, and creativity garners bonus points, too.

Just remember us when you sign that big contract, please? For more info about the event, check out MLG’s page. And in case you want to know what you’re up to, check out our podcast episode where we interviewed a few of the top players. Get your entries in by 11:59 PST on July 19. Winners will be announced on July 21.

Just inside and past the sign-in table, besides the vociferous roar of the crowd, are rows of systems waiting to be punished by the players who have come to prove they have their A game and hopefully snatch part of the series’ prize purse. LCD after LCD, Xbox360 after Xbox360, gamer after gamer, one thing is for certain, these guys and gals have come to play and winning is just part of that agenda.

Scattered around the hall, like magic dust sprinkled by faeries, are Xbox’s galore. Most of them are for official player use, where all the real players bring their own headsets and/or controllers. But occasionally there is a unit available for spectators to pretend they’re one of the pro’s and show their mad skillz against others. The pinnacle of the spectator play is those lucky enough to play a scrim match against one of the pro teams, where the winnings include prize packs from the sponsor and seats on the main stage for the final matches.

The main battle arena is, as you no doubt guessed, Halo 3. But outside of Bungie’s more than famous title are for Tekken 6, Super Smash Brothers Brawl, and even World of Warcraft. Being one of the prized fighting jewels of the PS3, Tekken 6 gets the royal treatment in brandishing its own main stage for the fiercest competitors. While not as popular as our love-to-hate-to-love FPS, the fans for Tekken are a tight knit group knowing each other, their play style and favorite characters. After one brutal defeat, one rejected hopeful who was employing his own fighting stick, dropped it in disgust as he escorted himself off the main stage. Truly, the competition is high, and the prize money, and title are no joke.

If Halo is not your thing, but watching players jump up and down, spectators scream, and teams talking trash is, then spending even 10 minutes by the Smash Bros. will not go unrewarded. Watching “Team Sonic” dissing the “fake Sonics” was quite entertaining while they cheered on their comrade who battled fiercely against, you guessed it, Mario. Alas, the match I saw was tipped in Mario’s favor, or at least that was the impression being forcibly repeated by the same aforementioned group.

So the main event: Halo. VIP seats with people pressing body to body like a seething throng at a rock show, throwing their fists in the air as the victors claim their win and the losers recompose themselves before the next round of the match. Energy like this is normally found in aluminum containers of 16 ounces bearing names like Monster, NOS, or Jolt. These players know their game, and the crowd knows their players. The on-stage presentation with larger-than-life projections and overlays parlay the featured events to beyond just professional gaming. This is the major league.

If you’ve never been to such an event, and consider yourself a “hardcore” gamer, then there is a debt you must pay. A debt to yourself that is easily dismissed by joining the crowd, at the very least, on the final day of each event where the victor for this stop of the show is crowned, and the rest start their preparation for next time.

For a full re-cap of the actual results, including the final match where Team Instinct took down the hometown hopeful and his team Final Boss, hit up the official site for Major League Gaming.

Still hungry for more?

With strategy gaming practically running through my veins, when the chance to jump back into the fray of PC gaming on a cult-classic strategy franchise was dangled in front of me like the proverbial carrot, jumping at the chance was not an option. No, it was a right of passage in opening that Pandora’s box that had been tucked into some obscure corner of my office where my dormant and half-dead PC remains were scattered.

To be fair, the complexity of strategy games usually requires a tutorial or a partial read-through of a half-inch thick manual. In Arsenal of Democracy’s case, since it was a digital download, I played through the tutorials to learn how the interface worked, and the mechanics of the game. But, that’s not fair for reviewing in the first thirty minutes. What you want to hear is how the game actually plays and whether it can maintain some semblance of life.

In my first actual play of the game, I chose a smaller campaign to dip my feet into the water. Jumping into a full-on World War II campaign seemed more than just a bit daunting. While I played my part, my computer controlled counterpart did not do as well, and lead to a re-write of history with the Allies losing some key territories. Now, mind you I did chose the lesser part in the campaign to observe how the AI would handle the game and get another attempt at being able to look over the shoulder of more able competitor. Of course, with any real strategy game, even this short campaign took more than the thirty minutes.

The game is touted as a “real-time” strategy, where I decided to add and quote the real-time aspect. While events play out in real world time, with a controllable speed no less, you have the option to pause time to think and plan out your actions. This proved invaluable in learning the menu layout and different screens.

The game features more than the standard strategy fair of unit production and combat. Lying in wait for me are still elements of diplomacy, economy, and espionage. My wading-pool campaign lacked the ability to employ these features so I’m looking forward to getting a chance to tread that water and hopefully re-write history my way. Just think what could have happened if Germany teamed up with Britain?!

So far I have successfully played the game on both a Windows 7, and an Ubuntu 09.10+Wine system. As much as I’d like to say that it ran without a hitch, I had a couple of hiccups that I have sent off to the developer for their response before the full review. So keep your eyes peeled on that. Now, if you will excuse me, I think I have some diplomatic relations that I need to reconcile.

While the trailer didn’t show us that the basis for their mathematics wouldn’t be flawed, this initial 20-minute diversion was full of more holes then my attempts at proving Gauss wrong. The eleven individuals did manage to provide evidence for one thing: the gamer stereotypes are true. Each individual was practically selected from the possible schools of geekdom, nerdom, and dorkdom. Not to single anyone out, but one of the worst offenders was a contestant who went by the online name Barmy. Dressed in a tie and vest, his initial interaction with the camera consisting of him putting on airs and trying to assess the competitors to be able to best them all. So when he failed epically in the first test, and was kicked off the isl…. had his Sony badge revoked, I can say I was not sad to see him go.

Speaking of the first event, anyone who subjected themselves to the trailer in hopes to discern what Sony could do to set themselves apart will recall a lot of physical activities. Well I can tell you first hand, that this test of skill boiled down to a commonplace electronic game that can be played for one dollar at your favorite watering hole: Spot the difference. But wait for the twist! Each contestant was given a short time frame (90 seconds) and was answering to three judges. While admirable in their attempts at an actual work-skill evaluation, the final judging criteria proved to fall short and only exemplify why video game QA must be going down hill. I can’t wait to see developers start rating their QA departments in bugs-per-hour.

So where does this leave us? Oh, right it’s a ‘series’. Well thankfully they knocked off two participants in the first show. This whittles down the headcount to a finger-countable nine. At this rate, our lives may be shortened only by 100 minutes. Quite honestly, between the first episode and the ubiquitous “scenes from the next”, I can’t decide if its a train wreck that I can’t take my eyes from, or just a straight up wreck that I never want to visit again. Odds are I will continue to subject myself to this ‘entertainment’ so you won’t. As a glimmer of hope, maybe we can turn it into a Child’s Play charity event where we Aeropausians will watch the entire series back-to-back as a fundraiser.