2011

The Sims Medieval

Description

The Sims: Medieval is an independent offshoot from the Sims franchise. It changes the setting to medieval times and offers a more linear experience than the main series. The different campaigns have no overarching plot and just differentiate with their ultimate goal. However, the goal also changes the quest strings available; and these tell smaller, humorous stories. An example would be to save the kingdom from wild chinchillas.

For every quest the player chooses one (self-created) hero who gains experience points. Those improves the special abilities which depend on the character’s profession, e.g. a king files edicts and a mage uses spells. This also means that quests has multiple solutions, depending on the used character. While the player can create up to ten characters, during a quest line he only plays one – the others are taken care of by the AI.

In comparison to other Sims titles, complexity of the time management part is driven back: the learning of abilities is replaced by the experience system and every character has only two needs (instead of six): mood, which is improved by doing everyday activities like sleeping or social interaction, and work. This consists of two activities per day like brewing potions. The management of those needs affects the quest success. Like all games in the series, The Sims: Medieval is very indirect: the player only gives suggestions what to do by clicking on other objects or persons. Then the animations click in and watching those is a big part of the playing experience. …

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The Elder Scrolls – Skyrim

Description

Two hundred years after the events described in Oblivion, the continent of Tamriel is in turmoil. The Emperor’s throne remained without heir; the Blades, Empire’s elite guards, have been disassembled; elven nations began capturing territory from the Empire. The assassination of the King of Skyrim, Tamriel’s Northern-most province and home of the Nord race, led to a civil war between those who wish independence for Skyrim and those who wanted it to remain under the Empire’s control.

A prisoner is brought to a small town, awaiting execution for alleged involvement with the Stormcloaks, a group that was founded by the king’s assassin Ulfric Stormcloak. Just before the executioner’s axe lands on the prisoner’s neck, a dragon attacks the city, forcing most people to flee. The unexpected freedom leads the ex-prisoner into the snowy Skyrim, where the rumors of the dragon begin to circulate. …

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Test Drive Unlimited 2

Description

Test Drive Unlimited 2 is the sequel to the open-world racing game Test Drive Unlimited. It is set on two islands: Ibiza and Oahu (the Hawaiian island that was also the setting of the first game). Oahu is only available after players have reached level 10, after which the airport is accessible. There are 60 levels in total (up to level 70 with the optional Casino DLC), which can be reached by collecting experience points in any of the following categories:
– Discovery (driving on all the roads and tracks, finding all hidden car wrecks, taking pictures of specific locations)
– Collection (buying cars and houses, decorating these with furniture and stickers, buying clothes, having plastic surgery)
– Competition (racing against others, both AI or real, completing challenges)
– Social (making friends, joining clubs).

You start out as a valet, dreaming of getting a luxurious car for your birthday until you get rudely awakened by the rich girl whose car you were supposed to bring around. She then decides to hire you to get her to a studio where she needs to be very soon, and if you perform well you can enter a racing competition named Solar Crown. Of course, to join the competition you’ll need to obtain a license first, which is done by attending a driving school and finishing a series of tasks and tests to prove you are worthy. As soon as you have obtained the license you are free to explore the first island. You can obtain more licenses to enter other competitions. Licenses and races come in several classes, for instance an A-license grants access to Asphalt challenges, B is for Off Road, and C for Classic. Each class is subdivided in subclasses e.g. 5 6 7 low high etc. You need to buy a car from that same category to join the challenges and championships. …

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Payday – The Heist

Description

Payday: The Heist is a co-operative first person shooter where players join a team of four career criminals and have to execute heists. The game consists of six different heists that can be played either in singleplayer with bots or online with real players. The locations of the levels vary, from a bank to a prison to a office complex. In each heist the team has a number of objectives that has to be completed. For example for in bank level the players has to drill open a gate, erase security footage and use thermite to melt a hole into the vault. When all objectives have been completed the team has to escape before time runs out. At the same time the team has to battle the police that attacks in waves. These waves doesn’t end so the team has to keep moving. Ammo is scarce so players has to think about how to use it efficiently. The law enforcers get more powerful with time, from simple guards and policemen to FBI agents and heavily armed “bulldozers”. When a player goes down he can be revived by a team mate. Civilians can be used as hostages and then traded for a team member that has gone down permanently.

The player can level up his character by reaching a high reputation. The reputation goes up as the player earns cash. Cash is earned not only by picking up cash wads but also by completing objectives and challenges. For each level up the player gets full health and ammo and a new item. This can be a weapon, a piece of equipment, a perk, or an upgrade to an existing item. The reward is chosen before the level up by picking one of three upgrade branches. These are assault, support and sharpshooter. There are 48 upgrades for each branch plus a final one that is only available when all branches have been maxed out. The player can change branch at any time. It’s also possible to mix items from different branches. …

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Driver – San Francisco

Description

Driver: San Francisco is an entry in the long-running action racing series. The story, which is entirely different from the Wii version of the same name, takes place six months after the events in Driv3r. Protagonist undercover cop John Tanner and antagonist Charles Jericho have both survived the final shootout in Istanbul. Jericho is facing sentencing after being tried in San Francisco, but escapes his prison van. He is chased down by Tanner and his partner Tobias Jones. During the pursuit, Tanner’s vehicle is struck by a Big Rig and he ends up in the hospital in a coma. The majority of the game takes place in Tanner’s coma-induced dream where he continues to track down Jericho.

The player has access to the entire city of San Francisco with the freedom to explore it without boundaries. Players can choose to follow the main storyline, where Tanner gradually learns he is actually in a dream, or take on the many vignette-like missions with mini-stories along with regular races and stunts, even participating in the recording of a movie stunt scene for instance. There are many different licensed cars to collect, with 140 types ranging from Volkswagen to Lamborghini. A return to the gameplay of the original Driver, players are no longer able to exit the vehicle or explore on foot. The entire game takes place inside a car. Streets are filled with traffic and often certain obstacles can be used to perform stunts. Pedestrians can never be hit, they dive out of the way. Next to the main driving controls players can boost and perform ram attacks on cars. Footage of the racing can be captured in the film director mode, which was absent in the previous game Driver: Parallel Lines. …

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