Final Mass Effect 2 DLC to be released March 29th 2011

Bioware and EA announced not long ago that the final piece of Mass Effect 2 DLC is to be released on the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC on March 29th. The expansion is to be called Arrival and from what I have heard it is a bridging DLC for it's upcoming sequel. It will have Shepard traveling to the edges of the Galaxy as an undercover operative seems to have information regarding an upcoming Reaper invasion. As a fan favorite Bioware has added in more from our favorite voice on the Normandy; Admiral Hackett. This looks to be a fantastic bow out for the second game and I greatly look forward too it and if you know me you know I am a huge Mass Effect fanboy so with my nerd anticipation rising I look forward to the day I get to play it!

Microsoft's future of PC gaming is looking dark

An internal presentation video was released earlier this week that was made by their WGX team (Windows Gaming Experience) team that will be handling the gaming divisions across all Microsoft platforms. they released a presentation on Youtube  which showed us what Microsoft has in the works for the future of PC gaming not in PC games like Crysis or Dragon Age that we would know but from the looks of it they are looking at the more "casual" games that people play like for example Facebook games. It appears micro-transactions are going to be one of their main focuses as Microsoft is trying to get a piece of the pie when it comes to the casual gaming experience what with over 250 million people on Facebook and 1/3 of them are playing these casual games it is understandable that they want to get in on this... But where will this lead too in terms of the true gamers out there? My guess is they will continue with what they are doing and this will simply be an investment into something instead of a complete turn around, only time will tell though.

Community question: Do we need more Dynasty Warriors?

Today Dynasty Warriors 7 was released and many of the fans have been picking it up right left and center from their pre-orders. The first ever Dynasty Warriors was released back in 1997 by Koei looking to make battles on an epic scale with traditional Japanese style of game development. The goal was simple and they achieved exactly what they were looking for. Over the years we have seen many spin-offs of the Dynasty Warrior franchise normally coming down to the same mechanic of tap one button repeatedly and slay thousands of enemies as if they were nothing. At this point when we tally up how many spin-offs and originals there are however there are around 19 different games out ranging from the PS1 to PSP to PS3 that take on the "Dynasty Warrior" style gameplay. The question is though... Has this gameplay style been worn out? It seems the majority of gamers these days unless they were fans to begin with have strayed away from these iconic games.

Batman: Arkham City gameplay trailer revealed!

In September 2009 one of the best if not -the- best Batman game was released being Batman Arkham Asylum which took first place on the podium where so many others had failed. Rocksteady Games is looking to go beyond their own expectations it looks like with their new game; a squeal to the famous Arkham Asylum - Batman: Arkham City. there has not been much news on it lately since it's announcement at E3 2010 but a new gameplay trailer has been released showing just what you will be experiencing in this dark rendition of the Dark Knight. Have a look!

Japan's crisis going to effect Japanese gaming!

If you have turned on the news at any point in the last week you will have seen what took Japan by storm. An 8.9 magnitude Earthquake struck North eastern Japan which followed by a Tsunami that destroyed many lives and homes with an estimated 7,000 deaths and 11,000 missing (Today). The nearby nuclear plant is on the verge of a meltdown as all 6 reactors are overheating. Now as sad as this is whats more is with the radiation hazard from the plant reaching places such as Tokyo, Hawaii and even Vancouver and California large companies such as Sony Corporation have been shut down and evacuated for safety concerns.

This does not only effect one of the largest game publishers and developers of our time but it also effects the Automotive industry such as Toyota and Honda. If you are wondering this does not mean you can't still go to a store and buy a PS3 or one of their brand names and appliances as most stores have a stock this just means that it until the factory is brought back into operation there will be no more international shipping to local companies so get them while you can. In turn this also means that any Japanese games or systems will be on hold until it comes back up and it will even most likely halt production on the new iPad 2 as some key components are built in Tokyo.

---As an added note please do what you can in support of what is happening in Japan. Those people are running low on essential supplies such as food and water. You can help by donating to one or all of these organizations which are sponsored by Google.

Google sponsored relief charities

Guitar Hero is no more...

The once great franchise that was Guitar Hero was announced last month on February 9th by Activison that they are pulling the plug on the franchise. Guitar Hero is an iconic game and one that two years ago sold 2 billion$ in sales but it is as it turns out the last two games being World Tour and Warriors of Rock completely tanked. From what I have heard Warriors of Rock sold less than 100,000 units in it's first month of release in September 2010 which did not come close to estimated sales. It is a sad time as a once great game could come crashing down like such. My opinion in the matter is that it could not stand up to the Rockband series and though there will always be a place in the gaming world for music games the average customer these days wants more of the "new" and out with the old.

Review: Battle: LA

Battle: LA is a new movie from Columbia pictures which take you into the fray with a squad of US Marines during an Alien invasion. This is not the classic Alien invasion move where there are 50ft tall robots shooting lasers from their eyes and decimating the city, no Battle: LA is much more than that. With the leading role given to Aaron Eckhart as Staff Sergeant Michael Nanz he pulls off the role flawlessly. When I saw this in the theater people were literally in awe at what this movie had given them. As it was not filmed like any other movie of this genre it was filmed as a war movie instead of a sci fi which means it will take you into the grittiness and struggle of what these Marines must go through.

The story is in my opinion a great one as it does not drag you along explaining some in depth story it is designed so you know exactly what the Marines know. It takes place in March 2011 when NASA spots a large amount of meteorites coming for earth which they believe will be one hell of a shower and as they seem to come closer they realize these meteors will make contact with earth near most major cities bordering the oceans which they turn out to be alien crafts which is where the invasion begins and then the fighting starts, after most coastal US cities fall LA is the final stand and while you tag along with the squad you will learn why they are there in the first place and how the Aliens themselves are brought down to a more "real" level... They are grunts fighting just like the soldiers who face them are.

I give this movie a 10/10 because of it's superb effect and it's memorable characters and experience. go watch this movie and I recommend watching it on the big screen where you can get the most out of what you pay for.

Review: Dragon Age II

As a gamer you are most likely no stranger to Bioware's cinematic and gripping story telling and gameplay of past games such as Dragon Age,  Mass Effect,  Knight of the Old Republic and with the sequal to the 2009 dark fantasy hit Dragon Age Origins they have not set down their crown for top RPG game developers yet.

Dragon Age II starts you off as Hawke, a refugee from Lothering which if you remember from Dragon Age Origins was overun by the Darkspawn just after your fabled Grey Warden escaped the battle of Ostagar. Infact Dragon Age II starts off just as Lothering was being invaded by the Darkspawn horde. Just like most Bioware games you are given a wide variety of customization for your character and in Dragon Age II unlike Origins you are not able to choose any other race but human however you can still choose amongst it's classes which are Mage, Warrior and Rogue. The warrior is for those looking to charge in wearing plate and wield either a sword and shield or a two-handed weapon. It is designed as a Tank and a Damage dealer whereas a Mage is a wielder of magic ofcoarse hurling arcane bolts and dealing some serious damage however vulnerable to attacks. They can also be used as healers. Rogues on the other hand are all about speed and fancy tricks which they do very well and since they are the only class that can detect traps and make poisons they are almost a necessity to have.

All these classes have their advantages however that is not what Dragon Age II is about, aside from the great customization Dragon Age II like all of Bioware's games has an extremily gripping story. It will take you out of Fereldon and to the city of Kirkwall and a new country called Thedas. However the goal is to take you from being a refugee escaping Lothering to the Champion of Kirkwall which the game will span over 10 years showing you how it is infact that Hawke got there. 

The game is very solid speeding up the combat from Origins and changing the style of which you fight into two separate sections either of which you can choose. The first being a toe-to-toe button masher where your primary attack will be hitting the A button however it feels surprisingly gratifying and ofcoarse there are your other abilities which all have some great effects. Or there is the strategic way which will have you approaching battles with an obviously more strategic approach by pausing the game and issuing specific orders. These are some great changed from the original Dragon Age Origins as here at BKG we were not fans of the slow paced action of the first and felt it was more suited for hardcore PC RPG gamers as aposed to console gamers, but DA2 looks to make it accessible for both kinds of gamers which they have done very well with DA2. The visuals are beautiful when you stop to take a look at them and the voice acting is superb.

There are afew problems however that DA2 suffers from. For one there are far too many loading screens, it is a fact with many RPGs that loading screens are prone to be in big numbers however DA2 there seems to be one around every corner from traveling to a new zone in Kirkwall (Which trust me you do alot) or simply entering a house. It is not a huge fall for the game as the story and cinematic experience will make up for it but  for me it was somewhat of a mood killer when you are gripped in the story and then all of the sudden a loading screen will appear... Another issue I have with it is you revisit the same zones countless times and much of what you see always feels the same as what you passed 5 minutes ago.

Overall Dragon Age II was a fantastic game and is stepping up from Origins and Bioware has not let us down. If you are a Dragon Age fan or even just someone looking to start in the world of Dragon Age or an RPG for the first time then this is the game for you. (9/10)

Back and with new incentive.

Hey audience it has been awhile, coming up on two months now and for anyone who used to read my blog I have good news! I am back and with new incentive. It took some time thinking on what I can do to restart this blog and bring you everything awesome and it dawned on me that I cannot deliver all the up to date games but I can atleast do some. So as gaming is our main focus here I will be doing that but also I will be blogging on things such as reviews, stories, views on upcoming titles (Be it movies, games, music or tech) I will be there.

Tune in once in awhile and I will update it as frequently as I can.