MTG Theros: Intro Pack + Booster Pack Video Review

Magic the Gathering, gotta love it! Recently, being the lucky dude that I am I was chosen by the Wizard of the Coast's PR to do a review on some samples of the newly released "Theros" set. Before the samples ever reached me though I opted to go out, and get an Intro pack for myself to see what this latest set had to offer. After getting it home I decided to review it on my dime. I honestly had no idea I'd be getting another intro pack, and some boosters for review. After finding out that that was the case though I had to make the most of the situation by supplying you with a different sort of review this second time around. I do have to warn you that the video included in this particular article is rather long. In fact it's two minutes away from being an hour long. I went over each individual card, as well as the intro pack offerings after opening them up. It's the sort of video that will mostly appeal to MTG fans. When watching this video keep in mind that I may have said some things that were incorrect pertaining to the cards, but nothing that I said was significantly wrong. I'm fully aware of my mistakes in the commentary, and apologize for them beforehand. I hope MTG followers don't tar & feather me for the acts of treason (^.^). I'm just not a professional commentator, yet. Enjoy it for what it's worth, and feel free to leave a comment if you like. As always comments are moderated due to trolls, and have to go through me first before being posted.

Let's Talk - "INJUSTICE & INJUSTICE Ultimate Ed."

From it's hyped beginning to it's current state "Injustice: Gods Among Us" has attracted a lot of attention. Some of that attention was good, and some bad. I'll be the first to admit I was psyched about it's initial release. Not only did I go out, and buy the Xbox 360 version of the game, and a season pass, but I also did the same for the PS3 version of the game. After getting into it for a while though I began to notice some rather bothersome things happening to the offline, and online offerings contained within. Things like missing DLC characters, and encounters with lagswitchers/hackers became a commonplace event. The truly sad thing about all this is that the game contiues to go down it's downward spiral with no signs of getting better. The online multiplayer is rubbish, and new glitches/bugs are still happening. It seems that Netherrealm Studios would have had their sh*t together by now, but that is most definitely not the case.

Atelier Meruru Plus: The Apprentice of Arland (PS VITA)

GUST Corporation has once again proven themselves worthy of praise by releasing yet another grander than grand tale about an apprenticing female alchemist. Using their usual methods of incorporating previous characters from the series into the plot, and adding new ones into the mix GUST aims to introduce to us a tale about a princess whose dreams of seeing the world are limited by her royal duties. With her childhood friends Keina, and Lias by her side though princess Meruru strives to make the most of her position as royalty, and aims to prove herself as a worthy princess as well as an adventuring alchemist like her teacher Totooria Helmold (Totori). By combining her skills as an alchemist she fully intends on blending her two worlds as she tries to better her community, and her status within.

Battlefield 4 Open Beta (PS3) - "First Impressions"

I fully realize that this game is still in the "Open Beta" state, and that changes are likely coming in the days leading up to the game's release date. Even so what I have experienced while playing the Open Beta leads me to believe that many more patches will have to be put into place following the game's official release in order for it to even be a near flawless experience. As far as complaints go I'm finding a lot of glitches pertaining to the use of the knife as well as the sensitivity of the knifing effect. Other gripes include the poorly rendered map (Siege of Shanghai), and the less than current-gen look of the game as a whole. I know that some of you will disagree about the graphics, but in all honesty the game's visual points are basically glamorized current-gen lighting, and reflection applications. Nothing more, and nothing less.

Painkiller: Hell & Damnation (PS3) - "A To Hell With It Review"

Painkiller: Hell & Damnation, for those of you who don't know it was previously a PC exclusive that had amassed a cult following from the PC gaming community. It included several different DLC oriented spin-offs that each added to the mythology of Daniel Garner, and his unfortunate time in Limbo. In the console version of "Painkiller: Hell & Damnation" we the gamers are blessed with a very nicely rendered series of opening CG cutscenes explaining exactly how it is that Daniel ultimately ended up as one of Lucifer's pawns. It seems that during one fateful night while driving the roads with his new found love Catherine, Daniel's world is literally turned upside down as Death appears suddenly in front of his vehicle. Flipping his car several times over Daniel, and the love of his life end up dying, and parting separate ways on their journey to the hereafter.

While Daniel knows exactly where he is at in the grand scheme of things his beloved Catherine is nowhere to be found. Hoping for the best Daniel sojourns on killing the denizens of the damned letting the hope that Catherine has gone on to a better place fill his hollowed heart. After having enough of Daniel's relentless demon blasting, and luck driven survival though Death himself intervenes, and uses Catherine's whereabouts as a bargaining tool to get Daniel to harvest 7,000 souls for him. In return Death promises him that he will reunite him with his beloved Catherine. This is of course where the flashbacks end, and the gameplay begins.