Call of Duty: Vanguard is out now. 

Vanguard will deliver an unparalleled depth of Call of Duty content. This will be across a single-player story, 20 multiplayer maps on day one, an all-new Zombies experience.

It will further explore existing story cannon, along with the deepest integration yet with the all-new Warzone Pacific map “Caldera” coming 3rd December AEDT/NZDT.

Vanguard enlists players in a campaign as ordinary soldiers from diverse backgrounds rise on all fronts. They will try to turn the tides of war.

Multiplayer features 20 maps, 12 Operators and over three dozen Weapons in the revamped Gunsmith all starting day one. Vanguard multiplayer delivers new ways to play with the Combat Pacing system and the fast and frenetic multi-arena survival Champion Hill mode. 

Vanguard also brings a franchise-first Zombies crossover developed by Treyarch, expanding upon the Dark Aether storyline that players were introduced to in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. 

The post Call of Duty: Vanguard is out now appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

Let me paint a picture for you. It’s a brisk Auckland morning, and I approach an unassuming white villa, in the middle of the street. My temperature is taken via a thermometer gun, and I can go in. I am met with neon blue lights lining the hallway floor, and a lounge with one of the largest TVs I have ever seen. Appropriate, considering the console sitting next to said TV is also the largest console I’ve ever seen.

I’m talking about the PlayStation 5.

Pretty as a picture

Somehow both bigger and smaller in person, the PlayStation 5 cuts an impressive figure. Yes, it is tall and wide, but it also comes together with sleek lines that fool you into thinking it is a lot more streamlined than it actually is. Pictures cannot do it justice, and while I’m still not completely sold on the white colour scheme, the overall design hits right. It’s new and interesting, and while I’m not 100% sure where to put it, I know that a PlayStation 5 will look good on display in my living room.

A monolith of a TV to match a monolith of a console; what more could a girl want?

Oh, to actually play on the PlayStation 5? Well, that makes sense.

I was given a go at the Astro’s Playroom demo. No loading into the game, it was already prepared for me, so I can’t give you any sneaky information about the UI, or even how quickly the game loaded from start up.

What I can tell you, is that Astro spends his spare time with all the other Astro bots knocking around inside your console, shooting other bots with arrows, and climbing up things he probably shouldn’t climb up. At least he did when I controlled him.

Getting to grips

While the demo didn’t show off any deep and engaging story, it did allow a lot of exploration and jumping. It’s a fun platformer to mess around in. The demo includes free reigns to the hub world, one of the levels, and the Labo area, which is basically a PlayStation nostalgia trip on steroids. I won’t give anything else about Labo away, because it is better experienced than explained, but it is a nice touch and shows that Sony cares about where it comes from, even as it changes.

Talking about changes, do you remember when they announced that the new controller would be called the DualSense, rather than the expected DualShock 5? I do, and I didn’t even really pay attention.

It’s impressive how much they have improved the controller. The name change is well deserved, because as soon as you have it in hand, you can tell that the DualSense is an entirely new beast.

Let’s start from the outside and move in. The DualSense is shaped differently. The back features a textured grip that makes holding it over a long time much easier. It is also made up of hundreds of little PlayStation symbols as a nice added touch. The arms (or whatever you want to call the part of the controller that you actually hold) are less round than the DualShocks, and instead arch in the back, meaning that they sit nicely in the centre of your palm. That also changes your grip to be slightly leant out, rather than in as most PlayStation users will be used to. It’s different, but a very natural fit.

Click me a winner

Improvements have also been made to the DualSense’s thumbsticks. While still not completely concave, the edges are heavily textured, and a little bit deeper than the DualShock. While not a dramatic difference, it was definitely noticeable, and will make the thumbsticks less slippery. Something I sorely need when I am intensely focused, and a little bit stressed out during a game of Crash Bandicoot 4.

Let’s talk about adaptive triggers. The first time I came across it, I thought I had broken the controller. A sure fire way to not get invited to anymore events. Thankfully that was not the case.

Adaptive triggers basically means that the triggers can feel different depending on what weapon you’re using, or in the case of Astro’s Playroom, what item you are crushing. And I’m not talking about the controller sometimes just letting you press in half way and that’s it. I’m talking about the freedom to make that trigger feel like whatever the game developer can imagine. A tin can is a jagged, incremental press of the trigger. A lot of small clicks until the can is nothing more than flat tin. A plastic capsule however is a lot of pressure and tension until a sudden crack makes the plastic give way.

Drawing a bow, shooting a minigun, and pulling a lever also all felt different from crushing cans and plastic capsules, and I can’t wait to see what other developers use the adaptive triggers for.

One of the main reasons for the name change to DualSense seems to be the rumble feature. That is to say, there isn’t one. Instead the DualSense uses haptic feedback. You know, that slight buzz your phone gives when you type. Only I never knew it could be this good. Swimming, walking through grass, pulling up cables, and skating on ice all feel dramatically different. While I’m sure some of it is a trick of the mind, the feedback also seems to match the movement. I’ve never been ice skating because I am a very clumsy person, but I am now very sure of what it would feel like.

After you’re finished being impressed with all that, let’s add in my favourite feature of the DualShock 4. The speaker in the controller.

The speaker in the DualShock 4 was great. When you shook the controller in The Last of Us you could hear batteries rattle around. When the police radio comes through your controller in Need for Speed Payback, you know you’re in trouble. Or when your character in Fat Princess Adventures would start talking to you through the controller if you put it down for too long.

But do you know what’s even better than that? All of the above, but with the added bonus of hearing the difference between Astro walking on metal, sand or glass. The sound of wind blowing in a sandstorm. Gentle splashes as you swim, or the gentle rustle of grass as you walk through it. Sound though the controller is clearer, and the little touches mean that the game always feels that much closer to you.

As if one of those new additions to the DualSense wasn’t enough, all of them together make an impressive piece of technology that was created with the intention of putting you as deep into the game as possible.

If I wasn’t excited for the PlayStation 5 before, I am now. The DualSense controller is an impressive step up from the DualShock 4 and as the part of the set up that you put your hands on regularly, it’s going to make gaming that much more immersive.

I can’t wait to see the future of gaming.

The post Hands on with the DualSense Controller appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

Anyone who knows me knows that until I played Horizon Zero Dawn, The Last of Us held a tight grip on my heart as the game of games.  I was so enamored by the story telling, the awesomely conflicted ending, and all of those sweet moments throughout the horror of the world that has been built. So I have been as excited as I have been apprehensive about a sequel, yet here I am with The Last of Us Part II.

A few hours into this game one thing is for sure, this is a fantastically built game.  I can’t, and don’t want to touch on too much, but what I can say is the game feels good to play.  The movement and accidental throwing off a cliff feels as much The Last of Us as it does Uncharted, while so quintessentially Naughty Dog. 

The game looks beautiful as all hell.  I have an obsession with looking at how water moves in games, for no apparent reason, and looking at a gorgeous little stream moving through the snow blew me away.  Coming off the back of Final Fantasy VII Remake I was not expecting any games to surprise me, and I straight up stopped a whole lot of times to look at this incredibly built environment. The Last of Us seems to squeeze every last resource out of the PS3, and The Last of Us II seems to be doing the same for PS4.

At the end of the day, a good looking game is the least of my worries, the gameplay and story is what will keep me playing. It’s easy to say so far so good.  Among the excellent feel of the game, is the start of what could be an excellent story. The game starts with a reminder of the ending to the original Last of Us that divided a fan base on the ethical choices, telling me that will be a big part of what will come.  Again I won’t touch much here in a preview, and the start of the journey won’t mean anything if it doesn’t stick the landing.

The desolate world with patches of humanity is back, the crafting is back, the unnerving stealth scenes are back, the scarce resources are back, the bad people are back, and the clickers are back.  Ellie is back but not in a way we have seen her before.  She has changed so much and I can’t wait to see how she changes over the next few dozens of hours of game.

At this stage all I can say is so far, so good.  It is lining itself up to be the sequel I hoped for, but I’ll report again in the review whether the whole experience is worthwhile.  It is definitely looking like Naughty Dog is doing what Naughty Dog does best, making a story that will be worth every second.

The post The Last of Us Part II Preview appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

A complete review is on the way, but in the meantime, enjoy some initial thoughts on Japanese developer Marvelous’s freshly released Daemon x Machina on Switch.

Thought No.1: A mech combat game? Heck to the mother-mech-ing yeah.

Daemon x Machina is a cell-shaded action game, with flying mech battles, a customisable protagonist, and a complicated plot played out in cutscenes and voiceovers. Think Dragon Ball Xenoverse, but with mechs.

You can be honest with me – customising your mech is why you’re interested, right? It has certainly been the highlight for me so far. Customisation is surprisingly in depth and, to be frank, has been my main driver for completing story missions. Each weapon, arm, processor, leg, all the things, can be replaced and upgraded via the shop, scrap, or custom-made. Even your human protagonist can be modified with genetic enhancements.

Oh, I defeated the evil AI and saved my friends? Cool, cool, cool. Let’s skip to the part where I can upgrade my mech some more. Momma needs a new missile load out.

Combat has also been serviceable and becomes more enjoyable as you unlock abilities through the story. As for the story itself, it has been … convoluted thus far, but hey, aren’t most mech anime sagas? There has also been a huge number of different NPC characters thrown at me, who I suppose I will eventually care about. Again, see earlier point re anime sagas.

I’m preferring playing docked, mostly as the soundtrack is hype over our sound system, but it also plays acceptably when undocked. Preferably with good headphones. Played loudly. Speaking of, I’m absolutely in love with the soundtrack so far. It’s rock, it’s metal, it’s dramatic in all the best shōnen anime ways. This soundtrack is the one, guys. We’re going to elope, have babies, and grow old together.

I’ll have more coherent thoughts once I’m closer to completion, but for the moment I encourage you to go live out your Gundam fantasies.

The post Daemon x Machina Preview appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

Bringing the old-school to the current generation

I was so excited to get my hands on an advance copy of Link’s Awakening to review. Zelda is one of my favourite gaming franchises and, as someone who didn’t get to play the game on GameBoy as a kid, this is the best gift I could get from Nintendo.

While we’ve got a full review in the works, I wanted to get my first impressions out there for folks who might be just as excited as me to have a “new” Zelda game to play.

 Link’s Awakening is a bright and festive remake of a GameBoy classic, with side-by-side comparisons of many screens being very similar in layout, albeit with a fresh and festive new style of graphics. The first thing that struck me was the adorable feel of the world’s textures and shapes. These are very much in the plastic-y, chunky style of Lego or Playmobil toys; cute. With the tilt shifted blur effect around the edges, it feels very much like a world in miniature, which is novel and genuinely charming. 

“As someone who didn’t get to play the game on GameBoy as a kid, this is the best gift from Nintendo.”

For folks who have played a lot of recent Zelda games, you may find this game simplistic and old-school. But to me, that’s absolutely the point. It’s a great entry game for youngsters who are new to the franchise, making it a great way for parents who want to share the joys of Koholint Island with their kids.

Don’t think that it’s super easy though; the dungeons and puzzles still present a reasonable challenge! Additionally, the game has included an exciting Chamber Dungeon feature, which allows you to build your own custom dungeons based on ones you’ve already traversed.

The game’s performance is clean and fast on the Switch, and it somehow balances a nostalgic, handheld experience with fresh graphics and features in a great retelling of a classic story.

More to come later on in our full review, but in the meantime, I highly recommend pre-ordering this game. Link’s Awakening is a bright and festive remake of an absolute GameBoy classic, and it’s going to be essential to any Zelda lover’s library.

The post Zelda: Link’s Awakening Preview appeared first on 8-Bit Island.