Overclock | The Daily Star

  • BATTLEFIELD V OPEN BETA DISAPPOINTING

    Anticipation is what I had when I jumped into my first match. What I left with, was disappointment. The Battlefield V Open Beta went live on September 4 for people who either had Origin Access or pre-ordered the game. For the rest of us who are more conscious about our expenditure regarding video games, it went live on September 6. The beta ended on September 11.

  • Why aren't you playing JRPGS?

    Among gamers, Japanese role-playing games, or JRPGs as they are colloquially known, hold a divisive status. One sect of fans adore them, often intersecting with anime fans, these fans are more open to giving chances to JRPGs since anime-esque tropes and designs fill the genre.

  • Games where “lag” isn't an excuse

    As fun as it is to jump into a server with your friends, it feels incomplete. Even when you're on a group call with your buddies, it doesn't really feel like you're in the thick of things. If you've experienced this, then you need to detox with some good ol' local multiplayer fun. Check out the following games if you have a spare controller lying around.

  • Improving over perfection

    Horizon Zero Dawn was an incredible surprise when it released last year. Coming from a developer who was only known for linear sci-fi first person shooter, Guerilla's first attempt at an open world, third-person action RPG exceeded all of my expectations with a wonderfully crafted world, interesting characters, meaningful quests and a fascinating story that continually answered questions that were burning in the back of my mind. It was near-perfect.

  • BO4 Beta Impressions: Black Ops 2 but a bit worse

    When I booted up the new beta for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, I was extremely sceptical of how it would pan out. However, I was pleasantly surprised with the experience I got out of the game. Still, there are quirks that need ironing out for this to become one of the best CoD games in years.

  • BO4 Beta Impressions: Black Ops 2 but a bit worse

    When I booted up the new beta for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, I was extremely sceptical of how it would pan out. However, I was pleasantly surprised with the experience I got out of the game. Still, there are quirks that need ironing out for this to become one of the best CoD games in years.

  • 5 games to look forward to this year

    With this year's E3 leaving a sour taste in the mouth for many, it is now obvious that 2018 isn't as good a year for gaming as it was hyped up to be.

  • Hand Holding in Video Games: How much is too much?

    Every video game ever made has had to hold your hands in some way or another. Whether it was through tutorials or constant textual jargon, even a game like Dark Souls gave you some clues as to where you were supposed to go next. But do AAA games take this measure a little too far or are 34 different status bars and constant pop ups a sure fire way to success?

  • Facial animations: An often overlooked feature

    It's no secret that games are better in terms of graphical detail. Along the way we've had games which have almost perfectly rendered the human face, and others which had faces that looked like badly smudged finger-paintings. As things get even better, you can't help but wonder how far the level of detail can go.

  • SHOUT Picks - Games that got ported to mobile

    Mobile gaming has long been the awkward cousin of the gaming world; y'know, the one who everyone avoids at family gatherings. However, recently it has improved quite a bit. So much so that its rosters include more than “Clash Royales of Clansmen”, and feature classics from consoles and PC. The following are some of the more notable entries.

  • SHOUT Picks - Games that got ported to mobile

    Mobile gaming has long been the awkward cousin of the gaming world; y'know, the one who everyone avoids at family gatherings. However, recently it has improved quite a bit. So much so that its rosters include more than “Clash Royales of Clansmen”, and feature classics from consoles and PC. The following are some of the more notable entries.

  • Games that beat the E3 hype

    E3 comes around each year with mind-boggling trailers of games which ultimately turn out to be mediocre. Over-the-top trailers and expectation exceeding claims make up for a fair bit of the hype and games can seldom live up to that anticipation. No Man's Sky, Star Wars: Battlefront, and The Order 1886 all come to mind when

  • E3 2018: a mixed bag this year

    The annual Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is the biggest event of the gaming calendar. But with rampant leaks and rumours ending up as truth, a lot of E3 2018's charm was lost to its predictability.

  • What went wrong for the Xbox One?

    The short answer to the title – the initial online only reveal at E3 2013, a lack of system sellers and the PlayStation 4. The Xbox One irrevocably lost this generation and, unlike the PlayStation 3 from the previous generation, ended up playing all the wrong cards. Both consoles had botched releases, insane price tags and no games to show for at launch but then how did the PS3 still recover? To understand the fate of Microsoft and the Xbox brand, the more appropriate question to ask is, how did the Xbox 360 win?

  • The droids you are looking for

    An auteur of story-driven interactive adventures, David Cage and his studio Quantic Dream are well-known for their choice-driven walking simulators such as Fahrenheit, Heavy Rain and Beyond. In 2012, Quantic Dream released a short film titled “Kara” where an android of the same name becomes self-aware while being assembled in the factory. The tech demo, with its ground-breaking visuals and

  • The one overlooked aspect of video game immersion

    The player camera in video games is a criminally-overlooked feature. It can mean the difference between killing that difficult boss and dying to him because the camera glitched out and you were staring into your character's nostrils.

  • Interactive Gaming - A Case for Visual Novels

    In a game we're often forced to pick between wishing whether it had a better narrative or better gameplay. But you know what, why not just settle for a game that is purely narrative, forget gameplay or keep it to a minimalist aspect, you can always just enjoy a game that's mostly to entirely story.

  • 4 small games that pack a punch

    AAA games are great. Sometimes, though, you have an itch that needs a different kind of game to be scratched. Maybe you're going on a trip, and need to carry some lightweight games that a laptop can run? Whatever the case, games in the following list fulfil your requirements. And the best part? They're all under 250 MB.

  • A Way Out - A Mixed Bag of Emotions

    Since 2016, EA has been running a program called EA Originals where they look for promising indie games and provide them full funding without any publishing fees. The latest product of this program is A Way Out, a story driven co-op experience created by Swedish filmmaker Josef Fares, who previously directed Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons. Ever since its E3 reveal in 2017, A Way Out got a lot of gamers excited but probably not as much as Fares himself who confidently stated “It is impossible to not like this game”. Is his statement true?

  • GOD OF WAR

    God of War (2018) is perhaps the most hyped up game of this generation. Irrespective of your interest in gaming, you could not have missed the praise it got over the course of last week. And after getting my hands on the game I have to say, that I agree with the sentiments of critics and fans alike. God of War will perhaps be hailed as one of the most iconic moments of the PS4's life cycle in the years to come.

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