Looking for ECHO Devices, Got Frustrated by the Level Design of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!

Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel has some serious problem with level designs, I can tell you that. As much as I like the series, I still have to admit its flaws, and the confusing level design of the Pre-Sequel is by far the most serious and frustrating across all three games. Before I start, let me first apologize because chances are this post may not make much sense as I'm not good at explaining it in words. But as an honest fan of Borderlands, I have to pour it out of my system.

Quick Impression: The First 2 Hours of Borderlands the Pre-Sequel!

Judging from the number of Borderlands posts I have written previously, you've probably guessed that I'm a big Borderlands fan. Last June, when I heard about the then-upcoming Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, I couldn't be any more excited. Finally, the game was released last Tuesday and it was only earlier today I could finally get my hands on it! So now here's my quick impression of it.

Indie Game of the Month: The Last Night

The Last Night is a very short game which is more like a showcase than something that you play. You arrive at a club to meet your contact who tells you of a target you need to assassinate openly in public, and that's it. Yes, it's simple, yet it manages to give us a captivating glimpse on the settings of the very typical cyberpunk future we always imagine to be.

Ridge Racer Unbounded - Destructively Fun Despite Occasionally Annoying Physics

Despite its occasional bad physics and annoying camera glitch, Ridge Racer Unbounded is surprisingly enjoyable that it's one of the few racing games that I actually finished. Let me begin by saying that I have never played any Ridge Racer game before. So, I won't make comparisons with the previous games but instead I'll just focus on this game alone.

Trials Fusion - Let Me Try One More Time

What happens when you put physics and trial-and-error together and make a game out of that combination? Trials Fusion, that's what, an excellent sports game with highly believable physics and responsive controls. RedLynx Studio fused together the elements of platforming, physics-based puzzles and motorcross into one neat and beautiful package that is Trials Fusion.

Unreal Engine 4: Free for Academic Use

As soon as I read the news that Unreal Engine is now free for academic use, I sat up and took notice. Any concerned gamer who pays a bit of attention to the industry would recognize Unreal Engine and know how widespread its use is. Now, it's free for academic purposes! So, as someone who is always intrigued about the potential of video games for the purpose of learning, this news perks me up. Other industries owe the electronic entertainment industry (which is widely known as the video game industry) so much, yet so many people fail to notice. Let's talk a little bit about Unreal Engine.

Bound by Flame - Great Potential, Ignore the Flaws

Lately, I like giving a chance to less-known titles by smaller developers. Bound by Flame is one of them. It certainly is not an AAA title but somehow still received bad reviews, which I think it does not deserve. Perhaps there are too many AAA titles recently, and so people got carried away and reviewed Bound by Flame in a similar way they review AAA games, but the truth is this RPG isn't trying to be one. Whoa, there's a lot of "AAA"s here.

Dark Souls 2 - Death, Patience and Persistence

Demon's Souls came out in 2010 as a PS3-exclusive title and a notoriously difficult game, with many praising it as a genuine challenge. Dark Souls, its spiritual successor, was then released in 2012 and stood as a testimony that the developer had no intention to tone down its difficulty. Unlike most other games out there, Dark Souls' hard difficulty had been taken positively by the gaming community and received critical acclaim.

Saint Row the Third - Here Comes the Boom in Spectacular Fashion

Earlier this year, I played Saints Row IV and it was a pretty fun ride. I haven't got the time to review it, so I thought I'd just post the review for Saints Row the Third I wrote 3 years ago as a fix, haha. So here we are: say hello to Saints Row the Third! An outrageous and chaotic game that isn't the kind that holds you back from having fun. It has an open world that is not just free to explore, but offers you ultimate freedom for whatever you wish to do. There is no complex character progression or absorbing storyline. However, there are a lot of spectacular explosions, great sense of humor and awesome toys.

The Ambiguity of Dark Souls 2's Story and My Naive Understanding of It

Fought his way through the entire game while drunk, now baffled and confused.

I don't know about you, but I don't play Dark Souls 2 for the story. Same goes with the previous game. As you are aware of, the Souls games; namely Demon Souls, Dark Souls and Dark Souls 2; are some of the rarest games for having very vague plots. Nevertheless, this doesn't bother me at all because when it comes to these games, the story isn't my main concern, nor does it turn me off. Then again, that's my personal preference, and not everyone thinks like I do.