Publisher: Square Enix
Developer: Gas Powered Games
System requirements: Windows XP/Vista/7; 2.6 GHz CPU; 256 MB DX9 compliant videocard with Pixel Shader 3.0; 1GB RAM (1.5GB for Vista/7); 5 GB hard drive space; broadband connection for multiplayer
Genre: RTS
Release date: March 2 for PC, March 16 for Xbox360

This weekend I had an opportunity (and an obligation) to look at the demo of Supreme Commander 2. As someone who generally enjoys the real time strategy genre, I am always interested in taking a look at new iterations of past franchises. Right now, for instance, I am enjoying my time with the Starcraft II beta, while waiting for Chaos Rising, an expansion to Dawn of War II, my 2009 game of the year. My relationship with the Total Annihilation/Supreme Commander series is somewhat complicated, however. Both games impressed me so far as innovation went, but I didn’t really enjoy playing them when they came out.

( read more… )

Publisher: Yuplay
Developer: Gaijin Entertainment
System requirements: Windows XP SP3/Vista SP1/Win7; Pentium 4 3.2 GHz CPU; 1 GB RAM; 10 GB hard-drive space; DirectX 9.0c; GeForce 7600 or ATI Radeon X1650 256 MB graphics card; DirectX-compatible sound card
Genre: Flight Simulator
Release date: Available now

Due to a most dire shortage of World War II-themed games during the last decade, I would like to take this opportunity to petition the Illuminati World Government to pass a law that prohibits development of games based on any other setting. This is only reasonable, since WWII is the only war that humanity has ever fought. Don’t let the name confuse you; there was never a World War I, or any other war for that matter. I tell you this with all the authority of a History major. Setting games in imaginary conflicts is simply bad form and should not be permitted. Just think of the children.

( read more… )

Throughout my gaming career I’ve taken part in 20 different beta tests. Many have been of the open sort, quite a few were closed, and none were for a Blizzard game. I don’t know if it was simply bad luck or if I failed to meet some sort of arcane requirement, but I could never get into any of the World of Warcraft betas. I also didn’t get invited to the beta test of Starcraft II, which started a few days ago. That is, until a member of our Avault community contacted me and offered me his spot. Because of the generosity of a man known as OmegaBob on our forums, I am now participating in my 21st beta test. This is the first of a series of articles in which I intend to share my impressions as the beta progresses forward and we get close to retail release.

( read more… )

After quitting World of Warcraft about a year ago, I haven’t played much in terms of MMORPGs. Sure, I did dabble in Aion for a short while, but I found it ultimately uninteresting and did not renew the subscription when my complimentary review period ran out. The lack of such long-term gaming commitments was not altogether a bad thing. It allowed me to spend more time playing other games; 2009 was my most productive gaming year ever, with 19 games beaten. On the other hand, I did miss a persistent, neverending world. I also missed all the good times I enjoyed with my last WoW guild. BloodBonded was full of amazing people, and we shared some really great gaming moments together.

( read more… )

Publisher: Namco Games
Developer: Virtual Prophecy
System requirements: Windows XP/Vista, 1.0 GHz CPU, DirectX 9, 512 Mb RAM, 330 MB hard-drive space
Genre: Puzzle / Casual
Release date: Available now

Something rather strange has been happening as of late. It seems in the past month there has been a resurgence in hidden-object games. We’ve reviewed Otherside: Realm of Eons and Fashion Assistant, and we’ve announced the release of The Mysterious Past of Gregory Phoenix. I wonder what prompted this. Has there been some market study that has conclusively proven that such games are in great demand? Is it nothing but a simple coincidence? Whatever the reason might be, more of these games continue to appear. Not surprisingly, I bring you the news of another such game.

( read more… )

Publisher: Frima Studio
Developer: Frima Studio
System requirements: Windows XP/Vista, 1.0 GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM, 40 MB hard-drive space
Genre: Puzzle/Adventure/Casual
Release date: Available now

In Big Brain Wolf you follow the adventures of a bipedal, humanoid wolf who, unlike other wolves, is a vegetarian, a nerd, still lives with his mother and is studying to become a genie. Unfortunately for him, mother, who also happens to be the leader of the local wolf pack, gets framed for murder, and it falls upon her son’s scrawny, incapable shoulders to find the real killer. The fantasy kingdom where the events transpire is chock full of familiar fairy-tale characters cast in “modern” roles. Pinocchio is a trial attorney, Tom Thumb is a “gangsta,” Spock from “Star Trek” is tending bar for some reason, and the whole thing is ruled by a morbidly obese Little Red Riding Hood.

( read more… )

Dear friend of mine,

Twenty years ago when you and I lived in Russia as children, what few games we saw were always pirated. There was simply no store that could sell us a game. The vast majority of people had never even seen a computer, and those who had, mostly did so at work. I remember going to my father’s office to play Leisure Suit Larry, Digger and Prince of Persia. It was even better when he brought a computer home to work on some project. Back then it didn’t occur to me that the people who made these games possible were expecting to get paid for their efforts. I thought that games just naturally shipped with computers.

We didn’t know each other back then, but my first week in America, I walked into CompUSA and was blown away. There were shelves full of games. It was amazing! I also was unpleasantly surprised by the prices. It turned out I couldn’t afford a single one. So I continued playing pirated games, but for the first time it dawned on me that I was doing something wrong. It was 1995 and I was 13 at the time. Later, as I got more and more into gaming, it began to bother me that I was stealing from the very people who were doing so much for me.

( read more… )

Publisher: Iron Tower Studio
Developer: Iron Tower Studio
System requirements: Pentium III 1000; 512 MB RAM; GeForce4 MX440 with 64MB onboard
Genre: RPG
Release date: TBA

As some of you may have heard me mention, I’ve been following the progress of a game called Age of Decadence for quite some time now. It is an independently developed RPG, which appears to be very promising. In addition to quests, different play styles, weapons, and locations, there are going to be extensive dialogue options that include the ability to use various skills during the course of conversation. What appeals to me the most is that the game will include both diplomacy and intrigue, allowing for non-violent solutions (or at least the kind of violent solutions where you get others to do the dirty work for you).

( read more… )

Just as year 2009 was coming to an end, I beat my 142nd game. It was also my 101st game since 1999, when I began marking down the year when each game was beaten.

What a long, strange trip it’s been…

A lot has happened in these years. Highs and lows, relationships and breakups, books and movies, jobs and travels, houses and cars, colleges and military service. They all are important because they are what makes up my life and who I am, but I’m also glad my gaming hobby has been with me alongside these life events.

( read more… )

Recently we reviewed an independent game called Devil’s Tuning Fork by DePaul Game Elites, a group of students who study game development in Chicago’s DePaul University. We then schemed, conspired and used all of our clout to get an interview with two of the developers, Jason Pecho and Matt Lazar, to further discuss the game.

Avault: Thank you for agreeing to talk to us!

Jason Pecho (Jay): Not a problem at all.

( read more… )

Publisher: NCSoft
Developer: NCSoft
System requirements: Windows XP SP2 or Vista, 2.8 GHz CPU; ATI x700 or NVIDIA 5900 Ultra graphics card with 128MB RAM or higher; 1 GB RAM; 15 GB hard-drive space.
Genre: MMO
Release date: Available now

When I first learned that I was going to be reviewing Aion, I was a little worried. Writing about an MMO is a difficult task, because even small ones are always too enormous to fully experience; it’s just too easy to leave out something important. I was also trying to figure out how to avoid comparing Aion to World of Warcraft. Finally, I decided not to fight the inevitable.

( read more… )

What has always bothered me about the year-end compilations of any sort of “best of” lists, is that everybody seems to focus of the recent releases, as opposed to doing their due diligence in going over the entire gamut of that year’s titles. Yes, both Borderlands and Modern Warfare 2 were put on shelves in October and November respectively, but does that automatically mean they were this year’s best games? In any event, there is no way for me to be knowledgeable in every single game released this year, so instead I am going to take a look at the games I beat in 2009 so far.

That list includes a total of sixteen games, but many of them like Fallout 3 and Spore were released prior to 2009, so I will not include them. The games that I did count are Dawn of War II, Zeno Clash, Overlord 2, Plants vs. Zombies, Rosemary, Pizza Morgana – Episode 1, Heroes Over Europe, Modern Warfare 2, Torchlight and Devil’s Tuning Fork. In addition to these games, there were also some that I’ve played but didn’t (or couldn’t) complete. One such game is Aion, which is an MMO and thus can never be finished. A lot of these games were excellent, some were disappointing, and some had both good and bad aspects to them. From this group, I’ve selected my top four finalists.

( read more… )

Publisher: DePaul Game Elites
Developer: DePaul Game Elites
System requirements: Windows XP, Vista or 7, Dual Core 2 GHz or Single Core 3 GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM, GeForce 8000 series or Radeon X3650 or better graphics card, 1 GB hard-drive space
Genre: Indie
Release date: Available now

First and foremost, before anyone unearths this dark and terrible secret and calls me out on it, I want to mention that I am an acquaintance of one of the developers of Devil’s Tuning Fork. This relationship doesn’t affect my opinion of the game’s strengths and weaknesses, but I thought I’d bring it up in the spirit of full disclosure. DTF is an indie game created by game development students at DePaul University in Chicago. It’s a result of a six-month (and ongoing) effort, it’s their entry into the Independent Games Festival, and it’s free to download and play.

( read more… )

Publisher: Runic Games
Developer: Runic Games
System requirements: Windows XP; x86-compatible 800MHz CPU; 512 MB Memory; GeForce2; 400 MB Hard Drive; Internet connection for activation.
Genre: Action RPG
Release date: Available now

I insist that “Diablo Clone” become a valid genre name. No, really! Some people like to use the term “Action RPG”, but that’s too vague. It could mean anything from Deus Ex to Dragon Age since both of those games are RPGs and have a lot of action in them. When you want to describe a point and click combat-centric game with minimal character interaction, “Diablo Clone” neatly sums it all up. Especially if the game in question was developed by the same people who created both Diablo and Diablo II and is essentially their spiritual successor. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Torchlight by Runic Games.

( read more… )

Publisher: Activision
Developer: Infinity Ward
System requirements: Windows XP SP2 or Vista; Pentium 4 3.2 GHz CPU; GeForce 6600GT; 512 MB RAM (1GB for Vista); 16 GB hard drive space.
Genre: FPS
Release date: Available now

Modern Warfare 2, the latest installment in the Call of Duty series, has sold 4.7 million copies in its first 24 hours. At $60 a pop (more for some versions) this equals $310 million in one day. This is despite an ongoing boycott of the title over the lack of some, otherwise common, features. It also flies in the face of the ridiculous ruckus raised by the “think-of-the-children” crowd over the game’s content. Given current economic conditions as well as the opposition, these record-breaking sales are quite remarkable. Inevitably a question is raised: Is this game really that good? Before discussing that, however, let me tell you a little more about it.

( read more… )