Tales From The Borderlands: Zer0 Sum Review

metro.co.uk

Embrace the chaotically hilarious world of Pandora once again in the new episodic graphic adventure game based on the Borderlands series in Tales From the Borderlands.  The game is developed by Telltale Games in partnership with Gearbox Software and 2K Games, featuring voices from Chris Hardwick as Vaughn,  and Patrick Warburton as your nemesis Vasquez.  Episode one of Tales From the Borderlands is named 'Zer0 Sum' and was released November 25, 2014 on PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, and PS4.


Tales From the Borderlands: Zer0 Sum puts you in the lives of Rhys (voiced by Troy Baker) and Fiona (voiced by Laura Bailey).  Rhys is a normal Hyperion employee who works with his best friend Vaughn, and is about to receive a promotion in the company.  Suddenly you learn that Vasquez, (who is one of those co-workers that you hate) kills the former boss and promotes himself to be your new boss.  Rhys and Vaughn embark on a journey to Pandora to screw over one of Vasquez's business deals, so that you can gain your promotion you truly deserved.  On the other hand, Fiona is a con-artist living on Pandora with her sister Sasha, who were taught by their adoptive mentor, Felix.  Rhys and Fiona get mixed into each others lives when they come to find out that the deal Fiona was about to rip was the deal that Rhys was about to go through with.  Rhys, Vaughn, Fiona and Sasha then set off to retrieve their stolen money from the leader bandit Bossanova.  This sends the group through a crazy journey into the monstrous world of Pandora.

Tales From the Borderlands: Zer0 Sum is the first instalment of the very first season of the newly loved series.  Telltale Games are known for their outstanding work on their other projects such as The Walking Dead Season 1 & 2, The Wolf Among Us, and their newly released Game of Thrones series.  As far as episodic games go Telltale Games is the master of creating them, and they certainly don't disappoint with Tales From the Broderlands.

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The story of Tales From the Borderlands is without a doubt hilarious and super addictive. Each episode is approximately two and a half hours in length, and the time will fly by without even noticing.  All the game play mechanics are executed perfectly like the transitions between dialogue choices and action sequences. Although there are some rare occasions where the game will drop frames or even freeze for not even a second. The original Borderlands series is a full out first person shooter, and this take on Borderlands allows the player to get more of a story experience rather than focus on nonstop action which is nice.  I can tell from experience that the Tales From the Borderlands seems to run more smoothly on next-gen (Xbox One & PS4 & PC), rather than current-gen (Xbox 360 & PS3).  Another great feature added to Tales From the Borderlands is the fact that the actual choices you pick literally happen, and the crucial choices result in more intense and explosive events.

At first, I thought that Telltale Games would have a tough time creating an episodic adventure game out of the Borderlands series, but they sure nailed it.  Any Borderlands fan must play this game because it is going to be an awesome journey through out the rest of the season.  I've also been told that people who aren't that big into Borderlands will enjoy this game, and I don't disagree with this statement.  Tales From the Borderlands blew me away with the things they were able to alter from the original series.  They are able to set the stage perfectly for the next episode, which will leave you in wonder of what is in store for you during the next episode.  Needless to say, Tales From the Borderlands is a must buy, and is personally my favorite Telltale Games made to date.

 by Brody Nash

Assassin's Creed Unity Review

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Through fear, crime, betrayal, and bloodshed, experience the newest extension to one of the most well known major action-adventure franchises today. Assassin's Creed Unity has something for everyone's inner assassin. Ubisoft and Ubisoft Montreal, have done it once again, they have managed to make their seventh instalment to the Assassin's Creed series and it surely lives up to its predecessor Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag. Directed by Alexandre Amancio and written by Travis Stout, Assassins Creed Unity hooks you in as soon as you start the game. Assassins Creed Unity was released November 11th, 2014, and is available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.



Assassin's Creed Unity puts you in the life of Arno Dorian (voiced by Dan Jeannotte) a native Frenchman, son of an Assassin, set during the eve of the French Revolution in Paris. After the death of his father and being blamed for the murder of his adoptive father, Arno sets out to become a member of the Brotherhood of Assassins, where he slowly rises through the ranks. Driven by revenge and the will to save Paris, Arno sets out to seek the truth during this tragic period in history.

Assassins Creed Unity was the latest Ubisoft product created with the AnvilNext game engine, with new implements that will change the way you play. One of the newest additions is the Phantom Blade, which replaces the second Hidden Blade from previous Assassin Creed's. This weapon allows you to kill stealthy from a distance. It is a blade, attached to a crossbow type mechanism that allows you to shoot knives at people, to kill without being noticed. Since staying in the shadows is a major part of how you play through the game, this weapon comes in handy in tougher missions.


Another huge difference is the addition of the "Parkour Up" and "Parkour Down" mechanics. These new abilities allow the player to easily scale up and down (hence the name "Parkour Up & Down") buildings and obstacles. This gives the free running element have much more flexibility within Assassin's Creed. This aspect makes the game feel much more fluent and not as slow as the previous games. Another smaller addition to the game is that the world of Paris is huge, and allows you to roam to and from different districts while many in game activities appear like; fist fights, chasing a pick-pocket, or just simply solving a murder mystery. The last big addition to the game they implemented was the co-operative multiplayer, which allows you to freely roam Paris with your friends, or do missions and heists if that's more your style.

Many of the major aspects of Assassin's Creed Unity are executed excellently, but there are always some flaws in every creation. So far, from my experience with the storyline, I am really enjoying it but I find some things could be explained a little better before the missions are started. The voice acting is spot on in my opinion; all the voices are different and it's hard to find similarities in the sound of the characters which is an awesome aspect to the game.

Most of the gameplay mechanics within the game are great, and make you truly feel like an assassin the entire time. Although there are some bugs, mostly with NPC (non-playable characters) walking through buildings and obstacles, or standing on other characters. Also sometimes the costumes, hair, and weapons of some characters will become wonky, and might also cause the frame rate to drop, not drastically, but enough to notice it for a second. Even with the flaws, all the other gameplay aspects allow the player to feel more like an assassin than ever before in any other Assassin's Creed to date.

Assassin's Creed Unity really gives you a grip on life within the French Revolution, while telling a gripping tale about rising above revenge and thinking more about the innocent, rather than yourself. Assassin's Creed hasn't been known for recreating the exact moments from that time period, mostly because they add the Brotherhood of Assassins into the time eras, causing some events to have some twists, which play out well. Assassin's Creed Unity brings new tech and new elements that will change the series for the better in the long run. Assassin's Creed Unity is definitely a must buy this holiday season. Always remember the Brotherhood code; "We work in the dark to serve the light. We are Assassins."


by Brody Nash