Gamebytes: Ghost Reacon Advanced Warfighter 2 for the Playstation3

By Jeremy HohmanFriday, October 26, 2007 10:25 AM CDT
The year is 2014, you and your team, strapped with the most advanced technology available, are heading into Mexico to stop a civil war. Not very complicated, huh? There is a very nice plot, but do you honestly care? I don’t. Let’s blow stuff up!The equipment itself in this game is very revolutionary to the tactical-shooter niche.The UAV3 is a special camera drone that acts as your eye in the sky. By pressing the ‘select’ button and pulling up your map, you will be able to send your camera-drone by placing the cursor over a designated area and pressing up on the direction pad. Once overhead a target you can lower the camera to spot enemies. A new ability that has been added to GRAW 2 is CFV mode. By pressing the R2 button you will be in first person view of your teammate’s positions. By pressing up on the direction pad you can send them to a specific area or regroup by pressing down on the D-pad. Another piece of equipment is the M.U.L.E—simply put a mobile weapons shop. A shop that you will drive and run down your enemies; on the outside, there is a first person gun camera that allows you to attack enemies without compromising your position. Not to forget and leave out the basics: assault rifles, sniper rifles, smoke grenades, satchel charges, turrets, night vision, and everything you could possibly need to take out a nation of bad guys.On the other side of the spectrum, GRAW 2 can infect players with game burn-out. Gameplay can get a little slow at times by fighting opponents that don’t offer you any challenge, running for periods of time without any action, and dealing with teammates that you can’t put into position without them being seen. Learning the controls of the game will take some practice. What makes them a challenge is in this game they utilize every button; therefore, memorizing what each button does and applying that in the heat of battle can be a little tricky. Using the first person view to control your teammates is cool, but useless. For one you are limited to what you see by not being able to control the camera. Although you can switch between teammates, this still does not help because they will still stand wherever, usually in the open. Using the UAV3 camera is helpful when pin-pointing your target, but be careful. If your UAV is spotted it can be shot out of the sky; once you locate your target, regroup it by pressing down on the d-pad.Six Axis Controls stink! To use them, one must move the base of the controller up or down to move forwards or backwards, tilt the controller right or left to turn in these respected directions. Don’t attempt to use this feature; turn it off in the options screen. Trying to maneuver the M.U.L.E with this is a pain and not very accurate. You’ll wind up getting frustrated and lose the excitement of what you’re supposed to be doing.There is some staggering in frame rate in certain scenes, but nothing too crazy.The audio for the game is not bad, but not the best: speaker distortion was common throughout the game.The graphics for the PS3 are similar if not better than those on the 360.Multiplayer mode offers 32 maps spanning from night to day scenes and lots of options that aren’t available in single player mode. If an online battle is what you’re looking for than this should satisfy your appetite for destruction.Despite some issues, GRAW 2 succeeds in giving you a real feeling of being part of an elite US team. All in all, if you were a fan of the Socom series for the PS2 and looking for a decent multiplayer mode for the PS3, you have found it.Ghost Reacon Advanced Warfighter 2 gets a B-Jeremy Hohman is the writer, producer and host of GameBytes a 30 minute weekly game news and review show. To see Jeremy’s latest pod cast or to rent & play the game reviewed simply go to; http://www.gnfgames.com/

Gamebytes: Halo3

By Jeremy Hohman with Brandon Poole, Friday, October 19, 2007 2:09 PM CDT

The old adage “good things come to those who wait” is most definitely true. After months of patiently waiting Halo 3 continues to exceed expectations.

Our prized protagonist Master Chief is back in a wonderful game that combines all the great aspects of the first two installments into Halo 3, the most anticipated game of the year.When the game begins, we find Master Chief crash-landing on Earth. In this installment, the Arbiter is working with Master Chief and the humans to stop the Covenant (bad guys) from activating the arc., in effect, setting off all the Halos which would result in the destruction of all life in the universe. Whew, that’s quite a load for Master Chief to handle alone with old weapons and vehicles. With all this new drama it is very fortunate that we are given a vast array of new features: new allies, new weapons, and a sub-plot involving Master Chief’s quest to retrieve his resident A.I., Cortana.

As far as the gameplay, in campaign mode, Arbiter assists you in battle, but you must get used to little or no help and the sight of him re-spawning. In the same light, I cannot say much more for your Marines, who possess the strategic driving skills of a four-year-old. They end up getting killed before you even get a chance to do your business. I guess that’s why the fate of the Universe is up to you, because without you those guys are hopeless.Weapons--are they awesome? Answer: Yes. You have the flame thrower which basically sets others on fire—who doesn’t like that? There is a laser gun which will rip a warthog in half, and spikers which can be deadly at close range when using two of them simultaneously. Also, Master Chief and company are given a war hammer that will send a vehicle half-way across the screen. That means when equipped with this hefty hammer, becoming your opponent’s road-kill is not an option.Other notable additions include an advanced campaign mode, allowing four separate consoles to work together on one mission on-line. In the multiplayer mode, the weapon's power settings are tweakable and the game has the option to save videos of gameplay, along with the ability to share videos through the internet (for bragging rights, of course). Something that every avid Halo fan will appreciate is the ability to alter maps and save them (while in multi-player mode).

Custom settings and difficulty level, you say? Well, the user may choose from additional icons that were not present in the second game. There are a few options to customize your very own Master Chief. Customizable maps and weapon energy levels have already been covered. How about those settings? FOR HALO PLAYERS ONLY: the normal setting feel like easy street and the legendary mode feels closer to normal. The controls are slightly different, but easy to get used to.

Last but not least, the graphics - the maps look amazing and the game is HD compatible which allows the 360 in unison with the game to reach their full potential.

Bar-setting A+Jeremy Hohman is the writer, producer and host of GameBytes, a weekly game news and review show. To see Jeremy’s latest pod cast or to rent & play the game reviewed simply go to http://www.gnfgames.com/

Wild Horse Update

Horse Slaughter ban upheld in State of IllinoisOn Friday, September 21st, the US Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit ruled in favor of the constitutionality of the recent Illinois State law that was passed, banning the slaughter of horses for human consumption in the State of Illinois. While a similar state law in Texas shut down 2 of the 3 horse slaughter plants at the beginning of this year, Cavel International in DeKalb, IL continued to slaughter horses under the protection of temporary injunctions while they waged their legal battle. The plant has a couple of legal options remaining that they can explore. For now, however the last remaining slaughter plant in the U.S. has to close its doors. With U.S. plants closed, American horses will simply be shipped overseas to Canada or Mexico for slaughter. America’s wild horses also remain at risk of slaughter. Though they were once protected under the 1971 Wild Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act, they have lost many of these protections throughout the last three decades. The final blow came in 2004 when an amendment opened up full sale authority for wild horses, essentially making them available to the highest bidder. In April of this year, Congressmen Nick Rahall and Ed Whitfield succeeded in passing legislation in the US House of Representatives that would revoke that sale authority and restore some of the protections that the 1971 Act had provided. This legislation still needs to be heard and voted on in the Senate. Until then, wild horses remain at risk. The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (HR 503 and S 311) has been introduced in both the House and the Senate, but has yet to be heard by either in this Congressional session. Despite overwhelming public support, and the fact that HR 503 passed the House by a landslide last year, the legislation is languishing in Committee as we near the end of the session. This legislation would protect both wild and domestic horses from slaughter. You can be a voice for America’s wild horses by contacting your members of Congress today. Ask them to support:· HR 503 in the House· S 311 and a Senate version of HR 249 in the SenateFor information on who your representatives are, or how to contact them, please visit www.congress.org. For more information on Return to Freedom and what we’re doing to protect America’s wild horses please visit www.returntofreedom.org. On behalf of the horses, thank you. Jill AndersonOutreach & Communications DirectorReturn to Freedom, American Wild Horse SanctuaryPh: (805) 737-9246 Fax: (805) 800-0868

Gamebytes: Bioshock for the Xbox 360

By: Jeremy Hohman, amplifier.bgdailynews.comFriday, September 7, 2007 5:04 PM CDT
Let me start by saying that this is probably one of the best games of the year. Bioshock takes first person shooters to a whole new level, welcome to Rapture.The concept behind Bioshock is amazingly conceived. The interaction with the game itself is what gamers for a long time have been craving. Here is a first person shooter that is a role playing game, who would have thought? You start off in a plane that crashes some were in middle of the Atlantic Ocean. You are the only survivor and you must use the analog stick to swim to what appears to be a light house in the distance. From the moment you enter the light house there is definitely something creepy about this place. Head down the stairs to a submarine and your journey to Rapture begins.The city of rapture is controlled by Andrew Ryan, a billionaire tycoon that turned this underwater refuge into a place were the most talented scientists, doctors, artists, and musicians could come and chase their dreams without being persecuted for them. This idea however didn’t turn out for the best and now the citizens of Rapture are addicted to a new mutating DNA serum called Adam. This serum allows the subject to change their genetic code and become whatever they want. When the supply of Adam ran out the people of Rapture rebelled.Through the course of your journey you will collect Adam’s and Plasmids that allow you change your attributes, upgrade your weapons, and perform biogenetic attacks. For instance one attack allows you to snap your fingers and set your enemies on fire. Other than the citizens of Rapture there are two other mysterious beings which are the Big Daddies and the Little Sisters. The Big Daddy’s are protectors of the Little Sisters and protectors of Rapture, the Little Sister’s live within tunnels in Rapture and collect Adam. At some point in the game you will have to defeat the Big Daddies which are the toughest opponent in the game and get Adam from the Little Sisters to upgrade your attributes. From the story line to the game play itself this is a game that you can play over and over again. Bioshock is for a mature audience only and I wouldn’t suggest it for anyone under the age of 17.Bioshock gets a definite A+Jeremy Hohman is the writer, producer and host of GameBytes a 30 minute weekly game news and review show. Jeremy is currently traveling across the U.S. hosting gaming competitions for GameZnFlix at the Midnight Gaming Championship 2007.

Hohman Strikes Again with Darkness

So you think your not afraid of the dark
by Jeremy HohmanThursday, August 2, 2007 3:55 PM CDT
So your not afraid of the dark, well The Darkness just might change that. Based on the comic book series by Top Cow Productions; it’s a definite change in FPS games we’ve come to know.The Darkness is similar to most other first person shooters except you have special dark powers that allow you to take on multiple enemies without even using your guns. You’ll start off as hit man Jackie Estacado, who’s sent to live with his sweet old uncle Paulie, who shows him the ways of the Franchetti crime family. When money goes missing, Uncle Paulie blames Jackie and wants him killed by mob goons using any means necessary. The plot thickens as on Jackie’s twenty-first birthday, Uncle Paulie plants a bomb that nearly kills him. After his near death experience, Jackie gains some unique powers from the dark side and begins to take his revenge against Uncle Paulie, using his new dark powers. With these powers: you have the ability to sneak up on your opponents, refill your dark powers by devouring hearts, and summon darklings, small ghouls that help Jackie do his evil deeds. You also have the ability to switch between Jackie and his dark manifest of himself by hitting the left bumper button. The key to replenishing Jackie’s darkness power is to stay out of the light by destroying all the sources of light. As you advance in the game, make sure to use your tentacles to surprise unsuspecting enemy, unlock doors, and crawl through tight spaces. If you’re looking for a traditional first person shooter game with a sinister spin, then The Darkness is for you.The Darkness gets a C+ in my book.Jeremy Hohman is the writer, producer and host of GameBytes a 30 minute weekly game news and review show. Jeremy is currently traveling across the U.S. hosting gaming competitions for GameZnFlix at the Midnight Gaming Championship 2007.To see where Jeremy will be simply go to http://www.gameznflix.com/