Mortal Kombat X Video Game Review

Final Verdict - Definitely Worth Playing

Sorry this review took so long but given the shaky release and variable issues at launch I wanted to wait and give it a fair chance. With that being said lets jump right into the usual format. As expected I bought this game for PC since I have not yet joined the current next gen gaming family on PS4/XBONE.

Mortal Kombat X is a fighting game developed by NetherRealm Studios. It is the tenth main installment in the Mortal Kombat video game series and was released on April 14, 2015 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows, scheduled to be ported to PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 by High Voltage Software At a later date. The premise of the game is that two players fight against each other using a variety of attacks, special moves, and gruesome Fatalities. The energy meter, first introduced in the previous Mortal Kombat game, allows players to perform techniques such as "X-Ray" special moves along with Enhanced Moves and Breakers.The game's play modes include Story, 1 vs. 1 Ranked, King of the Hill, Survivor, and Test Your Luck. A new addition called Living Towers is an evolved form of Mortal Kombat's Challenge Tower where the play conditions will be changing every hour. Another new mode is Faction Wars, where the players will have to choose one from the five factions (Black Dragon, the Brotherhood of Shadow, the Lin Kuei, Special Forces, and White Lotus) to align with and join a persistent online cross-platform competition with the others, winning points for their faction to contribute in the conflict between them, ranking up personally, and earning special rewards such as faction-specific finishing moves if the player's faction win at the end of any given week.

What’s Good:

Graphics: Stunning visuals that brings a whole new level of realism to the franchise. Whether it be anatomically correct bodies or just the level designs or even the sustained damage over time on the character models NRS has out done themselves.They definitely did a better job on designing the female models than when they did Injustice.

Story-line: As with the previous installment Netherrealm Studios has delivered a fully enjoyable cinematic experience that is sure to have fans coming back for more. I feel liek the story mode is the main selling piece of this game and is meant to be enjoyed by one and all. From the plot development and environments to the quick time events scattered throughout the story mode everything meshes perfectly together to deliver a worthy single player campaign.

Replay: With so much content and ways in which players can enjoy the game there will be much replaying to be done. Just the mere fact that each character has a story ending of their own means you are guaranteed to atleast play through 20+ times in hopes of seeing them all. The krypt also makes a return appearance in the game where you go to unlock a wide variety of rewards that will have you making multiple trips to unlock them all.

Soundtrack: Pretty solid soundtrack and voice acting overall. Actually got to see some of how they made the sound effects and stuff for the game that was pretty cool. If you have an attention to detail and appreciation for the little things that go on behind the scenes I definitely recommend you check it out. (https://youtu.be/65cS7D2yzUw) 

What’s Bad:

Game Mechanics: Here is where things start to fall short, the netcode has been a struggle to say the least so one can only hope that it improves drastically over time as this was the main downfall of MK9. This not only affects the actual matches that occur between players but essentially anything that requires connecting to servers to login or retrieve user information either takes forever or just doesn't connect at all. Another issue I have noticed is the control setup which seems to create a conflict when players opt to use the alternative control scheme its causes weird button assignment issues between both players controls.

What Should Have Been Added:

Definitely Stage Fatalities would have been a welcome addition to the game along with the classic Babality. I guess I shouldn't complain though since they brought back the fan favorite Brutality from Mortal Kombat Trilogy. I also would have liked to see more characters considering that so many were in the story mode portion of the game but seemingly not included in the launch roster.

Final Thoughts:
Pound for pound this game even with its rough launch and poor PC port is too much fun to pass up. If you are a fan of Fighting Games or the series itself you without a doubt should add this game to your collection. It is relatively safe now to buy the game as most the launch issues have been improved on or fixed by this release of the first DLC character Jason Vorhees.

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Dragonball Xenoverse Video Game Review

Final Verdict - Definitely Worth Playing

You heard right folks; your wish has been granted here we are after quite the hiatus bringing you another video game video game review. Took a bit longer than normal for this one due to wanting to give the game a fair chance in a very crucial aspect of its experience which is linked to server connectivity. I'll be honest as say as well that I simply was just having too much of a blast playing so I put off doing this review for a while. With that being said come with me on a trip to the XenoVerse as we visit Toki Toki City and pave our path through the Dragonball universe.

Dragon Ball XenoVerse (officially abbreviated as Dragon Ball XV) is a video game based on the Dragon Ball media franchise.[3] It was released in February 2015 on the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One consoles and on the PC for Microsoft Windows via Steam. The game is set in full 3D destructible environments. Fighters can traverse the levels free-roaming in very large spaces and can be fighting on a platform, go in the air, and fight underwater. They run when on the ground, and swim while underwater. XenoVerse has dialogue while fights go on, and fighters show facial expressions when they strike an opponent or take damage. The players have some freedom to explore the planet Earth as it exists in the Dragon Ball universe along with a handful of other locations. The game's new character is confirmed to be a player created character. With the character customization, players will now be able to customize their character's race, gender, head, build, voice, and clothing. Players can create characters from multiple races, with the ones available being Namekians, Saiyans, Earthlings, Frieza's, and Majins race.

What’s Good:

Graphics: XenoVerse is the first Dragon Ball game released on eighth generation consoles. Built around the same graphics engine that powers other note worthy fighting games such as Street Fighter IV. The game gives an accurate representation of the intense Dragonball action we have all grown to know and love. Characters are an exact representation of their animated personas and move with the same familiar fluidity you are accustomed to.

Story-line: Unlike the previous games of the series that usually follow the original Dragon Ball canon, "XenoVerse" features an entirely new story, featuring the player's custom character. This adds an exciting new dynamic to the game that keeps things new and interesting. Effectively adding "what if" scenarios to the DBZ universe plot line.

Replay: With so many classes to choose from, upcoming DLC, character build variations and multiple wishes from Shenron there is undoubtedly enough content to keep you playing and coming back for more. At its core it is a MMORPG so there is much farming and grinding to be done to get the perfect build for your character.

Soundtrack: Pretty solid soundtrack and voice acting overall. Love the start up theme song for the game, very pumped up and action packed. 

What’s Bad:

Game Mechanics: The online experience at times is not as smooth as one would like and you will find yourself experiencing lengthy loading times and lag when playing online with others based on Internet connectivity and speed.

What Should Have Been Added:

Without a doubt the one thing this game is missing is a dedicated training mode. Since at its core it is potentially comparable to a fighting game one would think a dedicated training mode to try out learning combos would have been included. Not to mention experimenting with various skill-sets as well as item assignment and assortment.

Final Thoughts:

This is without a doubt the quintessential Dragonball game to play. It encompasses all the good things we all know and love about the Dragonball Universe while giving the player the freedom and creativity to forge their own path and character through it all. It provides an all new immerse way of incorporating the player into the universe instead of letting them just experience it as an existing character from the series. Even though the game was plagued with server connectivity issues at the start i'm happy to say that now weeks later servers have stabilized just in time for the launch of their first bit of DLC. So far the experience has been acceptable and entertaining seeing the creative custom characters that people have come up with. As always feel free to check out some of our intro gameplay...

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