Free Online Games

Now there are games that are totally free to download and to play and then there are those that are free to play online, but you still have to buy the game. Rumour has it that WOW might become free to play, but Guild Wars is currently free to play!
Games we have mentioned so far is:
(Click on the heading of each game to go to the website)

A Perfect World International
Here is a true free to play game with over 5 million people already playing. It is worth Checking out.

Lord Of The Rings Online
Finally this is game is free to play. I am a big fan of JRR Tolken and all his books and characters. LOTRO is an excellent online game and I love it to bits! I also enjoyed Lord Of The Rings Return Of The King emmensly. Prepare to loose yourself in a whole new world...It does have an online store, but there are a few hich-ups with it; since the Free to Play launch.(November 2010) This should be sorted out soon.
Click the heading of this game to see a video clip as well.

America's Army

Simply the most realistic, totally free online military combat simulation game I have ever played. From doing the various training courses to the actual in-game action. If you like tactical war games, this is a must try. The latest patch ironed out a lot of bugs.

America's Army You Tube Video Link

Then there are the odd ones that I haven't tried or mentioned:

Rapplez

This is also a totally free online RPG game. It is a pretty decent game with a tutorial level and all, but I somehow miss the fun factor in the game. It is just my opinion; since thousands of people play this game, but after playing 9 Dragons; there is just no comparison for me.

Rapplez You Tube Video Link

Guild Wars

This game is finally free to play online, but you still have to purchase the game or the cd-key. It is not all that expensive and you can buy the trilogy for less than a normal game's purchase price. It is roughly R380 South African Rand or 34 Euros.
For those that haven't played the game yet: You start off with a hand full of professions such as: Warrior, Ranger, Monk, Necromancer and Elementralist. With the expansions, there are a few more. Later in the game, you will be required to choose a second profession. It is a fun game with all the features of a online adventure game, but it does lack a few things: When in a party the members that joined the leader can not see where to go to for the quest and they just have to follow the leader blindly. Hobbies and crafting is not present, but in the end; that is not what this game is about. There are arena's where you can duel it out against other players and then there are the guilds: Guilds can battle it out against one another for points to become the best guild in Guild Wars. Now you know where the game got its name from. I love PVP play and therefore this game is a definite thumbs up for me.

Dark Orbit

This is a free to play space shooter game. There is no download; since it is a Browser game. This is for sure the best browser based game I've ever saw. You earn credits by collecting crystals(if memory serves me correct) and you can buy new ships, upgrade weopons and equipment. I haven't played this game in ages and therefore I won't elaborate further. All I know: This game will surprize you.

Dark Orbit You Tube Video Link

Dungeons and Dragons Online

This game recently became a totally free to play game and outweighs any free/semi-free online game that I have ever played. If you like D&D, you will love this game. Features I like: It is build on the D&D ruleset, it supports DirectX 10 graphics, it has build in VOIP capability and therefore you won't need something like TeamSpeak, pretty exiting quests with loads of online players to share quests with or just to socialize with, you can actually block and dodge(good combat system)and you can join guilds. I have only played up to level 3 as of this date, but haven't noticed any bugs yet.

D&D Online You Tube Video Link

Video games reviews August 2009

It has been a while since I have posted - My work has kept me busy of late:There are many great game titles out once more like Transformers:Revenge Of The Fallen and Terminator:Salvation to name a couple. Here are some games I checked out:

Sherlock Holmes versus Jack The Ripper

Sherlock Holmes versus Jack The Ripper is the newest addition to the mystery series. It follows the same principal as its predecessors using conversation and unraveling puzzles to solve the case. There are some new additions to this release that I enjoyed, but a bit later about that...

Your adventure starts with a couple of brutal murders that took place in the White Chapel area.

First Glance

I found the menu neatly done and it pulls you right into the game, so to speak. At first, the menu seemed to have a lot of buttons, but I really came to appreciate the fact that it was so easy to use. There is no second guessing as to where to find the option you need. I had to sometimes search deep and hard for a feature, apparently lost in the menu options, in some titles. Once found, chances are you’ll be looking for it the second time around! The first thing I do with any game, is to click on the “Options” menu and then “controls” to see what keyboard key is bound to what function. In this case, it proved to be unnecessary; since you are presented with a keyboard and mouse diagram with the whole game control layout when starting a new game. It is so much better to see it visually and to remember the key bounds are so much easier. It used to be a common thing to do back in the day, but it seemed to have phased out. I, for one, am glad to see it once more.

So we start a new game…

Graphics and detail

I like to keep this part short and sweet: It is either excellent, very good, good, bad or terrible. I usually cut it down to good or bad.

The graphics did surprise me somewhat: While standing next to the window, I have noticed the wall looks so textured and real that I could almost feel it. It is not true; however, for all parts of the game, but there certainly is some good usage of texture and lighting in areas. Mostly the game has a sketchy feel to it. When first walking the streets, it reminded me of the classic game, Thief. I appreciated the fact that the map did not lack detail: It did not feel empty. There are people roaming the streets and you can pretty much interact with each and everyone – even if it is just a one liner they give back at you.

Sound

It is not like I played the game on surround sound speakers, but it sounded pretty decent to me. I liked the background noises in the streets.

Gameplay

Here I will elaborate on some of the extra features: You are able to switch between 3^rd person view or first person view with the press of a button. In 3^rd person view, it is point and click and in 1^st person view you use WASD to control your character. I preferred the 1^st person view; since I struggled with the 3^rd person view – but that could just be me. You get a map of London that you use to travel to different locations on the map. In the beginning you are sent on errands before getting to the point where you start solving the case. I found these very unchallenging and made my mind up that this game will be a breeze to play. To top it off, you can press the space bar to see all the “hot spots” (areas that you can click on or interact with) I soon realized it was only to get you accustomed to the mechanics of the game. There are a number of puzzles that are quite difficult to solve. I like a challenge, but it presents a small problem only because the game is linear and you have no choice but to solve the puzzle before you can carry on with the game. Some of the puzzles have got nothing to do with solving the case either: Like helping someone to open their briefcase. It can be a bit frustrating, but fun all the same. My favorite feature in the game is the detection board: This is where all the clues are written down and you get to choose some options of how the crime went down. These assumptions then links to one another that has to make the final statements true.

I found the interface easy to use and picking up the mechanics of the game was no problem at all. The game kept me interested with the odd frustration of not being able to solve a puzzle. I would like to think that a movie is only as good as the dialogue and the same goes for me when it comes to a mystery game like this one. The dialogue, in this case, was nicely done.

All in all, I had a good gaming experience and I would recommend this game to anyone that likes a bit of mystery solving.

I rate this game 3 and ½ stars out of 5.

1- Not worth the time

1 and ½ - Playable, but you might want to give it a miss

2 – Not Bad. There are games more worthwhile to play though.

3 – Good. You may consider buying this game.

3 and ½- This is worth a shot and your money’s worth.

4- A very cool game. Don’t miss out on this one!

4 and ½ - You’d miss out if not playing this!

5- Awesome game. Forget about the rest. You should play only this game!

YouTube Video Link

SBK09 Superbike World Championship

This game works for me. Why? Everything just works well and smoothly. Ever wanted to pop a wheelie on the front or back wheel – no problem! How about lifting your front wheel out of a corner or have the back tire slide from under you as you accelerate around the bend? Insane, hey!(Pun intended)I would compare SBK to Toca Race Driver when it comes to realism and features.

Graphics and detail

The bike – and rider models look very good. Something that I immediately noticed was the well textured tarmac. The skyline is pleasant to look at and you can see all the flags from the different countries wave in the wind as you speed past the finishing line. There is quite a bit of detail around the track ranging from a helicopter cruising the sky to buildings and advertisement boards. I haven’t noticed any special effects like sun glare, but that doesn’t take away from the game at all. Over all, the graphics are convincing.

Exit the game son, dinner is ready!

“This is no game, Mom!”

Realism, you ask…Well, there is a whole menu dedicated to realism options. Speaking of menus: They are easy to use and having a dynamic background with animated objects and characters just adds to the feel of the game. Some of the realism options you can choose from: Bike damage, Rider Health, Realistic inertia, Tire wear…and the list goes on. You are able to select a team, rider and weather conditions. The weather effects are quite cool. Rainy will have your screen splattered with raindrops and the sky gets all grey and cloudy. Does the wet track make any difference? It definitely does. I found the water on the track looks impressive and the way your tires get wet. When you wheelie on the back wheel or front wheel, you can tip the bike if pushing it a bit too far. Crashing into a wall or slipping around a corner looks quite realistic. You even got a button for reverse! I haven’t tried it, come to think of it. I would think that you will push the bike backwards. I just love the camera angles in both real time play and replay mode. Racing with the dashboard view gives you that extra hydrenaline rush.

How well does it go?

The game is responsive and as smooth as anything. What impressed me the most, was the snappy loading times. SBK09, features Multiplayer mode so you can duel it out amongst your friends. Playing the game is quite fun and you may find yourself playing with all the features and moves you can do, that before you realize it, the race is over and you still need to pull away! Here is a neat trick you can try: Pressing the front brake while pushing down on the throttle, your rider will put his feet down on the ground and the bike will spin in one place. Now, steer left or right and you'll make nice doughnuts and lots of smoke. Yeah, baby!

Another happy surprise: Trying my Logitech Rumblepad II with SBK09, gave very good results. Finally a game that has good force feedback with my game pad!

Sound

Luckily you can turn off the racing music, because it just didn’t do it for me all that much. Only one thing that stood out: The lack of booming crashes. The animation is there, it looks convincing, but it just didn’t sound all that convincing to me. Other than that, there is not much to grumble about.

Over all this is a great game and I will recommend it to any Super bike fan out there.

I will give this game 4 out of 5 stars.

YouTube Video Link: