Following the marketing campaign #HunttheTruth heres my theory:

UNSC/ONI have basically sold out to corporate interests and the military industrial complex, they have basically monetized the war on the Outer Worlds a la Halliburton. In Nightfall Locke's investigation revealed a new Flood-based bioweapon that only effects humans. So the Flood are returning as an enemy in Halo 5.

117 and Blue Team go AWOL so they can use the Janus key to activate the Forerunner Guardians which protect against the Flood. The Guardians are the broken up pieces of Mendicant Bias, who is being revived because the new Flood threat is that severe.

They are going planet to planet activating them, which could possibly play out in the campaign. Activating the structures causes massive damage so USNC/ONI is trying to stop him. Maybe they dont understand whats hes doing is to protect humanity, maybe they do but dont trust Mendicant Bias since they know it once supported the Flood. Either way they see him as a traitor for stealing the key and animating huge Forerunners structures that destroy cities and send Locke and Team Osiris to hunt him down.

They may also think hes being manipulated by a remnant of rampant Cortana.

Cortana isnt really dead, she merged with the Domain at the end of Halo 4 and has been enslaved by the evil Didact to do his bidding. Chief finds this out (see 5:11), steals the Janus Key and goes AWOL to save her. Maybe she can talk to him mentally now thru the Domain after the Librarian zapped him and gave him superpowers? "Help me 117 you're my only hope!"

117 will use the a Composer with help from Halsey to resurrect Cortana in human form then they will ride off into the sunset together after having saved the galaxy one more time, closing all the chapters on Bungies' Halo and moving forward with their completely own version of Halo based on Locke, Team Osiris and Blue Team.

The evil Didact was basically set up to be the equivalent of Space Sauron with the Janus Key as the One Ring at the end of Halo 4.

just a bit of nav beacon jackin' fun in Elite Dangerous for Xbox One

https://gfycat.com/ConsiderateFlusteredAlbino

I am pretty big 40k fan having actually played tabletop back in the 80s when I was younger. I know a lot of people dislike WH40K in SW so this really isnt a post for you if thats the case. After THQ folded and GW opened up their IPs to more developers, I was kind of excited to hear that this game was being made.

Now having seen some of the alpha footage, I'm not so sure about it. While it does look good since it a UE4 game, the gameplay mechanics arent really looking that great. I'm not sure if this game is being designed as an actual representation of the TT version of the game or not so its probable that has something to do with it. But anyway I hadnt seen a post about this so I'd thought I'd share this for those interested.

What do you think?

This was a post I made in the system wars forum that I was informed would be locked. So I am reposting it here as a blog post.

I was basically making a comment on the hypocrisy of the system wars forum and how Sony fans are basically allowed to run rampant thru the forum posting trollish comments, antagonizing and why they are the worst.

Apparently, a lot of forum regs dont agree with my sentiments but its something that I felt needed to be said since its hard to get a word in edgewise on the forum when its basically overrun by Sony fanboys that constantly derail threads and basically undermine any real discussion by trolling.

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A response to 'Why the xbone is the worst' topic

Their fans. Seriously. Sony fanboys are the absolute worst. They dont even care about the PS4 they only care about it being better than your platform of choice.

More than any other fanboys, Sony fanboys routinely make daily posts, lists, charts, graphs, pictograms etc detailing why they hate Xbox. Not why they love PS4...but why they hate Xbox. And why you should too.

As if people that dont have or want ps4s will suddenly stop liking what they do and want to be like them. So arrogant they cant understand that someone could like something they dont.

They all think they are computer scientists, and will constantly prattle on about resolution and processing power as if the PS4 is a high end gaming rig. I've even seen many of them arguing with hermits saying the ps4 can do things a PC cant. Half of them didnt even know what resolution last gen, but now because Sony used 1080p as a marketing tool to sell consoles they all think they are techno wizards because they own a ps4.

Their most ardent fanboys will routinely complain about how much they hate Xbox fans when they actually post more about Xbox than actual Xbox fans do! /boggle

You never see them actually posting about playing games on their ps4s (besides multiplats that I can also play) But they will routinely remind you of how many more games the ps4 has. (Even if most of them are filler indies that arent even worth playing)

They wont admit when ps4 games, features or the psn are bad. In the same breath they will tell you how bad XBL is, Kinect is or how backwards compatibility is bad. Or tell you how bad Xbox is for getting more features because they should have had them in the first place, when PS4 doesnt even have the feature.

They wont admit when other games on other systems are good. Instead they drone on and on about about how much better the ps4 supposed equivalent is and 'next year' when AAAE overhyped Sony exclusive X thats been pushed back three times finally drops how you will see.

They are such haters that they openly wish failure on upcoming games on other systems. (What kind of gamer hopes any games are bad?) Why? Because they hate it when the PS4 isnt the best at something. Its like PS4 is an extension of their egos.

They act like everyone loves Final Fantasy, Hatoful Boyfriend, walking simulators or whatever the otaku flavor on the month is and theres something wrong with you if you dont.

On top of all this they are hypocrites. They complain about buying exclusivity yet support it if its something done by Sony.

The ps4 is like one of those overhyped restaurants that everyone lines up for because theres a lot of people lining up for it. But when you finally get it its nothing special.

The Greatness is not worth the wait.

Looking for a nice upcoming tactical space shooter? you should check out Enemy Starfighter if you havent heard of it. Graphically it looks a bit like No Mans Sky. Bu it could be described as a space combat game with the tactical depth of Homeworld but more action arcade shooter oriented. I personally cant wait for this one been following it for a couple of years. Coming to pc + consoles and will have VR support.

Well E3 2015 has come and gone and after all the smoke has cleared I have a decent list of games on my radar that are getting relatively little fan fair so I decided to make a blog post about a few of them.

Most of these games arent AAA titles. I wouldnt necessarily call them all indies, but they are more like single A games from my perspective. Just wanted to mention that I have nothing against AAA games, I enjoy the blockbusters just as much as everyone else, but these are games that I feel are actually pushing innovative ideas or mechanics. To make a comparison I think these games would be good movies on IFC as compared to the AAAs which are the summer blockbusters.

They arent in any one particular genre, but as a gamer I do personally favor third person action games and RTS games. I'm at an age now where I have more money than time so when I game I like to 'run & gun' and not be bogged down in tedium like sorting inventory or vendoring trash loot. Unnecessary time sinks are my biggest peeves in games. I feel that its just lazy design when game engines have advances to the point the have today. I also feel these mechanics lend too much 'hand holding' to the players when they can just look up how to do things on the internet. Part of immersion in games should be the actual discovery and exploration of how the world and mechanics in a game work.

I'm still waiting for the day when more developers realize that immersion is the key to making great games, especially RPGs and particularly MMOs. Gaming is a hobby based on escapist fantasy. Miring a game down in spreadsheets and RNG mechanics seems like the antithesis of this for me. What I want to see is more games with interesting use of mechanics and/or skills. Not games with set patterns, but open-ended design that allows players to think and rewards them for being creative.

I want to see games that are what I imagined games would be like when I was a kid growing up in the 80s. When gaming was based on things like PnP D&D or text-based games like Zork, we had to use stats because the graphic capability just wasnt there yet. But now it is. Putting all the stats and numbers in the background and manifesting them in actual physical or visual cues is what I want to see.

Instead of seeing health bars, I want to see my character start to look wounded or walk with a limp. If he gets hit with a bleed he should actually be bleeding. If he takes a critical hit to his shoulder he should lose the ability to use his arm. Instead of worrying about inventory boxes, I want to see him walk slower when encumbered. Instead of worrying about strength stats, I want my character to not be able to pick up a two-handed sword thats too heavy for me to wield. Instead of my rogue just turning invisible I want my character to have to sneak thru in game shadows to remain unseen, walking slowly or his footsteps actually make a loud enough noise to wake the guards. When trying to swim across a river I want my character to get tired or sink if he's wearing plate armor. Instead of just trying to get gear with better stats, I want my character to be able to find a sword and know its magical because it glows blue near orcs. We've seen a few games that hint at this, like 'Journey' but I want to see it taken to the next level.

Instead of seeking the acquisition of levels, my character should be on a search for skills or powers. The quest my characters go thru shouldnt just be to attain 'levels', he should be going on quests with a desired objective in mind, maybe even set by another player. Instead of just wanting to get to level 20 so I can unlock an ability, my character should have to go a quest because he wants to find a way to learn a spell to resurrect his wife who was slain by an evil villain. I want to see a world thats open-ended and where being overpowered is part of the game not something frowned upon. I want to see no level caps where the players themselves actually could become the raid bosses.

But I digress. My point in that little diatribe was that I'm looking for games that are trying to work towards making these types of mechanics a reality. So without further adieu heres a few in not particular order that I feel are trying to make it happen:

The first game to watch out for is Worlds Adrift. Its a free roam exploration adventure that lets players make their own stories and objectives. Its based in a world with floating islands and airships and real-life physics is a big part of the gameplay. Its still in early development but has piqued my interest. Its being made by Bossa Studios the guys behind Surgeon Simulator and I Am Bread.

You can check out the trailer here:

Next on my list is Ashen. Its a hardcore open sandbox survival game set in a world where some unknown calamity has caused an ash cloud to block the majority of the light in the world, you have to forge relationships with other players to try and figure out a way to survive in a world without light and maybe just save the world. Its as much about forging relations with other players as it is gameplay and also contains giant creatures.made by Aurora 44 this is be an Xbox One and PC exclusive. You can check the trailer here:

Next up is Dreams. This is a PS4 exclusive title from Media Molecule the studio behind Little Big Planet. Its an open ended creation game based on creating dreams that other players can interact with. Its surreal and the concept is genius. With the creators of LBP behind the project it should be highly polished:

Next up is Hush. An action adventure based on a young girl trapped in an orphanage trying to overcome her fears. Exploration, fighting and story elements combine to create a nice adventure. From The Game Wall Studios its coming to Xbox One and also is currently on Steam Greenlight:

Next we have Sea of Thieves. Famed Studio RARE is back with an open world multiplayer pirate game. Coming to Xbox One and PC, the naval physics in this one look great!

Next up is Vane. A beautiful single player exploration/3D puzzle solving game from Friend & Foe Games, a studio created by a group of the developers that left when the development of the Last Guardian bogged down for so many years. I have a feeling these guys were a good portion of the original talent from that team. Coming to pc first then potentially other platforms:

Next on the list I have Rime. Another single player adventure in the vein of ICO. Made by Tequila Works the studio that made the indie platformer Deadlight, this is a beautifully rendered animation style puzzle/3D platformer coming to PS4. It was announcedf at E3 2014 and there hasnt been much news on it but its one of the games I bought a PS4 to play:

Next we have Enemy Starfighter. I mentioned this one in a previous blog posting, but its still very high on my anticipated games list. Its a space combat simulator game, almost like a lite version Elite:Dangerous or Star Citizen Arena Commander by Marauder Interactive, an indie studio founded by former Bungie developers that made many of the Halo games. The game has been in development for a while now but the developers give constant feedback and update the site regularly. The game will also have VR support:

And finally I'm going to mention Crowfall. A successfully kickstarted upcoming pvp mmorpg. From Artcraft Entertainment, a team headed by Todd Coleman and Gordon Walton, the brains behind hits like Ultima Online, Shadowbane and Star Wars Galaxies. The beauty of this game is the Game of Thrones like throne war simulator system they are creating which should be loads of fun if you are a pvp fan. Can check out a trailer here:

This is just a taste of a few titles I'm anticipating and hopefully you enjoyed my little preview.

Well I'm out of time for today so until next time happy gaming!

Just read KVO's article about this game

I've been saying this for years. MMOs need to get away from the theme park idea and actually move towards actual campaigns with dynamic events and an ending. Instead of developers then having to worry about making more rides in the theme park, they could create a system where the players actually control the politics/economics/etc then have a main story that they can interact with and effect the outcome of but it eventually comes to an end with a winning and losing side.

With a system like this you could even make permadeath a thing since as a player you could actually have a family where you play other family members etc. if you character dies. Make the game have a set lifespan then either reset it for a new campaign or create a totally new one. Make it last say a season or two like a tv show then be able to be reset or make a new campaign all together.

Instead of just doing fetch quests etc, have the players build the towns, create their own nations. The powerful players then could even actually become the bosses in the game etc and taking down a city or killing a big monster would actually have meaning instead of just being a rinse and repeat thing with major world events that actually guide the actual story in the game. Dungeons in the game would actually be the dungeons of some high level player in the game, where they worked to stock npcs etc into their own dungeon/castle. Players shouldnt be grinding for purple gear, they should be working towards the acquisition of hidden powers/lore/tech or ways to win the game.

Instead of having say 20 servers that are duplicates of each other, make a huge world where each server is a different area of the world and the starting point for different factions/races. Make it so the players have to travel across the world to encounter other races and factions, which could take days or months in game. Use languages and alignments where players would actually have to learn the other factions languages to communicate.

You could even make it so each factions' players work towards accumulating resources like in an RTS and vote on which direction their factions goes as far as tech trees etc. They could even trade tech and goods in the game since you could make it so theres a set number of resources that are randomly divided between the different factions so they have to interact with each other to get these resources to 'tech up' their civilization. In a system like this you could actually have traders and crafters as classes. Instead of just killing mobs and getting random drops for a random npc, the crafter player actually sends you on the quest to find the components of the armor you want created. This could make magic items etc unique and even more valuable since they would all be unique items that pass from player to player.

If you laid a solid tech tree like foundation, you then could let the player base themselves actually create the politics and economics of the world which is what MMOs are actually missing-- the RPG element.

Well, 2014 has come and gone and it was mostly hype. The AAAs of the 'next gen' arent really living up to the hype for the most part. Most are just rehashes of the same tired themes and mechanics or *yawn* another sequel.

I have seen a few games on the horizon that actually arent mostly marketing hype and sparked my interests. It seems that sci fi and space games are making a comeback in 2015, much to my delight since it is my favorite genre. I guess people are *finally* getting bored with the same old fantasy tropes

Heres my current shortlist:

Enemy Starfighter

Game looks pretty fun its like a more arcadey lite version of Elite: Dangerous or Star Citizen Arena Commander. It also will feature Occulus Rift support. You can check out some gameplay here:

Rebel Galaxy

This game also looks pretty fun. A mixture of action and space tactics with RPG elements thrown in. This one is also coming the the Xbox One for the MS fans out there:

Off World Trading Company

An interesting refreshing new take on the RTS genre thats not combat based. Its currently available on Steam for early access. The price seems a bit steep but I guess they are marketing this as AAA title.

Etherium

An ambitious RTS game thats also in the space genre that should be able to give Grey Goo a run for its money. Unfortunately updated info on this game has been few and far between since the January 2015 release was pushed back, but I recently received a tweet from one of the developers saying they are busy readying the game for launch.

Fractured Space

Another one thats currently on Steam early access, this is a 5v5 MP space combat game with team fights between capital ships. Seems a bit like Dreadnaught at first glance, but its actually a bit more indepth and strategic with different classes of ships like carriers. I currently own this one. Its still in very early Alpha but its also shaping up quite nicely.

Finally a couple that are not in the sci-fi/space realm:

Gigantic

A multiplayer third person arena combat game with a few new interesting twists on the concept. Most people already know about this game but you can sign up for the beta on the link above. Love the art direction and the fast paced combat.

Armello

A beautifully crafted strategic boardgame style game. Its like Game of Thrones with animals love the concept. Its also currently on Steam early access:

well thats all for now, feel free to comment link some games that you are looking forward to that I might not know about!

PEACE!

Well WatchDogs & Destiny have come and gone and I'm starting to get a bit impatient waiting on some decent titles to hit both pc and console.

So far I've been kept busy by the Heroes of the Storm alpha, which is actually turning out nicely, but it doesnt really scratch my depth itch if you know what I mean.

Looks like I will be putting my money towards the following:

Shadows of Mordor

Dragon Age: Inquisition

Forza Horizon 2

Sunset Overdrive

SMITE for XBox One

and hopefully Styx Master of Shadows for X1 as well.

For pc I've just started playing a bit of Starpoint Gemini 2. Its a pretty polished game but currently has no mp.

edit: Recently picked up Endless Legends which is also a pretty good game.

Still waiting on *any* info on the new Homeworld and I really hope they bring the Gauntlet reboot to consoles.