Grand Theft Auto:5

                           

 Grand Theft Auto 5 Review

            Grand Theft Auto is the game to beat in 2013. It has been in development since 2008. So that is about five years. Now, Rockstar is the studio that developed all of the other Grand Theft Autos and other great games.  Grand Theft Auto is all of Rockstar’s games combined. It takes driving from Midnight Club La ,hunting from Red Dead Redemption, and even has some drug runs from Smugglers Run and Bullet Time from Max Payne 3.

The Story  is really good in Grand Theft Auto five.Rockstar has done it again with a vivid tale of three protagonists. First, you have the Young Hood Franklin. Who wants to be at the top of gang world. Then, there is Michael ,who is retired from bank robbing game but he hates his life. He Has a cheating wife and his ungrateful kids ,it’s a parody of the 21^st century family and how we are wired to are tech. Then there is Trevor, a crazy  odd one, he puts the  “M” in mature in this game.  The story is witty and deep in all the right ways like Franklin and his dialogue with Lamar Davis his best friend or Michael and his wife. This story is one what I highly suggest you either play or watch on YouTube. The Mocap ,motion capture acting, is amazing to see how much the actors actually look like the in game characters.   

Gameplay is broken down to three things gunplay, driving and the mini games. When you playing  in Grand Theft Auto 5, you have the option to switch between Trevor, Franklin or Michael,  and it happens seamlessly.There is a 30 second load screen in between switching. The combat is probably the most fluid its every been because of  the weapon wheel taken from Red Dead Redemption and with ability to buy a ton of ammo. Then, there is the fact that they all have their unique abilities such as Franklin being able to turn his driving into a slow motion sequence , Michael Turning into slow motion when shooting and Trevor has more of a rampage mode. Then in each mission you can switch between the characters so that makes missions way more replayable. 

Grand Theft Auto 5 is the full realization of tech , story and gameplay merging together. I cannot tell how much I have enjoyed Grand Theft Auto 5. It is truly a feat of gaming as a medium. I not going to beg anyone to play it but I am saying people are missing out of something truly unqiue.  

10/10

Microsoft and Apple , Will They Be Relevant in 20 years

With apple losing there visionary Steve jobs in 2011. I’m interested in seeing their future innovations without the guidance of Steve Jobs. I feel there just going to keep repeating same products over and over  until people start getting tired with their ideas such as the iPod or IPad, now don’t get me wrong there is nothing really wrong with these devices (except using a IPad as a office device when its clearly not for that). Heck I going to invest in a iPod , I wanted apps and songs ( don’t worry I not going to buy them ,YouTube to mp3) . I’m not worried for apple at the instant but apple in 10 years because the  PC market is going down ( It’s because a windows 7 computer can last probably last 7-10 years  without you needing a new PC, causing the pc market not crash, but  to go down and then plateau) and then the fact that android owns the market with 80% of the phone market and Microsoft owning 90% of PC operating systems (aka Windows) .   Let’s talk about my boys  Microsoft, other than their impenetrable  windows operating system and office. Their surface and windows phone is considered  a work in progress their fairly new into market but the surface tablet does look like it has potential to be next big  thing with the surface 2  with it being 20% faster and 60% longer battery life  but with that said its still hemorrhaging a billion dollars but with Excel , PowerPoint and Word I think its next  up incoming tablet in the market. Then there windows 8 which is called the  “new vista”. Then there is the  Xbox my  pride and joy of the Microsoft but with terrible reveal of Xbox one I’m still little worried especially with PS4 capitalizing on their mistakes.

I’m really interested to see how these tech giants will do in the future with changing markets and jerk off skeptics.

William Townsend

Max Payne 3 Review

  

Developer: Rockstar Vancouver

Publisher: Rockstar

(GameStop) Price: Xbox 360 (PRE $24 NEW $30) PS3 (PRE $28 NEW $30) PC ($40 Digital Download)

Release Date: 2012

ESRB: Mature 17+

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       Plot

Backstory (It follows the hero cop max Payne he has lost his wife and his daughter). He fills this void with alcohol and pill addiction. I know what you’re thinking that is so generic, but within the first 5-10 minutes I was converted. Max Payne cimea is well written and visual you have to get used to it but after a while you don’t even notice. It has sort of a weird noire setup.  Basically Max Payne gets in  some trouble by killing mobster son(he sort of a jerk)  in a bar but a guy named Passos( who just happens to be in the bar ) who went to academy with Max offered a nice retirement cushion job babysitting wealthy rich Sau Palo(South America). In these circum stances he really has no choice so he goes with Passos. While watching these rich snobs you see the interesting perspective of Max. About all these shallow people it makes us question how we think of other people and how shallow lives are. Majority of plot is about the beautiful Fabiana is kidnapped there also a BIG plot twist. Max has pulled himself together too hopefully and more successfully than (wife and daughter) save the girl.

·         Gameplay

Max Payne is father of slow-mo. (Bullet time) shooter. Countless games have used same concept even Red Dead Franchise.  It was oblivious then  that it  was going to make a comeback. They also have a cool kill cam when you ever clear a room the camera will follow your bullet and show bullet entering and leaving the body with all the blood gore you want. Impressive A.I (computer you fight in single player campaign) they will flank and listen to your foot steps and fight you and hunt you down. Rockstar will also help you when you’re on your last leg you will go into bulletime and be knocked off your feet then with rest of your clip kill the guy who shot you in first place so instead of dying you stay alive. This is helpful but annoying if you have a empty clip you are unable to do anything, this can be frustrating. Also Rockstar helps by giving you extra pain pills (health packs) when you’re stuck on a checkpoint. Max Payne 3 has no loading screens while playing through campaign. Loading screen are cleverly disguised as cut scenes. Some people don’t like lack of control caused by the frequent cut scenes. Cover system can be a little sketchy at times. The only reason I bring this up it because it make Max Payne 3 feels little repetitive if you play through the game on hard, old school and hardcore. So after third play through  if your compeltionist ( someone conquers everything in the game) campaign might get stale by 2^nd or 3^rd play through but then after that you have arcade what replaying campaign but this time you have do it perfectly. So game gets  repetitive after a while but in a sense every game get little repetitive once in a while. Then there are collectables golden guns, clues will keep you busy for a while. Then there single player grinds there like Call of Duty multiplayer challenges, but  then beat one it doubles so if you complete get 25 headshots then next one is will be 100 headshots.

·         Multiplayer

The multiplayer is actually quite chaotic fun with bullet time at full use during it . Soft lock is a control type it auto locks on enemy this may anger some people. Clans /crews are in full swing and Rockstar actually has a lot of hem from previous games like Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead. You can create your own classes and your own avatars. Max Payne 3 Is in Xbox’s top 100 played games so theres still plent of people.

·         Graphics/Presentation

It’s one of the most visual stunning games I have ever seen.   During cut scenes certain words are highlighted making their importance very apparent to the players. Max Payne 3 has several environments offices, favela (poor South American neighborhood) and the graphics show how far video games have came since the first Max Payne, which was in 2001. 

The verdict

Max  Payne doesn’t try win you over you relate with him everyone has been on their  back once in your life and everyone has lost someone so maybe max Payne is trying send us symbol that people aren’t  perfect or life can be flipped flopped at any time. Max Payne is easily looked over for being a videogame by most people but I guess they will never expirence  story of max Payne.

 9.5/10