Warhammer 40,000: Soulstorm

Publisher: THQ

Developer: Iron Lore

Genre: Sci-Fi Real Time Strategy

Release Date: Mar 4, 2008

ESRB: Mature

System Requirements:

Processor: Pentium IV 2.0 GHz or equivalent

RAM: 512 MB

Graphic Card: 64 MB

Hard Disk Drive: 3.5GB free space

Soulstorm is the 3^rd and the final addition to the four year long running science fiction real-time-strategy franchise Warhammer 40,000. This series takes you in the post-apocalyptic era, where humans under the God-Emperor are claiming settlements in various stellar systems, across galaxies. There are several war hungry alien forces, of course, who pose a serious threat to this expansion program. There are others who fight to restore balance in the Universe. And there are those who are tainted by corruption and thus submit themselves to darkness. The popularity of this series leads to the fact that this is a strategy game packed with action. Soulstorm simply takes you to another dimension, where death is considered an honor! “Walk steadily and carry a big gun!” and such battle cries are sure to send a chill down your spine. The advanced technology, and weaponry is sure to please any game geek.

Soulstorm is a stand-alone expansion, following the 2006 Dark Crusade. This game, like its predecessors is action packed, but somehow gives a feeling of déjà vu. The non-linear campaign does lack a good story line, as it is based on a risk-style turn-based tactical map. However, it does give you a taste of intergalactic warfare as the battle ground spans the four planets and the three moons in the Kaurava System. The plot revolves around a warp storm that draws the interest of the game's nine factions to the Kaurava system, setting up a battle royal, which appears more like individual skirmishes. This makes the scenarios repetitive.

The races who fight for victory are the Imperial Guards, the regular human soldiers who serve the enigmatic Emperor; the Orks, savage war mongers; the Tau, who believe they are fighting for the Greater Good; the Space Marines, the empire’s elite soldiers and zealots, who fight for honor; the Chaos Marines, the dark forces who love bloodshed; the Necrons, the undead dwellers of the underworld; the Elders, arch-enemy of Necrons, trying to restore balance in the Galaxy; the Dark-Elders, demons who scavenge on souls; and the Sisters of Battle, a fanatically religious group who take it upon them to purge the world. The last two are the additions in Soulstorm. This add-on also experiences the addition of aerial units to the already fabulous armies.

The visual of this game, is again top notch. The gory battles and the persisting blood and body, gives a touch of reality. The best part of this game is it can run on basic configurations. Higher configurations however provide wonderful details. The terrain successfully gives a post-apocalyptic feeling.

The sound effects are also good. But somehow the same slogans make things boring.

Soulstorm is an epic in its own right, and a fitting end to the Warhammer 40,000 saga. So, garb your war-gear and go battle!

Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: Criterion Games

Genre: Racing

Release Date: Feb 5, 2009

ESRB: Everyone 10+

System Requirements:

Processor: 2.8 GHz or equivalent

RAM: 1GB

Graphic Card: 128 MB

Hard Disk Drive: 4GB free space

“Welcome to Paradise City!” This is how you are greeted when you enter this amazing world of driving! Burnout Paradise offers you open-world free form racing. And wait, that is just not it! You can perform various stunts, crash into almost anything, takedown vehicles and race against time. Perhaps the best part of this game is its variety, and you are your own boss while exploiting it.

The game has 70+ unlockable vehicles, of different modes: Speed, Stunt and Aggression. Spread across Paradise City are various points, which allow you to start a event of your will, be it Stunt Run where you crash bill boards and perform super jumps in air, Race where you beat other cars to the checkpoint or Burning Route where you need to race against time at Burnout speed, there is excitement at every corner, literally! Other available missions are Road Rage where you have to smash up other cars to win, and the Marked Man, where you are the target, and need to reach the checkpoint before you are totaled by your nagging pursuers. Some challenges involve nothing more than reaching seemingly inaccessible areas. The Showtime mode allows you to crash on vehicles at will, and cause damage. Then there is offline racing where you beat the best time of another player, across almost every highway. Occasionally you find some crazy driver roving Paradise City with a new car. But there cannot be two Kings in a city. Just shut the vehicle down, and add it to your collection.

You'll spend the majority of your time in Paradise City on four wheels, but there's an option to use just two. Paradise Bikes are just as amazing being blisteringly fast. And they hardly take a damage as you race on, or rather, crash on!

The multiplayer mode of this game is equally versatile. The Burnout Paradise Party, an offline pass-the-controller mode should provide chill out fun while hanging in with friends. Going online too is just a few clicks away, and you can pop into any race, anytime.

Visually, this game is a sumptuous feast. Running at its highest resolution, Paradise City has never looked crisper or more vibrant. Every wreck, every smash is superbly detailed and realistic as the cars deform just as you would want them to. The weather effect, and the night time Paradise City provides any gamers delight!

The audio effects are top-notch; the screech of brakes, the horn of the car and other such ambient noises make the game more realistic. Unfortunately, DJ Atomica continues to irritate as you try to drive and relax.

Undoubtedly, this 2009 release is one of the best PC Racing games available till date. So what are you all game freaks waiting for? Grab your copy, and Game On! There are yet more features, which you will discover first hand!

IPL, Rain & Power Cut

This is all a conspiracy! The leaders of our country are so busy with getting themselves elected that they are overlooking this serious threat to our country! Yes brothers & sisters, I am pretty much convinced by now that South Africa has started some campaign of crippling our country! May be there hasn’t been any direct assaults, but it just might take place any day now!

I mean, just look at the situation! They are taking away literally everything that we proudly posses, or what we absolutely need! First to go was of course the IPL! Wasn’t it supposed to be the Indian Premiere League? And what’s this? It flies off to SA, leaving all the fans heart-broken! What did we do to deserve it? Security issues? That’s all fuck-shit! I am sure something could have been arranged! These bloody leaders are so damn stubborn! Ok, enough of slangs… I ought to stop now… control Deep… control!

And yeah, no we get the news that the rain has gone there too! I mean, two vital things gone, to the same place… too much of a co-incidence! Why, don’t you people think like that too? But seriously, to hell with IPL, I badly need the rain here. They can play their stupid tournament wherever they like! But I WANT THE RAIN!

And the power cut… well, I am sure somehow, that the South Africans are taking away power from us too! I just can’t happen to be able to prove it! Wait and watch you guys! I will crack this huge game! It’s such a terrible thing! Can’t anyone else see the conspiracy? Am I the only Enlightened One? Well, I surely am NOT getting paranoid!

And yeah, I have not been blogging for the last one week, ‘coz I have been busy. I have two reports to blog; will do it sometime soon. And last week, we had some work load of assignments! I mean, that was sickeningly huge! 18 bloody pages!!!