A DEBT SIMULATOR

The introductory scene to New Horizons should be familiar if you’ve played any core Animal Crossing game before. Shortly after beginning, you find yourself indebted for a ridiculous sum of money to Tom Nook, an enterprising tanuki businessman who both welcomes you to your new home and also serves as your landlord. His newly-established travel agency is offering “island getaway” packages, and you’re his first customer; however, you arrive at your tropical destination to find it nearly completely deserted. So begins your journey to pay off your substantial debt to the tanuki agent that “scammed” you, by collecting bugs, gathering fruit, and catching fish.

Fortunately, you have as much time as you want to collect the Bells you need to clear your monetary liability — at no interest even. This lack of time constraints keeps the game chill and  laid-back, comforting even, but the debt acts as a clear goal to work toward should you need a purpose to your endless gathering. And as you complete each of the game’s major milestones, whether it’s expanding your home or upgrading the Nook family shop, the effects of your accomplishments feel very, very real, both emotionally but also visually in the island around you.

Now, I’ve been talking about gathering and selling resources like it’s work, undesirable labor that you toil at for hours a day. Actually, those saleable resources come about naturally as you explore. Sure, you can dedicate real hours (and I mean really, this game runs in real-time) gathering berries and fishing. But you can also spend a bit of time hiking to a hidden pocket in your island, naturally shaking trees and picking fruit on the way, and still come back with something worth the effort.

This isn’t to say there’s no grinding involved. Progression is slow, much slower than in previous Animal Crossing titles, and some milestones are frustratingly mysterious about their requisites. With the game still in the early stages after launch, many features and characters that would normally take up your time in Animal Crossing just aren’t available yet. Some milestones appear to be locked behind time-sensitive events, and so I found myself, on occasion, with nothing meaningful to do but turn off the Switch and wait.

CLUNKY INTERFACE

Menus are slow, clunky, and have terrible flow. In a game that’s so tightly designed, it feels almost offensive to have the menus, the medium through which we interact with the game world, so bad. For example, to fly to another island you must speak with Orville at the airport, but before you can get on the plane you need a ticket. Any reasonable person would expect to be able to purchase a ticket right there at the airport, but the designers thought it would be better if you had to run all the way back to the Community Center snack machine of all places. You also can’t craft more than one item at once, making an important part of the game unbelievably time-consuming. Your time Animal Crossing: New Horizons is scattered with strange little user interface quirks.

Animal Crossing: New Horizon marks the very first time an Animal Crossing game is released in high definition and it definitely benefits from the additional pixels, even if it’s not the type of title to really test the Switch’s capabilities. Although there was an undeniable charm in the low-resolution visuals of previous titles, I prefer not to be forced to infer what exactly I’m looking at. The actual visual style of New Horizons is simple but eye-catching, with bright colors and simple yet pleasant animations.

MULTIPLAYER – MILEAGE MAY VARY

The value and enjoyment you’ll get out of the multiplayer function will be different from player to player. Every player’s island only grows two kinds of fruit, which is randomly generated at the beginning of a game. This means to gather all the fruit you’re expected to travel to other players’ islands. The game also has a dynamic economy of sorts where the price of commodities will rise and fall by some unknown market influence, further incentivizing social interaction. However, for a game so focused on multiplayer gaming, there’s surprisingly little interaction to be had when you visit another island or when a friend visits you. You can still catch things and pick things and do all of the solo activities you’ve been doing so far, and you can do them side by side, but there’s almost nothing in the game that you do together. As it’s implemented now, the multiplayer in New Horizons feels more like playing a single-player parallel to another person than a real multiplayer.

BIGGER THAN THE SUM OF ITS PARTS

I’m fairly certain there’s some black magic involved in the development of Animal Crossing. It’s a franchise that throws you into debt within the first few minutes of play, then tasks you with spending the rest of your game time paying off that debt. There are several ways to go about doing so, but none are particularly challenging either mechanically or mentally. In fact, much of the work you’ll be doing in an Animal Crossing game is categorically mundane — catching fish, picking fruits, collecting bugs. The interface is clunky and slow, and there’s a lack of group activities to do in multiplayer. Also, none of the fruit on my island are worth anything.

Yet, it works. You’re enraptured from the moment you set foot on your island. When Tom Nook tasks you with gathering materials, you immediately set off, no questions asked. But in Animal Crossing we don’t sweat the big stuff. It’s in the details; how the characters move, the way they talk, how they word their questions and recall previous interactions. It’s a simplified but convincing facsimile of real human interaction. So, it’s no wonder some people speak about their virtual villagers as they would a real-world friends.

If you take any individual mechanic from Animal Crossing: New Horizons and put it under a looking glass, you’ll find it lacking — it’’s too simple, lacks variety, moves too slowly — but when you put them all together, you get the island getaway you were promised after all.

The post Animal Crossing: New Horizons Review appeared first on BadFive.

Instead of focusing on realistic graphics, some designers and visual artists choose to defy the norm. The result? Out-of-the-box game design that’s often paired with gameplay that’s just as unique.

Simply put, we’re talking about the types of games that will make designers want to play a game and inspire players to want to become designers and artists in the future. 

With that said, you’ll find such games that are sure to spark inspiration and get those creative juices of yours running in our round-up below. 

1. Mirror’s Edge

A true cult classic, Mirror’s Edge was released by EA Digital Illusions CE back in 2008. Unfortunately, it didn’t sell quite well. Why? We don’t know. But we’re willing to bet it’s because of how much different its art style is compared to what was popular at the time.

Featuring nineties aesthetics at a time where realistic graphics were everything, Mirror’s Edge stood out like a sore thumb, and we mean that in as bad of a way as possible. However, years later, the first-person action-adventure game has since received the credit that it deserves, even receiving a soft reboot in 2016, albeit one that wasn’t as well-received.

In any case, despite being released more than a decade ago, Mirror’s Edge’s visuals stand up quite well.

Jumping off of rooftops remains as amazing of an experience as ever. This is especially true because of how doing so constantly exposes you to the game’s beautiful utopian cityscape that perfectly blends panes of reflective glasses with vivid blues and blinding whites. 

2. Okami

Okami is so popular due to its unique visuals that including the game in our list feels like a cop-out answer. But at the same time, it also felt like we would be omitting a title just because it’s a no-brainer if we didn’t include Okami, which felt even more wrong, so here we are.

For those that don’t know, Okami was released way back in 2006 as a PlayStation 2 title. It has since been re-released for various platforms, including the Nintendo Switch just as recently as two years ago in 2018.

The main draw of Okami is its visual design. You can’t just help but praise it. The action-adventure game uses cel-shaded visual style graphics, along with a gesture-system called the “Celestial Brush”, which work hand-in-hand to conjure a smorgasbord of beautiful visuals en route to creating a special atmosphere that just constantly sucks you in from the first minute up until the game ends dozens of hours later.

A game that’s literally painted in front of you as you play it, there’s a reason why Okami is a game that’s still being talked about among gamer and game design circles alike today.

 3. Shadow of the Colossus

Another game that was released more than a decade ago, Shadow of the Colossus pushed the PlayStation 2 to its absolute limit when it first released in 2005. Featuring the kind of realistic graphics that were thought to have been impossible at its time, Shadow of then Colossus featured colossi that sometimes spanned the entire screen, and then some.

The attention to detail that Japan’s Team ICO put to bring the beasts to life in Shadow of the Colossus is evident right from the very moment you play it. You could argue that the designers approached each colossus as if they were a separate video game. This is because of how unique and well designed each one is. This results in a visually captivating experience that remains just as good today as it did nearly two decades ago.

Regardless of whether you play the original Shadow of the Colossus release or the high-definition remake released in 2018, you’re sure to find yourself captivated by the entire journey all the same.

4. Cuphead

Cuphead is a run-and-gun shooter that pays homage to the early days of animation with its art style. The 2016 title takes a lot of liberty in incorporating art styles similar to what Walt Disney and Max Fleischer used all those years ago. This results in easily distinguishable features in both the game’s character design and background design.

From the big and bulging eyes to the exaggerated features, and so much more, Cuphead took something so familiar in the eyes of the older games and turned it into something that even modern players can relate to.

Just be careful not to expect an easy time playing Cuphead. It’s definitely not the type of game that will help you relax, by any means.

5. MirrorMoon EP

The final entry in our list is a game that you probably have not even heard of, but will definitely give a trip after this.

A game whose visual design takes inspiration from the album covers of 80s pop music, MirrorMoon EP makes you question, well, reality itself. Although it is a first-person shooter and players do receive a gun, MirrorMoon EP always finds ways to constantly remind players to find a non-confrontational approach to solving their problems. 

As the only human left alive, MirrorMoon EP will have you asking a lot of questions while satisfying your eyes with its unique visual art and style. 

Take Inspiration from These Visually Stunning Titles

As you now know, a game doesn’t have to have realistic graphics to spark inspiration. Far from it actually, as it’s usually the games that try new things that deviate from the established norm that are the most visually unique. 

Having said that, these 5 video games and their unique designs will surely inspire you to come up with creative and unique ideas.

The post 5 Video Game Designs That Will Spark Inspiration appeared first on BadFive.

But while there’s already an excellent selection of VR games available today, it can still somehow feel like there’s not enough. There are still a lot of games out there that we wish were actually available in VR. 

These 6 games we rounded up below, for example, would be awesome if they were available in VR as well. 

1. Mirror’s Edge / Mirror’s Edge Catalyst

Mirror’s Edge was one of those games that flew under everybody’s radar when it was first released. But years after gaining a cult following, its sequel/reboot, MIrror’s Edge Catalyst, failed to capitalize on modern technologies available to it to create a better gameplay experience. 

So what better way to salvage it than to let players experience the highly-touted platforming mechanics of the games in VR?

Even without VR, Mirror’s Edge and Mirror’s Edge Catalyst were able to replicate the experience of running and jumping on top off of rooftops, among other things. Adding VR to that mix will only make for a more immersive if not terrifying sensation as you go from using a controller or a keyboard and mouse to leap from one skyscraper to another to feeling like you’re actually the one doing the jumping. 

It’s safe to say that this VR idea is not for the faint of heart. However, for the adrenaline junkies out there, a VR version of Mirror’s Edge and Mirror’s Edge Catalyst would make for the perfect parkour simulator. 

2. BioShock

Perhaps no phrase in gaming has ever messed with a gamer’s head than the phrase used to trigger and hypnotize Jack to do Altas’ bidding. 

So, you can only imagine just how mindblowing the experience would be if you could just experience it in VR, especially given how beautiful Andrew Ryan’s underwater utopia was for its time — and for the record, the environment remains just as beautiful today.

Beautifully horrific is the term that I would use to describe the experience if we were able to get a chance to dive inside BioShock.

It’s such a huge shame then that the rumours two years ago that the developers of BioShock were planning on working on a VR sequel or adaptation to BioShock turned out to be false and was simply a case of terrible use of hashtags than a proper tease. 

3. Earth Defense Force

Also known as Chikyū Bōeigun, Earth Defense Force is arguably the most popular video game franchise that you’ve probably never heard of. But that’s okay. Because now, you’ve heard of it, and you can join the countless fans who’ve been wishing for years for a VR adaptation of this third-person shooter franchise. 

A franchise that could be best described with the question, “what would be the weirdest and most fun weapon to use to kill aliens?”, Earth Defense Force would make for a terrific VR game. Not only would you get a chance to defend Earth using weird and wonky weapons, you can also do it in style.

Given the middling success that Earth Defense Force has enjoyed in recent years, it’s highly unlikely that we’re going to see a VR adaption of the series anytime soon. 

But then again, who knows? Similar to Mirror’s Edge, which is also on our list, Earth Defense Force has had a cult following for years. If it gains a bit more traction and popularity, the developers and publishers might take a chance on developing a VR sequel or spin-off based on the game. 

4. Harvest Moon

Not every game that we wish would have a VR adaption has to be an action game. VR works well for other genres too, like for example, farming simulators. 

While Animal Crossing would’ve made our list, the likelihood of Nintendo porting over their beloved franchise to the PC and other consoles with actual VR support — sorry Nintendo, we’re not really big on the Nintendo Labo — are slim. Meanwhile, Harvest Moon has already made its way into the PC with Harvest Moon: Light of Hope, so maybe a VR game might just be a possibility. 

We’ve already seen the developers of the franchise take risks by switching up the formula with Harvest Moon: Mad Dash. What’s with another formula changer, right? Only this time, you’re not really changing the formula much, you’re just adding the VR component to it. 

Either way, a VR game centred around going fishing, growing plants, and generally, just taking things slow, will be a godsend for those who want something different. 

5. Outlast

Capcom’s been on a roll these days with their games. Seriously, who could have guessed that the decision to switch from third-person to first-person would do such wonders for the Resident Evil franchise with Resident Evil 7? Adding to that, no one really thought that a VR Resident Evil game would work, but it did. 

Now, more and more people are clamouring to get themselves scared out of their wits by asking for VR adaptations of their favourite horror game titles.

But what if a VR adaptation of Outlast was released? Would people really play it?

I bet they would. What I do doubt is if most would be able to finish it. The original game was already scary enough as it is, to the point that many still label the games today as some of the scariest gaming experiences ever, which is not surprising considering how helpless and powerless the protagonist is in the games. 

Add a VR component to that, and you’ve got a recipe for mayhem. 

Thankfully, one of the co-founders of Red Barrels, Philippe Morin, didn’t totally rule out the possibility of a VR adaptation of the series. Instead, in one of his interviews, he merely stated that a successful VR game has to be “built from the ground up for it”. 

Fingers crossed, that’s exactly what they’re going to do with the highly-anticipated Outlast 3. 

6. Pokemon

We’ve already had Pokemon in both 3D and Augmented Reality, so why not go for three-for-three with a VR adaptation? This way, trainers from all over the world can actually walk all the thousands of steps necessary to get their eggs to crack on their way to catching them all, or so to speak. 

Game Freak are in need of a win after the less-than-stellar reception of Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield.

While there’s certainly no guarantee that a VR adaptation of Pokemon, especially if it was made for a console outside of the Nintendo Switch, would be a success, it’s a risky move that could blow up arguably much bigger than Pokemon Go did all those years ago. 

What Other Games Would You Like to See in VR?

Virtual Reality is nowhere near the point where many predicted it would come to many years ago. However, it’s getting there, and the best part is, VR might even get farther. 

With that said, we can only continue to hope that developers are willing to take the jump and create VR adaptations of their beloved franchises. Because, if any of these 6 were ever made as a VR title, fans would definitely come in droves to try out for themselves what it would really be like to live and play inside the game that they’ve come to love over the years. 

But of course, these aren’t the only games that would be awesome as a VR title. 

What other games do you think would be great in VR? Why do you think so? Be sure to let us know what you think!

The post 6 Games That Would Be an Awesome VR Adaptation appeared first on BadFive.

Full Spectrum Warrior

Full Spectrum Warrior was a real-time tactical military shooter where you commanded two squadrons of soldiers through an urban campaign set in the fictional Middle Eastern country of Zekistan. 

A wrong step or misplaced shot could – and often did – end up with your fireteam surrounded on all sides. The player couldn’t carry their team to victory with a rifle and quick-twitch reflexes. Success hinged upon how the player utilized the tools and personnel at his disposal to squeeze out of tight spots. Only with repeated failures and an intimate understanding of your weapons and grenades could a player make it through the different missions with any consistency.

With the new generation of consoles only a year out from release, we think it’s just the time for this cult classic to make its comeback. But here’s our pitch: it’s focused around community-created maps. Think Full Spectrum Warrior Mario Maker. Full Spectrum Warrior has always been more a puzzle game than a straight shooter, we’d like to see a remake that takes that aspect of the game and runs with it, allowing its community to create custom levels and challenge others to complete them.

Steel Battalion

Steel Battalion was an Xbox exclusive that was too ambitious for its own good. The developers marketed the game as a mech simulator, an authentic giant robot fighting experience. Mech games have never been particularly popular, but in 2002 when the game released, even the juggernaut mech property, Mechwarrior, was struggling to find an audience. 

But none of that is why Steel Battalion failed. No, Steel Battalion was dedicated to its idea of being an accurate simulation, dedicated to a fault, and it required players to purchase a special controller in order to play the game. The controller was large and unwieldy, and more importantly, prohibitively expensive at $199.95! Reviewers lauded the game’s complexity and many admitted that the huge, 40-button controller played a major role in making the experience as immersive as it was. 

Do you know what else has 40 buttons? A keyboard. It’s time to bring Steel Battalion to where it should have been from the start – PC. Revamp the graphics, add in some multiplayer modes, and make the controller optional and you’ve got a hit on your hands.

The Legacy of Kain Series

This series of action-adventure games made a big splash in the late 90s but appears to have been forgotten by history. The games featured antihero protagonists in a fantasy world of vampires and sorcerers, embroiled in unholy conflicts and rites. Their plots touched on themes like redemption and fate and overcoming adversity which, when combined with its gothic look, made it the ultimate inspiration for angsty teenage fanart.

Now, we’ll be honest, outside of the spectacular Soul Reaver (which had a demo every kid played because it came free as part of a Pizza Hut bundle), the Legacy of Kain games don’t hold up. The controls are sluggish, the camera is wonky, and the combat can be tedious and repetitive. But hey, that’s what remakes are for! Turn Legacy of Kain into a narrative epic with action-packed set pieces like the recent Tomb Raider reboots. The story is already excellent and the lore is exhaustive.

Crystal Dynamics teased a remaster back in 2017 then promptly forgot about it. Fingers crossed some enterprising developer gives this series the remake it deserves.

Parasite Eve

Parasite Eve often gets compared to another survival horror franchise of the PSX era. If you’ve ever played this unique zombie-blaster RPG, you’ll know that resemblances between the two are purely aesthetic. Parasite Eve implemented an innovative pseudo-turn-based combat system, a unique mix of the Final Fantasy ATB system and Resident Evil’s tank-control gunplay. It also featured a surprisingly robust weapon system with dozens of different weapon types that you could combine and upgrade throughout the course of your 10-12 hour run.

We’ve seen a resurgence of tactical and strategy games in the past few years. Parasite Eve withs its rare blend of real-time and turn-based elements could be a runaway success in the way the Resident Evil remakes have been. Heck, Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden this year proved that gamers are up for unusual strategy experiences, let’s give them the OG weirdo real-/turn-based game.

If the rumour mill is to be believed, this is a remake that might actually happen. In 2018, Square Enix filed for a trademark for Parasite Eve in Europe. With the success of the Resident Evil 2 Remake, we’d bet good money that a Parasite Eve remake is in the books.

MegaMan Legends

MegaMan Legends bravely took the series where it had never gone before. It ignored the franchise’s reputation as a platformer, instead of giving us a story-driven action RPG in the vein of the smash-hit Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Rather than make his way through discrete stages themed after the Robot Masters that you’d inevitably face at their end, MegaMan was a dungeon-crawler-third-person-shooter that saw the player facing off against enormous mechanical beasts. The player could upgrade MegaMan’s loadout, increasing his attack speed or damage dealt. You could also dig up components for new weapons that provided utility for very specific situations. Best of all, it was set in a vibrant world filled with memorable characters. 

The game sold well enough to spawn a sequel, MegaMan Legends 2, and a spin-off starring the fan-favorite villain, Tron Bonne. The third and final MegaMan Legends game was announced to be in the works, but internal company politics at Capcom left the future of the game uncertain. After several years in development limbo, Capcom finally axed the third Legends game in 2011. 

Though we’d love for the next game in the series to finally see the light of day, we think Legends has been gone for too long. It’s time to remake the franchise for the better. We want it made in a new engine with standardized dual joystick controls. Fix the translation and re-do all the voice-overs. To make up for the short playtime, combine the stories of Legends 1 and 2 – heck, throw in The Misadventures of Tron Bonne while you’re at it. After it sells like hotcakes it’ll finally be time to bring the series to its long-awaited conclusion with number 3. Make it happen, Capcom! 

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to undervalued gems that we think deserve to be remade for the next generation of consoles. What games do you think should have made the list?

The post Game Remakes We Want to See for Next-Gen Consoles appeared first on BadFive.

In this day and age, where it’s relatively easy for something well-liked by audiences and critics alike to go viral, very rarely does anything go unnoticed or fly under the radar anymore. 

From new video game titles, movies, and products, among others, anything that’s considered above average is often hyped up as the best thing since sliced bread, or so to speak, much to the chagrin of many. But, even so, it does happen. For whatever reason, something that was recently released and well-received doesn’t gain as much traction as it should have. 

Control, a brand-new action-adventure game developed by Remedy Entertainment and published by 505 games, serves as proof of that. 

Buried among the hype for the last few blockbuster titles to be released before the current generation of consoles sees its successor, Control didn’t get the attention that rightfully deserved. Although it probably didn’t help that its publishers, Remedy Entertainment, are known for divisive video game titles with an obscure mechanic or two such as Quantum Break, Alan Wake, and Max Payne.

Control is no different from Remedy Entertainment’s previous games. It might even be their weirdest release ever. Yet, interestingly enough, Control might also be Remedy Entertainment’s best game ever. 

What Exactly Is Control All About?

In Control, players will find themselves playing a red-haired protagonist named Jesse Faden, who has recently been appointed as the Federal Bureau of Control’s new Director. 

Not to be confused with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) is a fictional and secret government organization that’s of the United States responsible for investigating and containing anything related to paranormal phenomena and everything else that seems to violate what is perceived by most people as reality. 

As Jesse Faden, it is the player’s job to explore the “Oldest House” and find out everything there is to know about Hiss, a deadly new threat, all the while trying to locate Jesse’s missing brother. 

Feel Like the Ultimate Psychic Superhero

What I’ve noticed usually is the biggest problem faced by video game developers who utilize superpowers in their titles is that it’s difficult to find just the right type of moves to add to the protagonist that are both fun and necessary to use.

You throw in a couple of moves here and there, and often, the player gravitates towards those that are “overpowered”, which can bog down gameplay at times and make it feel boring.

Somehow, Control finds a solid mix that’s both satisfying and fun to use without taking away from the challenge. For most of the 10-hour single-player campaign, you’ll literally feel like a psychic superhero, even though that might not be the game’s intention. 

Playing as Jesse, you can use your telekineses at your own will. Wave your hand? That chunk of concrete is as good as dust as it snaps to the side with a satisfying crunch, enough to make you wince at times and think just how painful it must be for your foes to come face-to-face with you on your worst day. Also, because of the completely destructible environment, your thirst for wanton destruction will be satisfied with any chance that you can get. 

Late in-game, you’ll feel even more like a god among men, what with levitation and hovering, among others, becoming par for the norm. Just like every other psychic that you’ve arguably seen in various media, Jesse is also capable of commanding a shield that protects her from outside forces, including from enemies attempting to use their own telekinetic powers to try and put you in a world of hurt. 

Despite feeling all-powerful, Control forces you, the player, to constantly be on the move. You can’t just put yourself out in the open and expect to survive. Your foes, just like you, are capable in their own right. This makes strategically planning how to navigate the battlefield imperative survival. Go all out on the offensive, and you’ll find yourself dying before you know it. The same goes if you’re too defensive, as your enemies will be more than glad to throw all sorts of punishment at you. 

This cleverly designed combat system makes it necessary for players to learn how to adapt and use certain powers at opportunity times, which adds a layer of challenge to Control that makes it all the more compelling. 

Is Control A Perfect Game?

Combat makes up a huge part of Control’s gameplay, which is why it’s incredibly important to mention how Remedy Entertainment gets an A+ for what they’ve managed to accomplish. 

That isn’t to say that Control lacks any flaws though. 

For starters, Control takes a wee bit of time getting players into the thick of things. The slow and gradual build-up can and will turn off its fair share of players, and so will its confusing plot that, honestly, will make it hard for players to care about what exactly is happening and why things the way that they are. This isn’t to say that Control lacks any sort of direction plot-wise, but making players care about the story should be the priority of any single-player campaign, and Control misses out on that point by a lot. 

Also, as an open-world, action-adventure title, Control can come in quite restrictive, especially early on. A good example of this is a mold-covered wall that you encounter early in the story that later on opens up with literally no explanation as to why it was closed off in the first place. Chronic adventurers will definitely find it frustrating as to why they can’t go to certain places in the game.

Thankfully, these are all minor gripes. 

Despite failing to provide explanation for closing off certain parts of the game, Control does at least manage to evoke the same kind of freedom of exploration that it arguably set out to accomplish, making it satisfying for even the most straightforward of players to have to go back to the earlier parts of the game to scour older areas that were logically inaccessible early on.

A Low-Key Contender for GOTY 2019

Notice that we haven’t really touched upon the graphics part of Control? Well, it’s mostly because we wanted the game to speak for itself. But, if you insist, we’d describe the game as beautiful and leave it at that. 

If you’re playing on a desktop PC or a laptop that supports DirectX 12 ray tracing, Control is a must-buy right now if only for the eye candy alone; never mind the fact that it’s an exhilarating third-person action-adventure game that’s arguably its developers best outing yet. 

For the average gamer, however, we’re not quite sold on it being a must-have just yet. 

On one hand, there’s really nothing quite like Control on the market. It’s a hodgepodge of multiple genres from film and gaming that, thanks to Remedy Entertainment’s taste for the peculiar and unknown, works and manages to deliver a mind-bending story that will have you thinking about what exactly happened well after you’ve finished the game. 

On the other hand, that’s exactly the problem, “what the hell did I just play?”, is a common question that most players will probably ask themselves will playing through Control. 

It’s this divisive reception that will definitely work against Control if it ever were to find itself up for nomination as one of the best video game titles released this year. However, if you’re up for something different, you could do a lot worse than at least try out Control.

The post Control Review appeared first on BadFive.

Gone are the days where you’d have a hard time finding a horror game that could genuinely scare you out of your pants.  These days, horror games are a dime-a-dozen.  

That’s both a blessing and a curse. The former, because, more competition is always good. The latter, because, well, horror games tend to lose their magic after you’ve played through basically the same thing before, which is very common in a genre where games tend to copy each other.  

Still, even though most horror games are similar to each other, there are a couple that are quite different as well. 

Below, you’ll find a wide slew of unique if not obscure horror games that, for one reason or another, did not gain as much mainstream attention that they rightfully deserve but are well worth checking for their unique take on the genre, among other things.  

Obscure (2005) – PS2 / Xbox / Windows 

Released way back in 2005, Obscure is a survival horror video game that truly lives up to its name – most people have never heard of this game let alone played it.  

Make no mistake. The fact that you haven’t heard of this game does not mean it’s not worth checking out.

In Obscure, five teenagers find themselves locked inside their high school building while searching for their missing friend. But, what starts off as a search ends up with all five of them fighting to survive the night as dangerous and harmful light-sensitive creatures lurk about.  

What makes Obscure unique is both its permanent death mechanic and the two-player cooperative mode. 

The former wasn’t really a popular mechanic in horror games for years until the release of Until Dawn for PlayStation 4, and even then, most modern horror games refuse to use it. Meanwhile, the latter makes Obscure quite entertaining as you can work together with a friend or a family member to try and survive the night together. Not to mention, because each character has its own set of abilities and talents, utmost cooperation is necessary for you to be able to hopefully guide all five teenagers to survive the night. 

White Day: A Labyrinth Named School (2001) — PC 

In case anyone thinks that Korean game devs don’t know how to make truly terrifying horror games, we refer people to White Day: A Labyrinth Named School.

This atmospheric horror game is pretty much like Amnesia, except it was done in 2001. In some ways, it’s actually better than the 2010 fan favorite, especially when you consider what it was able to achieve at a time when horror games were arguably still in its infancy.  

Set in a school, with an incredibly tense storyline and a wildly unexpected ending, White Day: A Labyrinth Named School manages to accomplish something very few games have since managed to do — make you feel genuinely scared, even if it’s the nth time that you’ve played the game.  

Everything from the atmosphere down to the music, as well as the art style, seems built to make you feel like you’re being haunted during and after playing White Day: A Labyrinth Named School.  

Unfortunately, White Day: A Labyrinth Named School does show its age more than you’d like. It’s also quite buggy, with more than its fair share of technical issues and glitches. But, if you can slog through the trouble and focus on the what’s important, the game is still well worth playing today. 

If it can’t be helped though, a remake has since been released on modern platforms, including mobile. However, the 2015 remake is not as well-received, mostly because of how it fails to improve on the original while being a step back in certain areas, in particular, in its over-reliance on jump scares, unlike the original.

Layers of Fear (2015) — PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC 

At first glance, Layers of Fear isn’t that unique.  

Released at a time when the go-to gameplay trope for horror games was a throwback to the old times when players had little to no power against the nightmarish creatures haunting them, Layers of Fear did not even attempt to subvert the gameplay formula. But, it didn’t need to. Instead, while the gameplay is familiar, the world and setting is anything but. 

With a single Victorian-era family home as its setting, Layers of Fear accomplishes more than what its contemporaries with much larger in-game worlds have.  

Layers of Fear puts you in the shoes of an unnamed protagonist as he forces himself to work on his life’s greatest art piece while also slowly losing his mind to madness. In the game, your enemy isn’t a literal creature of the night or a nightmarish fiend — it’s your mind. 

Unable to discern what’s real from what’s not, Layers of Fear captures perfectly what it would be like to descend into madness.

Stasis (2015) — PC 

How often do you find horror games in point-and-click form? 

Not often. In fact, Stasis is probably one of the only ones worth mentioning, but it’s not just good because it’s one of the few point-and-click horror games that are actually decent. Rather, it’s just a really good game with exceptional writing and atmosphere that will grip you right from the get-go. 

A clear homage to the literary classics of the horror genre, including Alien and I Must Scream, Stasis scares you with a compelling storyline that will most likely stick with you for a very long time. The isolation atmosphere as well poorly lit corridors keeps you in check so that you don’t power through the game with confidence. Always be afraid. 

Alien Isolation (2014) — PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Switch, PC

Being chased around by a big scary monster has been a common and recurring theme in horror games since The Nemesis started stalking Jill Valentine and company in Resident Evil 3 decades ago. However, none have managed to do it quite as Alien Isolation did back in 2014. 

Considered one of the best games of its generation, Alien Isolation combines excellent level design with an alien creature whose AI makes it way more terrifying than it should be.  

In a way, Alien Isolation is just hide-and-seek in space.  

Powerless against a near-omnipresent hulking xenomorph alien that can and will appear at any given moment with zero prompts, Alien Isolation is unique in that it takes a common trope, dials things up to 11, and succeeds in doing so. Avoid opened air vents.

Darkwood (2017) — PS4, Xbox One, Switch, SteamOS, PC 

Anyone who believes that horror games need horrific creatures to scare players needs to spend time playing Darkwood.  

Darkwood’s gameplay revolves around you trying to survive in a plague-infested forest. During the day, you can go out, forage, hunt, and kill rabid dogs as you try to piece everything together. But, at night, the entire forest changes, as everything seems hell-bent on killing you. 

Your only way to defend yourself is to hunker down, set traps, and pray to god that the horrors of the night are feeling a bit more forgiving. 

Arguably the best in-game use of sounds, this top-down horror game has the unique ability to keep you on your toes and make you feel scared out of your wits, all without showing you anything outside of making you hear a few rustling sounds and simple scratching noise. 

Be prepared to walk away from your computer from time to time.  

Cube Escape: Paradox (2018) — PC / Android

When it comes to putting a unique twist on the horror genre, the Cube Escape and Rusty Lake games are kings. The latest game in the series, Cube Escape: Paradox, is, therefore, not an exception.  

Coming with a 20-minute short film set in the same universe, Cube Escape: Paradox is a game that only gets creepier, and weirder by the minute. The cartoonish aesthetic also doesn’t help make things any better at all.  

The only problem with Cube Escape: Paradox is that it’s a little short, with a run-time of somewhere around 2-3 hours.  Then again, since it’s a free-to-play, that’s 3 hours of your life that you will never regret wasting.  

And, there you have it. 

We’re now finally done rounding up 7 of arguably the best and most unique horror games out there on the market. So, whenever you’re done hiding from whatever piece of furniture you thought best would protect you, feel free to come back to your gaming device, only to find yourself hiding again soon enough.  

The post The Most Unique Horror Games You Can Play appeared first on BadFive.

Thankfully, Judgement, the PS4-exclusive spin-off that finally came overseas from Japan recently, makes for a better Yakuza game despite not being an actual Yakuza game itself.  

What Is Judgment All About?

Judgment stars lawyer-turned-private investigator Takayuki Yagami, who is based in Kamurocho, a fictional district based on Kabukicho, which actually exists in real life in case you want to look it up. 

After successfully defending a client accused of murder as a newly-minted defense attorney, Yagami quits after finding out that his client decided it would be a good idea to go kill someone else. Yagami then decides to establish his own practice as a private investigator, buddying up with his best friend and former yakuza member, Kaito.  

The story then begins with Yagami investigating a series of grisly murders involving yakuza members.  

A Yakuza Game Through and Through

Now that you know the premise of Judgment, let’s talk about the elephant in the room — is it a Yakuza game? 

Well, let us tell you upfront that it is.  

Unfortunately, that’s both a good thing and a bad thing.  

First things first, why is it a bad thing? Shouldn’t a spin-off play like the game that it’s based on? Well, yeah, it should. Or, at least, partially. But, the issue with Judgment is that it feels a little bit too much like a Yakuza game. 

From the game’s combat system to the locations used, as well as the in-game menus, everything feels exactly the same as with previous Yakuza games.  

If you’re coming in expecting to play Virtua Fighter in arcades or finding the finest whiskey in hard-to-find bars, as well as fighting against anyone from thugs to former yakuza members, then it’s a plus, since that’s something that Judgment also shares with other Yakuza games released in years past.  

The good thing is that, because Judgment feels familiar to people who haven’t even played a Yakuza game before, most players can focus less on trying to learn how the game works and more on what makes it interesting.  

Like, for example, how the darker Kamurocho setting lends itself to the premise of the game.  As a private investigator, you’ll feel like you’re doing actual detective work as you sneak your way through the sketchy back alleys of the red-light district while tailing suspects and digging for clues to try and piece the puzzle together.

A Short-Lived Detective Experience

If you decide to finish the game, you’d spend at least around 40 hours, which is good value if you think about it.  

Most games don’t have campaigns that last for a dozen hours. The fact that Judgment’s campaign lasts for a couple of dozen hours, and you’ll no doubt end up spending more because of the wide range of activities that are available for you to do, as is typical and to be expected of a Yakuza game.  

The problem here is, as long as Judgment is, it doesn’t take more than the first few hours for you to realize that you’re going to be doing pretty much the same thing over and over again for the rest of the game.  

Make no mistake, Judgment does indeed make you feel like a detective.  

You’ll take photos to try and incriminate suspects, scour through crime scenes to find another clue, and even sweet-talk witnesses into giving you the kind of information you need to close the game.  

The problem is not the game falls short in being a detective game, it’s that the experience can be over before you know it even began.  

Why? Because it doesn’t take Sherlock Holm to realize that, as fun, as it is to try and pore over every update you receive while you watch the clues pile up, there are little repercussions for making wrong judgment calls in Judgment.  

You couldn’t really care any less for the details. You can simply brute force your way into getting what you want without fear, and it will work. All you need to do is to just drag the cursor around. Eventually, you’ll lead the game to its proper, but rather a linear direction. 

So, basically, you’re not doing any detective work — you’re just acting as a guide for the linear story to come to its eventual conclusion.  

Is Judgment Worth Buying?

People will never forget how Ryu Ga Gotoku ended Yakuza and the tale of Kazuma Kiryu on such a bad note. However, Judgment is a pretty good start to a new chapter in this long-running franchise.  

Yes, Judgment is not a detective game. Or, at least, not the type of detective game that it was billed as.  

Judgment is a Yakuza game through and through. You can’t just deny this. The attempt to throw in detective work into the mix was admirable, at best. But, who are kidding? Judgment is at its best when played as a Yakuza game. This means that, despite being more serious and darker in tone, you’ll enjoy the game more if you embraced its more eccentric side.  

Also, because it’s an original spin-off, Judgment is great for first-time players.  

Outside of a couple of cameos and small appearances of characters in previous Yakuza games, Judgment’s story is mostly self-contained. Not to mention, both the acting and the English dub is arguably the best in the entire series.  

If you’re looking for a detective game that lets you flex your deductive powers, then Judgment is not it. But, if you’re open to seeing justice served however you see fit while getting a chance to play what might just be one of the best Yakuza games of the current console generation, then Judgment is well worth taking a close look at.

The post Judgement Review – A Crime Drama Unlike Any Other appeared first on BadFive.

Introduction

Dive into a game that one reviewer on Gamespot hated because all the zombies were white! Days Gone is an open world zombie survival game that will test your abilities in surviving an apocalypse, handling an extremely uncooperative gun, and figuring out how well you would fare as the proud owner of a motorcycle! While this may sound like just another zombie game, don’t knock it till you’ve tried it, because the developers, Bend Studio, have included some interesting new concepts into the world of zombies as well as a solid story and a (very long) gameplay. There is a lot to be said about this game, so without waiting around, let’s jump right in!

So, What’s All This About?  

You get to take on a post-apocalyptic Oregon as a biker named Deacon St. John. An outlaw turned drifter. Now, there’s a lot going in the story where the main characters are Deacon’s wife who Deacon finds out could still be alive, and his best friend Boozer, a fellow biker. The world you are in is pretty messed up with a pandemic that killed half the population and turned most of the rest into violent, mindless creatures called “Freakers”. Of course, it makes sense that the pandemic would turn them violent so that you have plenty of people to kill, melee, and blow up. I mean, just imagine what would happen if the pandemic turned them into a bunch of peace-loving creatures who like to pluck flowers and make jelly!

Anyway, you get the gist of the game by what I just said. Zombies, guns, a hard-ass biker, lots of blood spurting everywhere. You can piece it all together, right?

Talking about the story itself, it’s immersive and the gameplay time is very long but fun. People have criticized the lack of character development and I must admit that the game having random flashbacks can get confusing. But overall, it isn’t bad.

Gameplay

A point that differentiates Days Gone from most other open-world survival games is that the gameplay time is very long. You get plenty of main and side missions, and it suffices to say that somehow the game never seems too boring. Yes, the side missions may feel repetitive sometimes, but they always require you to go to different parts of the massive open world which you may not have explored before, which makes it interesting. There are a lot of types of Freakers, and an equal lot of ways to kill them, so while the gameplay seems to drag out a bit, it manages to remain enjoyable. The next important part of the gameplay is Deacon’s bike. Since this bike is Deacon’s lifeline and is a center point of the game, Bend Studio seems to have put in a lot of work to make sure that the bike handling was as smooth as possible.

The bike itself comes up crappy at the start, but since this is a progression-based survival game, that is to be expected. Once you get yourself good components for a bike as well as some nitrous, it’s smooth riding from there on.

What Are the Game Mechanics Like?

The game mechanics may be one of the more problematic areas of the game due to some things not working the way it should. Since this game has a stealth side to it, it is necessary to use silenced weapons to kill quietly. However, due to the aiming mechanics being imprecise, these weapons are rendered practically useless. There would be points where you must take on hundreds of enemies that take very little damage from your bullets. Combine that with terrible aiming and it’s a perfect recipe for disaster. However, the melee combat mechanics are just wonderful, and it is extremely satisfying to sink your many different weapons into a Freaker and see its intestines fly off!

Talking about weapons, you do have quite a range of them, but your primary weapons are the ones you must repair, upgrade, and rely on. And of course, having a bike means having to make sure that it’s fully serviced, has its tires checked, a full tank, and ready to roll at the first sign of a Freaker. While this does add a bit of realism to the game, having to stop every five minutes for gas gets old fast.

How Scary Are the Freakers?

Talking about scariness, you can’t expect yourself to be as freaked out as you would be with horror-focused games such as Outlast. Overall, zombies are zombies, and they do feel quite generic and boring. But there are two main points which make the zombies from Days Gone different.

The main one is the concept of a horde. This zombie hoard has very impressive underlying mechanics and is one of the most unique parts of the game. Imagine having a writhing mass of brain-dead cannibals after you, and you’ll understand why this is so horrifying.

It is recommended not to even engage these hordes until you progress far enough in the story to unlock weapons specifically meant for dealing with hordes since you most likely won’t make it if you were to be attacked by one. This is also where the stealth aspect of the game comes in to play, and you must carefully navigate your way around the hoard without tipping them off. There is also an exciting number of ways to take them out including nuking them all with a powerful Molotov, or being more strategic and setting traps for them.

Another fact that there are so many different types of zombies, from huge muscled zombies that want to tear you apart to skinny zombies that want to eat you piece by piece, to men and women and even children! Of course, this isn’t the first time we’ve had to, well, kill children in videogames. I still get the creeps thinking about those babies that blew up if you went too close in Dead Space 2. But that’s kinda the point. This is a horror game.

A Bit About The Open World

The world in Days Gone is massive and fun to explore, with things like having a horde of zombies jump at you while you’re refilling your tank being commonplace. However, players have pointed out that there aren’t many Easter eggs or anything too particularly revealing that gives the open world a zing of adventure. It should be noted that this is Bend Studio’s first open-world game, so you can’t expect it to be as good as an open-world game from Rockstar.

Game Sounds

Out of all the game sounds, the soundtrack is probably the best part. But yes, all the expected quality of a 2019 game can be found in the game, such as the general noise of the environment changes depending on where you are, the weather, and whether there are zombies after you.

Graphics, Lags, Bugs

I think this is the best point to tell you about the game’s bugs. Yeah, yeah, I know. Bugs have been the bane of videogames, especially through the past couple of years, and Days Gone has a fair share of them.

People have mentioned that the game lags a bit, especially if you are on a standard PS4 instead of a PS4 Pro, but it’s fine since even when the game lags, the graphics are just on point.

When the director of this game so that he would be pushing the PlayStation to its limits, he was not joking, with some extremely realistic graphics taking centerstage here. Gamers have also reported the game entirely crashing while others have reported none of it. The game itself is being patched and many are recommending that you wait until it is fully patched before buying.

Conclusion

All in all, the game is fun to play and for an open-world survival horror game, this is a solid score. The story is long but immersive, the gameplay has some new elements to it, and the melee combat is just so much fun. While we certainly expect more from Bend Studio in the future, this is not a bad starting point, so let’s see what comes next!

The post Days Gone Review appeared first on BadFive.

Skills

1. Mikiri Counter 

Skill Tree: Shinobi Arts

Skill Type: Shinobi Martial Arts   

(2 skill points required) 

The Mikiri Counter is a very powerful counter ability against thrust attacks. Thrust attacks cannot be blocked unless deflected or Mikiri Countered.  

A successful Mikiri counter deals insane posture damage against your foe and opens a window for a deadly follow-up attack. Although this is an essential skill that’s available early on, it takes time and practice to master the Mikiri Counter. 

Tips:  

• Trust the Warning Rune 

• Prepare Counter at the site of the red warning rune 

• Careful that the red rune could also signal for slash attacks that you need to jump over to dodge the attack. 

• Trust the Sound Cue 

• High-pitched sound occurs 
• Initiate Mikiri Counter towards your foe as soon as the cue ends 

• The timing of the cue is always precise and accurate so TRUST IT .

via GIPHY

2. Suppress Presence 

Skill Tree: Shinobi Arts  

Skill Type: Latent Skill 

(2 skill points required) 

Unlocked by resting at Sculptor’s Idol, the Suppress Presence skill is crucial as far as being a Shinobi goes. This latent skill means that you can move about around your enemies without them easily noticing you.  

Therefore, if unseen, you can instantly assassinate your enemies from behind or deplete health bars from bosses. A shinobi’s job is to be stealthy. So be sure you take this skill as soon as you can to gain that sneaky edge above your foes. 

via GIPHY

3. Breath of Life: Light 

Skill Type: Latent Skill 

Unlocked by skills points used at Sculptor’s Idol 

The Breath of Life skill allows for Wolf to gain vitality after a successful deathblow. This skill can be really useful for easier enemies rather than 1v1 boss encounters. Extremely useful in quick succession within fights between dogs or the legions of goons that stand in your way.  

Whether you’re in stealth, from above, or behind your enemies, a successful deathblow will guarantee you more health in the process.  

via GIPHY

4. Chasing Slice 

Skill Tree: Prosthetic Arts Skill Type: Shinobi Martial Arts 

(1 skill point required) 

The Chasing Slice Art can be unlocked at the Sculptor’s Idol. This skill is essential in many different ways as it allows for Wolf to release firecrackers, shurikens, spears, etc, to disrupt enemy attacks in order for you to close distance on enemies – especially ranged enemies. For opponents that leap around the map, you can release your shurikens to knock them down in order to deliver a quick slice. Furthermore, you can use your firecrackers to stun multiple enemies in order to dash at them all at once.  

via GIPHY

5. Ichimonji 

Skill Tree: Ashina Arts 

Skill Type: Combat Arts Skill 

(2 skill points required) 

Once again, you can unlock this skill at the Sculptor’s Idol. The Ichimonji Skill is used to deal heavy posture damage to your enemy while gaining posture of your own. This is also very useful to prevent enemy counterattacks as it adds a follow-up attack. 

You can upgrade this skill to Ichimonji: Double for 3 additional skill points in the Ashina Arts Skill Tree.  

via GIPHY

Items 

* All Item locations used through the knowledge of the Sekiro Wiki Site.

6. Gourd Seeds 

Gourd seeds are essential to collect throughout your Sekiro playthrough. These seeds allow you to upgrade your Gourd capacity in order to maximize your healing potential. They can be found in shops, on the ground, and in chests. In total, there are 9 gourd seeds in which you need to collect to give to Emma. Once collected and given to Emma, you will then have the max capacity of 10 uses for the Healing Gourd.  

Locations: 

• Ashina Outskirts – In the building right after the Chained Ogre 
• Ashina Outskirts – Bought from the Battlefield Memorial Mob Vendor for 1,000 Sen
• Ashina Castle – Just before the “Upper Tower – Antechamber”  
• Dilapidated Temple – One can be bought from Fujioka the Info Broker for 2,000 Sen upon arrival 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – In front of the first immortal monk you encounter in the Senpou Temple 
• Sunken Valley – From the “Under-shrine Valley” Idol, progress forward and after encountering the fourth rifleman on the path, climb up the wall on the left to find the gourd seed in a small hut.  
• Ashina Depths – In the center of Mibu Village, by the orange glowing tree guarded my enemies 
• Fountainhead Palace – In a chest in the last room of the palace by the “Palace Grounds”  

7. Coin Purses 

Coin Purses in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, is essential when obtaining Sen, the game’s gold currency. This gold is used to purchase prosthetic tool upgrades, spirit emblems, and various other items. There are three purses you can find throughout the land: 

Light Coin Purse 

The Light Coin Purse is the smallest coin purse found containing 100 Sen. 

Locations:  

• Possible loot drop (uncommon) from Senpou Battle Monk 
• Purchase from Merchants for 110 Sen. 
• Scattered occasionally throughout the landscape. 
• Dilapidated Temple– In the behind area of the main temple. 
• In the broken house where Inosuke Nogami’s Mother is, on the first floor will have the item.  
• 3x can be purchased from Fujioka the Info Broker for 110 Sen 
• Dungeon Memorial Mob – 4 can be bought for 110 sen 
• Ashina Outskirts – In the area where you encounter the remnants of  Kuro and Genichiro, go upstairs and find the Light Coin Purse. 
• Shugendo Memorial Mob – 2 can be bought for 110 sen 
• Hirata Estate – Close to Pot Noble Harunaga, there would a ledge containing the item. 
• Hirata Estate – You will meet a dying NPC, who tells you to take the Shinobi Axe from the temple. You can double jump on the left wall here and gain access to an inner courtyard. One enemy awaits here, so defeat him with caution. There’s 1x Light Coin Purse inside one of the houses. 
• Hirata Estate – After defeating the rooster enemies in the courtyard.You should also climb to the roof of this structure, where you will find 1x Light Coin Purse in a bird’s nest. 
• Hirata Estate – In the Main hall area with a pond, from it and use it to lure over one of the guards in the building ahead. Kill him and pick up 1x Light Coin Purse, then dispatch nearby enemies as best you can. 
• Hirata Estate– After defeating Juzou the Drunkard the player would encounter a shinobi door. After going through it you will find the item. 
• Sunken Valley Passage – 1x can be looted at the bottom floor of the Valley Floor Poison. 
• Ashina Depths – After passing by the Old Monk, you’ll find 1x on a platform you can jump on. 
• Ashina Depths – Looted inside the temple of the Mist Noble. 
• Ashina Castle – After the area where there would be poisonous lizards, as you return to the castle you will encounter the item.  
• Ashina Castle – Go back to where the praying woman is, and jump and grapple to make it across the moat. If you fall, you’ll get 1x Spirit Emblem and can grapple back up from the other side. Once across, go left inside a building to pick up 1x Light Coin Purse. 
• Ashina Castle – Inside the castle, there would be an area where you would hug the wall and use a hidden passage. You’ll get 1x Light Coin Purse, 1x Heavy Coin Purse (behind a breakable screen) and a treasure chest with 1x Prayer Bead. 
• Ashina Castle – After meeting Blackhat Badger, when you go outside the room in the courtyard. The item would be there along with other items.  
• Mibu Village – 1 can be found past a pack of wolves near the first idol located. 
• Mibu Village – Dive in the middle of the large lake near the village entrance to find 2x. 
• Abandoned Dungeon – From the Underground Waterway idol and this time go toward the water. Pick up 1x Scrap Iron and swim across the water until you see a boat and some items. 
• Fountainhead Palace – 1 can be found inside the nest by the waterfall 
• Fountainhead Palace – From the balcony overlooking the lake, drop down to ground level and make your way past the pillars, 1 can be found next to the beasts that await. 
• Fountainhead Palace – Dive under the building where the woman is found on the rooftop and swim toward the moon and keep the wall on your right to go past a group of aggressive fish to find 1; while another can be found inside a sunken building, and 1 more can be acquired inside the cave of the Great Carp – but beware to head inside the cave once the Great Carp is dead. 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – On top of the Ni-Oh gate 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – Along the temple path, in the right area would ledge that has the item. 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – On top of the Maple tree in the part of the walkthrough Continue On. 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – On the part of the walkthrough named the “Jump Through the Window” in the room where Rat enemies are. 

Heavy Coin Purse 

The Heavy Coin purse can be found in various locations and contains 500 Sen. 

Locations:  

• Purchase from Merchants for 550 Sen. 
• Scattered occasionally throughout the landscape.
• Dungeon Memorial Mob – 3 can be bought for 550 sen 
• Shugendo Memorial Mob – 3 can be bought for 550 sen 
• Ashina Outskirts – In Ashina Castle Gate Fortress, underneath the building defended by a Rifle Wielding Guard. 
• Ashina Reservoir revisited – In the area under the bridge leading to Abandoned Dungeon, guarded by two Poison Assassins. 
• Ashina Reservoir revisited – In the locked samurai gatehouse to the right of a chest containing Gyoubu’s Broken Horn. 
• Sunken Valley – Located inside the heavy gunner room past the Gun Fort Idol. 
• Sunken Valley Passage – 1x can be looted next to the Bodhisattva Idol. 
• Ashina Depths – 1x can be looted near a cliff edge of the Poison Pool. 
• Ashina Depths – 1x can be acquired inside the temple of the Mist Noble. 
• Ashina Castle – Hidden behind a wooden cart near the Abandoned Dungeon Entrance idol. 
• Ashina Castle –  Inside the castle, Right where you got Ako’s Sugar, hug the wall and use the hidden passage. You’ll get 1x Light Coin Purse, 1x Heavy Coin Purse (behind a breakable screen) and a treasure chest with 1x Prayer Bead. 
• Ashina Castle – 100% one-time-only drop from the spear-wielding monk near the Old Grave idol. 
• Fountainhead Palace – 1 can be found ahead of the area from the large courtyard. 
• Fountainhead Palace – From the balcony overlooking the lake, drop down to ground level and make your way past the pillars and around a branch you’ll find 1. 
• Fountainhead Palace – Before reaching the Feeding Grounds, follow the waterfall down to the lowest level (before the actual water) and go to the bridge to kill a masked enemy where you’ll find 1 next to the enemy. 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – In the area to the right of the first Temple entrance. 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – 100% one-time-only drop from the first Senpou Battle Monk in the area with the giant maple. 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kong – In the walkthrough for the area “Optional: White Pinwheel”, there would be a ramp area that would require a drop.   
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – In the building on the way toward the Bell Demon’s Temple idol, guarded by a Centipede Man. 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – In the walkthrough for the area “Down the Slope”, in the area overlooking broken bridge. 

Bulging Coin Purse 

The Bulging Coin Purse contains the highest amount of gold at 1000 Sen. 

Locations: 

• Purchase from Merchants for 1100 Sen. 
• Scattered occasionally throughout the landscape. 
• Shugendo Memorial Mob – 2 can be bought for 1100 sen 
• Fountainhead Palace – 1 can be found in the area where the Sakura Bull of the Palace is encountered. 
• Fountainhead Palace – from the great sakura branch, after killing the enemy, look down from this point and you’ll spot a branch with the item inside a nest. 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – Defeat the monks and continue to find 3x Straw-Hat enemies in the part of the location described in the walkthrough named “Return to the Large Fire” 

8. Prosthetic Tools

In Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, prosthetic tools are special equipment used in various ways to overcome your enemies. Here are a few extremely helpful tools to find and why they are important. 

Shinobi Firecracker  

• Explosive Flash 
• Extremely useful towards beasts and animals 
• Briefly stuns and blinds foes 
• Scares away beasts 

Location: 

Sold by the Battlefield Memorial Mob or Crow’s Bed Memorial Mob merchant for 500 Sen in Ashina Outskirts.  

via GIPHY

Loaded Shuriken 

• Damages Health 
• Damages Posture 
• Useful for enemies that take to the air 

Location: 

Ashina Outskirts – Inside a building with a hole in the wall near the “Outskirts Wall – Gate Path” Idol. 

via GIPHY

Flame Vent 

• Deals fire damage 

• Inflicts Burn Status 
• Those with ‘Red Eyes’ fear the flame 

Location: 

Inside the campfire that is surrounded by enemies, near the “Estate Path” Idol in Hirata Estate. 

via GIPHY

9. Spirit Emblems

Spirit Emblems are absolutely necessary if you want to even use your prosthetic tools such as the Shinobi Firecracker or the Loaded Shuriken. Each use of your prosthetic tools uses a certain amount of spirit emblems. [Text Wrapping Break][Text Wrapping Break]For instance, a shuriken throw uses one spirit emblem as the Shinobi Firecracker uses three. The most amount of Spirit Emblems you can carry is 15. So use them wisely and always make sure to restock your spirit emblems for 10 Sen each at the Sculptor’s Idol as you see fit.  

Here’s a great video on how to farm gold, EXP, and Spirit Emblems! 

10. Dragon’s Blood Droplet 

Dragon’s Blood Droplets will allow Wolf to resurrect after death. But if you resurrect too many times, you collect an item called Rot Essence which is something you don’t want to obtain. Rot Essence will decrease something called your Unseen Aid Percentage. Unseen Aid is what increases the chances of you not losing experience and Sen.  

Collecting Dragon’s Blood Droplets is also the only way to cure Dragonrot.  

Altogether, there are 17 droplets that you can obtain.  

Locations: 

• 1x is received after giving Emma a blood sample form a Dragonrot-afflicted NPC 
• 2x can be purchased from Battlefield Memorial Mob for 150 Sen 
• 2x can be purchased from Fujioka the Info Broker for 180 Sen 
• Dungeon Memorial Mob – 1 can be bought for 180 sen 
• Shugendo Memorial Mob – 1 can be bought for 180 sen  
• Pot Noble Koremori – 1 can be bought for 1 Treasure Carp Scale 
• Toxic Memorial Mob – 2 can be bought for 80 sen 
• 1x can be found at Old grave idol in Ashina Castle – Turn left from the idol and continue along the path through the watchtower, the droplet can be found at a gravestone there 
• Sunken Valley Passage – After performing a finishing deathblow on the Great Serpent, you will land on the other side of the hanging bridge that the serpent broke earlier where 1x can be looted from the path ahead. 
• Senpou Temple, Mt. Kongo – In the room within the Main Hall Sculptor’s Idol. You can grapple onto the beams and jump on the Buddha to pick up 1x Dragon’s Blood Droplet. 
• Ashina Castle – One can be found by a defeated purple warrior near the Serpent Shrine Idol after Ashina has been invaded. 
• Ashina Outskirts – One can be found by what used to be a shortcut in the temple where you met Tengu of Ashina, after defeating Demon of Hatred. 

All for One 

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is a complex game mentally, mechanically, as well as the hidden knowledge throughout. But with the right items and skills, it will surely help you in your endeavors to take your enemies by storm whether it be stealthily or all out ‘Rambo-Style.’ 

To Recap: 

Skills: 

• Mikiri Counter
• Suppress Presence
• Breath of Life
• Chasing Slice
• Ichimonji

Items: 

• Gourd Seeds
• Coin Purses
• Prosthetic Tools
• Spirit Emblems
• Dragon’s Blood Droplets

We hope our article on the 10 Best Skills and Items in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, help you out tremendously.

Partially made possible thanks to Sekiro wiki on https://sekiroshadowsdietwice.wiki.fextralife.com/

The post 10 Best Skills and Items in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice appeared first on BadFive.

From Respawn Entertainment comes a Battle Royale game that nobody needed, until it was released, and suddenly everybody needed it. With so many Battle Royale games already dominating the market place, such as Fortnite and PUBG, you might have thought that there wasn’t space on the big stage for yet another Battle Royale game, but then you would have been wrong. Respawn made a gamble that nearly paid off, with Apex Legends surpassing 50 million players after being released just over a month ago. Some say it was due to EA shoveling millions of dollars to promote the game, but who cares? I mean, we do live in the era of corporate capitalism, so it’s unavoidable, really. Point is, the game is here, and everyone’s loving it!

What’s New, What’s Not?

The characters in Apex Legends have a lot of personalities. From the energetic Pathfinder robot to the psychopathic Caustic, every character of their not-so-extensive character list seems to have a long untold back story. They’re either quirky, funny, serious or just straight up deadly. They could be sharpshooters, weapons experts, stealth experts, and every ability is generally unique per character. This is great because characters should have, well, character. However, this is one of the not when it comes to comparing what’s new and what’s not. Games like Overwatch and Fortnite already have characters injected full of personality that have special abilities unique to them.

They’ve also got stuff like shrinking playing areas, and the whole “jump out of a plane” thing. Sure, none of these are original, but the saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. So, Respawn deciding to go ahead with the generic Battle Royale theme made sense. However, this is where Apex Legends breaks off with the other games in its genre. The first difference you’ll immediately notice when you start playing is that its communication system is completely different. To begin every battle, you are put in three-person teams, but it doesn’t matter even if the other two players are complete strangers, because your game experience won’t change one bit. Every character has an extensive list of predefined voice commands that you can activate with just a simple click. You can let your team members know about anything going on around you without having to speak a word. This is excellent, especially since the character will be speaking with his or her own voice, so you’ll have the pleasure of not hearing Wraith scream obscenities about your mother in Russian.

Talking about new game mechanics, something that players found surprisingly satisfying is the fact that you can revive your teammates even if their health is completely depleted, and that you can respawn your dead teammates. Other games do not give you this type of opportunity, instead of forcing your dead teammate to sit on the sidelines until the match is over. Of course, there is a time frame within which you can revive your dead teammates, and there are a certain number of grueling steps that you need to take, which attracts a lot of attention. But hey, if it was easy, then what would be the fun in that?

Similar to most other Battle Royale games, you have a ton of weapons, from heavy machine guns to energy weapons. You also have no fall damage, and you are expected to rely more on your abilities than your weapons. Oh, and another thing, teamwork is extremely important. Perhaps more important here than in other games of this type. I mean, they already have an intuitive communication system in place, so why not use it? Stick with your team. As some guy with terrible English once said, there is no “I” in multiplayer.

How Does it Pit up Against Everything Else?

Normally, when reviewing a video game, it makes sense to not start comparing different games of the same genre until the very end. However, since Apex Legends was born into a world full of similar Battle Royale games, I think it’s quite important to take a look at how it pits up against all its more aged opponents. So, what IS actually better? Apex Legends, Blackout, Battlefield V, Fortnite, PUBG? If you want to start a flame war anywhere on the internet, just ask that question.

Generally, if a game gains a lot of attention and players, then it has to be good. It doesn’t matter how much marketing is done on a game. If the game is bad, no one is going to play it. So, it can be said that all the Battle Royale games you hear about are good to a certain extent. Since this game has already taken some of the foolproof techniques that other Battle Royale games use, then added their own unique design and mechanics into the game, this makes out as an excellent addition to the genre. Of course, only time will tell how much and how long this game will be played for. There is a certain amount of hate going around for some of the more popular Battle Royale games such as Fortnite, due to complaints of the gameplay being uneventful and dull, while games like Battlefield, which happen to be Triple-A titles prized at around $60 apiece are labeled as “too expensive”.

PUBG gets a lot of heat for being too buggy, while players report mechanical flaws with Blackout. Apex Legends, so far, doesn’t seem to suffer from these problems. However, since this is just the start for this franchise, I’m afraid we’ll just have to wait it out to see what is better.

What do the People Say?

Ultimately, it’s all about what the people say. If your players aren’t happy, then might as well concede to loss. The very first thing anyone would notice about Apex Legends, before they take a look at the gun mechanics, before they take a look at the voice acting, even before they jump out of the plane for the first time, is the price. So it’s a good thing this game happens to cost absolutely nothing. With a price tag of $0, nothing is holding anyone back from jumping straight into the game. Since this is free, there is no pressure to play. There is no “OMG I spent so much money on this so I have to eat my way through it” kinda mentality going here. Don’t like the game? Stop playing it. But even then, this game has more than 50 million people playing, so what does that tell you?

Similar to the other Battle Royale games, this game features micro-transactions. Out of the eight characters in the game, six are available to you from the start, and you can buy the other two. However, the two you can buy are no better than six you already have, so if you keep losing, stop blaming the game and git gud. This means that whether you will win or lose depends solely on your abilities, and there is no pay to win scheme going on here. So far, IGN has rated this game 9/10, 89% of Google users like it, it’s caught on a lot of hype, attracting players from all around the world, and so far, people think it’s a success.

Rounding it all Up…

All in all, there is a huge stream of players moving into Apex Legends from other Battle Royale games, and since the game is free to play, what do you have to lose? The game mechanics are excellent and the gameplay itself features a unique style. The characters are well built, and the game has one thing that most other Battle Royale games lack: a final polish. Respawn has successfully built a game that is both complete but also leaves plenty of room for growth. May it be new characters, weapons, maps, or changes to the game’s design and mechanics, Respawn can be assured that they will have tons of eager players just waiting on them.

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