Hello Europe!

Yup, it's that time again: Eurovision time. You ready?

This year we're in the lovely Belgrade, capital of last year's winners Serbia. Wogan's on form as always, bottle of whiskey at the ready. I reckon Serbia only won it because they gave up Montenegro last year. That's politics for you.

I wonder if they use the Eurovision as some sort of political bargaining chip? "Give up Montenegro...and we'll let you win Eurovision." No sign of Kosovo this year, that's surprising. Perhaps they weren't freed in time for the elimination round? I've theorised that whilst all eyes are on Belgrade, the Serbian army is secretly marching on the Kosovoian border.

Some weird and wonderful entries this year, and they're really delving deep into eastern Europe with Georgia and Azerbaijan making an appearance this year. Although i reckon Georgia is there because they weren't allowed in the EU this year. Our entry this year wasn't bad, as UK entires go. Andy Abraham I think his name was, a runner-up on X-factor or something.

Armenia, Greece and Ukraine were fitties, and they happened to have decent songs too.#

Voting is going pretty much according to the Status Quo. San Marino in their Eurovision voting debut gave us 6 points, which was nice of them since most Brits probably have no idea where San Marino is. Everyone's been nice to Azerbaijan this year, considering their entry was whack.

Russia and Greece are the favourites so far. I so hope Russia don't win, they've been so smug this year, especially with their threats over oil supplies.

Crap, they won. See you in Moscow.

Column #1: Looking Forward

(My first attempt at some sort of games column. To all of my imaginary readers out there, now would be a good time to leave feedback.)

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So the dust from GTA IV’s landing has settled the reviews are out, the game has been played and hookers everywhere have been slain: What now? Well, Microsoft might go from strength to strength, as Gears of War 2 and Fable 2 are just on the horizon. Add to that multi-platform releases such as Star Wars, Soul Calibur IV(They’re getting Vader, apparently) and Fallout 3 and this could be a very interesting year indeed.

At the start of the year the critics were hailing 2008 as the ‘Year of the PS3’, but so far it has been anything but. The demo if their first highly anticipated exclusive, Haze, was met with general negativity and since the games full release the reviews have been a bit…Hazy.

Puns aside, it seems Ubisoft’s FPS has failed to deliver on its promises. It now looks like it’s up to Konami and Metal Gear Solid 4 to pull things back, but with no other note-worthy exclusives on the horizon for summer; will this be Sony’s year? Or will it pass them by on the wayside? The multiplatform releases should keep the die-hard Sony fans happy with some good gaming, but if they hope to attract a wider market, their going to have to do better then this.

With Microsoft and Sony really butting heads at the moment, it’s easy to lose sight of Nintendo in all of the cross fire. Comfortably carving in-roads in the family and casual gamers market with the Wii, many Nintendo games look childish standing next to Gears, but favourites like Super Smash Brothers Brawl will remind everyone that they can still muck it in with the best of them. Although, that’s about all they’ve got going…

To tell you the truth, one of the games I’m most looking forward too this year is Empire: Total War. Simply bearing the name ‘Total war’ brings with it a certain degree of ‘zomgthisisgoingtokickass’-ness but Creative Assembly have promised a bit of a revolution with this title.

Set around 18^th Century, E:TW will feature full-scale navy battles for the first. Also factoring in the new technologies of gunpowder and cannon, this is probably going to be the best one yet. A lot is being kept under wraps for now, but keep an eye out on all your usual sources for info. Unless you don’t like the series, then of course you don’t have to do anything...

Noses at the Ready...

Because I can.

On a serious note, I do intend to review this game at some point, since I have it and have played it enough to be able to review it. The words are escaping me at the moment. Watch this space.

I also completed the story mode on GTA IV. A bit underwhelming but oh well. I pretty much just get to free roam now, complete any side missions I haven't done. Got no new games to play though...a part of me feels empty.

GTA IV Review

“Life is complicated.”
- Niko Bellic

Never has such a short sentence summed up a game that is so morally questionable, yet so diverse and ambiguous, so perfectly. Life is complicated, and no one’s life is more complicated then that of Niko Bellic – protagonist to Rockstars’ new game: Grand Theft Auto IV.

Morally ambiguous as ever, the critically acclaimed developer has taken the series to the next chapter by officially crowning their latest release as the fourth GTA. (As opposed to Vice City and San Andreas, which are considered ‘spin-offs’ of the third game.) Returning to Liberty City, GTA IV has you take over the life of Niko Bellic, a Serbian with a dark past and the desire to make a new life for himself in America.

From the moment you step off the boat, you can tell there’s something different about this game. The rain falling down around you, the street lights desperately trying to hold the darkness at bay, even the people going about their business… for the first time, Liberty City feels alive.

This sense of realism is a feat not many can achieve, and whilst Rockstar come close, they don’t quite manage it with perfect execution. Like the previous GTA games, IV carries with it some bugs, some oddities, and those little things that can sometimes ruin the experience for you. The controls can also seem a bit ‘fiddly’ at times, especially with the new ‘cover & shoot’ combat system that’s been added. But if you look past this, if you ignore the hype and just enjoy the game for what it is, then you’re guaranteed a worthwhile experience.

One of its high points is the story, the character of Niko Bellic. Unlike previous GTA titles, Niko’s story revolves around the irony of his situation; that of a man who wants to do good, who doesn’t want to be controlled by others, yet inevitably finds himself reacting to other peoples actions. Previous characters, whilst being well-rounded, have often come up short when trying to factor in the sociopathic behaviour that comes as a result of the players actions.

Niko himself is a troubled man; he fought in the Bosnian war, he’s killed, smuggled and traded people and illegal wares…and now he’s on the run, and looking for a new life in the ‘land of opportunity’. The game starts you off in the ‘working-class’ district of Liberty City, Dukes & Hove Beach, where he lives with his cousin Roman who moved to America years before.

As you progress through the game, you meet new people, not all of them good. Despite his reformist dreams, Niko finds himself time and again do other people’s dirty work, and he makes more then a few enemies. As you slowly fight your way up through the districts of Liberty City, you’re confronted with betrayal, jealousy, friendship, love, and hope.

The physical world of GTA IV is smaller then that of the last game and other little things like the use of planes have also been dropped. This is because Rockstar have tried to shift the entire focus of the game; instead of just randomly walking around and blowing stuff up which was the favourite hobby of most GTA players, you actually get engaged in the story and what it has to offer.

Graphically, GTA IV is stunning, equally on par with the likes of BioWare’s Mass Effect, or even Creative Assembly’s Viking. As mentioned earlier, Rockstar have really brought Liberty City to life in this game. The pedestrians now act in a more realistic manner, they stand around and talk, they react to the environment, and even the weather. Other tweaks like the ‘escape radius’ for police chases, and the impact damage on cars, add to reality that this is a city, and you can do damage.

The multiplayer adds yet another layer of depth, letting you team up online with up to 16 people in a variety of different modes – Deathmatch, Car Chase City, and Free Roam to name but a few. Both fun and challenging, this extra mode will help ensure the game is played well passed the single player story.

If you were say that GTA IV was a triumph, that it was the best in the series, and that it is one of the best made games this year, then you wouldn’t be far wrong. That said, GTA IV is not a God, it’s not perfect, and whilst it my have wide appeal, they’ll still be those that question the ambiguous morals that it teaches to those that play. Still, it’s a damn good game.

Form the Column

It's quite nice knowing what you want to do in life. Gives you a feeling of certainty, security...and it's also kind of exciting.

Of course the next question is: What now? Where do I go from here? Well, some work experience at somewhere like Gamestm would be nice, but they don't feel like talking to me for some reason. But it occurred to me, since I'm editor of a student website, why not put it to use?

Of course running and maintaining an entire section by myself is not exactly a walk in a park. Gamers who can actually string two sentences together without going 'lolz' or 'owned' are hard to find at my uni, but a fellow games journalist (I say fellow, it's some random person who offered me advice.) suggested that instead of trying to pump out the reviews, why not do a column?

So, to you my loyal fans i pledge you this: I will try to do a regular games column of some sort. For practice and to build up my portfolio. Once i get my head around the logistics I'll try and do something on bwire, but until then, the column shall rest here.

Here's to hoping that i can keep it up this time.