The drums of war beat wildly into the night. The dark skies light up as armies raise their weapons and shout their battle cries. In this time of conflict, despair, and trial – legends will be made, immortals will rise, and heroes will be born. Historians will write about their deeds and bards will sing of their glory.
From the Asgardian realm of Midgard, the war-torn continent of Pangu, the harsh deserts of Novus, the hard courts of Freestyle, and the vast islands of Roika…
Gamespot has just given Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots a perfect 10.
Before this, GTA 4 was also given a perfect score. Meanwhile, back to MGS4… Gamespot wrote; “Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is the most technically stunning video game ever made. It’s also a fine example of storytelling prowess within its medium, combining gameplay and narrative so slickly and beautifully that it’s impossible to extricate one from the other.”
After several months of delay, MGS 4 was finally released for the PS3 jast June 12. At this point, the game already boosted sales of the PS3 in Japan by as much as 700%. Sony is surely happy with this. MGS4 has just given the console a new lease on life.
I’ve always wanted to make my own viral, youtube video. And this is my first attempt at one. Entitled, “Jobert and his RF Guild”, this is partially inspired by great, Filipino, youtube hits such as Benjo and the 300.
I just found out that the makers of ‘Benjo’ are RF players (it says so in the end-credits). Props to the great creativity! I had a blast and laughed my heart out even if I was just reading the sub-titles.
Meanwhile, the video below is taken from the classic Japanese series, Lone Wolf and Cub (circa 1972). I just added some subtitles to create the story of “Jobert”, a typical Pinoy player who borrows in-game items… and then does the absurd.
Crazy Kart has a very simple control system. Although simple, mastery of the game, the maps and the items isn’t easy as it seems. That’s all part of the fun and the challenge.
The basics are just the arrow keys, up-down-left-right. Like any racing game, UP accelerates, DOWN is braking and left/right are steering. You can only switch power-ups once in a race btw.
The most important thing to master is the drift. You have to drift at tight turns to avoid bumping into railings or running into mud or water. These will cost you time. Some maps call for drifting a lot (the advanced maps).
Laika is a certified FHM Online Babe. I’d give her “two thumbs up”, if you ask me.
Having been raised in the States, she says that foreigners are more aggressive compared to Pinoys; “I spent half of my childhood in Manila and it’s not as fast paced as in the US. Pinoys are very sweet and some act very timid. Foreigners on the other hand are a little more aggressive when it comes to courting girls.” Laika said as per her interview at FHM Philippines.
And boys, beware! She has a pick-up line which goes… “I have one! And I use it whenever I’m out clubbing. “Hey, you look so familiar. Are you that one guy who bought me a drink last time?” And they usually respond, “No, but can I buy you a drink?” It works every time.”
I’ve been playing the CBT of Crazy Kart for some time now. The game is fast and fun, that much I can tell you.
I’ve also been receiving a lot of your feedback via email and thank you for all the kind words and also for reporting some of the minor bugs and errors during the CBT. There are now a lot of players inside the games and the rooms are always full. It takes a mastery of the drift, the proper “curving” and strategy on using the “weapons” that makes the game exciting, challenging and fun. There are various degrees of difficulty when it comes to maps too.
The game gurus (or the GPS guys - Game Play Specialists) have helped me do an in-game video of the actual CBT. Thanks guys, I owe you merienda. There are individual and team races but the team races are the most fun.
As I write this, the winds howl like rabid wolves outside. In a latest update, news on the Internet stated that “Metro Manila and neighboring provinces are now under public storm warning Signal Number 3 as typhoon Frank (international codename Fengshen) again changed course and is now barreling its way towards southern Luzon, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services (PAGASA) said Saturday evening.”
The electricity here has been down for at least 3 times. Better get your flashlights ready, take off the plugs from your PCs, TVs and air conditioning. Brace yourselves. This is going be bad.
I was there to support the Level Up booth and also to do a soft-launch and announce the CBT for Crazy Kart, our newest online casual racing game.
Every year, the crowd continues to grow bigger and bigger - proof that toy collecting, gaming and everything “otaku” is growing at a phenomenal rate. Of course, one of the highlights of the show was Alodia Gosiengfiao, the country’s hottest cosplay babe (And yes, I did get to talk to her despite her toxic sched). I also helped the Toycon organizers by hosting the Gaming Girls competition, which was sort of a tribute to Dead Fantasy: a cool chick-slugfest that you must see. The winner, of course, was Rinoa (both in the video and in the contest).
Check out some of the toys and more photos after the jump.
You may call it a “portal”, should you wish. ‘Coz that’s what this is, a portal for the best online games and entertainment in the country.
We just launched our new portal, which is basically our “homepage” http://www.levelupgames.ph and guess what? The new platform is Wordpress! Woot! That means the new Level Up site is a blog! More stuff, content, comments and interactivity will come your way. Thanks, of course, to the Herculean efforts of our editor-in-chief, Kevin Codamon and his boss, JC Medina, Level Up’s New Media Director… a great ally of marketing, indeed.
