Tag: video games (Page 1 of 2)

Great Mini-Games from Video Gaming History

April 10, 2017 / Bullz-Eye Staff

Throughout the history of video games, developers have been fascinated with the idea of giving players a little bit more. Back in 1979, gaming saw its first Easter egg in the form of a hidden credits room in Atari 2600 title “Adventure.” In the proceeding decades, studios have continued to take pride in adding bonus material to their titles, with mini-games and side content becoming more conspicuous and outlandish as time has gone on. The Spider Tank in “Watch Dogs,” a hallucinogenic “digital trip,” serves to illustrate just how fond software developers are of mini-games.

Today, we’re taking a look at two of the most celebrated mini-games in video games history.

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2016 Holiday Gift Guide: Games

December 9, 2016 / Bullz-Eye Staff

The holiday season is the video game industry’s busiest time of year, with publishers saving many of their marquee titles to release on the public like an avalanche of digital goodness. It can actually be quite overwhelming with so many different options to choose from, so we’ve done our best to put together a collection of what we feel are some of the year’s finest games.

Click the links within the write-ups to purchase each product online, and for more gift ideas, check out the other categories in our Holiday Gift Guide.

Gears of War 4

Set 25 years after Marcus Fenix defeated the Locust Horde once and for all, “Gears of War 4” finds Marcus’ son JD leading a group of ex-COG soldiers against a mysterious new threat. Though the game is pretty much business as usual for fans of the series, “Gears of War 4” does introduce a few changes that improve and shake up the overall gameplay. In addition to several new weapons (including our personal favorite, the Buzzkill, which shoots circular saws that can ricochet off walls), the emergence of extreme weather phenomena called Windflares affect combat with strong winds, flying debris and more. Story mode is also a lot more difficult thanks to A.I. enemies that pile on the pressure instead of sitting back and waiting for you to attack. Of course, while the single-player (or co-op) campaign serves as a nice refresher course for those who haven’t played “Gears of War” in awhile, online multiplayer is still the game’s bread and butter. All of the usual modes are here, along with newcomers like Dodgeball and Arms Race to ensure you don’t get bored. Though “Gears of War 4” isn’t as groundbreaking as the original, it’s an enjoyable franchise reboot that keeps everything that was great about the previous installments and builds on it.

Batman: The Telltale Series

Telltale Games has been on a real streak lately with high-profile titles like “The Walking Dead,” “The Wolf Among Us” and “Game of Thrones,” but the company’s latest episodic game features perhaps their biggest IP yet. Though it’s not as instantly captivating as some of the aforementioned titles, “Batman: The Telltale Series” delivers the tried and tested combo of choice-based dialogue, puzzle solving and quicktime action scenes that we’ve come to expect. The game doesn’t explore the World’s Greatest Detective angle quite as much as it should, but that’s largely because you spend more time playing as Bruce Wayne, digging into his family’s secret history after it’s revealed that his father may not have been the saint he appeared to be. With that said, the Batman sequences are a lot more fun, whether you’re devising a plan of attack, stringing together clues at a crime scene or battling one of his many iconic villains. As with most Telltale games, the storytelling is stronger than the gameplay, but fans of their click-and-point adventures (and Batman in general) will find plenty to enjoy.

Games, Stuff to Buy

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Play Classic Video Games That Became Movies at Teras Games

December 15, 2015 / Bullz-Eye Staff

Ever since Atari brought video games into the home, the industry has exploded in growth. Video games have become such a cultural phenomenon that they are now highly influential in film, television, literature and even music. In fact, many of today’s video games have extremely high production value that’s on par with major motion pictures.

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2015 Holiday Gift Guide: Games

December 7, 2015 / Jason Zingale

Click the links within the write-ups to purchase each product online, and for more gift ideas, check out the other categories in our Holiday Gift Guide.

Star Wars: Battlefront

If you’ve ever wanted to know what it would be like to be a part of the “Star Wars” universe, Electronic Arts’ “Star Wars: Battlefront” lets you live out your ultimate fantasy by dropping you into the middle of the action in some of the most famous locations from the original trilogy. Whether assuming the role of a Rebel soldier or Stormtrooper fighting on the ground, an X-Wing or TIE pilot engaged in a massive dogfight in the skies, or as one of the many legacy characters like Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, this is “Star Wars” fan service at its very best. Boasting gorgeous, photorealistic visuals and addictive gameplay, “Battlefront” is the most enjoyable “Star Wars” game since “Knights of the Old Republic.” Though the single player/co-op modes aren’t very exciting (they’re mostly just a place to hone your skills and waste a few hours with a friend), the online multiplayer is where the game really shines. There are nine modes to choose from – including favorites like Fighter Squadron, Heroes vs. Villains and Supremacy – with each one delivering a unique experience from the others. “Battlefront” is the “Star Wars” game that fans have been waiting for, and with more content planned for the future, it can only get better.

FIFA 16

How do you make a great game even better? That’s the challenge put forth each year to EA Sports and their “FIFA” franchise, and every time, they respond in brilliant fashion. Though there aren’t any major changes to the gameplay, “FIFA 16” has implemented some small but important refinements to deliver the most authentic soccer simulation yet. On the field, defending has been given a complete facelift, including the ability to defend better as a unit with enhanced AI awareness, goalkeepers who make less mistakes, and improved tackling mechanics. The EA Sports team has also added something called Passing with Purpose that allows you to ping driven ground passes to teammates in tight spaces, as well as No Touch Dribbling, which gives you more creativity on the ball. Off the field, the changes are even bigger, headlined by the announcement that you can now play as one of 12 Women’s National Teams in a variety of game modes. Career Mode has also received two of the most requested features – pre-season tournaments and player training to increase stats – while Ultimate Team has added a new mode called FUT Draft where you build a team by picking each position from a five-player draw and then compete in challenges to win rewards. This is the most definitive edition of “FIFA” yet, and it’s an absolute must-have for any soccer fan.

Games, Stuff to Buy

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A Need for Speed On and Off the Screen: playing games in the real and digital world

August 11, 2015 / Bullz-Eye Staff

I don’t know about you, but sometimes when I think back to the good old days spending an evening with a six pack and a Need for Speed adrenalin fix to entertain me, all was good with the world. Just getting to see each car’s capabilities unfold as I upped their specs, leveling up as I rolled along with the gameplay, was exhilarating enough.

Even during the darnedest of realizations, like how our bank accounts are miles away from ever affording that sweet Bugatti, or the more sobering ones that make you realize you’re better off not ever getting the chance to ride a Lambo Gallardo. Because imagine just how real that pain would feel if you ever did crash it off screen.

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video games