My Rainbow Six: Siege Review

Rainbow Six Siege was launched last week on the Xbox One, PS4 and PC. I've been participating in the beta tests with my friends on Xbox One. The game is great because it allows players to collaborate with each other to complete missions. You have no choice but to work as a team to complete your objectives. Teamwork is key to being successful. Without teamwork, you basically screwed your team and yourself. 

While the gameplay is excellent and definitely is an awesome way of working together as a team, there are some kinks that need to be worked out such as the following issues:

• Random disconnects due to server issues: This has been a very painful experience for gamers during beta testing an even post launch, the issue still remains. If this issue can be worked out, this would make the game that much more fun.
• Players getting stuck when prone on stairs or rappeling to rooftops: When you are trying to come out of prone, your player can get stuck and you will not be able to to move.

Overall, this has been a fun experience and I look forward to seeing what else they'll add for DLC.

I give it an 8/10 (due to some of the stability issues with the servers).

Below is my video from the game:

ROBLOX - Phantom Force (Beta) Review

It's been awhile since I wrote my last blog post. Between being a new dad and all ;).  While looking for new games, I've discovered a cool platform called ROBLOX.  It allows you to create your own game with some cool LEGO type characters. My favorite ROBLOX game was Phantom Force (Beta). The game was in beta testing at the time of this writing. I love Phantom Force (Beta) because this game brings the elements of Counter Strike into the ROBLOX environment. I really enjoy the game as it created comical relief in a FPS (first person shooter) setting.

Thirteen years ago, I’ve started a gaming community playing various games from FPS to MMO games. My very first FPS game was America’s Army followed by Counter Strike. Phantom Force (Beta) combines those elements into a cute environment using ROBLOX.  When playing the game, I’m presented with familiar options on the weapon loadouts menu and the costs for each weapon. By default, my character was only allowed the M4 carbine since it was the only “free” weapon available. The other weapons was a side arm which includes an M9 pistol and a knife. This brings back great memories of Counter Strike where the default loadout was the same.

Phantom Force (Beta) was developed by a group of college students who collectively call themselves Stylis Studios. The game encourages teamwork in order to accomplish the goal of the mission and to defeat the opposing team. The team with the most kills wins the match. Each match was timed and once the timer runs out, whichever team scores the most kills will win the match and the map will change. Very similar to the setup in Counter Strike which was a big inspiration and influence in creating this game. There’s a huge community support for it.

Phantom Force (Beta) has 2,190 members actively playing the game with 27K positive reviews. The game can hold 32 players per server. This is a big plus for a big LAN party. I also enjoy the in game chat feature which allows me to communicate with other team members. The scoreboard is also great too with leadership boards and team stats. I’ve also uploaded my video to Youtube with my in game session below.  

Overall, I do enjoy Phantom Force (Beta). The game has potential once it is out of beta as the community surrounding this game is growing with Counter Striker players both old and new. It’s a great way of having fun and just getting a great laugh when our character meets their demise in a hilarious way. I will continue playing this game and will have my friends join in the fun so we can all have a good laugh at our silly character designs and how many ways our character can meet their doom in the game or celebrate our team wins. Phantom Force (Beta) is a game I will recommend to anyone who plays FPS (first person shooters).

Law and Order SVU bids farewell to Captain Donald Cragen, GTA Online Patch

• Rockstar released an update this week to combat cheaters in GTA Online who use exploits to gain money. Specificallly for modded lobbies where players who enter a modified lobby can walk away with millions of dollars in cash. This is what Rockstar termed as "counterfeit" cash. This affects the in game economy and as a result, the new patch will remove any money earned from a modded lobby.
• Law & Order: SVU latest episode "Amaro's One Eighty" also marked the 400th episode of the series. This also marked the end of Capt. Donald Cragen played by actor Dann Florek. It was a bittersweet ceremony as we see another original Law & Order cast member leave the show. Capt. Cragen announced his retirement in the episode.