Conflict of Nations, As Kazakhstan

 

By Bixyl Shuftan

 

A few years ago, I did a review on the game Call of War. Soon after, I would give it's sister game "Conflict of Nations" a try.  Gameplay is much the same, build units in city, improve cities through buildings, research technology for better infantry, tanks, planes, helicopters, ships, missiles, and other units, etc. Nukes are devastating, but can be countered. But like before, be prepared to spend some gold currency if you want to win, and free players can be hard pressed against "wallet warriors."

 

Of the scenarios, there are several. There's the European war scenario, there's the American theater in which players fight over a fractured North America. There are scenarios in which the action takes place four times more than realtime, and then there's the zombie fights in which all players have a mutual enemy: the infected. And there are global map games in which players can pick any country on the map.

After playing a few games, I gave the global scenario a try. I looked over the available list of nations, and I noticed among them was Kazakhstan. This wasn't an ideal country in the game. There's no access to the ocean. The cities are a bit far apart. For most Americans, it's best known as the home country of the character "Borat." But those know know me recall my sense of humor can sometimes spark some interesting ideas. So I started a game, and after making a few army units made a declaration or war against a small computer-controlled neighbor, Kyrgyzstan.

I also decided to make an announcement in the news feed. Most of the bulletins there are reports of declarations of war and the results of battles. But players can make them as well. In previous games, they were often warnings against other players or trollish remarks. But I made up a press release ...

 

Hello, is Borat, Minister of Information of glorious nation of Kazakhstan. 

Today, our great leader make decision to restore order to unstable neighbor Kyrgyzstan. Our glorious troops are marching into their city to the cheers of local peoples.

 

*image of ragtag-looking soldiers, some with patches on their uniforms and dents in their helmets, making their way into a city, occasionally stopping as the people up front check the map, scratching their heads as the locals ignore or boo them*

 

Great glory to Kazakhstan!

 

I would do the same with Uzbekistan, and message my neighbors saying I wasn't looking to start any fights. Eventually, I began noticing some player-controlled units had stopped moving. I messaged them to make sure they had gone inactive. And once I was sure the player was gone, I would make my move. In these games typically a lot of countries go inactive as players give up after a difficult fight or having gone to bed or work log back in to see much of their land is overrun.

Hello, is Borat, is Minister of information of great nation of Kazakhstan. 

Today, our great leader ordered our glorious forces into (country) due to it's government collapsing after disappearance of leader. No truth to rumor we have anything to do with disappearance. 

Local forces are laying down arms after negotiations.

 

*image of Kazak troops turning around and running away from a well-defended building*

 

Great glory to Kazakhstan!

By this time, I had researched the ability to make tanks.

 

To those who think of challenging our mighty nation, beware! For our brave soldiers are backed up by mighty, state of art tanks!

 

*image of a somewhat antiquated T-55 with rust spots on it's paint job, lumbering forward, the tank tread breaking and it has to stop.*

 

Great glory to Kazakstan!

 

And was producing fighter jets. They could only damage ground targets a little, but they were great for scouting around.

 

Our most glorious army is matched by a most glorious air force. Behold our jets which will rain death from above on our enemies and will defeat any enemy planes!

 

*image of an outdated MiG-21, with a faded paint job, it's underpowered engine sputtering as it makes it's way down a runway, barely clearing the trees at the end*

 

Great glory to Kazakstan!

 

 To my surprise, among the countries going inactive early on, though after the mass resignation a few days in the game was Russia. This was a challenge and an opportunity, and I sent in a number of units to take over as much of the country as I could. 

 

It is with sorrow that we announce collapse of government of Russia. We are moving forces in before neighbors hostile to Russian brothers do so, so we create an autonomous area under our protection. Already there are reports of Russian soldiers joyously joining our cause. 

*image of Kazak troops turning around and running away from a well-defended building with a Russian flag*

 

Great glory to Kazakstan!

 

I managed to get the bulk of Russian territory, most of Siberia and much of European Russia including Moscow. But China got Vladivostok and bordering countries got some Russian cities including Ukraine getting Rostov, denying me a port. But I had other targets of opportunity, and was moving into Afghanistan, then Pakistan.

 

Our most glorious forces are moving south into Afghanistan in order to deal with most dastardly terrorists threatening our glorious nation and many others. We have recently captured video footage from terrorist training camp.

 

*image of a scruffy middle-aged man in Afghan garb and a turban before a small crowd of similarly dressed younger men*

 

"All right students, step number one, put on the vest" *the man takes a vest with it's insides stuffed with dynamite, with a wire attached to a rod with a red button on the top, then puts it on, holding the rod*

 

"Step number two, find a place with a number of infidels. Step number three, press the button."

 

*the man presses the button, followed by a huge explosion that knocks the camera to the ground. When the smoke clears, the crooked camera shows an empty pair of shoes where the man used to be, followed by a turban falling down*

 

Great glory to Khazakstan!

 

I do remember I was able to avoid fighting with Turkey and Iran. I don't remember how the fight with India started. It was also about this time I got into an alliance with Japan and Indonesia.  

Today, our most glorious nation signed pact with two most intelligent countries. The signing was followed by a performance by artists of our most glorious culture.

 

*image of a woman in an ethnic dress on stage singing very much off key, whom when finished walks aside as acrobats also in ethnic costume leap and flip over various farm animals to a confused audience of several diplomats*

 

Great glory to Khazakstan!

 

Indonesia took Malaysia, and Burma, and we ended up splitting India, with the Kazaks taking the larger share. We eyed China cautiously, but I don't remember any big incident. Lacking a port, my response was to build up my airplanes, helicopters, and easily transportable infantry, as well as factories, recruiting centers, and infrastructure.

 

Our glorious army is backed by a strong population, Here at our recruiting center, we see numbers of eager patriots signing up.

 

*image of several scruffy men lined up at a recruiting center, one looking to the camera*

 

"Actually, we were drafted. We're just here to turn in our papers."

 

Great glory to Khazakstan!

 

 

Our most glorious army and air force has mighty weapons. But mighty weapons need mighty factories. Behold our recently expanded arms factory!

 

*image of a very sooty brick building, with cracks in the older part and the newer part having uneven layers of bricks and an open double door showing some very rusty machinery inside*

 

Great glory to Khazakstan!

 

Then the player behind Ukraine attacked. My producing large numbers of planes and helicopters paid off as his few fighters were brushed aside and the attacking units were pummeled. This was followed by a counterattack which took the once-Russian city of Rostov. When cities change hands, infrastructure is usually damaged. But the port was intact. I quickly repaired it, and fast-tracked the building of a cruiser. I now had a navy.

Our most glorious army and most glorious air force is now joined by most glorious navy. Behold our mighty battleship!

 

*image of a Kirov-class cruiser with a worn and rusty paint job, the ship clearly having seen better days*

 

Great glory to Khazakstan!

 

The player behind Ukraine quit in the middle of the fight, either because he didn't expect a hard counterattack. Or maybe it was the forces from Romania. I can't remember if they were moving up before or after he quit. But in any event we ended up splinting Ukraine him getting Kiev. 

 

I forget exactly when, but someone sent a few spies at me. When one was caught, I made light of it.

 

Our most glorious nation was the target of most dastardly spy campaign. Here, we have footage of arrested spy confessing to crimes.

 

*image of a man in uniform standing over a harmless-looking young man wearing jeans and a t-shirt sitting on a stool*

 

"I tell you it's all a mistake! I'm just a tourist who got lost and - "

 

"We know you spy. You will confess, or we go third degree."

 

"I don't know anything, I swear!"

 

"Very well." *the official gets a tape player and presses a button*

 

"I loooovvvveee yooouuuu, yoooouuuu loooovvveee mmmmeeeee ...."

 

"WAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!! I'll talk! I'll talk! I'll taaaalllllk!! Anything but that!"

 

Great glory to Khazakstan!

 

And I responded by sending a few spies his way. 

 

While our glorious nation can beat any force against us, we can always use intelligence. So we send spies to unfriendly dastardly country. 

*image of a man in a trenchcoat, with noseglasses over his face*

 

"Hello. I am friendly tourist of friendly nation. Not spy from Kazakstan. Where is government building?"

 

Great glory to Khazakstan!

 

The first response to the spying got some chuckles, one player saying, "Hahaha! Bixyl is the soul of this game!"

 

Time went on. The leader of our alliance ended up tossing out Indonesia as Australia wanted to join. I kept close tabs on Indonesia, and asked the others to remain on friendly terms with them. But eventually the player quit, letting me know ahead of time and moving his units away from my territory and toward China and Australia.

 

It is sad that we report the collapse of most glorious government of Indonesia. Our forces our moving in before hostile neighbors do, so we establish autonomous zone.

 

Our glorious soldiers are meeting enthusiastic crowds as they enter cities.

 

*image of angry crowds throwing garbage at army transport trucks*

 

Great glory to Khazakstan!

 

From what I recall, a tiff started with China. So I was sending some assistance with planes and some ground forces. Then the Romanian player attacked, and he had help from the USA player who dropped nukes on a few of my cities.

 

We are sad to report nuclear reactor has exploded. Was not nuclear missile attack.

 

*image of a mushroom cloud going up*

 

We soon clean area and rebuild.

 

Great glory to Kazakhstan!

 

I fell back, managing to keep Rostov, but cruise missiles kept targeting the city, damaging the port and halting further ship construction. Thankfully I quickly developed anti-missile technology, and soon had ABM batteries over my best cities. I was able to slowly rebuild my factories, and the rate I was producing units.

Eventually, I got the city of Rostov producing ships again, and was able to push the Romanian player back, taking Kiev, and the rest of Ukraine. Then was going into Romania and the Balkans. My teammates were pressing against China, taking Indochina and going into China itself. I even managed an invasion of the USA's occupied territories in South America. Our point total got higher and higher.

 

Then the game announced it was over. Our faction had won, and I had the highest point total in the game!

 

It was time for one more bulletin.

 

Hello, is Borat, is Minister of Information of most glorious Kazakhstan.

 

Today, it is announced that negotiations have result in peace around world. All major countries order their men stop fighting. The Great War is over! Kazakhstan is strongest of all winning nations with most glorious empire ...

 

This just in. Great Leader announce formation of Kazak Commonwealth, with territories granted self rule, starting with countries who cooperate with Kazakhstan. Great Leader announce elections year from now, will not be running. 

 

Oh is sad. New leader mean new information minister. I Borat be looking for new job.

 

Great glory to Kazakhstan!

 

I would play a few more games of Conflict of Nations. But none would match the fun I had with this game I was prepared to lose as playing a second rate nation with a wacky minister of information, and ended up on the winning team.

 

Good gaming to you!

 

Bixyl Shuftan

 

Commentary: Game Company GREED

 

From Nydia Tungsten,

 

In Alpha… In Beta… Early Access… Pre Orders…

ARE ALL SCAMS!!

When I first started gaming, Alpha and Beta stage games ...
They weren’t sold.

 In fact, they invited you to play their game and sometimes even paid you to do so. In exchange, you helped them by telling them about bugs and problems. When they were sure of their product, they released it to the public.

A great example of that would be Rust and ARK,
 

 When Rust first started it was another Zombie shooter, Zombie People, Bears, etc, etc. But now not only is it a PvP but no more Zombies, but scientists. And the BUGS… wow… Brandi and I made a base in a hidden hill, well the hill wasn’t so much hidden as missing, the ground was flat but the ground cover went up like a hill, we just walked through it and we were under cover. 

 

They didn’t even allow you to build your character,  you you had to play whatever the RNG put you in, they caught a lot of flack about that, but they just didn’t care and changed nothing and was in early access for years, The devs were just too lazy, for the simple fact, they could milk the money train even harder while doing nothing.

 

 Ark Survival Evolved was early access… again… for years, and in a constant flux of change, then started only listening to one faction of players, the PvP crowd, and started throwing changes based on those whims at everyone. Instead of just letting us make changes on our servers, they instituted game-wide changes whether you liked it or not. Like… you could no longer pick up players with your large fliers, you couldn’t make large boat builds, and you could no longer add to your flier's speed all because it made it harder for the PvP’ers, then we find out more about why, through the scandals of the dev’s tribe being spanked so they game banned the ones raiding them, not just server banned but GAME BANNED acting like little children not getting their way. All this time they were in early access, too lazy to really do anything. Even allowing the game players to design and make better maps than they did. 

 

Then the time finally came and they fully released the game! We were all thrilled! For about a year. Then we heard they were releasing a remake of our beloved game, which thrilled us even more! Then we were told we would have to pay in full for the new re-release. So a lot of us decided we would just keep playing the original game for a while, until we were told they were taking all of the servers offline and if we wanted to continue to play we would HAVE to pay for the new game and new servers. And don’t even get me started on ARK 2 which hasn’t started yet. Turns out they took all the money and invested it in a failed e-car. They let everyone else do the work and then collect the money for it.

Let’s not forget the disaster and steaming pile of crap that was “Fallout 76” and a great example of why “Pre-ordering”  ANY type of game.  Fallout 76 was hit by scandal after scandal as well as a buggy game! They were almost sued into oblivion, because of all the false promises and outright lies! And there wasn’t enough RAID in the world to tame the bugs in THAT game on day one. But so many pre-ordered it, and their money was gone, and unfortunately, that is the norm, not the exception. 

 

So if you see a game you want coming out and have the chance to pre-order it… DON’T!   just wait, let the fallout hit, and wait for it to calm down and to see what it looks like after it is fixed, WHEN it is fixed. Because once they have your money they aren’t going to give back willingly.

Don’t just take my word for it, two of our other writers, Bixyl Shuftan and Xymbers Slade/Aegis Hyena have touched on this subject before as well…
https://othergrids.blogspot.com/2016/09/no-mans-sky-game-under-investigation-by.html
https://othergrids.blogspot.com/2019/02/reader-submitted-game-review-no-mans-sky.html

 

I was going to end it here but then so much more hit the fan since I started this article.

“Concord” where do I start with THAT one, who do you blame? It was a hot pile of DEI (Didn’t earn it) garbage. Again the Dev’s (Under SBI influence) didn’t care about gamers or even games, they just wanted to push an agenda. It went out for preorder it got a few, then it was released, and it sold more, but it was out for only a week before it was shut down hard. They spent over $400 million creating a game with UGLY characters it was pretty much a rip-off of the many rip-offs of “Team Fortress” but they only made maybe $40 million. Yeah, PlayStation took a bath on that one. Just because they couldn’t stick to what they knew, making fun to play games and NOT indoctrination games
The best way you can influence the games made is with your wallet, I would urge all of you to stop pre-ordering, and just buy once it is out. Let the decent YouTubers get advanced copies and do play-throughs and form your opinion THEN decide if you want it. 

SBI tried so hard to get this shut down. https://store.steampowered.com/curator/44858017-Sweet-Baby-Inc-detected/ Now you have to ask yourself “Why?” Why try and shut something down that shows your work unless you know it is wrong and you are ashamed of it?

Another site to help you is https://deidetected.com/games 

Let's get back to what's important with games… HAVING FUN!

Then we have pure scams, they create something pretty, take your money, and disappear without even making a finished game. And it is not as rare as one would think.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jopYqx4WKw&ab_channel=AsmongoldTV
 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsNsC9EMla0&ab_channel=LegacyKillaHD 

There are some good examples, AGAIN that could all be avoided but just being patient a few months, giving it a chance to be released, and working any bugs out before actually buying it.
Yeah, I get it, you want to be the first kid on the block to get one, but those days of getting something good straight away are over. 

Now, once you find a company doing it right like this one here https://store.steampowered.com/app/2827230/Wild_Assault/ 

They are in alpha right now, so you apply to play, and if you are lucky, you get in and play it, as they make notes as well as you. The reason you are there is to help them before it is fully released. I plan on getting that one, but I am not pre-ordering. 

Takes a deep breath and steps down from her soap box.

Sorry to preach, but let me end with this: Games should be an element of relaxation in your life, not a source of stress. So, let's all get back to what games should be: enjoyable.  

So, until next time GOOD GAMING TO YOU! 

Nydia Tungsten

 

 Other Grids MMOs and Games

So That's What You've Been Playing: Planet Crafter, Girl Genius, Palia

 

 By Bixyl Shuftan

Yours truly has been busy, both in real life and Second Life. Still, I have a little time for gaming. Over the past several months, I've been on a few. So here's a short mention of each. Oh, and trying out each of them is for free, one you won't need to pay for if you want to go for longer.

 

The Planet Crafter

 

In most space games, you blow things up and create a lot of destruction. So here's one in which you build something: creating a habitable world from a hostile one. Welcome to Planet Crafter.

In the game, you play the part of a man convicted of crimes offered a pardon if you get a hostile world terraformed to the point it can support life. But it won't be easy. Your small air tank won't allow you to step far from your craft without an infusion of oxygen, you only have a small amount of food and water on board, and your small crafting machine can only build a few items from local metal and ice. 

You can build a few basic heaters and drills to help heat and thicken the air, and windmills and solar panels to power them. As the planet begins to slowly change, more building options are unlocked. And you're going to need them, especially food growers. Exploring offers plenty of rewards, more supplies such as food, rare minerals, blueprints, and more. But don't forget to keep an eye on your air supply, and it's a good idea to keep at least one or two oxygen bottles just in case you make a wrong turn somewhere and can't get to a building of yours in time. 

Planet Crafter is available for sale on Steam. It's recommended you download the demo first. It ends when you reach your first goal. But by then you'll have decided whether or not this is a game for you. Personally, I feel it has a great theme, and an adequate challnge.

For now, the game is single player. 

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1284190/The_Planet_Crafter/

 Girl Genius: Adventures in Castle Heterodyne

 

 Some readers will recall the online comic "Girl Genius," a steampunk-themed (or "gaslamp fantasy" as it's artists and writers Phil and Kaja Foglio call it) tale of the adventures of Agatha Heterodyne, a once ordinary girl who discovers she's a "spark," or mad scientist. Good news for it's fans, there's now a game based on the tale, or rather the part in which Agatha enters and tries to restore Castle Heterodyne. While reading the comic isn't necessary to play the game, it does make it more interesting. 

 

The game starts with Agatha, the character you control, having just entered the castle, impersonating one of the numerous people sentenced to the place. Unfortunately, the mechanical mind behind it is even madder than some of your relatives (which is saying a lot). Your first step is to get a tool to help you out, and you soon have your trusty wrench. You've also brought one of your creations, a trusty dingbot, to get into places you can't reach yourself.

 

You go about avoiding the castle's traps, and solving puzzles. You're soon build a bench to create more tools, such as a means to cross chasms, and a coffee machine to help you recover lost health. And your journey brings you into contact with characters readers of the comic will recognize, some helpful, others trying to stop you.

Like with Planet Crafter, the game has a free demo that allows you to try before you buy. It ends just after Agatha's first big challenge to defeat the castle's mechanical minions. But you can be assured this is only the beginning. 

Girl Genius: Adventures in Castle Heterodyne is single player, as there can only be one Agatha, as that one impostor is soon about to find out.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1789370/Girl_Genius_Adventures_In_Castle_Heterodyne/

 Palia

 

Palia is one of a new genre of MMOs, the "cozy MMO." While in other multiplayer games fighting is either a big part of the action or the big thing, and you can easily get yourself hurt or killed, this isn't the case here. Palia is a game with no player death, and you proceed more or less at your own pace.

 

Players play the part of one of a number of humans, who for some reason have been appearing around the world of Palia after supposedly being gone for thousands of years, for reasons not yet known. The player appears at a temple, and after being greeted by one of the local Majiri is shown to Kilima Village, which has been integrating other humans. The player is given a plot of land to build a home and garden, and various villagers provide some simple tools and a few words about them. 

As time goes on, you'll improve your relations with the various villagers, some who are more happy and curious to see you than others, as well as improving your various skills which range from foraging to cooking and even bug-catching. You can sell what you gather at the general store, though some people will also take certain items off your hands. And you can also improve your home from the tent you initially get. 

You'll also be going on quests, some to help out your neighbors. Others are to explore the runs of nearby structures to try and find out what happened to the humans of the old world so long ago. You'll find various clues, which eventually get the attention of people from outside and bringing in a new character interested in what's going on. 

But the game is very much an MMO. You can make friends with other gamers, and request items (to keep people from advancing too quickly, you can only request things you've had at least once). Showing off what you've done with your house is also part of the game, and you can vote on how other houses look, as well as putting up yours to be voted on. There are also occasional festivals in the game, in which you get tickets based in part on how well you did and part on how well everyone else did. Oh, and the "flow trees" that you'll need for better wood, they take at least two people to chop down. Fortunately people in public chat point out where they are, as well as nodes for pallium ore.

You can also customize your character, and house. But certain modifications such as player pets can only be done through real-life money purchases, which is how the game makers get their money. There's also games of "Hot Pot" you can play with other players.

 

 (trailer for the game)

Palia is available on both Steam, and Epic Games.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2707930/Palia/

 

Want a more detailed review of one of these games, or want to see more? Let us at the Newser know.

Bixyl Shuftan

Nintendo Sues Palword's Owner Pocketpair, Claiming Game Violates Patent Rights

 

By Bixyl Shuftan

 

The game nicknamed "Pokemon with guns" is ending up in court.

In January, the game Palworld was released by Pocketpair, a small gaming company. In the game players tame creatures with various abilities, train them, and have them go up against other creatures, or craft items at tthe player's base. Because weapons are used in the game, including by creatures, the game got the nickname "Pokemon with guns." When releasied, the game was a big success, "explosively popular," selling five million copies in three days.

But fans saw similarities to Pokemon, and there were claims that the game was a "Pokemon rip-off," though there were also survival game elements. Pocketpair stated that the game "had passed legal checks." But soon after the game's release, the claims had attracted the attention of Pokemon's owner Nintendo, which announced it was investigating the claims of copying.

On September 19, Nintendo announced it was officially filing a lawsuit in Japan against Pocketpair, claiming the game violated "multiple patent rights." Pocketpair responded the following day, saying they didn't know which such patents Nintendo refered to, and wasn't "notified of such details." It went on to say, "It is truly unfortunate that we will be forced to allocate significant time to matters unrelated to game development due to this lawsuit. However, we will do our utmost for our fans, and to ensure that indie game developers are not hindered or discouraged from pursuing their creative ideas. We apologize to our fans and supporters for any worry or discomfort that this news has caused."

BBC News quoted  gaming industry analyst Piers Harding Rolls as saying Nintendo "has a track record of suing organisations and individuals which it feels has infringed upon its IP," and that this lawsuit continues the trend, the BBC going on to say they'd won a $15 million suit against several Chinese game developers.

PC Gamer would talk to patent lawyer Kirk Sigmon. He felt Nintendo has "shown in the last couple of years a really fiery desire to enforce in a way they didn't used to. Back in the day, they turned a blind eye to fan games. ... My suspicion is they have changed their perspective on how to handle infringement, or what they perceive to be infringement, or theft, or IP theft, or anything like that. What used to be something they might turn a blind eye to, they might be looking at now—especially for something like Palworld, where it was so obviously a smash hit that invited a lot of comparisons. For them, this is a massive target that they need to declare: 'Don't do this to us ever again.'

"You can get conspiratorial and wonder if this is just an attempt to scare the hell out of Palworld. In the US, at least, these patents you wouldn't assert. They're pretty weak. They're pretty tough to assert. But the fact that they're doing it in Japan, maybe they have more confidence in the Japanese patent system to protect them. It definitely feels like a punishment. It definitely feels like, 'You can't go after our crown and now we're going to make you pay for it.'

"The thing that sucks about them is that if you get sued, it's a lot of money, no matter how you shake it. You're burning millions of dollars just trying to make this go away. It hurts, and people know it hurts. ... one of the powerful things about patent lawsuits is that they are very difficult. Your general attorneys cannot do this sort of work. You've got to go find specialists. You've got to go hire up a team to do it. You've got to find people who are very good at doing it, or else you're going to lose almost automatically. It gets extremely expensive and time consuming, and it can wear a lot of small companies out. It is designed to make you no longer play in the game. So unfortunately, that's probably a consideration for Nintendo. Palworld did very well. They made a lot of money, but getting hit with a lawsuit that, at minimum, is going to cost you a couple of million in legal fees? That sucks."

But he felt that odds were, there would be a negotiated settlement before the court date. Nintendo's case has weaknesses, and looks like it's pushing around a smaller and weaker company. Pocketpair is facing an expensive suit it can't handle as well as a giant like Nintendo. There may be some changes in the game, or "It could be something as simple as a licensing agreement. ... Somewhere in the middle, there's going to be money exchanging hands. Either way, my suspicion is neither of them want to go into a lawsuit."

So what ultimately happens? Time will tell. In the meantime, both fans of Palworld, and small gaming companies, are keeping an eye on the lawsuit.

Bixyl Shuftan

Image Credit: BBC, PC Gamer

Sources: BBC, Nintendo, Pocketpair, PC Gamer

Game Review: Rise of Cultures

 

 By Bixyl Shuftan

I haven't done any game reviews in a while, partially because I haven't spent as much time playing games as I used to. But I do play a little. One I've been playing is "Rise of Cultures."

Rise of Cultures is a browser/mobile app game from Innogames, who also made Forge of Empires. The game has much the same aspect as Forge, a history-themed city builder, and plays much the same. But it does look a little different, and will appeal more to some players. 

You start off in charge of a tribe of stone-age folk. You help them develop the start of their settlement, and with a little guidance from a couple advisors continue to help the place grow in size, technology, and culture. Research points, which slowly accumulate naturally over time, can be used to develop technologies. There are also quests to take care of, which both encourage you to progress and some are needed to advance. Many involve your two city advisors who give you objectives to accomplish. Others are challenges by enemies and allies. 

There are occasional random happenings on the city map. This may include fruit to collect, a broken-down cart to repair in exchange for some gold, dealing with a wild boar guarding a treasure, and more. Sending workers to deal with the happening takes a few minutes, but will get you rewards in the form of food, gold, and occasionally crystals (more on those later).

Technologies help you in some way, such as unlocking certain buildings, improvements of them, or allowing you to build more of something.  The first ones are simple, such as tribal settlement, cultivation, firemaker, and the wheel, and cost just a few research points and maybe a few coins and food. Further up the tech tree, technologies will cost more. Eventually, they'll start to cost some goods as well.

Your first building is the Great Hall, which later on becomes the City Hall. After the first couple technologies, you'll be able to build small homes for workers. Later on, you'll develop the ability to build medium houses which house two workers. You'll soon be able to build farms, which come in two sizes, the larger ones taking more time to grow food but when they do produce a lot more of it. You'll also soon be able to make military barracks buildings. The first ones are for regular infantry, but later you'll be able to build more kinds. Ranged units can fire and hit units a distance away. Calvary can charge and bypass light infantry. Starting in the Bronze Age, you can build goods buildings for some materials you will need. You can also build some small cultural sites, which help cheer up people in nearby homes and workshops, resulting in more gold revenue and more productivity.

Military units are used to gain control of enemy areas on the strategic map in campaigns. For the first few places of the Stone Age, you'll fight only animals. But as you go on, you'll end up fighting bands of cavemen. And once you finally beat their leader, the campaign is over and new areas open to explore and start another. As the campaigns go on, the enemies become more advanced. In battles, you can enlist the help of up to three military leaders to help you in your battle. Some are mercenary leaders of which you get tokens to enlist the help of for one battle. Rewards for conquering territory can include food, gold, and occasionally city expansions which you can use to grow the size of your city. Sometimes after you beat a leader he or she joins your forces as a new leader. 

Staring in the Bronze Age, players can also build world wonders. Upon unlocking this feature, you get one for free: Stonehenge. To get more, you need blueprints. Go get those, you need gears, which you get from Treasure Hunts, solving city events, completing quests, and special event rewards. With 200 gears, you can make an orb. Opening one gives you a chance at a blueprint, or resources for improving wonders. If you don't get a blueprint after opening nine orbs, you get one on the tenth. Wonders provide benefits from extra gold and research points, bonuses in trades, extra rewards when doing the Treasure Hunt, extra military units, and others. Wonders can also be improved, which takes research points, food, gold, and usually resources. You can have up to four wonders active. Any more, and you'll have to pick and chose which work best for you while the others are inactive.

 

Also starting in the Bronze Age, players can join an Alliance. Joining one has benefits. You have access to the Alliance City, in which once a day you get some extra goods. Members of the Alliance can work together to improve the city. You can also do the Treasure Hunt. At each step of the way, there's a group of pirates. You can either negotiate with them or fight them. Negotiations have three tries and take amounts of resources, which increase further along the hunt. Fighting will take military units. Once you beat the last group of pirates, the team has to work to make the next level available.

Progressing will take you to difference eras, the Bronze Age being the first, "It's good to get out of those animal hides!" After the Bronze Age comes the Minoan Era, then Classical Greece, then the Roman Republic, then the Roman Empire. Following the Antiquity eras comes the Byzantine Era, then the Age of the Franks, then the Feudal Era, then the Iberian Era, then the Kingdom of Sicily.

As time goes on, there will be special events. For instance the October special event involved Count Dracula/Vlad Tepes. The reward for doing his quests was a choice of a Mad Scientist's Lab, or "Crypt of The Count" that you could place in your city for bonus resources once a day. In the Christmas event, the city is blanketed with snow.

And then there's that the city map isn't static, but animated. Buildings shake a little when updated. And then there's the people. They walk the streets, they work at workshops. They carry things from one place to another. They go back and forth  to and from areas where events happen. They play music and sit & chat. And more. What they're wearing is determined by the era.

 

For those who like city-building or history themed games, "Rise of Cultures" is certainly worth a look.

 

You can find the game at https://www.innogames.com/games/rise-of-cultures/

For the wiki, check out https://rise-of-cultures.fandom.com/wiki/Rise_of_Cultures_Wiki

 

Bixyl Shuftan

 

 

Game Review: Harem Hotel

 
By Nydia Tungsten

First off let me warn you that this is another NSFW game, (Yes it means there is porn in them thar hills and DON'T LOOK ETHELLLL!) Now that the children are out of the room...
 
I was given the link to download it and have a look. It starts off kinda slow for an adult game, I was streaming it on my NSFW Discord channel and a few people got bored at left, that’s how slow it starts.
 
There is only a little music in this game for audio, no actors at all, you read the entire game, but personally, I don’t mind because I enjoy reading. I know some people don’t enjoy reading an entire game. So to those, I will wave you off right here. While I don’t mind reading it is hard to see some of the subtle facial changes on the character’s faces.

Unlike a lot of other ‘3-D’ games, there are many small reactions to watch for. 

It starts off with the death of your grandfather that you barely knew and his wanting to pass on his ‘dream’ of the hotel that he has started from there you start meeting the girls. And finding out more and more about slaves,

You are soon plunged into a world of corrupt government as well as a corrupt church working together in a bad way. I won’t give the plot away because unlike a lot of other adult games this one matters.

In the Harem Hotel you will meet:

Lin

Your humble Elf maid, who was recently hired before you inherited the hotel. Lin always aims to please her master in any way she can!

Kali

A nerdy girl who was left at your hotel by her father, and she's not too happy about it. But you may just be the person to keep her happy. Without a job, she's willing to do almost anything she can for some extra cash.

Ashley

A college student who was just kicked out of her house by her strict parents. Finally free from them, she's very eager to explore things she never had the opportunity to.

Maria

A college student and friend to Ashley, she's quite experienced and loves to flaunt, especially in public. She'll do a lot for some attention.

Your Android

Created by your grandfather, and there before you joined the Hotel, his project now belongs to you! Her name is up to you and she comes with some very useful commands. Buy her parts and upgrades to unlock some very interesting events.

Felicity & Emma

Cheerleaders, clones, and bitchy. Felicity is the boss wherever she goes, and Emma loves to follow the boss, whoever that may be…

Autumn
This religious girl was born with a body made from sin. However hard she may try to hide it, it's painfully obvious. Her lack of knowledge and embarrassment of everything lewd will just make her corruption even sweeter.
And more coming!

More unique girls will be added in future updates to allow for even more fetishes.


As the story progresses you learn more and more about the slavery of elves and how bad their lives truly are, you also get to learn about the girls themselves and each ones back story, to the point you start to really care about them and you can feel your emotions react to each adventure they stumble into.

The story itself is very captivating, well written and you can easily lose yourself in it. By itself, it could be a stand-alone Manga… if it weren’t for all the graphic sex, there is a LOT of that. There are repeatable events. And a lot of the sex is just, the same thing word for word. But the creator has said that this is a Work in progress and they plan on taking care of that to make it not so much the same.

There are certain levels you need to raise in the girls to move the story along

Friendship
Lust
Obedience
Sluttiness
Exhibitionism
Submission

As those go up you can go on into the adventure.

Overall I have to admit I have enjoyed this game greatly and plan on following it.

How do you get it? Since it is not on steam you have to look for it, I found it and I was surprised, it wasn’t some adult corp. Wanting a huge price tag for it. You can pay what you feel you can afford, even free, download it and enjoy it here is the link: https://runey42.itch.io/harem-hotel?download

Good gaming to you!

Nydia Tungsten
 

Tales From Gaming : "L Is Real"

From Cyfir (Cyfiremmerich)

When I was growing up, we didn’t have the Internet. We spent much of our free time either outside or playing video games. For those who leaned more toward playing video games, there was probably no better time for the launch of the Nintendo 64. I spent hours in games like Super Mario 64 exploring every nook and cranny and trying to unlock everything that I could. When I finally did unlock everything, I set my sights to rumors that I heard about other unlockables in the game. One was that if you wall jumped just right outside in the corner of the castle, you could make it up to the roof without the need for unlocking the cannon. Failing that, I turned my sights to another rumor about Luigi being in the game. Apparently, in the back courtyard of the castle, there was a sign that seemed like it read “L is Real 2401” and many believed that this was proof that Luigi was somehow unlockable in the game.

In reality, this sign texture was just some random blurry texture asset that they even used in "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time," and these rumors were just the result of bored youth trying to find anything to do with their time that they could. However, twenty four years later, it turns out that they were at least partially right about the Luigi rumor.

Thanks to a recent massive leak of assets from Nintendo, it was discovered that Luigi was indeed in the source code of the game. This was due to the fact that there were original plans for the game to be two player. But that was scrapped in development due to them not being able to decide how to do it and the technical abilities of the system at the time. Of course, he had not been compiled into the actual game, so there was no way to actually unlock him by playing the game normally. But hackers got to work on retrieving the polygon and texture assets from the character model.

And here he is.

L is real after all.

Cyfir

The Importance of Digital Media

By Cyfir (Cyfiremmerich Resident)

In my last article, I covered the importance of preserving physical media for future generations. If we got rid of all physical media in favor of going “all digital,” it could severely limit our ability to preserve works of art in the future. That being said, there are many advantages of digital media that do need to be covered in the interest of fairness.

One big advantage that digital media has over physical media is that you can often get it quicker. Instead of having to wait for it to show up in the mail or having to drive to the local store, all you have to do is purchase digital media with your credit or debit card online and download or stream it. With a pandemic going on, this obviously means that there is less risk to you or the person who has to deliver it to your house.

Obviously, being able to just download or stream media is more convenient. We live in a convenience society. We want things now, not later. We’re busy. Shaving off time anywhere we can is important to us. It’s more convenient to just start up your video game system and select the game you want to play from the menu rather than looking for the game on your shelf, opening the case, inserting the game, and waiting for it to load. Hell, we even eliminated the step of getting up to turn on your console. Most consoles today are able to be turned on with the included controller.

Economically, digital media is a great option, especially for independent companies and creators. Physical media can be cost prohibitive for independents to get published, physically produced, and shipped. It’s much cheaper to just put a game, movie, or song up on a digital storefront. That’s why you nearly only ever see video games from independent publishers on digital storefronts.

You would think that the environmental impact of digital media would be less than physical media. You don’t have to use environmental resources to manufacture digital content. You don’t have to load it on a truck, boat, and plane and burn a bunch of fossil fuels to get it to your local store or your house. However, the servers that digital media are stored on run on electricity. These servers have to be up and running day and night. The environmental impact that these servers have or totally dependent on where the companies running the servers get their electricity from. Many server farms run on renewable energy. Google in particular took many initiatives to get their electricity from renewable sources.

Digital media has many advantages, just like it has many disadvantages. I do not believe that digital media should ever fully replace physical media. It’s an option, though, and options are good.

Cyfir

Why Physical Media Is Still Important

By Cyfir

In this day and age, physical media is becoming a dying medium. Most media has gone mostly digital. When you think of getting the latest album from your favorite band, getting the latest PC game, or buying a new movie, there’s a huge chance that you don’t think about heading to your local mall anymore. Instead, you likely think about downloading a new song on a service like iTunes, downloading a new game on Steam, or streaming a movie on a service like Netflix or Vudu. One of the last vestiges of physical media has been console games. Every major home video game console save for one has shipped with a disc drive or cartridge or card (etc.) slot up until this point. The Xbox One S All Digital Edition was the first major video game console derivative to skip physical media. This holiday season, the PlayStation 5 will release along with it’s all digital counterpart. Many are predicting that this will be the last console generation with physical media, and with at least one major video game company reporting that 80% of their sales are now digital, I don’t doubt it.

With all that said, I still believe that physical media is still very important, and that’s because we’ve already seen the downfalls of going “all digital.” For one, what do you think happens once the service that you downloaded your media from goes away and you no longer have the hardware you downloaded it on? That’s right. It’s gone. You never owned a copy of it and you’ll never have access to it again unless you buy it again on another platform. If you don’t think that this happens, dust off your old Nintendo Wii and try to buy a game from the eShop. You can’t because it’s no longer there. If your internal memory on the Wii fails, all those games you spent money on downloading over the course of the console’s life cycle are now gone. For some, this may not be a big deal, but some games are only released on the online shops. For video game preservationists, this is a nightmare. There have been many instances of where an unreleased or rare game has been discovered in someone’s attic and preserved online for others to enjoy. Unfortunately, if everything were to go digital, this just wouldn’t be possible in the future.

While digital delivery has a place in preservation, there needs to be a physical copy found to preserve. While I’ve mainly focused on video games here, these same arguments can be applied to any form of media. We have backed up recordings of old VHS tapes on YouTube for anyone to find and enjoy. Some of these VHS tapes are rare and would not be accessible by the general public otherwise. The problem is that media companies, in many cases, are not concerned with preserving their own history. They are more concerned with making money because they are a business. The artists creating these works usually have no control over what happens to them because they work for the companies.

If all media were to go digital, there would be many things that would be lost to time forever. Imagine losing the works of Beethoven to time because no one had a physical copy of his written notes and the servers that they were stored on were taken offline and erased forever. While digital media definitely has its advantages, physical media shouldn’t be forgotten or abandoned. I’ve downloaded plenty of games to my steam library and on my Nintendo Switch, but when it comes to games that I really care about, I’m going to get it physically and display it proudly on my shelf. If there’s an album from a band that I really care about, I’m getting a physical CD and enjoying that new CD smell for as long as I can. Physical media cannot be completely replaced. When the PlayStation 5 comes out, I’m getting the one with the disc drive.

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Cyfir

Playstation 5 vs XBox Series X : Which is Better?

By Cyfir (Cyfiremmerich)

As with any major console launch reveal, there are competitors in the market. This coming console generation is no different. This is a good thing because competition makes for more innovation and better products for the consumer. However, only one console will inevitably be the clear winner for gaming fans. So the issue becomes which new console should you sink your hard earned money into or should you spend any money on either? Below, I will bring up the pros and cons of each system thus far. We are still waiting on a huge Xbox event sometime this coming month, but at this moment chips have been thrown on the table. It’s time to compare.

PlayStation 5

Even though Microsoft showed their hardware first. In my opinion, Sony came out of the gate swinging and hit a home run. Their streamed event did a lot to hype their new machine and software but it’s the fact that they waited, picked their time, built anticipation, and dropped a massive bomb shell that made everything click. For just a few moments, I forgot about all the bad things that have been going on in the world recently. One thing that Sony seemed to have this past generation was platform locked exclusives, and from what they showed, they’ll have plenty of those this time around. Like Microsoft, they took a very unconventional take on the look of their new console. This is due to the fact that these systems are much more powerful than previous generations, and thus will produce more heat. A flat rectangle under your TV isn’t going to cut it anymore. These systems are as powerful as a decent PC gaming rig. That said, when it comes to style, I have to give the nod to Sony. The system is much taller (or wider if put on it’s side) than Microsoft’s new system, but you can really tell that they hired a designer. I even joked on Facebook that I was getting a PS5 as a decorative piece for my living room. In contrast, in my opinion, Microsoft’s new machine is a boring flat looking tower. I also think that the accessories that were revealed for the PS5 fit into the whole aesthetic and ecosystem very well. They put a lot of thought into that and it shows. Style isn’t going to win a hardware race, but it’s nice when a system makes you gawk in awe. That said, the hardware itself seems to be a little weaker than the Series X, but Sony has promised a proprietary lightning fast Solid State Storage drive that will practically eliminate loading times and allow for much more open and massive worlds.

Xbox Series X

When Microsoft unveiled their new console at the 2019 game awards, it caught everyone by surprise. A few months later, they randomly revealed the inside of the console on YouTube through Austin Evan’s channel. The hardware itself is impressively engineered. Microsoft took a tower PC design approach and everything is cooled by one massive fan and a series of heat syncs. I do like that they were actually more than willing to show the internals of the console. I’m a hardware nerd and such things excite me. Microsoft also seems to have their own proprietary Solid State Drive for the Series X but rumors are that it’s slower than Sony’s offering. Otherwise, the Series X has more horsepower under the hood. This isn’t everything when it comes to game consoles. The original PlayStation was much less powerful than say the Nintendo 64 but it outsold everything during that generation. However, extra horsepower is nice. It’s certainly a big deal for the Xbox One X this generation as it can make multi-platform titles look much better than their PlayStation 4 counterparts. One thing that I am disappointed with from what I’ve seen about the Xbox Series X is the games. Aside from Halo Infinite, what they’ve talked about so far I’ve been able to find on the Steam storefront as coming soon. However, this could very well change in the coming weeks. Microsoft has taken a very different approach to Sony in that they don’t tend to care which product of theirs you’re using to play your games, whether it be Xbox, Xcloud, a toaster, as long as you’re making transactions. They are very service oriented. I get it. Why win a console race if you don’t have to? But honestly what is the reason so far for me to own another box that plays the same games? Please let me know in the coming weeks, Microsoft. So far, I’m leaning towards PlayStation 5.

Verdict?

While I may be leaning to Sony’s camp, that doesn’t mean that I’ve chosen a clear winner yet. The winner of every console generation will have the best software and higher user base that will have developers flocking to the platform to cash in. So far, with their exclusive titles and massive fan appeal, Sony is still winning this round, but that could all change with one reveal or one slipup. We still don’t even know the prices of these two machines yet. Microsoft is also rumored to reveal yet another console codenamed Project Lockheart that is rumored to be less powerful but play the same games at a much cheaper price. This could undercut Sony dramatically and entice gamers who may want performance at 1080p over 4K flashy graphics. We still have plenty of time to maul it over. One thing is for sure. The excitement of a new console generation is underway.

Cyfir