Monthly Archives: July 2015

Rise of Incarnates – Time for a Launch Review

By Jordan Hall (ApocaRUFF)
 

Introduction
Rise of Incarnates is a free-to-play fighting game available on Steam. From the same creators that worked on games like Tekken and Mobile Suit Gundam: Extreme Vs, there is a certain expectation for the game. You will take on the role of an Incarnate, a person who has found themselves with the power of deities, demons, and other such mythological creatures. You will fight in a team of two against another team of two in death matches, striving for dominance. After their widely marketed open beta launch earlier this week, we figured the game was done with the hype machine. But with tons of announced updates, new characters, and a full launch announcement this month, we figured we’d give Rise of Incarnates one more chance to wow us. Does it now live up to player expectations? We shall see.

 

Customization
Customization is limited to making use of some pieces of equipment and Skill Cubes. Equipment is self explanatory, but you can equip things like accessories and weapons. These are cosmetic in nature, so they don’t effect your characters at all. Skill Cubes can be placed in the Skill Grid to grant your character bonuses. Overall, the Skill Grid system feels lacking and you almost wonder why it was included after you’ve messed with it a bit, but the costumes are a nice touch (if you have the money to spend on it, that is).

 

Rise of Incarnates Review C
I’ll never see any costume pieces 🙁

 

 

Graphics
Rise of Incarnates is a pretty game. From the battle arena, to the characters, to the effects of your attacks. It all looks fantastic. This is both great and bad. Great because who doesn’t like a good looking game, right? Bad because there isn’t much in the way of graphics options, so if you don’t have a decent computer you won’t have much luck with lowering the graphics to fit your needs. Not that it matters much, as Rise of Incarnates’ optimization is quite bad to begin with (but I’ll get into that later). But if you’re the type who needs a game to look great so that you can enjoy it, this will meet your criteria.

 

Rise of Incarnates Review C
Sorry for the lower resolution – Rise of Incarnates and Fraps don’t mix well. I had to play in Windowed Mode (which has a max resolution of 1600×900) to take screenshots.

 

 

Controls
For the most part, quite smooth. As long as you have a gamepad to play with, that is. The keyboard controls were bad when DizzyPW first tested this at E3 2014, and have not aged well since then. Unless you have a will of iron, and skills that far exceed your foes, then you won’t have a good time without using a PS3, Xbox, or some other gamepad to play. Personally, I used my PS3 controller (along with Better DS3) and had a blast playing. I did try to use the keyboard and mouse, but ended up rage quitting because it was too annoying. So, the controls are a pleasant experience, but only if you’re playing with a gamepad.

 

 

Community
Early on, the game had more than a few issues that resulted in a lot of angry players. Most of them have been fixed (such as adding the ability to buy all characters with in-game currency), so a decent number of players have come back or stayed with the game. Back when I first tried playing the game, I found it incredibly annoying to find a match. Now when I try to find a match, I’ll get one almost instantly, even at the later time zones (in America). I’m not sure if I would call the community large, but I don’t think it’s small.

 

 

Gameplay
The last time I played Rise of Incarnates, which was several months ago, the game suffered from a lot of issues. This time around, things are a bit better but there are still problems. Having to open the “Gameplay” section with complaints sucks, but it’s hard not to when four out of five matches I try to play result in a random disconnect. And, on top of that, the game still needs to be tweaked for better performance. So while the gameplay itself is quite fun, actually getting to enjoy it can be quite the ordeal.

 

Rise of Incarnates Review C
This happened way to frequently.

 

Combat is typical of a fighting game. If you’re the type who enjoys fighting games, be it Mortal Combat, Dragon Ball: Xenoverse or anything in-between, will find something appealing in Rise of Incarnates. Although I have to admit that it’s definitely closer to the Dragon Ball: Xenoverse end of the spectrum. You have two attacks, two special versions of those two attacks, and one “uber” move that results in different things depending on the “Class” of the character you’re playing. Combat is very 3D and, while you can’t fly freeform, you’ll spend a lot of time strafing in the air.

 

Rise of Incarnates Review C

 

Speaking of classes, each character falls within one of a few archetypes. In general, there are those that don’t transform, those that transform, and those that summon. At least where the current lineup of characters is concerned, anyways. Each character is given a ranged attack and a melee attack, both of which have a “special” version. Combos are present, but seem limited for most characters. Team combos exist, though, so if you enjoy playing with friends in fighting games, you can work together in some interesting ways.

 

Rise of Incarnates Review C

 

Right now there is only the option for two-versus-two fights. You can either enter a solo queue or you can join a friend in the team queue. The goal of the match is to simply defeat the enemy team in combat, but how you do that is a bit interesting. Each character is assigned a “Cost” value to revive. Some characters cost as little as one health, but are relatively weak. Other characters can cost as much as three health, but are stronger. Each team is given a pool of health that can be spent to revive team members that die and when your team loses all of its pool of health, characters can no longer be revived and thus you lose the match.

 

Rise of Incarnates Review C
I love it when my teammate is OP.

 

As you might imagine, the above results in the possibility for some strategies to come into play. If you’re prone to dying, but have a friend who is good at staying alive, perhaps you’ll choose a character that only cost one health to revive, while he may choose a three health character. From there, you can try your best to be an annoyance to the enemy team, willingly putting yourself in a bad situation in the hopes of giving your teammate an opportunity to unload their full arsenal on unsuspecting foes that are focused on you. All without risking much for your team when you die.

 

 

Conclusion: Good
Rise of Incarnates is such an awesome concept. Who doesn’t want to fight like a god against other gods in modern iconic settings? The battles are epic and intense, with the graphics to make them look just as amazing as you would imagine. However, there are still a number of rough spots that need to be worked out. The “Mixed” user rating on Steam is evidence of that. In the end, though, I would say that Rise of Incarnates is definitely a game to keep an eye on, and if you’re willing to put up with a few potential problems, give the game a try as it’ll be worth it in the long run.

Features: 3/5 – The features are just fine. Rise of Incarnates focuses on one concept, which means all future improvements should directly improve the experience of everyone.

Customization: 2/5 – Not there, despite a small attempt at allowing for some.

Graphics: 5/5 – Game looks good, simply put. Whether or not your machine will get to experience it in any manageable fps rate may vary.

Controls: 4/5 – Pleasant, but entirely dependent on owning a gamepad.

Community: 3/5 – Smaller community, probably due to the fiasco of the game’s beta and earlier periods.

Overall: 3/5 – Once the game gets some more performance tweaks and becomes more stable, it’ll be a 4/5 in my book.

Iron Bit Releases Tutorial for Colonies Online in New Update

Iron Bit Releases Tutorial for Colonies Online in New Update news header

Independent developer Iron Bit today announced the release of a major update in its sci-fi action MMO-sandbox title, Colonies Online, currently available for PC on Steam Early Access. In Colonies Online players assume the role of space colonists, exploring huge and diverse distant planets, rich with fauna, resources and possibilities. With the new update released today, Iron Bit have introduced a new in-game tutorial that includes a training camp to teach new players the basics of survival and how to use equipment in the online universe.

 

“The latest patch for Colonies Online includes a tutorial to make new players more comfortable and is something that we have wanted to release to the community since we kicked off Steam Early Access”, said Nick Borschew from Iron Bit. “With the release of this latest update, we are also continuing to improve the gameplay diversity and have been hard at working polishing the key gameplay mechanics in Colonies Online”.

 

In Colonies Online players find themselves far away from home, inhabiting a cluster of alien planets where they must gather resources to build a colony and survive in this harsh environment. In a persistent online game world with no restrictions, players must work with or against other players to build anything from trade outposts to full-scale cities with the intuitive construction system. By crafting weapons and armor to aid in a quest of survival and domination, players battle aliens and other colonists with a non-target combat system. Colonists can also improve their character with new abilities and team up with other players to further enhance a colony.

 

The latest patch to Colonies Online includes a host of additions, improvements and bug fixing. New constructions have been added that will allow Colonists to customise their colony with decorative items including tables, lamps, displays, plants, grass and rock – these can now be purchased at the Outpost Delta. The studio has also released a new pack of animations for Civil and Combat modes, which includes the option to set auto-run in game by pressing the “~” or “Num Lock” key. Minor fixes include resource deposits, that are now marked on Colonists mini-maps, making the ability to find new resources that much easier. The update will also increase the range of levels in quality of all resources that are spread over the online universe. Finally, Iron Bit have added a GUI indicator to the Shield Generator, as it now indicates the charge of a battery that powers the personal shield generator – that will make it easier to track the level of the defence system when encountering firefights – just remember to recharge those batteries!

Archlord 2 Releases its Most Challenging Update Ever

Archlord 2 Releases its Most Challenging Update Ever news header

WEBZEN, a global developer and publisher of free-to-play games, is delighted to announce that the PvP-focused MMORPG Archlord 2 just released its latest content update, the most challenging to date.

Among others, this new update introduces a new dungeon for seasoned adventurers, a world raid boss and new sets of legendary gear.

Evil never sleeps with Galia and his henchmen awakening an ancient monster to unleash hell on Chantra and opening the “Dark Stronghold”, a new dungeon available only in “Hell” difficulty. Only the toughest and most cunning heroes from level 55 onwards can enter this instance, and hope to take down all the challenging bosses who won’t go down easily. Vanquishing the enemies in the “Dark Stronghold” will reward the adventurers with exclusive level 60 legendary gear.

In Stardust Land, a new world raid boss has appeared, the most challenging monster that ever walked the realm of Chantra: Stein. Stein won’t be overcome by displays of sheer power; players will have to employ team-work and strategy to slay him. However, should they manage this feat, they will be rewarded with all new level 60 legendary weapons. Heroes should be careful during their raids, as both factions may attack this mighty boss simultaneously.

The content update introduces several new features and upgrades, with the addition of new PvP gear, the possibility to further combine Wings to strengthen players’ stats, bug fixes and much more.

Dungeon of the Endless Coming Soon to iPad

Dungeon of the Endless Coming Soon to iPad news header

Award-winning indie developer Amplitude Studios announced today its award-winning dungeon defense game Dungeon of the Endless will make its debut on Apple® iPad® this summer. The intelligent rogue-like dungeon-defense game is unlike anything on iPad before it, featuring a smart new interface using easy-to-use iPad touch controls, a well-balanced blend of do-or-die gameplay, dungeon-defense strategy, and RPG-like elements.

“Our goal in bringing Dungeon of the Endless to iPad is to provide an amazing gameplay experience for fans on the go, and to open up what was once only a PC game to a broader group of gamers hungry for a new style of game on iPad,” said Romain de Waubert de Genlis, Creative Director at Amplitude Studios. “Our turn-based gameplay style lends itself perfectly to the simple touch-screen style of the iPad. It’s a great marriage of game design and hardware design.”

Crowdfunded Reboot to Colonial Conquest Invades Steam

 

Crowdfunded Reboot to Colonial Conquest Invades Steam news header

Independent strategy game developer and publisher Argonauts Interactive is excited to announce the return of the premier conquest simulator, Colonial Conquest, based on the classic turn-based strategy game of the same name. After three decades, a new era of Colonial Conquest is now available on Steam for Windows PC.

The original Colonial Conquest released in 1985 and was a trailblazer for historically-based strategy wargames and still maintains a passionate fanbase to this day. Colonial Conquest has a long-standing legacy for being one of the first games of its kind to allow players to battle for global supremacy and alter history by taking control over the world’s major territories. Argonauts Interactive is honoring that legacy by offering players the ability to return to the era of Golden Warfare and gain global dominance through aggressive expansion and annexation of Major Powers in order to shape the world as they see fit. Argonauts Interactive embarked for Kickstarter to crowdfund their successor to the original Colonial Conquest, where they received an overwhelming amount of support and exceeded their pledged goal.

Set in the Victorian age of warfare and expansion of the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, Colonial Conquest features six playable countries – USA, Great Britain, France, Germany, Russia and Japan – and over 130 regions open to conquest. Players will sail, ride and march across the globe as they manage their empire’s resources, categorically dismantle opposing empires using cloak and dagger tactics such as subversion and espionage, and build attack fleets to strategically position themselves as the world’s sole leading power.

Players prevail over their opponents when they earn the most Victory Points or reach a region’s VP threshold. Each region includes their own variable income rates and earnable VP points, all unknown until conquered or spied upon. Each region not owned by a Major Power usually has an independent Minor country owning and defending it. Throughout the game’s three turn-based phases and three historical scenarios, players will build and continually expand different aspects of their warring empire to lead themselves to victory.

With such playable national leaders as Theodore Roosevelt, Queen Victoria, Jules Ferry, Tsar Alexander III Romanov, Kaiser Wilhelm II, Emperor Meiji, and Jules Ferry, players will manage their empire’s resources, build their armies, and contest against sophisticated AI or their friends via online multiplayer as they fight for control over the world’s territories. It is the end of the 19th century and the world is ripe for conquest.

Colonial Conquest is available for purchase on Steam for $9.99 here: http://bit.ly/1Jud844.