SkyDrift

At the heart of SkyDrift are three race modes: Power is standard racing with both offensive and defensive power-ups enabled; Survivor is an elimination-based variation on Power that removes whoever is in last place at timed intervals; and Speed replaces power-ups with glowing rings that provide your plane with a brief boost. These modes are scattered across the main single-player campaign, which places you in stages that get progressively harder as you advance, with new planes and paint jobs awarded along the way. All of the modes are enjoyable, but they become fairly repetitious before too long--the game would certainly benefit from having a few more race types to add to the variety. There are six tracks (plus reversed versions of each) set in different locations. The surrounding environments for each track range from the mountainous to the glacial, and they're all visually striking, with impressive levels of detail. Annoyingly, though, SkyDrift's overly saturated lighting effects can sometimes be overbearing on the visuals, making power-ups and obstacles difficult to discern against the harshly lit backdrop.

Power-ups include the usual suspects, such as mines, heat-seeking missiles, and shields. Picking up two power-ups of the same kind upgrades their effectiveness, and it's also possible to trade in stored power-ups for small doses of boost. To a similar end, you can drift behind other planes and ride lower to the ground to gain even more boost. You can also use the right stick to "knife edge" the plane so that you can weave through tight crevices and gaps that would otherwise cause you to crash instantly. Even when you do crash, though, respawns are quick enough that you don't lose much time. Because tracks are awash in sharp corners and sudden hairpin turns, the high-speed nature of the game ensures that you're considerate of your every action--when you mess up, it's usually your fault and not the game's. SkyDrift's tight controls and multitude of power-ups let you approach mid-race situations with the kind of sudden tactical initiative that can either help or hinder you, depending on the decisions you make. That said, it's a shame that none of the power-ups are particularly creative--it would have been nice to see more-expressive weaponry beyond generic rocket launchers and machine guns.


Environments range from the mountainous to the glacial.
Beyond the single-player races is lag-free online multiplayer, which is really the shining jewel of SkyDrift. While the multiplayer cannot be played locally, all of the aforementioned modes and tracks can be played with up to eight players online, and the host retains complete control over map settings and the choice of planes before races begin. Despite the competency of the AI in the single-player portion, the game becomes infinitely more enjoyable when real people are thrown into the mix. Power-ups are well balanced, and no one plane is more likely to dominate than any other, meaning that every competitor is treated fairly, regardless of skill level. A host of criteria-based badges and medals can also be earned throughout both single-player and online matches, which is a nice touch that neatly ties in to the game's achievements and trophies.

If you've ever played an arcade or kart racer before, then you have a good idea of what to expect from SkyDrift. It does nothing that hasn't been done in the past, nor does it outperform any of its contemporaries in any meaningful way. Thankfully, solid controls and a strong dependency on tactics mean that SkyDrift still manages to offer up a good amount of fun in spite of its derivative makeup, especially when played online.

Operation Flashpoint: Red River

Operation Flashpoint: Red River had me from the moment the intro video started playing. It gives a brief history lesson of the events that leads to your mission as a U.S. Marine in Tajikistan. This video is funny, witty, and informing. With this as an introduction, Codemasters takes the player to 2013 to participate in missions that feel real. That is the point of Red River: realism.

The game is classified as a tactical shooter. It has more realism than Call of Duty but less action-packed moments. That’s not to say the game isn’t exciting. It’s just different. Consider this game a hybrid of SOCOM and Call of Duty, using squad-based gameplay and thriving off strategy. 

Positioning is everything in Operation Flashpoint. You can direct your squad members to follow you or take cover behind a wall and lay down suppressing fire on a building, allowing you to move. These decisions can determine the success of your mission. 

Unlike CoD, you won’t be running around a map, spraying bullets and resting behind walls while you wait for your health status to return to normal. In this game, if you get shot then you will continue to bleed. You need to patch the wound immediately. The same goes for your teammates. You don’t want them bleeding out; otherwise you are down a man. 

One shot can be deadly in this game. Sometimes you’ll learn that the hard way, like when you attempt to sprint to a building 80 yards away just to get shot and have to reload from the last checkpoint. The realism of this game will frustrate some, but it will also fill a niche role for others looking for more strategy to their shooter.

None of this means that the squad mechanics won’t frustrate you. Sometimes you need to direct your AI friendlies to get into a truck or hide behind a wall instead of standing in the open getting shot. It feels like you’re trying to direct a group of 10 year-olds at times. This game is an entirely different experience when playing with AI, as opposed to playing with three others in a drop-in, drop-out four-player campaign. 

The game also features an RPG-type element to it. Each player fills one of four Marine roles: rifleman, grenadier, scout and automatic rifleman, each with their own weapons and abilities. Players also gain experience for whatever roles they are playing as. The experience is used to unlock new weapons, attachments, and perks for each class, and players also get to upgrade the core abilities of those roles by assigning points into areas that let you sprint longer, give you more accuracy with a certain weapon, or switch weapons more quickly. It’s a good feature that lets you feel like you are working toward something other than finishing the story.

The language that is used by the characters can rub some people the wrong way. They don’t curse like sailors; they curse like Marines. Every line of dialogue takes me to new heights of profanity that I didn’t know existed. Curse words are used to describe everything, and each sentence is laden with them. However, it is authentic. My cousin, who was in the Marines, told me so. 

The game isn’t without its faults. The HUD is cluttered and hard to understand, the waypoints aren’t always clear on where to go, there’s a lot of cut scenes and long buffering times, and it can get really annoying having to patch anytime you or a teammate get shot. Also, while the game looks fine, it isn’t kicked up to the Call of Duty level.

Operation Flashpoint: Red River isn’t your typical shooter. You’re not going to be a gunslinger, running into a compound to take out a horde of enemies like a one-man wolf pack. It’s a slower, more tactical, squad-based shooter that relies on teamwork, strategy, and finesse. With a good upgrade system for each role and a smart co-op experience, this game offers a realistic and authentic experience of what a United States Marine might experience in combat. Semper Fi!

Hard Reset

Forget run and cover mechanics, regenerating health, or constantly reloading weapons.  Hard Reset is straight-forward, shoot-anything-that-moves game that harks back to the simplistic days of first person shooters.  This action-packed shooter will test your skills, reflexes, and patience as you run-and-gun your way through a cyberpunk environment destroying everything you see.
Don’t expect much in terms of plot.  Between the mayhem are comic-style drawings that poorly attempt to explain what is going on.  It’s your typical man vs AI story.  Hard Reset takes, what I like to call, “the Michael Bay approach”.  Ridiculous explosions and nonstop action.
Though simplistic in design, this game is definitely a challenge.  Armed with two bad-ass transforming weapons (more on that later) and an environment filled with explosive barrels, cars, and electronic machinery, you must annihilate hordes of enemy robots as they endlessly swarm from all around.  Don’t expect a second of downtime in Hard Reset.  Lurking behind every corner is a wave of merciless enemy robots waiting to tear you limb from limb.

Watch the Hard Reset story teaser
Hard Reset successfully combines the nostalgic feel of an old-fashioned shooter with the glorious HD environment of a modern game.  Though fairly linear in design, with only slight room to explore in search of “Secrets”, Bezoar City is as nice to look at as a lifeless, futuristic city overrun by rampaging robots can be.  The city’s sprawling skyscrapers are loaded with art deco styled detail and corporate advertising reminiscent to Blade Runner.  The cluttered streets and tight alleys are littered with abandoned vehicles and run-down architecture defaced with graffiti.
The environment isn’t without purpose, however.  The futuristic Bezoar City is filled with cold, neon-tech and explosive debris which you must use to your advantage.  Strategically placed cars, machinery, barrels, and boxes can all easily be ignited, sending electric currents and burning shrapnel in all directions.  You can (and definitely will) use the volatile environment to your advantage and take out large numbers of enemies, but one stray bullet could also spell doom for yourself.
As I mentioned earlier, you are armed only with two weapons that transform to meet your needs.  These are the CLG, which uses a more primitive bullet/explosive ammunition, and the N.R.G., which gives off a more futuristic vibe using electricity.  As you earn experience, you can upgrade each weapon enabling it to transform into other configurations like a shotgun, grenade launcher, or mortar.  Eventually, upgrading each weapon further will lead to secondary firing modes like stuns and AOE damage.  In addition to weapon upgrades, you can choose to go with the more passive upgrades, like greater damage resistance or a radar to track the enemies.

See the chaotic gameplay of Hard Reset in this video
Those of you from the less-forgiving generation of games will find Hard Reset as a refreshing challenge.  You will often find yourself in small combat areas filled with explosive objects that splash damage or a wayward bullet will easily ignite, resulting in your death.  Or there may be times when you are thrown in the middle of two giant robots with little navigation room, while smaller robots chomp away at your health.  These “cheap” deaths, as they are often referred to, are a testament to the challenges and difficulties we faced when playing old-school games that didn’t coddle it’s players.  Is it sometimes frustrating?  Of course it is.  But when it’s all said and done, and you complete the level, by carefully plodding your movements and strategically blowing up your surroundings, you get that sense of fulfillment and completion that many modern games don’t offer to today’s generation.
The game is not without flaws, however.  Switching weapons is often difficult and they don’t necessarily respond in the timely manner that you need them to.  In a game that depends on quickly equipping the right weapon for the situation I would’ve liked it to switch more quickly.  The textures, while nice from far away, are not as detailed as you’d expect form a modern game.  Lastly, the game is very short (roughly 4-5 hours), but it does have some replay value if you are looking to find all the “secrets” and get a high score for the level.
While Hard Reset is a fun play, it is by no means groundbreaking.  It’s a fun throwback for old-school gamers looking to get their fix of explosions.  It may appear like mindless running and shooting, but there is more strategy involved than that which meets the eye.  The game depends on your reflexes and carefully timed, precise shots to fully maximize the environments destructive potential.
A simple rule to play by: if it moves, shoot it.  The second rule to play by: if it doesn’t move, you should still shoot it because it will probably explode.