The Internet froze in complete and utter shock earlier today when Valve issued a press release, officially pushing the Portal 2 release to April 2011.

Okay, not really. Well, it really is delayed again, but it wasn’t at all a surprise. Valve’s been kinda well known to pull this stuff, and boy do they know it. Here’s their statement…

Valve today announced that Portal 2 — the sequel to the ground-breaking title that won over 30 game of the year awards, despite missing its original ship date — will now be available the week of April 18th, 2011. This two month slip not only marks the shortest delay in Valve’s proud tradition of delays, it represents the approaching convergence of Valve Time and Real Time. Though this convergence spells doom for humanity, it will not affect the new Portal 2 release date.

The title of the email was “VALVE ANNOUNCES SHORTEST DELAY IN VALVE HISTORY”. See, this is why I love Valve… They make great games, and they’ve got character to boot. They’re well aware of what we say about them, and they do nothing but confirm our accusations and just play along with it.

That said, Portal 2 is definitely one of my most anticipated titles of 2011. The original Portal is tied with Diablo II as my favourite game of all time, so the next year should be pretty sweet.

They’ve altered the release date. Pray they don’t alter it any further, again.

Related posts:

1. Portal 2 E3 Event Canceled – Surprise Promised
2. The Next Year in Gaming
3. Almost All Valve Games Now On Mac

I haven’t played enough of Bloody Good Time yet to write a full-fledged review, but I’ve played enough of it to tell you that the title doesn’t lie. If anything, it undersells itself; I’ve had a pretty great time with it so far.

Bloody Good Time is the sequel to a game called The Ship. I’d never heard of it before this, so I can’t really compare the two. But the basic concept is this — In the main game mode, you’re an assassin. But you’re also a target.
You’re on a map with several other players online, and you’re given a name. You have to kill the person whose name you receive. Everybody else also gets a name. In essence, the hunter becomes the hunted, whilst remaining the hunter.

You’re not told who is after you, so you have to keep a keen eye out. You also must be careful not to expose yourself to your target… Keep your weapon and intent concealed until you get close. If you kill your hunter, you get extra points, but if you kill somebody unrelated to your mission, you lose points.

Points also vary with what weapon you use to do the deed. Weapons get more and less popular as the match progresses, so keep up and make sure you’re using some high-point-wielding kill tools. There’s a wide variety of said tools to choose from… There are flamethrowers, knives, rocket launchers, and even remote-detonating rodents. There are also traps set up around all the maps that allow you to dispose of your target with an environmental kill, not getting your own hands dirty.

You’ll also want to keep your actions hidden because of the guards… Guards are scattered around maps, and you’ll gain a “Wanted” status if they see you holding a weapon for too long (you get warned when they first spot you), or if they see you trying to kill somebody. Guards will then chase you down and taze you, resulting in lost points.

But this game isn’t just about killing and avoiding death — there are also special needs, human needs, that your character has. You’ll occasionally need to sit down and rest, grab a snack, or use the restroom. The facilities to please your needs are located around the maps, but you’re very vulnerable while you fulfill them. You’ll just be sitting there for several seconds, and you’re not able to stop mid-process… Once you start, you have to allow the character to finish. This spells trouble if you don’t time it right.

One thing you won’t want to buy this game for is the story — it’s pretty stupid. But it’s hard to say that’s unintentional. The story and characters seem purposely cheesy in a way that gives it a certain charm. In fact, right in the Steam description, it describes the characters as being “stereotypical B-movie characters.”

Bloody Good Time is only $5 on Steam, and is well worth it. It’s built on the Source engine, and has fairly low system requirements.

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2. Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2
3. Review: Battlefield Bad Company 2 Demo

Being a huge Star Wars fan myself, stuff like this makes my ears perk right on up. This week on Steam, every day we’ll see a new LucasArts game go on sale. (Today, Monday, it’s The Force Unleashed: Ultimate Sith Edition. It’s only $7.50. Sweet.)
While I wholeheartedly recommend you pick up The Force Unleashed, as it is one of my favourite Star Wars games of all time (such a great story), make sure your computer can run it first. It’s pretty demanding, which is why I have the console version.

Also, throughout the whole week, the Star Wars Collection will be 50% off, bringing it to only $50. That’s less than one new game for 13 awesome games, with an individual price of $145.38. Huge savings there. Not to mention the fact that I’ve played almost all of those games, and they’re all pretty awesome, especially if you’re a fan of the Wars.

Knights of the Old Republic (or KOTOR), one of the most popular Star Wars games ever created, is in the Star Wars collection. It sells for $10 individually, but packaged with these other 12 Star Wars games, it’s $50. Also included is one of my personal favourites, Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy. I would pay $50 for just these two games alone, but with them you get a plethora of other titles, for only $50. Bound to keep you entertained for a good bit. Check out the Collection here.

If you’re only looking to buy one or two of these games individually, HOLD OFF! You could spend $50 to get all of them now, but if you wait, the specific title(s) you want to buy might go on sale by themselves, as The Force Unleashed is today. I would personally hold off until next Sunday (when the deal ends) to buy any of them. Unless, of course, you MUST have them now. In which case, I understand, but you’ll kick yourself in the leg later on when that one game you HAD to get early is super cheap.

I’m personally hoping for sales on KOTOR (so my brother can get it), Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, and Battlefront II. (I played Battlefront II on my brother’s PS2 a while ago, and it’s a blast. I’d much rather have it for my computer, and it would be awesome if it was even cheaper than its current price of $20.)

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2. The Next Year in Gaming
3. GridWars 2 – Cross-Platform Geometry Wars Clone

The Scout can be a hard class in Team Fortress 2 to get used to, but it’s incredibly rewarding when you do. The Scout is my favourite class, by far, and as such, I’ve decided to write a little guide to help out anyone looking to get a jump-start with the class. I’ll go through things with as much detail as I feel necessary to give you a general idea of how things work.

General Tips

Before I get into anything too deep, I feel it’s necessary to start you off with a few basic tips.

First off, embrace the double-jump. Double-jumping is a special skill that only Scouts can use. It allows you to jump higher and gain further distance with your leaps. Simply jump, and then jump again at the height of your ascension. It’s as easy as double-jumping in anything else. Also take notice that you can change direction mid-jump. For instance, jump to the left at first, and then as you reach the top of your jump, perform a double-jump, but shift your direction to the right. This will become incredibly useful in confusing enemies, among other things.

Another general tip is to make good use of your pistol. Don’t underestimate it. It’s great for harassing enemies from a distance or destroying sentries. If your target is immobile enough, or your aim is good enough, you can even take them out with the pistol from fairly great distances no problem.
It’s also a huge help when it comes to sentries. Try and peek around a corner just enough to see the enemy’s sentry without it seeing you. Using your pistol, take as many quick shots at it as you can. If its father engineer is around, take him out first, otherwise he can just repair the damage as you deal it. This is enormously helpful in clearing areas from annoyances.

Another quick tip… Stay on the move. Your major advantage with the Scout is that you’re the fastest class in the game. Make use of this as much as you can. Swerve, jump, zig-zag, do whatever it takes, but always stay on the move. You will have to improve your aim to be able to take out enemies while moving so haphazardly, but it’s a very useful technique that will keep you away from their bullets, as well as those from other enemies (especially snipers).

Facing Enemies

Figuring out the different kinds of interactions you’ll have between different classes is essential. Learning what to avoid, and how to prosper when you dive right in.

Let’s start with the offensive classes.

Offensive Classes

There are three Offensive classes… The Scout himself, the Soldier, and the Pyro.

Dealing with other Scouts

Duking it out head-to-head with another Scout can sometimes be tricky. Good aim here is absolutely essential, as is staying on your feet. When it boils down to it, this battle is decided by nothing but which player better understands the ins-and-outs of the class.
Make good use of the double-jump to confuse your enemy Scout. A few meatshots (shots to the body) with your Scattergun should send them to the floor, but if you find yourself having to reload, you have two choices.
1) Find a temporary safe area and reload your scattergun.
Or,
2) Quickly take out your pistol and hope to god that one clip finishes the job.
If number 2 fails, see number 1.

If you get a jump-start on this faceoff with the element of surprise by sneaking up behind your opponent, you can likely get in a good meatshot or maybe even two before they’re aware of your presence. This will give you a huge advantage.

Play the field here. Remember that in this faceoff, you lose your biggest advantage — your speed. They’re just as fast as you are. Circle around them, and try your best to get any health kits before they can.

Dealing With Soldiers

This encounter can be a tough one. Soldiers specialize in mid-range warfare, while you, as a Scout, excel when close enough to pulverize the opponent with your Scattergun.
The element of surprise is your biggest friend here. Try to find a Soldier who’s not looking and deal as much damage as you can, as quickly as you can. If you’re unable to do enough damage to conceivably kill them with one more shot by the time they’re looking at you, retreat. Even at close-range, Soldiers are dangerous. Most will not hesitate to damage themselves while killing you, and that means a close-range rocket for all parties involved.

If they’re further away, you can harass them with your pistol. But this won’t get you much of anywhere. Your pistol may do a bit of damage from a distance, but it won’t hold up against their rocket launcher, and the splash damage from a rocket is dangerous enough to avoid any kind of encounters from afar, even if you think you’ll be able to get in cover.
Approach with caution.

Dealing With Pyros

One word: AVOID. A Pyro is one of the Scout’s worst enemies. You both excel at close-range battle, but he can do damage to you long after the tussle is over with afterburn. In other words, you can get a few good shots in, but at the end of the day, he can set you on fire. This will deal a good bit of damage to you over time, and will likely result in your death.
Your only way to stop the burning is to get more health or jump in a lake. If you know you’re going to die anyway, you can stick around to try and get in as many shots as you can, but this just means you’ll die sooner from the direct damage of his flamethrower.
All-in-all, this is an encounter to avoid nine times out of ten.

Defensive Classes

There are three defensive classes… The Demoman, the Heavy, and the Engineer.

Dealing With Demomen

Demomen can be a somewhat dangerous encounter, due to their specialty in explosives. Just as with Soldiers, most Demomen will not hesitate to damage themselves if it means finishing you off. This recklessness spells danger for any close-encounters opponents, which you, of course, are. However, their explosives have a delay if they’re not already set. This could give you enough time to jump around them, avoid explosions, and land enough shots to severely hurt or even kill your opponent, while keeping minimum damage to yourself.
This is not an encounter for beginners, but if you’re experienced enough and know how to handle the double-jump well enough to avoid bombs, I say go for it. Just be careful.

Dealing With Heavies

Heavies are about the most dangerous class in the game. Their high tolerance for pain, coupled with their Medic buddies who heal them constantly and their amazingly powerful gatling gun, make them a tough nut to crack. You are most useful here in taking out their Medics.

To do this, you have to be unseen until the attack. Medics will quickly alert their Heavy patients if they fear either of their lives are in danger, so you have a small window of opportunity in which to take them out.
Your best bet is getting behind them. Landing a few meatshots should take care of them, just be sure to be quick. And once they’re dead, don’t get full of yourself and go after the Heavy. Even without the Medic, he’s a very dangerous foe. Seeing as your health is much lower than he is, you will likely die before him in a one-on-one brawl. By taking out his medic, however, you open an opportunity for other teammates to more easily take out the Heavy and clear the area of their annoyance for as long as possible.

Dealing With Engineers

A Scout facing an Engineer should have no problem whatsoever. Your Scattergun is far superior to their shotgun, so you should easily be able to take them out.
That is unless, and this is far more likely, they have a sentry guarding them.

An Engineer’s best friend is his sentry. A sentry is an automated turret that shoots at enemies as soon as it sees them, and it can take you out fairly quickly. It’s hard to avoid them, but if you happen to find yourself behind one, a few shots from your Scattergun should bring it down, no problem.
But that’s highly unlikely. Your best bet to take out a Sentry is with your pistol, from just around a corner where it cannot see you. This is a hard situation to put yourself in. But once there, you can just pound a few clips from your pistol in to the Sentry to take it down.
But if the Engineer is guarding their Sentry, they’ll be repairing the damage as you deal it. So take them out first if you can.

All in all, Engineers are tough to face if they’re hiding behind a Sentry (which a lot of them happen to do). You’ll save yourself a few deaths and much frustration if you avoid Sentries until somebody better suited (such as a Spy, Demoman, or Soldier) takes it out, leaving the Engineer himself to suffer your wrath.

Support Classes

The final type of class, Support, consists of the Medic, the Sniper, and the Spy.

Dealing With Medics

Medics aren’t too difficult to take out if they’re not attached to a Heavy or another formidable foe. They have slightly more health than you, but you have a stronger weapon. Use your speed to your advantage, running literal circles around them as you blast them with your Scattergun. They shouldn’t last too long without a buddy to help out.

Dealing With Snipers

Snipers are a long-range enemy, which makes them a bit difficult. You don’t stand a chance from a distance.
But if you find yourself next to an enemy Sniper, you have a much better chance of staying alive. Just a few blasts should do it. A lot of the time, they’ll be zoomed in on their scope, so they won’t even see you coming. This makes it especially easy.

If they notice you, however, look out for their Kukri knife. It can do a fair amount of damage, especially if they’re swinging like wild in your general direction. In this situation, double-jump like crazy and keep moving around them, shooting them as you go. It really shouldn’t be too tough.

Dealing With Spies

As a Scout, you have the biggest advantage against a Spy. This is because you can check for them more efficiently than any other class (save for Pyros).

When running into a teammate, you’ll go right through them. If you happen to be stopped dead in your tracks, start shooting — they’re a spy, disguised as one of your own. Your speed allows you to Spy check very quickly.

However, if a spy comes up behind you and stabs you in the back, you’re just as screwed as anyone else.

Conclusion

In conclusion, being a Scout isn’t easy by any means. It’s a very difficult class to get used to, and in a lot of situations, without the right finesse, you lose. But you also have many advantages over other classes, mainly being your speed, double-jump, and your effectiveness at close-range.

Keep everything here in mind when you go out Scouting. Developing a strategy and sticking to it is essential, and will save you a lot of rage.
It’s a very effective class, but only if you use it right.

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1. Team Fortress 2 for Mac Available Now
2. Team Fortress 2 Hitting Mac Tomorrow
3. Bad Company 2 – Strategies To Improve Your Game

Yep, just as we predicted in yesterday’s post, going off nothing but the Team Fortress 2 blog’s not-so-cryptic post, Team Fortress 2 hit Steam clients on Macs everywhere today, around 4:30PM EST.

For anybody who has purchased it in the past for Windows, or has purchased The Orange Box for PC, this will be available for you as a free download, just as with any other cross-platform Steam games. If you have yet to pick up this wonderful game, you should do so now. There’s a 50% off promotion going on, making Team Fortress 2 only $10, of which it is worth every penny and much, much more.
And hell, if you just want to check it out without spending a dime, hop on it. Now. TF2 is having a free weekend for both Mac and PC, making it freely available for anybody at all to play until… Well, Monday, I presume.

As an added bonus, anybody who logs on from a Mac by Monday get a free pair of in-game headphones that look suspiciously like Apple’s headphones that come with iPods. You could think of it as a neat little gift for your character, or you could think of it as a way to separate yourself from the heathens of the PC world. (Or, alternatively, the PC players can view it as a reason to make you a prime target. Wear with caution.)

As an ADDED added bonus, there’s also now a training mode, to allow you to make yourself familiar with the game without making yourself look like a fool online. There’s also an offline practice mode that allows you to play with bots, which is a pretty awesome addition and can help you get in some artificial experience before hopping on the servers.

Regardless of your OS or situation at this point, this is definitely something to check out. There’s new stuff in store for both PC and Mac users alike, and it’s free to play until Monday.
Here’s to hoping we get Counter-Strike next week.

EDIT: Sorry for the delayed post. Pretty sure I published, but for some reason it had saved as a draft. A few days late on posting this, but it was all written the day of release.

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A post on the official Team Fortress 2 blog today that makes clear the fact that us Mac gamers will be getting a dosage of Team Fortress 2 tomorrow in our Steam libraries.

Note that they didn’t exactly come out and say “Team Fortress 2 is coming to the Mac tomorrow.” But… Well, we’ll let you decide what they meant by their message.

Big things are happening RIGHT NOW at Valve. Things involving cultivated tree-fruit. BIG things. Things that rhyme with “grapple.” Things that rhyme with “Speem Gortress zmavailable on the Babac.”

Not today. But tomorrow. BIG THINGS. Stay tuned…

That’s actually the extent of the post on the Team Fortress 2 blog. So, it might not necessarily mean Team Fortress 2 will be available on the Mac. Rather, it means that something that rhymes with “Speem Gortress zmavailable on the Babac” will be true in our very near future.
But I’m hopeful.

Upon release, I’ll of course report in about how it runs and whatnot. For now, though, let me tell you… I’m excited as hell. I love Team Fortress 2, and it’ll be great to be able to join the ever-expanding community with such great developer support that houses the brilliant online shooter.

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Yesterday, we reported that Half-Life 2 had been confirmed for a Mac arrival. Well, with today’s weekly Wednesday Steam update, we saw that release.

I’ve been playing it almost nonstop since it was put up. Half-Life 2, HL2 Episode 1, and HL2 Episode 2 are all available for download on Mac OS X. It runs smooth as ever, and even has a few other improvements…
There is now cloud saving, allowing you to play on a Windows machine, save, and then pick up where you left off on your Mac. Or however you want to use it, like if you’re formatting your computer. Your save will be safe. This is something I’d been hoping for, and I’m really happy that they’ve taken the initiative to include it.
Another change is small graphical updates. I haven’t really noticed them, but then again, I haven’t played Half-Life 2 in a year or so.
And the final change is achievements, giving you another reason to run through again. (Does this help you justify it to yourself? As if you needed to.) There are 33 achievements available in Half-Life 2, 13 in Episode 1, and 22 in Episode 2.

On top of all of that, Valve has also pushed out a Mac-exclusive HL2 and Portal update, just a bit ago. For HL2, it fixes some font issues the game was having and also a crash that was occurring.
Portal’s update brings about better performance with the particle rendering on lower-end GPU’s and “made acid pits more performant.” All of these updates have come out for Mac, and seeing how HL2 was just released for the platform today, it makes me feel as if Valve is really sticking by its oath to make Mac OS X a tier-one gaming platform. They’re already showing the community great attention and fixing bugs as they come. Mad respect, Valve.

This was an incredibly exciting release for me.. Half-Life 2 is one of my favourite games of all time, and I’m happy to be able to replay it in my preferred operating system. This also gives me hope for next week’s update.
I’m really hoping that they finally budge and release Team Fortress 2. TF2 is a fantastic online first-person shooter that I would absolutely love to play. (Can’t play it on my Windows partition unfortunately, because of some wifi issues that prevent me from having a constant connection.) Or even Counter-Strike: Source. In fact, I think I would prefer that, just for the nostalgia. Either way, I hope next week is a great update, and not like last week’s uneventful Valve-less update.

Also, if you haven’t purchased The Orange Box yet, do that now. If you’re a Mac gamer, four out of the five games are now available, waiting only on Team Fortress 2. It’s the best deal in all of gaming, and I recommend it more than just about anything else.

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On their blog, Sony announced that they are planning on introducing 3D capabilities to the PS3 before the end of 2010, by releasing an update of the PS3 firmware. This new 3D technology has been illustrated best in the popular Avatar game, as was released by Ubisoft. Now Sony has announced the use of the technology to be introduced first in one of their most successful game series: Kill zone 3.

Besides announcing the 3D functionality for both; the game and the console, some more details regarding Kill zone 3 were disclosed on the blog. The new installment will pick up, where the 2009 installment: Kill zone 2 left off. In Kill zone 2, the Interplanetary Strategic Alliance continued the fight on the Helghan home world, instead of earth, where it all started in 2004.

According to Hermen Hulst; managing director of Guerilla Games, the Helghan home world will be larger, with expanded environments, different enemies and more of them and overall a much broader scope of Helghan, and its wealth of different surroundings. These changes to a broader world, are mainly due to gamer complaints about Kill zone 2, who were not satisfied with the limited surroundings of the game.

Hulst also disclosed new features that will be implemented in the new installment, like jetpack game play, and an exciting new “melee” attack, that is only described as brutal. These new features, hint at air battles, and other exciting new combat situations, we haven’t  seen before in the Kill zone series.

When the new installment of the popular games franchise from Sony, will be due for release was not disclosed, and is yet to be announced.

We will keep a close eye on any news regarding this new installment of one of Sony’s most successful gaming franchises, so stay tuned for more news on this one!

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The upcoming seventh game in the Call of Duty series (entitled Call of Duty: Black Ops) was announced a few days ago, for release on November 11th this year. It’s being developed by Treyarch (of Call of Duty 3 and World at War infamy). Let’s hope they don’t screw up this time.

Well, the trailer was revealed last night (first on Spike TV, then a few hours later on the official Black Ops website). The short video clips in the trailer show several different locations as well as a variety of weaponry. It’s a bit hard to really tell what’s going on most of the time, as everything happens very quickly. However, in the beginning of the trailer, it looks like you’re in some sort of operating room. You hear a man say “This should help you remember everything…” And then you see several clips of warfare.
This leads me to believe that the bulk of the game is in flashback form. You’re just controlling the memories of this person (sorta like Assassin’s Creed, kinda).
It’s an interesting theory, and I’m looking forward to seeing how accurate it is.

On GAME’s webpage for the game, they had a description up (now removed) that may have jumped the shark in a huge way. It said,

Now you will witness the birth of the Elite Special Forces and take part in off-the-record missions using unconventional weaponry to get the job done. From Cuba to the Arctic and the jungles of Vietnam, Call of Duty: Black Ops features stunning cinematic graphics and intense gameplay that puts you right at the heart of the action!

The way the last sentence is put makes me believe that this game may not just be a copy/paste of Modern Warfare 2 with a different setting, like World at War was to the original Modern Warfare.
While I am looking forward to this game… Keep in mind, this is Treyarch. Don’t get your hopes up too high for anything game-changing or really significantly different from the last iteration at all.

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3. Game Sequels: Better Than Movie Sequels

Where the first 13 days of Hell was only a shooting game, that would only require you to aim shoot and reload, the new  installment entails much more and is a full fletched first person shooter, that  looks and sounds every bit as uncanny as the famous Doom PC games.  In 13 more days of  Hell you will walk through a maze of corridors and hallways, guided by a guardian who also doubles as the store sales man, where you can buy ammo, weapons and health potions during the game(And you will need them!).  weapons and ammo can also be found through the levels, and like with the first game the number keys allow you to select the various weapons, provided that you have them in your arsenal.

Sound – Rating: 8/10

The sounds in 13 more days of Hell are minimal, yet very effective. The sounds are simply integrated into the atmosphere adding to the tension, which is the same kind that provided so much excitement in the early Doom games. Throughout every step of the way a player will have the same eerie feeling that an undead creature may jump him at every corner, and usually they will. While the maze of corridors and hallways is large, the sounds and looks will at times make a player feel slightly claustrophobic, which is exactly the feeling one should have when walking through an area, knowing creatures can and will pop up from anywhere. The sounds of the different guns are well done also. A gun sounds like a gun and a gun with silencer will sound as such.  Overall, the sound effects are very well done, without overdoing it.  For example, when a player uses a health potion, you hear him sigh in relief, as the bar becomes full again. 13 more days of Hell definitely is not a game, with your average sound effects, that plague so many other flash games.

Graphics – Rating: 7/10

The graphics are well designed, especially the surroundings. Like with the sounds, much thought has gone into designing the hallways and corridors, creating the perfect atmosphere for a Doom like first person shooter game. The creatures themselves are adequate, but in that area there is room for improvement, as they often look a little blurred. Of course one cannot expect graphics like Far Cry yet from a flash game, but they still can be a little better than they are in 13 more days of Hell. Looking at the game in general one can’t escape the impression that most of the thought and detail has gone in to  the surroundings, and the lost souls were simply ported in from the original game. The guardian looks crisp and very detailed, but does not move, which is another minor drawback from the game. It’s not a big thing, and certainly does not take away from the game, but it is one more detail, that could be improved upon to make the game feel just that little bit more realistic. One little detail I also was sorry to see go, was the eerie reddish mist they used in the original game, where the undead creatures would emerge from. Adding that to the new game would in my opinion be the crown on the project, and would have given the whole game that finishing touch. Perhaps this will be a good suggestion for part 3.

Game Play – Rating: 8/10

The game plays, looks and feels very much like the first two Doom games, or Castle Wolfenstein for that matter. The controls are similar, just like the well known current FPS games, like Counterstrike, Far Cry and the others.  “W” to walk forward, “A” for walking to the left, “D” to go right and “Z” to walk backwards. The mouse is used to turn, aim and shoot. The number keys are used to switch weapons. And the space-bar is used to reload. To anyone that has ever played a first person shooter game, this should be very familiar territory. In addition to the well known keys there is the “H” key that obviously stands for health, and if in possession of a health position is used to restore the hero’s health.
It’s all very intuitive and will take the average gamer less than 2 seconds to master.

So, have we got a perfect game here, game play wise? No, like with everything else in this game the game play is good but there certainly is room for improvement. A player is able to turn to all sides, using the mouse, but cannot look up or down, something that is very common in other first person shooter games. This is something  13 more days in Hell also has in common with the first Doom and Wolfenstein games. The first versions of the FPS gaming genre, also lacked that feature. Again this is nothing major, and won’t  keep you from having loads of fun with this game, but having the feature, makes it just this much more realistic, while playing. The same goes for the inability to jump or crawl. It is not necessary for this  game, but being able to do so, makes movements that much more natural and real. Also the limits of the small flash screen take away from the game play, as it makes movement not as natural and swift like we are used to while playing Doom full screen. This can be easily solved by playing the game full screen, provided the arcade site you are playing on offers this feature.

Re-Playability – Rating 7/10

As far as replay value goes on flash arcade games, it is usually the addictiveness that holds the attraction, but once all levels have been conquered, the game loses its attraction, and it’s off to another game, to kill some time with. This is certainly not the case with 13 more days in Hell. This game is a whole different beast, and with its Easy, Medium and Hard settings, it will keep you coming back for at least 3 more rounds, after you have finished the last level. In fact it will be hard to compare this game with most arcade games, as it looks, feels and plays like a fully fledged first person shooter, that does not have to shy away, next to famous titles like Doom I and II, Castle Wolfenstein and even next to the ground breaking Quake I. Of course, it lacks features especially Quake I already possessed, but it comes close, so close, FPS developers, should start getting worried, as Flash games are catching up at an amazing rate.

Conclusion

13 more days in Hell, has turned out to be an excellent sequel to a game that was great, but no more than that. With this latest installment the creators truly show what they can do when they set their mind to it, and though there is room for improvement, one cannot help but be amazed about what they managed to do with a flash game, that requires no lengthy installs, downloads but simply plays from your browser. 13 more days is a fun game that will provide you with hours of good clean gaming fun, bringing back the days we played doom on our 386 personal computers, preferably with the lights turned off in order to gain a greater shock effect. Currently, 13 more days in Hell is one of the best zombie games available on flash arcade sites. Looking at the way the game has evolved, I for one cannot wait until the third installment will be released, and hopefully they will manage to amaze us once again with an FPS game that comes even closer to the ones we are used to playing today.  From the looks of it, I think it won’t be long now, until we see the first flash FPS multi player game.

Overall – Rating 8/10

13 more days in Hell, has turned out to be quite a surprise. After having played the original game, I expected more of the same, perhaps with other characters thrown in the mix, but nothing could have prepared me for this sequel, that is more like a recreation of the game, and this time the way it should have been. All the elements that make for a great FPS are there, and save from a few minor factors that do not take away from the gaming fun, they have come close to releasing a perfect game as far as I am concerned.  I rate it 8 out of 10, and if they continue developing down this road I expect to be able to rate even higher when the next installment will be released.

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