Join Tom as he attempts to find matches on the Soul Calibur VI Network Test that went live on the 28/09/18 and will cease on the 30/09/18. Will he get to play any matches? Of course he does...eventually! ;)
Tom Plays Rise of the Tomb Raider (PS4)
Having recently completed Tomb Raider 2013, yes Tom's been playing that game on and off for a while, he thought it was the perfect time to check out its sequel, 'Rise of the Tomb Raider' right around the time that the sequel to that game, 'Shadow of the Tomb Raider' has been released. Needless to say, Tom's got plenty of catching up to do!
TMA 198 – Croc Tower
Have a guess what we’re doing in the wake of the Playstation Classic announcement? Playing a little guessing game as to what’s on the console! Besides that, Tom’s finally beaten a video game he’s been playing for 5 years, Mat’s salivating over a Katamari Port and we get the low down on EGX 2018. Cor! That’s a lot for one podcast for sure! You’re welcome internet!
Listen here.
Tom Plays GTA: Vice City (PS4)
What's your favourite GTA game? For Tom's money, it's Vice City.
Join Tom as he scratches the itch for virtual criminal activity and 80's vibes...
OVER 18's ONLY! ;)
Rare: From 8-Bit To Xbox One - Exhibition Tour
Neil headed off to The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum in Coventry last weekend to witness a fantastic new exhibition celebrating legendary British video game developer, Rare!
The exhibition is called 'Rare: From 8-Bit To Xbox One' and covers three decades of iconic games such as Battletoads, Banjo-Kazooie, GoldenEye and Viva Piñata.
Then set sail on the Sea of Thieves and explore how Rare’s latest release was made!
The Exhibition is on until the 23rd of September, for more details, check out the link below:
Blast Zone! Tournament - Steam Review (PC)
A REVIEW BY IAN CHANDLER
Do you like Bomberman? Do you like dressing up your in game character in different outfits? Do you like loot boxes? Then you’ll LOVE Blast Zone! Tournament, currently in Early Access on steam, the sequel to Bomb Buddies (unfortunate name?) from Victory Lap Games
The game starts with bright colourful menus and thumping techno music (though I am old so it could be any one of the millions of thumpy noises them kids listen to these days). Your avatar has the super-deformed big head anime look and has literally billions (10 billion combinations according to the publisher) of outfits, hairstyles etc. so you could spend hours dressing your little bomberperson. Also there are loot boxes you can buy for real money full of outfits and numerous other stuff.
There are ten game modes such as Free for All, Team Deathmatch, Treasure Mode (coins are sometimes released when bombs go off) and Zombie Mode, which turns any dead players into zombies who can walk through blasts and infect other players. Lots of Power-Ups are available to increase Speed and Bomb Range, as well as Ultimates which offer other abilities like being able to throw or kick bombs across the screen.
The one player mode has 240 levels divided into 7 zones like Jungle, Pirate Ship and a Disco dance floor. The multiplayer options cover 283 levels across the 7 zones and allows up to 32 online players at the same time. Victory are targetting this as an esport, and like other esports games the PC requirements are minimal, listing only a Pentium with 512Mb graphics needed to run it (though I wonder how well such a machine will handle 32 players on screen at once) and I had no issues running it at a good speed with my somewhat-overkill Ryzen 7 and GTX1080.
So, aside from loot boxes, costumes and hundreds of levels, how does it actually PLAY?
Very well in fact, super smooth with bright colourful graphics and a good learning curve so even someone not good at Bomberman in the past can get a good game in. The one player game has a good variety of challenges and is a good way to train you for the multiplayer, which is where the long term fun is to be had. Having a screen full of characters and bombs going off in all directions really is a lot of fun with friends, and the deep customisation and many game modes really reward extended play. It’s not cheap at £15.49, but there is a lot there if you enjoy Bomberman and multiplayer gaming in general.
So, if you liked Bomberman you’ll love it, if you didn’t this won’t change your mind.
- Ian
Blast Zone! Tournament was provided for an unbiased review, all views expressed are those of BlastProcess.com
You can find more out about the game at the Victory Lap website:
Tom Plays WWE 2K18 (PS4)
It's a Tom Plays first, we play a wrestling game! The most recent in fact (until the next yearly update is released), WWE 2K18!
Tom jumps into the MyPlayer mode, where he creates a new wrestler and joins wrestling boot camp before heading off to appear on NXT, sadly though, Tom finds little in the way of actual wrestling in this mode, instead confronted with short snippets of gameplay and plenty of load screens.
He does however play a proper match nearer the end of the video and is happy to report that the actual Wrestling is top notch and looks fantastic!
NOTE: It would seem none of the in-game music plays back when streamed! That's pretty interesting, sorry about that, had no idea - Tom
TMA 197 – Better than Strictly!
On yet another TMA, the boys discuss more than the latest episode of strictly and haiku’s! Tom’s been playing some Tetris (and quilting), but also finding Yakuza Kawami to be less than what was promised in terms of Shenmue succession. Mat’s been playing some Donut County and forcing things into holes… Beyond that, the boys debate the length of games, discuss some of their favourite retro retailers and have a good old natter about originality in games!
Listen here.
Parry's Pickups! Episode 67... - Birthday Bonus Import Special!
What? How? There's more Parry's Pickups!? You may be asking yourselves this question, you may not be, but it's true, all of it!
Let me explain, this video came about because there's no Episode 67 of Parry's Pickups, I accidentally missed it out...somehow... Seeing as it was my Birthday coming up and I'd bought myself a few games from Genki Video Games to celebrate, I thought, let's do a new one and make up for the missing episode!
Please enjoy :)
NOTE: This vid is NOT a paid advertisement for Genki Video Games, I do however highly want to recommend them as a great place to get imported games online. I've been buying games from them for years and the service is impeccable and I just wanted to give something back as a way of saying thanks!
Check out the site at the link below:
Crooked Dice Children of The Fields 7TV Unboxing
We unbox some Children of the Fields miniatures by Crooked Dice!
Crooked Dice specialise in war games rules and miniatures inspired by the many and varied iconic worlds of 60s-70s Cult TV.
Go check them out! http://www.crooked-dice.co.uk/wp/
Tom Plays Yakuza Kiwami (PS4)
Tom has been persuaded by his podcasting buddy Mat to give Yakuza another another try, if only as a way to see how the genre of cinematic story driven adventure games have progressed since 1999's landmark, Shenmue.
From this hour-long play from the beginning of the game, Tom has come to the conclusion that, in Yakuza, the cutscene is king!
Guilt Battle Arena (Switch) - Let's Play - 3 Players!
Join Mike, Neil and Tom as they play a 3-player game of Guilt Battle Arena on the Nintendo Switch! Guilt Battle Arena is a frantic, local multiplayer party game for 1 to 4 players created by Invincible Cat. Make room on your couch for friends, pick an insanely cute character, and turn the competition up to 11! Engage your friends and family or compete against AI foes in frantic couch combat battles. Don’t forget to pick-up your bullet after firing your gun if you want to win!
The game is available now for Nintendo Switch from the Nintendo eShop. It's also available on PS4, Xbox One and Steam.
To read more about the game check out the Invincible Cat Website:
And also here at the Publisher's site:
TMA 196 – Walking Normal
On this week’s TMA, the boys finally hash out a debate 2 years in the making! Shenmue Vs. Yakuza! We talk about what we love in the games, what we hope will be their futures and the merits of English Vs. Japanese voice acting!
Besides that, Mat’s been to Paris video game hunting and Tom’s been busy thinking of a Haiku to describe his feelings on Sonic 2 for the Master System! Yup, it’s quite a podcast!
Listen here.
BROTHERS Board Game Review
'Brothers' is a board game created by Christophe Boelinger with art by Xavier Houssin. It's an abstract strategy type game, featuring a Modular Board with a Tile Placement game mechanic. It's easy to set-up and learn and would be suitable for kids and adults alike.
GAME DESCRIPTION: You and your brother are peaceful farmers... Or at least you were! Your herds are getting too big for the pasture. Outsmart your brother by placing your enclosures so he can’t correctly place his and show him that you’re the one with a head for cattle in the family.
Blast Process were lucky enough to be sent a copy for review but before we get into playing the game it must be unboxed first! So lets lift the lid on 'Brothers' and see what's inside shall we!?
Brothers is a small but perfectly formed package that's built from quality materials and makes for a simple, fun unboxing experience. But, how does the game play? Is it any fun? How easy is it to learn? We answer all those questions in the video below!
As you can probably tell, we enjoyed the game a lot, it was simple to set up, easy to learn but delivered a strategic and fun experience. The Blast Process Team are happy to report that we give 'Brothers' a massive thumbs up!
- Tom
You can find out more about the game here: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/2...
Also head on over to the Ankama website for more great games: https://www.ankama.com/en
Nigel Parkinson draws Dennis the Menace! - Manchester Comics and Reading Festival 2018
Neil popped along to the Manchester Comics and Reading Festival where he met Comic Artist, Nigel Parkinson who has been cartooning for the Beano for many a year.
Nigel kindly agreed to create a very special Dennis Menace drawing for him, thanks Nigel!
You can check out Nigel's blog at the link below: http://nigelparkinsoncartoons.blogspo...
Neil popped along to the Manchester Comics and Reading Festival where he met Comic Artist, Nigel Parkinson who has been cartooning for the Beano for many a year. Nigel kindly agreed to create a very special Dennis Menace drawing for him, thanks Nigel! You can check out Nigel's blog at the link below: http://nigelparkinsoncartoons.blogspo...