Mavericks 10.9.2 Review

There comes a time in everyone's life when they must update their operating system to the latest and greatest. So a mere two patches later and Mac OS Mavericks seemed usable. With great trepidation, a Time Machine and a (fully bootable) SuperDuper! backup, I set out to ride this wave.

I came from Lion not Mountain Lion but the first thing I noticed and liked, is that it really isn't that different. There are a lot of features Apple has listed to wow you but most of these are really only for a minority of people. Enhanced Dictation is a bit of fun but it only has limited appeal and gets half of what you say wrong anyway. It is great that iBooks is finally on Mac but at the same time I don't really see myself reading that many books on it anyway. The power saving features are probably the biggest boost to most users with LAPTOP reporting a 41 minute gain in battery life during their testing. The main features I like, are the iCloud features introduced in Mountain Lion but now I get all that for free. I think this is the update Apple had to have. Firstly it's free, secondly as much as they want you to think it, it isn't that exciting of an upgrade. Instead it focuses on getting the core things right and although it took them two iterations, in my testing at least, it is finally stable.

Oh look, Apple Maps how great! I can't wait to delete that. Oh, you can't, what a surprise.

It gives you features that nobody wants like Apple Maps and a harder to read yet still kinda ugly calendar. The notification centre is a combination of cool and annoying. I find it most useful for iTunes and extremely annoying for text messages, as it means I get one notification on my Mac and then a spilt second later on my phone. Yes I know you can turn it all off but there isn't even a simple way to default it to all notifications off. Instead you either have to do each app manually, or set "do not disturb" mode up, which will still leave a 1 minute gap where you could receive notifications.

Now onto performance. First I'll start with my 7 year old MacBook Pro 3,1. Now I have to say it does not have a functioning battery right now, so it is underclocking itself as a result. Both of these tests were performed without a battery though so they are even. As you can see in the NovaBench scores below, Lion performs better, though Mavericks' graphics performance is much higher.

Lion

Mavericks

Now onto my 2011 iMac 12,2 testing in Xbench. This time Mavericks outperforms Lion hands down.

Lion

Mavericks

It isn't particularly surprising that Mavericks only improves the newest machine but I would like to do some more testing on the MacBook Pro as soon as I can get a new battery for it. The most disappointing factor for my sad old MacBook, is that there aren't really any customisation options, out of the box, that increase the speed of Mavericks at all. Yes there are Terminal commands one could run and plugins to download but there isn't really any option to turn off the bells and whistles and just focus on the core tasks.

Overall I am pretty happy with Mavericks, it was easy to get everything up and running, even things like Logic Pro and Ableton were easy to get going again. I didn't have any issue with getting both of those programs talking with my MOTU 828mkII, so I was back recording again in no time. I also really like Safari 7.0.2, mainly because Safari 6.x can't handle browsing most websites these days. There are probably only one or two, major new features that most people will use in Mavericks, so there is little to be excited about but I think it is worth the update because of some of the more boring things going on under the hood. Whilst older computers aren't going to see an upgrade in speed you may want to upgrade them just to get around any compatibility issues you may have. For those who are Mac purists and aren't familiar with using iOS, I think Mavericks may be a little alienating, though it doesn't change a huge amount, it is a definite step in the direction of linking the two together. My official recommendation is to backup heavily then upgrade and I'll see you when 11.0.2 is out.

Octodad Dadliest Catch [Mac, Linux, Windows, PS4]

This game is killing me. I was so excited for a full-blown Octodad game but now I just can't play it. I fire it up for a bit and then after a few minutes I want to stop. This makes it nearly impossible to review but I have stuck with it. I am going to make this a short review because I need my sanity.

The controls are fun because they are so wild and a little bit unpredictable but that also makes them so taxing. The most fun I have, is when I get so frustrated that I go on a rampage and do all the wrong things, or the game glitches out a little bit and something whacky happens. Unfortunately, that isn't the aim of the game. I just don't care to complete the games puzzles as they don't feel rewarding at all. The only reward is more awkward puzzles and more frustration. I'm sure there are sadomasochists out there who would love this game but that really isn't my style.

I hate these escalators so much!

Octodad is fun at times but the frustration overtakes the moments of joy. Sure the graphics might be better and there is a bit more polish but when Octodad was a freeware game it was short and to the point, unique even but it lacks any real new ideas since then. Playing this game makes me sad, why would Octodad want to live the life of a human? Everything is so hard for him. I think the best thing to do is put him down 5/10.

That's it, leave me alone, I'm off to shock my genitals or anything more pleasurable than this. Happy Valentines Day!

Broken Age Review [Mac OS, Windows, Linux]

Man that was a short ride but what a ride! Broken Age is a point and click adventure that has been broken into two parts. For the price of $25 US dollars you get Act 1 now and when it's ready Act 2 for free later. Or you could have kickstarted it but that was a long time ago now. It even has a tie in with Australia in that the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra recorded the soundtrack.

Right off the bat you'll notice how beautiful this game is, they have gone for an animated style rather than realistic but it totally suits the theme. Perhaps the most captivating aspect is the animations. The main characters are animated so smoothly that they blend beautifully into the world and there are plenty of whacky on screen antics to keep you amused. The music is incredible, as are the sounds and the voices are supplied by a star studded cast. There is that hobbit guy and the Adventure Time guy and even that women who is in all the games.

 

Gameplay is what you would expect from an adventure game. You talk to people, get items, make the items do silly things and solve logic puzzles. In general I found the logic to be pretty understandable and you were guided enough to know what to do, without it taking away from your sense of discovery. There was one time though, when I tried to combine an item with another item but I did so too early and not in the right screen. This meant I stomped around in frustration not knowing what to do next. Aside from that I found it to be quite flowing if a little short.

You'll want to take your time with this game, get stuck on puzzles and stare at the odd animations as it is all over very quickly. This is only Act 1 though and Act 2 will be free, so it isn't a big deal but that second Act is going to take a long time to come out. To get the first half done it took 2 years but at this point the optimistic view is Act 2 will be out next year. This is disheartening because the game leaves you on such a brilliant cliffhanger. I need to know what happens next and I need to know now god damn it!

That's sort of the thing with Broken Age it was all a bit of a gamble and it still is. I feel pretty invested in the story now and I really want to know what happens next but will it be as good as what I have just witnessed? We'll just have to wait and see. Because of this it makes the game really tough to score. I had a lot of fun with it but it just leaves me wanting more and there is little to no replay value. I think I'll give it an optimistic 8.5/10. It really is a joy to play and I highly recommend it but I'm worried about getting caught in the hype and promise of the next act.

Hearthstone Beta

Aaaaargh! I have become addicted to this game, help me, it might be worse than this. Seriously though, Hearthstone might only be in beta but it is a great game. It's an online trading card game (TCG) developed by the folks at Blizzard and set in the world of Warcraft (pun not intended). It's free to play and to get into the beta all you need to do is register for it in your Battlenet account.

The game starts you out in a tutorial, which is perhaps a little longwinded and currently unskippable, at least users are reporting errors when they try to. Here you'll learn the basics like hero powers, what cards to play and when. There are 9 different heroes to choose from, each with a unique set of cards and hero power. All hero powers cost 2 mana to play and they really add to making each character distinct. Some examples of hero powers are the Warlock, who loses 2 life and draws a card or the Mage, who gets to deal one damage to any character on the board.

Cards are broken up into 3 types, spells, weapons and minions. Whilst there are cards of all types that are unique to heroes, there is a pool of neutral minions that anyone can select from. Decks are comprised of 30 cards and in Constructed mode you are limited to 2 of the same card. Constructed mode allows you to select cards from your collection, to battle it out in either casual or ranked play. You can also enter Arena mode by paying in-game gold, or real money. In Arena mode you select a hero and then a deck of 30 cards from cards randomly presented to you. There are no restrictions on how many of one card you have in this mode, which can make for some interesting decks. Playing in the Arena gives you rewards such as cards, gold and dust.

Like all TCGs a large part of the addiction factor is collecting the cards. Cards can be crafted by using dust and cards you don't need anymore can be disenchanted into dust, to make the cards you want. You can also buy packs of cards with gold and real money. I think this is a major factor in what got me hooked. There are a lot of cards to collect and creating a new deck with the shiny card you just won can be a lot of fun. And yes there are shiny cards; cards can either be standard or gold and the gold ones are animated and just look cool. The other factor is that you are given a quest everyday, which when you complete gives you gold, plus you can earn 10 gold for every 3 matches that you win. The combination of the addiction to collect and free rewards, has really sucked me in and makes me want to login everyday.

Now, onto the gameplay. It is very similar to Magic the Gathering and those sorts of card games, except it has a much better flow. There is no possibility to play a card on someone else's turn, instead you can play secrets, that are triggered when the other player meets the conditions. For example, the Counterspell secret card that Mages have, will be played on the Mages turn as an undisclosed secret. Then as soon as an opponent plays a spell, it will trigger, countering the spell. This actually speeds up gameplay a lot, as you no longer have to pause constantly and wait for someone to decide if they want to make an action. It is definitely a card game that is designed to be played on a computer and not the other way around. For me the constant flow of the game is what makes it so fun, it even has clever elements such as timed turns that get faster if someone doesn't complete their turn, i.e. goes AFK.

There are numerous glitches in the game as it is only still in the beta stage. Cards will go flying around the screen, there are flickers and odd graphical errors. Sometimes the music will stop, or the sound will appear distant, or distorted. However, the core engine is very solid and these errors rarely get in the way of the gameplay. It's always difficult to judge a game whilst it is still in beta but with the open beta already being pushed back by Blizzard I think they are going to take the time to get this right. Of course Blizzard are notorious for taking a long time with releasing their games, so it will be interesting to see how their first big foray into the world of free-to-play unfolds.

If you are looking for a fast paced action game this is not for you, however, if you want a tactical card game that your are going to end up addicted to look no further. Apply for the closed beta now, or wait for the open beta, which surely is just around the corner. Either way you better start building your card collection now and abandoning friends and family 8.8/10.

The Best Games of 2013 as Reviewed by AGS

So 2013 is over allegedly and all the developers have been far too busy eating and drinking to release much in the way of games over this silly season. So here is my top favourite games of 2013 plus one dishonourable mention.

Number 4: Sid Meier's Ace Patrol
Sid Meier's Ace Patrol was a bit of a surprise entry into the mobile world for Sid and now there is the sequel Pacific Skies. Sid Meier has done very little wrong in his career and this game shows why he is the king of turn based strategy. You can't go wrong in picking up this title or the sequel.

Number 3: Natural Selection 2

Can we use the term asymmetric gameplay whilst not talking about the Wii U. If we can then that would be the best way to describe Natural Selection 2. One team plays the aliens, the other the marines in a first person shooter view, whilst one commander on each team plays an RTS. You can't get much more asymmetrical than that, yet the game is still quite balanced and a hell of a lot of fun to play. It's 90% off right now on Steam which makes it ridiculous cheap but only for another 13 hours.

Number 2: Company of Heroes 2

A lot of titles have come and gone this year and often they have received rave reviews from the early press only to be much maligned come launch day. Company of Heroes 2 is the opposite of this, it got solid reviews but it wasn't overly hyped and it has just been getting better and better. A bunch of free content has been released and there has ben plenty of balancing patches to keep the game fair. Well worth the play if you like RTS or WWII games.

Number 1: Desktop Dungeons

It's a tough decision for me between Desktop Dungeons and Company of Heroes 2 for the number one spot but I chose Desktop Dungeons because it is so different to the bulk of titles out there. A tactical rogue-like, with kingdom building aspects is quite unique. If you are looking for something unique it is a pretty cheap game (also available on the Steam sale for another 13hrs) but beware, it is immensely challenging.

Dishonourable Mention

Mechwarrior Online was another title that got a high score from me this year and it was only officially launched in September. What I have realised after a lot of play is that this game was better in beta, in fact it was great. You would get a share of money to spend and then the whole game would be reset and you'd receive your money again. You could have so much fun with different builds and try out the new mechs and guns but now that it is fully released, it's a grind. You have to grind to get a gun and grind to get a chance to try the new mech, or spend a tonne of money. I already put $60 into it right from the start and I don't think I got a full games worth of value out of it.

Review of DeSmuME the NDS Emulator

Want to emulate DS games on your Mac, PC or Linux? Then DeSmuME is the application for you! Well probably don't try and run it on Mac as it is way too slow and I can't speak for Linux but in Windows it runs fine. Want to emulate DS games and dual (triple, etc.) boot into Windows? Then this is the application for you!

So far I have played Super Mario 64 DS, Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown wars. Some of the top rated games on the system. They have all been almost unplayable on Mac, Super Mario ran too slowly, Bowser's Inside Story had glitches as pictured below and GTA wouldn't even run. So I gave up and focused on Windows, everything ran and for the most part it ran smoothly. I did have a few issues with Bowser's Inside Story such as sound glitches and an error that almost caused it to crash, yet somehow clicking around fixed it.

To play these games I was using a Logitech Dual Action Controller as well as a mouse to control the touch screen. It worked well enough but there are probably going to be some games that won't work very well on PC; Metroid Prime: Hunters springs to mind. Though that game was basically unplayable on the DS anyway. The unique combination of touch screen and gamepad that makes up the DS is always going to be tricky to replicate but I found these games to be playable enough.

It's hard not to recommend DeSmuME even if it has a stupid name. As long as you are using it in Windows it runs quite well and there are a tonne of games out there for you to play. Yes there are some issues with the emulator but they are pretty minor and the team is still working on them, the latest update was released in the middle of this year. As long as you're willing to run DeSmuME under Windows I say go and get it and pick some ROMs up here 9/10.

What game should I buy?

What game should I buy? Is a thing I hear a lot of voices say in my head and today I am here to answer it!

Total War: Rome II [Windows] - It's so buggy at the moment I wouldn't even pirate it. It's gonna need a month before it's solid, so use that time to make yourself the new gaming rig you're going to need to run it on max.

Prison Architect [Windows, Mac OS]- The game has been released in alpha form for nearly a year now, surely it has entered beta. Nope, still in alpha, with over 7 million dollars worth of sales you would think they would hire a bunch of people to get the game out, nope to that too. Get it on sale, or don't, like Minecraft this game will never be fully finished and by the time it is, you'll be over it.

Space Hulk - [Windows, Mac OS] It's so clunky it makes board games seem like highly efficient calculation machines. I played it and then forgot it even existed. Instead, get the board game and a friend, spend all your time painting the miniatures and discussing tactics. Or don't, get addicted to crack and copulation, wind up famous on Big Brother and regret it for the rest of your life.

Probably don't buy any games right now. I mean you can get Star Wars pinball free on your idevice; sure some things will shit you about it but it's free and Star Wars, so you can't complain too much. GTA V and Watch Dogs will be out soon, so you should save up enough for two copies of those, one for you and one for me to review. Thanks!

0 A.D.

0 A.D. is a free game made by a community of volunteers and is an Age of the Empires style RTS. The game is only in alpha but they have a pretty solid build available for download on their site. The project still has a long way to go but amazingly you can already play it on Windows, Mac OS and Linux. I've tested it on Windows 7 and Mac OS 10.7.5, here's what I found.

Both versions seemed to run equally well, however, the game has yet to be optimised so when a lot of stuff starts to happen, the game starts to chug. The thing that strikes you at first is how beautiful the game is. The landscapes are incredible and most of the unit models are pretty good too, they just requiring some touching up here and there. Still it's pretty good for a community run project.

There are a lot of little bugs and features missing at the moment. One of the most annoying things is that workers will get stuck on each other and do this silly little dance back and forth, unable to pass one another. Like in Age of Empires  you can queue up units to come out in one big go. You shift click on the units you want and that will increase the number by five, you can keep doing this until you let go of shift and it will plop out 5, 10, 15 etc. The downside to this though, is that there are no warnings for having reached your population cap and this technique can really chew through your allowance. There are also no battle notifications as of yet either so it can be a bit confusing when you come under attack.

The gameplay is a lot like Age of Empires but there are a few differences. One thing I found whilst learning about these differences, is that even set to the easiest difficulty the AI is quite difficult. They always manage to find the one weak spot in my defences and raid my base. The first time I won a  game against the AI, I found the combat to be a little lacklustre. Skirmishers will run off in tangents firing at foes who get too close and because the game chugs when there is so much on screen it makes it very hard to manage.

The game clearly needs a lot of work but still, I am quite impressed with what they've done. It's the kind of project I will check back on from time to time to see how they are progressing. They are also always keen to have people work on the project so there is always that avenue to pursue, if you're interested. It's well worth checking out and I can't wait to see how it is when they enter the beta phase.

Papers, Please Review

This game encapsulates the drudge and monotony of working in a clerical job a little too well at times but it does also add a lot of twists and turns to bring in some excitement. The constant pressure to do a good job and make enough money to support your family, is enough to turn anyone to a little corruption...

It's amazing how much the game can convey with such a simple art style, in fact it only adds to the gameplay rather than detracts. Part of the reason simple art looks so good in this, is because it's set in a fictitious Soviet block country, during the 1980's. An art style like this really makes the little things stand out, for example, guards are normally blue in colour but your friend the guard, he is in green. The simplicity of the art style really conveys the depressing nature of the job but little things, like knowing your friend the green guard wants to speak to you, gives you hope.

The gameplay is a strange mix of absolute boredom, as you process yet another application, to the exhilarating adrenaline rush, of shooting your first terrorist. It's sort of more social experiment than game at times and it makes me feel sorry for all the lowly people getting their work done in a government position (well at least until I remember they get each and every public holiday off). I want to come back and find all the different endings to this game, yet at the same time I can't play very many game days, without wanting to stop. Like you're proverbial average job, it's tedious, frustrating and can't be done well as you tire

It's a great game, it's a terrible game, if the premise interests you at all, I would say it is well worth the mere $10USD admission price, even if you are just curious. It's never going to be for everyone but then that is the beauty of indie games 7.8/10.

Should You Buy Shadowrun Returns?

Shadowrun Returns is an interesting little Kickstarter project, that holds its roots in a pen and paper roleplaying game. If you have been looking for a Sci-Fi RPG and you are keen to make your own content using the editor, I say go and buy it right now. It's only $20 USD and if this is your thing, it is well worth the price. For the rest of us it's best to hold of until a Steam sale comes along. Let's take a look at why.

The game lacks content. Right now all you get is a fairly short adventure, people are reporting it is taking them from 8 to 13 hours depending on the difficulty they are playing. It's not a bad little adventure, in a way it's nice that it is short but it has no replayability, due to it being so linear. People are working on their own content now and there are a few short adventures already out but most of them are still in the test phase. Which brings me to the next point.

The editor is powerful but difficult to use, I'd recommend checking out the tutorial videos here first. It's fine if this is what interests you but for the average gamer it is going to take way too long to learn and I can't really recommend it. Like I mentioned before, in a few months time the game will probably be on sale on Steam and users would have generated some great content for it. 

The game has all of the core mechanics sussed out and your characters are very flexible in what they can be upgraded to do, there is just not that much of anything to do. Jacking into the matrix is cool, you basically run about blasting programs as a virtual version of yourself. There are heaps of skills and abilities to learn, like magic, using throwing weapons etc. but there is little need to know most of these things at the moment. There is a huge system running at the core of this game that should even make the pen and paper adventurers happy but without content it feels a little lacklustre.

So the verdict is, buy it now if you have to, otherwise wait until it's on sale and there is a lot more user created content.  Harebrained Schemes have stated they are adding an extra graphical pack for those who want to make their own adventures and there is already a strong community around it, so it's just a matter of time 7.5/10.

What We Want From Apple

Apple announced a lot at WWDC and I think most of it is good news. However there is still a lot left unsaid and there is plenty more they could do. 

Like a lot of people, my first reaction to iOS 7 is that it looks ugly and a lot like Windows Phone but after watching some hands on videos, I'm going to have to wait until I see it in the flesh to really make that call. The thing that really struck me were the bright colours and the adage, "cheap and cheerful" immediately popped into my head. They way the background moves in relation to the icons, as you move the device around, is super pretty but this is going to be using extra clock cycles on your cpu and gpu. So is all that translucency. What we really want here is the battery saving performance from Mavericks. In theory all of that stuff sounded great but there was no mention of such things for iOS.

Sticking with iOS 7, I would agree that most of these new features are just catching up to their competitors but I think they are going just a tiny bit further in most regards. New ways to search the app store is something that is very much needed right now and I can't think of any app store at the moment, that I would say has great app finding functionality. Most of the other functions they have taken the best of both Android and Windows and cobbled them together, which is a good thing, well until they get sued. I sincerely hope that they have thought out the automatic update feature and stolen the "only on wifi" setting from android, whilst ensuring we get unobtrusive notes on what was changed.

The final point about iOS that I want to make is, nobody wants Apple Maps in their car. If Apple wants people to be interested in Apple Maps, they have to cram it full of data like Google Maps. You can type almost utter nonsense into Google Maps and it will find the damn thing you are looking for. Apple Maps doesn't even know half of the abbreviations for street types like Pde, typing in such a thing will blow it's mind! If they want people to take it seriously they need to work away in the background, doing the boring data collection and minor tweaks that Apple infamously hate to do. Connecting your device to your car was probably Apple's biggest new feature this launch and it is kind of disappointing, that said, I am sure they are holding something back for the 5S due out later this year.

Now onto the Mac stuff. Let's get the most important thing out of the way, Mavericks is a crap name. I think Apple should move onto small cats and call it Ocelot. There is plenty of room for them to move with these names and they could even finish on Sea Cat.

Okay so now that is out of the way, onto the serious stuff. I actually really like Mavericks and I think it will be the one to update to from Lion. So this is my first issue, can we go straight from Lion to Mavericks? Mountain Lion didn't interest me at all and I think a lot of people felt the same, so I hope this is an easy process. One that doesn't involve purchasing Mountain Lion or doing a clean install. The changes to power and RAM usage sound great, though we'll have to wait to see independent tests. Better integration with iOS devices sounds good to me too but I am more excited about finally getting iBooks. There is a lot of exclusive content such as Games Workshops rulebooks available for iBooks that otherwise required an iPad. Hopefully you'll be able to get them on the Mac too.

This just leaves the MacPro. It's an interesting design and if it works as they say it does and it is priced decently, I think it will sell well but there is one problem. It isn't really expandable. You've got six whole Thunderbolt 2 plugs out the back but what are you going to plug into them? A hard drive? Fine, whatever, what we really want is a new GPU. Apple or a third party need to get GPU's that run through Thunderbolt (preferably Thunderbolt 1 so I can upgrade mine). Yes, you can do that right now but it isn't guaranteed to work. Add to this that everything is so expensive for Thunderbolt, even simple hubs, and you make this option even less desirable. But what's even worse is that Apple themselves don't really support Thunderbolt either. The latest Time Capsule as no Thunderbolt port and this is a device that is supposed to be about quick backups. 

As usual Apple try to get you with the reality distortion field and for the most part it has worked but with just a few simple improvements, they could make the whole experience enjoyable, even for cynics like me.

Limbo (Mac OSX)

Limbo has finally found it's way to the Mac after being released on nearly every other platform imaginable. It was originally released on the Xbox 360 in July 2010. Limbo is a puzzle platformer that sees you playing as a boy in a very dark world.

The gameplay is reminiscent of classic puzzle platformers like Another World or the Oddworld series and like those classic games Limbo has a punishing difficulty. Miss that jump by a fraction of an inch or miss-time your run and you could be impaled, crushed or end up the dinner of something big and nasty. Watching your poor character die a thousand deaths is part of the fun of the game but it does get quite frustrating when you are stuck in the same place, seeing him die in the same way. The game sort of counts on the fact that you will get stuck in places because it is very short. Sure it has things to collect and acheivements to unlock but it is over far too quick.

Graphically the game is entirely in black and white which adds to it's overall dark tone. It's really quite creepy; your character is animated in a cute cartoon like fashion but the rest of the world is quite sinister and hostile. The spiders are some of the most terrifying things in the game and when you see one of these coming for you, you will definitely run! The animations of your character dying are also quite brutal; without a doubt this is not a game for children.

The game ran smoothly and I had no problems with bugs under Lion. However the game would constantly crash in Snow Leopard when tabbing out of the game. Overall it is a good game with plenty of strange mechanics (such as brain worms) and a creepy world that does really suck you in but it is far too short to be a premium title 7.5/10.