Gear up for Organ Trail!

Organ Trail Synopsis & Review

by Brian Rudolph

At first glance I immediately found interest in Organ Trail. It appeared to be an 8-bit zombie survival game packed with mini games. But to my surprise the game actually has a very interesting strategic element in it. 

When you begin you meet a man name Clements. Clements is a seasoned survivalist of the ongoing apocalypse and comes to your aid. He helps you get supplies together and meet up with 4 of your closest pals that you would find useful. It was actually a fun experience having the 4 teammates because you get to name them, adding a bit of personal feel into the game.  Clements is more of a tutorial type of element in the game though so you don't continue traveling with him.

So that's the introduction to the game, the actual goal of the game is to drive you and your party to the west coast where there are rumors of a cure to the zombie infection. I have yet to beat the game so I can't confirm or deny the in-game rumors. So you travel from town to town starting on the east coast of the USA. Along your travels a multitude of things can happen. Simply while the car travels to the next location you constantly get prompted with random events such as, losing supplies, gaining supplies, someone getting bitten, and all sorts of others. I actually had TDG Andrew as one of my party members and at a stop the game told me his character wandered off and was nowhere to be found and we had to go on without him. I'm still alive in that game so I'm hoping there's a way to find him eventually down the line but I'm starting to lose hope. Along with random events like that happening people can randomly get bitten which makes staying with them a lot harder. You do get the option to put someone down if need be but I never abandon my homies. Even if they hoard food. 

So let's talk about what really made me enjoy this game, the mini games. Throughout traveling there are several different mini games. There's some driving mini games where raiders will be chasing your car and you need to escape. There are shooting games where you may need to walk around and gather supplies in an unsafe location or possibly kill raiders. You can even fish for food and supplies while at a rest stop. I actually believe the mini games can be played 2 player thus making the game easier to survive. 

While traveling you need to make sure your party members, including your vehicle, stay in tip top shape. This could mean scavenging for supplies or waiting for someone to come by who might want to trade for something you need. Now there are car supplies like mufflers or gas which you need simply to get to the next location and theres party member supplies such as medkits and food. Food is constantly consumed amongst the party members and it pretty much keeps you alive throughout the game. The challenging part about Organ Trail is mainly when you need to become strategic in regards to your supplies. Eventually supplies run low and every decision you make matters more and more as your teams health decreases due to lack of food. If you're like me and don't want to put down any team members then its especially hard. So if your a fan of beautiful 8-bit art, zombies, and strategy then Organ Trail is the game for you. I bought it on sale for about $5.00 on the PSN store but its not an expensive game to begin with. I highly recommend picking it up. It'll keep you occupied for hours as you travel the county with your homies. I give the game 4/5 stars. It's very entertaining and will definitely bring me hours of entertainment. Happy traveling! 

The Following is a Review of the Following

A Review of Dying Light The Following 
By Tom LoFaso

   Since Dying Light the Following came out I’ve been immersed in it. All of the mechanics of the original game are still there with added abilities and perks that increase the fun factor. The plot moves out of Harran and into the countryside, leaving a new stunning open world to explore. Let’s dive into the details.

     The gameplay is just as fantastic as it is in the first part of dying light. The weapons are just as devastating if not more so with added upgrades making for more carnage. You can cut through even the biggest of enemies like a hot knife through butter in spectacular fashion. Also added to your inventory is a drivable buggy, which is essential to cross the extensive countryside map. The vehicle is easy to control and is absolutely fun to drive. The realistic factors to the buggy make it almost like a second character. Since it needs to be refueled from time to time, you have to scavenge gas from abandoned cars that litter the roads as well as gas stations that happen to be around the map. Another thing that adds to the realistic factor is the continued maintenance and upgrades needed to keep your buggy getting you from point A to point B. The buggy also gets a pretty cool series of upgrades including a flamethrower so you can barbeque your zombie meat before you tenderize it with the front of your car.

     The world of The Following is a beautiful one. As I said you’re in the countryside, not the dreary slums, or a ransacked Old Town. It gives you a very vast world and landscape, from deep caves containing volatile nests, to a stretching coastline, and opened plained landscaped full of deadly zombie hordes ready to corner you. For those of you who don’t live in the country or near a beach like me this is as good as it gets.

     The plot is quite fascinating. Without spoiling too much, the original protagonist Kyle Crane, is sent on a quest to investigate rumors of a group of people immune to the zombie virus. It is his job to discover the reasoning behind the group, and attempt to create a cure. The locals are unwilling to assist you so you have to complete quests to earn their trust and gain the attention of the group known as The Faceless. He quest vary from your typical “fetch quests”, to clearing out infected nests, to rescuing survivors.

   The side quests really help you explore the beautiful landscape around you. Many of them will provide you with plenty of hours of gameplay completing them in addition to the main story (I know I’ve been playing nonstop and I’m barely halfway through). It really is quite enjoyable and well crafted. So much so that you don’t want to turn the game off.

     The only qualm I have about the game really is some of the agility perks you use. The jumping finisher you get with your weapons seems to not activate every time which is annoying when you’re attempting a surprise kill. The other thing that bothers me is the grappling hook to climbing. Sometimes the game itself doesn’t register you grabbing onto a ledge and you end up falling to your untimely death in the middle of a mission. This happening a few times becomes very, very frustrating. Other than that, the mechanics are fantastic!

     I can’t wait to get back to playing The Following! I did have to take a break to write this after all. I’m just hoping the ending is more rewarding than the original dying light. Once I beat the game I’ll update on that. As for now I give The Following 4/5 stars, absolutely worth the money for the download. So grab it for your PS4 and happy zombie slaying!

VIDEO GAME REVIEW: "BLEACH - Brave Souls"

     It has been quite a while since I found a mobile phone game that was legitimately engaging, but Bleach: Brave Souls has definitely filled that gap. Not only is it an excellent game, but it looks and feels like a licensed title game. And we all know how often those games are absolute trash. I will admit, I'm not the biggest Bleach fan, but I do really enjoy anime and I thought I'd give it a try. So lets dive in together!

     The game is very simple in its goal. It's a linear brawler with RPG elements and a stage progression system, and it achieves that goal in flying colors. The character/enemy models are simplistic yet have a ton of detail. By that I mean the important details remain. While each figure is distinguishable, they are super simple in an endearing way.

     Each stage is an episode in the series, and they even have dialogue and story elements. It's basically a playable spark notes version of the anime! If you're a fan then that could be an awesome bonus for you while playing, and for someone like me who hasn't watched the entire anime it's also very entertaining.

     The set up if very easy. You unlock characters from the show and use their abilities against enemies and bosses. Each character is tailored towards their powers in the show, and there are multiple variants of each person from different moments in its timeline. You can play as starting Ichigo, and then Hallow Ichigo, and many more. They also have ratings that give you an idea of what to expect stat wise. This lets you construct a team that you can cycle through while in combat, and one will take the role in battle if another falls.

     Controls for the game are some of the best I've experienced. There's hardly any lag, and the animations while moving and fighting look excellent. You have your movement controls on the left that are clear so they don't take up a lot of space, and your attack icons are on the right. Your hero has three regular attacks, and one super attack that varies from hero to hero.

     My favorite moments are the boss fights. Every stage has a boss opponent that differs depending of the story. You actually have to take time and be sure to dodge attacks, or else you could get devastated by a special move. When it comes to minions you can wale on them for days, but the bosses show effort and stand out from the one-hit hacks.

     I have honestly enjoyed every moment of this game. I finally get a well crafted and entertaining anime game title for my phone, and I've been very excited. Now, there have been a couple downsides to this game. The worst of which being the wait time. The time you have to spend loading and reading between stages is exhausting. The stages are very fun, but most of them are incredibly short, so you'll spend ten minutes loading and reading, and five minutes in a level fighting. This can be good sometimes. If you want a game that you can knock out a quick level, feel great, and continue throughout your day, then you'll like this. But if you're expecting an immersive experience then you'll be disappointed. If that's your kinda game, then I would recommend one of the other amazing anime based games on PC and PS4. The other possible downside are the micro transactions. The good news is that you can really only buy new characters instead of paying to get past walls or wait times. So that's good! Character purchases are random spins, and prices vary from five dollars to a hundred dollars, so watch your selections carefully if you plan on buying anything.
     All in all Bleach: Brave Souls was a great game and I would strongly suggest this to anyone looking for a great "toilet time waster" (TTW as I call them), or a fun anime based mobile game. Thanks for reading everyone! :D
-Jon Todd