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After a short hiatus involving quite a few “real life” moments, I bring to you something fresh and tasty.
Delta Heavy does a fantastic remix of Nero’s Must Be The Feeling, from one of the best albums of 2011 Welcome to Reality.
This remix alternates between hard bass line and the more subtle vocals of the Nero mix bringing about a concoction of sounds that blends extremely well together. At 6 minutes long it is a bit of an anthem and is sure to get you moving.
Nero – Must Be The Feeling (Delta Heavy Mix)
Jessie J - Nobody’s Perfect (Netsky Remix)
So, I have been on this Drum & Bass kick for a few weeks now, and I really enjoy the remix of Jessie J’s - Nobody’s Perfect by Netsky. This song is rather poppy, which is no big surprise considering the original is a pop song, but Netsky does a fantastic job of converting it into an upbeat yet still mellow drum and bass anthem.
Tribes, a franchise synonymous with early PC Gaming that has seemingly been lost by the wayside. No longer! Tribes: Ascend, announced last year in March at PAX East is being released early this year. The game is playable via a closed online beta on PC (register here), and I have been having quite a bit of fun with it as of late. While I have not spent an extensive amount of time (only 20 or so hours) in the game, I feel qualified to give you some honest initial impressions.
Unlike the typical PC shooter these days which feature a much slower based game play, Tribes focuses on pure speed and high flying acrobatics. Strap on your Jet-pack and get ready to use those skis because you will be flying over the terrain like an Olympic class downhill skier in no time (albeit strapped with fusion disc launchers and grenades). The system for gaining and keeping speed is so intuitive that you will have no issues chasing down flag carriers via a precise combination of Jet-pack boosts and downhill ski landings after only a few games. The Jet-Pack (right mouse) and the skis (space bar) are your primary means of transportation, with WASD walk/run movement being used only to change directions rapidly. You really get a sense of speed in this game, the developers clearly intended you to be moving at tremendous rates. Heck, most maps start you on a high cliff with nothing but good clean ski ramp beneath you just to get you haulin’ into the fight faster!
The weapons in this game are not your typical bullet based linear fire systems, you know, where when you click the bullet hits what you are pointing at. The real mans gun in this game, making a return from its franchises predecessors, is a slow projectile disc launcher. The launcher instant kills on direct contact or causes significant splash damage when exploded near an enemy. The game also features several other mortar type weapons, rifles and sniper rifles if you are really into that kind of thing. Seriously though, there are tons of weapons for everyone, with customizable classes to boot!
Speaking of customizable classes… Did I mention the game has customizable classes? With some recent updates you now start the game with three classes, a Scout (fast moving, light armor, light weaponry), a Soldier (medium speed, medium armor, medium weaponry) and a Juggernaut (slow speed, heavy armor, etc…) with many other classes unlockable via XP earned each game (based on performance and achievements earned) and upgrades available to many different facets of each class e.g. armor, weaponry, perks.
There are the standard array of game types available to play such as Team Death Match (with an added flag carrier team bonus effect), Capture The Flag (vehicles, bases with destructible defenses, lots of fun), and… to be honest I have not played of the other game types. I love the first two too much to have paid attention to the others. There are more on the menu though, I swear.
Here is the icing on the cake folks, the game is FREE TO PLAY! Much like League of Legends where you play for free but have access to some premium content with a purchase from their online store, the game is totally free. You can buy faster XP rates and a few new equipment/load out options or just enjoy a nice shooter with your friends for free.
If you are bored of your typical shooter, and want something new and original, give Tribes: Ascend a shot! The combination of speed, interesting new weapons, custom load outs and being free to play is almost impossible to pass up.
Ben Edwards
Aaron West
Brain
