Overwatch

Release Date: May 24, 2016

Genre: First Person Shooter

Platforms: Xbox One, PC, PS4

Platform Reviewed On: PC

Date Reviewed: August 11, 2016

Overwatch is Blizzard's new and very different IP. Overwatch is an FPS team objective game similar to Team Fortress 2. At the time of this review there are 26 playable characters with Ana being the newest edition to the games roster. Blizzard has said they will be releases a lot more characters in the future all for free. Overwatch is one of Blizzards most anticipated game with over 15 million players worldwide and beating the top game League of Legends in Korean cafe's. First time in years.

Overwatch is a team based game where you do one of two objective modes. Capture the nodes or escort the payload. Both modes rely heavily on team communication and the right heroes for the job. The different characters in Overwatch are broken down into specific roles and each are very unique. There are attackers, defense, tanks and support. Each playing a crucial role in winning. When you join a new match you will be either attacking or defending which also changes which heroes will be good to use. At the character selection screen it will also notify you if you have to much of one type, to much of the same character, if you need a support, etc... Which is handy in picking your team with a bunch of random people. Adds some coordination to it.

There are currently 5 options to play. Quick Play which jumps you into a match right away with other people. Play with A.I allows you to play with a team of humans versus a team of A.I controlled characters. Custom Games which allows you to invite friends and create your own games. Competitive Mode which was just recently added and allows you to play a more serious version of the game. Weekly Brawls which changes every single week and is never the same (so far).

Competitive Mode allows you to increase your ranking, earn competitive points which can be used for golden weapons, and to show off your true skill. In Competitive you are only able to select one of each character which makes it so you won't be up against a team of Winstons. The matches in competitive mode are a little bit longer due to the scoring system which makes it that much more competitive.

Weekly Brawls are special modes that changes every Tuesday. This could be Hanzo and Genji's only. Tanks only. Support only. Special rules, over the top regeneration, etc... During the Summe Olympics in Rio, Overwatch introduced a new set of loot crates and a new type of game mode in the weekly brawl called Lucio Ball. The point of Lucia Ball is exactly like Rocket League where you need to get the ball into the opposite goal to score points.

Overwatch does have a leveling system where every level you receive a loot crate. These loot crates have a chance to drop commons, rares, epics, and legendaries. These may include emblems, coins, skins, character intros, etc... There is also an option to purchase loot crates with real money. Loot crates do not effect the gameplay whatsoever, it's purely cosmetic. As soon as you hit a certain level the XP caps at 22,000. The max level in Overwatch is 1890 and every 10 or so levels you unlock a brand new portrait. Every 100 levels you unlock a "prestige" like star.

Blizzard has done something truly special with Overwatch. Deep hidden story, amazing cinematics, fast paced FPS, etc.... Overwatch will only get bigger and better from here on out. The really only negative thing I have to say about Overwatch is it's price point. $60 for a full game or the basic version on PC for $40. At the time there just wasn't enough content to justify that price point. But no with all of these updates it certainly will be worth it. Even now, it's a great ton of fun.

Great!

9.5/10

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DOOM

Release Date: May 13, 2016

Genre: First Person Shooter

Platforms: Xbox One, PS4, PC

Platform Reviewed On: Xbox One, PC

Date Reviewed: August 8, 2016

Doom is finally out after all of these years since DOOM 3. I've been a DOOM fan since I was 7 years old in 1996 and was excited to buy this physically on Day One. Let me tell you, it was worth the long wait. DOOM is a franchise which takes place on Mars and Hell. You play as the notorious DOOM guy who is just badass all around.

You start the game waking up which looks like to be some sort of tomb or crypt. As soon as you get up your put on the suit and all hell breaks loose. The story is a basic but decent story, you usually do not play DOOM for the story though. It's all about feeling like a god and destroying hundreds and hundreds of demons. This game is no different. Besides the beautiful visuals this game is fast paced and plays a lot like the classic DOOM. You even have the option to changing your field of view like in the original DOOM. This version of the game introduces some nice mechanics including the rune trials, access to classic DOOM maps, a skill and gun upgrade system.

Each level you play has secrets. Within these secrets you might fine some collectibles or even some suit upgrades. You can use these suit upgrades for many different things. One example is reducing the damage you receive from exploding barrels. Each level also introduces you to combat skill points which a rewarded by completed in game tasks which is different on every level and by slaughtering demons. You use these skill points to power up your many guns and unlocking their masteries. Unlocking the masteries are not unlocked with your skill points but by performing other tasks. It's a pretty good system overall.

On top of that there are collectibles to find in each level. Every level has little figurines of DOOM guy in different suits. Whenever you grab one it plays the classic DOOM sound as you're looking at it. It makes it feel like DOOM is an open world game when in fact it is not. But it makes the game much more explorable with it's HUGE maps. On top of that you  are also able to collect codex's and learn more about the story.

Glory kills is also an excellent new mechanic in DOOM which is very useful on the higher difficulties. Whenever you weaken a demon you will notice it glows red and blue. That is the indication that you are able to press the melee button and perform a glory execution. When doing so the demons will drop health and sometimes ammo. Another good way of getting health and ammo back is killing demons with your chainsaw. The chainsaw has very limited ammo but it's a great way to get back your weapon ammo if you're running low during a battle.

The boss battles are a ton of fun! Without spoiling who they are (should be obvious) let's just say they are huge and some require some time and strategy to take down. There are a total of three bosses in the campaign all with badass music and fun ways to take them down.

When you go onto the main menu of the game there is another mode on the right side of the campaign. This is called Snapmap and it's great. Snapmap is kind of like forge from Halo but with this you have a lot more customization when building your own map. With snapmap creators have the opportunity to create their own maps, modes, events, and decide to make it online, co-op or even just a solo map. Some can vary to demon waves, park our, music makers, etc... The list never ends. ID Software is also constantly adding updates to this feature as well.

Lastly, I want to talk about the multiplayer. I personally love the multiplayer in this game and cannot get enough of it for the simple reason of it feeling exactly like Unreal Tournament and Quake. A lot of people have their complaints over the multiplayer but I don't see any reason not to like it. The only frustrating situation about the multiplayer are DLC packs mainly. At the time of writing up this review, the first DLC pack Unto the Evil came on on Friday, August 5th, 2016. Season pass holders for Xbox One have not been able to play because it will not unlock the content and Bethesda has stated they are working on it.....4 days ago and during double XP weekend which people including myself were unable to participate in with the new DLC. Besides the technical difficulties with the multiplayer, it's pretty solid overall.

Overall, DOOM is an amazing game and highly recommend it to anyone on any platform. Full of easter eggs, beautiful visuals, an amazing sound track, demons, action, guns, etc.... There is something for everyone in this title. I just hope they figure out this DLC content fast because people are getting very impatient including myself.

GREAT!

9.5/10

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Dying Light

Platform: Xbox One, PS4, PC.

Platform Reviewed: Xbox One

Genre: Open World Zombie RPG

Release Date: January 27, 2015

Date Reviewed: July 3rd, 2015

       Dying like is an open world Zombie RPG game from some of the creators of the Dead Island series. It is honestly almost exactly like Dead island but with a bit more of a serious feeling to the story and atmosphere, updates visuals and parkour....yes parkour. Without giving out to much of the story you are basically an agent who is trying to find a doctors research to a potential "cure" for the virus. It turns out they did not want the cure to actually help people but to use it as a weapon which is discovered fairly early on in the game.

Huge Open World.

       Dying Light has some interesting game mechanics that keep the game from going stale to fast. You can craft unique weapons, items, explosives and other useful tools in order to get passed the hordes of zombies. During your exploration you will come by Safe Zones which are always filled with zombies. Safe zones are all the same where you clear the area of zombies and turn on all the power to the safe zone. You can now use that safe zone as a fast travel or resting area. One thing that would have been useful in some of the safe zones would be the ability to repair your weapons you are currently using or a way to buy parts to repair the weapons. To many times my weapons would break and I would have to struggle to a safe zone. Another interesting mechanic is night time. When the sun goes down you will get a warning on your radio to seek cover or to make it back to the home base. At night time the zombies become more active and these super zombies come out to play. If they see you walking around they will attract other zombies in the area and chase you done. These are very fast and will catch up to you if you are not careful. Interesting mechanic but the day and night cycle last to long making me wait or walk very slow in this massive open world so I am not discovered.

These guys suck!

       I do appreciate the fact that Dying Light's open world is very big with lots of events, side quests, and Easter eggs to discover. Another issue I had was some of the quests felt very repetitive making you go through areas and tunnels that you've visited multiple times before which made it get boring real fast actually making me want to complete the game that much faster. The story is rather dull to be honest and doesn't do that great of a job with developing your emotions towards any of the players. There were maybe two instances where I felt a bit of emotion and one time where it was an adrenaline rush to escape but it didn't last to long. The co-op is a nice feature where you are able to open the game to anyone or your friends. I enjoy the drop in and out system where you can join your friends or other people whenever you'd like and you get to keep all experience and items earned during the co-op session.

Skill Tree. Lots of different skills.

       In conclusion Dying Light feels the same as Dead Island but with a couple of small thing added in to make it feel fresh and with a bit more of a serious atmosphere. If you are a fan of Dead Island then you will probably enjoy this game as well. I personally was not thrilled for Dying Light and stopped playing immediately after i completed the game. About up until half way through the game I actually did explore everything and do as much side quests as I could but it got boring and repetitive really fast. Good attempt but it could have been way better.

Overall Score:
6.5/10

Okay game.

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Dragonball: Xenoverse

Platform: Xbox One, Xbox 360,  PS4, PS3,  PC

Platform Reviewed: Xbox One

Genre: Fighting

Release Date: February 5, 2015

Date Reviewed: April 18th, 2015

      Dragonball: Xenoverse is the next fighting game in the Dragonball universe. The unique thing about DBX is that it is a great treat for the fans mainly due to the unique story. You play as a custom created character where you time travel to different events with Trunks. You are basically a time traveler where you travel back to different historic events and prevent the history of those battles from changing. Example in the battle with Raditz he dodges the special beam cannon and it hits Goku instead. Your goal is to defeat Raditz and correct history. As you are doing different missions you learn that something isn't right and certain villains are becoming more powerful than normal. Your other mission is to figure out who or what is causing these problems.

You're very own Character!

      DBX is a very beautiful game on next gen consoles and PC. Everything is an improvement from the last game that came out. The combat system is the same style as the previous entry in the game. The fighting style is an open world fighting system with multi fighters. So you are able to have 1 vs 3, 3 vs 3, etc.... DBX tries to make it into an online universe. The main problem they had at the start were the servers were being overloaded and it was nearly impossible to connect and play since you have to be connected at all times. Overall they do a good job making an online universe where you can see many other people in the main hub to having random offline characters wander around the main hub as well. There is online co-op and online tournaments as well. In the main hub there are multiple things you are able to do besides the main story line.

Correct History.

      In the main hub of the game you are able to shop for items, gear, accessories, aura's and many other customization options. In the main hub you are also able to do side quests and these have a pretty neat mechanic. You can farm these quests for possible loot drops such as items, dragonballs, and new skills for you character. It has an MMO style of feel to it. There are also online tournaments and the option to replay story mission to grind and get your level higher. Max level is currently level 80 which is a huge milestone. Once you hit level 80 you unlock additional character slots to create new characters if you choose to. Other news is DBX has a season pass and a lot of DLC to come with new characters and other things to expand you stay in DBX.

Good Game!

8.0/10

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Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor.

Platform: Xbox One, Playstation 4, PC

Genre: Open World RPG

Release Date: September 30th, 2014

Date Reviewed: November 30th, 2014

       Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor is another game that takes place in the Lord of the Rings series. You play as Talion, a valiant ranger whose family is slain in front of him. This takes place the night Sauron and his army return to Mordor just moments before his own life is taken from him. Talion gets resurrected by a Spirit of Vengeance and is empowered with wraith abilities. Talion ventures into Mordor and promises to destroy those who have caused him this pain. Through the course of his vendetta. Talion uncovers the truth of the Spirit that compels him, learns the origins of the Rings of Power and confronts his true nemesis.

Huge Open World.

       Shadow of Mordor has a great story line filled with a lot of emotions which really lets you feel how the main character feels and gives him a very important motive to seek out vengeance. In fact, it makes you the player feel like you have to slaughter every orc in sight! Shadow of Mordor plays a lot like Assassins Creed II but it does the controls very well. Shadow of Mordor is for the most part an open world environment. There are only two areas you are able to explore. You unlock the second area after you complete a certain main mission. There have been times where I did so much side quests and collecting everything where I didn't even touch the story missions at all and by the time I did I had more than enough xp and resources to continue on. and even killed all of the warlords. At some point after completing all of the side stuff it forces you to go back to the main mission, which is okay because it just means there is a lot to do.

Nemesis System works well.

       The nemesis system is a fantastic new system that they have added to Shadow of Mordor. Talion is able to gather intel on certain orcs who are unknown, you can then mark those orc captains or warlords and take them out. But be careful if any orc kills you they will get a power increase as well as a promotion. You let a warlord kill you and he becomes much more powerful. So if you fail, it gets harder if you succeed it becomes easier and you get the reap the rewards. You are able to control captain and warlords making them turn on other captains or warlords which can be very interesting and is fantastic! Your goal is to take them all out. On top of this new system you are able to associate quests with it as well. For example if you control one of the warlords or captains you can unlock a mission where they attack the opposing captain or warlord of your choice and you have different objectives. One may be to keep the captain you control alive.

Crazy Action!

       Shadow of Mordor has some beautiful visuals on the next gen consoles and especially the PC version. The world is wide open which gives you some great visuals and with the recent update you care able to take in game screen shots or shorts and capture the great moments you may experience. The audio side of things sound great as well. Great sound track, great voice acting for the most part, and great sound effects. These greatly add to the open world experience in Shadow of Mordor.

       Overall Shadow of Mordor is a great fast-paced open world game that a lot of people are surely going to enjoy. If you are a fan of the Lord of the Rings series or not there is something in here for everyone to enjoy and experience. On top of that the game also offers free DLC as well as some paid ones. Both are great values and highly recommended.

Overall Score:

9.0/10

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Gauntlet

Platform: PC

Genre: Action RPG

Release Date: September 23rd, 2014

Date Reviewed: September 29th, 2014

      Finally a new Gauntlet game. Well....it's a remake of the original Gauntlet. It feels and looks new. Gauntlet is back, better than ever for PC only. You can get this game for $19.99! Gauntlet plays just like the original. You start off with 4 classes (like in every Gauntlet) and you can choose between a Warrior, a Wizard, a Valkyrie, and a Ranger. Each class are unique and have their own strengths and weaknesses. when you start the game there is a mini tutorial that lets you try a quick demo of each class to get a feel for them. After you complete the tutorial you are able to choose what class you want to play as. After you choose the class it will give you an option to play with mouse and keyboard or a gamepad. The mouse and keyboard work well for the Ranger, Warrior and Valkyrie. However, the Wizard is a bit more complicated and is easiest with the gamepad. You start off in the Gauntlet and if you complete that Gauntlet you will be rewarded with piles and piles of gold and riches. However, as you play through that doesn't seem to be the case at all...

      A lot of people compare this game as a Diablo clone. They are all false. Gauntlet is it's own style and has it's own very unique gameplay. Gauntlet has never been a Diablo clone, it has been out for a long time and was always a different style of gameplay. Gauntlet is however an action RPG but there are no levels, no experience, no loot, just lots and lots of gold. In this version of Gauntlet you go through each dungeon to get the shard which lies at the very end. There are three zones, and each zone has 4 levels. Each level has 3 levels of it's own where the final area in each zone is always a big boss battle. Gauntlet is very challenging especially on the higher difficulties. With this Gauntlet you earn gold, you use this gold to buy items which you can equip two at a time with your "Q" and "E" keys. Each relic does something to help you out. It could be summon clones of yourself or create a crystal that taunts enemies and blowing up after it is damaged enough. You can also use the gold to upgrade these relic to make them more powerful.

The Mastery System.

       As I said earlier there is no loot. As a reward for completing certain difficulties you can unlock and purchase cosmetic armor for each class with gold. Each class also has a mastery tree. Every time you complete a mastery like "Kill 12,000 Monsters" you will earn a buff for that class. Each mastery starts off as bronze and goes to gold. One buff can increase your damage by 10%, others will give you more gold from breaking crates or vases. With Gauntlet there isn't ALOT of replay value but there is some. After you have completed the 4 hour game you can go back with different classes, play a higher difficulty to get more cosmetic armor, or even complete all of your masteries. Do not forget there is also co-op mode which is way more fun and frustrating playing with your friends.

       There is nothing really visually amazing about Gauntlet. If your PC can run it on Max setting which should not be a big problem for most PC's running this game then it will look pretty good. The visual effects are nice, the level designs are repetitive but look good. Each level is not randomized, it is always the same design which is okay but this day in age a lot of games are taking advantage of that technology. The music is fantastic as well as the audio effects. Has a classic Gauntlet sound to it which I think people who've played the original Gauntlet will enjoy immensely. Even when you pick up items it still used the classic sounds from the original game.

Big Bosses.

       Overall it is a good game, nothing spectacular but a great nostalgia trip and is much more greater with your friends to experience Gauntlet. Playing on normal you will complete it in about 4 hours. Play on hard or Unfair mode and it will take you much, much longer. Overall I give gauntlet......

GOOD GAME

7.5/10



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Shovel Knight

Console: 3DS, Wii U, PC

Genre: Platformer

Release Date: June 26, 2014

Date Reviewed: July 4, 2014

Gameplay:

Shovel Knight takes another whack at the classic plat forming genre. The style for Shovel Knight takes place in the NES era. With classic 8 bit graphics and 8 bit sounds/music. It has a mixture between Megaman, Castlevania, and Mario. It mixes these three great games together to make its own step into the classic plat forming series. The game plays just like you would expect it if you've ever played an NES plat forming game before. Feels exactly like the three games I mention above. Shovel Knight feels like a fresh entry overall. The basic principle of the game is going through different levels; beat each knight to advance forward and save the Shield Knight from the evil Enchantress. You are a knight that wields a shovel as his weapon of choice. You attack with your shovel and perform certain tasks to venture through each level with this mighty shovel. From downward thrusts so you can bounce on objects and enemies to swooping your shovel to deal with enemies, the shovel has many uses.  Each boss knight has its own special attack and abilities. Just like in Megaman you need to find out what their patterns are to defeat them. Some of these bosses are not the easiest.

Ahhhh Classic.

In Shovel Knight you can even upgrade your shovel to perform new attacks. Shovel Knight can also purchase new armor that has different effects to the player. Just like in Mario you are on an over world map and you are able to choose any level, any time. Sometime on the world map there are random events as in mini boss battles, and treasure to grab by using certain items. If you are the type of person that needs to collect everything than you can even collect music notes. Return these music notes to the bard in town and he will buy them off of you for 500 gold a piece. When you give the bard these music notes he will add them to your collection so you can go back and speak with him at any time and listen to the music you have unlocked. Shovel Knight provides an excellent difficulty level as well just like in the classic plat formers. It starts off moderately easy and then picks right up and ups the difficulty level. Some levels make you want to pull your hair out but in the end are very rewarding when you finally beat it.

Graphics/Visuals:

Shovel Knight is an 8 bit plat forming adventure. It takes place during the NES generation of plat form gaming. The visuals and style of artwork is outstanding. Very colourful game, great looking backgrounds, fantastic looking enemies, great animations and NPC’s. All in all it is a very nice looking 8 bit game and a fantastic edition to the NES plat forming series.

Epic Boss Battles!

Soundtrack/Music:

Wow. Shovel Knight has one of the most amazing soundtracks I have even heard in the 8 bit era. Each and every song is unique, different, and makes your ears sing. You can tell they put their heart and soul into this game, into the music. The music is so good that it’s making me unlock and find all of the music notes hidden in the game. I often find myself going back to the main town just to listen to the music I have unlocked. Each boss, each level, and zone has its own unique soundtrack and every single one of them is a breath of fresh air. You can even get the entire soundtrack on download; it is very well worth it. Some people even got this game just because of the amazing soundtrack.

Epic Soundtrack!

Final Thoughts:

Shovel Knight is a breath of fresh air to the 8 bit plat forming series. It feels very familiar yet very new. With a mixture of the greatest plat forming NES games with a hint of its own style, Shovel Knight is a fantastic addition. Beautiful music, addicting and challenging game play, and beautiful art work, Shovel Knight is a must purchase. In fact I purchased it for all three platforms! My recommendation is to buy it on the 3DS or the Wii U just because you can quickly switch between all of them items with just a tap of your finger. The PC version provided no quick select tool.

Overall Rating: 10/10

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Wolfenstein: The New Order

Console: Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360, PS3, PC

Genre: First-Person Shooter

Release Date: May 20, 2014

Date Reviewed: June 5, 2014

Wolfenstein has always been a huge part of my life. I have played every single one including Wolfenstein 3D. I have always held this series close to my heart and always found each game in the series to suck me into the action and story. This is my review on the newest edition to the Wolfenstein series. Wolfenstein: The New Order. I am reviewing this for the Xbox One version.

Game play:

Wolfenstein: New Order is not your ordinary FPS. It has two campaigns, mostly very similar to one another but different outcomes. Without spoilers you basically choose a campaign for one of two characters. At the beginning you do not have that option. You have to select which character is part of your campaign right off the first mission. Once the game has been beaten you are able to go back and choose the other character for you campaign. Wolfenstein has stealth mechanics and well as full blown action packed mechanics. Depending on which difficulty you choose you will be using more stealth the harder it is and more running and gunning on the easier difficulties. Wolfenstein is a very challenging game. If you're looking for a real challenge then go and try the Uber difficulty. You may throw a controller or two. Wolfenstein has a mixture of good FPS action, movie like cinematics, stealth gameplay, a perk system, and a fantastic story that action made me use some of my emotions.

The Perk System is great!

The perk system is a fantastic way to customize your play style. Whether it be stealth, demolitions, run and gun, etc... Each tier of perks has it's own prerequisites you need to do in order to unlock that perk. One example is you have to kill 5 guards while being stealthed with throwing knives. Once you do this challenge you unlock a new perk allowing you to carry more throwing knives with you. If you're a completionist then you will want to try and get all of the perks. But that is not all there is too do for you completionists out there just like in the other Wolfenstein games in the series.

In New Order, there are a ton of things to collect. Some of them are harder to find then others due to them hiding in secret locations. Sticking to the old Wolfenstein system you are able to find secret doors and switches to open up secret areas to add to your collectables. One set of collectables that I really enjoyed finding are the golden items. They are scattered everywhere and most of them are tough to find on your own. They can be hidden behind the smallest cracks and you will walk past them. Besides golden items you can also find encryptions. When you find all of the encryptions you can go into the main menu under extras and try to encrypt the codes to unlock cheats and funny little additions to your campaign. There are also things like models, letters, and audio files to collect which make exploring much more enjoyable.

The gameplay overall is very fun and addicting. If you rush through the game you will complete it in roughly 5-6 hours. But if you spend the time exploring and collecting everything it will take you 10+ hours. Keep in mind that there are two campaigns you can play. The cinematics and cut scenes pulled myself into the game even deeper. Some characters make you hate their guts and want to hunt them down while other events and characters make you want to sob and weep. Each character has their own unique

story and some of them you really get to know. Finally, there is a wonderful easter egg hidden in the game. When you are in your hide out go to the very top floor. You will see a mattress with pictures above it. Look at the mattress and it will show an icon to examine called "Nightmare". Hold X to sleep on the mattress. When you fall asleep you will be in the very first Wolfenstein game and you have to fight your way out of it.

Duel Wielding guns!

Graphics/Visuals:

This review was done on the current gen consoles. It was reviewed on the Xbox One so it will be graphically superior to the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions although it still does look great on the last generation.

The graphics in Wolfenstein are overall very well done. I wouldn't say exceptional due to it being on Xbox One. It doesn't look "next gen." The cut scenes are very beautiful and cinematics are great and really get you involved in what's going on as well. The gameplay visuals are good but like previously stated, doesn't feel "next gen". Overall I was still impressed with the visuals in the game. There is a lot of gore in the game and some people may feel uneasy. In one cut scene after you escape the labour camp there is a cut scene that happens and it was even making me somewhat uneasy. But it added great effect to the game overall.

Soundtrack/Music:

The audio in the game was really great. The soundtrack really impressed me overall. I have always been a fan of heavier music. As soon as you enter the main menu you hear this wonderful soundtrack. It has a "Wolfenstein" feel to it. The music in game and music in the cinematics and cut scenes were all very well done and added to the already great experience of the story and action within the game. Overall it was fantastic!!

The Main Menu music.

Overall Rating: 9/10

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Family Guy Online Beta Review

Reviewed on: Feb. 22, 2012

Gameplay:
Family Guy Online has been advertised for some time now. They have recently started doing small sessions for a closed beta. I was lucky enough to get into one of those betas. Family Guy Online is an online game that you play in your web browser. You start off by creating your character. As of right now there are 4 different character types to choose from. They are Stewie, Lois, Peter, and Chris. There is also another character slot that is blanked out and by looking at the portrait it is Bryan. I assume when the game is out of beta you will be able to create a Bryan type character. Now each character type has it's own speciality for example Stewie is able to deal massive amounts of damage because that is one of his skills. When you decide to choose what character you want to be you are now able to fully customize the character of your choice. Whether is be shirts, eyes, mouths, or your nose and you customize everything. There aren't a ton of customizable items as of yet but it is enough for now. When you are finished are are brought into the game. You start off in front of the Griffin's house on spooner street. Your first quests begins with Peter Griffon where he asks you to talk to Chris Griffon on why he does not want to go to school. From here on out you start to do quests to earn money, experience, and vanity items.

Character Screen

As your questing you will find random items laying around that may or may not look familiar. For example you will find a tennis ball. When you click it the ball gets added to Bryan's collection. So you can collect important items from the Family Guy universe and add them to each characters collection. The town of Quahog is pretty big. You start off in the urban area aka. spooner street. When you have done all the quests or enough quests you are able to move on to other parts of the town to explore. Overall the map is a pretty decent size to walk around and explore. In Family Guy Online you are also able to interact with many other people in the game as well. In the beta the chat was not working so hopefully that will be fixed when the game is released. Despite all of the bugs in the game (see down below) Family Guy Online is a decent experience. Not great but alright.

Bugs:
There are several bugs in the game that I noticed while playing. For one some of the audio likes to overlap other audio within the game. The quest where you go into the other universes through Stewie are all bugged. When I did this quest I was stuck in the Asian Griffon family house. There was no way out and no NPC's to interact. Another big one is the constant lag. Some parts were alright but every minute or less there was lots of log and lots of loading. There was another bug where if you clicked on a emoticon or quest item it would not activate or respond. This bug happened to me a lot. Yes, there are a lot of bugs in the game but this is why they do beta tests to find all of them and fix them for the release.

Customize your character! (Not my character)

Conclusion:
Family Guy Online is a game where you play for 30 mins - an hour at a time before getting bored of it. It is meant for casual players. You can tell just by playing it. I did however find it neat that I was able to explore and experience Quahog virtually. I love the show and there are a lot of little easter eggs through quests that fans of the series will pick up right away. The game is still in rough shape and still in the beta process. They are doing multiple beta tests to work out all of the bugs so it will be fresh on launch day. Overall it was a nice experience and looking forward to getting into the next beta test.

**Note**
This review will be constantly updated as further beta tests are implemented. This is not the full review just my thoughts on the beta as of now.

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