Code Breaker.

Welcome to our code breaker page. Here's what you got to do. A code has been hidden in this page. To crack it look carefully at the words. Some people may crack it easy. I'm sure it will be obvious once you see it. Tell me the message by in boxing our Facebook page. Leave it out of the comments so it doesn't spoil it for others. I hope you have all enjoyed the beta test as much as I have. Kindly let me know what you enjoyed about it and what you think needs improving. Everyone has been so great in helping me out with this!

Starlight Week Updates Page

 Please Note: We will be updating this page with more information on activities when we can...

Starlight Week is upon us and heres a great way you can get involved! This Saturday and Sunday, the team at EB Helensvale will be hosting a games marathon where you can donate money and challenge the EB crew to a game! Not only that, your donations can give you a chance to win an Xbox One or Playstation 4 all while helping sick kids! 

The Starlight Foundation works wonders in our hospitals making life a bit easier for sick kids and their families, you can find out more about Starlight by clicking here... http://www.starlight.org.au/

Can't make it to Helensvale Westfield? No worries! Head into your local EB store and make a difference. EB donates a percentage of  your purchases and trades to Starlight so even of you can't spare a donation, you can help out simply by shopping there!

more details to follow...

So What's our Involvement?

What's it Like were going to donate our YTD website earnings to Starlight, but then we realized our donation could only buy a Happy Meal for one child. So we decided to donate our time to help out the fantastic staff at EB Games by Making MRG's (Meals Ready for Gaming) and help out on the Weekend.

We then made this page to spread the word, and have paid for advertising to promote this great event.

This really is such an awesome charity and after seeing what Starlight do first hand, it's an honour to be able to help out in any way I can. Please spread the word, tell your friends, and help EB Games make Starlight Week their biggest yet!

Nerd VS Wild -Fishmourne

Some people say a warrior doesn't choose his sword, the sword chooses them. On my birthday in 2009, Fishmourne chose me. My family had purchased the rod for my birthday and from the moment I laid eyes on it, I knew it would be different. There was a sense of power emanating from this fishing rod, as it it hungered for fish to catch. I knew from that day, Fishmourne would help me become a great fisherman.

When I first used Fishmourne,  we christened it in the waters of the Noosa river. I had rigged it up, carefully securing the braid to my line, expertly attaching the sinker, swivel, and hook the way my father showed me when I was a lad. I threaded on the bait and cast off. We were told that nothing was biting in the area,  and that we should move to the mouth of the seaway, but Fishmourne hungered, and Fishmourne knew that there were fish here. My father and I landed over 15 fish that day, most over legal size but we respected the ocean and only came back with a flathead,  garfish, and a whiting the size of a small child. I knew from that day Fishmourne held a lot of power, and with great power comes great fishing.

Fishmourne and I continued our campaign of terror around Australia. I knew I would never go hungry again with this rod at my side. But like all great warriors and weapons, there is always something bigger and better out there, there's always the yin to my yang.

On a fateful fishing trip, I managed to hook a monster, I can't tell you what type of fish it was, but I like to think I hooked Godzilla, or Jaws, or maybe even Godzilla eating Jaws. Whatever it was, it snapped all the eyelets down my rod and nearly broke it in half. It was like that moment in Lord of the Rings when that dude gets his sword shattered and almost dies... a little bit of me died along with Fishmourne.

I had to get a new Rod, a new Fishmourne, so I headed down to my local fishing store and got a beautifully crafted, carbon fibre, counter balanced fishing rod. I felt its power much like Fishmournes, I knew we would be victorious over the fish armies of Australia again.

But It wasn't to be...

You see, I started my campaign amongst the cursed waters of Hinze dam, the only place I have never caught a fish. The skeletal remains of the trees who were reclaimed by the rising water level, sat lifelessly just beneath the surface. I wasn't confident anymore. The day ended up being less about fishing and more about untangling my rod from the trees both under and out of the water (don't ask!) That day, I cursed Fishmourne in the waters of Hinze Dam.

I still haven't caught a fish since that day. It has dawned on me that I need to bathe Fishmourne back in the waters of the Noosa River. It will be a long and arduous journey (2 hours down the highway) filled with peril (speed cameras and the risk of running out of snacks.) It is a journey I cannot do alone. Therefor I am creating a Fellowship of the Fish, a ragtag group of Fishermen (or women) to help escort Fishmourne and I to Noosa, on an epic quest to restore Fishmourne to its former glory. So dear readers, only one question remains...

The Fellowship of the Fish...

Are you in?

Nerd VS Wild will continue from where we left off (in Canberra) next week! I hope you enjoyed the return of Nerd VS Wild!

Gaming News - PS4 Shortages!

Hi there gamers!

Just a brief news report to update you on the status of Playstation 4 availability in Australia. So far ALL RETAILERS have sold out of Day 1 stock! However there is a second shipment late December which some retailers still claim they have allocations for.

JB Hi-fi have announced that any PS4 order made after Nov 20th will not be allocated for this year and will hopefully arrive in January.

Big W are claiming they still have some PS4 consoles allocated for the second shipment before Xmas so if your keen I suggest you head to your local Big W to see if they have any stock.

And lastly, in what has to be the biggest douche move ever by a company, Dick Smith are offering 300 people a chance to win a chance to buy (yes that's correct) a PS4. How it works is customers have to llike and share their Facebook page, then write in 50 words or less what they are looking forward to the most for the PS4, then show up to the midnight launch where MAYBE they may be able to buy a console. That's right, to win your chance to purchase, for the full price, a PS4 console, you have to attend a midnight launch not knowing if you can get a console or not.

In unrelated news the Tech giant is changing their slogan from "Talk to a techspert" to "Talk to a dick head."

Have a great night gamers!

Call of Duty: Ghosts Review

To accommodate our readers, this review will be split in two, half for campaign, and the other for multiplayer, with individual scores for each, plus a combined overall score.

*The Generation Gap*
The game doesn't differ much between formats, all current Gen titles are nearly identical although there have been reports of frame rate issues on the PS3 for some unexplained reasons. The Wii U version is comparable to the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions graphically which is a little disappointing considering the Wii U sits somewhere in between current Gen and Next Gen. One thing the Wii U does have over it's counterparts is the use of the touchscreen gamepad which makes selecting load outs and kill streaks streamlined and more precise while the addition of offscreen play will delight many partners who want to watch the cricket or latest episode of vampire diaries.

Campaign

The campaign follows two brothers after the USA has been reduced to ruins following an orbital attack. You can see that Infinity Ward tried to flesh out the characters but since you play one who never says anything, it's hard to see a bond there. Your father is a commander in what's left of The States military and unfortunately his character development begins and ends with "'Murica!" The whole point of the story is about a squad known only as the "Ghosts" who are supposedly the best of the best, but a few levels in they just give you membership.

The campaign is rather standard length compared to most Call of Duties but the tedium and overuse of recycled "shooting galleries" make it seem like it goes on forever. Speaking of recycled material, there is a part of the first game that literally copies the ending of Modern Warfare 2 exactly, save for the reskinning of the characters, It's clear that the series is starting to falter.

The main problem is it's blatant American patriotism and it's "Cinematic scenes" which are simply moments when control is taken away from the player. At first, the series campaign was amazing, all the way up to Black ops, but I feel that Activision got too comfortable and figured they would sell the game on the name alone. It's a shame because Call of Duty has so much potential, but it's wasted in Ghosts.

Finally, the game has been touted as a next generation Call of Duty, but really it's the same graphics engine as Black Ops 2 with enhanced lighting and fish that swim away when you go near them. That's... about... it...

There is a saving grace however...

Multiplayer

As mentioned earlier in the campaign section of this review, there is a bit of recycled material when it comes to Ghosts multiplayer. Many maps are rehashes such as a train yard from CoD 2 and the highway map off Modern Warfare 1. While it doesn't affect the review score as those maps are fun to play I cant help but feel gamers will be stung by DLC prices when they release fresh maps. The new maps however are a welcome treat, giving you open grasslands surrounding a derelict castle, or a jungle surrounding a prison. There are no longer many claustrophobic hallways that encourage "gremlins" as Infinity ward have favoured a lot of open maps encouraging medium to long range engagement. Multiplayer, is tight and fast as in previous titles but the new small touches are what makes this game feel a bit better. 

Examples of this are things like the overhauled customization of your character, making you look more unique and giving players something more to work towards. Weapons are no longer locked by your character level either, instead they are all unlockable from the start using currency you earn as you tear through the ranks. Smg's are no longer instant kill death machines as all weapons have been balanced more which also makes your sidearm a viable primary weapon. The perk system has been expanded to make your character suit you better. Want to sprint while reloading? Done! Want to start with maximum ammo? Done! The amount of options for your character is at least double, if not triple than what previous Call of Duty titles have offered. 

Kill streak rewards are no longer ridiculously overpowered and you can even call in your own guard dog who will bark if an enemy is nearby and attempt to avenge your death if necessary. All these small changes are what makes me want to invest more time online in this title.

Another thing worth mentioning is player count has dropped to 12 players (6 a side) which I know has upset some reviewers. This can make the maps seem a little empty at times but all in all I feel this is a good thing. The result is a more tactical game where players tend to stick together and work as a team instead of the usual lone wolf affair. All in all Ghosts offers the best multiplayer experience in the series, delivering the best bits of all the cod games, at the expense of originality.

A new entry into Multiplayer is the Left for Dead inspired "Extinction" mode, which sees players battling aliens COD Zombies style, while progressing through a sort of mini campaign. The matches I played were a blast and I really enjoyed leveling up a separate character in different ways to play different roles such as a tank, DPS, or support class.

Final Thoughts

Writing this review has been tough. I bet reading it you would think two separate people wrote it. Bottom line is I like Call of Duty Ghosts, but the campaign really brought it down. I hope Activision take on board the player feedback (which has largely been negative) and turn Call of Duty back into the AAA franchise it deserves to be. It will be interesting to see how next years installment turns out as it will be solely focused on next gen. Until then we are stuck somewhere in between, a fantastic multiplayer title, marred by the worst campaign in the series.

So Whats it like?

Campaign is like watching a Michael Bay movie
Multiplayer is like Vanilla Cod mixed with Modern Warfare 1.

I give it 6.5/10 as a game overall,
but 8/10 for Multiplayer alone.

******A lot of gamers have asked me if reviewers get paid to give games like this a good score... While Activision did fly a lot of game journalists to a reviewers event to review the game, most of these journalists are very professional and since my score reflects what they gave (with a few exceptions), it's safe to say they aren't paid to give good scores.*******

I will say this though... This reviewer paid for Ghosts with his own money, and had to review this game on his own time.

The Philosophy of Awesome

Fire and Ice brofist... Awesome!

The Philosophy of Awesome, is quite simply, my personal view on things. It's not that I think I'm awesome, it's that I encourage myself to be awesome. There's a difference, let me explain.

People who think they are awesome tend to ignore those around them, people who try to be awesome are considerate of others and generally have a positive view on things, while trying to improve themselves.

My Philosophy of Awesome started with a chance meeting with a gentleman whom I can't entirely remember in the Neurological Ward of Gold Coast Hospital...

Lying in my bed feeling sorry for myself, I wondered "Why me?" My thoughts were interrupted by the man lying in the bed next to me. We made small talk and as you do, ask the age old hospital question "How did you wind up in here?" He told me that he was working in his garage when his heart gave out, causing him to collapse in agony on the floor, He then spend the next 20 or so minutes, crawling to his bedroom to get his wife to call the ambulance, dropping in and out of consciousness. I asked him if he was scared, thinking he was going to die. He answered, "No... No I wasn't scared because I had no regrets. When I die, I'll die with a smile on my face."

I had regrets.

I wasn't ready to die and when I initially collapsed, the feeling was so surreal. I don't remember much about it, just that I had no control over what was happening. It was the most frightening moment of my life, not because I thought I was going to die, death is inevitable, but because I had regrets.

Did my wife know how much she meant to me?
Did I make my parents proud?
Was I a good person?

So many questions that would have been unanswered, questions I don't want to ask myself when I finally go.

The man next to me went for his big operation the next day, but he never came back. I like to think he made it, and just got moved to a different ward, and now he's somewhere fishing with his wife, being the awesome guy that he was. But if he didn't make it, I hope that he knows his words inspired my Philosophy of Awesome, and changed my life more than the stroke ever could.

So I encourage all of you to be awesome, and I will post an Awesome message most days to help encourage people. If you have an Awesome saying or thought for the day, please share it with us. Most importantly, be Awesome to each other. Let your partner know how much they mean to you, even if your fighting. Be good to other gamers online, there's no need for exchanging hateful words. Tell someone you appreciate them.

It's not about being a saint, it's about trying to be Awesome and encouraging others to be awesome too.

Let's be Awesome together!

-Sarge

*Want to see our Awesome messages of the day? Follow us on Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/SOGwhatsitlike

Gaming Fit - The tools of the trade

SO to get fit while gaming I knew I needed some hardware. Thankfully, Nintendo are offering a free copy of Wii Fit U under the condition you have a balance board already and purchase a Wii Fit U meter which is essentially a pedometer that uploads your daily steps to the Wii U console. I then "borrowed my wife's Xbox with Kinect for her Zumba and fitness games. But I knew hardware wasn't just going to cut it, so I contacted "Being this Girl*" for some app advice.

Zumba, Not for the feint at heart!

Despite not actually being a girl, the team at "Being this Girl" were more than happy to help. "Being this Girl is a Facebok page dedicated to helping people lose weight by helping people out with fitness and food ideas, as well as sharing their own weight loss journey.

The team suggested I should use a program called "My Fitness Pal" which is available on all phone platforms, and offers intricately detailed calorie counting. While taking a bite out of my Big Mac, I downloaded the software and was surprised to know just how much calories go into certain foods. My Fitness Pal is essential to track your daily nutrition and exercise needs and even if you don't have a fitness game for your console, this app alone will do fine.

The most important app in weight loss...

Another team member added in a suggestion for motivation. "Why not download an app called Zombies! Run!?" So I did. Apart from constantly needing to change my underwear every run now, I have the added motivation of an imaginary horde of zombies chasing me. You see, Zombies! Run! plays audio through your phone while tracking the distance you run. The more you run, the more you can upgrade your home base, unlocking more running missions.

So all loaded up with apps and motivation, I said goodbye to the team at Being This Girl and said hello to the first day of the new me...


*You don't actually have to be a girl to follow the team at Being this Girl! Simply click the link below to like and follow their great stories of helping people become happier and healthier versions of themselves. I find the site great for motivation and seeing the transformations of the people doing the body challenges is great! Keep up the good work girls!

Check out Being this Girl here!