Battlefield 1942 is a first-person shooter first released [...]]]>
Planes are in high demand, as proven by the number of campers in the airfield. They range from heavy bombers (B17), light bombers (Ilyushin, AichiVal, SBD-5), and fighters (Zero, Yak9, BF109).
As of writing, Battlefield 1942 is still available for free on Origin – you just have to download it via this link because it is more difficult to find it on the Origin program. Get it before 1 March 2013.
Bring the boom boom pow to your enemies.
Battlefield 1942 is a first-person shooter first released in 2002. When it came out, it represented a breakthrough in this genre. You know a game is successful when you keep getting the same thing again and again for years – see the Battlefield series, The Sims and Call of Duty.
It added a variety of ways you can have a rampage over your enemies including blowing them up with a plane’s cannons, blow them up with explosives, or just run them over with your jeep. Have a battle on sea, land and air. Work in teams to coordinate artillery fire, or work alone and climb up a mountain to snipe your enemies.
Each class and each spawn point gives you different abilities and vehicles to choose rom
The game is primarily a multiplayer game, and single player merely means playing the game on the same maps but with really dumb bots. On this note, the game is still highly playable because there are still many servers and players online.
The game runs quite poorly, unfortunately, on a netbook with internal graphics. Playing the game at 640x480x16 with everything set at low, and a disadvantaging visiblity of 50 to 75 per cent, you get a framerate of about 5-20 depending on how many people there are and how many objects there are on a map.
On the other hand, if you have a separate graphics processor, such as an ION 2 like the netbook that I have, you can play this game without much slowdowns. Running on the ION 2, you can play at Medium settings with a 100% visibility and get a framerate of 15-40, again the same slowdowns will apply, especially when there is a lot of action.
The game runs at a 4:3 resolution, so if you do not want to play with a stretched image, follow this link.
Overall, I’d get the game whether or not you have a discrete graphics processor. It is one of the most entertaining game to have on your computer when you are bored – in class with the university’s WiFi or when you are travelling and can’t bring your main computer.
Tanks: from heavy tanks like the TIger to tank destroyers such as the M10, and everything in between.
Like
The pioneer BF1942: still with all its lustre and nostalgia.
A great variety of weapons and vehicles
Dislike
Runs poorly on integrated graphics
If you’re used to the newer Battlefields, the features in this game might feel limited. I see it as simplicity.
Verdict
It’s free – until 1st March 2013 – you have nothing to lose, so get it. If you have an AMD C-series processor or a Nvidia graphics card in your netbook, you will have a good time. It is playable on integrated graphics, but you won’t get a good score due to a choppy framerate.
An excellent game, simple and varied.
Gameplay: GG
Graphics: Great… unless you have integrated graphics
Work needed to get game to play: Plays right out of the box.
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Got this from the Origin website - links below.
The first game of the Battlefield series is now free to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the game. Not merely a demo, it is a full game. Get it now while you can! According to the FAQ, this game cannot be played with people who own the CD-version of the game, so even more reason to make everyone download it.
US/Canada Link: http://store.origin.com/store/ea/en_US/html/pbPage.demos-en_US
Alternate general link: http://www.battlefield.com/battlefield-1942
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Depending on how good your connection [...]]]>
Oh, killjoy!
Starting yesterday, OnLive decided to offer four games free for the whole Halloween weekend, and it has been quite a good trip so far, although it does vary – particularly because of the fact that gameplay quality is contingent on your connection’s reliability.
Depending on how good your connection is, gameplay can be very similar to playing the game locally (i.e. as if you bought the game and installed it), although I must say that there never was a moment where I felt that OnLive can replace the quality you get when you pay like a boss for a retail game. Unfortunately, the game’s quality does degrade if your connection is being hogged, unreliable or just slow from the get-go.
Imagine a YouTube 360p video - that's your graphics quality with this connection.
I tested the game on my good ol’ Asus, and the first thing I realized is that the Nvidia ION2 chip in the computer never kicked in. OnLive was running on the Intel GMA all the way through, and therefore battery life would be quite legit if you do intend to play games without plugging in.
U mad?
On a netbook, graphics quality is a lot better – as long as your screen is not 1366x768px. On a 1024×600 screen, games rendered at less-than-600p still look quite acceptable, although what must be noted is that the game does vary the quality depending on your connection, so sometimes you might get super-sharp quality, whereas when your connection starts going into herp derp mode, you might get blurry graphics – something quite annoying when you need to aim precisely in a first-person shooter.
Specifically towards FEAR 3, however, I found that there was quite a bad instance of cursor lag. The problem is especially exaggerated when you have a poor connection, whereas when the connection is good, the problem is largely ameliorated, although still noticeable.
I did manage to play FEAR in multiplayer mode and it was quite good. Voice support is offered by OnLive, so if you do want to speak to your teammates, it is possible. Although same problems do exist – cursor lag, network lag, and low quality graphics at times.
Boss connection, but still minor issues.
Multiplayer FEAR 3... possible!
To be fair to OnLive, I went out to search for a bossier connection, and this is what I got. With such a connection, nothing could go wrong… or so I thought. Indeed, nothing went wrong for a loooooooooong time. The connection was so good that FEAR 3 suddenly became more playable, sharper than usual and better in gameplay quality. It was excellent for a while, until something went wrong with the connection… and then it was all over.
Nonetheless, I’d recommend OnLive to netbook users if, and only if, they don’t intend to buy a more powerful gaming PC. However, if you want to play games in a reliable and enjoyable fashion, you’ll have to invest in a quick connection that is best connected directly to your computer. Shared connections, weak signals, and a slow connection will all coalesce to make your gameplay worse. That said, nothing beats playing a retail game that can be installed and played.
This is part of a continuous report that will last until I finish my 3-Day pass on the games. I’ll continue trying the gameplay and report back on how it is with the other games.
]]>According to Liliputing, Portal will be offered free through September 20 on Steam. As reviewed on a recent article, Portal is playable on a netbook with a discrete graphics card, or if you tweak the Source engine so much so that it renders at the [...]]]>
According to Liliputing, Portal will be offered free through September 20 on Steam. As reviewed on a recent article, Portal is playable on a netbook with a discrete graphics card, or if you tweak the Source engine so much so that it renders at the quality of the original Half-Life.
Portal is a one-of-a-kind puzzle game that requires you to use portals to teleport your character to different parts of the maps such that you can reach the exit. It is mind-boggling at times, but after a while, you’ll learn the in-and-outs of how portals work and then the game gets extremely addictive.
Screenshot: Paul Blaudschun]]>
One of the biggest things to be developed out of Half Life has to be Portal. While some might argue that Counter-Strike is the most popular, Portal will definitely put up a good fight. Unlike Counter-Strike, Portal is not a first-person shooter. Instead, it is a first-person puzzle game, where you [...]]]>
One of the biggest things to be developed out of Half Life has to be Portal. While some might argue that Counter-Strike is the most popular, Portal will definitely put up a good fight. Unlike Counter-Strike, Portal is not a first-person shooter. Instead, it is a first-person puzzle game, where you are supposed to use blue and yellow portals to teleport your character to the exit. Along the way, you’ll need to use some unique Portal physics to accomplish your goal.
The game is a very interesting and has a very refreshing concept. It is very fun though a bit short. It is mind-boggling, but at the same time, it is extremely satisfying when you complete complex puzzles that seemed impossible.
Portal ran extremely well on my Asus 1015PN which has a Atom N570 processor (1.66GHz dual-core), 2GB RAM and most importantly ION 2. Played at 1024×600, Portal’s frame rate was usually in the high 60s and ocassionally dipped to 20, but only in the worst of situations, which is very rare. That said, this test was done with the lowest graphics settings, which also points to the fact that there will be room should you want to bump the graphics up.
However, on an Intel GMA 3150, the story is radically different. Playing Portal was quite a struggle, and the best way you can get optimal quality and frame rates is to play it in Windowed mode at 640×480, with everything at low. If you have an even weaker computer, you might want to check out how to tweak Half-Life 2, as lots of tips there will help you get the frame rates up to scratch as Portal and HL2 shares the same engine.
Screenshot: Paul Blaudschun]]>
This is only a preliminary test of Team Fortress 2 on a netbook, and not any bog-standard netbook. Using my Asus 1015PN, an Intel Atom N570, ION 2 powered netbook, you might just be able to play Team Fortress 2 on your netbook, with some major tweaking much [...]]]>
Shockingly, you can play TF2 on a netbook
NB: Tested on a ION 2 netbook
This is only a preliminary test of Team Fortress 2 on a netbook, and not any bog-standard netbook. Using my Asus 1015PN, an Intel Atom N570, ION 2 powered netbook, you might just be able to play Team Fortress 2 on your netbook, with some major tweaking much like what I did to play Half-Life 2 on my previous non-ION netbook.
Downloading the 10GB worth of data from Steam took quite long, but since it’s a free game, might as well try. With ION 2, the gameplay quality wavered wildly from acceptable to abysmal. When you play with a lot of bots, it slows down significantly. When you play online, however, it usually is fine until you get cornered and get into a big gun fight with sentry guns, rocket launchers which will eventually lead to your loss as you’ll see frame rates tumble from 18 to 5.
And the problem with online games is that more likely than not, you’ll find servers that are chock-full. Certain maps are better than others too. Maps that stretch very far are a drain on performance, but smaller and more indoor-based maps are less strenuous on the netbook. One odd thing is that when I lowered the graphics down to 640×480, I actually got around the same frame rates, and sometimes worse, than when my display was 1024×600. Not sure why, but it does show that you have to toggle the settings around and find out what suits your netbook best.
I suspect that the biggest bottleneck is now the Atom rather than the graphics processor. Unfortunately, there isn’t much one can do unless you decide to overclock the system. However, I suspect that if you have bought an AMD-powered netbook, you might have significantly better chance of playing Team Fortress 2 reliably.
On a later date, I hope to write a guide on how you can tweak Team Fortress to be able to play it on a netbook such as mine. Hopefully, the tips that I gained from modifying Half-Life 2 would come in handy.
]]>The adventurous me decided to test another recent game that was way beyond the capabilities of my new Asus Eee PC 1015PN, with its ION 2 processor. The results were a bit surprising, although in the end it was hardly playable, but hey, this is Netbookist, where everything [...]]]>
This is what you'll see quite often when playing on a netbook
NB: Tested on an ION 2 netbook.
The adventurous me decided to test another recent game that was way beyond the capabilities of my new Asus Eee PC 1015PN, with its ION 2 processor. The results were a bit surprising, although in the end it was hardly playable, but hey, this is Netbookist, where everything that can be tested is tested, even just for the sake of testing.
Black Ops can be downloaded off Steam and therefore you don’t need a CD drive to get it on your computer. And 15GB worth of downloading later, I have both the single-player and multiplayer ready.
Multiplayer ran pretty… nonsensically. Averaging 10fps, and having significant mouse lag, you basically are just meat for even the noobiest of gamers. I played a few rounds of Combat Training and it was somewhat playable, just that you’ll have to always be disadvantaged because of the poor frame rates, mouse lag and a ping of 100+.
The truth is that for novelty’s sake, you might be able to squeeze one or two games out of Black Ops, but otherwise, it really makes no sense to bother. Play it on a contemporary computer instead and enjoy.
However, if you happen to have a AMD E-series or 16-core ION netbook, you might have better luck with Black Ops at its lowest-res of 800×600, no AA and no other niceities.
In fact, there are a few websites out there which outline how you might be able to play Black Ops on a near-minimum requirements computer. Cleartechinfo did a great job of compiling a few tweaks which you can do to get Black Ops running better on your computer. This requires you to go under the hood and might have adverse effects on your graphics. The suggestion to switch force 640×480 resolution via Compatibiity Mode works to some extent, but in my experience, it affords only around 2fps and sometimes does not allow certain multiplayer games to load.
]]>Can’t believe it? Well, it’s real. This is a screenshot taken from my Asus Eee PC 1015PN. Unfortunately the truth is that BF:BC2 plays terribly. At 10fps, and a lack of processing power causing my ping to hit 400-600ms, the truth is that you’re [...]]]>
ya srs!
NB: Tested on an ION 2 netbook.
Can’t believe it? Well, it’s real. This is a screenshot taken from my Asus Eee PC 1015PN. Unfortunately the truth is that BF:BC2 plays terribly. At 10fps, and a lack of processing power causing my ping to hit 400-600ms, the truth is that you’re better off staying away from Bad Company.
This is proof. And that on the bottom right is my FPS.
Although people who have the 16-core ION 2 present in larger netbooks generally have a better experience, but on the 1015PN, unless you seriously overclock your netbook, you’re not likely to reach anywhere near playable frame rates.
Also, the fact that BF:BC2 requires a 1024×768 screen minimum doesn’t help things. Perhaps if you could find some hack that allowed you to run at 640×480, then maybe it’ll be playable. So far, I haven’t found any, but if you do, please contact me!
It seems that you can actually download the game off Origin, which is EA Games’ Steam-alike service. You just need a CD key, and then you’ll be able to download the 8GB worth of Bad Company.
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Meet the guy who tests all the multiplayer games with me
When I was really young, I used to play Rogue Spear quite a bit. The game was one of my weekend favourites, though much like most games, it’s under-appreciated. While some games go viral such as DOTA or Counter-Strike, there are still the underdogs of every genre. Rogue Spear happens to be one of them, in my opinion.
I recently reviewed Rogue Spear on a netbook, and it ran excellent. The game has a really good single-player, but multiplayer is really where it gets most of its replayability from. You’d note that in the past, MSN Gaming Zone was always packed with a lot of Adversarial (i.e. deathmatch) games, and the game lasted well into around the mid-2000s, even after the death of the Zone. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said today, since this game is quite old, and Call of Duty and Battlefield are both vying for the lead as the head-honcho of first-person shooters. One thing about those two games is that… first, you can’t play the latest versions on a netbook and that realism-wise, Rogue Spear still has much to offer which COD or BF cannot.
So I went over to Bosty’s house, who happens to also be featured in the Terraria opinion essay. We were bored and wanted to play SWAT, but I suggested he try Rogue Spear, because as I remembered, Rogue Spear was one of the best games out there when it came to shooters and realism. It’s a bit like SWAT 4 and Operation Flashpoint, except SWAT is more of a small-scale assault game, while OpF is an extremely wide-scale and widely encompassing game. Rogue Spear is a middle-scale game where you’ll tackle everything from isolated terrorist acts to Russians with nuclear material.
We played through a few cooperative games and adversarial games. Co-op games were much more enjoyable as it allowed us to exploit the fact that we were close proximity, and therefore we could communicate enemy positions and tactics much easier than if we were playing via the internet. We mainly tried three maps: the Met, an art museum, a 747 map and a nuke plant.The good thing was that we had fun, the bad thing is that this game really is something I miss from games of the past: it was extremely challenging, and at times it can border frustration.
Good times, revived. Ten years later!
Playing cooperatively, you could choose to play the actual missions, with its objectives such as rescue all hostages, or you could play the more back-to-basics Terrorist Hunt mode, which demands that you… kill ‘em all. You will be able to toggle how difficult you want the game to be and how much AI Backup you want. We decided that we wanted to play the game at its worst, and went to play at the Elite difficulty and with no AI Backup. In the end, we decided to be a bit more practical…
The other option would be to play Adversarial. Adversarial allows you to compete against your friend in a series of challenges. There’s Terrorist Hunt, where both your team and your opponent’s have to hunt down the most number of terrorists, or kill your opponent to win. There’s Stronghold, which challenges you to attempt to go into a pre-marked spot on the map deep inside your opponent’s territory. There’s also a kill-the-VIP mode and also many others. However, our Adversarial experience was a bit limited because it was a 1v1 game, and what’s worse was that both of us could see what each other were doing and our whereabouts. It wasn’t too much fun, but the most critical problem had to be the fact that we didn’t have enough players.
In the end, the game was fun, but what I used to love about the game could not be fully enjoyed today. The unfortunate truth is that many players have left and that without the raw numbers, many games would not be as fun as they were, when we had 4v4 adversarial games.
You Interested?
If you would be interested in hooking up for a multiplayer game, why not contact us via the Challenge Us form on the left side, or send an email to [email protected].
Apparently, the game is classified as abandonware, and therefore you can download it. There is a link in the review.
]]>If you happen [...]]]>
Not. Enough. Browser. Real estate.
Quake Live is a game that was developed out of the most popular version of Quake – Quake III Arena. What the people at Quake Live have done is to transplant Quake III into a Mozilla Firefox/Internet Explorer friendly game that is exactly the same as the 1999 release by id Software.
If you happen to like Quake III, you’ll definitely like Quake Live. It is exactly the same as Quake III – same guns such as the rocket launcher, railgun, lightning gun, and powerups such as Quad Damage, Invisibility, etc. You’ll love the fact that it has a very vibrant online community where you can find servers and players from all around the world. And the best thing is that you can play it in different modes such as TDM, FFA and CTF.
The game doesn’t need much processing power, and the truth is that if you are able to find a good pinged server, it will be one of the most enjoyable games which you will play on the web. There is an issue with 1024×600 screens, mostly because you will find that you don’t have enough browser real estate for the game to display itself. You can counteract this by playing it in full-screen mode (a simple F11 in most browsers). Also, note that Google Chrome is not supported. You’ll need good ol’ Firefox or IE, and you’ll need to download a plug-in that will allow you to play the game.
One thing I realised playing Quake Live for a while is that if you were very good at Quake III, make sure you don’t get complacent. You don’t find too many noobs on Quake Live servers, and the first 20 games, getting owned is easier than owning others.
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