Video Games | Gumballs Plays Games

SmartGlass for Xbox One (I love it!)

Posted on August 30, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

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I haven’t used SmartGlass in awhile, but I started using it again recently and I’m in love with it. It makes everything incredibly convenient and even more enjoyable. I love being able to check in on my friends, send messages or view achievements without ever having to leave my game by pushing the home button. I love being able to type using SmartGlass, and I absolutely love the companion apps. You can even view your game clips!

One of my favorite features, which I believe is rather new, is the ability to record game clips using SmartGlass. There’s a ‘Record That’ button at the bottom of the screen (if you’re using a companion app there will be three dots at the bottom of the screen. Simply tap those and a bar will pop up with the ‘Record That’ button on it).

Xbox One SmartGlass

Yesterday I started using the Battlefield 4 companion app which gives you a full screen map and shows your teammate and spotted enemy positions. It’s great for keeping up your situational awareness of the battlefield, and can help you figure out where all the action is.

I also enjoy using the Madden 15 companion app which will show previously used plays, opponent tendencies and roster information. You can also manage your depth chart using the app which is an added convenience.

I kind of wish more games (such as Diablo III) had companion apps (I’d love a full screen map and inventory management using SmartGlass), but I’m sure there will be more amazing uses in the coming months. I strongly recommend checking out the Xbox One SmartGlass app if you haven’t had a chance to already.

Bioshock is now available on iOS

Posted on August 29, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

So I was browsing the App Store today and was surprised to find that Bioshock is now available on iOS for $14.99. I had absolutely no idea that it was even coming to iOS, and now here it is, ready to be enjoyed on the go on my iPad Air! I was quite excited when I saw it, so I just wanted to pop in and share the news in case anyone else was unaware that this was actually coming.

I’ll be sure to share my experience after I play it a bit. Most of the reviews are quite positive so I’m excited to dig in and enjoy this wonderful game yet again!

College football begins, but no NCAA Football video game this year

Posted on August 28, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

College football has started, and as I sit here watching the BSU – Ole Miss game (I’m a Penn State fan and alumnus, but my girlfriend is from Boise) I’m really sad that there’s not a NCAA Football video game this year. Madden 15 came out just a few days ago and I’m absolutely loving it (it looks and plays darn good on the Xbox One) but I’m missing the collegiate fix the NCAA games have always provided.

If you’re unaware, the future of NCAA football video games is in limbo due to lawsuits brought by college athletes. It’s likely the series will return without the NCAA license in the future, but there is no 2014 game, meaning there is no current gen (Xbox One / PS4) college football game. Since I sold my Xbox 360 I have no access to any video game college football until either the Xbox One becomes backward compatible (which is supposedly being worked on by Microsoft) or EA releases a college football game in Fall 2015 or later.

I suppose Madden 15 will have to be my sole football fix this year. Unfortunately I’ll continue to have an unquenchable thirst to play a college football game with every game I watch this year.

Diablo III Ultimate Evil Edition, where are my Infernal Pauldrons?

Posted on August 23, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

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Yesterday I picked up Diablo III: Ultimate Evil Edition for the Xbox One. The Ultimate Evil edition includes Diablo III in much the same way it was offered on the Xbox 360 and PS3 but with the addition of the Reaper of Souls expansion thrown in. There may be some more differences (besides graphics and performance ones), but so far it feels very much like the 360 version which isn’t a bad thing. The console version of Diablo III is by far the better experience if you ask me.

The only issue I ran into was trying to find my Infernal Pauldrons once I booted the game up. After you redeem the code on the insert there’s one more step required that isn’t quite mentioned. You have to go to the Games and Apps menu, select Diablo III and select manage game. From there you have to select the Infernal Pauldrons ‘DLC’ and tell it to install. It’s a small 9.5mb file, and once it’s downloaded the pauldrons will be in your character’s inventory.

Sorry about the blurry picture.

I’ve leveled my Barbarian to level 16 and have enjoyed the Xbox One version of Diablo III quite a bit so far. It’s as addicting as it ever was, maybe even more so. I can’t wait to get deeper into the game and see the Reaper of Souls content for the first time. I have Diablo III on PC but stopped playing once I found out a console version was coming as I just can’t stand clicking a mouse.

Civilization Revolution 2: I can’t stop

Posted on August 16, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

Civilization Revolution on the Xbox 360 was my very first exposure to the Civilization franchise. The very first time I played it I was addicted. There was just something amazing about trying to set up the perfect defenses to keep your Nation alive before venturing out and engaging in little skirmishes to raise the experience levels of your armies as you advance your technology and eventually make a play to rule the world.

Going from Civ Revolution to Civ V on the PC was quite the shock. Not only is it a lot slower paced, there’s a lot more to manage and keep track of. I’m not saying this is a bad thing, but it’s not necessarily a quick fix type of game. At first I couldn’t get a grasp on Civ V as it was just too different (for example, being unable to stack troops makes it very difficult to navigate into tight spaces and launch an attack). Now I love Civ V just as much as I loved Civ Revolution, it’s just very time consuming.

Enter Civilization Revolution 2, the $14.99 iOS exclusive (for the moment). Having such an amazing game available at any time on my iPad is amazing, and it’s worth every penny, if not more. The game looks and plays almost exactly like the 2008 console release, with a few additions and improvements.

Playing a Civ game on a touch device is easy, and intuitive. Tap a troop and tap where you want it to go. Everything comes naturally, I don’t think I could ever go back to playing Civ Revolution with a controller. It also runs quite smoothly on the iPad Air and looks great all the time.

I’ve already sunk something around 10 hours into Civ Revolution 2, and I’ve loved every minute of it. The only problem I have is putting it down. Most people come to expect mobile games to be quick fix games, but mobile gaming has come a long way since Angry Birds. You now have full featured games on mobile devices as opposed to stripped down iterations. A few of my Civ Revolution 2 games have lasted three hours or longer and the time flew by before I realized it. I’ll tell myself ‘just one more turn’ and before long I’m 50 turns deeper.

Beware Civ Revolution 2’s addictive properties. Recently after finishing a 3 hour Civ Rev 2 game I immediately jumped onto my MacBook and began a Civ V game.

If you have an iOS device I highly recommend purchasing Civilization Revolution 2. You’ll get countless hours of enjoyment out of it if you enjoy strategy games or Civ games. If the PC versions of Civilization have intimidated you I also suggest you check out Civ Rev 2 as it’s much easier to get into and you’ll be having fun before you know it.

Civilization Revolution 2 is available in the App Store for $14.99

I have two Xbox One Destiny beta codes up for grabs

Posted on July 22, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

Hey there, haven’t posted in awhile but I just wanted to stop in and offer up two Destiny beta codes for Xbox One. Just throw your e-mail address in the comments and I’ll give the two codes away (probably sometime tonight).

Hopefully I’ll be able to get into the beta after work tomorrow morning (on night shift) and I’d like to post my thoughts on it if I have the time. Until then, thanks for stopping by.

Gumballs Plays: Side Pocket

Posted on May 5, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

Side Pocket was one of my favorite games on the NES. It had addicting music and the right amount of challenge to keep you trying to get further and get a higher score every time. I don’t think I’ve ever made it to the last round, though it’s never frustrated me to the point where I want to stop playing. To this day Side Pocket is still an enjoyable experience that I never get tired of.

Another check in

Posted on May 1, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

Hey there. Still busy, sorry I haven’t been around lately. I haven’t played Elder Scrolls Online at all in the last week. I’m not sure if I’ll play much more of it. I played a bit of Trials Evolution on Xbox One and it’s pretty enjoyable. I like the atmosphere of it all, even if it is a bit distracting at times. The core gameplay is basically the same as the other Trials games (with the addition of trick mode) which is great, because the main draw is trying to beat your friends’ ghosts and top them on the leaderboard.

I hooked up my NES and played some Super Mario Bros. 3 after watching the Giant Bomb Encyclopedia Bombastica on Super Mario Bros. 2. I’ve never beaten Mario 3, in fact I’ve never made it past the first world. So I looked up how to find the first warp whistle and warped to world 4 but then the game froze. I have another copy of Mario 3 that’s in better condition so I’ll probably have to use that one if I want to try to make any serious progress. I suck at platforming games though. I always jump into pits repeatedly and just get angry and quit.

In other news, I have next week off as a break before the deployment so maybe I’ll get motivated to blog a few more times. Until then, thanks for stopping in.

The Elder Scrolls Online so far

Posted on April 19, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

Hey there, it’s been pretty busy at work lately as we get ready to deploy this summer so I haven’t gotten around to blogging much. I’ll try to post more as I can. Anyway, against all common sense I found myself wanting to buy The Elder Scrolls Online and ended up buying it yesterday. Most of the reviews call it mediocre at best and most users have nothing good at all to say about the game. For whatever reason I bought it anyway…Maybe when it goes free to play (when, not if) they’re reward the people who bought it early on. If not, oh well at least it’s something new to check out.

I played for about 45 minutes so far and streamed it to Twitch so figured I’d share my progress so far.

Need for Speed (movie)

Posted on March 23, 2014 by GumballsPlaysGames

While I was home on leave my little brother had wanted to see the Need for Speed movie, so a couple nights ago we went. I’ve never been that into the Fast and Furious movies after the first one and I could only assume Need for Speed would be one of those ‘car porn’ movies. As it turns out, I quite enjoyed Need for Speed.

The story at first seemed pretty standard, but the characters really drew me in. Tobey (Aaron Paul’s character) and Julia’s adventure was the best part of the movie. I loved the way their character’s interacted, and the music and scenery along the way was just downright beautiful. Sure a lot in the movie was far from believable but the silly, over the top sequences are both thrilling and feel good from beginning to end. I also loved Michael Keaton’s character, Monarch. I’d have to say he delivers the best performances of the movie, though Aaron Paul is right behind.

I rarely find myself wanting to watch a movie for a second time, but I already want to see Need for Speed again. It was great! I’m probably going to end up taking Vanessa to see it for a second time (she loves Aaron Paul as well, especially since he’s from Idaho).