EA Sports Ignite - A Revolutionary New Engine?

Hey folks and welcome back to 3 Lives Left.

As I mentioned in the last post (PS4 vs Xbox One), I decided that I was going to attempt to breakdown EA Sports Ignite, EA Sports' new engine. It would be cool if you guys could put your opinions across on this new system to see what you think about it too.

So, introducing the brand new engine be EA Sports, which will now power games such as FIFA 14, Madden, NBA Live and UFC.

EA Sports have claimed that the new engine will aim to even out all of the issues we witnessed in previous titles. It also claims to have improved Human Intelligence for better decision making (At last!), Living Worlds, whereby the crowds are now in 3D as opposed to being like cardboard, as well as True Player Motion; haven't we heard this somewhere else before?

CVG compiled an article stating that the new-at-the-time Impact Engine would improve on areas such as First Touch Control (yeah, right.), Player Impact (really?), Complete Dribble (fair enough), Tactical Freekicks (erm...?), and Attacking AI (please.).

Below are just some of the screenshots taken from FIFA 13.

Puyol getting a bit aggressive in his old age.

Neymar has lost his heading ability.

Now c'mon, let's be serious EA. You promised a lot and delivered a little. Here are some of the issues that I fell across whilst playing the most recent FIFA title:

- Major glitching (more below)

- Server issues

- Massive lag issues

- More?

I recall one glitch at the beginning of this game's cycle where I saved a Career Mode with Borussia Dortmund and when I loaded the save file again it just crashed and I could not advance on the calender. Bare in mind, I also made it to 2019. I was extremely disappointed.

On many occasions it has also been very common that half way through a match, the football, or an entire player would completely disappear during the game. Imagine playing football without the football? It's just 22 people running after thin air.

Human Intelligence: EA Sports' attempt to not just improve the intelligence of the player you are possessing, but also the intelligence of your team-mates and the opposition. I believe they tried this in the last Impact Engine?

True Player Motion: Another of EA Sports' attempts to improve the gaming experience and the realism of gameplay. Again, I thought this was tried in the last Impact Engine?

Living Worlds: EA Sports' are trying to improve the sidelines and crowds in sporting arena's in order to give the player that immersive feeling that real-life sports stars feel as they enter the arena/stadia. Now although EA Sports have always tried to tweak the crowds and add more venue selection, they have never aimed to bring a real-life situation to the player in regards to offering that 'immersive feeling'.

The head of EA Sports was interviewed by IGN on the new EA Sports Ignite engine and pretty much openly admitted that this new engine was years in the planning and was intended as a protective measure for the next-gen consoles. Find the interview here.

So there you have it guys. The "new" EA Sports engine for the next-gen consoles. I have a feeling it is going to be more of the same. What about you?

Leave your comments below.

See ya later folks.

XBOX One vs PS4 - Round One

Alright guys, welcome back to 3 Lives Left and also welcome to the big post: XBOX One vs PS4 Round 1. Let's get started.

This is going to be a somewhat long-winded post, as you would imagine. But fear not! I am going to bring you all of the available information in one, easy to read post that may help you make up your mind on the next-gen consoles.

First up is the PS4.

So, here is the new DualShock 4 PS4 controller that was revealed by Sony at their conference, which you can find here. And here are some fun, new facts about the new controller:

- It has a touch pad which will be used in-game and to maneuver around the home page.

-A brand new Share button that will allow the player to instantly share live or saved game-play with their PSN friends.

-Light bar, located on the top of the controller which will be used for player identification.

Sony also revealed some cool new features about the functionality of the console and its partnership with the controller:

- The power button uses a new Resume/Save function for ease of use, so that the game you were playing would continue from exactly where you left it.

-The player will be able to download a fraction of games whilst allowing the remainder of the download to continue in the background (A bit like downloading a film on Sky Plus). It is claimed to be seamless and lag free.

-Brand new interface - See below.

Everything will be personalised for you, the gamer.

Here is the brand new PS4 interface. I personally do not like it at all, it seems too clunky and unorganised.

Sony bought out organisation GaiKai a little while back now, mainly for PS4 purposes, and here are the main things to be concerned about:

- Allows pop-up comments on screen from other gamers.

- Cloud gaming

- Partnership with UStream allows players to stream saved or live game-plays with friends and subscribers on UStream.

As well as being partnered with UStream, the other big-hitting organisation they have teamed up with is... Facebook. Not much has been revealed on how their presence will improve the experience but I guess we will find out.

Now, here is a big bit of news.

This, the PS Vita, will be used in the exact same way that the Wii U is used. You can use this and the PS4 to switch between platforms and will allow you to continue playing your game (no word on if it can be used as a controller also).

Imagine, you're playing the new Unchartered game and you get a call from one of your friends to go round to their house for an hour. Just switch to your PS Vita and carry on playing, save the game whenever you want, then pick up where you left off when you get home to your PS4.

The biggest news of all? Sony are working on technology that will allow 100% backwards compatibility. That means all of your PS1, PS2, PS3 & Handheld device games will be at your disposal on the new system, cool huh?

As you all know, or should, there are no images for the new console, which is a bit of a shame. But my guess is that they knew Microsoft would reveal a console on their reveal, so decided to wait until E3.

Now, follow me into the world that is - XBOX One.

Here you can see the new logo from Microsoft for the XBOX One, and it comes as no surprise that they have gone with a simple name and a simple logo with the customary XBOX colours, white and green.

So, Microsoft, XBOX and their partners have really went all out on their XBOX Reveal conference in an attempt to trump Sony, and to also treat the viewers. And I do not think that they failed.

Below is the brand new XBOX One.

So here it is, the new XBOX One. The machine that the team at Microsoft and XBOX say will change the entire landscape of the living room and how entertainment is provided.

First, let's address the design. From the logo and the design of this new console, it is clear that XBOX are battling on two fronts. The war between XBOX and Sony and the war between Microsoft and Apple - Why do I say this?

Well, it is natural that Microsoft want to beat Sony on the gaming and entertainment front. But Microsoft also want to catch Apple in terms of design features, branding, marketing etc.

The design looks slick and the three components complement each other - The console, the controller, and the Kinect 2.0.

Just a quick shot of the XBOX One interface for PS4 comparison. Not much has changed.

XBOX revealed a whole host of things in relation to what to expect when using the new console:

- Huge emphasis on entertainment

- All in one system (games, tv, internet)

- Instant switching between functions (see Kinect 2.0 section)

- Snap Mode - Run multiple programmes at one time (more below)

- Integration of smartphones to interact with Snap Mode functions

- New and improved Skype, can be used on Snap Mode

- XBOX One TV guide. The guide saves favourites and shows what is trending

Snap Mode allows the user to run multiple functions or programmes at once. Imagine while playing a game, you will be able to open Snap Mode, which appears in a panel on the right, and you can start a Skype call as you play.

Alternatively, you could be watching a film and open Snap Mode, within this you could search and watch the trailer for a sequel with the movement of a hand or a word processed gesture. Examples of both are given in the conference (see link to video above).

There have also been improvements to the XBOX Live service:

- 300,000 dedicated servers for XBOX Live

- Editing and sharing tools as a result of dedicated game DVR

- Acheivements have changed. It is now about HOW you play the game - Not what you DO

Now we get to the bit you guys really want to know about, the games and are there any exclusives?

There is a special relationship between EA sports and Microsoft for four new games that will be released within the next 12 months - FIFA 14, Madden, NBA Live and UFC - Accompanied by their new engine, EA Ignite (this will be covered in more depth on the next post). EA also announced that there will be an XBOX only exclusive on FIFA 14's Ultimate Team - This will probably be revealed at E3.

Remedy, part of Microsoft Studios, confirmed a brand new exclusive for XBOX One - Quantum Break as well as a new Max Payne title. There were also some rumors of a new Alan Wake title but this has been squashed by the creator of the franchise. I still think they will make it.

Microsoft also confirmed that there will be 15 new exclusives to XBOX One with 8 of these being brand new titles. One exclusive that is coming back, and was premiered at the conference was Forza Motorsport 5.

The last exclusive? Take a guess...... Call of Duty: Ghosts. Yes, the new title premiered the new campaign trailer at the conference as well as teasing us with multi-player, and I for one think that they are ripping up the handbook on the new title. It will not be 100% exclusive, however, it will have timed exclusives such as getting all of the content before any other console.

XBOX and 343 Studios have announced the creation of a Halo TV series that will be exclusive to XBOX One customers only, created in partnership with the one and only Steven Spielberg.

And here is probably the biggest, best, and most certainly the most expensive partnership in gaming. XBOX and the NFL have set up a partnership at the cost of $400 million. This partnership means you will be able to watch ALL NFL games through the XBOX One in the regular and play-off season. I also assume this may include the Super-Bowl. In addition to this, the Snap Mode will allow the user to also check their Fantasy Football Team, this function also works for NBA.

Where does this leave all of us football/soccer fans? In the dark for now, let's wait for E3.

Now, for the final section of this breakdown, let's focus on Kinect 2.0

The Kinect 2.0 sensor is said to be more reactive to movements and voice control. It seems as though that this is the catalyst in order to get the most out of your XBOX One.

The Kinect 2.0 allows you to use simple hand movements in order to swipe through menus in addition to using a 'grab and stretch' technique that will allow the player to enhance the screen as well as decreasing which allows you to go back to the menu. It also has improved voice recognition that will open anything you want instantly, on demand. A bit like Siri for Apple, just more responsive.

All in all both systems seem great and I'm sure we will see a lot more from these systems at E3. It is said that the companies are aiming for a Q4 release (Christmas rush) in order to boost profits, no surprises there. BUT, rumors are circulating that XBOX may be willing to sell their system for a lower price in order to get people to buy into the service on a long term basis. Not such a bad business move.

I know I am not meant to be biased, but my vote is swinging in the way of Microsoft, for now.

I really hope that you guys enjoyed this post. Don't forget to comment and stay tuned for the next one. Thanks guys.

After Earth - Preview

Welcome back peeps. Brand new post previewing the soon-to-be-released film, After Earth.

This film sees Will Smith (Men in Black 3) and his son, Jaden Smith (Karate Kid) crash land on Earth 1000 years after it has been abandoned by all human life. An injured Cypher Raige (Will) send his son, Kitai (Jaden) on a quest to signal for help to get them off the planet. But will it be that easy?

Along the way they are both bound to meet a plethora of creatures that will be trying their hardest to kill them.

The new human home comes in the form of Nova Prime. It is said that the last of the Human race traveled for 100 years at the speed of light in order to find a new settlement. And so they built a new civilization. The humans attempted to flee Earth through 'Arks' which would help them arrive to their new destination. World Governments issued 10, only 6 were made and one ship could only carry 125,000 people. Meaning there were more losses than there were saved.

Not much has been given away on the actual story-line, and I for one am grateful because it looks like it could be a great film.

Thanks for reading guys! Hope you enjoyed. Stay tuned for the next one!

After Earth in cinemas June 7th

Injustice: Gods Among Us - iPad Version

Hi folks, welcome back to 3 Lives Left. This post is going to focus on the iPad version of Injustice: Gods Among Us.

This is a somewhat new release. I have had it on my iPad for a few months now, but I believe that the XBOX version was only just released. As you would imagine, compared to the console versions there is little to no cohesive story-line. However, the game has a lot of cool features.

Collection: You can create and build you own team of superheros and go in to battle with them. My personal collection consists of Catwoman, Green Lanter, Nightwing, Deathstroke, Lex Luthor and The Flash. You can only choose 3 characters to fight in each battle, though.

Upgrades: Upgrade your characters' powers.

Support Cards: Increase the strength of your characters

Battle: The game offers a lot of battle stages and at the end of each stage, you fight the boss.

Points: Points can be used to by booster packs (Bronze, Silver, Gold), Characters, and Support Cards.

The characters themselves have one defense booster e.g. Green Lantern has an Energy Shield, which allows him to take 50% less damage for 8 seconds if health falls below 40%. This only occurs once per match, though.

They also have 3 special attacks, which inflicts a lot more damage on enemies when used. Example of these include The Flash's Lightning Kick, Sonic Pound, and Speed Zone.

As you can imagine, to attack your foe you must tap and swipe the screen and in order to block you must hold two fingers on the screen. As for how the game plays, it plays very well. I have experienced no evident glitches, bugs or crashes.

I hope you enjoyed this post guys. Stay tuned for the next one.

Injustice: Gods Among Us is available on all consoles now as well as for your iPad, iPhone and iPod.

Next post is a big one, and you get to choose. So if you are a regular reader of this blog and want to see a preview on the new XBOX or PS4 leave a comment below.

Man of Steel - Preview

Hi guys and welcome back to 3 Lives Left. I know, I know, it's been a while. But fear not, you're in for a treat today... a preview of the reboot of Superman - Man of Steel.

So the new film sees Henry Cavill (Stardust) take up the mantle of the Superman franchise. As a young boy he is sent to Earth from his home planet, Krypton, by his parents Jor-El (Russell Crowe, Gladiator) and Lara Lor-Van (Ayelet Zurer, Angels and Demons). A young Clark Kent is then raised on Earth by Martha (Diane Lane, Unfaithful) and Johnathan Kent (Kevin Costner, The Bodyguard) and goes on an adventure that sees him grow up into the man that his parents and his guardians would hope he would turn into, a hero.

As we all know, the last Superman film to grace the Silver Screen really wasn't that good by anyone's standards. But this adaptation of arguable one of the most loved superheroes is in extremely good hands. Director (Zack Snyder, 300, Watchmen), Producer (Christopher Nolan, The Batman Trilogy, Inception), and Writer (David. S Goyer, The Batman Trilogy). If that isn't a team to be reckoned with then I don't know what is.

All I know is, this film shows a lot of promise and I am thoroughly looking forward to it.

Thanks for reading guys, hope you enjoyed!

Man of Steel in cinemas June 14th.