Episode 22 Game of the Year 2013

Mike, Phil and Trevor discuss the highlights in gaming in 2013 and our picks for Game of the Year. To pick your Game of the Year 2013 game, head over to Facebook.com/geeksmithproductions and vote!



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Episode 21

The Geeksmith Podcast is Back! We introduce the newest member of the Geeksmith Podcast, Trevor Grant! We cover all things next-gen including impressions and experience with the systems as well as your latest gaming news! At 45 minutes in there are spoilers to both Thor 2 and the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Episode.

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Save the Comet Preview

By: Nicholas Ware

Mobile gaming has made its place in the gaming community. Whether it's to pass time or to just have a little fun without the use of a television or console. You can take your games anywhere with you with the help of your mobile device. Hundreds of thousands of games have flooded the mobile market with all sorts of different styles of gameplay. So no matter what style of games you are into, there is sure to be one to fit your needs as a gamer on the go.

I had the privilege of testing a new game that has yet to hit the market. Let me say that people are in for a challenging fun game that will provide hours of entertainment. The game is called Save the Comet, and as the name implies, that is your goal. The game is an infinite space runner where level progression is based on distance. You start as a little comet hurdling through space passing planets throughout the universe to some awesome space like music. Using the planets orbit to navigate yourself through space by pulling them towards the comet. As you pass each planets orbit, you collect little specks of light called stardust. Stardust is used for a variety of things such as power ups, items, as well as the customization of your comet. The power ups, also known as perks, can help you collect more stardust and survive longer in the game. Items can be purchased with stardust while perks are randomly found on planets and acquired by getting in their orbit. Upgrading perks will also help you collect more stardust by lengthening the time the perk is activated.

As you progress through the game, you will see lighter planets known as rich planets which give more stardust than a normal planet. White ones appear in the beginning of the game and the farther you go you will start seeing gold ones which give even more stardust than the white. By upgrading perks you will be able to collect galactic stardust, the most valuable of all. Meteorites will start appearing to up the challenge as you must tap them to destroy them as you try to make your way past the planets. Using the planets, you can throw them to destroy other planets and meteorites to help make your way. As you travel, you will come across cracked planets known as corrupted planets. They have no stardust on the surface to collect so they must be destroyed to obtain it. The game play gets more challenging as you progress making you want to beat yourself to see what else there is. I was absolutely addicted and played for hours on end to get farther and farther.

The development team started working on this back in 2012 at the Global Game Jam 2012. They work on it in their free time and are promising many new additions to the final game. You will be able to acquire a small bonus for connecting to Facebook or Twitter. Such as gaining more score and stardust. The game is planned to be free, but you will be able to purchase stardust in game to help progress further. Although it is an infinite space runner, there is planned to be an ending which will tell about the comet and what is happening along the way. It will help give a storyline to the game.

No announce date for the release has been set, but the team is planning to release it before the end of 2013. The game will be released for Android at first, but is planned to be on iOS and Windows phone later on. If things go well, they are planning a trilogy to give more of a story and more cool improvements to the game. I'm very excited for the release of the full game and I know I'll be downloading it. Show some support for the Save the Comet team and follow them on Twitter to keep yourself updated on the game. Follow them @savethecomet

I'd like to give some very special thanks to the amazing team of this amazing game.

Oz Tova Suman
Project Manager, Game Designer

Erdin Kacan
Programmer, Game Designer

Fatih Kaya
Scenerio, Game Designer

Onur Sipahi
Visual Artist

Mert Kütükoglu
Visual Artist

Troy Morrissey
Music and SFX

Burak Baduroglu
Music and SFX 

Episode 20 Lethal Lens

Mike and Phil are joined by Kenny Gazko and Christie Shinn from Lethal Lens to talk about their upcoming Project Icarus. Together we discuss Tokyo Game Show, the latest announcements from Valve and Grand Theft Auto V.

Check out Lethal Lens and Project Icarus at http://lethal-lens.com and on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/LethalLens


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Pikmin 3: A Familiar Call From a Distant World

Review by: Nicholas Ware

Pikmin. The name alone conjures up memories of GameCube's golden age. Running around as Captain Olimar with your own army of Pikmin, taking on enemies, solving puzzles, and collecting treasure while trying to find your ship parts to return home. The game was interesting with its real-time strategy style gameplay, beautiful scenery, and soothing music and was popularly embraced among gamers.


With the success of Pikmin, Nintendo decided to launch a sequel to it, Pikmin 2. Introducing a new character and story as well as new Pikmin to create a new and enjoyable challenge. Using these new additions to solve new puzzles and destroy new enemies, the new Pikmin created a more diverse army to play with. It was another successful installment of the game, which left fans eagerly awaiting the next Pikmin story. With the launch of the Wii, Pikmin fans were eagerly awaiting the next chapter to make an appearance on Nintendo's new console. Sadly, that wasn't the case, as only the first 2 games were available to play. Fans had no other choice but to wait and see what Nintendo's plan would be for Pikmin. The anticipation wouldn't end until the announcement of Nintendo's next console, the Wii U.

The game was said to feature new gameplay with the capabilities allowed by the Wii U's technology. Promising a new story with new characters and gameplay. The game was supposed to be a launch title but didn't appear upon the system's release date. Multiple delays were announced when as the game approached it's release. As a Pikmin fan myself, this was an extremely disappointing time. 
After all the waiting, it finally paid off. On August 4th, 2013, Pikmin 3 hit the store shelves. 

The game introduces three new characters, which plays as a central part in the game. Characters Alph, Charlie and Brittany embark on a voyage to a new planet, PNF-404. They are in search of fruit to cultivate seeds in order to return to their home planet and save the Koppai from starving. On the descent to the planet, their ship crashes into it, separating the three astronauts. The mission is to find your lost companions and search for fruit to survive and return home with. With the help of the friendly Pikmin you find nearby, you're soon off to start your adventure. A couple new Pikmin types make an appearance to help you as well the well known blue, red, and yellow types from previous games. The title also brings the arrival of Rock Pikmin and flying Pikmin who help to bring a extra powers to your army in addition to helping with new obstacles along your quest. There are also new enemy types but many of the classics once again return. The boss battles are exceptionally crafted to say the least, making you use different strategies to take them down. Being able to multitask with the three different characters allows for new fighting strategies, new solutions to puzzles, as well as getting much more done in less time during the course of the day. This new addition helps to create a wonderful story in the land of Pikmin. Despite it's length falling shorter than the second, it still managed to be amazing; and in my opinion, it was a game worth waiting for. 


The gameplay is innovative with the new systems and addicting to the point of being unable to put down. I just wanted to continue playing to see whats next. The mission mode and boss roulette offer more replay value however, after the story mode is over. The juice the fruit produces, makes the game similar to the first with the 30 days worth of oxygen. The visuals and graphics are stunning with so much detail put into the scenery throughout the game. Enemies looked scary and beautiful at the same time and the Pikmin look better than ever. The music is calming yet fitting to the franchise. The soundtrack is that of a beautiful adventure in a world filled with curious discoveries. The difficulty varies from time to time. With some parts requiring patience and planning to get past with the least losses of time and Pikmin. Overall, this game was worth every minute i put into it and I will be sure to pick it up again for another run. For that, I give this game a 9 out of 10. Good job Nintendo. 


          

The Wii U Question:

Now the question is, is this game worth buying a Wii U for? My answer is both yes and no. If you're a fan of the Pikmin franchise and have waited for this installment, I would say yes. For any Pikmin fan this game is a wonderful and fun new way to play and provides many hours of gameplay and replay value. If you're not that much of a fan, I'd say to wait until more titles arrive in stores before you pick up the console. There's still not many titles out yet, but many promising titles are in the works. Once those games release, the Wii U may become hard to find. This may be one of the first of the Wii U's anticipated titles, and its certainly one of it's best. There seems to be great things yet to come from Nintendo, and I for one cant wait to see them. Happy gaming.

Episode 19 Gamescom

Mike, Phil, Tony and Cody discuss the events and news from Gamescom 2013. Mike pitches a Gran Turismo movie to Sony and Phil ponders the possibilities of Diablo 3 DLC.

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Episode 18

Phil, Mike and Craig discuss and argue the most pressing matters of today. Phil declares his unabashed love for Phil Fish. Mike declares that Grand Theft Auto Online is the most "next-gen" thing he has seen so far. Craig is generally awesome the entire time.

Geeksmith Productions
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