Jason, Author at Thumb Culture

1Jun

By JasonNo Comments

THQ Nordic – Exclusive London Showcase Event

Last week I was lucky enough to be invited to THQ Nordic's Showcase Event located within a dark eerie crypt deep below St Andrew's Church in Holborn, London. Having made my way via land and rail I was excited to be one of the first to have a play at the latest builds of their forthcoming titles; Battle Chasers: NightWar, Elex and SpellForce 3 and also get to interview the team behind them. As I descended into the cool and dimly lit dungeon-like crypt I was greeted by the PR crew, Dead Good Media, who enthusiastically led me to the 3 banks of neon lit gaming PC's where I would be spending as long as I wanted playing each of the games. I seriously couldn't wait. Battle Chasers: NightWar was the first game on my list to play, especially after the feedback from fellow ThumbCulturis...

Exclusive Interview with THQ Nordic’s Reinhard Pollice

1Jun

By JasonNo Comments

Features

Exclusive Interview with THQ Nordic’s Reinhard Pollice

As part of the THQ Nordic London ShowCase last week (click here for the event details), one of our writers, Jason, was lucky enough to meet SpellForce 3 & Elex Development Director Reinhard Pollice. Having played both of the games he was keen to have a chat and answer a few questions that we had for him. Enjoy! Jason: Hi Reinhard, so you’re one of the developers behind Spell Force 3? Reinhard: Yeah sort of, I take care of all the projects at THQ Nordic and Grimlore Games which is an internal studio for THQ Nordic, I am their studio manager and development director. I’m wearing a lot of hats! Jason: So a lot of pressure. Reinhard: Yeah, ha ha. Jason: So I’ve had a go on ELEX and SpellForce 3, which I’ve really enjoyed. My first impressions of SpellForce 3 are a cross b...

Guardians of Ember – Early Access Preview

25May

By JasonNo Comments

PC Reviews, Previews & Early Access

Guardians of Ember – Early Access Preview

An isometric Steam Early Access game featuring distinctive character classes with the ability to gain a second class and blast your way through the levels in order to conquer almost 60 different regions in game, each littered with unique enemies, challenges and loot. Is Guardians of Ember worthy of being played? Game Play Guardians of Ember has been developed by the gamers of Runewaker, the team behind Rune’s of Magic and Dragon’s Prophet. This team has a lot of experience and knowledge in making games and it shows in Guardians of Ember. Thrust into the game you’re immediately tasked with saving a base from a goblin invasion. The game is good in teaching you what to do and how to use the different skill panes and how to customise your character to use the skills best suited to you...

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 Latest Trailer

23May

By JasonNo Comments

News & Updates

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 Latest Trailer

The last LEGO Marvel Super Heroes game was released back in 2013 and was nominated for a BAFTA game award however it lost out to a tiny open-world game called Grand Theft Auto V by RockStar North. “The LEGO Group is delighted to continue the stories of the legendary Marvel characters in a new LEGO adventure,” said Sean McEvoy, VP Digital Games, The LEGO Group. “Fans young and old will love playing through this all-new cosmic saga spanning the Marvel Universe as seen through the LEGO lens.” After recently watching the latest Marvel movie we are definitely looking forward to some much needed Guardians of the Galaxy action! “With a completely original branching storyline, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 introduces amazing new gameplay features, including the ability for characters to mani...

Call of Duty World War 2 – Can it Save the Series

19May

By JasonNo Comments

Features

Call of Duty World War 2 – Can it Save the Series

Returning to World War Two, have the developers of the Call of Duty series done enough to save and return the series to its former glory or has too much been broken in terms of fan loyalty over the years that not even a return to the series glory days will be able to save it With the recent success of Battlefield 1 which headed back in time to World War One and therefore taking a different approach on Call of Duty last year, which decided to venture even further into the future with even more futuristic and out-there technology, Activision look like they’ve decided to take a different path this year and return to the days of old with this year’s instalment of Call of Duty. Call of Duty has totally lost its place with me and I know it’s lost its place with a lot of you as well...

Black & White Bushido Review – Yin Meets Yang!

16May

By Jason1 Comment

PlayStation Reviews

Black & White Bushido Review – Yin Meets Yang!

Black & White Bushido by Good Catch Games is now available on XBox One & PS4, bringing to the table a mixture of stealth, skill, death and ultimately great fun! Released on PC via Steam back in October 2015, Black & White Bushido was well received by gamers therefore the battle between light and shadow finally coming to consoles is a very anticipated hit. Black & White Bushido is an arena based couch competitive and newly introduced online multiplayer, samurai sword, shuriken throwing battle between two factions; the light and the shadow. I am probably showing my age if I described it as being similar to Atari's Joust but this isn't a bad thing, far from it, this is building upon a classic platform game and making it their own, something that Good Catch Games have carr...

12May

By Jason2 Comments

PC Reviews, Previews & Early Access

Battle Chasers: Nightwar – Preview

A fun isometric role-playing game with turn-based combat and an in-depth crafting system. Classic combat featured in a technology-infused fantasy land, is Battle Chasers: Nightwar everything that it promises to be? Battle Chasers: Nightwar was originally funded by a kick starter project back in 2015 and is now available on Steam Early Access. The game is being made by Airship Syndicate, a company located in Austin Texas. Being a staff pick on Kickstarter and funding over $850,000 which was over $300,000 more than they needed, the game's prospects are strong. Gameplay Having invested a couple of hours into the game, all I can say is that I wanted MORE! Inspired by classic JRPGs is clear from playing the game but the developers have only been inspired, everything is fresh, clean and crisp...

10May

By JasonNo Comments

PC Reviews

Splody Review – Has Bomberman Been Resurrected

Splody, by development studio Dashing Strike, is the latest Bomberman clone that has exploded its way onto the indie game circuit. Created specifically for PC and accessible through Steam, the development of Splody is thanks to the founder and owner of Dashing Strike, Jimb Esser. Jimb, who has worked developing online multiplayer games since 2003, has been the brains behind games such as City of Heroes, Star Trek Online and Neverwinter Online therefore is no novice when it comes to the online genre. As a child I loved Bomberman so I was very interested to have a play on Splody to see how it stacked up! For anyone, dare I say it, that has never seen a Bomberman style game before (don't make me feel old!) this is how it works. Move fast, drop bombs, collect powerups, kill or be ...

Day of Infamy Review – The Best WW2 Shooter?

9May

By Jason2 Comments

PC Reviews

Day of Infamy Review – The Best WW2 Shooter?

A game made by the experienced developers of the game Insurgency, a strategic, authentic and genuinely terrifying yet satisfying World War 2 game. Does Day of Infamy build on the success of the developer or does it fizzle out like a dud grenade? Gameplay Day of Infamy is a game which focuses on World War 2 with its online multiplayer matches set in a multitude of different locations and featuring a wide range of different character classes. The classes all come equipped with different load outs and are best suited to different situations. Making a team with a balance of classes is essential in surviving and winning matches. Featuring ten maps and over 70 authentic World War two weapons and attachments, the developers have spent a long time trying to bring the best experience poss...

6May

By JasonNo Comments

News & Updates

The Town of Light – Release Date Issued

Wired Productions, in partnership with Italian developer LKA, have confirmed today that their chilling first-person psychological adventure game The Town of Light will be released on Tuesday 6th of June on both physical and digital formats for PS4, Xbox One and PC. The Town of Light, based on extensive research and inspired by real facts, is a first-person psychological story driven adventure game set in the Volterra Psychiatric Asylum, based in Tuscany, Italy. The asylum was shut down in the late 1970's by a law from the Italian government which instructed all asylums to close completely and give back patients their civil rights. In The Town of Light you get to explore the asylum as it stands to this day and uncover the good and the bad that humankind has to offer. Playing...