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Steam Keys: Quake Champions at Quakecon

Posted on August 8, 2016 by Richard Griever

It’s now official that the original franchise that put the FPS genre on the map is joining the fray of the budding FPS e-sports scene with Quake Champions. It’s invariably a revival of its arena shooter franchise with the twist of the growing popularity of being a team-based shooters like Overwatch and Team Fortress 2.

Despite the hype of hardcore Quake fans, Quake champions had a relatively odd reaction when it was showcased in Quakecon 2016. At this point, it’s clear that the developers have to work on a few more things for its marketing before they can assume Steam keys will fly off virtual shelves upon its release in, presumably, late 2017 or early 2018.

Steam Keys E-Sports: Street Fighter Meets Quake

The first thing Tim Willits, creative director of the game, presented was that it wasn’t at all going to change from how diehards know the franchase. High-speed, technical combat with rocket jumping and all the complications that put Quake on the map were still in the game. With a showcase of the classic weaponry in a new engine and era, the audience simply lapped up everything that was thrown at them – that is, until the developers showcased the heroes usable in-game.

Similar to Mobas like League of Legends and Dota or like other class-based shooters like Overwatch, Quake Champions has its, well, champions do unique things like blinking, acrobatics, flying, and a ton of other stuff that set them apart from other champions, giving them distinct advantages over others. While that sounds great for the common gamer, it wasn’t too well received by the truly diehard Quake fans.

The devs, id Software, hoped that this would be a bit more welcomed by their target audience as they see the champion element of the game more as a supplementary element than anything else, setting itself apart from the likes of Mobas and other team-based shooters by having more focus on individual skill rather than the rock-paper-scissors element these other games have for their class mechanics.

id Software knows exactly that there’s this spot for their classic, high-speed, arena-style game in the industry. However, their biggest fear is ending up making Quake 3 once more, but only with improved visuals. This is the sole reason as to why they want the champions element within the game. But the reaction to it is absolutely mixed at best and quite hostile at worst. There are already tons of comments on the internet that Quake Champions should either have the option to turn off the champion uniqueness and possibly be just as moddable as the previous Quake games. Granted, id Software believes that there is more depth in strategy this way, but they may be forgetting what Quake is famous for: Pure skill.

“Street Fighter Meets Quake,” is what id Software thinks of Quake Champions. It is in the sense that everybody has natural moves like heavy kicks, heavy punches, light kicks and etc., but each character has a certain tinge of uniqueness that sets them apart from one another. However, at the end of the day, no matter what sort of special moves you have, it is always the normal moves (in Quake’s case, normal shooting) is what is going to win you the match. As much as that kind of makes sense, what team-based shooter ISN’T about the shooting? It’s a pretty generic description of what they’re going for, to be completely honest.

There’s going to be a lot more kinks for them to work on if they’re going to want this to be accepted by their loyal fanbase, let alone the casual fanbase that is more likely to get the game e-sports status than any other demographic. I’m feeling quite optimistic about Quake Champions and that it can safely enter the major stage of e-sports, but id Software has a lot of work to do before those Steam keys sell.

Steam Account Value Sales! Quakecon Going Strong!

Posted on August 8, 2016 by Richard Griever

If you aren’t in the know, like me, Quakecon started this weekend on the 4th and up to the 7th. It’s a bit too late for any of us to go catch up on Zenimax Media’s celebration and promotion of their major franchises from the studios they own, including the much beloved id Software and, of course, the great Bethesda. But it isn’t too late for us PC gamers who happen to have Steam accounts. Then again, who doesn’t have a Steam account in 2016? Console plebs; that’s who.

I kid, of course, and only want to foster the love for all things Quake and everything else this franchise has inspired. With all this hubbub about another team-based shooter coming in the form of Quake Champions this 2017 (the beta at least), and the shooter genre seemingly getting a strong revival due to the efforts of Overwatch, CS:GO, and the like, going back to the franchise that started it all is something on everybody’s gaming menu.

In celebration of this event, Steam has put up a Quakecon sale where all things Quake, their subsidiaries, and all things Bethesda are on sale up to the 8th (tomorrow!!!) for up to a whopping 50%.

Steam Account Value Sale! The Games

First of all, you’ve got the ever-awesome revival of the Doom series by Bethesda going for a chunky 50% off from its regular price. This is one game, if you haven’t played yet, that you should be grabbing right this instant. It’s single player campaign is something that the gaming industry hasn’t seen for decades, bringing back to a modern age what made Doom so popular in the first place – unfettered blood and guts. More than anything else, this is the one to fetch you the most Steam account value.

The next that I would suggest you get for your Steam account is, of course, Wolfenstein as it is as much a classic as Doom and Quake are. With some intense story telling, amazing golden standard FPS gameplay, and a riveting overall, it’s another that you simply cannot miss out on for this massive Steam sale.

There are, of course, a ton more games for you to go buy. These are only my top two suggestions. Check out the Quakecon sale on Steam before it ceases on the 8th!

Top 15 Steam Codes By Player Count

Posted on July 29, 2016 by Richard Griever

Bored with your tired old games on Steam or other platforms? Or maybe you’re just looking for a ton more players that are active on specific games on Steam? Well, if you are looking to buy Steam games that are out of your regular genres, it may be wise to take a look at the top Steam games that are being played for the past 30 days. It’s always a good thing to look at the trends now and then to be able to look for those specific Steam codes you may want to buy and try out for yourself. Even if you are not a fan of the genre of a specific Steam redeem code, you may find it worthwhile to play with tons of other players that aren’t normally present in single player games or lesser popular multiplayer games.

The Top 15 Steam Codes to Watch Out For

Name	Current Players	Last 30 Days	Peak Players	Hours Played
1.	Dota 2	564,942	1,084,198	447,215,567
2.	Counter-Strike: Global Offensive	180,250	636,056	256,314,399
3.	Team Fortress 2	38,919	72,643	38,454,926
4.	Grand Theft Auto V	33,589	71,778	32,700,360
5.	Sid Meier’s Civilization V	32,082	73,683	31,346,320
6.	Starbound	29,745	62,201	6,997,268
7.	Garry’s Mod	28,395	59,522	28,036,053
8.	ARK: Survival Evolved	26,606	69,764	28,161,143
9.	Unturned	20,133	38,395	20,575,408
10.	Warframe	19,390	61,417	20,510,907
11.	Rust	19,124	64,555	22,478,100
12.	Rocket League	19,038	58,676	21,526,516
13.	Fallout 4	18,747	41,541	17,427,183
14.	Football Manager 2016	18,620	68,505	27,594,070
15.	The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim	16,870	49,134

No matter what you do, you can’t ever unseat the undisputed awesomeness that Skyrim maintains to this very day. Not only has it aged so damned well since its release in 2013, but it stays fresh due to the extremely active modding community that continuously works to improve the game in various ways. If you haven’t gotten Steam codes for Skyrim yet, then I suggest that’s the first one you go for on this list.

Apart from its contemporary in Fallout 4, all other games on the list are the more popular multiplayer Steam games that have either strong e-sports roots or those that are still attempting to be legit e-sports like Rocket League and Ark. These multiplayer Steam games are a mix of things that will certainly interest different kinds of people, but it is clear that Dota 2 still reigns supreme and is in no way going to be unseated from its throne any time soon. If Mobas aren’t your thing and you seem to have an allergy for CS:GO, a multiplayer Steam codes game you could possibly try is Rust, Ark, and Warframe. These are all great games on their own and you shouldn’t miss out on them.

Steam Keys Esports: State of Overwatch Pro Scene

Posted on July 15, 2016 by Richard Griever

The video above contains a few criticisms on the Overwatch pro scene. With Overwatch being hugely successful as of late and its momentum has showed no signs of stopping yet, as well as it getting better and better with each timely patch, folks wonder how it will fair as an e-sport.

It’s plenty obvious that the game, at its very core, is highly competitive and highly rewarding. It’s got great gameplay mechanics, superb characters in both playability and uniqueness, and it’s got some of the most interesting ideas ever to be introduced in a team-based FPS.

But that doesn’t mean jack-squat if it can’t hold up against the modern e-sports greats like Dota or CS:GO. The biggest fear folks have here is the watchability of it. In other words, if it can be a spectator sport or not. You’ll find all the arguments in the video above, so I’m just going to focus on my counter arguments instead. Or you could just go judge it for yourself even if you don’t have any Steam redeem code of it.

Steam Keys: Getting it Out of the Way

To cut it short, I completely disagree with the video about the current state of Overwatch pro gaming; Overwatch is a fine spectator sport. But, frankly, aside from the level of pro players right now really not being up to par with Envyus, it’s the cameraman that has the real responsibility for it. I’ve seen a ton of matches where the guy controlling the camera simply knew where, when, and who to focus on at key moments of a clash. That makes all the difference in the world and you can easily bypass the hundred other things happening on screen so long as the cameraman knows what to do and what to focus on, either by getting into the perspective of a player or going for a bird’s eye view.

I’ve also seen a lot of the opposite where the cameraman had apparently no freaking idea what to do. I see a Roadhog ult about to quad environmental kill from a pivotal situation and then, suddenly, camera tracks some Reaper coming back to the fight from the spawn room. Quality camerawork at its finest.

There really isn’t any other issue with its watchability other than that. The pro teams will, eventually, get good enough to take down Envyus and we’ll see a more balanced assortment of teams in the competitive meta without a single team dominating everybody. For now, it’s still pretty amazing and I suggest you all try and watch Overwatch pro games, Steam keys or not, and judge for yourself with an open mind.

Dead by Daylight Review Part 2 – Redeem Code Spotlight

Posted on July 12, 2016 by Richard Griever

Continued from Dead by Daylight Review Part 1 – Steam Codes Spotlight

At its very core, Dead by Daylight is scary as scary can be. With randomly generated maps, teams will be using the environment to their advantage as killers will bypass them completely though their menacing looms and larger-than-life unpredictability. It’s a series of fear-driven encounters that have both sides running frantically to outwit each other. While it’s a great game, this sort of gameplay is weak against developing metas, as with most competitive games. Well, just think about it; you’re playing as a lone killer against a team of well coordinated survivors – you are definitely going to lose.

Right now, the survivors definitely have the greater advantage over the killers. Though, one could also say that killers are underpowered instead, but it still shows that fights against coordinated survivor teams or even just from well-experienced players make the game a bit too one-sided. With the meta of the game right now, the slow movement speed of killers are easily exploited and outclassed by the clear advantages of survivors. Though killers have their own sets of abilities to tip the scales in their favor, it still feels like they are too underpowered for their own good.

Other issues also grate, particularly the fact that at every turn the survivors get second chances, from needing to be hit twice, to (potentially) wriggling free of your grasp when carrying them to a more advantageous spot, to the speed at which the survivors can free others from the meathooks you hang them on to kill them. Visually, it can often appear very muddy and washed out, which isn’t great for spotting or tracking targets (if you’re looking for someone who’s been downed you can forget it).

The progression system in the game could use a little more work as well. Akin to the system in place for Payday, players get some xp and perks after every match, like a slight, but permanent, boost to move speed, but it isn’t so much that it will help a lot in the long run. It’s pretty shallow at the moment but, of course, this could change in the future. The game is great overall and the sense of dread is authentically amazing that you’ll be able to dismiss some of the glaring problems at its core for quite some time. Given a bit more time to develop, this could turn out to be a good staple of gaming like the Left 4 Dead series. Here’s to hoping.

Redeem Codes: Is it Worth it?

So, should you buy it? It’s great but not great enough for you to blow your money on PC redeem code or Xbox redeem code right this instant. It’s more worth it if you just wait for a sale.

Evolve goes Free to Play for All Steam Account Users

Posted on July 12, 2016 by Richard Griever

Many have forgotten about the kerfuffle Evolve caused when it simply wasn’t up to par with its hype. Abruptly, the massive playerbase of the Evolve at launch went down to an almost staggering insignificance, slowing down matchmaking by a ton for the very few players that decided to stick it out. Just recently, Evolve disappeared from the Steam store and was inaccessible with any Steam account that already had it, only to come back up the next day as in free-to-play format called Evolve: Stage 2. Sounds familiar to most MMO stories of F2P redemption.

There are several new modes, characters, maps, and a whole slew of other unlockables in Stage 2 and will continue the F2P trend in the months to come. Surprisingly, however, Evolve has gone back to its beta phase after it’s already been live for quite some time now. It seems that Turtle Rock is pulling a Realm Reborn with the IP albeit in a more open fashion.

The developers claim that it’s gone back to beta due to their goal of tweaking the user interface, removing certain bugs, and even overhauling some elements of the game drastically.

“When Evolve launched, the reception wasn’t what we expected,” as it is written on the developer’s website, “Sure, there were some good reviews. There were also bad reviews. Yes, there was excitement. There was also disappointment — for players and for us.”

This statement was due to the issue that Evolve put out some very expensive DLC for Steam account users despite the earlier claims of delivering new content for free.

While it was said that founders or loyal players who have paid and played the original Evolve launch would be getting rewards and their content progress to carry over. Unfortunately, some people have experienced that all their work in the previous build of the game were all but erased, leaving them dissatisfied with the transition to F2P. Those may just be anomalous errors on the developer’s part, but if this is true for all other Steam accounts, then the backlash will be monumental.

This is, however, all for the PC version, aka. on Steam. Consoles will be untouched until Turtle Rock finishes their work past the beta phase of stage 2. Until then, console players that are interested in playing the game will still have to buy the launch retail of Evolve for the time being. This certainly might take a while.

Difficult Steam Keys for your Steam Account – Part 2

Posted on July 8, 2016 by Richard Griever

Continued from Part 1!

Steam Keys: The Five Games Continued

Ikaruga

Ikaruga can be defined in two simple words: Bullet Hell. Games in these genres are maddeningly difficult due to the incessant amount of “bullets” flying around your screen as you attempt to avoid them and shoot down enemies in return. There are tons of other games on Steam under this genre, like Jamestown, but Ikaruga sets itself apart from the others with its notorious difficulty and steep learning curve.

Bullet Hells are easy to get the hang of eventually, but Ikaruga’s twist is going to ensure that that is not going to happen with you any time soon. All bullets are either black or white and your ship can switch between black and white. Only bullets of the opposite color can destroy your ship, e.g. you can tank white bullets if your ship is white. In addition, hitting enemies with the opposite color inflicts double damage.

It’s… overwhelming. Give it a try and you’ll get a run for your money.

Super Meat Boy

This game. This freaking game. Super Meat Boy has been the poster child for difficult games for a while now. It starts off simple enough but quickly ramps up the frustration to insane levels, so much so that you can find videos on YouTube of people suffering through the game while screaming their heads off in rage. Yet even so, it’s all strangely addicting.

The fun of Super Meat Boy really comes down to two simple things: 1) the movement is slick and responsive so you know that every mistake was truly your own fault, and 2) the respawn after death is instant, which leaves no time for you to even consider quitting. Success is always just within reach, making it that much more infuriating when you fail.

But it’s a good kind of fury – the kind that floods your veins with endorphins when you finally succeed. And that’s why we play games like this, isn’t it?

D ark Souls

This is the game that revitalized the wonders of the idea of an extremely difficult game. It’s Dark Souls! Which game? Take your pick; there are a couple lying around on Steam that you could buy for a steal. Wait for a flash sale or maybe the next big sale to get them. You certainly will not be disappointed.

If you’ve no idea how this game plays as, think of Monster Hunter meets Warhammer; a vestige of high, dark fantasy that’s been near non-existent in modern times with a dead simple control system. Fight gigantic monsters, undead humans, and a whole bunch of other stuff in this medieval, post-apocalyptic world. Every encounter, even with just grunts, can be an absolutely brutal experience. Dark Souls isn’t the first in its name though as it is only the spiritual successor of the game, Demons’ Souls released on the Playstation 3, though both are still from the same developer, Fromsoftware.

Don’t mind the accusations of overhyping; the Steam keys are damned well worth the price tag. Which Dark Souls? Take your pick; you won’t be disappointed.

Difficult Steam Keys for your Steam Account – Part 1

Posted on July 8, 2016 by Richard Griever

If trends indicate anything, the success of the Dark Souls series proves that hard games aren’t at all a niche market. Throw in some Flappy Bird in there and you will understand what I mean. This is because difficult games feel so rewarding when completed even though there really isn’t a physical component involved. When was the last time you felt the rush of adrenaline and the rewarding feel of endorphins after you’ve conquered a particularly difficult level or boss?

Oddly enough, however, the mainstream market tended to run the way of the casual and difficult games are notoriously *ahem* difficult to find. We looked for a couple of very hard games you can get for your Steam account so that you don’t lap up your sweat before the hard part comes along.

Steam Account: The Five Games

Super Hexagon [$3]

Super Hexagon is a masochistic game. It’s the sort of game that will challenge your own notion of thinking you have decent hand-eye coordination that’s better than the average gamer. When you play this game, you’ll realize how much you actually suck.

The premise of the game is pretty simple: you’re trapped inside a sequence of concentric, collapsing hexagons and the point of the game is to avoid the solid walls that collapse into the center by moving the cursor in the middle to the empt parts. If you’ve ever played the Brawler’s Guild in World of Warcraft, this is pretty much Hexos without the high fantasy trappings.

Borrowing from Dark Souls from a bit; Prepare to die.

VVVVVV [$5]

Remember how hard Super Mario was when you were a kid? What about Contra? Prince of Persia? Or maybe even Metal Slug?

Now imagine if those games didn’t have a jump button. VVVVVV is an odd ball platformer with retro graphics akin to the ones mentioned above that will have you almost punching your screen due to sheer frustration. It’s one of the best platformers ever developed and would be a shame if you didn’t take the plunge into maniacal difficulty.

Again, you can’t jump in the game, but, instead, reverse gravity in a stage to get you through some of the obstacles within its stages. It’s not as easy as it sounds and certainly not so easy to play. This is one hell of a difficult gem of a game that will give you your money’s worth.

Continued in the next part.

TF2 Trading Some Great Moments

Posted on July 4, 2016 by Mei Satsuki

Overwatch has “Play of the Game” feature every end of the game to let everyone see the most awesome play of the match (well not always). Some of your amazing and game changing plays won’t necessarily get to be chosen as the play of the game but get to be saved in the highlights section in the main menu. This is definitely a thumbs up on Overwatch as they credit great plays in a match. Unfortunately, Team Fortress 2 doesn’t have that. If you don’t record the entirety of your game, you can’t really predict when to record that pro move of yours. Sad, I hope Team Fortress 2 had that kind of feature as well and maybe you can post it in some TF2 Trading thread.

TF2 Trading: The Very Least

So, without the Play of the Game feature in Team Fortress 2, I thought to myself, “how can we share our great moments in TF2?” without having to record the entirety of our gaming hours. Not to mention it will eat up all our disk space if we do that. Apparently, someone already made a post in Reddit asking people on some awesome plays or moments in Team Fortress 2:

What’s your most memorable TF2 experience, that you’ll probably look back on 10+ years from now

Mine is the time I first dominated this regular on this harvest server I frequent. He’s a beast, and is infamous on the server for being really good. Of course, I’d always get dommed by him, and after a while, I’d planned to get revenge.

So, one day, I rallied the entire team, and, as a pocket medic, I worked to support our 5 soldiers in an attempt to get a domination on him.

It look about an hour and a half, but finally, I healed a soldier who got a third consecutive kill on him, and finally…

THE DOMINATION

It was the first and last domination we’ll ever get. The kick was when he said in chat

“Your still trash tho”

I still go to that server

You can comment your amazing moments here as well, but it would be more awesome if we have some kind of video to back them up. You know what they say, “Pics (or vids) or it didn’t happen.” Well at least we get to share our moments here. Maybe we can choose the most wonderful moment and give out some TF2 Items? Looking forward reading your moments, everyone!

10 Bundles to Get in the Steam Summer Sale Part 2 – Redeem Code

Posted on July 1, 2016 by Richard Griever

The continuation of our 10 Bundles guide for the Steam Summer Sale!

6. Assassin’s Creed Bundle Redeem Code

Ubisoft is Ubisoft; sometimes they’re evil and other times… they’re as evil as EA. But the Assassin’s Creed franchise is undeniably one of the best IPs in modern gaming. These games don’t always go on sale, so if you get a chance or are even remotely interested in picking up the series, I suggest that you go for the Assassin’s Creed bundle that goes for a meager $62.96 considering the amount of content in it. Don’t worry; Unity’s mostly fixed now, so go nuts and get to know the assassins of yore through this redeem code.

7. Serious Sam Franchise Redeem Codes

Like, holy crap, $10 for the Serious Sam complete pack. Serious Sam is a solid FPS classic that should not be ignored by the shooter aficionado. Furious first-person shooting, relatively fast paced movement, and tons of crazy enemies make this IP old but still gold. This bundle has EVERYTHING you would possibly ever want or need from the Serious Sam franchise. With a jaw-dropping 90% discount, I’m not even sure why you still even want to mull over if you are buying this classic or not.

8. Borderlands Steam Keys!

Borderlands. Enough said. Also, redeem code.

The most awesome shoot-and-loot franchise is on a nutter sale at just $21.53. The Borderlands triple pack consists of the original Borderlands and its DLC, Borderlands 2, and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

What’s even crazier than that? The Borderlands “Take over your life” bundle offers all of those above but has the addition of the Tales from the Borderlands from Telltale games. Walking Dead, Wolf Among Us, Game of Thrones – ring any bells? Yes, the solidly fantastic story driven Tales game rounds up your Borderlands experience nicely with only an increased cost of $4.67. In my opinion, it’s the latter that’s more worth it. Tons of content and many different games; can’t go wrong here.

9. Telltale Bundle Redeem Codes

Like I mentioned earlier, Telltale is just amazing at story telling. Don’t like the rest of the Borderlands series but like the storybook gameplay of Tales from the Borderlands? Well, you can skip all that and just get the Telltale bundle redeem code that has all the Telltale classics and modern gems to sate your story pangs.

This bundle isn’t exactly cheap as it’s going for the price of $82.84, but with the crapton of games in it, you will absolutely get your money’s worth – I guarantee it.

10. Homeworld bundle Steam Redeem Code

Okay, this final bundle doesn’t include games with 70-plus percent discounts or massive packaged savings. But Homeworld Remastered and Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak redeem codes are both stellar RTS games worthy of rebooting the legendary PC-centric Homeworld series, and if you buy them as a bundle, Gearbox will knock another 10 percent off the top of the 50 percent discounts being applied to both games. Both can be yours for $38.23 total—a meager price for some top-shelf strategy action. (If you’re looking for even more fine RTS gameplay, Ashes of the Singularity is on sale for 50 percent off during the Summer Sale, too.)

And that’s it! Happy redeem code hunting, everybody!

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