Street racing and drifters have deep roots in Japan. The developers at the Polish company Gaming Factory are aware of this. They will soon bring us the racing title JDM: Japanese Drift Master, which has now received a release date. This is set for March 26, 2025, when the game will arrive on PC. Along with the release date announcement, we also got a new trailer.
JDM: Japanese Drift Master | Release Date Announcement
The developers promise realistic car behavior and a smooth driving experience on the controller and steering wheel. JDM: Japanese Drift Master will offer an open world set in the fictional Japanese prefecture of Guntama, which takes inspiration from the real-life island of Honshu. We can look forward to more than 250 kilometers of roads, changing weather, alternating day and night times, and a traffic system. We will be driving through urban areas and rural locations in powerful machines. Tuning enthusiasts will appreciate the opportunity to customize licensed cars to their liking. The authors also promise a story, which is supposed to be about a foreigner who wants to make it in the Japanese drifter scene. The story is to be told through a manga cartoon. We will find out whether the developers can keep their promise in a few months.
Although the original Modern Warfare 3 from 2011 already recycled mechanics from previous installments, it did so with much more feeling, unlike its 12 years younger “successor” from the reboot series. The result is a dynamic and polished game for its time. The action is fast-paced and probably a bit harder for everyone. However, it’s certainly not without tactics, and despite what many players believe, you need to engage your brain to play successfully at a reasonable level. Modern Warfare 3 is about choices and options. It offers a range of game modes graded from pure reflex action and precision aim (free-for-all) to the slower-paced struggle to blow up a location with a bomb, in which you can’t revive yourself within rounds (search and destroy).
The game is an interesting mix of older and new games of its time in its own good way. It is somewhere between the traditional Battlefield, Counter-Strike, or Quake titles. It offers frenetic action in a real-world setting with real weapons. However, the developers aren’t aiming for a title that comes close to reality; the unrealistic concept is also enjoyable. In fact, blaming Modern Warfare 3’s gameplay mechanics focused on frantic pacing would probably be as silly as saying that Conan the Barbarian isn’t a Jedi Knight and doesn’t use a lightsaber. Matches full of “tactical” waiting, sneaking, and slow progress will offer different games. On the other hand, Call of Duty is a pleasant alternative that doesn’t take the real-world setting so seriously.
Various numbers and signs appear on the screen, making the whole thing pleasant. The developers don’t forget that it’s “just a game” and all about having fun. Thus, you can respawn immediately after death in most game modes and customize the gameplay style by modifying weapons and various perks. Therefore, he can choose to have more stamina when running, faster weapon draws, or less damage from explosions. Weapons will then offer, for example, more damage to enemies when shooting through materials, less recoil of the gun after firing, and the addition of a grenade launcher to the stock. It is, therefore, possible to build a weapon with almost no bullet scatter when fired or create dynamic combinations suitable for both long and short-range combat.
However, increasing the player’s level also requires gaining experience points for the weapon. These unlock additional options and lead to creating your own play style. The developers thus successfully motivate experimentation and changing the use of the firearm. The player chooses a primary weapon and a secondary weapon for his arsenal. In a few cases, for example, I fought with only the secondary rifle for several levels to unlock additional options for it. This gives you a potent melee weapon, for example. Add a perk that speeds up weapon changes, and you can wield an arsenal of might in very different situations. However, this system is two-sided. On the one hand, it encourages you to continually change your play style and experiment with new combinations. At the same time, it creates an inevitable inequality between players based on the number of hours spent on the game. However, some improvements don’t seem to offer such a significant advantage, and the title can still be played successfully from the start.
However, we can’t avoid a brief comparison with another action titan from these times, which is Battlefield 3. Both games are set in a modern war-torn world. Still, Battlefield 3 is a little closer to realism and focuses more on spectacular battles in open spaces. This is supported by a variety of vehicles, tanks, and fighters. In contrast, Modern Warfare 3 offers infantry battles on small maps full of smaller alleys and short distances. Therefore, the pace and style of play are very different in both cases. In the case of Modern Warfare 3, however, the reward system for killing multiple enemies without dying yourself is questionable. In fact, some of the rewards absolutely slaughter the battlefield, and in the case of evenly matched fights, can be a significant advantage.
The game uses individual maps for all game modes. These are mostly intelligently designed levels that offer positions on different levels of the map, with most locations accessible from multiple sides. Clearly, more advantageous positions are almost non-existent, and initially, without knowledge of the maps, the openness of the levels can cause minor difficulties. However, recycling levels in the various game modes work more to the players’ advantage. This is because you can change between game modes frequently and, thanks to your knowledge of the map, always have a clear overview of the situation. Also excellent is the then newly added Kill Confirmed mode, in which two teams fight against each other. This is a variation of the traditional Team Deathmatch, where a dog tag appears after each player dies. Only by picking up the enemy’s dog tag will you confirm the kill and increase the team’s score. If, on the other hand, you pick up a fallen teammate’s dog tag, the enemy team will not score points for that teammate.
It’s a simple concept, but in practice, it turns into a brisk and addictive action. Running headlong for the enemy’s tags can mean a quick death, and often, it is necessary to proceed with caution or, if the player is too severely injured, to leave it alone. At other times, a player may sacrifice himself and go to a certain death, but in the process, he will gain three or more enemy tags and thus help the team greatly.
For lone wolves, several combinations of weapons, upgrades, and perks are clearly better. However, the game reveals an additional tactical advantage for organized teams and offers interesting combinations. For example, one player can choose a bulletproof police shield instead of a primary weapon, which makes it easy to take positions on the map.
Teammates can then cover that player from a safer distance. Instead of a support grenade, a radar jammer can be chosen, for example, which makes your team invisible to the enemy on the minimap. In tense situations, a smoke grenade can be used to take a position for a change, and a mine can be used to defend it. The fun of the title is thus increased by the number of organized groups of players.
The biggest weakness of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is probably the graphics. Although the game’s visuals are solid, it can hardly stand proudly alongside the graphically excellent titles of its time. Some textures are downright wretched, while others are merely a tribute to the outdated engine that powers the game. However, rendering textures is poor compared to other games when viewed up close or imitating 3D flat textures. This is no different for particles such as sparks flying off burning cars. These look downright old compared to Battlefield 3.
However, the game’s low-performance requirements on the computer or the Playstation 3 console on which I reviewed Modern Warfare 3 speak in its favor. The console didn’t have the slightest problem. I didn’t notice any fps drops or overheating in roughly 50 hours of playing multiplayer and co-op survival mode against waves of AI enemies. I also didn’t experience any problems during the approximately 10 hours of the story campaign. However, the game’s outdated graphics cannot be forgiven entirely, especially since it is one of the biggest brands in the gaming industry. It seems that the game’s publisher was simply trying to maximize profit.
Still, Modern Warfare 3 is the title where the player is happy to turn a blind eye to today’s older graphics and enjoy some genuinely refined and addictive action. It’s a title that artfully combines elements from both the old and new game worlds. It’s fun and fast-paced and doesn’t forget that games are mainly pure fun. I recommend this game to fans of similar titles, especially those of previous installments.
About the Game
Title: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Type of Game: First-Person Shooter Developer: Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games Publisher: Activision Release Date: November 8, 2011 Platforms: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 Reviewed on: PlayStation 3
The PlayStation 5 Pro reveal has left some gamers feeling bitter. After all, there’s not much news; the price is significantly higher than expected, even if it’s just a sub-generational upgrade, not an entirely new console. But even that is being heavily speculated, with the PlayStation 6 due to be unveiled unexpectedly soon and promising big news. Let’s start “from the end”. Sony’s next-generation gaming console is set to get to market roughly 7 years after the PlayStation 5. This will follow the standard 6-7 year cycle that the Japanese have kept since the first console in 1994. Here’s a brief release history of all Sony’s console generations.
PlayStation – Japan December 1994, Worldwide -September 1995 PlayStation 2 – March 2000 PlayStation 3 – November 2006 PlayStation 4 – November 2013 PlayStation 5 – November 2020 PlayStation 6 – 2027 or 2028 (estimated)
The next-generation console – as Sony refers to it, the name “PlayStation 6” has not yet been confirmed – should offer some neat new and improved features. At the center of it all is supposed to be a new AMD chipset, which Sony is directly involved in. So, a return to Intel is not in the cards for the next generation either. Reportedly, it will combine the Zen 5 processor and the UDNA graphics processor, previously known as RDNA 5. This processor will have 8 cores and 16 threads, which will be a significant improvement over the Zen 2 processor in the PlayStation 5.
Grand Theft Auto Online’s multiplayer mode, which shares a universe with GTA V, can’t complain about a lack of attention from players and developers alike, even more than a decade after its release. GTA Online is regularly enriched with new content, and thanks to this, it is still one of the most popular online games. My friends and I returned to the online world years later to check out how the game’s next-gen upgrade looks and works, but most importantly, to see if it’s still worth it today.
Online has been with us for a while now, and I had a chance to go through this multiplayer mode a few years back. And despite its flaws, which put me off, I’ve returned to this phenomenon. However, I decided to leave my career as a video game criminal again for about five years. It wasn’t until the more recently released next-gen version that I was tempted to turn on GTA Online again. This made me curious to see how GTA Online had changed over the years and what pleasant (or even unpleasant) new features awaited me.
Career Builder: A Fresh Start
Among the positive new features is the so-called Career Builder, which defines the path your character will take in the criminal world right at the beginning of the game. You can build a criminal empire by smuggling contraband, making a fortune in the illegal arms trade, managing a city nightclub, or taking the lead in a motorcycle gang. For the record, Career Builder is only available in the next-gen version of the game.
After choosing one of the professions, you will receive a four million starting budget. Since I chose a career as an arms dealer, almost all of this in-game currency went toward buying and equipping a military bunker. I also treated myself to a practical bulletproof sports car. Unfortunately, you can’t take any of this money with you into the game, and you have to spend at least 3 million in Career Builder… and no wonder. If the developers let players into the game with a large amount of money, they would lose the meaning of the so-called Shark cards, which we’ll discuss later. There are specific missions associated with each profession; mine, for example, kept me busy transporting materials to a customer or acquiring supplies that you can buy or steal from local dealers. Let’s face it, the latter option will do less harm to your virtual wallet.
A Vibrant World of Opportunities
Career choices are a nice refresher for GTA Online and add structure to the overall gameplay experience. Instead of aimlessly running around the city, I was more motivated to take care of my business and gather the necessary resources for weapons production, for example, or research that can reward players with interesting upgrades. GTA Online, like the story part of GTA V, takes place in Los Santos and the neighboring Blaine County, and I can’t say anything bad about the game world here either. The developers took inspiration from the Los Angeles metropolis when creating Los Santos, so there is no shortage of the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which in the world of GTA has been named Vinewood, more commonly known as Vespucci Beach.
On the other hand, Blaine County is an area of the vast desert and wooded regions where your customized car can be tested as can you. Your skills will be put to the test if you touch the property of the locals, who won’t hesitate to get into a fight with you. The typical GTA humor has been retained in the online part of the game.
Satirical Humor and Memorable Characters
The developers have no problem hitting the various classically known types of the population and, in fact, modern man in general, as evidenced by the already legendary satirical commercials and punchy catchphrases of the characters. Your character doesn’t carry any of these, which the creators have solved with humor in their own way. You will often hear remarks from your companions commenting on your dumbness. In GTA Online, you’ll meet characters from the story part of GTA V, for whom a good dub is a given.
The game world of GTA Online hasn’t aged significantly in terms of graphics, which are made even more attractive by the next-gen upgrade. In addition, you can choose from graphical modes that favor more detailed visuals in resolution mode or up to 60 fps in performance mode, along with the raytracing feature. The latter option makes GTA Online’s already smooth gameplay an even smoother affair. Moreover, the game looks gorgeous in this mode as well. Los Santos is definitely not just a backdrop, though. It functions as a sprawling HUB where you can engage in various activities between missions solo or with other players. Sports enthusiasts will appreciate the ability to challenge opponents to a wrestling, tennis, or golf match, and there are dance clubs for the nighttime savages. People with a penchant for gambling should definitely not just pass by the casino or the arcades, and with hundreds of one-dollar bills, you can head to the strip bar.
Boredom is definitely not an option in Los Santos. But GTA Online really shines at the array of missions divided into different categories, where you’ll get to try out a wide range of weapons and vehicles. For example, you can go wheel-to-wheel with other players in an unconventional race, where your car transforms into a plane, motorbike, or amphibious quad bike several times, or you can fly through the air thanks to huge ramps. Of course, GTA Online also includes shooting-focused PvP modes. Here, players compete to complete a task faster or turn their guns on each other in classic Deathmatch or Capture the Flag matches. If you prefer the PvE modes, you won’t go away deprived either, and you can take on the role of a hired assassin or try to survive waves of growing enemies. GTA Online has many different modes, but you’ll find your king very quickly.
Furthermore, the gameplay highlights of GTA Online include the so-called heists. This category is called Heists, i.e., different types of heists. These are profitable and, however, dangerous contracts in which especially well-coordinated teams of players have a high chance of success. Each such heist is preceded by preparation in the form of a series of shorter missions that culminate in a major spectacular event. Heists are much more challenging than regular missions and require a division of tasks within the team and specific tactics. Successfully completing them, however, can earn you a hefty sum of in-game currency. Aside from the tempting rewards, heists also offer elaborate gameplay, especially thanks to the various tasks assigned to each team member.
After the preceding text, GTA Online is a near-flawless game; in fact, it is not. The biggest flaw is the developers’ attempt to get as much as possible from the players’ wallets at any cost. Heists, for example, require an initial investment of between $25,000 and $300,000 of in-game currency when they first launch, and some of them are also contingent on owning a specific building or piece of equipment. A perfect example is The Cayo Perico Heist, one of the most lucrative in the game. Still, to start it, you’ll need a Killer Whale submarine, which will cost you up to two million in in-game currency. The remote control car needed to run the special race with a purchase value of one million dollars will also come as a nasty surprise. In addition, boats, yachts, planes, and luxury sports cars jump out at you from the website. Even the prices of clothing have skyrocketed in GTA Online, and the earnings from some missions won’t even be enough to buy a complete outfit that you’ll want to build to your liking.
There’s definitely money to be spent in GTA Online. Still, if you don’t want to open a real wallet, you’ll just have to focus on completing missions that are profitable enough. With these insane prices, sooner or later, you’ll be faced with the choice of either buying one or more of the Shark Cards, which will send in-game currency into your virtual account for up to tens and tens of euros, or you’ll start picking up the better-paying missions, turning the GTA Online gaming experience into a relentless grind. You’ll likely end up just doing the big heists, which, while they’re some of the best in the game, become more of a chore than sincere fun for some players due to the quick payday.
This monetization, of course, also divides the GTA Online community. Indeed, the willingness or unwillingness of players to pay for more exclusive cars and weapons can significantly impact the overall gaming experience of those uncomfortable with spending real money in games. As a complete newbie trying to complete a specific mission right in the lobby, you’ll often be descended upon by, for example, the owners of an 8-million-dollar Oppressor Mk II hoverboard equipped with a plethora of accurate and deadly missiles. Any attempt to get from point A to point B or complete one career mission will fail. You will be forced to relocate to a private lobby, at least for the duration of the contract. Ideally, permanently, this will give you some peace of mind for your activities.
Before playing GTA Online, you should consider all the negatives I tried to point out in my review. In fact, putting pressure on players through overpriced items isn’t very good, nor are the server connectivity issues. The lack of crossplay can also put off many players, as can the hostile public servers. And the $20 price of the game itself? (Not to mention the PlayStation Plus subscription required to unlock online play). Given that the game tries to get players to buy in-game currency through expensive items, it may not seem fair to everyone.
On the other hand, for it, you get access to the game world, which still has a lot to offer. Oh, and perhaps needless to say, if you manage or have managed already to get the game for half the price or for free, it’s definitely worth playing. After all, the next-gen version has added more enticing visuals to the game, 60 fps support, and the ability to choose a criminal career for your character. The humor-filled game world feels fresh years after its release. It offers many activities and missions led by complex grand heists.
If you’re unwilling to pay or don’t have a friend who can help you with various tricks to earn much-needed in-game currency, you can’t avoid the grind in GTA Online. Count on a not-so-friendly community further divided by the lack of crossplay. GTA Online, however, cannot be denied the quality audiovisual aspect of its age and a unique game world brimming with diverse content. Especially if you have a group of friends like me and a private lobby, an exceptionally huge dose of quality entertainment is unavoidable.
About the Game
Title: Grand Theft Auto Online Type of Game: Online Open-World Action-Adventure Developer: Rockstar North Publisher: Rockstar Games Release Date: October 1, 2013 Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One
Where to Purchase GTA Online
Steam (PC): Experience the expansive open world of GTA Online by purchasing it on Steam.
Epic Games Store (PC): Dive into the crime-ridden streets of Los Santos by grabbing Grand Theft Auto Online from the Epic Games Store.
Microsoft Store (Xbox): Play on Xbox Series X|S or Xbox One by purchasing GTA Online from the Microsoft Store.
PlayStation Store (PS5, PS4): Join the online chaos on PlayStation platforms by buying GTA Online through the PlayStation Store.
Rockstar Games Launcher (PC): Download directly from Rockstar’s official Rockstar Games Launcher
Assassin's Creed Shadows Story Trailer Feature Picture
Estimated reading time: 1 minute
Ubisoft has revealed the hardware requirements for Assassin’s Creed Shadows and a new story trailer focusing on protagonists Naoe and Yasuke. In the trailer, Naoe can be seen trying out the Hidden Blade for the first time, using it to take down threats and defend his home. Yasuke, on the other hand, is far away from his homeland, which the locals remind him of at every opportunity. In time, however, he will earn their respect. The fates of the two heroes will soon collide, as the story trailer tempts us to do.
Ubisoft Youtube Channel: Assassin’s Creed Shadows – Story Trailer
Ubisoft has also confirmed the existence of the Claws of Awaji expansion. Along with this, it will unlock the island of Awaji, which promises over 10 hours of additional content and new weapons, skills, and equipment. If you show interest in pre-ordering, you will receive the expansion as a bonus. The same goes for the Thrown to the Dogs quest.
