Cool games for PS Plus
In games like Action Henk, players get to choose from five different characters, writes Aiman Maulana
1. CALL OF DUTY: MODERN WARFARE REMASTERED
The remastered version of what many gamers consider to be the best entry in the series for multiplayer, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered is a first-person shooter game by Activision.
Players take on the role of a member of the US Marine Corps and the Special Air Service tasked in fighting a separatist group in the Middle East and an ultranationalist group in Russia.
While the US invades a small, oil-rich Middle Eastern country following a coup d’etat by the extremist Khaled Al-Asad, a British Special Air Service squad infiltrates a cargo ship found to be carrying a nuclear device. It’s a trap and the ship is sunk by enemy jets.
While they manage to escape, they have no choice but to head for Russia to rescue their informant. However, what awaits them is more than what they bargained for.
FUN FACT: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered was never part of Activision’s plans. It wasn’t until an online petition by fans, which gained hundreds of thousands of signatures, that Activision became interested in making the project a reality.
This led to them hiring Raven Software to develop the remastered version as they have worked on multiplayer modes for previous Call of Duty games.
3. SHAKE THAT CONTROLLER
One of the more unique games around that the availability has been extended to this month’s lineup, Shake That Controller is a collection of minigames developed by SmileBoom.
The game takes place in a mysterious world where a Deity and its Pawns live together.
The Deity enjoys taunting the Pawns, but the Pawns continue to loyally serve the Deity.
The game has a number of mini games, in which gamers will be messing around with these Pawns. One such minigame is called Pop-pop Popcorn, where gamers control Tami and ride the popcorn popping out of the pan to collect the stars in the sky. If the pan slips, you lose.
These minigames are designed for casual gamers and make a great party game. FUN FACT: Shake That Controller was designed to take advantage of the PlayStation 4’s controller, the DualShock 4.
The two features that will be commonly used here are the capacitive touchpad and the motion sensors, giving gamers the opportunity to learn and experience the controller’s capabilities.
2. ACTION HENK
One of the more unique games around, Action Henk is a platformer with an emphasis on high speeds. Players get to choose from five different characters and race through short levels as quickly as possible. The gameplay is all about keeping the momentum going.
The setup is very simple, but there are many subtle tricks that can be applied to shave off those precious seconds.
To make this possible, all motion in the game is physics-based, and every player’s input has to do with managing acceleration and friction. This means that there are no limits on maximum speeds or velocities, there’s only the application of force. As a result, jumping is also done through the addition of force, rather than setting a velocity by hand.
FUN FACT: While Action Henk already has over 70 tracks in various environments for gamers to enjoy, players can also create their own custom tracks in the game itself. This also means that there is a wide variety of player-made maps for everyone to enjoy as long as you have an Internet connection.
4. VALKYRIA CHRONICLES 4
One of the best entries in the series thus far, Valkyria Chronicles 4 isa tactical role-playing game by Sega and Media Vision. The game takes place in the same timeline as the original Valkyria Chronicles game, but it focuses on an all-new story surrounding Squad E of the Federation instead of the infamous Squad 7.
Commander Claude Wallace and his childhood friends, Kai Shulen and Raz, set out to fight the Empire in the Second Europan War and avenge their hometown of Hafen.
However, Kai mysteriously disappears, leading to his sister Leena to assume his position and identity. What ensues is a desperate war with the only thing standing in their way being the god-like powers of the Valkyria.
FUN FACT: The development team for Valkyria Chronicles 4 studied records of World War II troops and used them as reference material. This, along with the game’s setting, made for a more grounded military narrative with characters feeling more like real people.
While this game isn’t free, there is a 40 per cent discount for PS Plus members this month, at RM136.80.
5. KNACK 2
One of the most popular PlayStation exclusive games around, Knack 2 is an actionbased platformer game developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment Japan.
Sometime after Viktor’s defeat, Knack and Lucas end up in a city that’s under attack by unknown forces. Six months earlier, Knack, Lucas and Ryder had visited a forest that Lucas explored beforehand, but needed his uncle’s opinion.
After being stranded on the island for several weeks, Knack and Lucas came up with an idea and started to scavenge for all the robot parts. They managed to build a plane after four months, flew out of the island, managing to reach a city just as the engine died. Now, they set out on a brand new adventure and encounter the evil forces that threaten world peace.
FUN FACT: The first Knack game was rushed in development and was considered a poor game by many critics and gamers upon release.
Game director Mark Cerny has ensured that Knack 2 has a healthy development schedule to avoid similar issues.
While Knack 2 is also not free, this one has a whopping 70 per cent discount for PS Plus members this month, at RM44.70.