Richard Gomez | Page 28 of 55

The Order 1886 Review – We Played This Game So You Don’t Have To

February 14, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

The PlayStation 4 (PS4) has had a year of up and downs in India and it's still to have a monster hit along the lines of last generation's fantastic Uncharted series of games, or The Last of Us. We'd mentioned that there were two games that could turn the PS4 from into a must-buy, and one of them – The Order: 1886 – is hitting the shelves on Friday.
On the surface, the premise of the game sounds remarkably cool. It is a third-person shooter in the mould of Gears of War, set in the backdrop of Victorian era London, but in a world of steampunk sensibilities replete with 19th century automatic weaponry and werewolves. The narrative borrows from Arthurian legend, placing you in the role of Sir Galahad (who here bears a striking resemblance to minor Bollywood celeb Milind Gunaji), a knight of the Order – a group sworn to keep humanity safe from werewolves, vampires and all sorts of nasty monsters that inhabit the world. There's very little not to like in that outline.
B..

Evolve Review 2026

February 14, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

Evolve – recently launched for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC – puts you in the claws of a giant bloodthirsty alien monster, or the boots of four hunters that are trying to take it down. The multiplayer game makes you kill or be killed, whether you're playing as one of the four hunters or the monster. Each of these five roles can be filled by either a human player or the computer AI (works offline), and the asymmetrical multiplayer of Evolve is one of its most interesting aspects.
Usually most multiplayer games have you in teams of equal numbers squaring off against each other in a duel to the death, or employ an each man for himself philosophy. Evolve, on the other hand focuses on teamwork for the four human players, and lets the monster player act like a lone wolf. The greater emphasis on cooperative play over individual glory can be seen evolving as franchises such as Pay Day and Left 4 Dead (which was incidentally made by Turtle Rock, the studio behind Evolve) gain promi..

Nexus 6P Review 2026

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

Google's Nexus range of devices has become iconic, with a devoted following. In a departure from precedent, this year's Nexus range has two smartphones: the Nexus 5X (Review | Pictures) and the Nexus 6P. The current Nexus device has always been used to show off the newest version of Android, and now Android Marshmallow comes pre-loaded on both new models.
While the polycarbonate Nexus 5X has been designed to appeal to the majority of buyers thanks to its convenient size and lower price, the Huawei-built Nexus 6P is an all-metal powerhouse of a smartphone. Priced at Rs. 39,999 for the 32GB variant and Rs. 42,999 for the 64GB variant, the Nexus 6P is Google's idea of premium. This is a device meant to satisfy the needs of the Android elite; the no-holds-barred smartphone that represents Android in the purest sense. Does the Nexus 6P live up to those expectations? We find out in our review.
Look and feel
The 6P is the flagship product of the Nexus range, and Google has stat..

Samsung Galaxy On5 and Galaxy On7 First Impressions

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

Samsung on Tuesday unveiled its latest Galaxy On series smartphones, the Galaxy On5 and On7, in India. The company is pushing these new models as value for money devices, and is targeting young consumers. Priced aggressively, the new On-series smartphones pack features including Ultra Data Saving (UDS) and MixRadio as well as 4G LTE support.
The South Korean company has launched these budget Android handsets after spending the past few months pushing its high-end Galaxy lineup – the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ and Galaxy Note 5. Samsung also unveiled the Z3 in India last month, powered by Tizen OS.
We spent some time with the new Samsung Galaxy On5 and Galaxy On7 smartphones at the launch event and here are our first impressions.
When we first looked at the new Galaxy On5 and Galaxy On7 smartphones, the dated Galaxy design was evident. Both models have identical front and back panels. Apart from the screen size, there is no visible difference between the Galaxy On5 and Galaxy On7. The bigg..

Sony Xperia Z5 Dual Review 2026

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

Sony's mobile division has been in a rut for a while. If IDC's latest report is anything to go by, dominance by the likes of Huawei and Lenovo is only adding to the company's woes. Rather than sticking with the standard formula of yearly refreshes, Sony decided a few years ago to try bi-annual refreshes in order to keep things exciting and hopefully drive up sales.

Our last outing with Sony's flagship smartphone was the Xperia Z3+ (Review | Pictures) , which didn't exactly blow our socks off. This was just three months ago, and today, we already have its successor in the form of the Xperia Z5 Dual. Our first encounter with the phone was at IFA 2015 where the company announced it along with its two siblings – the Xperia Z5 Premium and Xperia Z5 Compact.
(Also read: Sony Xperia Z5, Xperia Z5 Compact, Xperia Z5 Premium First Impressions)
The Xperia Z5 Dual is on sale right now at Rs. 52,990 and will compete with flagships such as the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, Sam..

iPad mini 2026 review

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

I bet the iPad mini is going to be on a lot of wish lists this holiday season. I also bet that for a lot of people, it's not going to be the best choice. It's beautiful and light, but Apple made a big compromise in the design, one that means that buyers should look closely at the competition before deciding.
Starting at $329, the iPad mini is the cheapest iPad. The screen is a third smaller than the regular iPads, and it sits in an exquisitely machined aluminum body. It weighs just 11 ounces half as much as a full-size iPad making it easier to hold in one hand. It's just under 8 inches long and less than a third of an inch thick, so it fits easily into a handbag.
The issue is the screen quality. Apple has been on the forefront of a move toward sharper, more colorful screens. It calls them “Retina” displays because the pixels the little light-emitting squares that make up the screen are so small that they blend together almost seamlessly in our eyes, removing the impressi..

Microsoft Surface tablet 2026

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

I've been conditioned just like any other consumer to expect certain things from certain companies. When it comes to tablets, I expect Apple's to look and feel amazing, Google's to seamlessly blend online services such as Gmail and search, and Amazon's to have easy access to its online store.
So when Microsoft came out with its first tablet computer, the Surface, I wanted and expected a machine that is good for work. After all, its Windows operating system runs most of the world's computers, particularly in corporate environments.
The Surface is Microsoft's first attempt at a general-purpose computer. In the past, it made the software and left it to other companies to make the machines. But to catch the tablet wave led by Apple's iPad, Microsoft felt it needed to make its own device.
The Surface's price tag starts at $499, the same as the latest full-screen iPad, but if you are going to buy one, you'll want to spend the extra $100 or more fo..

Battle of the bulge – Micromax A100 vs Spice Mi-500 vs iBall Andi 5c

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

A world where mobile phones are getting bigger and tablets are getting smaller has seen the rise of a new category of devices. At first considered Frankensteins of the mobile computing world, phablets became cool with Samsung Galaxy Note's success.
Recently, we've seen a bunch of new devices trying to make a mark by appealing to those looking for large screen devices, minus the stylus. We look at three such devices that attempt to woo the budget-conscious – the iBall Andi 5c, Micromax Superfone Canvas A100 and Spice Stellar Horizon Mi-500.
Build/ Design
The Micromax A100 is a clear winner in this department. The curves of the A100 fit well in hand, thanks, no doubt, to the slightly smaller profile compared to the other two devices. While none of the three devices scream “cheap plastic” (the Spice comes the closest), the overall finish of the Micromax ensures it stands out from the rest.
The Micromax A 100, like the iBall Andi, has the power button on the right, which makes it..

Don Bradman Cricket Review: If Cricket Is a Religion, This Is Prayer

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

The ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 is underway, and there are now more cricket video games than you can keep track of. However, the one cricket game you should play this season is surprisingly the one which has no flashy licenses, no real player names (out of the box at least), and none of that almost TV-like polish that typifies many of Electronic Arts' forays into sports games such as FIFA. The game to play is Don Bradman Cricket, released on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. It is the anti-thesis of cricket video games, but it still delivers both for gamers and cricket fans.
In spite of its many follies, it's the rare sports game that lures you into the zone of thinking “just one more over” and then you find yourself in front of your TV half awake at six in the morning. It expertly traps you into this cycle, tempting you into just a little more, until you sacrifice any semblance of a life outside it.
(Also see: How to Watch 2015 Cricket World Cup Live on Your PC, Smartphone, o..

Mad Catz S.T.R.I.K.E. TE and Mad Catz R.A.T. TE Review: Better Than They Look

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

Described as “a company that consists primarily of hardcore gamers”, Mad Catz has been around longer than contemporaries such as Razer. The latter is perhaps the most visible in the gaming peripheral space, thanks to its products' catchy names and sleek looks. However, Mad Catz is known for radical designs, unique controllers, and most notably, arcade sticks for fighting game aficionados.
Today we have the Mad Catz S.T.R.I.K.E. TE keyboard and R.A.T. TE mouse for review. The TE suffix denotes that these two peripherals are of Tournament Edition quality. This means they're tuned for whatever most e-sports junkies are up against in competitive play – or so Mad Catz would like us to believe. How do they really fare? Read on to find out.
Mad Catz S.T.R.I.K.E. TE
The S.T.R.I.K.E. TE is Mad Catz's first mechanical keyboard. It might not look one with its bright colours and unconventional design, but it takes no more than a few clicks to realise that it's not as ostent..

Grim Fandango Remastered Review: Death at Its Best

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

If you grew up as a teenager in the 90s and were a bit of a geek, then you probably have a soft spot for LucasArts' puzzle adventure games. The games might not have the same mass appeal as Star Wars, but at that time there were very few things that were cooler than Sam & Max, or Monkey Island.
Grim Fandango was the culmination of that genre, one of the best games of its kind in 1998, and also, unfortunately, a commercial failure that was one of the factors that led to the end of LucasArts, and the overall decline of the genre. It's the kind of joke that LucasArts' designers themselves loved – the steady buildup and the sudden reversal of fortune. Unfortunately, the 3D era had begun, and games were going through a significant change, and puzzle games didn't really get a chance to pick themselves up from the ground.
The genre is finally making a comeback, thanks, largely, to Telltale Games, which was started by a group of former LucasArts employees. Telltale kept so..

Game of Thrones 2026

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

The second episode of Telltale Games' Game of Thrones series has released on iOS and now Android. To download it, you'll need to buy the first episode, and then either unlock this episode as an in-app purchase, or buy a season pass that will unlock all the remaining five episodes for the price of four. Each episode costs Rs. 300 (Rs. 307 on Android) and it's also worth pointing out that there is often a long gap between each episode – the first part came out two months ago, for instance.
If you're a Game of Thrones fan, or just would like to experience some interactive fiction with a heavy dose of intrigue, betrayal and bloodshed, then you're going to enjoy this game.
(Also see: Game of Thrones Game Review: Welcome to Westeros)
Telltale Games is a developer that lives up to its name – its games are simple narrative driven experiences that have very little to do by way of actual gameplay. The central mechanic in these games is just to choose what to say next ..