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VgamerZ OriginalZ

The Rise of the battle pass in modern games

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battle pass

I imagine you have heard of a little-known game called Star Wars Battlefront 2. It was Electronic Arts’ 2017 major release the sequel to the 2015 franchise reboot. However, it is better known for something else entirely. You see, Star Wars Battlefront 2 not only killed off the loot box but helped give birth to some we see in every game now, the battle pass.

The Battlefront 2 disaster

battlefront 2 cinematicFor those not in the know, let me fill you in. Star Wars Battlefront 2 tried something almost never seen before in the games industry. At least not in the AAA market. Its core progression was tied to paid, RNG loot boxes. If you wanted to get better characters or upgrades, you needed to buy loot boxes.

Gamers were furious with this as they felt it was the pinnacle of pay to win. Equally, dodgy business models can be seen in various mobile games but a AAA Star Wars game having them was hard to digest.

The lash back was intense. It got so out of hand that national governments stepped in and put their foot down. Many European countries like Belgium and the Netherlands went on to outright ban loot boxes from any games being sold. Electronic Arts had screwed up badly and both they and their fellow game publishers needed a new plan.

The battle pass’ rise to prominence

Fortnite battle passTruth be told, the design behind the battle pass had existed for quite a while before EA’s screw-up. Valve’s popular MOBA DOTA 2 had a similar season pass system where leveling up and progressing through it unlocked various goodies. It did not catch on at the time because loot boxes were simply more profitable. However, with their reputation now tarnished, it was time to try the alternative.

The battle pass came to prominence when British publisher Epic Games stumbled across a surprise success story with Fortnite. With it being a free-to-play battle royale, they needed a way to monetize it. Its success cannot be overstated. In 2018 alone, Fortnite managed to earn Epic $2.4 billion. As of Epic’s last fiscal update in 2019, Fortnite had made them around $4.3 billion in just three years.

That’s enough to place it above Assassin’s Creed, Need For Speed, Gran Turismo, and even The Legend of Zelda. Unsurprisingly, this was not overlooked by rival publishers. These huge companies will do everything they can to make money and with gamers generally happy with the model, they had no reason to not try it out.

Why is there a battle pass in every game?

apex legends battle passGo on almost any modern AAA game and you will come across a battle pass. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare? Check. FIFA 20? Check. Rocket League? You know it. It has become the go-to business model for the majority of major publishers. And honestly, it is hard to blame them.

On the whole, gamers tend to like the battle pass. Of course, it can get a little frustrating seeing it everywhere but there are clear, pro-consumer advantages to the battle pass over loot boxes. Firstly, you can see exactly what content you will get at what level. There are no hidden RNG aspects. Second, it is one fixed price and then you are good to go. Effectively, this is comparable to the traditional DLC model we used to see.

Speaking of DLC, the battle pass has opened up something new amongst games. Many large AAA developers no longer feel the need to charge for DLC content. Since a battle pass can consistently raise funds over several years, they can comfortably release additional content for free. In other words, at the cost of locking cosmetic-only items behind a paywall, gameplay affecting content becomes accessible to everyone.

Some may argue that the content within battle passes should be packaged as part of the core game. If you pay $60 for a new title, shouldn’t you get all of the potential content included? I kind of agree but we have to accept that we now live in the era of games as a service. Publishers are always going to find new ways to make money and, frankly, this is better than loot boxes.

VgamerZ OriginalZ

Cooking Mama is not using your Switch to mine Bitcoins

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Cooking Mama

Anyone familiar with modern technology is probably aware of cryptocurrency. Effectively, cryptocurrency is a digital asset of sorts that can be used in exchange as an alternative to cash. What you probably didn’t know is that there have been legitimate concerns that the latest Cooking Mama game was mining them on your Switch.

This idea was raised due to concerns of the Nintendo Switch overheating when trying to run Cooking Mama. Due to the game’s relative simplicity, it seemed odd that a console capable of running Breath of the Wild would be having so many difficulties. Rest assured though, there is no way your Switch is being used to mine Bitcoins.

Cooking Mama is innocent!

cooking mama cookstar gameplayCryptocurrency mining is a relatively complex concept that requires powerful hardware. Specifically, a decent graphics card to efficiently mine. In layman’s terms, the supposed miner is more akin to a mathematician using their computer to solve various equations. The more powerful your GPU, the more attempts to solve an equation you get.

This is why Cooking Mama is most certainly innocent. The Nintendo Switch rocks a widely unimpressive custom NVIDIA Tegra X1. This is the same chip found on the NVIDIA Shield, albeit running at a far lower frequency. Compared to any half-decent modern gaming PC, this is a very weak graphics card.

Mining cryptocurrency via Cooking Mama would be painfully inefficient. Even with thousands of people playing, developer 1st Playable would be far better off just purchasing several dedicated built PCs instead.

So, what are they doing?

cooking mama cookstar gameplay 2Even with that rumor dispelled, Cooking Mama Cookstar was removed from the Nintendo store for one reason or another. What’s for sure, at least according to this post, is blockchain was considered at one point.

Blockchain is really difficult to explain and frankly, I’m not exactly qualified to even try so I’ll keep this simple. Basically, it’s a form of DRM that manages user IDs for both physical and digital games. This matters as it enables the possibility of second-hand digital games. In other words, this was supposed to be a pro-consumer move.

As for what went wrong, it’s hard to say. My best guess would be that there is a serious distribution issue going on at the top of the chain. The developer itself even displayed public frustration at its new game being pushed back. Presumably, once a patch is introduced to address performance issues and the distribution is sorted out, Cooking Mama Cookstar will once again become available.

Game News, VgamerZ OriginalZ

More Benefits That Will Make You Play More Video Games

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More Benefits of Playing More Video Games

Video Games – just like any other medium of entertainment, the first years of our beloved video games weren’t a walk in the park; and, our childhoods were full of “stop playing and get to your room!”, “time to go to bed!”, “playing won’t do you any good!”, and a lot more. But now, as video games (and the industry, itself) continue to grow, we see a lot of people who has a video game with them, in one form or another. Be it a simple one-tap game or a mobile MOBA like Mobile Legends, people are playing video games, both male and female, young and old. Here’s another list of the benefits that video games can give us. Enjoy!

Improved Coordination

Just an example, Assassin's Creed
Just an example, Assassin’s Creed

Game: Action Games and Music/Rhythm Games

This must be the most noticeable improvement that gamers experience. If you’ve been playing video games, action and music/rhythm games, specifically, then I have a challenge for you. Have your friend throw a pillow or anything at you randomly and notice that your reaction will be quicker. Just. Like. Spiderman. Or, have your friend drop your phone near you and watch just how you instinctively reach out and catch it. How did you do this? Well, video games.

Since video games greatly help improve one’s hand-eye coordination, researchers are using video games in order to train surgeons. Their study shows that surgeons who’ve played video games for more than 3 hours a week have performed with 37 percent less error and 27 percent faster. Oh, they were performing laparoscopic surgery. Feel free to search about that procedure. I’m not really an expert in that field.

“The data is compelling — playing video games can make surgeons better. That’s not to say that reading and schoolwork are not important too.”, said Dr. Dan Jones, Chief of Minimally Invasive Surgery and Director of the Weight Loss Surgery Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Meaning, not because you’re a good gamer you’re good to become a surgeon. But, then again, who am I to stop you, go chase your dream if that what your heart desires.

Memory Booster

Oh yes, our friend plumber, Mario will help you...uhm...what was I saying again?
Oh yes, our friend plumber, Mario will help you…uhm…what was I saying again?

Game: 3D Games, apparently

Wait, what was I writing about? Yes, I am one of those people who easily forget what he was doing just a couple of minutes ago. And a research back in 2015 was conducted in order to show that videogames can improve one’s memory.

Craig Stark and Dane Clemenson of University of California, Irvine’s Center for the Neurobiology of Learning & Memory recruited college students who didn’t play video games that much and split them into two groups. One group is tasked to play two-dimensional games (Angry Birds) and three-dimensional games (Super Mario 3D World). And get this, the memory performance of those who played Super Mario 3D World increased by about 12 percent. Looks like playing before an exam helps, well, it did to me back then.

Reduce Stress and Depression

We Happy Few
We Happy Few

Game: Every game we’ve ever played and will play

It will all boil down to one – playing video games eases us, relieves us of the stress of the world we live on. A research was conducted by Patricia Areán, a UW Medicine researcher in psychiatry and behavioral sciences, and the study showed that 80 percent of the participants cope up with depression.

If you come to think of it, that’s the real point of video games – a means for us to have fun. Yes, games in the recent years were more emotional and more narrative but, in the end, we still have fun. The immersion that we engage ourselves in, the experience of living someone else’s life, and the people we interact with along the way – both virtual and real – show us that video games can be more than what they are, more than a means of entertainment.

Are there more to video games? Do you think video games can provide more benefits? Do you have any personal experience about the benefits of video games? Tell us in the comments section down below and let’s have a chat.

Game News, VgamerZ OriginalZ

Playing Video Games Actually Have A Lot Of Benefits

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Benefits of Playing Video Games

Video games may be thriving in recent weeks (or years) as a “booming” new industry, but that wasn’t always the case. Back then, people believed that video games were addicting sources of entertainment. That these video games were pointless and that they, uhm…rot your brain. Well, experts believe the contrary. A lot of researches had been conducted in order to prove otherwise and the scientists and researchers actually found a lot of benefits in playing video games. Here are the top benefits that video games might give you along with a few sample of games that might help you in that specific area.

Multitasking

Not Easy.
Yeah…the gist is, you will be controlling all of those at the SAME TIME. Easy, right? Nope.

Games: http://multitaskgames.com/

Try this: you’re watching the episodes of Game of Thrones because the new season is approaching really fast, while watching your kid, while writing this article, while doing another thing. Oh, look! You forgot your dinner on the stove. Handling this kind of scenario might be brain-wrecking for most people because they can’t handle multitasking. Well, worry not, my dear. Researchers found out that playing video games actually helps with doing (or at least paying attention to) multiple things at once.

But, it is important to note that this might be because the participants of the research were doing the same thing for thousands of times during the whole duration of the experiment which might be the reason why they were so good at it. It may be wonderful, fascinating even, to be able to do multiple things at once, but still you’ll be more efficient if you try to focus on just one task at a time.

Improved Attention

I know you've played something similar to this, right? Right?
I know you’ve played something similar to this, right? Right?

Games: Quake, Doom, Call of Duty, Overwatch, basically any action-packed games

Walking on a busy road, looking for a friend in a crowd or, following a ball during a game requires great effort and, sometimes, intense concentration; and these certain scenarios might be between life or death…ok, that may be taking it too far, nonetheless, it is a critical survival skill. In order to fully understand the relation between video games and Multiple Object Tracking (MOT), researchers from California designed, implemented, and evaluated TrackFX, a game that can be used by children as young as 30 months old.

The game is basically just like a hide-and-seek game where a ladybug and a spider are covered with leaves and were moved around. Then, after a few seconds, the movements stop and the player can then choose which leaf hides the ladybug. This way, the ladybug acts as the target and the spiders act as distractions. The results of the experiment were astonishing, the children still perform well despite the levels becoming more difficult.

Decision Making

Prof. Daphne Bavelier's test video game
Look at those dots! Oh, oh, oh!

Games: Tell-tale games, simulation games, and well…action games

One might look at gamers as if they are just ‘playing’ a game and not much is happening in their heads, but this is not the case. Each and every bit of a gaming session involves a lot of small and big decisions to be made; and some requires a reaction in a snap of a finger. This was further discussed by a team of researchers from New York. Oh and get this, the gender of a person doesn’t really matter.

What they did is that they assigned 14 people (half men, half women who haven’t played video games) to play two action games for no more than two hours a day up to a total of 50 hours. Then a second set of four men and seven women joined in but they played a Sims-like game where they direct the lives of the characters. Both of the groups improved greatly with the test game the researchers prepared but, action gamers responded faster. I can hear you cheering from here.

Do you think video games?

That’s all I got for now. There are still a lot of benefits that video games may offer us, but just like what my momma used to say, “Too much of everything is not good”. How about you? What are the benefits that video games have to offer us? And, have you experienced the benefits of games first-hand? Comment them down below and let’s have a chat.

Game News, VgamerZ OriginalZ

GOG Spring Sale: 90% Off of More Than 500 Indie and AAA Games

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spring sale for video games

What a great news! Wait, what is GOG you ask? GOG, a subsidiary of CD Projekt, is a software distribution platform serving DRM-free video games and movies. They have a kit if games ranging from critically acclaimed indie games to big and awesome triple-A video games. Guess what, their prizes range from as low as $5 to $10 for old games and for newer games, they can range from $5 to $30. You can get The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt for only $30! Can the prices go any lower? Oh yes! Enter, Spring Sale.

All Hail the Spring Sale (March 6 – 12, 2017)!

Adorable...Here, take my money!
Adorable…Here, take my money!

If you’re wondering which games do they have in store for us this Spring Sale, let me give you a sneak peek. For the indie game lovers out there, here are some of the indies they have for Spring Sale:

  • Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons – $2.24
  • Undertale – $4.99
  • World of Goo – $2.49
  • Crypt of the Necrodancer – $3.74
  • Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number – $3.74
  • Braid – $3.74
  • Bastion – $3.74
  • Invisible Inc. – $6.66

If you are not an indie game lover and more of a triple-A kind of a gamer, these games might be right in your alley:

  • Mirror’s Edge – $4.99
  • Metro 2033 Redux – $4.99
  • The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (GOTY) – $29.99
  • Deus Ex GOTY Edition – $2.99
  • Dragon Age: Origins Enhanced Edition – $4.99
  • Dead Space – $4.99
  • Tales from the Borderlands – $6.24

…And a lot more!

Personally, I’m planning to buy Divinity: Original Sin, Invisible Inc., World of Goo, Bastion – yes, I know. I’m more of an indie-loving guy – then, for the triple-A games, Witcher 2 and 3, and I’m still thinking about getting Medal of Honor or Hitman. Definitely Hitman. There are also some story-rich games like Gemini Rue, Alan Wake, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, and a lot more.

Want to link your Steam Library?

Want to connect your Steam library with GOG? They got you covered with GOG Connect. With this tool, you can permanently import your games in Steam to your GOG library. But, a little heads up, my dear gamers. They only have a limited number of eligible games and are for a limited time only. This is because not all developers and publishers agree with the whole DRM-free idea.

I believe that this is a great opportunity to try out games that we weren’t able to play in the past. How about you guys? Which interesting games are you planning to but? We are curious and are eager to hear from you, guys. Comment your games down below and let’s have a fun conversation.

VgamerZ OriginalZ

Football Manager 2017: Download Real Player Facepacks, Badges & Logos

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Football Manager 2017 has been launched for a short while now and, just like with all previous iterations of the game, due to legal issues, most of the players in the game don’t have a real photo. Also, badges, logos and even match kits are not the real ones and we’re here to help you fix that.

In this article, we will share with you the download links for Football Manager 2017 real player facepacks, as well as FM 2017 badges, logos and kits downloads so you can really take the game to the next level and enjoy it with a level of realism that has never been seen before.

I know that most people only care about the FM 2017 faces pack, so we’ll start with it! So here is how to download and install the facepack for most players in the game this year:

Head over to SortitoutSI and download the Cut-Out Faces Megapack. This is, in my opinion, the best possible face pack for Football Manager 2017 players and staff as it comes with an impressive amount of images: 177,246! We’re talking about an impressive download of over 8GB, but the good news is that all updates that they release for this facepack are released also as a separate download, so you can easily keep it up to date!

After installing the Facepack, Go to Documents – Sports Interactive – Football Manager 2017 – graphics. Copy the Facepack folder to the Graphics folder (if you don’t have a Graphics folder, create it). Next, launch the game, go to Preferences – go to Interface and tap the first two options at the bottom:

– Use caching to decrease page loading times
– Reload skin when confirming changes in Preferences.

Save the options and click the Reload Skin button at the bottom (you can also click the Clear Cache button above the options, but that’s usually not necessary)

Football Manager 2017 badges, logos & kits

Have in mind that installing the new graphics I will link to here will be done just as you did with the facepack (basically, all you have to do is copy them in the Graphics folder and reload the cache in the game).

Here is where to download the best FM 2017 logos & badges pack: click here.
Here is where to download the best FM 2017 kits pack: click here.

There you have it! Now you have managed to increase the level of realism and the overall feel of the game quite a bit. Now go out there and get the best players for your team and start winning trophies!

VgamerZ OriginalZ

Geoff Keighley’s New Gaming Show Is Better Than Expected

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Geoff

Geoff Keighley, the man behind The Game Awards and many other ventures, has recently come back into the spotlight with a surprisingly great live show on YouTube. The focus? All things gaming. From interviews to exclusive trailers, each episode contains multiple segments that vary in topic and quality.

For the sake of relevance, I’m dropping the latest episode here. The older ones will be at the bottom of this post for those of you who are interested and lazy.

While Geoff is known for being an extremely passionate gamer before anything, it’s all too easy to write him off, as he is a huge industry figure that has been in hilariously over the top marketing campaigns with big publishers. That said, it’s nice to see his hot takes on the current controversy. The honesty with which he addresses specifically No Man’s Sky in episode one, a game he had large stakes in when it was originally announced, is a breath of fresh air in what could be a potentially questionable environment.

Beyond that, segments like live DeadLock debates and Dear Bosman help to make the show an entertaining watch every week, and the addition of audience interaction is equally rewarding to boot. My favourite thing thus far, though, is the interview with Fumito Ueda on all things The Last Guardian.

As promised, here are the others in ascending order for your viewing pleasure. Also, note that the season finale will take place on November, 17th, for those of you who want to watch it live.

What do you think about his new gaming show?

VgamerZ OriginalZ

Civilization 6 Tweaks & Performance Improvements to Make the Game Even Better

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Civilization

Civilization 6 is clearly an amazing game and everybody loves it so far, but all great games can get even better. That’s the case of Civ VI and I am here to help you get that by sharing some Civiliztion 6 tweaks and tips to improve performance of the game, as well as its visual appeal and overall quality. You might already be aware of some of these tweaks and things you can do, but it never hurts to check them out and see if you can make the game even better!

So let’s not waste any time and let’s check out below the complete set of Civilization 6 tweaks and tips for increasing the game’s performance and getting the most out of it!

1. How to skip intro video & Logos splash screen

Disabling the intro video in the game is really easy: all you have to do is to head over to the options menu and under the Aplication category, simply uncheck the option to play the intro video.

Getting rid of the logos splash screen when you start the game is a bit trickier, but if you still want to do it, here is how: go to the Movies folder in your game’s install, which should be something like: “\Sid Meiers Civilization VI\Base\Platforms\Windows\Movies”. Find the file logos.bk2 and rename it to something like Logos_backup.bk2. Then copy the file WipeRight.bik and rename it as logos.bk2 (make sure you still have the WipeRight.bik left in the folder!). Alternately, you can download your own blank bik video and use it instead. (Cheers to Reddit user Civ6LogoSkip for sharing the method!)

2. Control the camera with WASD

The WASD keys should be there to allow you to control the camera movement, yet they don’t do that. You can edit some files to make it work and it won’t be extremely easy, but following instructions makes it a lot easier. You have the complete set of instructions on Reddit here – and it’s a lot easier than it seems.

To keep it short, all you should do is to: first, make sure you disable in the game the WASD keys in the settings. Then, go to Your game’s install folder -> \Base\Assets\UI and open WorldInput.lua with a text editor like Notepad. Search for ‘DefaultKeyDownHandler’ to find the function we want to edit. Make the changes to the if / then lines accordingly:

if( uiKey == Keys.VK_UP or uiKey == Keys.W ) then
if( uiKey == Keys.VK_RIGHT or uiKey == Keys.D ) then
if( uiKey == Keys.VK_DOWN or uiKey == Keys.S ) then
if( uiKey == Keys.VK_LEFT or uiKey == Keys.A ) then

3. Rotate the map

You can rotate the map easily in the game by keeping the Alt key pressed and left clicking your mouse, then rotating. However, the view gets back to the original state once you release the Alt key, which is usually good because you don’t lose your orientation completely. However, if you want to make the changes permanent, you can edit some game files and make it happen. You will once again have to edit some game files, and you have the complete instructions on how to do so on Steam.

4. Change font sizes

If you want bigger fonts in the game, you’ll have to edit the Civ6_FontStyles_EFIGS.xml file which is found in your game’s install folder -> Base\Assets\UI\Fonts. Open the file with a text editor and adjust the font sizes as per your liking. Make sure to save a backup first in case things don’t end up looking as good as you want.

5. Stop automatic unit cycling

If you want to do things your way and select the order in which your units are activated (especially useful during a war), you can turn off auto unit cycling. You will have to go to Documents/My Games/Sid Meier’s Civilization VI/User (so not the install folder, but the user folder). Open the options.txt file with a text editor and find the “AutoUnitCycle 1” entry. Change the 1 to 0, save the file and you’re all set!

6. See all the units you own

If you want to see a list of all your units, you don’t have to edit any files: simply select one unit first, then click on its name in the bottom right area of the screen. This will bring up a drop down menu listing all the units that you have. If you really want to make it easier for you to identify them all, make sure to change their names!

7. Make the tooltips appear faster

First, head over to your game’s install folder -> Base\Assets\UI\ToolTips and open the file PlotToolTip.lua and find the entry: local TIME_DEFAULT_PAUSE :number = 1.1; . Change the 1.1 to a lower value, like 0.3 to make the tooltips appear sooner.

We can also edit the PlotToolTip.xml in the same folder. Find the line AlphaAnim ID=”TooltipMain” Anchor=”L,B” Offset=”0,200″ Speed=”4″ Pause=”12345″ Cycle=”Once” Hidden=”1″. Edit the Speed=”4″ and change the number to whatever you want, knowing that the higher the number, the faster the tooltips.

These would be our Civilization 6 tweaks for the moment, but we’ll make sure to add more if we find more. Also, don’t hesitate to share with us any tweaks that you find that help improve the game experience!

VgamerZ OriginalZ

Best Laptops for Battlefield 1 (2016)

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Laptops for Battlefield

Laptops

Battlefield 1 aka Battlefield 2016 is the game that is expected to deliver a fatal blow to Call of Duty this year. laptops It seems that Dice and EA have finally listened to what the gamers want and decided to go back in time instead of forward into the future and deliver a classic FPS that everybody was waiting for. As a result, Battlefield 1 is probably one of the most hyped games of the year and I am sure you want to play it. If you want to play Battlefield 1 on a laptop, we’ve got you covered: we have here some recommendations that will show you that you can indeed play the game on a laptop and get as much as possible out of it without having to spend a fortune.

So let’s not waste any time and let’s check out below the best laptops for Battlefield 1, with the mention that we’re trying to list something for each budget below and we won’t hit you with a list of laptops that cost over $2,000: we know that those can run the game, but what if we can find something much cheaper? Well, we did, so check out below the recommended laptops to play Battlefield 1 on!

Acer Nitro VN7

best-laptops-for-battlefield-2016-01

If you’re on a tight budget, but you still can’t say no to some WWI action, then the Acer Nitro VN7 is a great choice for you! It has well over the minimum system requirements for the game, meaning that you’ll still be able to enjoy it at a good quality (even though not with every setting maxed out) – at least you get to play the game and that’s all that matters! The laptop itself has a good overall configuration, running on a modern Intel Quad-Core i7-4720HQ processor, 8GB of RAM and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M Graphics card with 2GB of RAM. It also has a backlit keyboard, which is nice addition to any gaming laptop.

Probably the biggest downside here is the smaller size of the screen – we’re talking about a 15.6-inch Full HD monitor, but you have to sacrifice size in order to get this performance at such a low price. So if you think that a couple of inches down are worth saving the money, go for this laptop as it will deliver very good performance not only for Battlefield 1, but all or at least most current generation games out there!

Click here to check it out

Toshiba S55

best-laptops-for-battlefield-2016-02

We’re keeping prices low, but we still have to stick to a 15.6-inch monitor, which is not ideal for gaming, but it’s better than not being able to game at all, right? The S55 has some slightly better stats than the Acer model recommended above, running on an Intel i7-6700HQ processor with 8GB of RAM. Even though it has a NVIDIA GTX 950M Video card, it comes with 4GB of RAM, so the performance is there. You also get 512GB of SSD storage for some added speed, as well as the Backlit Keyboard which makes a good addition to the overall thing. I’d say that this one is even better than the Acer Nitro in terms of specs and it should still be, normally available for under $1,000. Now that’s a good deal!

Click here to buy it

Clevo Prostar N170RD1

best-laptops-for-battlefield-2016-03

It’s time to increase the size of the screen to a decent 17.3-inch! I know that a Prostar laptop doesn’t have the brand bang that other computers have, but when you are on a tight budget, this shouldn’t matter too much especially since we’re still talking about a very high quality product here. The N170RD1 model, for example, not only has a bigger screen, but is also powered by an Intel Core i7-6700HQ processor, has 8GB of RAM and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M card with 2GB GDDR5. In other words, it’s well above the minimum system requirements to run Battlefield 1 and you should expect some more than decent performances from it, all on a larger screen that offers 920 x 1080 Full HD resolution. At this price, it can’t get any better!

Click here to buy it

ASUS ROG GL752VW-DH74

best-laptops-for-battlefield-2016-05

A good gaming laptop created by the folks at ASUS, the ROG GL752VW-DH74 isn’t the latest in terms of system specifications, but it still offers good quality of the price. It’s powered by the 6th generation Intel Core i7-6700HQ processor running at 2.6GHz and comes with 16GB of RAM. It also has a good graphics card, the Discrete GPU GeForce GTX 960M and a large display at 17.3-inch, offering full HD (1920 by 1080) resolutions. It has both a 1TB HDD and a 128GB SSD, plus a really good design that all gamers would love. A very good product overall at an even better price!

Click here to buy it

MSI GE72 Apache Pro-003

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This is a really good gaming laptop, one that proves that you don’t have to spend a fortune for something good! Running on the Intel i7-6700HQ processor, this beast comes with 16GB of RAM and the NVIDIA Geforce GTX960M card with 2GB of RAM. It is a true gaming laptop with backlit keyboard (Steelseries) and the dual fan cooling system called Cooler Boost 3 which keeps the laptop’s temperature low for prolonged gaming sessions. It also offers 1TB of HDD storage, with SSD options available at a higher price. Even though this laptop isn’t packed with the latest technology, it’s not very far off behind and still delivers great performance for the money!

Click here to buy it

Clevo Prostar P670RP6

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It’s another Prostar model that we found as the best option for a great price and let me tell you something: the specs of this laptop are absolutely INSANE and at a much lower price that you’d pay if you went for a brand option. The laptop is powered by the Intel Core i7-6700HQ processor and has 16GB of DDR4, but the cherry on top is the graphics card: it packs the nVidia GTX 1060 graphics card with 6GB GDDR5! That’s absolutely amazing! And as if that wasn’t enough, we also get a 1TB SSD for super fast storage options. I am absolutely amazed by the specifications of this product, combined with its price – so if you’re really looking for a very good laptop that’s cheaper than other brand options, don’t hesitate to get this one. Go for the performance!

Click here to buy it

So these would be our recommendations for laptops that can handle Battlefield 1. Have in mind that, as I said in the intro, we looked at more budget options, which means that the cheaper the laptop that you get, the more you will have to give up in terms of in-game performance or graphical quality. But you can still enjoy the game and that’s all that matters. However, if you want something really good that will give you an amazing experience, choose our final recommendation or go for a gaming laptop that’s over $2,000 – it’s your choice, but I don’t think you’ll find many things much better than the Prostar, so you’ll just be wasting extra money. Just my two cents here!

VgamerZ OriginalZ

16 Amazing Classic PC Games that You Can Play for Free in 2016

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If you are like me, around 30 years old or older and you consider yourself a gamer, it means that you were lucky enough to see the evolution of PC games – and gaming in general – since its beginnings on MS DOS. Most likely, you have played a ton of games that are now considered classics and you might be wondering already if you could play them again. We’re here to help you replay some of the great games of the days gone by sharing 16 amazing classic PC games that you can now play for free, legally and let nostalgia fill your body.

For most of these games, you will need to first install an MS Dos emulator like DosBox (free here) but it’s all worth it. So let’s not waste a single second and let’s check out below 16 amazing classic PC games which can be player for free right now!

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1. Command & Conquer: Red Alert

This still remains one of my favorite RTS games of all times and I am probably not the only one who can say that. Even more, I am sure that I will always love Tanya and be secretly in love with her. Again, I am probably not the only one who says that. Either way, you have to play or replay this game: it’s classic RTS at its best and it will rarely get any better than this. You can download the game for free here.

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2. Beneath a Steel Sky


There was a time when point and click adventure games were smart, unique, fun to play and extremely popular. For some reason, the genre died slowly and even though we do have some promising releases every now and then, its Golden Age is long gone. Beneath a Steel Sky is one of those stellar adventure games that you could play back in the day and be extremely excited about it. It’s true, there were other point and click adventures that were more popular and maybe slightly better, but this one’s available for free and it’s still absolute gold! Download the game for free on GoG.com.

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3. Descent

For some reason, I never enjoyed Descent even though the entire world seemed to think otherwise. There was something utterly unappealing to it back in the days and even today I feel a slight repulsion when thinking about it. But I am not here to recommend my favorites, I am here to recommend great games and I would lie if I told you this was not one of them. So hop into your ship and experience first person shooters a la 90s! Download the game for free here.

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4. The Elder Scrolls 2: Daggerfall

The Elder Scrolls franchise is one of the best known and most beloved RPG franchises out there and it’s actually surprising to see that one of the legendary games in this series is offered for free. But good guy Bethesda is good again and offers the game as a free download so you can relive those great moments before Skyrim was real. And it still feels pretty awesome! Click here to download the game for free.

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5. The Ur-Quan Masters

Although we’re not really talking about the original Star Control II game but a remake, it’s almost the same thing and those who have played the original many years ago will be happy to get the chance to play it one more time. This is indeed one of the best games of all times, and it’s a bit FTL, a bit adventure and a bit everything else. It’s absolutely impressive that a game created over 20 year ago could be that epic. But, here it is! Download it for free here.

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6. Tyrian 2000

One of the best known vertical scrolling shooters that fills your heart with joy and the screen with bullets. Pure, mindless fun that remains fun even today. And it does sound a bit like Tyrion from Game of Thrones, and everybody loves him. So even though there’s absolutely no connection between the two, love is in the air! You can download the game for free on GoG.com.

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7. Wolfenstein 3D

This is the first FPS game in the world. This started it all and Call of Duties, Battlefields, Dooms and all other first person shooters are related to it. Of course, things have changed and fortunately improved significantly since it was released, but I am sure you will still have a great deal of fun shooting down the bad guys and sliding over all walls in a level looking for hidden doors. Click here to download the game for free right now!

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8. Flight of the Amazon Queen

One of the funnest point and click adventure games I have ever played (similar to the Lucas Arts and Sierra classics), Flight of the Amazon Queen is a must play if you haven’t played it and a must replay if you did. It has a bit of everything, but most importantly high quality humor and you will absolutely love it! You can download the game for free here.

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9. Championship Manager: Season 01/02

Although this is clearly not a game everybody remembers and clearly not a game everybody would enjoy or even play, it is one of the best known and considered the best football management game that was ever created. There are still a ton of people who play it regularly even today, 15 years after its original launch. So if you are a fan of the Football Manager franchise (as it’s now called), CM 01/02 is a must play or replay! Click here to download the game (scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the “CM Season 01/02 Download” link under “External Links”.

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10. Lemmings

Ah, the crazy and funny lemmings that needed your help to reach point B from point A. A truly unique puzzle game that, for some reasons, hasn’t been remade and updated, making it even more valuable for those who love a bit of a brain teasing from their games. You can download the game here.

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11. Dune 2000

Dune 2 is the first real strategy game I have played and the first real RTS in the world. Just like Wolfenstein 3D, this is a piece of history. And even though the original Dune 2 is not available as a free download, its Dune 2000 remake is – and it’s basically the same thing, but with slightly updated graphics. You have to replay it, play it and love it. And realize that you can still win the game with a different house than the Harkonnen. Click here to download the game.

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12. One Must Fall 2097

For a fighting game that doesn’t have a ton of characters to choose from and not even a lot of moves that your fighters can pull, its popularity and high entertainment values can be considered surprising. Probably the fact that it has robots makes it a lot better… but it doesn’t matter in the end. What matters is that OMF 2097 is an amazing game that can be played for free. You can download it here.

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13. Golden Axe

Available on multiple platforms (and slightly different on each if I remember correctly), this is pure Arcade room fun. Make sure that you bring a friend over and play it in coop (but try not to fight too much over who plays the dwarf Gilius Thunderhead!). Download the game for free here.

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14. Railroad Tycoon

This is another game that basically started an entire genre, and in this case we’re talking about the Tycoon genre. It might look and feel a bit outdated, but if you played it when it first came out, you’ll feel at home really fast and you’ll find it really fun to rebuild your transport empire once again. Download the game for free here.

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15. Supaplex

I absolutely loved this puzzle game and I think that it’s one of the most underrated games ever created. Extremely difficult, with a ton of content, smart puzzles and also a game that requires perfect runs, Supaplex is still great today and remains fun for people all ages. Must play! Click here to download the game.

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16. Ultima 4: Quest of the Avatar

One of the best known and most appreciated games of all times is available for download for free! Launched over 30 years ago, the game had so much content and is so impressive that it can clearly be considered too ambitious for the period it was launched in. An amazing game that might not seem too much fun for first time players, but for those who had already spent hours in its company it will be nothing but sweet, pure joy. Download the game for free on Good Old Games.

There you have it: 16 amazing classic PC games to play in 2016. There are still other great gems left out there and available as free downloads on Abandonware sites or in other places, so if we forgot to mention any great games that are now available for free, let us know by commenting below.