First Person Shooters: How To Play Better

First person shooter games are fun to play. Many gamers play FPS games like Call of Duty and Battlefield Online and with friends. In fact, there are websites that host competitions with monetary rewards for first person-shooter-games. However, unless you are a professional gamer, your chances of winning these competitions are small.

Here are some tips for how to play better.

Analyze everything

After you learn the basics of any game, the next step is to analyze. You should question every move, decision, map, weapon etc. The best gamers pay very close attention to small details in the games they play. In terms of shooter games, you should have a thorough understanding of every map layout and the hot routes in each map. There are certain statistics and analytics available that display the routes players are likely to take in any given map for a variety of games.

You should constantly analyze your ability to aim quickly. You will be a much better player if you can greatly increase your accuracy. You should be able to place the down-sight aim directly on your opponent on the first try; you should not have to adjust your aim.

Take advantage of the game's features

Every first-person-shooter game has features that many players fail to use. For example, in Call of duty, every player has the opportunity to assign multiple weapons, perks and killstreaks to individual classes; however, some people only assign one class. One class will not prepare the player for different situations. If there is a helicopter in the vicinity and you do not have a class with a homing rocket launcher, you will not be able to shoot down the helicopter.

Some weapons are more effective in a variety of situations. You should always have classes for sniper situations, for big maps with plenty of hiding spots; small weapons, for small maps with many close quarter skirmishes; and assault rifles, for medium sized maps that require accuracy.

The best players are able to take full advantage of every feature that a game has to offer.

Observe other good players

One of the easiest ways to learn how to play better is by observing other players. Take notes of the types of decisions they make, the weapons they use and the routes they take. If they are consistently winning matches against other online players then you know they have something they can teach you.

Alternatively, play against other good players as much as you can. They will force you to improve your skills in order to win against them.

Hopefully these tips will help you. When it comes to online gaming, you are your harshest critic. You should always be critiquing your gaming skills.

The best way to get better at gaming is to play lots - and the best way to do that is to rent lots of games. Games frenzy is an awesome game rentals site - check them out.

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First Person Shooters - Ten of the Best

Since the dawn of videogaming, we've been looking for any excuse to gun down pixels and blow stuff up. In this testament to the FPS, we take a look at some of the greatest names to grace the genre over the years. From The Duke to The Chief, it's time to lock'n'load!

10: Doom II (1994)

Whilst it might not have exactly done much with the gameplay of the original, Doom II gave us so much more. The array of enemies gave us an enormous amount of variety in our wanton destruction and, of course, the Super Shotgun. But it was the pioneering support for dial-up modems, engineering the possibility for some 28kb/s multiplayer, deathmatch fun, and even allowing for co-op play that ensures this game's place on our list.

9: Rainbow Six Vegas (2006)

Whilst one would normally associate cover systems with 3rd person shooters, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas took the best of both worlds. With arguably one of the best cover systems ever seen in a shooter, this game managed to marry the narrative quality of COD with expansive maps, superb AI and stunning locales.

8: Duke Nukem 3D (1996)

Big, brash, unashamedly controversial, Duke Nukem was more of a pop culture hero than a gaming protagonist. Stuffed to the brim with cultural references, filled with destructible items, this was another game that helped pioneer online gaming, with users able to create their own multiplayer levels. Shake it baby!

7: Metroid Prime (2001)

Nintendo hardly pulled out all of the stops when it came to the (still vastly underrated) Gamecube, but this was a crowning achievement for them. Not only did Metroid Prime manage to pack in an awful lot of scintillating bug-blasting action, but the puzzles weren't simply throwaway affairs either. A brilliant achievement, Samus Aran's reinvention was one of the highlights of the new millennium for gamers.

6: Serious Sam: The First Encounter (2001)

As games increasingly began to push for realism, Croteam figured they make a game that captured a sense of the old-school thrill of big guns, big bangs, and big numbers of enemies. Forget your tight corridors and conservative gameplay, this was classic action with an updated twist, and truckloads of sly references and knowing wit. Seriously good fun.

5: Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007)

Infinity Ward might have refined the formula for its sequel, but it was COD4 that really put them on the map with smart, setpiece-driven action, a gripping campaign mode and some of the finest multiplayer action across all genres. By lifting the Call of Duty series into the present day, IW revitalised the franchise, making a stellar sequel practically a formality.

4: BioShock (2007)

What happens when you splice together a twisting tale of dystopian backstabbing and greed, the theories and philosophies of Ayn Rand, some cracking FPS action and some of the prettiest water ever seen in a videogame? BioShock, that's what: The thinking man's FPS.

3: GoldenEye 64 (1997)

Who can forget sniping at clueless, toilet-bound guard with the Silenced PP7, or busting out the ludicrously powerful RCP-90 on the Train level or cursing loudly during four player deathmatch because someone (there was always one) was slapping peoples knees as Oddjob. Hailing back to a time when Rare actually made astonishingly good games, Bond has never been bettered.

2: Halo: Combat Evolved (2001)

One of the finest action games of all time, the first instalment in the wildly popular Halo franchise was smart, offered setpieces galore, and expansive singleplayer maps - just play through the Silent Cartographer level to see what I mean. The game still manages to look impressive today, a trendsetter in the genre that has been copied to the death ever since. many have tried to emulate it, and few have succeeded beyond mediocrity. This game is the Chief.

1: Half-Life 2 & The Orange Box (2004/2006)

To be honest, Half-Life 2 would probably top this list just by itself thanks to its smart, subtle gameplay, superb presentation, excellent physics and, of course, that Gravity Gun. But when you add in the class-based multiplayer romp that is Team Fortress 2, combined with the cerebral originality of Portal, it is clear that this spot belongs to Valve's compilation, defining value for money.

About the author:

Matt Gardner is the Senior Editor of UK-based video games website Dealspwn (http://www.dealspwn.com). Check out Dealspwn.com for the hottest gaming deals, insightful news bulletins, honest game reviews and expert commentary. You can find more of his writing at http://www.dealspwn.com/author/matt/

Gaming Laptops Goes Mini-Me (Dell Intros Alienware M11x - The World's First Gaming Netbook)

While Dell's introduction of the first gaming netbook at the recent CES or Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas wasn't necessarily the ultimate show stopper, the Alienware M11x did turn a lot of heads, especially among the gaming crowd. Having a small compact four pound gaming netbook with an 11 inch display goes against everything associated with gaming laptops, since most gaming notebooks are heavy, large and try to pack everything under the hood that a decent Gaming Desktop PC would possess. Big emphasis on try.

But a gaming netbook goes completely in the other direction, what's up with that?

Well, actually there's a lot to notice about this sleek powerful little device mainly because it comes from Alienware, the premier maker of gaming machines on the planet. While many serious gamers swear anything but a PC for gaming is a foolish idea; most would agree if you have to lower yourself to using a gaming laptop - it might as well be one made by Alienware. In other words, Alienware and computer gaming have become synonymous in the hearts and minds of most gamers.

In our ever increasing demand for everything mobile, perhaps a gaming netbook is only the next illogical step! Make it small, make it powerful and they will come. Right?

Not so fast.

The jury is still out on this gaming netbook which will hit the marketplace in February and sell for under $1000. Which is still expensive, considering many quality netbooks are in the $200 to $400 range. Will gamers snap up this portable gamer in order to have their games with them, no matter where they go? Judging by the popularity of such devices as the Nintendo DS, the answer could be a solid yes.

Improving those odds are the rather impressive specs featured on the Alienware M11x which sports a High Definition 11 inch display and a GT335M GPU from NVIDIA. It is capable of playing such popular games as Call of Duty (Modern Warfare 2) at 30 frames-per-second with a 1336 x 768 max resolution. Alienware is claiming even higher frames rates with benchmarks of well over 60 fps, even capable of reaching 90 fps. Battery life (as claimed by Alienware) stands at 3 or 4 hours for gaming, and up to 6 or 7 hours for general use.

The M11x also sports some other impressive specs for such a small machine: built-in Wi-Fi and webcam, multiple USB ports, HDMI-output, SD card reader and a built-in SIM card reader which will allow users to utilize their cellphone SIM card and have access to Internet services. Also, the M11x has both the NVIDIA GPU and an integrated chipset - you can switch to the less demanding graphics when not gaming to save battery life.

Of course, the M11x has all the styling and features you would expect from an Alienware gaming laptop, like those seen on the powerful M17x and M15x. With jet-black looks and multi-zone LED illumination on the keyboard, alien logo, speakers and so on... the M11x will definitely stand out when comparing netbooks. In our self-absorbed world, looks do count but what's under the hood will be of most interest to gamers who want a small portable device for their gaming.

Alienware, as of yet, is not giving gamers the full-monty of what's in this system but full details will come when this gaming netbook is unleashed to the public. But dedicated gamers who must have their gaming available at all times, no matter where they are, probably won't be disappointed with the Alienware M11x, the world's first gaming netbook.

The author has a keen interest in all things laptop and runs an online Laptop Guide featuring the latest top gaming notebooks: Gaming Laptops
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Copyright 2010 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

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Halo Series the Culmination of First Person Shooter Video Games

Halo 3 was recently released amidst great fanfare as an exclusive title to the latest Microsoft gaming console: the Xbox 360. The Halo games have been the flagship titles on the Xbox consoles since the first Xbox was released with the first Halo back in 2001. Halo: Combat Evolved quickly became a popular culture phenomenon, being hailed by many industry authorities as the best first person shooter available on a console. It quickly spiraled into an industry of its own, spawning original novels, comic books, toys and more.

Halo is the evolution of a genre that goes back to the earliest 3D game graphics. Once it became possible to put a game character in a maze and then show that maze from the character's perspective - the first person perspective - rather than the overhead view previous video games had used, it opened up the door for the development of the "first person shooter", or FPS. The original FPS, Wolfenstein 3D, looks crude by today's standards, but it was cutting edge in both graphics and sound quality on its release in 1992. Certainly it was unlike anything that anyone had seen at the time. While the concept was simple - you walk through a maze and shoot bad guys - its execution allowed gamers to feel like they were inside the game in a way that hadn't been experienced before.

Prior to Halo, the most well-known FPS was the second major FPS to hit the market: Doom. Doom gained notoriety beyond the gaming world for its violent content and rampant popularity. It was the first FPS to allow multiplayer gaming over a modem or network, an updated version of which is one of Halo's main selling points. Doom became popular enough that a major Hollywood movie was made, starring The Rock and Karl Urban. Following in Doom's footsteps, Halo is also slated to be made into a motion picture, though - as of writing this article - that project is still in development.

Each installment of the Halo series has only increased the frenzy around these games as Bungie and Microsoft come up with new features to add to increase replayability and multiplayer functionality. While Halo 2 sold eight million copies worldwide and was the most played game on Xbox Live for two years, Halo 3 is expected to eventually blow those figures out of the water. 4.2 million copies were shipped to retail outlets for the release date and its release has nearly tripled sales of Xbox360 compared to pre-Halo 3 sales of the console. There's no denying that the Halo series of video games has become a major force in popular culture, and will likely remain so for years to come.

Sarah Corlett runs the successful toy safety resource 21st Century Toys: [http://www.21st-century-toys.com] and the Xbox 360 source: http://www.xtreme-xbox.com

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FPS - First Person Shooter Games

Among the biggest sellers in online PC games are FPS, or First Person Shooter, games.

Kids love 'em. So do most Dads.

Many moms think the level of violence is too high and too graphic, so Dad and the kids play them when she is not looking.

FPS games are centered on you, the player, from your point of view. Armed with various handheld weapons, you might be called on to thwart the invasion of Earth by aliens or to stop a Nazi advance in WWII. As a player, you interact directly with the game environment from your own perspective.

FPS games evolved in the late 1990s as PCs became powerful enough to render the 3D graphics in real time. These are way beyond the arcade shooters from Space Invaders on up.

Several sub-genres of FPS have distinguished themselves:

* tactical - most have a military motif

* stealth - avoiding detection by opponents is a major element

* run and gun - among the most popular with multiple enemies and fast-paced action

* real-time strategy (RTS) - able to give commands to other units and control the strategy

* first person adventure (FPA) - free roaming adventure which takes one to the edge, like the controversial series Grand Theft Auto

Most FPS games take graphics to a new level of realism while exaggerating the attributes of the player. You now likely have muscles and strength that make Arnold look like a girlie-man.

Kids and adults alike love the frantic blasting of enemies within the context of heroic storylines.

While FPS games are demanding on your reflexes, they are also demanding on your PC. You will definitely have a need for speed, as well as a good graphics card and a decent set of speakers. The demands of gamers have pushed the PC industry to make better desktop computers for all.

The next big shift - with broadband Internet service now in millions of homes worldwide - will be the delivery of the latest FPS game to your PC via streaming download instead of CD. As more gamers accept online streaming delivery of the game itself, costs should come down over time as the game developers turn to online delivery and bypass the CD/DVD publishers and retailers in the supply chain.

For the game developers, online delivery of FPS games represents an opportunity to open up a new market of gamers who would be willing to try FPS online, but who never visit EB Games, the Electronics Boutique, or other game retailers in the mall.

For those who want to try/demo any number of FPS games, I recommend the Triton player. This streaming download allows you to begin play well before the entire download is completed. You can even demo recent releases like Prey from 3D Realms.

You can register free and download the player at: http://www.playtriton.com

As long as there are heroes and villains, and kids with vivid imaginations, there will be a place for FPS games when the aliens come calling.

Charles Lamm is a RetroGamer trying desperately to catch up with hardcore online PC gamers. He practices with the fast Triton player, available free at: http://www.playtriton.com

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Game Design Tips For First Person Shooter Designers

First person shooters (FPS) are one of the standard computer game genres. After the phenomenal success of Doom, many companies made attempts at this type of game. Today there are single player FPS games, multi-player combative FPS games, multi-player cooperative FPS games and all of the above come in both plot driven and straight combat forms. Some of the first person shooters are about problem solving, some are about stealth and some are about getting the BFG-9000 to create the highest body count possible.

The tasks of a game designer in this type of game are to figure out the direction the game will take, create the setting and increasingly create the tools to let players mod the game, adding their own content or even replacing everything but the game engine with an entirely different look and feel.

The game designer must wrestle with realism. This comes in two flavors. One is the type seen in America's Army, where the goal is to replicate reality well enough to serve as a recruiting and training tool. You can't carry a zillion weapons nor can you run across an open field at a hundred enemy soldiers and kill them with impunity. The other is basically an attempt to do the slasher genre of the movies, only more so. Blood and flesh fly from bodies with each impact, leaving stains on the walls and floors. Bullet holes are stitched into the walls and drums explode when hit. It is the latter form of realism that gets the most complaints.

There are critics that attempt to link FPS games with murder, and just about any very violent action will be examined for a computer game link. Dealing with those sorts of challenges is for lawyers and scientists, rather than game designers. The game design end of the issue is to know why you are designing to serve a specific market. If the game is intended to appeal to adults who like black comedy about gruesome death, blood and flesh is likely to be needed. If you are producing a game about hunting cartoon creatures, it would be wrong.

The game designer must determine the goals of the game. Some are puzzles, where the player attempts to learn enough to solve some mystery. Some are tactical games in which battledrills are selected, practiced and used as needed. Others are about obtaining some MacGuffin.

A growing feature in FPS games in interactivity. The classic examples of the genre featured a single player who would do everything, with computer-controlled foes. Later games provided multiplayer modes where the humans fought against each other. Then it became possible to cooperate in team play, and still later reasonable computer controlled allies were available for a player to lead and influence. Now it is normal for a first person shooter to be built around online play in at least some form, with many games providing support for both single humans to play with the computer and multiplayer online games.

In many ways the FPG game designer faces one of the more difficult challenges. That's because they need to be able to take a genre with so many stereotypes and so much public opposition, and create something unique that stands out and gets noticed in the marketplace.

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