Contributions > Descriptions by Łukasz Mirosławski (381)

King's Bounty: Dark Side focuses on the other side of Teana: the Evil Ones. The player can choose between the fearless Orc warrior Bagyr, a young Demoness named Neoline or a fearsome Vampire named Daert. Each of their worlds have been attacked by the forces of the Light, effectively destroying their homelands and forcing them to flee to the only neutral place and seek refuge among the Dwarves. There, their story intertwines as they meet at the local tavern and bring each other up to speed of the events that have transpired. There they make a blood oath to restore the balance to the world of Teana, and purge the forces of Light from their lands.

Their blood oath doesn't sit well with the local innkeeper and they are soon attacked by the guards. While looking for their way out of the dwarven kingdom, they enter the realm of the Dark and upon meeting The Dark One, their quest starts to take shape and their plan to form. The plan requires an army and a menacing weapon of vengeance to be built. This will require sacrifice and corruption, and depending on which protagonist the player has selected, the task will fall to that character. Blackie (which can be renamed), the fearsome dark furry creature bestowed upon you as your companion, can provide you with tactical advice as well as powerful attacks (upgradeable in the same fashion as in the previous game installments) during combat. Your companion can take the shape of any of the three protagonists and wield powerful attacks upon the enemy.

Aside from this new companion (which yields new rage abilities), there are several new unit types, new artifacts, new locations, new trophy achievements, and a great deal of new quests. Many of the quests can be approached in different ways, for example attacking certain hero armies head on, or resorting to sabotage or subterfuge tactics to weaken the enemy before you strike. While world terrain is reused from the previous installments (lava laden lands of demons, dense forestal paths with ponds and lakes, snowy mountains), there are many new objects covering these lands that were not present in any of the previous games (shipyard, corn fields, bee hives, etc.), adding a great variety of terrain on each of the maps.

Ultra Street Fighter IV is a 2.5D fighting game and the 4th updated version of Street Fighter IV. On Windows, it is sold as a purchasable upgrade for Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition, and includes a replacement of the Games for Windows Live servers with Steamworks ones. It features five additional characters, stages and character tweaks based on community feedback. This title update also features brand new modes.

Ultra Street Fighter IV features 3 new mechanics - Ultra Combo Double, Red Focus Attack and Delayed Standing.

• Ultra Combo Double allows players to choose both of their character's Ultra Combos at the cost of doing less damage. This gives players more options in their tactics and play styles.
• Red Focus Attack is a Focus Attack that absorbs multiple hits. By holding the usual Medium Punch and Medium Kick buttons, plus the Light Punch button, the player's character will flash red as they charge their Focus Attack. It is still subject to the same weaknesses as the former with Armor Breaking moves and throws.
• Delayed Standing allows players to alter the timing of their character's wake-up, when they are getting back on their feet. By pressing any two buttons when the character is slammed down in a hard knockdown (similar in the fashion of performing a Quick Stand), the character will take a few extra frames to get back on their feet, disrupting the wake-up game of the attacking opponent.

In addition to new gameplay mechanics, there are new modes available for use: Elimination and Online Training. Elimination is an improved Team Battle mode for online play, bearing great resemblance to the three-on-three survival style from the King of Fighters series. Online Training makes its return from Street Fighter X Tekken, allowing for players to train together online.

Ultra Street Fighter IV adds five new characters - four have been seen previously in Street Fighter X Tekken.

• Elena - princess of an East African nation that has a cultural tradition of fighting,
• Hugo - giant man raised on a farm in Germany, where he was fed mainly on potatoes,
• Poison - friend and manager of Hugo,
• Rolento - former member of the special forces unit, the Red Berets

In addition, USF4 adds one new character:

• Decapre - one of twelve Shadaloo assassins and bodyguards known as The Dolls

The update adds six new stages, all of which come from Street Fighter X Tekken. The stages are:

• East Asia: The Pitstop 109
• Europe: Blast Furnace
• North America: The Half Pipe
• North America: Mad Gear Hideout
• South America: Cosmic Elevator
• Unknown: Jurassic Era Research Facility