UPDATE: Amazon has adjusted the prices of certain games on the list, so we’ve modified the prices to reflect the new listings.

Big online retailers like Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and eBay (NASDAQ: eBay) are slashing prices on some great games and hardware for the holidays, IGN reports.

Amazon has a huge offering of game sales that cut costs on some great games, including Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes for an absurdly low $10, Wolfenstein: The New Order for a steal at $15, Dragon Age: Inquisition at $40 and GTA V on Xbox One or PS4 for just $48.

Below we have a breakdown of the offers including Amazon’s big holiday game sale, listed from lowest to highest price:

Multiplatform

• Grand Theft Auto V (PlayStation 4 or Xbox One) – $48.99

• Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition (PlayStation 4 or Xbox One) – $24.99

• Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel (PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360) – $29.99

PlayStation 4

• Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes  – $9.99

• Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition - $12.99

• The LEGO Movie Videogame – $14.99

• Wolfenstein: The New Order  – $14.99  adjusted to $37.69

• Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag  - $19.99  adjusted to $34.30

• Watch Dogs – $24.99

• The Evil Within – $24.99 Adjusted to $38.40

• The Last of Us: Remastered (PlayStation 4 digital download code) – $19.99, Amazon copy $29.99

• NBA 2K15 - $29.99

• DriveClub  – $34.99 adjusted to $38.90

• Rocksmith 2014 - $39.99

• Dragon Age: Inquisition - $39.99

Xbox One

• Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor - $27.99

• NBA 2K15 - $29.99

• Forza Horizon 2  – $35.99

• Halo: The Master Chief Collection – $44.99

Wii U

• Hyrule Warriors (Nintendo Wii U) – $47.99

• Just Dance 2015 – $19.99

PlayStation 3

• Lego: Marvel Super Heroes – $9.99

• Just Dance 2015 – $19.99 adjusted to $36.33

• Need for Speed Rivals Complete Edition – $19.99 adjusted to $34.98

• FIFA 15 - $24.99 adjusted to $39.96

• Persona 4 Arena Ultimax - $24.99 adjusted to $39.99

• Rocksmith 2014 Edition - $34.99 adjusted to $59.99

Xbox 360

• Need for Speed Rivals Complete Edition – $19.99 adjusted to $39.48

Nintendo 3DS

• Pokémon White Version 2 – $17.99 adjusted to $26.99

• The LEGO Movie Videogame Standard Edition – $12.99 adjusted to $14.99

On the hardware front, Amazon is offering a free game with every PlayStation 4 purchase, although the games are from a limited pre-selected group and are downloadable codes. The promo reads as follows: “buy a PlayStation 4, and receive a code redeemable for a free digital game download”. The deal expires on Jan. 3, 2015

The promotion honors your choice out of LittleBigPlanet 3, Destiny, NBA 2K15 and Far Cry 4, and Amazon affirms that the code will be sent by e-mail “upon completion of your shipment”.

You can also get $30 off on a Borderlands 2 PlayStation Vita bundle ($169.99) over at the ‘Zon, and 44% off on a PS Vita 16GB memory card ($33.33) to ensure your new Vita handheld has enough memory. 32GB and 64GB variants are also discounted by over 30%.

BestBuy has a sale on a Nintendo 3DS XL for just $149.99, available in blue, red and black flavors. This is only for the handheld itself and includes no games; the bundle isn’t discounted, sadly.

With this year’s Black Friday sales over and gone, we should see some more mark downs but it’s fair to say that most consumers have their Christmas and holiday shopping almost finished. You can never tell when sales will pop up, and it’s great to see that Dragon Age: Inquisition, one of the best games of the year, available for so cheap. Most of us who picked it up for $64 are “aww’ing”, but we’ve had our own headstart in the game.

Thanks, Gamespot.

The post GTA V On Sale For $48, Dragon Age: Inquisition Is $40 appeared first on VR World.

Dragon Age: Inquisition is -25% off over at online retailer Amazon.

Amazon’s Gold Box Deal of the Day discounts Dragon Age: Inquisition to a very appealing $44.99, which is a steal for a newly released high-profile AAA game.

The deal is good for all platforms–PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC–and is only available for today only so be sure to snag your copy as soon as possible.

Inquisition has proven to be BioWare’s latest and greatest open-world RPG adventure set in the landmark fantasy series, incorporating an incredible amount in-game content to explore. The developers went so far as to claim that Inquisition will take over 200 hours of playtime to complete, and based on my personal experiences in the game, I’d say this is pretty accurate.

As for the game’s dynamic combat systems, Dragon Age: Inquisition affords a vast amount of strategic and tactical customization.

For more on how to make the ultimate party be sure to check out our skill combos combat guide to find out everything you need to know about spell synergies and what skills are worth picking up.

This one is definitely game of the year material–even after dozens and dozens of hours you’ll still find something new and exciting across your adventures in Thedas. Dragon Age: Inquisition is a must-have for any gaming generation, and for just $44 there’s never been a better time to buy then now.

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Creating the ultimate dream-team party in Dragon Age: Inquisition is something that all players want to experience, and in BioWare games, mixing and matching party members is half of the fun.

Finding that perfect balance between Rogues, Mages and Warriors can be a long-winded process full of experimentation and testing. Sometimes you won’t know if a particular skill is worth getting, or if a passive is too good to be true.

In a sprawling RPG game like Dragon Age: Inquisition, it helps to know what you’re doing and be on the top of your game as soon as possible–otherwise you’ll feel the need to re-spec or even restart the game and lose your progress.

If you want to go toe-to-toe with towering dragons and take on the fiercest demons of the Fade, you’ll need to arm yourself with knowledge. Luckily we’ve come across an immensely handy guide courtesy of Reddit user Legacy_Raider, which reveals the dynamics of spell combos.

We’ve broken down the basics and fundamentals of combos, and tell you everything you need to know about status effects, detonators and the resulting bonus chaos so you can take on the biggest and baddest in Thedas.

Anatomy Of A Spell Combo

Certain skills in Inquisition are must-haves that can set up devastatingly powerful combos that wreak havoc on foes. Experimenting with class abilities can lead to some pretty surprising results (like Whirlwind with Static Cage) and decimate baddies with substantial damage bonuses.

But first we have to understand what status effects are, and how they work in tandem with “detonation” skills to pull off high damage.

Every class–Rogue, Mage and Warrior–has its own set of skills that inflict varying status effects as well as specific detonation skills. Combos essentially begin with incapacitating an enemy with a status effect followed up with a “detonator ability”.

Essentially combos are just a specific rotation of skills that deliver bonus damage and affects when properly executed, and keeping things simple is the key to understanding how they work.

Status Effects: Combo Starters

There are four basic status effects–Stun, Sleep, Freeze and Paralyze–and below we have a breakdown of the classes and skills that inflict them. Note that these abilities are also synonymous with “incapacitating” effects and the “disabled” status.

Incapacitating Effect –> Class –> Skill (Skill Tree)

• Stun –> Warrior –> Pommel Strike (Two-Handed Tree)

• Sleep –> Rogue –> Knockout Powder (Subterfuge Tree)

• Freeze –> Mage –> Winter’s Grasp // Flask of Frost (Tempest Rogue)

• Paralyze –> Mage –> Lightning Bolt (Storm Tree)

The above skills are essential abilities to pick up for all classes in some mixture or another. It’s advised that you spread out and vary your party members, but they’ll all need some form of combo starter skill. You can’t go wrong with any of the above, but the passives can get a bit tricky.

Let’s just stick with combos for right now.

Detonators: Combo Finishers

Now that we know how to start a combo, let’s explore some basic finishers.

Just like the status effects, detonators are typified by the class they belong to and are made up of three basic types: Impact, Precision and Eldritch. All of these lead to different combo outcomes and can afford tremendous strategic advantage.

Detonator –> Class –> Skill 

• Impact –> Warrior –>
  • Lunge and Slash
  • Shield Bash (Weapon & Shield Tree)
  • Mighty Blow, Whirlwind (Two-Handed Tree)
  • Spell Purge (Templar)

• Precision –> Rogue –>
  • Longshot (Archery),
  • Twin Fangs, Death Blow (Double Daggers Tree)
  • Shadow Strike (Subterfuge)

• Eldritch –> Mage –>
  • Mind Blast, Dispel (Spirit)
  • Energy Barrage (Storm)
  • Immolate (Inferno)
  • Spirit Blade (Knight-Enchanter)
  • Stonefist (doubles as Impact, Rift Mage)

Combos are all about strategy, and to effectively use them, you’ll need to hop into the freeze-frame tactical menu to plot your party’s actions. Having full step-by-step control over your party is essential to pulling off the combos, and the RTS-style tactical view is a fantastic way to learn the basics of this craft.

Learning the flow of battle is paramount to successful execution of spell synergies, but with time you’ll get the hang of it.

Now let’s move on to the advanced course in spell combos 101.

Combo Effects

Incapacitating skills set the bomb in place, detonators light the fuse and combo effects are the resulting explosion.

The most amazing thing about combos in Dragon Age: Inquisition is that status and detonator spells can be mixed and matched to deliver different explosive results. This is the advanced course, and we’ll be taking a look at the true dynamics of spell combos as tactical tools of destruction.

After successful detonation, certain combo sets will hit enemies with powerful afflictions that can weaken baddies, dish out huge elemental damage, or even send them in a crazed panic of fear. These debilitating statuses are the key to tackling strong bosses or playing on higher difficulties.

Essentially the formula is like this, along with a breakdown of each of the combo effects and what they do.

Incapacitating Spell + Detonator = Combo Effect

• Basic Combo –> Moderate bonus damage, no bonus status effect.

• Rupture –> High damage over time (DoT) that ignores armor, similar to a bleed effect.

• Shatter–> High cold elemental damage.

• Nightmare –> High damage, inflicts Panic effect (enemy stops attacking and moves randomly around the battlefield).

• Discharge –> High AoE lightning damage to enemies within range.

• Weakness –> High damage bonus and inflicts Weakness effect (target’s attacks do less damage)

Now that we know all the basics of the incapacitating spells, detonators and the combo effects, let’s go over some sample combos and their respective results in battle. Every detonator will trigger different outcomes, all of which can be the difference between life and death in those tough situations.

It’s best to start out with the simple combos like Pommel Strike + Lunge and Slash, then work your way to using Mage skills like Winter’s Grasp and Lightning Bolt to start off your combos.

One of the more effective starter synergies is just Winter’s Grasp + Shield Bash, which works incredibly well if the opponent is shielded or heavily armored. Varric or Cole’s Knockout Powder is an excellent combo starter as well, as it puts baddies to sleep and allows you to kick off the bleeding effects of Rupture or terrorizing them with Nightmare.

If you happen to unlock the Templar specialization, he can actually combo off of his own skills: the  Wrath of Heaven ability–which delivers a Stun AoE attack–can be detonated by the Spell Purge attack, dealing huge damage.

If we consult the table above, a Stun starter combined with an Eldritch detonator kicks off Weakness, and for an added bonus, Spell Purge also dispels and de-buffs baddies of all their bonuses.

Another amazing combo is using Knockout Powder on group of clustered enemies then rampaging in with a two-handed Warrior’s Whirlwind ability. This will combo off of the entire group, dealing impressive damage across the board.

Static Cage also works exceptionally well with Whirlwind.

The former is a spell from the Mage’s Storm tree, and essentially traps enemies and paralyzes them in a given space. Once paralyzed, two-handed Warriors can jump in and stir up a frenzy with Whirlwind, rending the poor hapless souls to bits.

To take full advantage of these synergies you’ll want to pay attention to enemy strengths and weaknesses. These can be seen at any time when you use the tactical menu, where you can hover over a demon or Red Templar and see their stats.

Should an enemy not have any weaknesses, well you can just fire up a recipe like Pommel Strike (Stun) + Mind Blast (Eldritch Detonator) and Weaken them yourself.

At their core combos are strategic advantages that can sway any battle in your favor. Using the right conjunction of spells at the right time can lead to an ultimate victory against the strongest foes of Thedas.

With the power of combos every party member has the capacity to be a huge asset for the entire team. Be sure to pick up all of the combo starters and check through the detonators to find which you like the most. But be careful as you’ll want to invest in passives to round out your characters.

Now that you know the basics of combos be sure to give them a try! At first it’ll be slow-going, but once you get all the rotations and Tactics down pat, battle will flow like a finely tuned machine.

We hope you’ve learned a thing or two with this guide, and be sure to let us know in the comments section below if you’ve found any other interesting character class skill combos!

The post Dragon Age: Inquisition Skill Combo Guide appeared first on VR World.

Ser Jaime Lannister has crossed over from the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros to the fantasy realm of Thedas.

Using Dragon Age: Inquisition‘s innovative character creator, Reddit user sigurd07 has re-created the Kingslayer from George R.R. Martin’s renown fantasy epic A Song of Ice and Fire.

Known for his dashing good looks and superlative swordplay, Jaime Lannister is one of the most feared and admired men in all of the Seven Kingdoms. The knight earned his namesake as Kingslayer after betraying and killing the ‘Mad King’ Aerys Targaryen during Robert’s Rebellion, and ever since Jaime has carried the dishonorable title like a weight throughout his life.

The Kingslayer is one of the main characters in HBO’s megahit Game of Thrones, portrayed by Danish actor Nicolaj Coster-Waldau, and is one of the most captivating personas in the fantasy drama.

If you want to make your own Kingslayer, YouTuber MarcusGarlick has a nice video tutorial on how to craft Jaime Lannister’s hard-planed and charming visage in Dragon Age: Inquisition, highlighting all the small facial tweaks you’ll need to make in order to match Coster-Waldau’s stern-yet-somehow-jocular expressions.

The trend of creating Game of Thrones characters in Dragon Age: Inquisition continues onward, and was originally started when a Reddit user spun a stunning recreation of one of the show’s principal heroines, Daenerys Targaryen.

The Mother of Dragons and Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea looks resplendent when rendered in Dragon Age’s graphical engine, and instantly steals the scene with her white-haired beauty. The creator, a Reddit user by the handle of killerewok, even goes as far as to show you how to create your very own Daenerys Stormborn with an Imgur tutorial gallery.

Inquisition‘s character creator is pretty dynamic, but it’s also tricky.

After fiddling with it for some time I can honestly say that these guys are pretty close to mastering their craft. All of my renditions turn out awkward, freakish or plain wrong, leaving me to start over from scratch.

We can only guess what other Game of Thrones worthies will be created next: maybe Tyrion Lannister will make an appearance as a Dwarf, or the sly, silver-tongued devil Littlefinger. It’d be neat to see Eddard Stark or Jon Snow in the mix, along with Stannis Baratheon and maybe even the stoic, honorable she-knight Brienne of Tarth.

The post Someone Made Jaime Lannister In Dragon Age: Inquisition appeared first on VR World.

This year’s holiday season is huge for gaming, with a swath of AAA blockbuster titles hitting the market within the same two-month launch window. Now the PS4 and Xbox One have an expansive selection of multi-genre titles–from fantasy RPG’s to intergalactic shooters and story-driven parodies–ensuring there’s something for everyone.

With our buying guide we’ll help you navigate the labyrinth of games and select the best games to put under the tree this year, all while balancing your pocketbook–because let’s face it, who has the cash to pick up every game?

Our selection of the top 5 games ranges from a plethora of tastes, making for a positively satisfying brew of varying gameplay dynamics and memorable experiences.

Dragon Age: Inquisition

Developer: BioWare
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Release Date: Nov. 18, 2014
Platform: Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC
Genre: Fantasy RPG
MSRP: $59.99

Dragon Age: Inqusition is BioWare’s triumphant return to the mystical fantasy realm of Thedas, and takes players on a dynamic journey to the heart of adventure itself. The game goes lengths to reinvent the franchise with a host of new features, keeping the same party system along with enthralling combat and a winding, branching storyline.

Players can choose the heroic path they take in the game, and their decisions will resonate throughout the world itself, helping shape the ultimate outcome of their experience.

Inqusition is for the avid and novice RPG fan alike, featuring an expansive webwork of deep roleplaying mechanics that build off of the series’ distinct action-RPG formula. Featuring a plethora of classes, players can build their ultimate team of heroes and deck them out with armor and specifically-tailored skill trees befit any grand role-playing adventure.

With a positively huge singleplayer mode, gamers have their work cut out for them, but the online co-op mode lets players go dungeon crawling with a team of their friends.

The stories are always eye-opening and cinematic in detail and presentation, with a myriad of NPC’s–take Varric, for example–that actually have substance and personality; you actually care if they live or die, and want to know more about them.

All in all Dragon Age: Inquisition is a solid bet for any gamer, as it has such prestigious scope that spans and marries medieval fantasy with tactical RPG action.

It’s the quintessential hero’s journey that’s filled with strategic action and breathtaking vistas befit any otherworldly game of myth and legend, and it looks to be one of the year’s best games.

2. Destiny

Developer: Bungie
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Sept. 9, 2014
Platform: Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360, PS3
Genre: Shooter, Sci-Fi
MSRP: $59.99

Destiny is a prime example of an over-hyped shooter that faltered under its own weight. The game was supposed to be Bungie’s magnum opus, a game that transcends the realms of online FPS and MMO-style RPG elements. While it’s failed to live up to its dynamic potential, the game is masterfully addictive in all the right ways–but sometimes for the wrong reasons.

The content may be limited in terms of end-game, but Destiny is an action-packed sci-fi romp that’ll take you across the stars and back. The story is weak, but the FPS mechanics are incredibly refined–it’s here that Bungie’s Halo prowess shines forth with light almost brighter than the sun.

Essentially Destiny is an online-only shooter wherein players can team up with random Guardians–that is supersoldiers powered by the Light, a mysterious energy not unlike the Force in Star Wars–to tackle a swath of missions and co-operative content.

There’s also a distinct RPG element in the game that affords for a unique spin on Borderlands-style shoot-and-loot action, complete with a sophisticated style and grace that almost matches Halo in its fluid grace. There are three main classes–Hunter, Warlock and Titan–each with their own varying skill trees that can be tactically used in conjunction with specific gear.

PVP is stellar and proves to be a delightful mix of sentiments old and new, with competitive content rolling out as the weeks go by.

Bungie is committed to making Destiny an expansive playground for would-be Guardians, but don’t expect anything free: the biggest updates will be hidden behind paywalls via Season Passes. Even still, the game offers a smorgasboard of content that’s rich with shooter elements that empower gamers, giving them the tools and arsenal they need to take on dreadful foes like the Hive and the cruel machines of the Vex.

Destiny has proven to be a must-have yearly release despite its shortcomings, and has proven to rank up there with the highest and most popular of games due to its immensely addictive nature. Be sure to check out our official Destiny review for more info on the game.

3. Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor

Developer: Monolith Productions
Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive
Release Date: Sept. 30, 2014
Platform: Xbox One, PS4, PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Genre: RPG, Fantasy
MSRP: $59.99

Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor may look like you’r average hack-and-slash action-adventure game, but Monolith has created a fluid dynamism that marries the worlds of stealthy assassinations with all-out sword-slashing bravado.

Set in Tolkien’s landmark eponymous Middle-Earth, this game carries players across a journey through the shadowy realms of Mordor and explores the expansive mythos of the landmark fantasy series.

The game’s combat system perfectly matches skill with suave tactical strategy, making for enthralling and empowering fights. Talion, the game’s protagonist, is infused with the power of the dreaded Wraiths, giving him a substantial edge against the hordes of Uruks spread throughout Mordor.

Talion has a huge armament of abilities and skills at his disposal, encompassing a webwork of talent trees that players can customize to tailor their own otherworldly hero.

Using a combination of weapons like bow and arrow, daggers and swords, Talion channels his inner Wraith–an Elven lord by the name of Celebrimbor–to dispatch evil and use a range of useful abilities.

Shadow of Mordor essentially feels like a cross between Assassin’s Creed and Dynasty Warriors, with a hefty does of RPG aspects like skills and upgradable weapons. But the game it sets itself apart from these games with a truly intuitive and unique mechanic called the Nemesis System.

The Nemesis System allows Talion to mark targets among the massive ranks of Sauron’s army. These marks are bosses of sorts that get harder and rank up if they defeat you in battle, becoming stronger along the way. It’s a sort of predator-vs-prey hunting scheme wherein players can find helpful intel to identify weak points of a boss, which is essential for those higher-tiered baddies.

Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor combines a huge offering of fantastic elements together to make a satisfying brew of fantasy fun, complimented with a perfect blend of RPG and action mechanics to keep things fresh and exciting.

4. Far Cry 4

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft
Release Date: Nov. 18, 2014
Platform: Xbox One, PS4, PC, Xbox 360, PS3
Genre: Action, Shooter
MSRP: $59.99

Far Cry 4 expands on series’ already-tremendous formula of action-packed chaos. Set in the frosty Himalayan peaks of Kyrat, players are treated to one of the most exotic, sprawling gameworlds of the series to date.

Kyrat is a truly massive open-world achievement in terms of scale and variety, with highlands, lowlands and everything in between, featuring engaging wildlife like snow leopards, stampeding elephants, crashing rhinos, and snarling tigers.

As per tradition, the game’s story pits Ajay Ghale (the specialist badass protagonist) in a region gripped in turmoil and revolution. A terrifyingly cruel–and rather humorously psychotic–dictator named Pagan Min is at the center of the havoc, erupting the region in a brutal and bloody civil war.

The game’s FPS combat is as dynamic as ever, with a smattering of new features like being able to hire mercenaries to fight alongside you. Vehicles have always been an important part of Far Cry, and in the fourth chapter we have the brilliant mini-skycopter to soar the peaks of Kyrat and blast baddies to smithereens.

You can also drive snowmobiles while shooting at rebels and dodging deadly rifts and flying over precipitous cliffs

Then there’s the skysuit. Few games have captured the heart-pounding excitement of gracefully piercing the heavens like a human bullet, but Far Cry 4 hits this mark perfectly.

Ajay also has two skill trees: the Tiger and the Elephant, both of which have a retinue of passive and active abilities to aid in battle. You get to customize Ajay as you see fit–want him to focus more on stealth and defensive measures? Go with the Elephant.

Want him to be a one-man army that shoots first and asks questions later? Then the Tiger tree is right for you.

All in all Far Cry 4 has something for everyone, and packs in pop culture themes from all over. Players feel like Lara Croft or Indiana Jones when they explore exotic ruins for treasures, and channel Rambo when gunning down hordes of baddies.

James Bond makes an appearance when Ajay does some fantastic death-defying stunt in his wingsuit, and Bear Grylls takes down a tiger in the jungle wilderness.

With a truly breathtaking and dynamic open-world environment like Kyrat, the game is a startling reminder of how far video games have come over the years.

You can get lost in the snow-capped mountains or the deep, dense canopies of the jungle, marveling at the cascading waterfalls and crashing elephants–and that’s exactly why this game is a must-buy.

5. Grand Theft Auto V

Developer: Rockstar Games
Publisher: Take-Two Interactive
Release Date: Nov. 18, 2014
Platform: Xbox One, PS4
Genre: Action, Shooter
MSRP: $59.99

The next-gen port of Grand Theft Auto V is Rockstar’s masterpiece. It’s something that gamers have been looking forward to for a while now, and is seen as the true definitive version of the game. If you’ve already played it on last-generation like most of the gaming world, then it might be wise to pass this up unless you want to give it another spin.

Essentially the new GTA V isn’t really new; it’s a re-mastered port. Even still the graphical differences between the old and new release are like night and day, with the next-gen flavor has Los Santos blazing with vivid life.

What makes GTA V so incredible is its cast of characters, the cops-and-robbers heists, and the game’s immersive environments. In terms of scale, accuracy, representation and graphical fidelity, Rockstar has captured lightning in a bottle. The in-game world is so resplendent with photo-realism that it’s uncanny, making it look almost better than real life.

GTA V features a three-man crew rather than the traditional silent one-man protagonist: Michael, the savvy, rich ex-bankrobber who’s having a mid-life crisis of boredom; Franklin, the young gang-banger looking for bigger and better things outside of the hood; and Trevor, a truly unique specimen of pure psychotic brilliance who easily steals the show from the very beginning.

Apart from the main characters and the namesakes of GTA, the game introduces a series of innovative full-scale heists that recreate some pretty impressive robberies. In this respect the game feels like a movie in terms of its scope, and players can choose how they want to pull off the score as well as which heists to take part in.

Then there’s the smattering of side-quests and extras that’ll pull you right in and never let go. While the heists are the main part of the game, each character has their own unique missions and questlines.

Franklin, for example, can invest in the stock market to earn big bucks, and Trevor, an entrepreneur in methamphetamine sales, wreaks havoc on the competition for his trade.

Being able to switch between Michael, Franklin and Trevor on the fly gives gamers the freedom to tackle whatever mission they want in the style they want. You can also beef up each character’s stats via a RPG-like progression system that’s somewhat like GTA: San Andreas.

The next-gen port also brings a first-person mode to combat, transforming Grand Theft Auto into a bona-fide action FPS game for the first time on consoles. This is a pretty heavy transition and affords a whole new style of play, especially for the game’s online component.

Grand Theft Auto Online deserves a nod as well. It’s essentially Rockstar’s open-world MMO-style online adventure where players can join a gang and combat rival gangs in a series of online playlists. These range from deathmatch-style combat to racing and heists, and characters earn points as well as stats to boost their reputation and abilities.

Grand Theft Auto V is a solid choice as capitalizes on fun.

It brings an amazingly entertaining campaign, a host of  side-missions, a trio of unforgettable characters and an engaging online component. The game’s environments are truly remarkable and bring a sense of realism unlike any other GTA game, and paves the way forward for the franchise itself.

Conclusion

These five games are sure-fire winners for the holiday season, and will bring festive delight for any gamer for weeks to come. With a slew of Black Friday deals you can snag any or all of these games at discounted rates, so be sure to check out the deals before you head to the stores.

As for platform choice, most of the games are the same across all consoles, with higher-end PC’s having considerable graphical and performance boosts. In the case of Far Cry 4, though, you should stick with the PS4 variant as it allows friends to try out the game for free.

Then there’s PS4’s exclusive Share Play feature which essentially lets your friends try out your games across the PlayStation Network. Something to keep in mind if you want to try out a game before you buy it, or let a friend do the same.

The post The Five Best Games of 2014 appeared first on VR World.

With Dragon Age: Inquisition, BioWare is pulling out all the stops.

The team is crafting what looks to be the most epic adventure into the heart of the fantasy franchise, complete with a massive array of content across the sprawling mythical land of Thedas. Inquisition heralds the triumphant return of the hundred-hour plus RPG completion time–something that’s been noticeably scarce in next-gen gaming.

In a recent interview with Polygon, BioWare’s producer Cameron Lee says that Inquisition‘s main story will run about 20 to 40 hours. This window is traditionally the timeframe needed for the team to deliver a “really vast, epic story”.

“We want to give our players a real world to explore — we want to give them a BioWare story,” Lee told Polygon. “A really vast, epic BioWare story. That’s what we do, and it normally takes 20 to 40 hours anyway to tell the story we want to tell.”

But there’s more to Inquisition than the story. Much more. So much that it might take you up to 200 hours to fully master.

Inquisition has a healthy smorgasbord of extras that all vary in size, shape and scope. Sometimes players will come across side missions that reveal new depths of the game’s many societies. Other times they’ll spend a whopping amount of time simply exploring the many environs of Thedas for loot.

The dazzling array of dialog choices has always been a mainstay for BioWare games as well. This content adds in key inferences in character personalities and ultimately adds more depth to the characters themselves. The intimate romance options add more significance to the personalities of party members, and adds a spark of the human element to gameplay.

One of the most exciting new features in Inquisition is that it’ll feature multiplayer for the first time in any Dragon Age game.

The new co-operative mode allows friends to team up in four-player groups for some dynamic dungeon-crawling action.  In the co-op mode you can rank up their characters, unlock new skills, and revel in some pretty fantastic loot. But there’s a catch–multiplayer progress won’t carry over to your singleplayer campaign. As Lee says, there’s “no gameplay connection between them”.

BioWare wants to make a world that deeply involves players in terms of immersion and size, and based on what we’ve seen so far in game trailers and interviews, it looks like they’ve hit their mark. Inquisition looks like a grand adventure that taps into the heart of Dragon Age‘s magic, and ultimately delivers the experience fans have been waiting for.

With the controversies surrounding Dragon Age II and the not-so-popular ending of Mass Effect 3, BioWare seems to have gone to the drawing board to redefine their approach. Inquisition may be the fruits of that labor, especially in an age where meaningful gameplay times are shrinking and being compromised for replayable multiplayer action.

Dragon Age: Inquisition looks to be a breath of fresh air not only for the series, but for the current trends of gaming altogether. Although bigger games are more costly, there is a very real demand and market for them, and hopefully we’ll start to see more RPG’s of this nature hit next-gen consoles in the future.

Dragon Age: Inquisition is slated to release on November 18, 2014 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC. For more information be sure to visit the game’s official website.

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