Dead to Rights: Retribution primarily takes place in the fictional and crime-ridden city of Grant City. The game’s environment is characterized by its dark and gritty atmosphere, which reflects the city’s seedy underbelly and ongoing criminal activities. In terms of weather, the game’s setting generally features a consistent and moody aesthetic that contributes to the overall atmosphere.
While the game doesn’t have dynamic weather systems or changes in weather conditions, it typically portrays Grant City as a place shrouded in darkness, with rain-soaked streets, dimly lit alleyways, and a generally overcast and gloomy ambiance. This atmospheric choice aligns with the game’s themes of crime, corruption, and a city in decline. The game’s visual design emphasizes the noir-like qualities of a crime-infested urban environment, and the lack of variation in weather conditions reinforces the consistent tone of the narrative. Players will often find themselves navigating through grim and rain-soaked urban landscapes as they progress through the story and engage in combat encounters with various adversaries.
Jack Slate is the protagonist of the game and a tough-as-nails cop with a no-nonsense attitude and a physique that puts Marcus from Gears Of War to shame. He’s on a mission to uncover a conspiracy involving a powerful criminal organization and bring them to justice. Jack is skilled in both firearms and hand-to-hand combat and is accompanied by his loyal canine companion, Shadow. Most of the game is spent playing as Jack, with a few sections requiring the control of Shadow, either to access hard-to-reach areas, or if Jack is incapacitated as part of the game’s plot.
Shadow is Jack Slate’s faithful canine companion and a key element of the gameplay. Shadow can be commanded to perform various tasks, including attacking enemies, retrieving items, and assisting Jack during missions. Shadow’s presence adds a unique dynamic to the game, as he can help Jack in combat and solve puzzles. Be careful around enemies, Shadow does not have much health and can only attack at close range.
I wonder if this was any inspiration for Riley from Call of Duty Ghosts?
The game’s main focus is hand-to-hand combat, with gunfire taking a side role. Many of the guns you pick up in the game have very little ammo, meaning you have limited use of these weapons and must be used sparingly. You might want to save them for distant enemies instead.
The gameplay tried to mix brawling & melee attacks with shooting, however this gets repetitive fast with very few puzzles to break up the gameplay. There are some sections where you will have to fortify and hold out against a horde of enemies but again there is very little diversity in the gameplay.
Grant City is depicted as a city where corruption runs rampant within its law enforcement agencies and political institutions. Jack Slate’s journey to uncover the truth behind the criminal conspiracy highlights the pervasive corruption that has taken hold, with powerful figures involved in illegal activities.
The game touches on the abuse of power by individuals in positions of authority. The criminal organization known as the Triad wields significant influence and control over the city, and part of Jack’s mission is to expose and challenge this abuse of power.
While not explicitly political, the game’s portrayal of Grant City as a dystopian and crime-infested metropolis can be seen as a commentary on the societal decay that can result from political corruption and a lack of effective governance.
The character of Cassandra Hartz (seen below), a journalist investigating the criminal activities in Grant City, indirectly highlights the role of the media in exposing corruption and holding those in power accountable. Her presence in the game alludes to the importance of investigative journalism in a society plagued by political and criminal misconduct. Most of this is explained through the game cutscenes with her.
The type of enemies found in the game will change as you progress, initially facing against the Triads, the GAC later become the main focus of the game who are much more difficult to take down. The GAC were the Anti-crime units that became corrupt, whilst the Triads are your average gang where you must take out the boss to defeat them.
The game was only ever released on consoles, with no PC version released. Although It can be played on the PS3 or Xbox 360, Sadly it remains on seventh-generation consoles as we have yet to see it released or made compatible with the Xbox One. It also appears to be the final game in the franchise, as no new games have been released.
Virgin’s successor to the Tivo and sort of answer to Sky Q.
The familiar colour of purple welcomes us to the 360 and we are greeted with the welcome change on channel… 360. Its a nice touch and goes through the capabilities of the new software. The platform makes use of Horizon 4 platform by Liberty Media, which is the parent company of Virgin Media. Horizon is also used across Europe by VM’s sister company like Telenet and Ziggo. Horizon was previously in use on UPC Ireland, which was later bought and rebranded as Virgin Media Ireland.
The set top box itself remains the same as the V6, using the Arris DCX960 with the same amount of storage (1TB), though a different remote control is used which drops the Tivo thumb buttons but adds a profile button and voice control. By using the same set top box, this allows for an in-place upgrade which can be requested by the customer to migrate the software from Tivo onto Horizon. A new remote is sent via the post during this process and once recited and activated by the customer, the software is upgraded.
One setback is existing recording are lost during the upgrade, so there is a grace period of 5 days before the software is updated automatically. This is likely due to the two platforms using different DRM to manage recordings.
TV Guide
The EPG guide, with the miniTV being displayed on the bottom right of the screen, which is a weird place to put it. The Tivo and even their older Liberate software placed the miniTV on the top right.
Pressing the OK button bring up the information banner which will show what you are watching. And what is on later that day. It will also show you the director, and the cast of the current movie you are watching, in a similar manor to how the previous Tivo platform presented it.
You can also set the box to record the current program, and enable subtitles or audio description.
Scrolling down will also give you options to watch on demand or to purchase it from an online store. You are also given recommendations of similar shows or movies
Channel off air slides, these come from the video stream and are not generated by the box.
Ah my favorite show, Fringe.
Filtering by the channel genre
Pressing Ok will bring up a small menu
Trying to watch an age restricted program outside of watershed hours, pressing Ok will prompt you to enter your PIN.
Navigating the user interface, you can quickly see what’s on next, and on other channels.
FAST Channels
Some of the PlutoTV channels will appear in the guide as streaming channels, however they are not integrated very well. Selecting then channels requires the box to buffer for a few second which cannot be helped, but when leaving the channel you are promoted if you wish to leave, which makes cumbersome when channel flicking. I wonder if this is a side effect of Ofcom, since these are not considered traditional broadcast channels then they cannot be directly accessible from the guide. I should also not these channels cannot be recorded, but their content is available on catch-up via the PlutoTV app.
This message will appear overtime you try to change channels in the top right corner, making it cumbersome to channel surf.
You also cannot pause or rewind for these channels, nor can you record any shows on these channels. Trying to do so will show the above message.
+1 channels now have their own section in the EPG which some might prefer, these are in the 3xx section of the guide. These channel are largely redundant, since you can just record or use the catch-up feature considering you have six tuners at your disposal, there’s little need for these time shift channels.
Voice search is a new feature that comes to the Virgin platform. Here you can press the microphone key on the remote and speak into it, either a command or a show you wish to search. It actually works quite well and is much more convenient than having to type to search on an onscreen keyboard, and it appears to be quite accurate despite having a lot of background noise.
Every so often, the Horizon software will show hints on how to navigate the TV guide interface.
Settings
Profiles are one of the main features of the 360 software, where each user can set their own preferences for favorite channels and language settings.
Favourite channels
A few accessibility options with voice-over options added.
Parental controls where you can lock specific channels or apps to restrict their usage. You can also enable PIN requests for program’s recorded after the watershed.
Video output settings, up-to 4K (2160p) output is supported.
System configuration where you can amend the auto power off. One power lets you turn on both the 360 box and the TV itself at the same time.
You can also switch between the Ethernet connection or to use the WiFi instead, though the box will always try to use the Ethernet connect if its available. You can also rename boxes if you have multiple 360 boxes.
Lastly some information about the box, this one appears to be the Arris DCX960. There is also a Humax version floating about (Humax 1008R-HDD-VM )
According to a few online sources, the box is powered by the Broadcom BCM7252, with 4GB of RAM. The CPU is a dual ore ARM processor though there is no indication as to which core it implements (most likely the Cortex A53)
Lastly adding additional buffering time to recordings.
Recordings
Watching recordings, which shows both shows available on demand and recorded program’s. Anything recorded and stored locally is represented by a full circle, whilst on demand is represented by a red ring instead. This is a bit misleading since I assumed the ring meant unwatched programmers, whilst full circles were already watched.
Selecting. show will display the amount of seasons that are currently available, and a list of episodes to select from with a short description of the episode.
A list of recorded shows, what can be sorted by date. You can also view any recording that are planned (and active season passes)s and how much disk space remains.
Like Tivo, you can customize the season passes where multiple episodes can be recorded. You can set to record only new episodes only, or from a specific season. And set to keep at most between 10 – 25 episodes so your storage does not get filled up from one show.
Age restricted program’s will require a PIN to be entered to watch. By default this is set to 1234 but can be changed at any time.
Apps
All the standard streaming apps are available such as BBC iPlayer, ITV X, Netflix and Amazon Prime.
PlutoTV: A free, ad-supported streaming service that offers a variety of on-demand movies, TV shows, and live channels. It operates similarly to traditional cable or satellite TV, with a channel guide that allows viewers to watch content on specific channels at scheduled times. Pluto have expanded the amount of channels steaming with the service since its launch on Virgin Media in 2020.
Radioline: A radio streaming app similar to TuneIn, radio stations and podcasts can be streaming and played through the 360 box, or through your sound system if you have your 360 box hooked up to it. There is an SPDIF audio output on the box for you to connect to an supported audio system.
VEVO: For music videos, had a large catalog of songs but there are certain omissions from popular artists, in that most all their music videos are available. Like Spotify, there are curated playlists available.
The Red button still exists, and can be invoked on the BT TNT Sport channels to quickly access other screens
BBC also still has a red button service, although this is just links to iPlayer instead. No more news headlines or information, that’s all done through the internet now.
A fireplace app, that shows a looping view of a fireplace. No I’m not kidding.
Fit At Home: A video fitness app with pre-recorded exercise segments
News headlines from France24
And the Wall Street Journal, a newspaper who famously tried to claim that PewDiePie was a nazi.
Paramount+ and Disney+ is also a welcome addition to the service. Now we just need Discovery+ to be added, although Virgin offer a lot of their content through their live TV channels and catchup/box sets.
No games though, why?
Full view of the app gallery
Comparison to Virgin Media Stream
Not long after the 360 was launched, Virgin introduced Stream which was offered to broadband only customers. This is a tiny box that connects wirelessly and is independent of the cable network (you still need a Virgin internet connection). Main different is you not receive live V channels through I (in the traditional sense, some apps might allow live TV broadcasts but its not using DVB-C, rather IPTV)
It’s really geared to customers who prefer to stream their shows fully on demand and have no plans to watch live tv, or they are happy with the freebie lineup instead.
Virgin Media App
A few captures of the Android app, running on a Sony Xperia 1 IV. The app will block screenshots when a channel is being streamed but not if browsing the guide. You can push channels and shows directly to your 360 box if its on the local network, and use your phone as a remote control providing its on the same network.
Lastly you can watch live broadcasts on any internet connection, but you are limited to up to 5 devices.
Conclusion & Improvements
My overall though on this was, is that it?
It’s not a bad services, if in fact its a lot better than say BT TV or TalkTalk offer, but there just isn’t that much improvement over the Tivo software that was used previously, This does goes to show how forward thinking Tivo was in its design and feature implementation. But really the move to Horizon 4 was more so that Liberty Media could have their operators migrated to one common platform.
If you’re an existing Tivo V6 user than there is little incentive to upgrade, unless you need the voice search.
Some improvements that could be made are:
Better FAST channel integration: Its a good idea to integrate them into the guide, as many people will simply ignore them if they’re hidden inside an app. But the shortcoming is you cannot channel hop as easy since the box will prompt you if you wish to leave the app, despite the illusion that you are still within the live TV interface.
More storage options: Needed as you lease more mini boxes from Virgin, 1TB isn’t going to cut it for a large household, especially when you consider 4K content. A 2TB upgrade would be very welcome. The box is detachable from the hard drive, though it requires unscrewing from the base. This is really so that Virgin can offer a mini box using the same design, the end user is not authorized to modify the hard drive.
Ability to steam to a smart TV or a Android set top box, or function wirelessly: This seems to be a common request for multiroom, as many people would prefer if they could get Virgin TV in another room without the need for a coax connection, like the mini boxes for Sky Q. However being able to stream live channels to another network device might be beyond the 360 hardware capabilities, its designed more as a generic PVR than a server. I really wish Virgin would pull their finger out when it comes to this, as multiroom viewing was one of the things cable TV did well and it seems they are not really trying with the 360.
I’m not sure why the Stream isn’t capable of this, I would assume they are using the same Horizon middleware.
More apps: This will always be a moving goalpost, but investing support for Britbox, AcornTV, Rakuten TV, Sportstribal and Plex TV are useful but they remain niche services.
Gaming services may be preferable in the future, with Xbox Gamepess Cloud, PlayStation Now & Amazon Luna being an example of such services.
Further Information
I should also mention that Virgin marketed the box as the Virgin TV 360, not Horizon 4 which is what the software is referred to internationally and by Liberty Media. Likewise EOS refers to the hardware architecture that Liberty Media has designed, since the hardware is capable of running the Tivo middleware.
As with the V6, the box features six tuners. Multiroom is handled differently with the 360, as mini boxes come linked to the main box to allow recording to be shared. The main box acts as a central server which the mini boxes can playback recording from it. However unlike Sky Q, the mini boxes require a cable feed for live TV, and can only live buffer a certain amount since that relies on the internal flash storage.
The 360 mini box is pretty much the same and the main 360 unit, just with the hard drive section removed. In theory this means you could attach additional storage for one extra monthly fee, though its unlikely Virgin will take advantage of this, We should be lucky the 360 has a hard disk at all, the European versions don’t have one and rely on cloud storage which means recording have to be streaming through your internet connection.
Call me a simple guy, but I prefer having everything on local HDD storage rather than in the cloud datacenter. I can just imagine this stuff being a disaster with not being able to watch back recording due to downtime/maintenance, or not being available due to ‘rights issues’. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.
Also, like the V6, the 360 does not feature a built in modem like the origin Tivo did, so you will need a permanent connection (Wireless or Ethernet, unsure of the speeds but I guess its enough for HEVC 4K video) to use the 360. Channels are still delivered using DVB-C rather than IPTV as Virgin would have you believe, though anything on demand will require an internet connection.
A look at the state of the service in 2023. Netgem TV is a Freeview box with additional IPTV channels bolted on and is commonly offered with FTTP internet service providers as a supplement to their services like Octapus, TalkTalk. Most of the channels FTA fodder, though there are a few good ones that cater to niche interests.
The amount of channels included in the service has expanded, over 120 IP channels now available. The amount of channels added has caused Netgem to expand the channel numbers that have been allocated, as they were previously in the 9xx section of the guide. Channels now start at 830.
There is also an increase in apps offered, with Netflix, Plex and Rakuten now being offered, in addition to your standard selection of Freeview Play catchup services.
Weird why they cannot use the 300-599 section, which is used for Youview. These boxes will never be able to access Youview’s services, so why not use that section of the EPG?
Games
Several new games have been added to the service
Math Boy – A mental maths game where you have to choose the correct answer before the flying skill-bat-thing kills you, you only have one chance, so be quick.
Maze Game – A maze game that is difficult to control, making it difficult to navigate the maze. The stiff remote really does not help with these sort of games.
Samurai Vs Zombie – This is the same as the interactive math game, but with zombies vs samurai. The questions are a lot more varied, and you cannot choose the type of sums unlike the other game.
Little Dino Adventure – A platform game where you control a green lizard as you navigate through the level, avoiding enemies in the process. Controlling the game requires a bit of skill, as you cannot run and jump to another platform due to the limitations of the remote, careful timing is required to jump to another platform.
Super Knight – Platform game were you have to get the Knight to the other end of the level, avoiding and killing the enemies.
Vikings Vs Skeletons – Another platform game where you play as an Eddie Hall lookalike against skeletons.
Galactic War – Side-scrolling space fighting game, similar to Space Impact on Nokia Series 40 phones.
E.T. Game – Platform game where you control a spaced-out space alien
Tappy Dumont – Flappy bird clone
Apps
Plex – Popular local media streaming app, this also comes with FAST (Free Ad Supported TV) live TV channels that are very similar to the ones offered by Netgem itself. Most of these are American and will appeal to niche audiences.
Rakuten TV – an online video store that also provides themed FAST channels. I’m not sure if the guide is supposed to be three-quarters down the screen which makes it difficult to read and navigate.
FUSE is a third-person shooter video game developed by Insomniac Games and released in 2013 for the Xbox 360. The game follows a team of four agents known as Overstrike 9 who are tasked with recovering an alien substance called Fuse that has been stolen by a rogue paramilitary organization.
The gameplay in FUSE is primarily focused on co-op multiplayer, where players control the different members of Overstrike 9 with unique abilities and weapons. The game also features a single-player mode where the player can switch between characters on the fly, and an online multiplayer mode that includes cooperative and competitive gameplay. Co-op is where “Fuse” was supposed to shine, but it felt like a missed opportunity. The AI wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, making the single-player experience kinda meh. Plus, the lack of real innovation in the co-op mechanics didn’t help it stand out.
The gameplay in FUSE is solid, with responsive controls and satisfying gunplay. The game also features a cover system that is easy to use and adds a tactical element to the combat. The game’s weapons are diverse and interesting, with each character having access to a unique weapon that can be upgraded over time.
However, one of the main criticisms of FUSE is that it doesn’t do anything particularly new or innovative. While the game’s co-op gameplay is well-executed, it doesn’t introduce any new mechanics or ideas to the genre. The game’s storyline is also fairly predictable and doesn’t offer any surprises.
Additionally, the game’s graphics and presentation are somewhat underwhelming, especially compared to other games released around the same time. The game’s environments are often repetitive and lack detail, and the character models and animations are somewhat stiff.
Characters
One of the strengths of FUSE is its varied cast of characters, each with their own unique playstyle and abilities.
Dalton Brooks – the team leader who specializes in heavy weapons and defense. In combat, Dalton is a heavy weapons specialist, favoring powerful and explosive weapons such as rocket launchers and grenade launchers. He is also the team’s tank, with the ability to deploy his Magshield, a powerful energy barrier that protects him and his teammates from incoming fire. Outside of combat, Dalton is portrayed as a somewhat gruff and reserved character, but with a dry sense of humor. He has a complex relationship with Naya Deveraux, his former lover who betrayed him and the team in the past.
Throughout the course of the game, Dalton confronts his troubled past and the fallout from his relationship with Naya. As the team faces increasingly dangerous foes, Dalton must overcome his own inner demons and learn to trust his teammates in order to succeed. Overall, Dalton is a strong and compelling character. He’s also pretty huge, looking like a Gears Of War character.
Naya Deveraux – the stealthy assassin who can turn invisible and use her enhanced agility to take out enemies silently.
Naya’s gameplay revolves around her expertise in stealth and precision. She can use her warp rifle to create wormholes, allowing her to manipulate enemies’ positions and open up strategic opportunities for her team. With her assassin skills, Naya is lethal at close range, and players can utilize her abilities to flank enemies and take them down swiftly and silently.
As with the other characters in “Fuse,” Naya’s powers and abilities are meant to complement the rest of the team, encouraging players to work together and use each character’s unique traits to overcome challenges throughout the game.
Izzy Sinclair – the tech expert who uses her Fuse-powered energy barriers to protect the team and heal them in battle. Izzy’s playstyle focuses on using her unique weapon to control the battlefield. By creating black holes, she can disorient and suck enemies into the void, leaving them vulnerable to attacks from her and her teammates. Additionally, her technological skills are essential for hacking systems, gaining access to secure areas, and providing support during missions.
Jacob Kimble – the team sniper who can create miniature black holes to suck enemies into or fire devastating shots with his Fuse-powered weapon. Jacob’s playstyle focuses on precision and tactics. As a sniper, he can take out enemies from a distance and eliminate high-priority targets with ease. His Arcshot crossbow, in particular, allows for some creative and devastating attacks, as the electric bolts can chain between multiple enemies, causing collateral damage.
Versions
FUSE was only released on consoles, it was never officially released on the PC. There isn’t really any major difference between the two consoles, as the game was released late into the console’s lifetime, it’s a pretty well-optimized game.
Xbox 360: Works fine and can be installed to the HDD through the dashboard, but is not compatible with the Xbox One
PlayStation 3: Performs just as well as the 360 version, clearly Insomniac have used their expertise from their previous PS3 titles to take advantage of the Cell processor.
Drew1440: Blog 