Dice’s proprietary Frostbite 2 engine is probably the best one I’ve see to date (and I’ve seen a LOT of game engines at work). I’d love to see it applied in a few other genres, but I’d gather the folks who made it can get the most out of it. As you can see above, for example.
As I’m always on the hunt for oddball games, here’s one of those “What the…” peeks for another upcoming UbiSoft title. This one looks pretty interesting, but I’d gather some hands-on time will tell all…
I’ve wanted a Princess Crown remake for YEARS, but Vanillaware didn’t listen. Nope, not at all – they went and make yet another COMPLETELY new game, this time with single and online multiplayer modes, more of that incredible hand-drawn art they’re known for and yes, it looks spectacular. Why doesn’t anyone listen to me anymore? Oh wait – this time it’s a GREAT thing I got ignored. UTV Ignition has come out of the game with ANOTHER great game. If you’re not all over this and El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron (go play the demo NOW – it’s incredible), you’re not a gamer, you’re a stamp collector in the wrong hobby. My PS3 is VERY happy and the kidney I’ll sell for a PS Vita is dancing around in anticipation!
I’ll update with screens later – no matter what you play, this one’s a MUST-buy game, folks.
Well now… I’ve very wisely learned to throw out ALL my expectations of what I “want” to see a developer do long ago, but I’ll admit to expecting Insomniac to do something “special” for it’s first ever multi-platform release. Based on their amazing work with their own proprietary tech since the PlayStation days, the love for offbeat weaponry and all sorts of cartoon-inspired humor, Overstrike seems like the perfect blend. Of course, the hugely dedicated fan base their games have insures this one will be BIG stuff, so even if it’s an AAA-quality mash-up of Brute Force 2 meets X-Squad with a dash of Gene Troopers*, gamers will still eat it up. Also, I’ll bet real money this gets a Wii U release just because I KNOW Ted Price and co. have been itching to do SOMETHING for a Nintendo platform… just you wait and see…
*Yeah, I play WAY too many not so good games, folks. Anyway, I can’t wait to see some gameplay!
Yup, it’s the whole darn thing warts and all, so pull up a chair and grab a nice cold drink if you haven’t seen it yet. I’m buried under news, trailers and assorted updates, but who isn’t? Off to NOT raise some hell and look at more games – back later…
Well, who DIDN’T think they weren’t going to blow minds at today’s conference? Showing off the new controller while not babbling about the console’s tech specs (or showing the console itself) was an excellent move that baffled some editor-types and online posters. YES, the unseen actual system does HD 1080p graphics and based on the slick teaser videos and live announcements, we’ll be seeing the same SKUS on the PS3 and 360 for some key upcoming titles with Wii U functionality.
I like the HUD moved to the tablet idea (more real estate on your TV screen for game action) in some titles, the sketchpad (yes!) and other cool things. Sure, the console’s price point (and additional tablet controllers) will be the wallet kicker for most folks, but we won’t get that information until sometime next year, I’m thinking. I’m sure it’s not going to be cheap, but Nintendo has a way with showing tech that has many consumers more than eager to pay up. Cue Miyamoto saying “ITEM GET!”, a live orchestra playing some Zelda music and people reaching for their wallets.
EA jumping on board so strongly is a big plus for sports fans (and maybe Dead Space 2 is headed to the console along with Mass Effect at some point) and seeing Ken Levine’s eyes twinkle means I bet there’s a Big Daddy or three coming to Nintendo’s new system at some point. As well as a LOT of other stuff to appease the hardcore, Nintendo die-hards and others. Skeptics beware… this is going to get REALLY interesting as developers start peeling back the covers on their Wii U projects over the coming months…
More later – I’ve got some more games to see…
Yeah, yeah, some of these are goofy or short enough to be tweets, but I'm old school (and low tech, as I'm still a poor bastard). In no particular order: AND after the jump, hah!Read more »
Sony's press conference was exactly how I thought it would be in terms of tone, but that's a good thing. No Kevin Butler this year to joke it up with the crowd. a lot of announcements, a lot of exclusives, a re-naming of the NGP and even more solid-looking games for the new handheld. Jack Tretton was almost sheepish in laying out Sony's apology to gamers and publishers who've been suffering with all this hacking nonsense since April. But after the frowny times for a minute or two, things got rolling with plenty of first-party power.Read more »
So far, so good, I suppose. Microsoft kicked off the day with a pretty cool conference that revealed a much stronger focus on Kinect that in this writer's opinion, should have been last year's approach. Sure, 10 million plus units were shifted at retail since the launch, but many “core” gamers have ignored the peripheral for a few reasons (most of them based on misconceptions). Microsoft set out to change that big time and seems to have succeeded thanks to integrating Kinect functionality into nearly everything they showed off. More precise Kinect functionality (for the most part).Read more »
OK, so we all know Hideo Kojima is a genius. My question is: why the heck didn’t Sony think of this idea when the PSP was initially launched? As soon as I heard they were doing a portable unit, one of my top wishlist items was the ability to either link PS2/PS3 content to the unit for on the go action or have new games where portable versions had data that could be transferred back and forth between consoles. Anyway, now that “Transfarring” is not only a reality, but a new “word” gamers worldwide will be speaking whenever they hit the road with a Sony handheld, let’s hope it’s adopted by as many developers as possible as soon as possible.
Oh, and ANY sort of data transfer system NEEDS to be offline enabled as well just in case the PSN hacks never stop rolling out on a regular basis. Just a thought…
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 