Random Game of the Week: Starless Umbra – A Work In Progress Indie RPG Worth Paying For

Posted on August 16, 2012 by geelw

I’ve been playing and enjoying many RPG Maker games since about 2001 (and far too many JRPGs to count in general since the 1980’s), but Starless Umbra is turning into one of my new favorites and it’s not even completed yet. RPGmaker.net user Andrew Keturi (aka dragonheartman) has been slowly working on this game since 2002 (!) and it’s shaping up into quite an epic that’s going beyond simply working with the basic RTP assets or being yet another shameless Final Fantasy meets Dragon Quest clone. Not that there’s anything wrong at all with a great FF or DQ clone at all (I’ll name two awesome ones next week from the site you should grab). Based on the dramatic prologue and few hours of gameplay I’ve squeezed in alone, there’s a sharpness to the project that’s welcome in everything from the battle system to choice of music and sound effects. In the build I played, the mix of challenging combat and interesting use of stamina (where choosing whether to walk and run actually makes a difference) kept me glued to my monitor for longer than I expected..

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3D Isn’t Dead After All – Gene Dolgoff Has An Awesome, Affordable Solution On The Way

Posted on August 16, 2012 by geelw

OK, you guys and gals all know by now that I’m not the biggest fan of 3D television. That’s because it’s not an inexpensive upgrade (for a good setup), I don’t like goggles over my glasses, and when I think about it, there’s probably nothing I want to see in 3D that I can’t see on my regular old TV (insert generic Skinemax joke here). That said, with 2000+ games here in the library (hey, I’m a historian and it’s research!), I actually wouldn’t mind seeing and playing some of my old stuff in 3D. Yes, I’m really curious to see how things would be if we were a bit more forward thinking (and a lot less expensive) in our gaming tech.

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Sony’s Innovative rain: The Only Problem I See Is This Is DLC-Only, Grrrr…

Posted on August 16, 2012 by geelw

Lovely, chilling and very promising looking adventure game from Sony’s Japan Studio, but so far, it’s only going to net a PSN release. Sony REALLY needs to get some of these innovative games such as this, Papo & Yo, Datura and others onto a disc and sell them at retail or direct to the segment of their user base that doesn’t use PSN for whatever reason. Stick a basic manual with some sort of PSN Plus voucher in there (that doesn’t expire) and maybe they’ll see a jump in users there as some of those without an account start moving forward to take the plunge.

Tearaway: Media Molecule’s New IP Means (LittleBig) Business

Posted on August 16, 2012 by geelw

How do you follow up the huge success of the LittleBigPlanet franchise? No, not by making a go-karting game (though I hear it’s a ton of fun). You go and whip together a super-cool looking adventure game in a unique world worth visiting over and over, that’s how. Some online wags are making silly Paper Mario comparisons, but as they’ve not yet played the game, they’re to be taken as seriously as a slug fighting a tanker truck packed with salt. This one’s yet another very good reason to own a PlayStation 3, I say…

Evil Controllers Wants YOU To Make Your Own Perfect Pad

Posted on August 16, 2012 by geelw

The fine folks over at Evil Controllers have come up with a rather nice way for gamers to do their thing (go Evil, that is!): user-created controllers for the PS3 and Xbox 360. These would make a perfect gift for the gamer out there who knows what here or she wants in a controller, but can’t get that from a stock OEM model or some other custom controller site. If the quality on these new additions to Evil’s lineup are as good as their usual work, this could be the next big thing for the discriminating gamer who wants to spend a bit more and truly get what they pay for while saying they made it themselves (well, sort of). Check out the video above, then pop on over to the Evil Controllers site and have at it!

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed Update: Faster And Furiouser

Posted on August 16, 2012 by geelw

Based on this new Gamescom trailer, Sega is really pulling out all the stops with this sequel, but I’m still curious about that rather glaring lack of the word SEGA in the title. “Sonic & All-Stars” just sounds so… lazy or something. Hell, even if the game has guest stars NOT in any Sega games, keeping the name of the company IN the darn game is kind of important for old-ass Sega supporters such as myself. I’m just saying… Anyway, the game looks great and you certainly can’t go wrong with a good, fun racing game built for competition and pure fun. Just fix that name and it’ll be perfect, I say!