Monthly Archives: September 2012

INCOMING! EDF 3 Portable Headed to North America In 2013

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Well, that’s what I call day-making news (at least in my world). D3Publisher of America has announced via Twitter (and to us press folk here) that Earth Defence Force 3 Portable will be headed stateside in Winter 2013. I’m gathering that that vague launch window means sometime between January and March, not November/December of next year. I’d heard rumblings about an English script a few months back from somewhere I can’t say, but I’ve been keeping that info secret because I absolutely despise rumors and getting people’s hopes up about something so cool. Anyway, even though I’ve imported the Japanese version, I’ll absolutely be diving back into the game again when it lands in stores sometime next year. EDF! EDF! EDF!

EDF 4 Promo Trailer (Ver. 1.5): Sandlot Builds A Bigger And Better Sequel

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With EDF 3 Portable landing in Japanese and Asian territories (retail and PSN) this week for the Vita, I’m hoping that D3Publisher of America is paying attention to the awesome promo videos being produced for that game and the currently in development EDF 4, set for a 2013 release. This is exactly the time to get in early on getting Sandlot’s name into gamer ears as a team that can bring it when it comes to over the top run & gun action and much more tremendous replay value than found in other titles. Keep up the great work, Sandlot – as for D3’s US arm, I have just one thing to say (three times): EDF! EDF! EDF!

Dishonored TV Commercial: An Instant Classic Not Going Quietly Into That Dark Night…

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Arkane Studios’ newest and most impressive game is all done and ready for its close up quite soon. I’m psyched because I just KNOW there will be a few brainy gamers out there who see the game world and all the hard work the team has put into it and “click” into it all multiple times, as the game demands you try everything you can at all times when tackling missions. My only major decision in the end is which version to buy. I’m leaning towards PS3, as my two 360’s are dead and my PC too aged to run anything this new. OK, let me poke around and see if I can find some game screens to turn into an October banner for the site…

Wii U Launch/Launch Window List: 23 Games on Day 1, Many More To Come…

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OK, here you go: the full list of Wii U launch and launch window games. This is definitely Nintendo’s largest number of first and third party titles for a new home console and as you can see, nearly every popular genre is covered. Retailers here that were taking pre-orders have stopped and from what I saw at at least one site, are now taking orders for January shipments. So, if you were on the fence last week, you’re under that fence now. This holiday season will be an interesting one for sure as Nintendo hits the ground running on November 18 and hopes to keep that momentum going into 2013. I’ll let you know in a bit which ones I’m wanting to add to the library here…

November 18
Call of Duty: Black Ops II – Activision
Skylanders Giants – Activision
Transformers Prime – Activision
Wipeout 3 – Activision
Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two – Disney Interactive Studios
FIFA Soccer 13 – Electronic Arts
Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Wii U Edition – Namco Bandai Games America
New Super Mario Bros. U – Nintendo
Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge – Nintendo
Nintendo Land – Nintendo
Sing Party – Nintendo
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed – Sega
Warriors Orochi 3 Hyper – Tecmo Koei
Darksiders II – THQ
Assassin’s Creed III – Ubisoft
ESPN Sports Connection – Ubisoft
Just Dance 4 – Ubisoft
Rabbids Land – Ubisoft
Your Shape: Fitness Evolved 2013 – Ubisoft
ZombiU – Ubisoft
Scribblenauts Unlimited – Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Game Party Champions – Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition – Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment

November
Chasing Aurora – Broken Rules
Cloudberry Kingdom – Pwnee Studios
Madden NFL 13 – Electronic Arts
Trine 2: Director’s Cut – FrozenByte
Mighty Switch Force HD – WayForward
Tank! Tank! Tank! – Namco Bandai Games America
Nano Assault Neo – Shin’en
Little Inferno – Tomorrow Corporation
Toki Tori 2 – Two Tribes

January
Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien – Gaijin Games

Launch Window Releases (Before April 2013)
Funky Barn – 505 Games
NBA 2K13 – 2K Sports
007 Legends – Activision
Cabela’s Dangerous Hunts 2013 – Activision
Rapala Pro Bass Fishing – Activision
Rise of the Guardians: The Video Game – D3 Publisher
Ben 10 Omniverse – D3 Publisher
Family Party: 30 Great Games: Obstacle Arcade – D3 Publisher
Mass Effect 3 – Electronic Arts
Game & Wario – Nintendo
Lego City: Undercover – Nintendo
Pikmin 3 – Nintendo
Wii Fit U – Nintendo
The Wonderful 101 – Nintendo
Aliens: Colonial Marines – Sega
Jeopardy! – THQ
Wheel of Fortune – THQ
Marvel Avengers: Battle for Earth – Ubisoft
Rayman Legends – Ubisoft

Source: Gamesindustry.biz

WIkipad Hands-On: Handheld Revelation, Hardcore Price Point

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I’ll admit that when I first heard about the Wikipad earlier this year I didn’t like the name much until I realized that it has nothing to do with the popular online encyclopedia and everything to do with where the word actually comes from . It’s a good thing I’ve been to Hawaii (although that was quite some time ago). OK, I was also a bit skeptical about yet another tablet hitting the market even though this one had a unique twin analog controller attachment that turned it into a more dedicated gaming device.  After spending time yesterday with the upcoming tablet and company CEO James Bower, I’d say that a handful of people not liking the name is the just about only thing he should be worried about. Wikipad is real, it runs like a dream and once you try it for yourself, there’s no way you can’t be impressed about the product. What we have here, folks is a winning combination of a powerful smartly designed tablet built from the ground up to be as good as it gets and an innovative controller attachment that opens up the tablet market to those “core” gamers who’ve been wary of anything with touch controls.

 

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EDF 3 Portable Update: It’s An Invasion Alright – Just Ask Around!

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And you thought YOU had bug troubles? Vita owners in Japan (and some lucky folks like me who are importing but STILL want this localized for our territories) are getting what I consider to be an instant system seller in the form of a SUPER enhanced version in one of the most action-packed “retro” sci-fi shooters ever. Of course, the man on the street stuff above makes for a fun watch that would be cool if the game was promoted here in the US in a similar manner (should it get the green light for a localization)…

Naurto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 TGS Trailer: Closer and Closer to Playing an Anime….

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Oof… yesterday was a loooooooong one and I didn’t get much done in the way of writing up a few things I wanted to. So, I’ll distract you all with this insane trailer from the upcoming Naruto game, which is coming along quite nicely. I played the demo a few weeks back at the Namco Bandai event here in NYC and was surprised at how chaotic and cinematic the opening sequence was. It’s definitely the most ambitious Naruto title in terms of attempting to bridge the gap between anime and gameplay, and if the dev team can pull off everything they’re going for, this could be one of the best games in the franchise to date. Another fine 2013 release from Namco Bandai? Sure, why not?

Necropolis: Grab This Retro RPG Before It Vanishes Forever

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I’ll write up a longer review on this awesome RPG Maker 2003 instant classic in a week or so, but check out the video above (ignore the debug stuff at the beginning) and definitely get the game over at RPGMaker.net before its creator, Jude, takes the game down. He’s turning it into a commercial release using MonoGame/XNA, so at some point the currently cancelled version up at RMN will be gone for good. Trust me, the custom 8-bit graphics (which need to be seen full screen, NOT in a window), innovative combo-based battle system (in a turn-based RPG? What the what?!) and overall level of polish make this one of the best NES style RPGs I’ve ever played. OK, let me shut up before this turns into an actual review – go get this game!

Lost Planet 3 TGS Gameplay: Spark Versus Snark (And Spark Needs To Win Big)

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I’m one of those few waving the flag about how damn good Lost Planet 3 is turning out to be, but par for the course on the internet, there are too many whiners living in the past griping about how the game isn’t EXACTLY point for point like the first two installments. Reading is fundamental, but let me break it down a bit for those who aren’t up to speed. Given that it’s a PREQUEL that will most likely set up some of the events of the other two games, once you get some hands-on time, it’s easy to appreciate the effort developer Spark Unlimited has been putting into the project for a few years now. I liked what I saw in terms of the single player story, the gameplay is pretty tight and the use of Unreal tech is very solid, particularly in the well done cinemas that draw you into the frozen world and the miners who work there. I say a bit more appreciation and a lot less being jaded just to be jaded would help here, but you can’t control others’ intent to somehow NOT enjoy what’s being done to expand their horizons (as well as the potential for future installments in the series). In any event, I’m holding out hope that this dev team and Capcom get some actual credit for what’s going to be a pretty cool experience (at least for me) when the game is released in 2013.

Rise of the Guardians Trailer: If THIS Is Coming Out, We HAVE To Get EDF 3P and EDF 4, I Say….

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OK, D3Publisher… this looks like fun in a Fairytale Fights meets a more polished overall product kind of way, but it’s still a big risk of a game to some out there. And it’s a movie license, so I’m sure there those who will automatically trash it even if it’s good. That said, let’s make a deal: I’ll buy this and review it if you folks promise to bring out EDF 3 Portable for the Vita and EDF 4 here at some point. Of course, I’m not promising anything other than a fair review, so this isn’t like a bribe or anything even CLOSE to that. Hell, i just want Sandlot to get the love they truly deserve as it looks as if their two upcoming EDF games will be the best in the series to date and YES, they’re what each console they’re on needs to break up the monotony of all the “me-too” shooters and action games. There’s just something compellingly chaotic about an EDF game that HAS to be experienced (as you should know, right?)…