Gallery: Tales of Xillia

Posted on April 22, 2013 by geelw

Watching and listening to series Producer Hideo Baba talk about his beloved Tales franchise will make anyone want to pick up a controller and play whatever lands on these shores. The latest in the long-running franchise (which started on the Super Famicom back in 1995), Tales of Xillia breaks new ground for the series by combining the distinctly different art styles of the series two key character designers (Kosuke Fujishima and Mutsumi Inomata), blending them flawlessly in a larger and prettier overall game. Toss in “Empress of Pop” Ayumi Hamasaki singing the theme sone, a refined battle system and the usual Tales quality bumped up to a nice PS3 shine and you get a game fans should be more than pleased to play…

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Gallery: Dark Souls II

Posted on April 22, 2013 by geelw

As noted last week, Dark Souls II is looking quite spectacular for a work in progress. FromSoftware is toiling away like mad to give fans what they want and MORE, with the focus being on getting to the good stuff (combat and survival) faster, eliminating some of the overly tedious backtracking and beefing up the visuals, enemies and overall level of challenge to new extremes. Casual players looking for a simple hack & slash and those not wanting the thrill of barely making it past some brutal death traps, enemies and bosses will want to tread lightly here (or tread not at all), but everyone else looking for the King of Pain and willing to roll the dice here will be in gaming heaven (and more often than not, hell) when this one ships out for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 once it’s all done…

For anyone who plays, however… expect to feel DESPAIR (and frequently, if you rush around like Kratos on a caffeine jag)…

Gallery: Armored Core Verdict Day

Posted on April 22, 2013 by geelw

AC_VERDICT DAY_logo_US (Custom)

12.battle area First things first: Armored Core Verdict Day is NOT an “expansion pack” at all. You don’t NEED a copy of Armored Core V in order to play, there have been a ton of improvements and additions in key areas and in fact, this might be a more enjoyable experience for players diving in for the first time as well as returning veterans. FromSoftware is polishing up this online experience to a beautiful shine and if the recent demo on display at Namco Bandai’s Global Gamers Day was any indication, this should be one of those mech games that keeps players coming back for more once they get to take it for a spin… Continue reading →

Game of Thrones 3:4 Recap/3:5 Preview: Some Ladies Get What They Need (& Other Stories)…

Posted on April 21, 2013 by geelw

Hoo boy. I actually knew as soon as I saw the creep she was dealing with that Daenerys Targaryen was playing that poor fool with his Unsullied army like the cheap fiddle he was. Still, that was a pretty hot surprise he got at the end. (sings) “Burn, baby burn… Disco Inferno!” *Ahem* Well, he did deserve it after all, what with his insulting language from the get-go. Anyway, there were a few other nice surprises and “What the…” shocks in this last episode and it looks like Episode 5 will keep the ground even bumpier for a few characters.

Hmmm… that big ol’ war map and pieces are back in the next episode, so it looks like some war plans are afoot. Or a really long game of chess (ha, ha). Amusingly enough, a friend I got hooked on the show said to me in an email afterward that “It’s a damn good thing they don’t have guns on that show, or the season would be over really fast!” DUH. I’d rather be shot than roasted by some winged flying beastie, mister. (sings) “There’s a hot time in the old town toniiiigght!” OK, OK, I’ll stop now…

Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut Random Screenshot of the Day: Another Sunday Drive…

Posted on April 21, 2013 by geelw

One more cool thing about Greenvale is its terrific road system made up of plenty of nicely paved streets and is fairly light in terms of traffic. It’s a good thing this little town’s roads aren’t as busy as some bigger metropolitan areas around the country, as it would be much harder for FBI Special Agent Francis York Morgan to get around and gather clues in his attempt to shut the book on that Red Seeds Killer case file. Of course, it’s also REALLY easy to be distracted by Greenvale’s other sights such as the A&G Diner’s excellent espresso, The Swery 65 Bar and its quality selection of beers and spirits and of course, a certain pretty girl who also happens to be in law enforcement. If this weren’t a murder case, it would be some sort of spring fling fueled by caffeine, pie and alcohol with a few smooches and hugs for good measure. But that sort of idyllic daydreaming can be troublesome with a ritualistic killer on the loose who’s got no compunctions about dispatching anyone he sees fit to if they get in his way…

(Cue dramatic music) To be continued…

The good thing about dropping into the formerly sleepy until those bizarre killings took place town called Greenvale is you don’t even need to have a REAL driver’s license, folks. That and the nicely improved driving controls are just ONE of over 100 great improvements to Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut, coming exclusively to the PlayStation 3 from Rising Star Games on April 30, 2013. Featuring updated HD visuals, PlayStation Move and 3D TV support, game-expanding DLC and MORE, you’ll want to spend hours driving around exploring every street in your hunt for clues to stop that mad killer or helping out any citizens who need a bit of assistance.

Hmmm… I was wondering earlier today if Game Director Swery 65 actually drives a car in Japan or is he a public transportation sort of guy? Not that it matters, mind you – it’s just that the driving mechanics in the first version of the game were notoriously wonky to some critics and gamers. Granted, once you got used to them, they weren’t that bad. I actually kind of think this was part of the plan, as the game plays with its players on a few core levels from its visual style to smashing expectations of what a lead character in a game can be. York’s certainly a memorable main character loads of new players won’t soon forget. Of course, this just means more well-dressed cosplayers at the next big convention all York-ing it up and making Swery smile even more so than usual…

Game of Thrones Interactive Features: What To Do With That Extra Hand? Now You Know…

Posted on April 21, 2013 by geelw

Heh. That’s a little in-joke there for folks who saw last week’s episode… Anyway, I’m still not into whole “second screen” craze that tablet users have glommed onto as if they’ve suddenly gotten a third or fourth eyeball sprouting from their head and an extra arm (and hand!) that can keep them busy as the onscreen action from the show spools out. That’s nothing but distracting for someone like me who prefers paying attention to the show proper while saving the minutiae for later consumption. It reminds me of going to the movies and sitting next to someone who’s telling their seatmate the plot and pointing things out because that person is too slow to follow or otherwise disinterested. Granted, if one has a child, friend or relative that NEEDS that sort of attention, it’s an ENTIRELY different story. As it is, all this extra work during the show for me makes it less enjoyable because it’s a division of brain labor on my part. Of course, if YOU enjoy that experience, go, you!

Random Film of the Week(end) 3: MAGIC

Posted on April 21, 2013 by geelw

magic poster If you were an impressionable young lad or young lady of a certain age growing up in the 1970’s, the TV commercial for this film probably scared the piss out of you and more than once at that. I was 14 and at the time this came out and man, it freaked the hell out of me, especially when it popped up late at night.

That meant I just HAD to see it back then, even if it meant sneaking into a theater playing it. Of course, being the more carefree 70’s, that bit of stealth action wasn’t necessary at all, So I managed to get in with a friend from school and ended up being a bit disappointed that the film, while good, wasn’t as chilling as the TV spot. Of course, a few years later I saw it again and got a new appreciation for it, so I’m probably just like a few of you who also caught this back in the day.
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Oboro Muramasa Gameplay: Your Japanese Lesson For The Week…

Posted on April 21, 2013 by geelw

Yes, Oboro Muramasa will be coming stateside this year (as Muramasa Rebirth) thanks to the fine folks at Aksys Games, but you may as well take a long look at the import version of game before it’s in stores or on PSN this June. As a big fan of the Wii version, it’s great to see this game in HD on the Vita’s lovely wide screen and coming to gamers with some new content and a few tweaks. As usual, Vanillaware is proving itself a master developer when it comes to “old-school” 2D gameplay and some incredibly gorgeous visuals that are bound to make this one a hot item when it’s released. Of course, if you can understand Japanese, you’ll get a hell of a lot more out of this gameplay video. However, it’s not necessary at all of you want to see how the game will look and play on a handheld as opposed to on a TV with a controller in your hot little hands…

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Random Film of the Week(end), Too: IT’S ALIVE

Posted on April 21, 2013 by geelw

Larry Cohen’s brilliantly cheesy (yet pretty freaky) 1974 horror flick is a campy and bloody good time for genre fans, but it also managed (and still manages) to be an interesting bit of debate material if you watch it with someone who takes its messaging too seriously. I say keep it down with the heated discussion and try not to get caught up in real-life arguments about big pharmaceutical companies using people as guinea pigs with horrifying results and/or the usual pro-life and pro-choice issues, camp out on the sofa with some popcorn and beverages and enjoy this one for what it is. Buried under that bloody good fun and Bernard Herrmann score is a classic that got a few funky sequels made, all of which are worth checking out (despite being of slightly to moderately lesser quality as time went on). That and hell, the 70’s vibe in this one is in full effect thanks to some fine casting and scenery chewing by the principals… and that REALLY hideous monster baby…

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World War Z Trailers: (Almost) No One Gets Out Alive…

Posted on April 21, 2013 by geelw

I have to say that the less one believes in this whole “zombie apocalypse” sub-genre that’s taken the world by storm, the more comic some of these films, books and other media tend to be. Look, the fact that people are making money off of being so-called “experts” in zombies and surviving the horror of the “inevitable” invasion means there are way too many fools parting with their money that they should be spending on better things. Hell, even this awesome-looking flick will become something of a “zombie” itself once it goes into heavy cable rotation in what, nine or so months after it’s released? Or Christmas, if the film needs to grab some big holiday bucks as a home video release.

My bet is we see a good deal of this summer’s flick pop up by the end of this year or early next as big-deal Blu-Ray/DVD combo packs. Granted, most will be milked further as “Director’s Cut” or “Unrated” versions with all sorts of extra footage and bonus features, but hey – some things never change as time goes on… Well, until some jerky corporation decides ALL physical media is like a zombie that needs its head chopped off and we’re all forced to sit in front of a damn monitor of TV that’s connected to crappy internet that LAGS like molasses made in hell because everyone is trying to download or stream the same flicks at the same time. Bleh – I’d rather get my brain eaten by a damn zombie than suffer through that crap, that’s for sure…