Syndicate Co-op Gameplay Trailers: Classic Meets Current

Submitted for your approval, two pretty cool videos from EA’s upcoming reboot of the PC and console classic. Not only does veteran developer, Starbreeze get it, they get it RIGHT. Reworking some classic Syndicate maps into the new game’s 4-player co-op mode is a great thing indeed and should give the more open-minded loyalists something to think about. As much as I love the original game, it’s not 199X, folks… so it’s time to move on and enjoy what’s here, keeping in mind that the game has the blessing of members of the original’s development team. It’s all coming along really nicely and I can’t wait to see more gameplay videos as the game gets closer to completion.

Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City Hands-On: There Will Be Blood. And Running. And Gunning. All At The Same Time.

As much as I love all sorts of games I’ll admit to being a tiny bit skeptical every so often about Capcom announcing yet another Resident Evil title. Sure, the franchise is hugely popular with a whopping 45 million units sold across multiple platforms… but it’s far from perfect. There are certain gameplay elements that have been with the series from day one that, while fresh and fun a few years back, are a bit decayed when compared to some of today’s titles. Granted, keeping things set in stone doesn’t just plague Capcom’s zombie-packed games alone. I could go on for a few paragraphs about other storied franchises setting into too familiar territory, but let’s talk about the game that’s going to save Resident Evil from itself while surprising the hell out of the most skeptical die-hard fans in the process. Thanks to developer Slant Six Games, Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City is coming and in my opinion, as both an offline and online experience, it’s absolutely the best thing to happen to the franchise in years. Continue reading

Game of Thrones Headed to Consoles, PC from Cyanide Studio & Atlus

Should I feel bad about not only NOT having read any of the books, but also for totally ignoring the HBO show until I hear news of Atlus publishing a new PS3, 360 and PC game based on the hugely popular fantasy series? Well, nope. Sometimes, I’m just a little slow. That, and too busy to add so much new stuff to my plate sometimes. Actually, I tried to watch one episode of the show, but it was a messy bit of walking into the middle of a conversation with and feeling really left out. All I know is NOT to get too attached to any characters (something I learned from the King’s Field days) and sometimes, the little guy is the one to really keep an eye on (lest he get stabby with his sword). “Early 2012” means this one has been in the pot for a little while at least. Given the sour reception Cyanide’s last Atlus-published game (The Cursed Crusade) received, Let’s hope GOT arrives at retail as a fully cooked bird and a tasty one at that…

BioShock Infinite: Meet Booker & Elizabeth 1

Irrational Games’ Ken Levine “hosts” this really cool video in which we get to see the faces behind the two main characters in 2K Games’ upcoming  BioShock Infinite, set for release next year on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC. It’s great to see two actors dedicated to bringing gamers such solid performances feel something about their work other than “It’s a paycheck…” Pay attention, especially if you’re thinking of getting into voice-over work yourself…

Asura’s Wrath One-Two Trailer Punch: Bet On This To Beat Your Mind Senseless (In A Good Way)…

It’s very hard not to ignore CyberConnect 2’s crazy cinematic action game and each time I see it in action, I’m glad the developer decided to get more creative than they have with their string of reliably feature-packed Naruto titles. Granted, what’s here is a few light years beyond weird in terms of nearly all about it. But that’s exactly what the industry needs, I say: more studios, large and small working on new IP that will shake things up a bit.

Hopefully, some of you folks out there will agree and want to come along form the ride. Capcom will appreciate that and CC2 will REALLY appreciate it even more,as it’ll show that there’s room at the inn for more originality and not just “me too” sequel mentality.

Prototype 2: Heller’s Happy Halloween Greetings!

Activision’s always awesome PR department keeps cooking up some cool and amusing holiday greeting cards for Radical Entertainment’s upcoming sequel, so how could they pass up the chance for a Halloween version of the game’s lead character. here you go – in two tasty flavors, at that.  Hmmmm. I had NO plans to go out on Halloween, but maybe this might give me a costume idea. Then again, I’d probably get beat up by some cops here in NYC thinking I was some sort of #OWC protester or something. Then again, I kicked a damn helicopter not too long ago, thanks to Activision, so the NYPD better not mess with me, grrrrr…

New Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor Trailer Makes Me Want To Knock Down a Wall…

…So I can actually (and finally!) get my own Kinect and play the game. My living room is nicely-sized, but in the wrong way that I’d need to have my TV near the front door and blocking access to the kitchen in order to play any Kinect games. I can do Move stuff just fine, though. Oh well. Go, From Software! I’d say Capcom will have a nifty niche hit here provided that some folks get over the fact that more types of games can be done well on Kinect outside of dance, exercise and “family” titles. So far, color me very impressed with this game (even as a work in progress). I’d be even MORE impressed if Capcom added the original Xbox game and sequel to the disc as bonuses so those who missed out can finally play them without having to pay an arm and a leg for that MASSIVE custom controller (and find out the second game needed a single-player campaign which it didn’t have as an online-only expansion pack).

Ni No Kuni Japanese Box Art Is Pretty… Boring (But Pretty Nonetheless)

While this watercolor image for the Japanese version of the game is indeed a truly lovely piece of art, it’s also pretty generic to a fault. At best, It looks like a greeting card for some made up holiday (Happy Festivus!) or a menu from some renaissance fair salad bar and at worst, like a roadside sign advertising a fairy farm (Come Pet Our Unicorn. Please. Thank You).

Given the lush backgrounds found in both the DS and PS3 versions, I was hoping to see a Level-5/Studio Ghibli combo cover to end all covers. Or at least art to match the beautiful images found on the official PS3 and Nintendo DS sites for each system’s respective games. Here’s a link to a recent trailer as well so you can see that the game is absolutely a LOT more gorgeous than this placeholder-looking cover image. Oh well. It’s not THAT bad. Still, I guess it’ll be up to Namco Bandai to give us a North American version with a cover image that soars. As long as they use art from the dev team or Studio Ghibli-provided assets, it should be a winner.

Hideo Kojima Has Me (And Many Others) Drooling Over Metal Gear Solid. Again.

Of course, any gamer worth his or her salt will want this as soon as it ships next month. If I’m not mistaken, it also comes with this, which is even better. Finally, this is hitting stores in 2012 (and it’s about time). Between these HD collections, what Kojima has cooking on the Vita, Metal Gear Rising and some other fun stuff, it’s going to be quite an anniversary for Solid Snake and friends…

Asura’s Wrath Hands-On: One Of These Days, Argus… Bang, Zoom!

Thanks to a soundproof glass booth where attendees lined up to scream in order to win cool swag, Capcom and CyberConnect 2 had gamers literally screaming to play Asura’s Wrath, the upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 cinematic action game that’s so very hard to describe in the space of something like the entire Internet. OK, overblown hyperbole aside, the demo on the show floor was quite an experience that packed in over the top quick time events, a bit of strategic button bashing and a classical music score that made the experience quite hilarious. This is shaping up to be one of those games that has to be seen and played to be believed and even after that, you’d probably wonder what the hell just happened. Think the mighty God Hand on steroids and with a serious case of rage issues and well, that’s about a tenth of what’s coming your way next year. Continue reading