OK, so I’m feeling lazy today, so you kids get to watch a movie instead of me telling you a story. Whee! Anyway, lots of fun stuff here to ogle, so I’ll shut up and let you get to the ogling. Got that popcorn and drink handy? Is the dog nearby to get your socks (or the cat to chase and play with them) when they fly off? All comfy now? If you’re wearing shoes, take them off NOW, or else you may hit your pet with them, which isn’t a good thing for either of you. OK…. NOW you’re ready! Enjoy!
Sure, the Move might not move as many gamers as SCEA would love to believe, but I like the peripheral and when it has games such as the just announced Until Dawn on the way, I’m happy I bought that Wand and Navigation Controller setup as an early adopter. I like the “B” movie vibe going on above, the SCREAM-like tone of the game and yeas, that it’s all about motion control gameplay, something that when done well, works wonderfully. Amusingly enough, I have an unfinished design document here I did a few years back for a remake of the Wii game JU-ON: The Grudge that added some cool features that would have made for a better overall experience. Perhaps I’ll dig it up and post it one of these days…
As for Killzone: Mercenary – another portable entry in the series is more than welcome, as Killzone: Liberation on the PSP was stellar stuff indeed. Mercenary is, like the console versions, a first-person shooter (a genre surprisingly lacking on the Vita even this early in its life cycle) and should draw in fans with its superb visuals and familiar gameplay. I’m a big fan of the Killzone series for it’s sharp looks, tight gameplay and overall story arc, so it’ll be fun to see how this new game fits into the canon Guerrilla Games kicked off back on the PS2. Annnnnnd, the waiting begins. Let’s hope both of these are out sooner than later, I say.
“What a cast!”, was my first reaction and given that this film is by the same director who brought us the wonderfully dark In Bruges (go rent it if you haven’t seen it yet!), you can expect all sorts of excellent craziness of the controlled and uncontrolled varieties. It’s looking almost like a modern day Ealing Studios comedy directed by Quentin Tarantino. Which means it’ll be weird and good, I say. I have the feeling that this will be one of those films that might not blow the doors off at the box office, but once it hits home video and cable, people will be glued to it multiple times and quoting lines like they thought them up themselves…
What I’ve always loved about Sony since the PlayStation days is they’ve continually had new first-party games for their systems that aren’t just the same old stuff year after year. Puppeteer is coming to the PS3 sometime soon (next year) from Japan and it looks quite cool, super creative and a little creepy. I like the overall look of this footage as well as the possibilities for future installments (the press release calls it a new franchise) or even (and hopefully) a Vita version. Sony, you’ve made that commitment to making the Vita a portable hardware, wonder so let’s see more great software for it, grrr! Anyway, the PS3 is NOT going out with a whimper at all, ladies and gents. What a 2013 it’s going to be for those of us who crave PREMIUM content and lots of it.
Granted, we’re talking newer consoles and handhelds here for this reboot, but It’s nice to see that slick, speed-busting, gadget-ridden Interceptor back in action (and no “The Rock” mucking up the works this time, thankfully!). Granted, car combat as a genre is sort of flat at the moment, but there’s always been a primal thrill in most Spy Hunter games that keeps me playing until the end. Then again, I go back to the original arcade game, so maybe it’s just me trying to play catch up with nostalgia or something. More on this one as my own spies dig up what they can…
But that’s absolutely great for the hard working dev teams at Bad Robot and Digital Extremes making Star Trek for Namco Bandai, as each bit of footage and every screenshot or art asset looks better and better. As I’m not quite sure when the new movie is coming out, it would be a bit of serendipity if it arrived when the game was all polished up and tight as a drum. That would be awesome for a few reasons, one of which being we’d get a licensed movie game that was as good as the film at the same time instead of a few years down the road (or not at all in too many cases). As always… we shall see. OK, J.J. – that sequel better be amazing!
Spark Unlimited’s best game to date is going to surprise a lot of really jaded (and really annoying) people out there. You know, the ones who refuse to give a game a chance because they’re either pining away for an earlier installment or worse, spend too much time comparing apples to oranges when they SHOULD be, you know, actually playing more games and enjoying all the hard work that goes into them. My hands-on time with a demo a few months ago shown the dev team at the top of their form. Controls and visuals were solid, there’s that performance capture realism that works excellently and while yes, the game has a Dead Space vibe in a few areas, it’s FAR from a clone of Visceral’s hit series. Well, I think as long as Capcom and Spark concentrate on getting the final version out as tight as a drum and with a great story that’s well told, the amount of ACTUAL negatives that can be said about the game will be slim to none.
This one sounds pretty cool (and more than a tiny bit like Chris Nolan’s mind-bending film, Inception), so color me intrigued. Capcom dropped news on this upcoming game at GamesCom 2012 and it’s already getting a lot of buzz. Developed by Paris-based DONTNOD Entertainment, the game has you playing as a female “memory hunter” who can tap into people’s minds and steal or alter their memories. Of course, when someone has her memory stolen, our heroine sets out to find out who did it and as the press release says, “discover how she can change the world.” Expect a lot of athleticism, a bit of stealth and lots of ass-kicking in a few varieties in this third-person game set to hit PS3, Xbox 360 and PC in May 2013. More to come on this one, now that it’s on my radar…
Looks like those of us who played the original Borderlands will get a nice treat with this DLC, er, provided we go the pre-order and Premiere Club route. Of course, as much as I love Gearbox’ great series, I’m a bit aginst this sort of buying into content, as sticking it on the disc (or the inevitable Game of the Year Edition) will serve the needs of those who dislike pre-ordering or buying digital content. We. Shall. See, I suppose. As it is, Borderlands 2 is going to be a pretty huge hit without the need for extra content, but this should do well among the most rabid fans who want everything before those of us who can wait a bit longer (because the main game will be so darn HUGE)…
While poking around over on RPGmaker.net the other day looking for smaller games to download for my weekly feature on Random Indie Games, I stumbled upon this pretty interesting fan-made remake of what some call the “black sheep” of Sega’s Phantasy Star series. Programmed by Lys86 (who also made A Blurred Line, one of my old favorite RPGM games), this version keeps the same story as the original, but adds in a ton of new dialog (with a nice sense of humor in spots where its needed) and a completely reworked battle system that takes a bit of getting used to. Like the original game, there’s still the need to grind quite a bit before you can fetch Nei from her waiting spot in the forest, then grind some more before tackling the desert area and so forth and so on. But I rather like the mix of enemy sprites based on the original, redesigned maps (some with fun puzzles added) and completely different RTP backgrounds.
The game also adds collecting creature parts, plants, relics and other items which can be traded for Meseta or cool gear, trainers for certain character skills and lots more that make it a lot less dry than the game it’s based on. Visually, as this one’s a bit long in the tooth, it hasn’t aged all that well, but still gets the job done. While it’s not perfect and you may find a minor bug here and there that can take you out of the fun for a tiny bit, this is one of those games that will make you appreciate the third installment all the more because it manages to be quite enjoyable while hitting all the right nostalgic marks. It’s too bad Sega isn’t planning to revisit the older PS games any time soon, as I’d actually love to see Lys’ beefed up translation get the nod as an “official” rewrite of the game’s story. I’ve still got a ways to go before I’m done with this one, but from what I’ve played thus far, the game kept my smiling away and reminiscing for a bit. Give this one a look and definitely a play if you’re a Phantasy Star fan looking for a new take on an old friend…
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