Short Takes: What You Should Be Playing This Week (Randomly, of Course)

Posted on October 16, 2013 by geelw

Skylanders SWAP Force: HD quality visuals, jumping and all new customizable figures all for the first time on the PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii U make this latest entry in Activision’s supremely successful yearly cash cow a huge must. Wii and 3DS owners don’t get HD graphics (obviously), but the core game is the same deal. In SWAP Force, the gameplay is even more addictive than ever (and yes, some of you adults will be sneaking in time when the kids are asleep or at school), the story longer and more interesting (in part thanks to the enthusiastic voice acting all around) and overall, this makes for both a great entry into the series as well as the latest installment that will have your wallet making faces at you whenever you yank out that cash or card to buy more figures. $74.99, pretty much anywhere that sells video games.

Valhalla Knights 3: This new PlayStation Vita exclusive from Xseed Games looks to bring Japanese developer K2’s niche grind-heavy RPG series to the masses with the best looking (and possibly, playing) installment to date. The Vita seems to be the prefect platform for this combat-heavy game that now includes an optional segment that features a bit of NSFW visits to a sort of love hotel where players can er, “score” additional playable characters and gear if they partake in a series of racy mini-games. Given that the other entries in the series have been given Teen ratings, that M VK3 is sporting must mean you’ll want to keep this away from the kiddies. That’s no problem here, as any kid that comes near my Vita is pulling back a stump… with a lollipop stuck in it (hey, I’m NICE mean old guy)… $39.99 (retail and digital).

F1 2013: Longtime fans of the actual motorsport have been a bit disgruntled these past few seasons thanks to the juggernaut crushing all under his speedy wheels that is three-time champ Sebastian Vettel. However, Codemasters is giving them a chance to beat the man at his own game, provided you’re sitting at home on your couch or in front of a high-end gaming PC setup. This year’s installment is even more gorgeous than ever, has some solid improvements (you can now save between events!) and that adjustable difficulty means even total newbies can actually make it around the track with some effort. While it’s definitely NOT for the NASCAR crowd of those expecting power-up and arcade-style gameplay, it does a decent enough job at breaking down the F1 experience that the Codies really don’t need to do more next year. Well, except add MORE Classic cars and courses, as the small amount this year is VERY welcome, but made me want to see what they could do with a few dozen more rides from the 70’s to 90’s (or perhaps earlier). $59.99,

The Wolf Among Us: I’ve not read any of the Vertigo comics this first installment is based on, so it’s pretty obvious that my excitement about this game is lower than those who have. On the other hand, given that it’s coming from Telltale Games and is modeled on the success of the company’s hugely successful multi-platform hit The Walking Dead, this one’s a no-brainer as far as the usual “should I play this?” stuff some of you go through. Given that this chapter is a slower-paced mystery with gameplay that’s heavily Quick Time Event focused and what looks to be a growing cast of really interesting fairytale characters updated and placed in an alternate New York City setting, it’s certainly right up my adventure alley and Telltale is actually offering up a really cool deal for that $24.99 (PC or Mac) price tag. Once all the chapters are complete, PS3 and Xbox 360 owners will hopefully get a retail version as well (like The Walking Dead did), but we’ll have to see if Wii U and Vita owners get as lucky…

BUY! Ridiculous Indie Bundles Galore From All Over!

Posted on September 13, 2013 by geelw

With so much other stuff going on here I’m having a stupidly difficult time keeping up with all the deals going on in the indie game space, so I’ll just list what’s in my inbox here in a single post and let you all have at it. There are some REALLY great titles in these bundles, so definitely check one or all of them out, especially since (with the exception of all those Square-Enix/Eidos titles if you buy them all) you’re basically able to get the bulk of these titles NOW for much less than the cost of a AAA title at retail or via a digital download service.

Ready? OK, here we go:

BUNDLE STARS (Indie Rush Bundle)!

Oh, that’s not all – I’m just sending you below the jump so I can save space on this page for more of my scribblings…

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BUY!: The Elder Scrolls Anthology Out Now, Dishonored GOTY Coming in October

Posted on September 12, 2013 by geelw

As noted in my earlier post, Bethsoft is making sure you KNOW The Elder Scrolls series is a force to be reckoned with (or they at least want you to stay home a LOT more that you normally do). Their awesome $79.99 box set, The Elder Scrolls Anthology stormed into retail on the 10th (here in North America, $89.99 in Canada, European territories this Friday for €59.99 / £49.99 / $89.99 AUD) and YES, you need to buy this just for the hundreds of hours of adventuring plus the chance to make some of your own content if you so desire.

There’s a ton of stuff in that box to discover, so make this one your big gift to that favorite RPG fan (or for yourself if you want to become one).

In other Bethsoft news, October 8 marks the release date of Dishonored: Game of the Year Edition (whee!), which means I need to pick this one up as well:

As for what’s in THIS box, well, read on (below the jump!):

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GOG.com Brings You Two Takes On Survival (Featuring Bullets and Badgers!)…

Posted on August 29, 2013 by geelw

If you’re big into DRM-free classic and indie games, you should already know by now that gog.com is the place to poke around for your content fix and yes, they continue to add some great old as well as new titles well worth checking out. Here’s a quick peek at two from this week’s batch:

The Chaos Engine was a fantastic Amiga game from The Bitmap Brothers that was so good it was ported to both the Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo (and retitled Soldiers of Fortune in North America). It’s a top down shooter that’s not a simple run & gun at all, but a game that takes practice and patience (in large doses) in order to succeed. Nice 16-bit visuals with a steampunk vibe working away, challenging gameplay that keeps you on your toes, a cool soundtrack and plenty of surprises await in this solid little blast from the past. It’s ten bucks, supports co-op play (break out that second controller) and will most certainly test your skills at dealing with sudden alien surprises. And teleports that bring in MORE alien surprises. This game doesn’t play when it comes to making you sweat that small stuff.

With its intentionally stylized chunky polygon visuals, Shelter may look like an old PlayStation era game buffed up a bit, but it’s a really cool indie title from indie developer Might and Delight that’s got a simple premise that should get non-gamers to want to try this out. You play as a mother badger who needs to try and keep her five cubs alive as long as possible during a series of linear levels where nature is your biggest enemy. Feeding them is key, but keeping an eye peeled for that hungry eagle while traveling through the forest adds a layer of tension, as does rainy weather, darkness and a few other elements you’ll soon see. Think of this as playing through an episode of Nature or some other PBS documentary and you sort of get the idea.

Replay value seems high here, as there’s going to be that time you lost ALL your cubs and you’ll want to do better the next time. That circle of life stuff can be a bitch, but I sort of wish humans needed to go through the same stuff these days, as whittling the pack down to the smartest over the strongest might make some things better off. Anyway, if your maternal urges are swelling right about now, you know what to do. No, not THAT (this is a family show!)… I meant go snap up some Shelter of your own for a mere $8.99 and keep your cubs out of harm’s way!

Meet The Nintendo 2DS (Yes, It’s Real!), Wii U Deluxe Cut $50 on 9/20

Posted on August 28, 2013 by geelw

As usual, Nintendo certainly isn’t following the crowd or path some would expect as yet again, they’ve whipped out some big surprises to get more money rolling into their hefty coffers. The latest eye-popper is a new handheld system, Nintendo 2DS, which is basically a fully functional 3DS with all the same features except the 3D slider (in other words, it will run everything the 3DS and 3DS XL does just fine, but not in 3D).

Its paradoxically chunky but slim form factor is clearly geared towards younger gamers (and collectors of Nintendo systems, of course), 2DS will launch on October 12 in the US for $129 (a European model also arrives on the same day) and is sure to get families with younger children snapping these up as gifts. While it looks bizarre (at least to me), reports from a few lucky journalists who’ve gotten some play time reveal 2DS is lighter and has a extremely sturdy construction (Nintendo is known for its nearly kid-proof handhelds) and that price point is quite attractive.

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BOUGHT THAT! RPG Trifecta Pack Get!

Posted on August 22, 2013 by geelw

Yeah, yeah… I a bit late in picking this awesome deal up (it was released on August 6), but the RPG Trifecta Pack is all mine and I just saved a few hundred bucks in the process by not tracking down the out of production cart versions. Granted, the collector in me still wants to shell out for the two Genesis RPGs I’m missing from Super Fighter Team (I already have one of the few hundred copies of Star Odyssey here in the library), but this set will most certainly do.

Amusingly enough, if you happen to be the owner of a creaky PC from the last century, guess what? All of the games will actually run on any system with the following operating systems: Windows 8, 7, Vista, XP, ME, and 98SE (which is amazing but not unexpected, given emulation works well on any modern PC). Mac users? Well, you’ll need Mac OS X 10.5 and above. I don’t own a Mac, so I have no clue if that’s good, bad or ugly, but if you’re jumping up and down at home or the office, it’s all good. OK, I need to shut up and get downloading. Well, it’s only a 4MB file, so it’ll be quick, even on a crappy dial-up connection. Of course, I won’t get to PLAY any of these three until I whittle down my backlog here, so I guess this is an early holiday gift for myself – whee!

Bundle Stars Wants You To Think Strategically, Win or Lose…

Posted on August 19, 2013 by geelw

Four games for four bucks might not seem like a stellar deal to some of you used to Bundle Stars‘ usual crazier deals, but three of the four here are nearly endless in what they have to offer and the fourth is an interesting take on a famous historical character. This new deal, dubbed Strategy Classics, nets you Capitalism, Seven Kingdoms II: The Fryhtan Wars, Warlords: Battlecry III and Wars & Warriors: Joan of Arc.

As noted Joan’s game isn’t as deep or “classic” as the others, but if you like Koei’s long-running Dynasty Warriors franchise with a bit of RTS action thrown in, it’s not that bad. Granted, Koei’s later Bladestorm: The 100 Years War did this much better, but for a dollar you get an interesting (and yes, visually dated by today’s standards) 3D action game that’s a funk and funky solo play diversion.

GOG.com Wants You to Return to the Dungeons (and Yes, There Be Dragons Inside)…

Posted on August 15, 2013 by geelw

Back in April, gog.com had a very cool sale on an assortment of Dungeons and Dragons PC games and I think I was lamenting (with a really tiny violin solo in the background playing away) about not having enough time to play the games I already had in that lovely set to buy any more D&D titles. Well, I get a second chance (and so do YOU) as the sale is back with ten mostly massive role-playing experiences for a mere $26.40. The cool thing is if you already own any of these titles thanks to a gog.com purchase, you actually get a discount applied to your total. Nice.

Of course, given that the potential of a few hundred (if not THOUSAND plus) hours of gameplay lie in wait for you once you click that BUY NOW tab, you may want to invest in a few emergency rations and start e-mailing people you know to tell them you won’t be around for a while. If you really want to get them buzzing, tell them you’ve been summoned to a dungeon or something similarly vague yet eye-popping before you stop answering calls and emails. That should get them thinking about your extracurricular lifestyle activities, right? And by the way, I still have no time to buy any new epic until I clear through a few I’ve started already. I really need a TARDIS, people…

Capcom Essentials Coming October 8: Five PS3 or 360 Games, $60, Any Questions?

Posted on August 14, 2013 by geelw

For years, I’ve been noting that game companies NEED to shift retail bundle packs or collections of older titles at bargain prices into the marketplace and while we’ve seen plenty of franchise-based collections from all over, this set of five Capcom titles is a sort of first in a few ways. Sixty bucks gets you older titles such as Devil May Cry 4, Dead Rising 2 and Super Street Fighter 4 (which will be upgradable to the upcoming Ultra SF IV next year) plus last years multi-million selling (but still somehow a critical and commercial “failure” to some) Resident Evil 6 and the super tough retro throwback Mega Man 10.

All that gaming goodness (each on its own disc!) and you get a free travel bag just because Capcom happens to love you or something similar. That or they just have too many of those overstocked somewhere, ha ha. Anyway, PS3 and Xbox 360 only on this deal, so this will make a perfect gift for that gamer just getting around to getting one or both systems or those folks who’ve yet to play anything in this value-priced collection.

Once Again, Bundle Stars Brings You Lots of Conflict on the Cheap…

Posted on August 13, 2013 by geelw

If you’re like me, you prefer a low stress lifestyle and as little conflict as possible. Of course, here comes Bundle Stars again offering a LOT of conflict for very little money, so how can one not want to slip them a few bucks and partake of some back-alley brawling to let off some Steam? Ah ha ha ha. Anyway, this latest crazy deal offers up ten games for five bucks (slightly adjusted to whatever that is in Pounds, as they’re based in the UK) and it’s a really varied (but conflict heavy) set of titles this time out.

Of course, with my current ridiculously massive backlog, I’m still flipping a coin as to whether or not to commit to MORE games on my hard drive I won’t get to for a while, but as I’ve said before, I won’t stop YOU from buying in and supporting charity. So go get some and think of me when you’re getting into (or running away from) digital danger…