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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Import News… From The Future!: Earth Defense Force PS4 Bound

Posted on September 12, 2013 by geelw

Given the formerly budget priced series’ loyal following since it appeared as part of the Simple 2000 lineup on the PlayStation 2, it was pretty much a given that D3 Publisher and developer Sandlot would be bringing gamers a new EDF game on Sony’s upcoming console. Import gaming site Siliconera reports that there’s a game in the works, which is awesome to hear. No news on how far in development it is, who’s making it (no doubt it’ll be Sandlot’s first title on the new hardware) or what the intended release date is.

Of course, just hearing this news is enough for me and I’m hoping Sandlot can finally make an EDF game with a stable frame rate when the going gets tough on those crazier maps. Granted, the series is known for its sometimes wonky technical issues (that don’t stop the games from being a hell of a lot of FUN, mind you), but given the PS4’s power under the hood, it would be fantastic to see a locked in 30 or even 60fps in the new game even with all those giant bugs, robots and buildings blowing up into assorted pieces. OK, I’ll take a solid 30 at this point, as even thinking of double that is a bit of a pipe dream unless Sandlot gets some help in optimizing whatever engine they’ll be utilizing. I’d gather it’ll be an all new in-house bit of tech, as the EDF 4 engine had some issues on the PS3 that weren’t in the Xbox 360 version of EDF 4.

As usual, we shall see… stay tuned for updates.

And NO, Dream C Club: Host Girls On Stage is most likely NOT coming to North America. Like it or not, that’s TOO niche for even D3PoA to even consider unless they want to sell something like 5000 or so copies of a game (at most) and be happy with that.

Gravity TV Spot 2: Science For Dummies (As A Tease, At Least)…

Posted on September 11, 2013 by geelw

If you aced that science class in school, you’re probably a little upset that right after the words NO SOUND appear in both the Gravity trailers and TV ads, there is indeed SOUND IN SPAAAAAAACE! there in the form of a big BOOM! and the noise of stuff rattling about. Welp, kids… that’s just wrong, but it’s been confirmed that there is indeed NO sound in the final film. Yes, the trailers and other ads are made for people who need that aural bump to get those thrills. That is all. Go see this – it looks phenomenal.

Breaking News, Badly: “Better Call Saul” Is Indeed a Go!

Posted on September 11, 2013 by geelw

Well, it may be DOOM! for Breaking Bad on AMC, but everyone’s favorite legal eagle, Saul Goodman will get a second shot at life when all is said and done. AMC’s PR department dropped this short note around to a bunch of entertainment sites to-day:

AMC and Sony Pictures Television confirmed today that they have reached a licensing agreement for a spinoff of Vince Gilligan’s landmark AMC/SPT series Breaking Bad. As conceived, the new series is based on the show’s popular Saul Goodman character with the working title Better Call Saul. Plans call for Saul to be a one-hour prequel that will focus on the evolution of the popular Saul Goodman character before he ever became Walter White’s lawyer.

Which means that there’s a good chance this show will be popping up sooner than later. As it’s a prequel, there’s that very tantalizing element here that perhaps ol’ Saul won’t be around when that Breaking Bad finale rolls around, but I won’t even start speculating about that here. However, I will say that I guess this was going to happen during Sunday’s show when Saul’s early entry at the car wash led to he and Walt talking shop with a HUGE billboard for Goodman’s law firm in the background that tied in nicely to the very funny fake site AMC put up recently. As long as Bob Odenkirk stays healthy and stays away from sinking cruise ships, air shows with faulty planes, auto races on bad days, slippery bathtubs, angry pets, well-armed ladies of the evening or other modern hazards, I predict this quirky show will be a winner once the pilot gets done and screened.

And yes, the title of this post refers to this being “old” news already even though it’s only a few hours fresh. I’d have posted it sooner, but I was working on a review and running a virus scan. Ah well… Not the first, but the most entertaining is my motto (today at least. For another hour or two at best)…

Shantae: Half-Genie Hero Kickstarter Update: Now Vita & Vita tv Bound!

Posted on September 9, 2013 by geelw

NICE and thank you, SCEJ! Since that PS Vita tv announcement in Japan is quite the big deal. Wayforward Technologies has decided to add the game to its list of things to do. Excellent and yes indeed, the more, the merrier. 3DS owners, sorry, but you’re getting a completely separate new game to play, as your system isn’t powerful enough to handle what’s coming (just a fact!). Still, this means Vita-only fans aren’t left out of the Shantae loop this time, so Huzzah and all that.

Pre-TGS News: SCEJ Drops Plenty of Vita Bombshells Plus a Late PS4 Release In Japan…

Posted on September 9, 2013 by geelw

Weird, wild stuff going on overseas, as Sony is surprisingly bringing out a redesigned, less expensive Vita in different colors with 1GB of on board memory, an even more inexpensive Vita TV device that will let users play Vita and other PlayStation titles, watch movies and more plus a whole load of so far Japanese-only info including the release date of the PlayStation 4 in the territory. The big surprise on that end is the PS4 is shipping out AFTER the North American and European launch, which is something of a first for a Sony gaming console if I’m not mistaken.

Back to the Vita for a second – Sony has also announced a new 64MB Memory Card as well as price drops on its other proprietary memory cards for the handheld. The 64GB card will retail in Japan for 9,980 yen (about $100) and the new pricing on the currently available cards is as follows: the 4GB card drops to to 1,480 yen (about $15), the 8GB card to 1,980 yen (about $20), the 16GB card to 3,780 yen (about $38) and the 32GB model to 6,480 yen (about $65). Meanwhile, as noted above, North American and European gamers will get their PlayStation 4’s a few months earlier than Japan, as a February 2014 launch window was revealed. According to a few news sites, the reason seems to be Sony having issues meeting high demand for the console worldwide and probably targeting more units for the US and Europe first thanks to greater demand in those countries.

Finally, the launch title lineup for Japan was revealed as well, but we’ll take a peek at some of those titles in another post shortly. My fingers are of course, crossed that these price drops and new products pop up here in the US, but as always… we shall see…

A Little Doctor Who Primer For the New Folks…

Posted on September 8, 2013 by geelw

Someone sent me this image a few days back but didn’t tell me where it came from but fortunately, some digging reveals it’s from this site packed full of memes and such. I didn’t poke around there at all, as it looks like a serious time trap, a black hole of clock eating madness that will suck you in and make your productivity disappear faster than a roll of quarters going into a slot machine in Vegas. Although… the last time I was in Vegas (Classic Gaming Expo 2007 I think), I think I only spent ten bucks gambling and won seven or eight back. I wanted to throw more money away, but I held out because I needed that cash to blow on a few games for the library. But I digress (as usual). Hopefully that cheat sheet above gets some of you not into the good Doctor to start tracking down episodes to watch before that new Doc makes his appearance. Just don’t try and watch TOO many episodes in one shot. You’ll either hear that main theme in your sleep or the sound of that TARDIS parking brake grinding away burrowing into your skull…

New Puppeteer Trailer Makes Your Friday Night Surreal (or Something Worse)…

Posted on September 6, 2013 by geelw

OK, I laughed at this trailer, but I bet some of you out there get freaked out my over-sized masks and goofy costumes like others flip out over circus (or other) clowns. If that’s you, I’m sorry to have exposed you to this on an otherwise fine and rather cool Friday night (sleep with the windows open – there’s a nice breeze blowing!). On the other hand, if you’re having a gloomy Friday night, this just may cheer you up. If that doesn’t work… well, go watch the rest of the kooky live-action clips Sony put together, take an aspirin or two and get some sleep. Anyway, Sony’s PlayStation 3 exclusive, Puppeteer is out now in some spots, so if you’re a PS3 owner looking for pure platforming bliss, well… you know what to do, right?

Return of the Fumetti! IDW’s Star Trek Annual 2013 Does Some Major Time Traveling…

Posted on September 6, 2013 by geelw

Wow. I’m ancient enough to remember owning a couple of Star Trek fumetti, so seeing this all-new page created by comics legend John Byrne for his upcoming Trek tale “Strange New Worlds” made me smile a wee bit too much. I hope the younger fan of the series embrace this photo-novel style, as it’s a real art form. Even crazier (in the best possible manner), Byrne created the panels for the series by carefully cobbling together “multiple pieces of film stills and manipulating them to tell the exact story he wanted”, according to the press release. That alone makes this worth checking out if you’re one of those folks who knows the original series inside and out. You’ll be picking out shots and testing your memory, that’s for sure…

IDW’s Star Trek Annual 2013 will run 48 pages and should be in your favorite comic shop the third week of December. I just may need to pick this up and take a time trip down memory lane…

Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse: ANOTHER WayForward Surprise!

Posted on September 5, 2013 by geelw

What the what? I had to do a double take when I saw this news, as Shatae has all of a sudden hit the gaming limelight three times this year and these last two titles are going to no doubt get her on the minds of many more gamers out there. Granted, the currently in development Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse is ONLY for the Nintendo 3DS (but I’m guessing it will run on the new 2DS), but I and I’m betting nearly every Vita owner wants their own version of this game so they can see what all the fuss is about. I’m gathering Wayforward needs to hear from Vita owners (and PS3/PS4 owners) because this magic gal is the life of the party when it comes to delivering the classic gaming greatness that’s never going to die. Color me happier by the minute – keep it up Wayforward and the top of my head will flip clean off from smiling too broadly!