Iron Man 3 Commercial: Hopefully, Rust WILL Be Sleeping…*

 

I’d actually almost forgotten about Iron Man 3 because of so many other blockbusters (or are they BLOGbusters?) coming this summer, but here you go. I’m still curious about how some of these comic book flicks work and others stumble all over themselves. The first Iron Man was great fun, the second was OK and Both The Mighty Thor and The Avengers were fun to sit through. On the other hand, Ghost Rider? Bleh and double bleh deluxe with extra cheese and don’t get me started on anything related to Daredevil, The Punisher, Fantastic Four and that last Spider-Man flick. DC, you’re not immune at all, as Green Lantern made me green (and not with envy, either), I felt the previous Superman reboot was weird and unnecessary and I still have scars from that Swamp Thing film (even though it had a corny one-liner that made me laugh really loudly in the theater I saw it at). Well, at least there’s a willingness to experiment until it’s gotten right, but that doesn’t mean there’s an audience always willing to drop full price on a ticket to see those films that don’t quite get it right…

*add 5 XP if you got the Neil Young reference…

Sony May or May Not Reveal a New Console This Month. No One Is (Too) Surprised…

 

Yay! But also *Yawn…* Look, Sony. Every gamer with an internet connection of any speed or two tin cans and a long enough string KNOWS you’re working on a fancy new console. So all this going to extremes to run possible teasers that may or may not be official reveals for more reveals as 2013 spools out is a bit silly. Well, at least I think it is. On the other hand, E3 is such a waste of time and money and has degenerated into less of a trade show and more of a fan convention with people lining up for free crap. It’s all long lines and loud, noisy bunch of annoying kids running around posing as game journalists and breaking any embargo or NDA they can sign, a few too many demos made by developers who hate making them in such a short time for the show, too many big, expensive parties, some of which are basically early funerals for developers who don’t make the Metacritic average once their expensive to produce and promote games are released to a too jaded audience that doesn’t really know what it wants because all they demand are more sequels… Continue reading

Dynasty Warriors 8 Trailer: Those New Rims Look Mighty Fine (And Smell Like Pie)…

 

Hoo-kay, at this point, you’re either all in with Omega Force’s long (long) running franchise or you’re one of those people who constantly pokes fun at it for its intentionally cornball issues. A few years back I once heard the series described as “the same old wheels with new rims”, and that’s only superficially true to some extent. Granted, fans will be fans and defend to the death (sort of) anything they love, but at least the level of quality has gone up since the PlayStation 2 days.  That said, it’s hard to sell the modern internet skeptics with too much time on their hands on the series, but I have ask why are they wasting time bashing a game they don’t play when they could be having ACTUAL productive fun playing a game they like?

Anyway, there’s something strangely addictive about the series’ dozens of playable characters, light tactical elements that have crept in over the years and potential for too many hours of gameplay to properly count. As for me, I’m kind of a drop-in, drop out fan of the series who appreciates DW and all the different Musou spin-offs (DW: Tactics, Samurai Warrriors, DW: Gundam, Warriors: Legends of Troy, Fist of the North Star: Ken’s Rage, Bladestorm, and so forth and so on). Which means even though DW 8 isn’t yet set for a US release, there’s that nice warm scent of freshly baked apple pie lingering in the air and it’s a familiar aroma that’s full of promise.

Hmmm… now I want a cold slice with a scoop of ice cream and a cup of hot coffee…

Remember Me: Behind the Music Trailer (No, This Isn’t MTV, Silly)…

 

Capcom, we love you like a long lost dog that’s been newly found in fine shape, but… you have to be a tiny bit more original with your promo video titles. That’s pretty much the sole negative thing I have to say about this look at the process of scoring the upcoming action adventure game developed by Dontnod Entertainment set for release in May 2013. I’m hoping we get the option of hearing both versions of the score, as it sounds pretty cool so far.  Hmmmm… Neo Paris, huh? I wonder if any Parisians not parkouring about the City of Light in 2084 are still going to get that two months paid vacation or whatever is is they enjoy.  Nice city, confusing navigating those districts if you’re easily distracted. I haven’t been there in ages, but I’ll get to take a virtual trip soon enough through this excellent looking game. Now, I want a good glass of wine, some nice Camembert and a hunk of good bread. Good Night…

Earth Defense Force 2025 Gameplay Trailer: Big Bugs Go Boom, Big Time…

EDF 2025 is shaping up to be quite a surprise, with developer Sandlot doing their best work in this upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 game. D3Publisher says this is the largest game to date in the series, so as a longtime fan who’s sunk way too many hours into EDF games, I’m all too happy to hear this. For some idiotic reason, a few folks out there think the game looks “bad”, but I have to disagree (while swinging a billy club around the internet). Given that Sandlot is packing in more destruction in this game than in any AAA title that limits interactivity to stiff objects that rarely move and canned destruction sequences, you HAVE to give this team a hell of a lot more credit than kicking them around because the game isn’t as visually polished as certain other titles. Anyway, I like what I see quite a lot. Now, about that release date (and HOPEFULLY, a physical as well as digital release so more people can buy this one on day one)…

God of War: Ascension Super Bowl Teaser: Oh, NOW I Get It…

Heh. OK, so I’m NOT a big football fan, but I should have realized that Game Day quickie trailer was going to end up being part of SCEA’s big advertising plans for the upcoming God of War: Ascension. Still, I hope they didn’t pay a mint for that ad time, as the game REALLY doesn’t require throwing money around to let its core audience know how good it is. Of course, it might foll a few people into thinking it’s something it’s not, but I doubt it. Ascension’s new multiplayer modes might not be my cup of tea, but as far as another angry adventure with Kratos, I’ll give it a whirl just to see what’s new in terms of the plot and places he ends up in. That said, methinks it’s time that Sony puts the character in more of an open world experience next time, as the limited (but lovely to look at) environments in past GoW games is getting a bit… limited. Eh, we’ll see what happens after this game ships out and (hopefully) does even better than the last one…

Carnage Heart EXA: Yes, They Still Make PSP Games!

 

I had to do a genuine double take when I saw these videos Natsume sent my way. First of all, a new Carnage Heart game from Artdink? Wow. The original was a relatively obscure cult hit on the old PlayStation amongst those who dared to brave its unusual gameplay mechanics and high learning curve. A strategy game where you chose AI routines, placed them into a small team of mechs and let the game play out battles you didn’t control wasn’t exactly a system seller. That said, once you spent time poring over the manual and experimenting with customization, the game opened up considerably. There were three more PSOne games made with the Carnage Heart name (Carnage Heart: EZ Zapping and two with similar sounding titles: Zeus: Carnage Heart Second and Zeus II: Carnage Heart) and a PSP game from 2006 (Carnage Heart Portable), but none of those were ever localized. EXA is a 2010 PSP release that originally got both a retail and digital release in Japan, but Natsume is localizing this strictly for North American PSN users (a smart move given how much of a niche title this is). Custom color me intrigued. Natsume has yet to drop a release date on this one, but it’s coming this year and most likely sooner than later. I still have three working PSP’s here, so they’re practically giddy at this news…

 

Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time Short: I’d Buy That For a Dollar!

 

OK, so it’s not old and classy like Boomerang when they rock those old Hanna Barbera and MGM ‘toons I grew up glued to the tube on, but if there were ever a Sly Cooper animated series made, I’d probably shell out for a DVD or Blu-Ray after the season was over (yeah, that’s right – I like to own discs over downloads any day of the week). Granted, it would need to be better written than say, an average episode of Secret Squirrel or Tom and Jerry, but there’s a gold mine of heist flicks to steal story ideas from. Topkapi, The Great Train Robbery, The Lavender Hill Mob and so forth and so on. So, Sony… find a fine writing team with good transforming skills (who won’t be sued for plagiarism because they got too lazy) and some old-fashioned 2D animators who know their stuff and get that ball rolling – you’ve got a few customers waiting outside the gaming space…

Sony “Game Day 2013” Trailer: Hey, That’s Not A Cheerleader!

Ah ha ha. OK, for those scratching their heads, GameDay USED to be the name of Sony’s first-party NFL game before Electronic Arts wrapped up the license for their very own. While most of the original PlayStation GameDays were quite good, things slipped a bit when the series hit the PS2. Usually, you’d ONLY buy a GameDay game when the other bunch of football games were sold out, you were really drunk or didn’t know any better (according to a friend I asked about the series, as I haven’t played a football game in ages). ANYWAY, I think this teaser with the pretty lady is for the upcoming (and eagerly awaited) God of War: Ascension, as the costume gives it away from the beginning of this too short clip. I guess we’ll see what’s what soon enough, correct? As in February 1, 2013… stay tuned.

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen Trailer: Once More (But in Japanese)…

Hey, I can do this all day, Capcom. You run a trailer for a Dragon’s Dogma game and yep, it’ll get watched and maybe posted here or elsewhere. That what you get for making a game so much fun to play, scary as hell in spots and quite challenging for almost anyone (save for some hard-case blowhards who consider it “too easy” because they’re going at it and chewing through content like a hungry pet being fed a nice big chicken dinner. Anyway, I’ve got my new PS3 controller coming and I’m doing a few extra sit-ups (like that will help against that Ur-Dragon), so yeah, bring it…