Tag Archives: Coming Soon

Nintendo Announces Wii U To Ship By Holiday 2012

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Of course, we all knew this was coming at some point, but Reuters has the official word (if not an official release date). Nintendo President Satoru Iwata noted that the Wii U would be launched in the United States, Europe, Australia and Japan for the 2012 holiday season.  No price point was announced and yes, you’ll need to wait a bit for the launch lineup. However, this means that E3 this year will be PACKED with Nintendo fanboys (some disguised as otherwise reputable games journalists) piling atop each other to tilt and whirl themselves into a feeding frenzy, followed by press events in a few spots including here in NYC.

Now, if I can actually get an invite to one of those events like I used to before Nintendo forgot I existed, I could do a better job of covering the upcoming console that doesn’t require me to hang around the Nintendo World Store here and ask all sorts of questions to assorted employees (he said, only half-joking)…

The Darkness II Launch Trailer: Early, But Makes Its Point…

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No gory gameplay or expletives not deleted here, so I can run this without an age gate. Here’s the short but excellent CG trailer for Digital Extremes’ upcoming FPS. As noted earlier, 2K has quite the lineup for genre fans from this one, to BioShock Infinite to Borderlands 2. It’s definitely going to be a busy year for genre fans, so hopefully all of these games will do well across each platform they appear on. The Darkness II appears in stores on February 7, 2012 (US) and February 10, 2012 (everywhere else).

The Neo Geo Pocket Is BACK (Well, Almost)…

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I still own my Neo Geo Pocket Color, but I’d sold off all but one game I had for the handheld (Dark Arms, if you have to ask) due to the need for space in the library.  Amusingly enough, I was talking to a friend last week who was asking me about the system because he was thinking about picking one up on eBay, but now, it looks as if he can do the retro thing in an even better way. The tentatively named “Neo Geo Pocket Device” is in the works at SNK Playmore and will come packed with twenty classic Neo Geo arcade games built in. As you can see, the slim style looks very slick indeed…

No official release date or price point has been announced nor has any word of the device being released outside Japan been made clear. However, thanks to Kotaku (and the Famicom-Plaza blog where these images are taken from), we do know what games are going to be on the device: World Heroes, Ultimate 11, Top Player’s Golf, Sengoku, NAM -1975, Mutation Nation, Last Resort, King of Monsters, Frenzy, Cyber-Lip, Fatal Fury Special, The Art of Fighting, Super Sidekicks, League Bowling, Metal Slug, Magician Lord, Baseball Stars Professional, Samurai Shodown, The King of Fighters ’94, and Fatal Fury.

That wonderful SD card slot on the side in the final photo means there’s the potential for other games to be downloaded from SNK’s site at some point. Given the current lineup of arcade games available over PSN as Arcade Classics minis, I wouldn’t be surprised to see some of these show up as downloadable titles for the new portable. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. I’d say that SNK fans NEED to put their money where there mouths are and gently bug the company to sell the unit worldwide DIRECT through its website as opposed to dropping the thing into retail where it will get ignored by non-fans or those dopes who’ll complain the device isn’t also packing a phone, three cameras and touchscreen. Whatever happens with the upcoming unit, we’ll keep you posted…

Anime/Music/Manga (AM2) 2012 Coming To Anaheim In June

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If you’re going to be in the Anaheim, CA area this June, why not make plans to attend the second Anime/Music/Manga Convention? This year, the event takes place at the Anaheim Convention Center and Hotels from June 15 – 17th and looks to be packed with just about anything an anime fan could want from film screenings to J-Pop concerts, video gaming, special guests galore and much more!. Basic admission is FREE, but in order to gain access to the concerts and primo seating at special events during the convention, attendees can purchase one to three-day Passports at prices ranging from $25 – $55 per person. In addition, the Convention Center’s hotel is offering deals on room rates that won’t break the bank.

For more details, definitely check out the official site and start working on that cosplay outfit!

The Art of Video Games Coming To The Smithsonian (And Maybe A Museum Near You)

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With video gaming inescapably in the mainstream even more these days, they’re finally being recognized for their artistic merit on a few key fronts. From March 16 to September 30, 2012, the Smithsonian American Art Museum will host The Art of Video Games which will be comprised of a large selection of game artwork and along with a number of playable games. In addition, a number of other game-related events such as as panel discussions, concerts featuring music from game soundtracks and more are in the works. In addition, the show plans to hit the road and head into other US cities after September (see that link above for more details). I do wish t was headed into NYC rather than Yonkers, though. Nothing against the town, mind you (it’s quite lovely up there, last time I checked), but the Big Apple NEEDS to see that killing off every single one of its video game arcades was a terrible idea…

A complete list of what’s in the exhibit can be found HERE. You can also sign up to get more info about the show or other Smithsonian event using that link above or by going HERE. Kids, now you can drag your parents in and get them hooked all in the name of education. Given some of the titles chosen, I can see a lot of folks coming away with a new found respect for the medium…

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning/Mass Effect 3 Demo Bonus Gear Revealed

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Personally, I’d have preferred to see this cool gear made available on the game discs (for those folks who can’t try out the demos thanks to no/slow broadband access), but I guess that crowd will have to suffer without the cool swag unless it pops up on a reprint down the road. Granted, none of the gear in this trailer is probably necessary to clear either game, but it all sure looks cool, doesn’t it?  As for that demo, it’s really excellent. The game absolutely is NOT trying to be “realistic” in a Skyrim or Dark Souls manner where carry weight, proper blocking or balance when swinging a weapon comes into play. Hell, you’re running too fast for wearing armor, the colors pop in a more graphic novel/fantasy art manner and overall, the gameplay owes more to faster-paced action games more than classic RPG’s.

Still, these will be major selling points to those gamers who disliked the games mentioned for their pacing and general overkill in a few areas. As for me, I can make the distinction between many types of games, so I’m all in for Amalur as well as anything else that comes down the pike as long as it’s well done. EA, 38 Studios and Big Huge Games have a big, huge hit on their hands, so don’t pass it up when the game hits retail on February 7, 2012. I’ll need to flip a coin to decide which console version to pick up, but I’m leaning towards the PS3, as it’s the system that’s given me the least (as in NO) troubles over the long haul.

The Darkness II Demo: Not For The Squeamish, Kids Or Anyone Not Expecting A Load Of Not-So-Nice Stuff

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If ever a game earned its Mature rating, it has to be this one. Let’s just say that Digital Extremes has done a mighty fine job taking the reins from Starbreeze Studios for this upcoming sequel and they pull no punches when it comes to the game’s content. What works is the overall dark tone of the demo, the beautiful color palette (gory bits and swearing set on staccato aside, the game is quite striking to look at) and the bits of humor in the midst of all the violence. While the sequel will ship with a 4-player co-op mode, I’m all about the single player campaign and getting into the story. The demo has been out for a few days now and it comes highly recommended for those of you out there interested in the game, but on whatever fence folks who don’t run out and snap up quality games hang out on.

February 7, 2012 is the launch date and although I don’t expect any midnight launch parties or massive roll-outs for this shooter, it absolutely deserves a wiser audience than the first game got. Of course, between this game, BioShock Infinite and Borderlands 2, 2K Games has a great chunk of the FPS market sewn up very tightly, I’d say.

SoulCalibur V Story Trailer

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Namco Bandai’s newest installment in the long-running fighting game series finally lands in stores at the end of the month (January 31, to be exact). Here’s a look at the game’s story trailer, which as usual, is that high quality Namco CG awesomeness they’re well known for. Project Soul has injected a more action game dynamic to the fighting with faster (and more fluid) character animation for even the returning favorites which should shake things up considerably as slower fighters get a speed boost that some hardcore fans may not initially care for. Me, I’m easy as long as the game is good and is packed to the gills with content.

Gallery: Street Fighter X Tekken

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Capcom’s upcoming crazy mash-up fighting game extravaganza (coming to the PS3, PS Vita, Xbox 360 and PC sometime this year) and  has my interest piqued for a few reasons such as the mixture of completely different fighting styles and the amazing visuals that blend outrageous stylization with fantastic animation both franchises are known for. The game also makes me think back to when I saw each series for the first time and how both Street Fighter and Tekken changed the fighting game landscape when they were introduced to the public. OK, OK, I actually played the original Street Fighter first, but we won’t talk about that here, right Capcom?

Anyway, a baker’s dozen screens below the jump – more to come…

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NISA Online Store Reveals Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2 Limited Edition

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Or: Hyperdimension Neptunia mk2 Limited Edition: Gamindustri Savior Set (say THAT three times fast!) if you want the full title to take up space above your head for a few minutes before it vanishes. Anyway, as usual, NISA is pulling out all the stops to give fans a ton of cool omake goodies at a really amazing price point ($64.99!). Go pre-order yours HERE and remember, those cards offered in the Limited Edition can’t be found anywhere else!