Yet another PS3 exclusive I can’t wait to get some hands-on time with, Puppeteer also makes me hopeful that we’ll see such creativity on display (and more) from day one whenever Sony’s new console ships. I’m personally so weary of new systems suffering through dreary (but well-intentioned) launch titles that don’t at all show what a console can do. Developers for next-gen systems NEED to blow us all away right out of the gate and IMPROVE on high quality games in the near future or else we’ll have to keep hearing nonsense talk from PC-only gamers who, when you think about it, really only have graphics (and yes, keyboard/mouse controls in shooters) to babble about as “better”. But we all know that better looking games NEVER means better games at all, no matter how it’s spun. Overclocking a game so it runs at 200fps is all fine and dandy, but crap running at 200fps is still crap, correct?
If there was any doubt as to how much better PiP will be than the original Naughty Bear, well kids… this video should keep you well informed and have your wallets standing at attention. I like that Behavior Interactive has been a bunch of busy bees this past year, as they also did Brave for multiple platforms (a pretty decent job overall) and Naughty Bear is a whole lot different in tone (by far!) and definitely going to surprise many people with its depth and replay value. It may not be a Game of the Year contender, but it’s definitely a game you’ll enjoy a hell of a lot this year.
Oops – I missed the other SIX videos in this series somehow! Ah well, here’s number 7 – perhaps I’ll track down and post the rest after TGS is over. My inbox is FULL of news to pore over (and getting fuller) and I don’t want to fall too far behind.
Sony really has 2013 wrapped up in a nice bow with too many first-party releases to count, but as far as Quantic Dream’s and Naughty Dog’s instant classics, the worldwide appeal for these is clear, no matter what console is your favorite. These are two title that non-PS3 owners will wish they could play while the pure Sony fanatics will have more ammo to whip out when they need to make the case for the PS3’s staying power after so long. Without a doubt, Sony’s NOT going out of this console cycle with a whimper, nor by rendering their console obsolete before its time.
OK, I’ll admit to not being so sure Peter Jackson could turn the clock back and make this upcoming film be as “special” as the trilogy, as often, a few too many years between epics this large means there’s a lot lost. Of course, it seems I’m wrong again (and that’s always good when that happens). That said, I’m probably going to wait until the inevitable home video release hits, as this will be yet another film to hunker down with and watch in its entirety once both parts are all done and there are director’s cuts floating around. Hey, I finally got around to watching all the Harry Potter movies one after the other a few months back (I wasn’t a fan of the books, so the films were a really hard sell for me until about six flicks in).
Ah, the questions kicking some gamers in the heads here! Stuff such as: Is Tecmo/Koei’s fighting game still relevant after all this time? Will the addition of a few of Sega’s Virtua Fighter characters be enough to shake things up? in an Itagaki-less Team Ninja still able to make a game that’s as out there as they would if he man himself were still with the studio? Does anyone even care about that stuff at all because all they want is another jiggle-fest? It’s enough to make your head explode, isn’t it? As for me – I don’t care about any of that stuff if the game is good, makes me laugh in the right spots and is just plain fun to play. What can I say? I’m a minimalist who likes some things extremely…er, minimal.
Even though I sunk many hours into Okami, I’m ready to do it all over again in this HD version. The game looks nice and crisp in that higher resolution and I’m sure that the PS Move controls are going to make the experience even more enjoyable (especially if you’re really used to using the peripheral). As great as this looks, I’d actually LOVE to see a complete reworking of the Nintendo DS game, Okamiden for the Vita at some point. Imagine how amazing it would look on that wide screen with visuals made just for the handheld? I’d pre-order that in a heartbeat if it were a reality, that’s for sure…
Oh yeah, the release date: October 30th, exclusively through PSN.
OK, now THIS is pretty damn cool. Then again, everything WETA does or has done in the past has managed to be beyond awesome. As you can see here, that turret is exactly like the ones from the Portal games (but I bet it can’t sing!). Of course, if you never hear a peep from the company after this and it turns out WETA made the thing TOO well (as in fully functioning and happily psychotic), well… there’s a very awesome one of a kind collectible some brave Portal fan can volunteer to retrieve. Hmmm… that might make a pretty cool mod, huh?
Or a 3DS version, for that matter. Or hell, even better, BOTH. Ah well, perhaps we’ll see the day return when Sega just gets it back together and realizes that Dreamcast fans (and most Sega fans in general) have more than one console they like to play the classics on… Anyway, this one should be as awesome as ever, so yup, make it a purchase.
Looking for something nice and gifty for that Street Fighter fanatic on your list or maybe something cool for your own collection? Well, Capcom has two more rather ridiculously awesome items you can drop some of that disposable income on. Check out what’s in store for you in each of these two box sets of joy. You can snap up the super-limited edition Street Fighter 25th Anniversary Collection at Capcom’s online shop, while that Street Fighter Monopoly can get grabbed through Amazon. If I had the room, I’d definitely want both here to fall out of Santa’s sleigh, that’s for sure. Should YOU nab both of these if you’re able to pony up the price? Sure, you can (ha ha)!
Yeah, yeah, it may seem too early to be talking about holiday gift shopping, but hey, in this economy and too many people thinking the world will end because of some Mayans who ran out of room on a big stone slab, you’ll want to grab the good stuff early and sock it away to celebrate with once things blow over on the whole doomsday front.
This crazy, low budget 1973 indie horror flick was a big part of my childhood because it seemed to always be on WOR here in New York as one of the late-night horror movies they showed on Saturday nights, and for some reason (even despite it freaking me out all the time), I’d sit through it fascinated by the insanity taking place. In fact, the film takes places at a mental institution gone way off the rails thanks to its rather unorthodox means of treatment. You get two murders right off the bat, a pretty but rather dopey new nurse arriving on the scene who’s a bit slow on the uptake as to what’s going on, a bunch of patients with some rather unusual quirks and it all wraps up with a nicely gory finale and probably the most disturbing end credit sequences you’ll see in a genre flick.
Is it a great movie? Nope, and in fact, it hardly scrapes above lousy in every aspect, I’d say. What works in its favor however, is the general tone of unease and creepiness that hits you over the head right from the start. You know something bad is going to happen right away and other than a few boring patches, the film delivers on much of what its opening moments promise. These days it’s a public domain film, so yup, you can watch it in its entirety above. I’d doubt this will ever reach the remake status some cult genre classics have gotten, but even as raw and weird as it is, it still manages to be freaky enough where it counts. OK, then – that’s a really short and simple movie post this for week, as I’m working on a bunch of other stuff. But it’s all good, as now you can go make a big bowl of popcorn, grab a beverage and watch yourself a pretty silly but scary slice of the 70’s…
Addendum: Oops – it looks as if someone may remake this after all at some point Oh well, i still think the original will be better just because it has its crude charms working for it, warts and all…
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 