Sacred 3 Coming To PC & Consoles August 5 (Or: There Goes My Late Summer)

Posted on May 28, 2014 by geelw

As a fan of the Sacred series for about nine or so years since that Sacred Gold box fell on my foot at a GameStop, I turned it over, saw it was an action/RPG and bought it on the spot, I’m completely psyched for Sacred 3. Coming to PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 (yet again, the newest consoles are shut out thanks to the game being developed for what was available at the time), I’m expecting more open world fantasy madness, plenty of quests and side quests, intentionally campy voice acting, LOADS of hidden goodies, and of course, excellent replay value. Screenshots don’t quite do these games justice thanks to the isometric view (although zooming in will likely be in the game, it makes the game much harder), but here you go just for fun:

Personally, I’m a gameplay video guy myself, so I like this better as an example of what’s to come:

I’m trying to figure this one into my schedule so I at least have one or two characters completing their story arcs just in time for that Diablo III expansion to hit the PS3 and I segue from one high quality dungeon crawler to another. Well, in THEORY, that’s what’s supposed to happen. We’ll see soon enough, though. Ancaria

Metro Redux Announce Trailer: Back In The (MUCH Better Looking, But Still Deadly) USSR…

Posted on May 22, 2014 by geelw

Okay, so the country is no longer called that long-dead name these days, but I had to get in at least one bad joke about this otherwise deadly serious first-person survival game. Calling Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light “shooters” does them little justice, as each is a finely crafted and often jarring gameplay experience that takes patience to play. You can’t run in guns blazing with no or not enough bullets, radiation zones you can’t stay out for too long in and a gas mask that doesn’t have enough of an air supply to walk more than fifty feet. Not to mention some rather strange mutants and not strange but somewhat upset humans that might want you dead for a few reasons. Both games have gotten an amazing makeover for next-gen consoles and PC while retaining the methodical yet compelling gameplay that made them both sleeper hits.

Developer 4A Games and Deep Silver get a huge pat on the back (and a case of the finest Vodka) for bringing these games back so more can play them and this will be the first time 2033 appears on a Sony console, so PS4 owners will see what all the fuss is about. Even better, the games are getting both a physical and digital release. Metro 2033 Redux and Metro: Last Light Redux will each be available separately as a digital download for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC for $24.99 in North America, and a boxed compilation of both games, titled METRO REDUX will be available for $49.99. Now, all I need is a working Geiger counter and to sew some extra pockets on that pair of old cargo pants in the closet so I can carry more slightly dented, irradiated cans of beans. Back with more on this one soon…

Humble Daily Sales? For TWO WEEKS? There Goes Someone’s Summer. And Fall. And Winter…

Posted on May 13, 2014 by geelw

First up, The incredible DEEP SILVER Re-Bundle!:

Wow. I missed this big sale last time on a fantastic bundle of Deep Silver games and as I just walked in the door about twenty minutes ago and see it’s on again, I’m kicking myself hard because I’m too busy to play this lot even if I did jump on it and buy it up. But still, WOW. Pay a buck or so for four massive games, bump that up to $6.16 and add FIVE more games (that’s nine), but go for not broke and get TEN games for nine dollars flat? THAT’S the way to go here, considering the games in question and how much content you’re getting. All the Saint’s Row games are outrageous, stupid fun, Dead Island and Dead Island Riptide will appeal to your undead killing,get me the hell off this “vacation paradise” gone to hell in a hand basket side, Risen 2: Dark Waters sets you out as a pirate type in a big fantasy world, Sacred 2 Gold is an even larger and more fantasy world with some incredible replay value (and even more incredible difficulty if you try to run around like you’re the boss of everything), Sacred Citadel is a goofy throwback to arcade brawling/hack ‘n slash games of the past and finally, Metro 2033 is a bleak, unsettling, freakish and deadly trip to a future Russia where radiation, mutants and not enough survival supplies test your skills.

All that and yes, some of what you pay goes to the Child’s Play and American Red cross charities. So yep, you NEED this bundle even though I won’t be buying it. THIS time (again). Now, I’m wanting to see the next 13 days of sales as I eyeball my hard drives and probably dump a few older games for some nice new-ish ones. Just like you, too. Anyway, I’ll be back every day of this sale with an update (and hopefully earlier, at that!)…

Sacred 3 Gameplay Trailer: I See Iso In Your Future…

Posted on March 19, 2014 by geelw

As I happen to love isometric views in my games (not for everything, mind you) and am no stranger to the action or turn-based role playing game experience, Sacred 3 is going to be right up my alley. Of course, I loved the first two games quite a lot for their large open maps, ridiculous amount of side quests to take and and surprises to stumble upon. Some would say the games are far too open and allow for wandering into death traps off the beaten path, but those people would be wrong, as no one asked them to get nosy and follow that trail of bones or gold coins into that pack of much higher leveled enemies or dark place with the nasty surprise or way too large and powerful dragon (and so forth and so on)…

Anyway, Sacred 3 hits PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 this summer. If it’s too quiet around here during that time, you know where I’ll be.

Sacred 3: Asceron’s Bringing Its RPG Series Back In A Big Way…

Posted on February 20, 2014 by geelw

I’d say “it’s about time!” or something like that, but I knew developer Asceron was working on Sacred 3 and didn’t mind waiting at all. With publisher Deep Silver coming to the rescue and getting this out worldwide, this bodes well for fans of the franchise wanting more after the solid Sacred 2 and its expansion. For the uninitiated, the Sacred series is an open-world isometric action RPG that some compare to Blizzard’s Diablo series, but is actually a bit better in some respects. The freedom to go where you wish (at your own peril, as enemies can be quite brutal if you get in over your head) and variety of male and female human and non human character classes make this one an evergreen series with massive replay value.

The great thing is this one’s coming to PS3, Xbox 360 and PC this summer, so there’s no need to run out and buy a new console to play it on if you haven’t made the switch yet. I’m all for that, as it takes a while for these new systems to really get going and show what they can do. As for that multiplayer mode? I don’t need it at all as I play for the story and characters, but I’m glad it’s there for those who want to beat up on each other or how need help with the tougher bosses in the game…

Did You Win The Lottery Recently? Saint’s Row IV Wants A Million of Those New Bucks…

Posted on August 14, 2013 by geelw

I saw this image a little while back and ignored it because I thought it was a big fat inside joke, but apparently, it’s all too real. UK retailer GAME was/is offering up the most insane pre-order bonus ever created with this Saint’s Row IV Super Dangerous Wad Wad Edition that packs in the game and a ridiculous amount of goodies from plastic surgery, spy training and a flight into SPACE. Seriously. I’ll shut up here and let you soak this all in at your leisure, but if you’re a Scrooge McDuck, or a more real life zillionaire (no, Trump doesn’t count because he’s all hot air, ego and bluster and if he really had money, he’d buy himself a new brain that actually works), feel free to bug Deep Silver directly about buying this here(makemeasaint@deepsilver.com).

And yup, tell them you heard about it here on DAF – I don’t get a finder’s fee at all, but if you’ve THAT sort of bank, maybe you could spare a few ten thousand for a poor starving artist type?

Happy Independence Day (Kind of) From Saint’s Row IV, BOOM!!

Posted on July 3, 2013 by geelw

With all the spaceships zipping around, super-powered cast and intergalactic enemies invading earth, some fans are thinking this isn’t a “true” Saint’s Row game at all. Well, other than the open world mayhem and outrageous humor being intact and looking as crazy as ever. I think the game looks like more stupid fun (in a good way), but I’d love to see Volition branch out and do something really unique on the new generation hardware. At this rate, Saint’s Row V will end up being like a Mass Effect game with interplanetary gangs of aliens, eight times the F-bombs and a more free-form combat system full of too many assorted wrestling moves and finishers. I’m not sure I’d like to see that, but I guess that sort of depends on how well this game does and if the Volition has planned out that far ahead…

E3 2013: Saint’s Row IV Trailer: Bigger Means More What The ****?! For Your Gaming Buck

Posted on June 22, 2013 by geelw

THQ may have gone down in flames last year, but Deep Silver’s acquisition of Volition and their popular Saint’s Row franchise means fans of the increasingly outrageous series have a new game on the way this year that’s even more completely bonkers that the last installment. Don’t take this Hollywood-style trailer too seriously (well, it’s a bit hard to anyway, given the F-Bomb gets dropped twice in it and is seen once onscreen as a character’s nickname), as the open world gameplay, newly super-powered characters and sci-fi elements are only adding to the mayhem the franchise is known for. THAT said, I hope this adding of fantasy elements to the mix means that Volition will FI-NALLY try their hand at making another game in the Summoner series. The first was flawed but interesting and the second was better overall (and had a female lead and some intriguing party members and plot twists), so it would be cool to see something coming on a new console that takes elements from the previous titles and adds a new chapter to things. Hey, that’s what I’d be thinking of as a follow-up, but we’ll probably get a Saint’s Row V instead…

Ride to Hell: Retribution “Built, Not Bought” Trailer: Hmm, How About A Slice of Iron Pie?

Posted on June 1, 2013 by geelw

Well, OK… you can technically add food to stuff you can “build” and not buy off the shelf, but who’s writing this lame material, hmmm? Anyway, Deep Silver’s and Eutechnyx’ grindhouse biker action game is still on the way and sure, it’s not going to win any Game of the Year awards for visuals, but it just may be a hell of a lot more fun than some expect. Especially because you absolutely CAN’T judge a game by looks alone in this day and age. Hell, that would kill nearly the whole retro/indie games market in one go. As I’ve noted elsewhere, if it’s fun to play and makes you laugh in all the right spots (as in WITH the game, not AT it), it’s a keeper. Sort of like with people, you know…

Metro: Last Light Ranger Survival Guide Trailer: McGuyver’s Got Nothing On Artyom…

Posted on April 29, 2013 by geelw

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I actually recently (and FINALLY) completed the absolutely tense and brilliant Metro 2033 on a borrowed Xbox 360 (as the ones I own are dead as doornails, dammit) and it’s still one of the best and most frightening first-person games I’ve ever played. Between the destroyed Moscow landscape, the ruined tunnels survivors make do in and those dreadful mutations they fight against, there’s a great deal of details in that game and this follow-up, Deep Silver’s Metro: Last Light that make it a must-play experience. The fact that the game isn’t a straight up shooter and has elements of adventure and role-playing games while feeling downright frightening and depressing as your avatar, Artyom and his beat up survival gear barely make it through the radioactive hell makes it a keeper I’ll go back to again and again.

As I’ve said before, this game and a few others where so much thought and work has gone into crafting a world and characters you want to live with for a while are all the same to me like great novels are to someone who collects books. I’ve actually never read anything by Russian sci-fi author Dmitry Glukhovsky has written, but based on the near-flawless atmosphere these two games have, I just may be adding a new book or two to my already packed list. Thankfully, 4A Games is absolutely committed to making this a story-driven solo experience, so we won’t be saddled with mindless multiplayer modes of running around shooting each other in the face for no good reason than collecting XP and yelling obscenities over headset microphones. Besides, in this version of the future, you’re better off saving any ammo you can find and settling your differences with a a blunt or sharp object you can repair or replace afterwards…

Metro: Last Light hits PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on May 14, 2013, so if you’re looking for a bleak, purely terrifying slice of post-nuclear survival action, this is probably going to be your best bet for a good long while…