Not just a skilled fighter, the Cleric can dish out some truly nasty spells that cause damage to all sorts of pesky creatures. Of course, going at it solo with the character is a challenge, but that’s the fun thing about these arcade games because they bend the D&D rules enough to allow anyone to play as any class and still have a complete blast. As in that Turn Undead spell completely blasting the game screen free of undead things before they get within chomping distance. Clerics don’t much care for zombie bites on their forearms (or foreheads, for that matter!). Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara goes on sale July 14 on PSN, Xbox Live Arcade, Nintendo’s eShop (for the Wii U) and PC. Yes, I’m still hoping there’s a Vita version coming down the road, as this one begs to be played on a road trip!
Tag Archives: Digital Games
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Hands-On: Starbreeze Takes A Brave New Direction
Starbreeze Studios and Josef Fares’ upcoming collaboration: Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (set for a spring launch on PC, PSN and Xbox Live Arcade) is an important game for a few reasons, but it’s also a game you actually need to play in order to understand how and why it works so well. The acclaimed Swedish director and well-seasoned developer have crafted a gorgeous-looking fantasy adventure tale with an innovative control scheme, smart camera system and no GUI to take away from the immersion, all of which make the game unique but accessible once you wrap your head around controlling two characters with a single controller.
There have been many games where players were either followed around by “smart” AI characters or controlled multiple characters on the same screen, but Brothers’ unique control scheme gently demands that both halves of your brain operate in unison right from the start, as many of the puzzles you’ll face require timing and precision in order to progress. Just remember that your left side of the controller is Big Brother and the right side Little Brother and it all clicks into place…
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Papo & Yo Comes to Steam (And Yes, It’s On Sale For A Few Days More)…
Oops (again!). I’d not even realized Papo & Yo was on Steam (for PC!) as of a few days ago until I did that article below on Among the Sleep. Anyway, if your PC or laptop can run this one and you’re a fan of offbeat stuff with a personal touch, BUY THIS GAME! New to the PC version are nicely updated visuals and Steam Achievements, and yes, you can (and should) use a controller to play. As you can see, the game looks quite lovely running on a higher resolution than an SD or cheaper model HD television:
Until April 28, 2013, this one’s on sale for $13.49 and is worth every penny. You can also pay a few bucks more ($16.99) and grab the game’s excellent soundtrack so your ears can be as entertained as your eyes.
Among the Sleep: Child’s Play Gets A Whole New Meaning In this Upcoming Indie Game…
I can only think of a very few games that are played from the perspective of children and all of them are indie-made sleepers. In addition to a few RPG Maker games, there’s Papo & Yo, Baby Blues and now, Among the Sleep, which looks to be the most intriguing for a few reasons. First, the protagonist is a mere two years old, second, it’s a horror-themed game that doesn’t revolve around combat (I don’t know any two-year old babies who can carry around a rocket launcher and Rambo-sized knife). It’s also a recent Kickstarter project that’s garnering a lot of interest for its theme and excellent visuals. Hamar, Norway-based Krillbite Studios is crafting this gem up carefully.
There are minor similarities to Baby Blues in that the game has a young child and a teddy bear as key elements of the experience. However, Among the Sleep focuses on its child escaping from a nightmare and from the production art shown so far, the game looks to take on a more fantasy-themed twist as it progresses. Hmmm… Keep an eyeball on this one, pony up a pledge if you like what you see and someone get Guillermo Del Toro on the horn – a film version looks right up his strange, dark alley. That or, hell, I’d ring up LArry Cohen and get his blessing to do his cult 1974 flick, It’s Alive as a game, complete with that creepy Bernard Herrmann score and the film’s shocks and scares intact.
Ride to Hell: Retribution: “No Rules” Means You’re Always The Man…
Deep Silver’s awesome, violent “grindhouse” biker action game looks like one of those interesting Mature-rated sleepers that really doesn’t give a dead rat’s ass about some jerky politicians and parents groups whining about video games being the modern scourge of the earth, but that’s a good thing. Anyone with half a brain and no Sunday soapbox to stand on who’s actually HELD a controller knows that games don’t CAUSE violence at all and hell, if this were some TV movie or rolling up into a theater near you, you wouldn’t hear much about it save for whatever some overpaid film “critic” says. For those concerned adults running around with their hair aflame, I say just keep little Johnny and his soft, easily molded brain away from it and the world is a safer place. Anyway, June 25, 2013 seems to be the day this one hits the road with all engines burning. I’m liking what I see, so yup – I’ll be playing this for sure…
Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon: Michael Biehn Gets Back To Work…
It’s actually pretty darn cool that Ubisoft has tapped Michael Biehn to voice lead character Rex “Power” Colt in its intentionally campy send-up of way too many dopey (but awesome in their dopiness) 80’s action flicks, but I’ve had a burning question I’ve wanted to ask the actor ever since I saw The Terminator at the movies back when it was initially released. It’s bugged the HELL out of me that fresh through that time portal, a naked Kyle Reese gets his only pair of pants off a drunken homeless guy in an alley (Yuk!) and wears them throughout the entire film (Blech!), doesn’t go near a shower like he should (Ick!) but STILL gets it on with Sarah Conner (Nooooo!). That’s always made my skin crawl more than Arnold (well, his mechanical dummy head) doing “surgery” on himself by poking his own eyeball out with an X-Acto knife in that hotel scene. I guess Sarah had some pretty low standards and no sense of smell. Then again, SHE got to bathe when they got to the Tiki Motel – all Kyle did was buy stuff to make explosives.
Hey, I’m a continuity junkie, folks… I notice stuff like this in every movie I see. Hmmm… then again, maybe I’ll take this issue up with James Cameron. What’s his number again?
Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen Enemies (2): Dying Just Got A Lot More Painfully Interesting…
Just watching this latest Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen gameplay trailer makes me say “Ouch!” because I know some of these new creatures will be a pain to take down quickly. But as with the first game, it’s a learning experience when you encounter a new enemy in this game world. Check out its weaknesses, go at it with your best skills and make sure your pawns are up to speed. Hmmm… Now I’m feeling the need to play through the first game again… but with all the work I need to get done, that’s not going to happen at all. Unless someone creates time travel before Dark Arisen hits retail for the PS3 and Xbox 360 on April 23, 2013… which isn’t so far away at all. Yaaaah! The pain of having too darn many games to play, think of playing (or replaying). Well, there are far worse things to be worried about in the real world, of course…
DARK Skills Trailer: Vampires Do Make Some Pretty Good Sneaky Characters…
This newest slice of gameplay from DARK, developed by Realmforge and set to be published by Kalypso Media, is looking like quite a surprise sleeper in my book. Vampire-themed games aren’t exactly a dime a dozen these days, so it’s great to see a dev team tackle one and make it look and based on the trailers I’ve seen, play so well. As I noted previously, I’m REALLY hoping it does well enough on PC and Xbox live that it can also appear on other platforms, as this is just the sort of indie game that deserves a wider and more appreciative audience. As always, we shall see…
GTA V “Cash & Carry” Artwork: More Teasing From Rockstar…

Oh, I really have nothing to say here but enjoy the artwork. I love how Rockstar’s artists tell these little stories in every image and while open to interpretation, you KNOW that somewhere in that massive fictional version of California, someone is looking at a recently emptied safe formerly full of ill-gotten games and yelling for the cops or their “boys” to go on the hunt for the thieves. Well, good luck with that. September 17, 2013 is the release date, by the way…

Telltale Game’s Poker Night At The Inventory 2: The Joke(r)’s On Me…
Yeah, yeah – I was SO wrong about this one and yes, I did go break out that last crow pie from the freezer. Eh, no big deal though, as I don’t play poker at all and will probably not buy this one even at the measly five bucks it’s going to cost. Hey, but don’t let me stop you from tossing that digital fin into Telltale’s coffers. It sure looks like fun and yes, those pop cultchah characters from certain games and movies are making the fans drool and moon like teenage boys peeking over the fence at their hot next door neighbor’s sunbathing routine. Ewww… this post went south quicker than usual, huh? OK, but if you’re THAT hardcore a poker player, you’ve probably seen a few boobs from all those years playing. And some of them even had the nerve to try and bluff when you knew they weren’t holding anything close to a good hand. See what I did there? SAVE! OK, I’m outta here… well, for THIS post…
