Capcom Arcade Cabinet 1987 Trailer: Three of a Perfect Pair For Your PS3 or 360…

 

Sneaky, Capcom… so sneaky! Give away one game for FREE (the awesome side-scrolling action/platformer Black Tiger) to hook us in before making us pay up for the two others in this first trio of arcade classics. Well, five bucks for Avenger and 1943: Battle of Midway along with that freebie isn’t a bad deal at the end of the day considering it’s the first of a few cool oldies hitting PSN and XBLA this year. You can get in on your gratis Black Tiger plus set NOW on PSN for $4.99 and Xbox Live Arcade for 400 Microsoft Points, and get much more info on what else Capcom has up their sleeves in the future Bwith this super cool Arcade Cabinet collection HERE. Now, about getting these onto the Vita and Wii U… hopefully, that’s part of the plan at some point, as a little nostalgia is good for all gamers.

DESTINY: Bungie’s Big Ideas & Big World Need Big Gameplay To Get My Money…

So, the big, big not so secret big game revealed today at Bungie HQ is an all-new IP for Activision and a purported innovative open world sort of multiplayer FPS (don’t call it a MMO!) called Destiny with a heavy social tilt and a ton of intriguing elements that look and sound grand on paper and in print (and in video – see above)… but I’m not all in just yet. One MASSIVE problem I have with these press events where ideas and concepts and big talk about the future come up and cycle about the room is until there’s ACTUAL gameplay to be seen. Sure, I know Bungie can most likely deliver the goods their fan base expects and then some. However, I’ve never seen a game that delivered as much as promised after a huge press event such as this one.

That said, I’m more than happy to be proven wrong, but the game has lost my interest already thanks to the online only play and heavy cream emphasis on “social” play. Ugh. I don’t own an iPhone, my internet connection blows and I like my games story-driven and immersive outside of flashy visuals and cast of thousands scope. I’ll only cover this again after I get to PLAY it, as it’s a case of so much promise that might not deliver everything at the same time plus a bunch of other things that annoy me to no end. Hey, at least I’m a positive skeptic willing to change my mind after finally tasting what’s on the menu that’s been waved under my nose all day…

Rocketbirds: Hardboiled Chicken Flies In For a Welcome Rescue Mission…

 

Arriving in time to give me a break from all this writing (oh, I’m not done, folks – I still have a TON of Toy Fair stuff to do as well as more hands-on articles), Ratloop Asia’s fine and funny side-scrolling action/platform/adventure game (also available as a PS3 game via PSN) is saving my brain bacon from crisping up too much. So far, it’s fun and funny in an 80’s action flick meets old-school NES game kind of way, but that’s a good thing, as I wasn’t expecting Shakespeare on Ice or whatever. Actually, I go into most reviews with NO expectations, so I’m pleasantly surprised so far. Anyway, a review will indeed go up shortly. Most likely after that big, fat Sony event on Wednesday while I’m trying to recover from THAT madness. Stay tuned…

Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army: February 28 Is Now D-Day For The Undead…

SE_NZA_2013

Three words used together that will either make you laugh like a lunatic, run screaming for the hills (or dive under the couch) or let out an “Oh Yeah!” are Nazi Zombie Army and it seems that developer Rebellion has not only figured this out, they’ve cooked up a new standalone co-op themed Sniper Elite V2 expansion for PC that’s coming out at the end of the month. I like the story idea the guys thought up, as tossing together four soldiers from a few sides of the conflict who’d probably be trying to kill each other and having them work together after things get a wee bit too supernatural thanks to a certain infamous would be great dictator and his final push to win the war in Europe.

Check out the rather gory trailer if you dare here, boogie on over to Steam to pre-order it for $14.99 and if you’re a PS3, 360 or Wii U owner, hope this comes out on consoles at some point at a similar budget price point. Yeah, it’s not for everyone, but i can’t think of too many folks who actually like Nazis or Zombies, especially in armies coming at you with intent to chomp on your brains. Don’t blame those bath salts, either…

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen Enemies Trailer: Treasure Hunting Just Got A Lot Tougher…

 
 

Capcom is making sure Dragon’s Dogma fans will be coming back for more and staying put in the land of Gransys for even longer, primarily trying to survive some of these new enemy types. Fire breathing lizards, A gigantic reaper who needs to get his sheet suit cleaned, a few giants, and probably worst of all, monsters in some treasure chests. Talk about a jerk-in-the-box! All you wanted was a nice sack of gold or a new sword or something nice… but, nooooo. You get a mutant thing popping out of that chest and chewing on your head instead of that shiny prize. Well, it’ll sure keep many DD players on their toes, that’s for sure. April 23rd (April 26th in Europe) isn’t really that far away if you think about it. That’s plenty of time to go through the original game before this expansion OR you can wait and pick up Dark Arisen at retail which will have the complete game and expansion on a single disc for a mere $39.99… It’s coin flip time, I guess, but the good thing is if you have a save file from the original game you can transfer it over and not have to replay from the beginning (unless you REALLY want to and have that kind of free time on your hands).

Capcom Arcade Cabinet: Auntie MAME’ers Won’t Be Happy, But Everyone Else Will (Maybe)…

 
 

Capcom Arcade Cabinet KAYeah, yeah – if you use the hugely popular (and according to some, not so legal) arcade emulator, you already “own” these games in their original formats, but Capcom is wagging its finger at you (well, just lightly).  Capcom Arcade Cabinet is on the way, adding HD visuals, modern multiplayer functionality and a load of other stuff to these 15+ classics and making them available as three-game sets or one big bulk download pack over PSN and XBLA starting February 19, 2013. Of course, thanks to licensing rights and other hassles beyond their current control, we STILL don’t get an updated version of the stellar Dungeons & Dragons arcade game (boo!) that NEEDS to get re-issued somewhere at some point on something (grrrr!). Oh well, those Capcom fanatics who aren’t eternally pissy whiners about everything the company does these days (why don’t they just find another publisher to stalk if they’re so displeased?) will be happy with what’s here or on the way.

Anyway, games and pricing are below the jump. Get the whole pack, save some money and get a few free games in the process, I say… Continue reading

Wallet Drain Alert! Xseed Games Brings It With Some Awesome Surprises…

404

Wow and double wow. First we get the spectacular news that Pandora’s Tower is headed to North America and now Xseed is setting out to make 2013 even better for their fans (and possibly their best year to date) by announcing a VERY cool selection of new titles plus yet another classic Nihon Falcom JRPG set heading to PC gamers via Steam. Even better, everything but the Steam download is getting a retail release!  Yes, I’m typing this post with a big fat grin on my face, as I want everything here that’s coming.

More below the jump! Continue reading

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…

 

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…