PSN Flash Sale: Some October Surprises Abound

Posted on October 15, 2016 by geelw

Nice. Here I am, trying NOT to spend any more money this month and here comes Sony, kicking my door in and nicely trying to rob me blind with another Flash Sale. “Oh, hey, sorry! We’ll replace the door we kicked in… if you BUY SOMETHING! Heh.” FINE. Well, maybe. I kinda like that cross ventilation thing happening now. Then again, nosy neighbor factor increases by 100% plus there goes my game and movie collection while I try to sleep, sooooo… blast you Sony! *Sigh* I may as well pick up one thing just so my door goes back up today.

-GW

Just Feel: A Little Indie Action on Hump Day

Posted on October 12, 2016 by geelw

Let’s talk about s-e-x for a hot minute. Most popular videogames act like it doesn’t exist or it’s made essential to a story as a “relationship” deal where it’s mishandled like a giraffe trying to juggle watermelons while playing the bongos. Boo to most of the AAA game industry and it’s primarily clumsy pawing of a subject that should be gently approached and touched in just the right places.

Meanwhile, over in France (where the heck else?), seven first-year students at Le Cnam-Enjmin took three months to make Just Feel, a very short, FREE, and let’s just say “educational” game about…

Well, let’s just see what the game page says:

The goal of this project is to mention sensuality and the pleasure in a poetic and subtle way.

The idea is to show a form of sensual relation without taboo and vulgarity.

In this experience the player personifies a caress metaphor.

This project is focus on the flow feeling.

Relaxation and surprise.

This is a 10 minutes experience.

While this one’s a bit too easy to describe how to play and the overall goal, you still kind of need to play it and see…er, feel for yourself what the deal is. In fact, BEFORE you play, watch the let’s play video for a bit of hilarity as the guy playing can’t quite figure out where he’s at on the figure. Some girls and guys will get a chuckle and “It figures…” head shake while watching. Hey, some of us need a lot of practice. Yeah, me included.

Anyway, you may blush a little before the game times out, but it’s tastefully done (quiet back there!) and abstract enough to indeed be called art. So, um. Go give it a try, I say.

I guess I should score this, right? Okay, 1 point a minute makes this a perfect 10.

-GW

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Duke Nukem 3D: 20th Anniversary World Tour Launch Trailer (NSFW)

Posted on October 11, 2016 by geelw

Oh, boy. Invading space aliens with planetary conquest on the brain beware! Duke Nukem 3D is back and yes, it’s freakin’ 1996 all over again. Personally, I love the big, macho lug because he’s a COMPLETELY fictional videogame character who’s larger than life, impossible to confuse with any REAL-LIFE person what with his over the top vices, uber manly urges and penchant for snazzy one-liners mixed with threats to wreck and harm with extreme prejudice. I know no one like that in real life and neither do you, right? Oh, okay, okay… THIS GUY counts.

Um, Anyway… thanks to Gearbox Software, the man himself is BACK in action in a kinda throwback re-look at his biggest adventure with a few additions for a measly $19.99 on Steam, PS4, and Xbox One. GROOVY. Get it, I say. Review incoming shortly, as I see the King has followed me home.

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-GW

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Earth Defense Force 5: If You Just Needed ONE Game in 2017…

Posted on October 9, 2016 by geelw

Holy Crap. I’d been so busy last month with missing consoles and personal stuff that I very COMPLETELY forgot to pay closer attention to Tokyo Game Show (TGS). Well, thanks to me finally coming up for air and asking myself while playing EDF 4.1 on my PS4 last night “Hmm, I wonder if any EDF5 news was announced…” before I passed out for the duration. Yes, the PS4 has an auto shutdown, thank you very much.

Anyway, I woke up this morning with bugs on the brain, checked YouTube and… WOW:

Yeah, I need this. I decided to look up some actual hands-on play and… my eyes are around here somewhere, as is my jaw:

Good gravy on a stick. Give me this, Breath of the Wild, a ton of indies and I’m good for all of 2017.

-GW

Hide and Shriek: Funcom Looks To Scare Up Some MP Madness For Halloween

Posted on October 5, 2016 by geelw

Last October, Funcom released the great chilling single player horror adventure The Park, a fairly short and somewhat bleak experience that was memorable on a few levels and well worth its price point. This year, the company is going for a more lighthearted online 1 v 1 multiplayer-focused experience with Hide & Shriek, set to launch later this month (Did someone say SOON-o-ween? No? Must have been the wind!).

Teaser? What teaser? Oh.. THAT teaser! Let’s have a look now, shall we?

Here’s a bit more about what to expect:

It`s Halloween and the students of magic at Little Springs High and Innsmouth Academy are about to honor an ancient tradition: sneaking into school after midnight, turning themselves invisible, and scaring the living hell out of each other!

Hide and Shriek is a one vs. one multiplayer romp played out in ten minute matches. Your objective is simple: be a mischievous little rascal and scare your opponent half to death before time runs out! If there is no clear winner when the timer stops, the player with the most points wins the game. Points can be acquired by scaring your opponent, luring them into traps, or performing an ancient ritual.

There is just one catch: you are both invisible!

You will need to use cunning traps and potent spells to reveal your opponent. Once you spot them, sneak up on them and give them a good scare! Just remember they are looking for you too, and if you`re not careful you might be the one jumping in your seat!

Play with friends or strangers in ten-minute one vs. one multiplayer matches!
You are both invisible! You will need all your cunning to spot your opponent: look for doors opening, objects flying in midair, or traps being sprung!
Over thirty different spells to discover, each with their own impish effect: blind your opponent, booby-trap doors, unleash a demon upon them, and much more!
Shriek at your opponent to scare them! Use scary masks of famous characters like Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, or use skulls and zombie heads that can be modified with accessories like gooey eyeballs, bloody hatchets, and much more!
Dominate the leaderboards or get scared trying!

Well, then… I’m gathering this one will scare up some decent sales soon enough with or without the political addition some on both sides of the isle here in the U.S. of A. may get a bit testy over. But hey, all in good fun, right? Anyway, the idea is solid, those visuals look great and if the price is right, this one could be a seasonal smash hit when all is said and dome.

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Wii U Quickies: PONCHO, Meet Severed

Posted on October 5, 2016 by geelw

With the Wii U seemingly in its final year of being a viable console to some pundits and players, it’s very important to note the console has in fact been the recipient of a number of incredible indie games over the past few months, most recently through the eShop Nindies selection.

Sure, first party titles are always key and should be on any console worth its salt. But the indie scene on Wii U is chock full of cool titles that Wii U-only gamers have either gotten in the past, are getting now or have been popping up as improved ports over versions previously released on PC or other consoles. Most are well worth an instant buy for those who want to support both Nintendo and the dev teams that cook up these gems. Here’s a quick look at two of the best you can buy (in no particular order, of course):

PONCHO (Rising Star Games, via Nintendo eShop, $9.99): Delve Interactive’s gorgeous, highly challenging side-scrolling platformer’s best tricks are the unique gameplay that has you hopping between different planes to progress through levels, and how surprisingly tough yet slyly meditative the game can be.

While a nice retro vibe is indeed here to be felt by nostalgic minded gamers, the lovely pixel visuals get kicked up into the modern age thanks to plenty of tricks older hardware couldn’t pull off so fluidly. The open world mixes in plenty of surprises to discover, with no lives system in play to drive you batty. That said, prepare to leap of faith your way in some cases where you have no other options but to cross your fingers, toes and anything else save for your eyes because you need to kind of stick that landing.

Jumping like mad through foreground, middle, and background elements like a champ, chatting up cute to not so cute robots who have a lot on their metal mind cases and overall, spending a good long time in this rich, intriguing game world learning what’s what makes this one a keeper of a sleeper. And yes, the music is pretty much perfect, emulating and enhancing its 16-bit inspired tunes that drive the action onscreen.

Score: B+ (85%)

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FREE STUFF Non-Friday: Albino Lullaby Wants YOU!

Posted on October 4, 2016 by geelw

Well, oooh. With Halloween creeping up this month, indie developer Ape Law is doing a bit of early celebrating and YOU get to reap a little big reward. I have ONE code for the Steam version of Albino Lullaby here to give away to a lucky winner, but starting October 7th, the rest of you can and should get this oddball game at that temporary 40% off price here if what you see has rattled your cage enough.

To enter, just post a reply below and I’ll pick a winner at random later tonight. Nothing fancy need be said, as usual. Yes, having a Steam account and a PC capable of running this makes sense.

Press release… from THE FUTURE below the jump. Wait, Ape Law has a time machine? Woooooo…

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Gurumin 3D: Priced, Themed – Now It Just Needs A Hot Date

Posted on September 17, 2016 by geelw

More happy news for you 3DS owners out there: Mastiff has announced a release date, price point and bonus downloadable themes for Gurumin 3D. You may commence with the happy dancing if you so desire:

During PAX West we let press in on a couple of exclusive secrets that we are now ready to share with you. First, the price. We are happy to let you know that Gurumin 3D will be released on the Nintendo 3DS eShop for the shortcake-sweet price of $14.99. And second, at launch we will also be releasing multiple themes to decorate your 3DS with. One of these themes will be free with purchase! We’re still undecided which theme we’re including, but rest assured you’ll be getting one theme for free ninety-nine! ;D

As for those themes, I like this one the best:

But Mastiff wants to hear from YOU about which of these others you prefer, preferably on their Facebook and Twitter pages:

What? Did you say you wanted a handy video screenshot/art gallery combo? Okay. Here you go:

I think that’s it… well, that actual release date is still incoming, so that will be the next big news on the plate to watch for.

-GW

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Review: REFUNCT

Posted on September 3, 2016 by geelw

Ladies and gentlemen, this is quite possibly the shortest review I’ve written about a game I like a lot, so let’s see if you can all hold a breath in and read this in one shot. Ready? GO!:

I wasn’t expecting much from REFUNCT when a code invite popped into my inbox, but I wisely looked up (and downloaded) the developer’s previous game, REFUNKTION and saw that this simple but gorgeous Unreal 4-powered sequel was a response to some saying that first game was too difficult. REFUNCT didn’t take long to complete and while incredibly easy, manages to be brilliantly conceived and executed.

No instructions needed here, just intuitive controls using k+m or a controller, some surprising jumping (that should be adopted into other first-person games) and a payoff that brought a smile to my face (and a bigger one after that when I was able to get 100% after completing the game when I tried to better the 98% I ended with). Telling more would be spoiling things, but there’s no “story” to speak of and in fact, the whole thing seems more like a lovely test for a far larger project down the road. It took about 45 minutes to complete at a leisurely pace, but I took it slow and even quit out to go have lunch at one point. Some players have made it to the end in half an hour or less, but your mileage may vary, as the saying goes.

If anything, creator Dominique Grieshofer should expand the game into an entire series of puzzles on the same map and keep the same enemy-free, death-less approach. The feeling of finally playing wall-climb sequences in a game that aren’t frustrating series of trial and error runs was exhilarating to say the least. The feeling of finally playing wall-climb sequences in a game that aren’t frustrating series of trial and error runs was exhilarating to say the least. Now, I want more. You will too. Go get this and have a blast.

REFUNCT is a mere $2.99 on Steam. REFUNKTION is free on indieDB, but it’s hard as hell in a great way. You may as well get both.

Score: A- (90%)

-GW

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Review: Laser Disco Defenders (Vita)

Posted on September 2, 2016 by geelw

And I thought Assault Suits Leynos was tough. HA!

LDD art

Platform: PlayStation Vita (PSN)
Developer: Out of Bounds Games
Publisher: Excalibur Games
# of Players: 1
MSRP: $9.99
ESRB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10+)
Official Site
Score: A (90%)

Don’t let the cute art style and funky tunes fool you one bit, folks. Laser Disco Defenders is a tough cookie of a shooter that will test the skills and patience of the most hardcore gamers out there. Ten bucks is a bargain for a game that takes a while to complete and will keep the best coming back for more. That trailer makes it look like a simple “pew-pew-pew!” casual bit of fluff, but make no mistake – the game will eat your lunch before you make it to the first boss and it only gets tougher as you progress. At some point the more impatient out there will possibly want to jump up and down on their poor Vitas simply because stomping on both hands will only result with some nurse feeding them applesauce for a few weeks.