Bundle Stars & PC Gamer Magazine Want A Million Of YOU To Grab A Free Game For The Next Few Weeks!

Posted on July 2, 2014 by geelw

Okay, I missed posting the news last week thanks to CE Week overload, but for the next four weeks, Bundle Stars and PC Gamer.com are giving away FREE GAMES- woo hoo! This week, it’s the weird and wild mix of multiplayer only first-person shooting in a WWII setting and Jurassic Park gone wilder, Dino D-Day up for grabs as a Steam code.

Just look at the “cover art” poster for this digital-only game:

Yeah, that’s kind of attention grabbing, isn’t it?

“How the heck do I get one of those codes, mister?” you ask? EASY. If you clicked on that link above, you already know. If you didn’t, all you need is a free Steam account, a PC capable of running the game and time to play it. You also may as well sign up for Bundle Stars while you’re at it (this is free to do, by the way) just to stay up to date on the great deals they have on the site every day!

Oh, and if that poster didn’t sell you, this old trailer SHOULD:

So, don’t sleep on this one – who can pass up FREE (especially if it’s got well-armed dinosaurs you can play as or against!)? Anyway, three more weeks to go and three more free Steam codes on the way for a lucky million gamers!

Hyrule Warriors Trailers: Four Times The “You Need To Buy This Game!” Courtesy of Nintendo…

Posted on July 1, 2014 by geelw

As a longtime fan of the Dynasty Warriors franchise and its odd and always interesting offshoots, Hyrule Warriors is going to not only be a must buy game for me, I predict it may move a few Wii U’s if it’s got the same sort of longevity the other games based on the Musou engine have. One thing the DW franchise has done perfectly over the years is give players way too many characters and so much action that every entry is an exercise in joyous overkill some love. Granted, the repetition tends to set in after a while and yes, can get to be tedious is you’re sucked in for too many hours. On the other hand, the land of Hyrule in the hands of veteran developers Omega Force and Team Ninja will no doubt make for such a brilliant teaming that this one will be nearly impossible to dislike.

On the other hand, I may have a slight gripe with the game if it’s just a series of battles and very little plot. I’m sure we’ll get cut scenes and a general plot working away here, but I’m hoping for something that does a good job of showing why Princess Zelda finally gets to kick a bunch of butt after all these years of needing Link to get her out of harm’s way. Actually, I hope that the game does well so we can see some sort of follow up that’s less a Dynasty Warriors re-skin, but something more akin to the highly underrated PS3 exclusive Trinity: Souls of Zill O’ll. Take that game, add the ability for local co-op play (and perhaps online if the frame rate can be kept stable) and you have an even more excellent game that bridges a few genres and franchises… Continue reading →

Gallery: New Raven’s Cry Screenshots + A Little Shanty To Spice Up Your Monday (Arrrr!)

Posted on June 30, 2014 by geelw

Ahoy! My Monday’s running a wee bit late, but at least some things are working better than they were yesterday (and how!). The laptop isn’t rattling, there’s a nice strong wi-fi signal today (this past weekend was lousy!) and the fine folks at TopWare Interactive shot over a cannonball with four new Raven’s Cry screens that missed me by a mile, but there’s now a nice cannonball-shaped hole in the wall here. And you know what? I’m not even mad about that because I happen to think porthole windows are cool!

I just need to see if Home Depot has any in stock about the size of a ten-pound cannonball hole. I suppose I should let Dean over at Topware know that if he plans to shoot a review copy of the game over to aim for the roof, as I don’t think I need another hole in a wall here (or worse, through the porthole window I just installed.

Say, do ye fancy a shanty that’s not for the wee ones? Good! Topware has also dropped a second adults-only sea shanty called “Hangin’ Wille” that will make some of you laugh and others cringe accordingly. Like the other NSFW shanty “Sail With the Devil”, it’s got some VERY salty language that would make even a dead pirate blush. I’d post both videos here, but I’d probably get a second and better-aimed cannonball from the ladies out there. Hey, the life of a pirate wasn’t all TV series fodder and booze commercials, you know! Anyway, Raven’s Cry will be sailing into stores for PC/Mac, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 on October 14, 2014.

Back with more on this one soon – I should probably invest in a cannonball catcher or something…

E3 2014: Focus Home Interactive Wants You To Focus On These Two Upcoming Games…

Posted on June 27, 2014 by geelw

Focus Home Interactive has two big games coming for PC and next-generation consoles and if this fourteen minutes of gameplay from the upcoming game STYX: Master of Shadows isn’t getting you grinning at the possibilities of just how cool it is to play that nasty little goblin assassin, I have not a clue what will get your interest piqued. This one’s coming later this summer and it’s great to see third party games like this and others filling up the PS4 and Xbox One library until the big first-party games roll out around the holidays and beyond.

On the even more intense front, fans of Games Workshop’s Warhammer 40,000 will be more than thrilled to see Space Hulk finally making a welcome return as a first-person shooter in the upcoming Space Hulk: Deathwing, coming from developer Streum On Studio. While all you get here is some in engine footage and not actual first-person gameplay with whatever HUD will (or won’t) be onscreen, Epic’s Unreal 4 engine is certainly making what you do see look pretty incredible and Streum On definitely has some talent Check out the handful of screenshots below for more of what to expect and keep an eye on both of these games, I say…

Gravity Ghost: Your Soothingly Joyous Game Of The Month Is Almost Here…

Posted on June 25, 2014 by geelw

If it weren’t for a search mistake a few days back, I’d most likely have never stumbled across Gravity Ghost, the upcoming game from Ivy Games (also known as Erin Robinson). I’d also not have seen the other games on the site, all of which look like they’d be pretty fun to take for a spin. Anyway, GG is touted as a non-violent alternative where, according to the official site description:

“Gravity Ghost is a game to soothe your senses. There’s no killing. No dying. No way to fail. Just hours of blissing out to buttery-smooth gravity goodness…”

…which made me smile because all are things more games need in this era of run & shoot titles galore and plenty of players who no nothing but those. Games like GG are important because they open up the hobby to different types of gamers who may not desire to be head-shot kings and killer queens… Continue reading →

Gallery: End of Serenity

Posted on June 19, 2014 by geelw

Just when I was lamenting Natsume not updating its YouTube page, I get a load of screenshots and art from its E3 lineup to run here, so I’ll do just that over the next couple of days. first up is Edge of Serenity, the PSP exclusive (I’ll gather it’s Vita compatible but won’t confirm that until I hear it from someone out west) coming on June 24, 2014. As you can see this is all old-school JRPG goodness packed with classic 2D sprite art, turn-based battles and probably a very MIDI-esque music score to keep things nice and nostalgic.

Character profiles have also been revealed for the principals, so let’s meet the cast, shall we?

Yute is a tough young merchant with a strong sense of wrong and right; the dangers of the road have sharpened his sword skills despite his tender age. He can’t bear to turn away when he sees injustice.

Eril, also known as the Azure Sorceress, is set on exposing the Underworld’s nefarious plans. Using an Atomigem-powered weapon known as an Accelerator, her cold demeanor hides a heart bruised by her upraising in a small orphanage that she strives desperately now to save.

Kat, with her jingling bells and cat-like ears, may look like a teen, but she insists she is in fact over 100 years old! Only when she opens up her heart and reveals her secret will she ever truly be understood.

Earon is an undisputed master of martial arts. With his snow white hair, it’s no surprise this trainer was thinking about retirement…that is, before he discovered that one of his former pupils might be involved in the Underworld, and has set off to discover the truth.

Kaede is a pupil trained by Earon, accompanying him on his critical mission. Rumors swirl that she is actually the last of a village of ninjas; only Kaede knows the truth, but she’s not exactly talking…

20 new screens are below the jump – make sure to grab End of Serenity next week when it arrives on PSN!

Continue reading →

E3 2014: MilitAnt Trailer: Prepare to Bug Out in 2015 With Xibalba’s Upcoming PC/PSN Shooter

Posted on June 13, 2014 by geelw

Sure, you can say Indie games are a dime a dozen these days, but more often than not, keeping your ear to the ground will reveal cool stuff like this PC, PS3/PS4/Vita bound game, MilitAnt from Xibalba Studios. As I tend to love “old-school” stuff like this, I’m all in and wanting to see more.

Thankfully, the game’s site has a bunch of screens and art to show off, so some of that stuff is here. This one’s not due until 2015, so there’s plenty of time for Xilbalba to make it even better and hopefully (waaaaaait for it…) as bug-free as possible (A ha and ha-ha). Anyway, I’ll keep you posted on this one as more info and images creep out. You aren’t afraid of ants, right? I sure hope not!

E3 2014: Dragon Age Inquisition Gallery: Hold Your Jaw Up Before Viewing…

Posted on June 11, 2014 by geelw

Oh, the places you’ll go and the people you’ll meet in BioWare’s upcoming Dragon Age sequel. I’d gather that no matter which platform you’re buying this for, you’ll be treated to some wider open spaces and more overall freedom to explore, some great combat and of course, a memorable story with characters you’ll love, hate and love to hate.

No doubt, there’s also the pesky business of DLC from day one and onward, the bane of those gamers who don’t have a decent broadband connection at home and want to play this with every single bit of content. I suppose folks like that can wait for the inevitable Game of the Year or whatever it’s going to get called reissue to get them all that content at a cheaper price, but even that’s not guaranteed these days, as it seems even some reissues demand an online connection to redeem SOMETHING or just to get some information about who’s playing. Anyway, you can get your fix soon enough, as Dragon Age Inquisition will be in stores on October 7, 2014.

Back with more images to pore over in a bit…

E3 2014: No Man’s Sky: Take To The Stars And Explore In This Stunning Sci-Fi Soon To Be Smash…

Posted on June 10, 2014 by geelw

Hello Games, you just made E3 much better. No Man’s Sky, initially set for a PS4 and PC release, looks absolutely phenomenal and what’s even more amazing is the small developer (less than ten people made this!) almost lost their baby entirely to flooded offices last year. As you can see below, the game is looking as if that flood never, ever occurred:

Given that the last game I played with seamless transitions from first-person gameplay to piloting a spaceship was the interesting but still questionable Mace Griffin Bounty Hunter on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, this game is a complete revelation as to what an indie team with bigger goals can accomplish. No Man’s Sky truly looks like concept art come to life and if anyone else is getting a serious Ralph McQuarrie vibe (to me, THE late master of sci-fi film concept art thanks to his work on the original Star Wars films) , I’d bet they’re on the right track as to one of the dev team’s influences… Continue reading →

E3 2014: Alien Isolation “Survive” Trailer: Be Still, Your Beating Heart (Or Else)…

Posted on June 10, 2014 by geelw

Or else what?, you ask? Well, I’m sure one of those androids has superior hearing and can scope out that you’re hiding in a locker and that sole Alien in the game? Your ticker thumping away like the ghost of Gene Krupa pounding on a big kettle drum just might make you hope that big ugly thing is deaf in the head. Anyway, I’m gathering that The Creative Assembly’s upcoming Alien: Isolation will be certainly wiping away any memories of Aliens: Colonial Marines as it delivers a horror/sci-fi experience that’s closer to the tone and spirit of the first film and isn’t yet another first-person shooter for the pile. as noted earlier, I’m loving that The CA ha gone and made this for older as well as next-gen platforms, as the game will sell better on the PS3 and Xbox 360 thanks to both systems’ larger installed bases. However, I’m HOPING that anyone expecting a run ‘n gun experience realizes they should probably go watch Ridley Scott’s 1979 classic first to see what they’ll be in for.