Gallery: Mystic Chronicles (Or: Natsume Keeps The PSP Flame Burning Into The Summer Months)

Posted on February 23, 2013 by geelw

Well, well, well… I didn’t even know Japanese developer/publisher Kemco was still around these days, but thanks to Natsume deciding to localize the company’s iOS RPG Fantasy Chronicle for North America as Mystic Chronicles for a summer 2013 release, I’m a bit happier to see the developer still cranking out fun games that more genre fans here in the US will get to enjoy. Tile-based 16-bit visuals straight out of the SNES and Genesis days? Check. First-person field and dungeon combat (and turn-based at that)? Check. Cute anime/manga art all over the place (like it or not – I happen to like it a lot in this type of game). Check.

All I need to know now is when it’s coming out and how much I need to spend to get my grubby paws on it (retail is preferred, but I’ll take a PSN code to get my fix). Hey, I have three PSP’s here, at least one of which gets regular usage (Earth Defense Force 2 Portable has been on constant play here since I got it from Play-Asia), so I won’t be needing to go nuts digging through the Bins of Doom here looking for them.

Anyway, onwards to the gallery with you! Watch your step and duck, as it’s below the jump… Continue reading →

Review: Rocketbirds: Hardboiled Chicken (Vita)

Posted on February 23, 2013 by geelw

Platform: PlayStation Vita (via PSN)
Developer/Publisher: Ratloop Asia
# of Players: 1 (online 2 – 4)
ESRB: Rating: M (Mature)
Official Site
Score: A- (90%)
Before you even ask, nope, Rocketbirds: Hardboiled Chicken has absolutely NOTHING to do with Angry Birds. Zero. Zilch. So, please clear that Jenga with a slingshot game out of your heads before reading further (I’ll wait)… and if you happen to have grown up playing classic NES side-scrollers, a few too many platform-based puzzle games and maybe a few oddball arcade flight shooters, well… this game’s got your name on it somewhere. Ratloop Asia (sorry, but that studio name makes me want to avoid eating Chinese food for a few days) has cooked up a tasty bird buffet that’s a tad spicy for the kids thanks to a bit of foul (or is that fowl?) language, blood and lots of stabby and shooty violence. But for those of you Vita owners with a sense of humor and a few bucks in your pocket, it’s a guaranteed fun time while it lasts. A few new Vita-exclusive elements added makes this the most complete version out there and yes, it’s a definite must-buy if you’re looking for a solid adventure that, while not the longest game out there, is going to get a few replays and perhaps even stay on that memory card long after you’re all done.

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Despicable Me 2 Toy Profile of the Week (1): A Few Minions For Your Approval…

Posted on February 23, 2013 by geelw

Meet Minions Stuart, Phil and Dave,
(of them I’ll post this little rave)

They’re three fun guys full of surprise
and just a few bucks each.
They’ll fit in pocket, purse or bag,
(I think they’d like the beach)

Thinkway has made them all just right
they’ll make you smile a lot
That said, I’d keep mine at home
so mischief happens not!

Pictured, three Collectible Figures from the upcoming Despicable Me 2 toy line (2”-3.5”), Age: 4+; Approximate Retail Price: $4.99 – Available starting in May at a retailer near you.

Bugbear Entertainment Has Been Some Busy Bees. You’ll Want A Seat Belt For This One.

Posted on February 23, 2013 by geelw

I’ve had a mad crush (pun intended) on Bugbear Entertainment and their games since I first got a debug demo for FlatOut on the original Xbox many years back and played it to death. I have almost all their other racers (yes, even Glimmerati for the Nokia N-Gage, which needs to remade for other platforms so more people can see how fun it is) and in general, all you need is one go at any of their games to see that these guys love making arcade style racing games that aren’t supercar showcases at all. They’re still around and have made some fine racers, but some were better than others and while each game was well worth playing, I felt it would be a nice thing to see the developer go back to its roots and do something that was fun and chaotic with a hefty amount of car damage making it a guaranteed smash with fans of this type of game. Hey, car puns are too easy to write – I’m holding back here just so I don’t go overboard, folks…
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HBO’s Phil Spector Trailer: Earplugs For The Wall of Sound (With A Pair of Blinders Too)…

Posted on February 23, 2013 by geelw

Call me crazy, but I find this whole need to recapture every big media frenzy tale that really doesn’t need to be retold because someone actually died as a truncated TV or big deal high-budget movie presented once completed as “based on actual events”, “inspired by a true story” or however else any flick that mixes made up for extra oomph and actual things that happened to be kind of stupid. Granted, movies have been doing this for decades, but it’s getting so damn predictable that anyone committing a crime worthy of a few too many news cycles has practically got MADE FOR TEE-VEE tramp-stamped in big type (and misspelled exactly like that) just where you’d expect.

That said, I bet this will be a total hoot, between Mamet’s tendency to write his dialog all too well and Pacino’s tendency to be Pacino in crazy mode with some of his more out-there performances. On the other hand, this might actually be good… but I really don’t give a flying rat about the subject matter. So…. will I watch this? No. Or to be more truthful, Hell no (but if it’s reviewed as unintentionally hilarious, well… I lied and there goes two hours when it’s rebroadcast)…

Toy Fair 2013: If She’s Your Role Model, You Should Read That Fine Print…

Posted on February 23, 2013 by geelw

Now, this isn’t your average mildly to moderately angry feminist posting about how any and everything Barbie or any other supermodel-thin artificial female-shaped toy represents the destruction of the normal female body image and how the whole plastic princess thing represents the ultimate in corporate brainwashing or whatever. I can’t write that well because my sense of humor won’t let me and I’m here to rant about something else. That and the last time I checked (I had to pee before I wrote this post), below the brain I’m not much of a feminist. Anyway, while looking through this latest catalog I got in the mail, a theme appeared that made my eyebrow go up and stay locked in that “Hmmmm…” position too long. I had to force it down (my eyebrow, not the theme) with my backup electric toothbrush. The original rolled off the radiator onto an old glue trap the other day and that sucked, but didn’t because if I tried to get my eyebrow down using a toothbrush stuck to a glue trap, I’d have a bit more to worry about…

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Sometimes The Final Frontier Is a Welcome Sight…

Posted on February 22, 2013 by geelw

OK, so I didn’t PLAN to take a break from posting today, but I actually didn’t sleep much last night and decided that since I was awake around 6am-ish, I’d go get started on that ziggurat made of dirty laundry in the other room that a few days back morphed into a golem and was clomping around (leaving cartoon clouds of dirt like Pigpen in those Peanuts comics). It was fun for a while seeing a confused pile of clothes wrapped in a blanket stumble around and make that weird noise laundry that needs to be done makes, but then the damn thing managed to make it to the kitchen the other night and ate the steak I had in the freezer. That was the last straw (well, there wasn’t a first straw, which was my mistake). Anyway, luring the big dope into the shopping cart wasn’t hard (the mileage you can get from day old donuts, folks… go stock up, I say) and yeah, the big lug though it was going for a ride to the park. That took a while, but I hadn’t realized there were TWO piles to do – the other one was the smart one and was hiding in the closet…

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Toy Fair 2013: A Crowded Coop: Valve’s (Other) Secret Weapon

Posted on February 21, 2013 by geelw

If you’re one of those video game fans who collects assorted goodies related to your favorite games or if you’re just interested in fun finds with a quirky edge, I bet there’s a nice possibility that there’s something from A Crowded Coop on a shelf or hanging on or from something you own. Based out of Monroe, Washington and made up of a couple of professional genius business types with heavy experience in all things toy related as well as being some very talented artistic types with vision to spare, the company creates its own products as well as licenses and distributes other trendy, hip gear the cool kids (and old farts like me) love through a number of retail outlets such as Think Geek and other quality online and brick & mortar emporiums. At this year’s Toy Fair, the company showed off an outstanding line of collectibles from some of Valve’s hit games (Portal 2, DOTA 2 and Team Fortress 2), a new line of beautiful plush toys from artist Justin Hillgrove, another upcoming fun plush line called Whim Whams and more that had me smiling even as I walked up to the booth…

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More PS4 News? OK: The Witcher 3 Will Be A System Seller For Some.

Posted on February 21, 2013 by geelw

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is confirmed as coming to the PS4 (as I figured as soon as I read the initial press release a few weeks back), so FINALLY, Sony fans get to play a CD Projekt RED game and see what they’ve been missing. Hopefully this also means we’ll see The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings or even better, ALL The Witcher games get some love on the new console, as together they make up one of the best written and best looking fantasy/RPG games you’ll play, bar none. I don’t know what’s in the water or food there, but the team at CDPR is made up of some truly talented and smart folks who get it done and get it done right. I can’t wait…

All I need now are some trailers and screens to keep me dreaming of misty woods, crumbling castle and creepy beasties to avoid (or dice up like a sack of carrots if they get too hostile) and I’m good…

New PS4 DUALSHOCK 4 and PlayStation Eye: A Little More Peripheral Vision…

Posted on February 21, 2013 by geelw

Oops. I allllllmost forgot the new PlayStation 4 DUALSHOCK 4 Controller and PlayStation 4 Eye camera. Which means… it’s Speccy time! I hate tech specs, folks – as long as the darn things work like they should and keep me happy and playing while that box is purring away under the TV (well, above and to the left here), I’m good. Boring specs and more exciting beauty pack shots are below the jump. I have a few more controller images (update; POSTED!), a long press release here with console specs (no pics, though) and all the publishers and developers working on new games, but I’ll post those in a few hours, as I’m wiped out. Good Night!

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