Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham: TT Games’ Next One Will Be Out Of This World…

Posted on August 26, 2014 by geelw

LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham is coming to PlayStation 3/PlayStation 4/PS Vita, Xbox One/Xbox 360, Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, and PC on November 11, 2014. That’s pretty much all you need to know as TT Games and WBIE have absolutely MASTERED the art of whipping out a LEGO game to mostly rave notices and delivering the goods with a family-friendly set of titles that have infinite replay value and make for instant “BUY ME!” purchases whether as gifts for oneself or a bunch of lucky kids.

Seriously, all you need are a couple of controllers and anyone can have a total blast. for the longest time, the LEGO series has been a “pick up and play” festival and with each installment, TT Games has been adding neat stuff like fully voiced characters, bigger maps to explore and loads of additional costumes, characters and plenty of hidden secrets for those willing to play until they fine everything. Oh, and here’s a word from Braniac and a few pals in case you’re showing any form of disinterest in this one:

Yeah, soooo… don’t let the Joker put the earth in his pants (ewww!)… BUY THIS GAME when it comes out and knock some sense into that ever-grinning nut-job, I say!

Hive Jump, Huh? Hmmm… Color Me Highly Interested!

Posted on August 25, 2014 by geelw

Nope, despite that idyllic GIF above (twang, twang!), Graphite Lab’s upcoming PC/Mac/Linux and Wii U (yay!) game Hive Jump isn’t about some space cowboys sittin’ around a blazing campfire strumming a gitbox and singing bean-related songs (although that might make a fun mini-game now that I think about it). In fact, this in progress Kickstarter and Steam Greenlight game is the exact opposite of low key and gassy. One to four player alien blasting action reminiscent of X-Com, a bit of Slime World, Spelunky and Contra is the name of the game here (EDIT: Hey! I thought this was called Hive Jump?!) and based on that Kickstarter video, thing certainly look pretty thrilling.

See? Now THAT’S more like it, huh?

However, with a mere 931 backers and only $27,030 pledged of their $50,000 goal and ONLY 11 days to go (Eeek!), it seems this game needs MORE people hopping on the bandwagon. Granted, I bet some of those non-pledgers own a Sony or Microsoft console and are wondering why Nintendo is getting the love and they aren’t. But hey, I love it when a developer picks the more under-appreciated console and gives it the old college try. The Wii U needs games like this to stand out, and if it does well across the board, who’s to say Sony and Microsoft won’t be calling them up and getting a few dev kits out via some speedy shipping method? As much as I’m wanting to grab this download on the Wii U next year, I’d actually LOVE to play this on the Vita just so I can take it on the road to show it off and convert a few skeptics into new fans.

I’d say there are a lot of bugs in this game (and that’s a compliment.)

Anyway, internet? Go do what you do so well (no, not THAT complain about meaningless crap in the wrong places!) and FUND THIS GAME! I’m broke after paying a few bills, so I’ll be one of those picking it up once it’s all done. It sure looks like it’ll be a total winner no matter what it appears on. Anyway, stop throwing money AT the screen, as all that does is crack you monitor. You need to do a bit more than that (or: give ’til it hurts or you get hurt) if you want to see this one live to fight another day (and perhaps on other consoles?). You go do just that – I’ll be here, awaiting your progress report!

MotoGP 14 Trailer: A Bit of Bike Action Tease To Get Your Monday Racing…

Posted on August 25, 2014 by geelw

With veteran developer Milestone S.r.L. on the case, MotoGP 14 is looking like a motorbike fan’s dream game. While this particular racing sub-genre doesn’t draw in the legions of fans automobile games do, the developer’s talents at making some very solid racers for quite some time shows once you pick up a controller. I played a few races at Bandai Namco’s NYC event a few weeks back and found the game solid in terms of the excellent controls and sense of speed. Visually, the game looked absolutely great, but I’m betting you’ll be wanting to keep your eyes glued to the road. Speaking of roads, MotoGP14 will feature more than 100 riders to choose from, all the official manufacturers, racing classes and 18 tracks all based on the Official MotoGP World Championship.

As with their other racers, Milestone knows how to yank you into the game they’ve created by concentrating on the details that are the most important, so this just may be one of the better entries in the long running series when it ships out later this year for PS3/PS4, PS Vita, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.

New Raven’s Cry Trailer: Rough Seas Can’t Dampen My Desire To Give This One A Shot…

Posted on August 20, 2014 by geelw

Okay, so the sound mix is way off balance and sure, it’s not looking as stunning as other games coming out this late for last-gen systems, but I’m still going to play TopWare Interactive’s Raven’s Cry when it’s released. Veteran developer Reality Pump Studios has been working on this game for a while, so I’m curious to see the final result for a few reasons. It’s probably one of the last open world games on the PS3 and Xbox 360, it’s not another fantasy RPG, and while the pirate theme has been done to death and some consider that last Assassin’s Creed game the be-all, end-all game in this sub-genre, it’s just nice to root for the “little” guy every now and then, I say. Besides, rough edges aside, there’s something about a European-made RPG that commands attention and respect. Well, at least I think so…

Raven’s Cry lands on PC, Mac, PS3/PS4 and Xbox 360 on October 14, 2014.

Gamescom 2014: The Witcher 3 Leaves Yet Another Winning Impression…

Posted on August 15, 2014 by geelw

Well, this almost 16 minutes of gameplay footage is sure going to be helping sell The Witcher 3 to PC, PS4 and Xbox One owners (or make one buy a new console or upgrade a PC to run this gorgeous open world RPG… but, wait… what’s this? The Xbox One collector’s edition is getting (noooo!) extra stuff NOT in the other editions? Ruh-roh. Hmmmm… well, it’s just physical versions of the “Gwent” card decks so you can play that game (which is in ALL versions of the game) outside of the game space with like-minded friends and a cloth map of the game world.

Hmmm… I should be upset at this, but I know the internet fanboys will take care of that for me. It doesn’t affect the main game at all, so it’s not that big a deal. However, I can see some of the people cheering CDPR for stating that every version of the game would get the same content taking that a wee bit too literally and asking for Gwent decks for every version of the game. Of course, the company can just sell those decks separately at some point (and should if Gwent becomes popular enough to warrant making a lot more real decks).

Edit: I see that the whiners are in full rage on YouTube and a few message boards already! The developer did promise that TWC’s content on the game disc or via download would be the same, but it seems that didn’t extend to physical goodies at all, which as noted above, I really don’t have an issue with at all. I’m gathering they’ll stick to their guns despite the cranky types online saying they’ll cancel their pre-orders and I hope they do, but also reiterate that the ACTUAL game EVERY person is buying will be 100% the same across all platforms. Those cards and that map seem to be a bonus wrangled out by Microsoft, which seems to be looking to buy gamer love these days by getting them things they pay a lot for…

Gamescom 2014: Dragon Age: Inquisition Trailer & Screens: More To Whet Your Appetite, Yet Keep You Starving…

Posted on August 13, 2014 by geelw

Well, there goes my fall and probably winter, I’m gathering. At this point, BioWare has a lot of people following every bit of ink (digital or otherwise) scribbled about Dragon Age: Inquisition, but these days, I only write too much about a game if I’m worried it’s not going to find an audience. DA:I has a built-in fan base that’s going to dive into it no matter what anyone says about it, and I have nothing bad to say at all. Other than I wish every bit of content was on a disc and there wasn’t DLC to worry about at all. I’ve been saying that a lot about all games, so fear not EA or BioWare – I’m not picking on you folks for that. It’s just a poke I take at every company that hasn’t yet realized that not everyone likes this practice or can get to that content they’ve paid for that’s on the disc or locked away as a download unless one buys into it. Options are always better to have than mandates and this game world needs to be one that anyone who can play the game should be able to fully explore.

Dragon Age: Inquisition will be available November 18, 2014 for PC, PS3/PS4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. I’d say you should most probably buy this one…

Gamescom 2014: Bloodborne and Until Dawn: Two More System Sellers For Sony? Could Be…

Posted on August 12, 2014 by geelw

FromSoftware’s still in progress PS4 exclusive, Bloodborne finally gets a more gameplay focused trailer at Sony’s big media event and certainly looks fantastic. I actually got a Nightmare Creatures meets more deliberately paced Devil May Cry meets third-person Darkwatch vibe from this trailer, but I’m kind of nuts. Anyway, this one goes on the 2015 list. One more game for the backlog, whee!

Another work in progress, this time by Supermassive games, Until Dawn also looks pretty darn scary and cool, although it’s a different sort of game entirely. Clearly inspired by horror movies and a bit of classic adventure gaming, this tale of eight people meeting up at a mysterious shack in the mountains looks to give players a few choices in spinning fate’s wheel. Granted, I’m betting odds are slim everyone survives (what’s a horror game or film without a few demises?), but the replay value could be incredible if it’s more than a simple slasher story. Eight Little Indians getting it in so many ways is indeed intriguing…

Gamescom 2014: Why Tomb Raider As An Xbox One Exclusive Is A Lousy Move…

Posted on August 12, 2014 by geelw

One: Tomb Raider got its start at a multiplatform game (PlayStation, Sega Saturn and PC), allowing many millions of gamers to see what original development team Core Design had created. While (very) dated by today’s standards, the innovation on a few technical fronts, a strong female lead character and the game paying homage to everything from Prince of Persia to the Indiana Jones movies made it an instant smash worldwide. Clamping the new game onto ONE system “forever” is to me, a mistake that’s going to result in lower sales for the new game unless there’s guarantee people will buy an Xbox One because of the new game. It’s likely in some cases, but I’d bet an old penny that any console sales are absolutely nowhere near what both Tomb Raider and Tomb Raider II did for PlayStation sales back when both games were released.

In my years in retail, there have been a handful of games I’ve seen people slap down money to buy a console for and the first three Tomb Raider games are on that list. Granted, TR III was a bit problematic on a few fronts (and how!), but crazy difficulty aside, it still sold systems… Continue reading →

Project CARS Hands-On: Simple Sample Reveals Miles Of Depth…

Posted on August 10, 2014 by geelw

Sure, it was a single course (Brands Hatch) and car to drive on that course, but the Project CARS demo running at Bandai Namco’s recent NYC event floored me on a few fronts.

This super-popular initially thought headed for high-end PC-only racer is coming to next-gen consoles in November and (surprise!) is actually set for a Wii U appearance sometime in 2015. More on that later, as overhearing that news from Marketing Director Brian Hong hit me like a ton of bricks as someone was filming me play the demo for their website and I probably skidded off the track and hit something from the shock of that news… Continue reading →

STYX: Master of Shadows Summer Trailer: Sneaking Up Soon, Wanting To Steal Your Wallet…

Posted on August 9, 2014 by geelw

Cyanide Studios’ upcoming stealth/action game, STYX: Master of Shadows is looking pretty slick and I’d bet that one doesn’t need to have played the developer’s previous game Of Orcs & Men in order to hop into Styx’s boots and feel right at home. It’s too bad this one’s only for “next-gen” consoles and PC, as I know more people would have the chance to play it if it were kicking it “old school” on the PS3 and Xbox 360. But hey, that’s one way to get people to finally make the move, I suppose.

In any event, this certainly looks like Cyanide’s best work to date and I hope even the most jaded gamer out there gives this one some respect, as it’s too easy to fall into the “I never heard of it before, so it must be crap” trap I see scribbled about games all over the internet. Yuck. Styx needs to get stabby-stabby on those folks, I say. We’ll see what happens in November when the little guy sneaks into store shelves or a download queue near you…