Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel PAX East Gameplay: “Bounce, Breathe, Look, SHOOT!” (Rinse & Repeat)…

Posted on May 27, 2014 by geelw

Okay, so it’s the name of an old basketball primer for kids, but that’s also a fitting description of what Gearbox and 2K Australia expect a great deal of you Borderlands fans to be doing in Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, the upcoming standalone game set for a fall release on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC. Sorry “nest-gen” fans! You’ll need to wait a bit while the game you wanted or expected NOW or sooner is being cooked up in one way or another for its eventual release whenever.

While I’m sure that Gearbox and 2K Games could make a small fortune redoing the older Borderlands games and DLC from the ground up, I’d gather they’re doing the WISER thing and creating an all-new chapter to the franchise that packs in even more of what’s expected. This will also keep owners of those shiner (or matte-r) new systems from rioting and storming assorted game company headquarters anytime soon, too (er, Ha-ha?).

The Evil Within Doesn’t Scare Me (Yet) Because I Haven’t PLAYED It (Yet)…

Posted on May 27, 2014 by geelw

“Booooooo!” (*squeal!*). Meh, I’ve always disliked these “reaction” videos for games and movies because even if they are one hundred percent real, what scares one person won’t affect another and as I get older, some things don’t scare me any longer that made me fly off a chair and up to the ceiling in the past. Or, to quote one Mr. Ray Parker Jr. “I ain’t afraid of no “ghost!”

Now, I’m NOT that jaded that some horror films, reads and games don’t get me wanting a blankie and a hanky every so often. However, some of the scares in entertainment are often derived from other and far more frightening works. That said, I do trust Shinji Mikami and Bethesda Softworks to the point that The Evil Within just may put me on the ceiling if it does what it does right and often. Expect to be scared out of your wits (or not?) when the game hits stores October 21st in North America, October 23rd, and throughout Europe on October 24, 2014.

Sniper Elite III Hands-On: Even More On Target Than Before…

Posted on May 27, 2014 by geelw

I was on the subway headed down to see and play Sniper Elite III at a 505 Games media preview when I realized I’d forgotten my eyeglasses. Oops. You can’t be a good sniper at all if you can’t see a damn thing even with a scope, but amusingly enough, that absent-minded error on my part made the demo even more enjoyable.

Thanks to veteran developer Rebellion making the game much more flexible and thrilling than its predecessor, even a quarter blind bat like me was able to have a total blast making as many mistakes as I did. Okay, that’s not sounding like a ringing endorsement for the game, but it’s coming – keep reading. Even if I had brought my gaming spectacles along, my plan was to play the demo in as loose a manner as possible, making mistakes to see how the AI would react while seeing how expansive the level designs were this time out. In Sniper Elite V2, despite some alternate routes, most maps felt a wee bit too boxed in and linear and displacement wasn’t emphasized enough throughout the game (although the best players learned those levels and probably did some of their own shoot and scoot tactics… Continue reading →

GRID Autosport Discipline/Focus/Endurance Trailer: You’ll Still Get Spanked, Though…

Posted on May 23, 2014 by geelw

Oh, once again, I couldn’t help myself (*whipcrack!*). Anyway, it looks as if GRID Autosport REALLY means business when it comes to bringing racing fans some of the best action out there. While not a true simulation, the team at Codemasters is striking the balance between simple to pick up and play controls and the need to learn each track and how to survive the AI trying its best to blow your doors off when you dive into the single player part of the game. Online is of course its own crazy bird complete with the usual unpredictability of live players, especially in the longer races.

Now,I happen to like endurance race events, as there’s a fine balance of learning all the ins and outs of a race course lap after lap and your own physical condition slipping a wee bit over the hours as you fight off sleep and assorted body cramps. Granted, couch racing isn’t ANYWHERE as brutal as being in a car bouncing around and rumbling for a few hundred miles, but keeping me OUT of a real race car is probably a really good thing. GRID Autosport is out for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC on June 24, 2014 in North America, June 27th in Europe.

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II Launch Trailer: Hat’s Off (Again) To The Monster Killer!

Posted on May 22, 2014 by geelw

It’s finally all done and ready for its close up, so if you liked the first part a lot, you’ll want to just drop everything now and go out to buy a ring for Neocore Games’ The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II. The game is bigger and better in a number of key ways (you’ll see) and yes, that addictive chase & chop action is even more intense this time out. Not much else to say other than go get this on Steam NOW and have a blast. You don’t want to keep Lady Katerina waiting you know (as she’s way too good with the insults when she gets ticked off). Oh yeah, the guy with the hat and weapons could use your help, too.

Batman: Arkham Knight Gameplay: “Evening The Odds?” More Like Unfair Bat-vantage If You Ask Me…

Posted on May 21, 2014 by geelw

Rocksteady is back as the developer in this upcoming hit and as you can see, their incredible work on this PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One only game will be well worth the wait and indeed might be a big system seller when the game ships out later this year. Sure, this looks like a movie trailer, but that’s all in game engine running and making your jaw land on your shoes or thereabouts. Yeah, it’s going to be a blockbuster you don’t want to miss if you loved the other Arkham games and double yeah, WB Games is going to be cackling like the Joker all the way to the bank when all is said and done. I can’t wait to get my paws on this one. It’s going to be the Year of the Bat for gamers, that’s for sure…

Dragon Age: Inquisition Update – Stuff To See And Read While You’re Waiting ‘Til October…

Posted on May 19, 2014 by geelw

Here’s a handful of location screens from Dragon Age: Inquisition, headed to PC and every home console except for the Wii U this October 7. BioWare has also been posting some fine reading material and more images on lore from the game, so today you get links to info on those warring mortal enemies The Grey Wardens and The Darkspawn along with the VERY non-vacation hotspot called The Fortress of Adamant. Hey, this trip is FREE, so pipe down or the guide will leave you in a tomb somewhere!

Sniper Elite III 101: “So, What Did YOU Do During The War?” (Part One)

Posted on May 18, 2014 by geelw

With PR folk from 505 Games and a few of the dev team from Rebellion rolling into NYC this week, I’ll finally get some hands-on time with Sniper Elite III on Tuesday morning and report about it here. The team has clearly listened to feedback about Sniper Elite V2 and it looks as if this third chapter addresses all the issues and makes for a more expansive and free form game experience. Sure, the extreme violence isn’t for everyone (and yep, that video is pretty graphic), but I’m not playing this one to see Nazi brains and other bits get shattered and splashed about the large levels. I’m a game design guy first who loves seeing what different developers come up with and Rebellion has been around long enough to keep surprising me. Anyway, expect an update a few days from now on my experience with this one. Sniper Elite III hits retail and download on July 1st in the US on Xbox One, PS4, PS3 and Xbox 360 and of course, the PC version will be a Steam release.

Bombshell Alert: 3D Realms & Interceptor Games Are Bringing The Pain In 2015

Posted on May 15, 2014 by geelw

While this Bombshell reveal trailer isn’t revealing a stitch of gameplay (just a nicely scarred under-clad gal with a punk haircut and metal arm who seems to like her whiskey, watching cable news, firearms and motorcycle riding), fortunately, the game’s official site has screenshots to ogle and yep, they’re below.

I happen to like isometric games (and isometric action or turn-based RPGs in particular), so my interest has been piqued. I’ll also give huge credit to the dev team for not making yet another first-person shooter and instead going with a viewpoint and genre that may actually help draw in players who prefer this type of game experience.

While the game isn’t coming until Q1 2015, it’ll be interesting to see it in motion on the PS4 or PC. I wish this Unreal-powered game was also landing on the Vita, but I guess this is one of those games where a bigger screen means you appreciate the work that’s gone into it a whole lot more. Anyway, color me intrigued. More on Shelly’s big adventure soon. Here’s a brief interview with two of the people working on the game and an intro to the character to close things out:

GRID Autosport Update: When Discipline Isn’t Punishment, It’s Pure Bliss…

Posted on May 13, 2014 by geelw

I’ve heard auto racing compared to fighting before, but when the comment pops up in this video, you can see what that means pretty clearly. I tend to like European Touring Car racing a lot better than the mostly oval, turn left and draft stuff that’s popular here, so Codemasters has had me since the TOCA days on the original PlayStation. GRID Autosport looks incredible in this trailer (and the other two that have been released) and I love how user feedback has make the game’s Black Edition a much more palatable product to pre-order thanks to everyone getting that same content and no spitting up DLC based on certain retailers and such.

That’s lame and other publishers need to listen up and quit that nonsense as it means people who like to complete a game can actually complete it and not need to shell out for multiple copies just to get every drip of content. Go, Codemasters!