2014, Loads of New Stuff In The Cargo Hold!

Posted on March 28, 2014 by geelw

One of the upcoming games I’ve been keeping my telescope pointed towards the horizon on for a while now has been Raven’s Cry, the pirate-themed action role-playing game from developer Reality Pump (taking over from Octane Studios) and publisher TopWare Interactive. The game has had a few delays due to Reality Pump really going all out to add a ton of gameplay and story content to it and these new and new-ish screens show off a load of cool:

And the official site has also been updated with a new video, concept art and even wallpapers to download if this one floats your boat. As for the new features being implemented, here’s a rundown stolen from the press release:

– New skills for the captain (a skill tree with over 25 options)
– The personal story of Christopher Raven (more than 25 hours of main storyline)
– Additional adventures and skirmishes (open-world setting and side quests)
– An economic system with a wide variety of trade-able goods and simulated price adjustments
– Realistic naval combat
– Depictions of the dark life of pirates (or: cinematic cut scenes)

All of this should make for a game that’s at least worth a look to see if Reality Pump can pull it all off. It seems like a darker and grimmer game than their previous RPGs, so let’s hope it all pans out the way they (and we sea dogs) want it to. PC, Mac, PS3, PS4 and Xbox 360, folks. Yeah, once again, a decent-looking RPG is skipping the Xbox One, so you owners of that console can get cranky about that elsewhere. I’ll be busy Yo-ho-ho-ing it up and trying not to get sunk by some frigate I’m trying to loot…

Bound By Flame Gameplay Trailer: Could This Be My New BBF? We Shall See…

Posted on March 27, 2014 by geelw

Spiders’ upcoming action/RPG gets a quick gameplay showing and it’s looking pretty good so far. Granted, devotees of the many schools of RPG combat who don’t like this sort of hack/slash gameplay are perhaps a little skeptical and cranky, but I say hold off on the “it’s not realistic” complaints as it’s a fantasy setting and characters and a little balletic license is fine for a game like this. A dash of God of War and hints of The Witcher and a few other inspirations aside, Bound By Flame could turn out to be a decent little sleeper hit that grabs genre fans by the short ones when it drops into stores on May 9, 2014 (two days after my birthday, so everyone get me a copy!) for PS3, PS4, Xbox 360 and PC. I’ve got my eye on you, game – don’t let me down!

Wolfenstein The New Order: Meanwhile, On A Train To Berlin… Heißen Kaffee und neue Freunde…

Posted on March 27, 2014 by geelw

Well, now. So much for a peaceful train ride through a rather unique version of post WWII Germany, hmmmmm? This in-engine scene from Machine Games’ upcoming Wolfenstein: The New Order made me want a cup of strong coffee, but not the headache that comes later on from caffeine withdrawal. It doesn’t quite feel like a big mech stomping on my head, but I’d rather have a headache from one over the other. If I’m not mistaken, Tommy Tordsson Björk (see below!) wrote the dialog in this scene. That Frau Engel is a real witch (with a capital “B”) isn’t she? Granted, I’m all for strong female characters in games, folks… it’s the Nazi part that kind of bends my straw a bit. But hey, the best villains are the ones you love to hate, so she’s added to the my list of characters to keep an eye on.

Remember, Wolfenstein: The New Order, will be available on May 20, 2014 (and in Europe on May 23) on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. As an added bonus, pre-ordering the game gets you invited to access the DOOM beta

Child of Light Making of #1: Dream, Draw and Drink In The Delicious Results…

Posted on March 19, 2014 by geelw

Ubisoft is making game making an even more “magical” process these days thanks to its UbiArt Framework tech that allows for artists to see their work come to brilliant life while remaining unchanged from how it was created. The upcoming multiplatform role-playing game, Child of Light (April 30, 2014) presents the gorgeous storybook world of Lemuria and allows players to dive in and explore it using some tried and true gameplay along with some nice new features sure to bring on the raves from an audience hungry for new original properties and not more of the same old same old.

Given that the game is set ti launch on PC, PS3/PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and Wii U (so far!), it looks as if anyone with a home console or decent enough gaming setup will be seeing what the fuss is all about soon enough. Yeah, I know you Mac and Linux users are all cranky right about now, but I guess there will be a version of this for you folks at some point down the road. In the meantime, I guess you could always make friends with someone who has one of the systems the CAN play on when it launches next month…

Ultra Street Fighter IV: Meet Decapre!

Posted on March 17, 2014 by geelw

So, I’m more of a casual Street Fighter player these days, but even I can see that the lovely Decapre is a more or less (okay, more) cyborg-like version of popular fighter Cammy with a more clothed (bit still very sassy!) look. Nevertheless, Ultra Street Fighter IV with its slew of bonus content and features should please any fan of this series thanks to its healthy roster of talent to choose from, additional stages and the usual outstanding replay value Capcom fighters are known for among novice to veteran players.

Yeah, yeah – the haters still have their axes to grind and soapboxes to wobble on, but who has time to read or listen to those feebs other than the ones who agree with them? I say play more games and ignore the bile – you’ll live longer and enjoy yourself more than someone sitting at a keyboard whining away about stuff they really have no idea about. Hey! I wasn’t referring to ME, silly (grrrr!) – I’ve been doing this gaming thing for far too long to know I’m always right (er… okay, MOST of the time)…

Press release below the jump, by the way! Continue reading →

Titanfall Fanatics Get A New Booster That Does Double Duty…

Posted on March 17, 2014 by geelw

Got Titanfall? Good. You’ll probably LOVE this, then. The folks at 5-Hour Energy and Wal-Mart have teamed up to being you this exclusive Titanfall themed packaging for their Berry flavor which is available now for a limited time. Yes, I know some of you all night crowd gamers will surely be stocking up on those boxes just for the artwork and connection to the game, so this is a head up for you to snap them up and sock them away because once they’re gone.. they’re gone for good.

Now, how you GET to that Wal-Mart is all up to you, but I say leave the Titan at home, please. Not EVERYONE has the game and if you go clanking around in a big mech suit just to score s shelf full of that 5-HE, chances are you’ll be doing a LOT of explaining to the local police. Of course, you’re smart enough NOT to stomp on that prowler that rolls up on you when you’re on the way to or from your shopping trip, right?

I thought so…

Alien Isolation “Creating The Alien” Trailer: Shaping Your Fears Is Tough Work…

Posted on March 13, 2014 by geelw

So, that’s how it’s done, hmmmm. Okay, now we need to see the underwear factory churning out adult-sized diapers with the Alien Isolation logo on them that will be packed in that Collector’s Edition of the game along with a pocket defibrillator and smelling salts. The folks at The Creative Assembly seem to be making the Alien game to end all Alien games because it’s closer to the first Alien film than a few of the more action-packed sequels ever were. Granted, there’s something to be said for those awesome Rebellion-made Alien vs. Predator PC games and yes, a few of the other games in this long running franchise have been quite well done and thrilling. But this may be the first game that feels frightening thanks to it looking to capture what made the original work all too well. Pre-alpha footage means there’s a long way to go before this one’s all wrapped up, folks. I’m betting it’s a big fat face-huggy surprise when it’s all done.

As usual, we’ll see…

Earth Defense Force 2025 Mission Pack 3 Deployed! Go Smash Some (More) Bugs!

Posted on March 13, 2014 by geelw

INCOMING TRANSMISSION!

Okay, I’ve been a bit tied up with stuff coming in to review plus a few other things (making sure I’m still breathing and surviving this stupid weather we’re stuck with – it’s REALLY cold again), but D3Publisher of America has recently released (as of 4/11) the third and final Mission Pack, Beyond Despair for Earth Defense Force 2025 on PSN and Xbox Live. A few teaser screens are below:

Joining The Earth Defense Force 2025 Special Ops Mission Pack (5 extra missions for $2.99) and the Mutant Rampage Mission Pack (20 additional missions for $8.99), this final set of 20 missions is also $8.99 and gives you more mutated bug and boss variants to play around with in some familiar maps with new elements that add much more challenge whether you play solo offline, couch co-op or go online with up to three other teammates.

If you’re still blasting through solo play and need to farm up some great weapons, these Mission Packs offer up some incredible levels of challenge and some say an “easier” opportunity to gain weapons you may be having a hard time getting in the main game’s missions. “Easier” is a relative term, as even on the easiest difficulty, the enemies are about three times as fierce and twice (or more) as numerous. You’ll be an EDF veteran after a few of these missions, GUARANTEED.

MORE Free Stuff? OK, Win An Earth Defense Force 2025 Prize Pack (via Facebook)

Posted on March 12, 2014 by geelw

Got a facebook account? Good. Like to win free stuff? Even better! D3Publisher of America is giving YOU a chance to win a PS3 or Xbox 360 copy of their epic bug-blasting extravaganza Earth Defense Force 2025, all three DLC packs AND a bunch of EDF 2025 swag (which MAY or may not be some or all of this cool stuff) all for filling out that sweepstakes form. Uh huh, I can hear you bouncing up and down in your seat over there, so stop that before you break that chair (it’s squeaking because it’s old!) and go enter already!

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Delayed Until February 2015 (This is Actually A GOOD Thing)…

Posted on March 11, 2014 by geelw

At the beginning of this year, I’d planned to note here that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was my early blind pick for Game of the Year, but something told me to hold off on that hyperbole a bit until I saw and played the game at a press event. Well, my not quite psychic powers were on point, as CD Projekt RED sent out a nice open letter this afternoon announcing the game has been pushed back for about a year so all three versions can arrive in tip-top shape.