Wait, Project CARS 2 is out already? I still haven’t completed the first game! I guess I really need to pay more attention to this stuff, huh? Actually, I was very likely storing up a stack of free time for .hack//G.U. Last Recode and a few other games coming from Namco Bandai, so this great-looking sequel temporarily slipped my mind. Okay, the ongoing medical stuff had something to to with my slower than usual posting, but it’s getting a lot better, folks.
Loads of improvements (those weather effects now include snow!), 180 cars (and more to come, I’ll bet), and yes, those lovely visuals all add up to what’s looking like a must-have sequel. I guess retiring that first version for this followup is the sensible thing to do at this point. Me doing something sensible? Well, that’s a welcome change of pace, right?
If you heard some very loud roaring and thunderous stomping noises this week around Tuesday or so, nope, that wasn’t Godzilla outside paying your town a visit. I was probable a bunch of kaiju fans tromping down to their nearest game emporium to pick up Godzilla for the PlayStation 3 or PlayStation 4. While the game comes highly recommended no matter which platform you own, PS4 users get the big fat bonus of playing as any monster in the game in any mode right from the start. Nice. Of course, if all that Sturm und Drang was actually weather related and you were stuck indoors watching lightning bolts fighting each other for scare-space, well aren’t you lucky you don’t like in a copper house?
Anyway, yep. This one needs to be played. One more for the backlog!
Sure, it’s all fun and games, but YOU try and get some decent sleep when there are a bunch of over-sized rubber suits banging away on the buildings on YOUR block. BOOM!ROAR!CRASH!“Hey, keep it down!” just doesn’t work on a pair or more of bent on destruction giant beasts like these, you know. Fortunately, all that glorious wreckage is only on the PS3 and PS4 and not for real, as I can see real world property values sinking but also growing back after a short while. You know people would probably move in JUST for the monster battles because humans are dumb and love to watch any sort of fight (provided they don’t get hurt).
Oh, and as for that “Hollywood Godzilla” pre-order bonus, I laughed out loud because for some reason I thought of this film clip when that image and text popped up onscreen. Yeah, I’m a nut. I know, I know. Hey, I didn’t make that old and too loud film. But I did pay good money to see it when it came out (and still want my five bucks back, Mr. Spielberg!).
Well, oopsie. Remember that Godzilla game Namco Bandai was only releasing in Japan I wrote a little post about back in September? Oh, how wrong I was about that game staying overseas. But here’s a case where me eating crow pie is a something I don’t mind doing at all. In fact, make mine a double, please. Check out the big reveal trailer below. Earplugs in, first. It’s LOUD:
The Japanese version is out this month, but Bandai Namco Games is going to be taking time to properly localize the game and get it out in North America and Europe in Summer 2015 for both the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. Excellent. If you watched the September trailer along with this new one, you’ll see that the game looks quite spectacular and fans should be pleased that they’re finally getting a decent Godzilla game this decade.
“But what’s it about?”, you ask? Funny you should ask, kids. It’s late and I’m lazy… so let’s go to the press release!
COMPLETE & UTTER DESTRUCTION
Godzilla, the King of the Monsters, first appeared in 1954. Scientists studied Godzilla and found that they could harness energy from the monster. Called “G-Energy,” this seemingly endless source of power was used to better the lives of all mankind. 60 years later, just when mankind’s memory of the beast faded, Godzilla appeared again. Godzilla destroyed at will, all in search of more G-Energy. Such irony, the same G-Energy which was used to better the people’s lives, also caused Godzilla to awaken. Can the G-Force, mankind’s last hope, stop Godzilla? What fate awaits Godzilla once he has consumed all of the G-Energy, and grown to his full potential?
Bash your way through over 20 stages of mayhem. Explore Mission Mode, Diorama Mode, and King of Monsters Mode! Collect G-Energy in each stage to Power-Up your Godzilla up to 100 Meters tall! Your offensive and defensive prowess will increase with your size.
Okay, that sounds like a cross between a super awesome sci-fi flick and an Enzyte commercial at 3am (remember Smilin’ Bob?), but for Godzilla fans like me, it’s all good. Expect more on this one soon. I can now go to sleep a very happy guy. See you tomorrow, folks!
Well, this was a bit of a surprise to see earlier today. And of course, despite having the new Godzilla from the US-made film as a DLC character… this isn’t even going to get an English localization release outside Asian territories, so it looks as if I’ll be helping this sell out of at least one production run at some point. Thanks to Play-Asia for popping this news into my inbox and making both my tired eyeballs pop open this morning.
After I recovered them from under my chair and washed them off, I pretty much realized the chances of this game coming out here in the west was zero multiplied by a few hundred zeroes. Not that we don’t need a new Godzilla game, mind you. It’s just that there hasn’t been one in a few years and while plenty of kaiju fans would buy this outright on a disc or as a download, I’m not sure that “plenty” is enough to justify the localization costs.
As you can clearly see from those videos and the game’s official site, this one sure looks pretty spectacular for a Godzilla game, so here’s hoping it’s not only as good as it looks, but VERY import friendly for those who want to snap up this region-free game and haven’t a clue about the language barrier thing most imports hit newbies with right out of the gate. If Bandai Namco’s US arm somehow decides to get this one out here, I’ll be the first one to let out a roar even if it’s only as a digital download. As usual, we shall see… but don’t hold your radioactive breath, folks…
My own hands-on time with a build of Lords of the Fallen reveals it’s a pretty damn hard game in the Dark Souls vein and developers CI Games and Deck 13 have cooked up a nasty little next-gen gem that’s going to test the best players to defeat some pretty crafty creatures. Like the Souls series, monsters lurk in both plain sight as well as in choice hidden spots, they’ll hunt you down once they spot you and are pretty relentless overall. Of course, you can use the environments to your advantage, knocking away some boards to create a death drop pit you can lure what was chasing you into or using magic for ranged attacks as a wee or over-sized beastie is closing in for the kill. And yes, blocking and dodging are skills you need to master, as these monsters aren’t playing at all.
The game is coming to PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on October 28, 2014 and looks to be the first next-gen (or is it now current-gen?) chase & chop of the more cerebral kind. I only saw ONE person get close to defeating the demo Bandai Namco had on display and that guy was using every once of skill he had. Looks as if this one’s going to be one of those sleeper keepers for those who can play it. I predict a few broken controllers among those who may have missed out on FromSoftware’s series and have CI to blame (and their own lack of skills) for those formerly functioning chunks of plastic and components. be brave and fight onward, I say. You only have the fate of some fantasy world on your chosen customizable character’s shoulders…
Okay, I’ll tweak the post tomorrow when I’m more awake, but I made two goofs in my Tales of Xillia review regarding the exploits and some side quests monsters vanishing. One: In Kitty Dispatch mode, Rollo WILL come back faster if he’s carrying certain sub-items with him or you save and come back later in the day (that system clock seems to work for that as well as the bonuses).
Two: while some low-level monsters may disappear from the Job Board when your Badge level increases, those TOUGH sub-bosses stay on their own sub-menu and never disappear. I was up for roughly 37 hours on that last chunk of my playtime, so when I sat down to write from a few notes I’d taken, I ended up adding in a thought I had based on me being half-awake while playing and confusing the Job list with the sub-boss list. Hey, it happens! Anyway, I’m in the final stretch of the game, but I’m saving that until tomorrow or Thursday because if I don’t sleep now, I’ll probably be as dead as some of those monsters Ludger and company go hunting throughout the game…
Tales of Xillia was one of last year’s great JRPGs, offering up an intriguing plot, a party of interesting characters designed by different artists, the series trademark fast-paced battles and plenty of the usual JRPG tropes all adding up to a lengthy and memorable game experience. The follow up, Tales of Xillia 2 changes up things a bit with two new main characters, a much darker tone, even faster combat, a different skills leveling system, loads of reused maps (this is a good thing – more on this below) and a fair amount of humor thanks to a localization team having a blast with their translation efforts. The result is a game that will pull you in for the long haul as it takes Ludger Kresnik and company on a journey spanning a few familiar and all-new areas (well, all-new to those who haven’t played the first game)… Continue reading →
You actually don’t need to have played Tales of Xillia to fully enjoy Tales of Xillia 2, but in case you didn’t and are wondering what you missed, this under six-minute recap of key cinematic moments from the first game should get you psyched for the new adventure ahead. I’ve been playing since yesterday evening and will have a review up on Tuesday or Wednesday, depending on how far I get in the game. I should take my time with this and try to get as close to 100% completion as possible, but there’s SO much to tackle in this game that if I tried to blaze through too quickly, I’d definitely miss out on a lot of content. On the other hand, if I get caught up in all those side-quests and cat-catching (I’ve caught 23 out of 100 so far), this review isn’t going to get done until November (of next year, ha and ha!)…
Well, well, well… my review copy of GRID Autosport arrived earlier today and as I didn’t expect it until later in the week, I ended up NOT getting any work done because I’ve been “out” driving for most of this afternoon. So far, it’s quite lovely, the inside the car views are back, the AI is pretty fierce and the hours will FLY by once you pop this game into your PS3, Xbox 360 or PC. I’ll try and get a more comprehensive review up this weekend, but for now you need this game if you’re a car nut and fan of Codemasters’ Racing Studio’s very solid outings.
Wait, Project CARS 2 is out already? I still haven’t completed the first game! I guess I really need to pay more attention to this stuff, huh? Actually, I was very likely storing up a stack of free time for .hack//G.U. Last Recode and a few other games coming from Namco Bandai, so this great-looking sequel temporarily slipped my mind. Okay, the ongoing medical stuff had something to to with my slower than usual posting, but it’s getting a lot better, folks.
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 