“When six girls are born on the sixth day of the sixth month to different mothers in the small, devout village of New Bethlehem an ancient prophecy is set in motion – on their 18th birthday one of the girls will become the Devil’s Hand. As the day approaches and one by one the young women begin to disappear, terror overtakes the quiet community and those remaining girls band together to uncover who or what is behind these treacherous acts.”
Are you now feeeeeeeeeling a wee bit chilly along that spine area yet? Good.The Devil’s Hand starring Jennifer Carpenter (Dexter), Rufus Sewell (Dark City), and Adelaide Kane (The CW’s Reign)is out now on VOD! Go check out the entire film with five friends and you could be a lucky winner thanks to the fine folks at Roadside Attractions! Just download the film from iTunes (it’s FREE!), get the Prophecy Party Plannerhere, follow the instructions and follow up with some handy social media interaction (Tweet using the #TheDevilsHand and #ProphecyParty hashtags and don’t forget to give a shout out to yours truly) and you just might win!
Giveaway open to the U.S. and Canada ONLY. Each household is only eligible to win One (1) $15 iTunes Giftcard via blog reviews and giveaways. Only one entrant per mailing address per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you will not be eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification. The prize will be sent via FedEx or USPS. No P.O. Boxes please.
Okay, I’ll do two or three posts on this week’s best new releases (well, the ones I’ve tried or want to try), as I’m in the middle of a new project and my time to post this week is stupidly low. ow low? So low that I’ll need to edit in all the tags I want to put in later. Yeah, THAT low! Anyway, lets start off with three for now. Here. We. Goooooo!:
Savage: The Shard of Goshen – Yes, it’s an indie PC game and YES it’s an alpha version. But if you grew up playing 8 and 16-bit stuff back in the day, what’s here will get you grinning like Renfield finding a spider’s web packed with lunch and hoping the developer, torborprime can do everything he wants with that versatile Game Maker engine and then some. The combination of a non-linear open world game and classic side-scrolling platforming (procedurally generated, at that!) makes this one unique and closer to a role-playing experience than your typical homage. While it’s not as brutally old-school as the wondrously tough Volgarr the Viking (which I really NEED to review soon!), it’s one of those nostalgic works in progress that comes highly recommended. And it’s FREE! SO go get it, I say!
Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Director’s Cut I’d actually forgotten this was coming out and as it was initially a Wii U sort of exclusive, that’s the platform I’ll be snapping it up for. Yeah, I bought a Wii U on day one and have been more or less pleased with the ports for it, but critics have been harsh even when they’ve turned out better because they’re not thinking of Nintendo-ONLY gamers and how they’d react to finally getting to play a game their friends have been bragging about for a while. Anyway, DE:HR DC comes with all that previous DLC plus new elements and that tasty, tasty GamePad support that adds a bit of extra fun in that “sorry other versions, you just don’t have what that GamePad offers and just adding device support is NOT the same thing, silly!” way a good Wii U port does. Yeah, it’s also available on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 (and PC owners who already have the original get a HUGE discount), so unless you’re rockin’ that iPad only, you sort of have no excuse to miss this one.
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 Full Burst CyberConnect2 LOVES its fans, period. How else would you explain this beefed up, blown out, balls-out reissue of an already too big game experience? Every bit of DLC is here, cinemas have been reworked to look even better, new characters, new content and more make an already fantastic Naruto game even more spectacular. Non-fans will of course, shrug and nod off by now, but I say slap a controller into their claws and step back to watch them groove on the game as it hits them over the head with its amazing-ness. You may not get that controller back and have to eject someone from your home, but at least that means they’ll probably buy a PS3 or Xbox 360 of their own so they can play this one. Just remember to NOT toss their contact info, as you’ll NEED a buddy for that epic and insane new boss fight this game has. Seriously, it’s RIDICULOUS.
Back in a bit with more. recommends. Duty calls! Er, no, I’m NOT playing that new Call of Duty game (yet)… don’t read too much into my sign-off there!
To date, the best documentary on the “punk” music scene has been (and probably always will be) Penelope Spheeris’ The Decline of Western Civilization. Although long out of print on VHS and not available on a commercially released DVD or Blu-Ray, those fortunate enough to have seen it in theaters, on cable back when it had a brief run there or via other means can probably point out moments and performances that were raw and amazing as they captured the urgency and sometimes distressing lives of the bands and fans while examining how media and the authorities dealt with a scene they couldn’t understand. One of the few bans to survive this tumultuous time and make it into the 90’s and beyond was Circle Jerks, and director David Markey (“1991: The Year Punk Broke”, “The Slog Movie”) chronicles the band’s history in an excellent new documentary, Circle Jerks: My Career As A Jerk., available on September 25 from MVD Entertainment Group. It’s a must-see for anyone at all interested in rock history as it evolved and morphed into new forms of music during the 80’s and 90’s.
Nintendo of America, as always, REALLY knows how to throw a party. Turn a tiny bit of Times Square into a virtual Mario Land set, invite a ton of kids and see what happens? Good times for all, no problem! All this super fun stuff was for a pre-launch Super Mario 3D Land party where gamers got to play the upcoming 3DS exclusive before its 11/13/11 street date. The weather was definitely perfect for the event and it looks as if everyone had a total blast. It looks as if there’s yet another great reason to be a 3DS owner this year and with the holiday season rolling up fast, you’ll want to absolutely add this latest Mario game to your gift list.
As promised, a small but nice set of VC II screens. I love how well the excellently versatile Canvas Engine has translated to the PSP and from what I'm hearing from someone who picked up the game yesterday, the gameplay is “pretty cool” as well. Hell, it SHOULD be, as the original was one of the best PS3 “sleepers” to date as well as an excellent strategy game in its own right. I'm sort of surprised there's no Valkyria game on the DS yet, but on the other hand, it's great to see the PSP get yet another great release, right?
Anyway, I've no time to be jealous of friends gaming away while I toil (and I ain't got time to bleed, either) – I just have enough time to post an update or three a day. So there…
As I keep saying: 2010 is shaping up to be the best year for Sony's handheld so far.
It's been absolutely the best year to date for the PSP in terms of high quality games and yes, here's yet another one well worth your hard-earned money. XSEED Games has announced that its latest RPG, Falcom's epic Ys Seven is now available at retailers across North America. The game comes in three formats: a standard UMD edition ($29.99), a Premium Edition ($49.99) or as a digital download from the PlayStation Network Store ($29.99). Below is a pic of the Premium Edition, which features the following items:
Small but MIGHTY selection of games in stores this week. ROCK is the word of the week, folks. Brütal Legend totally rocks (and harder than many of you think – go play it and see for yourselves), Ju-on will rock you under the couch and Half-Minute Hero will rock your PSP ’til the battery blows up. Uncharted 2’s killer visuals and massive scale will rock your world and there are a hell of a lot of rocks all over Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition’s Wasteland landscape.
Akysys Games never, ever replied to my email request for a copy of Hero’s Saga: Laevatein Tactics, but I’m not going to throw a rock through their window (yet). I’ll have to make do with MagnaCarta 2 on the 360 with its rock-hard battles and Unreal 3-powered visuals or maybe enjoy Where the Wild Things Are, where I hear you jump over a lot of rocks. In Afrika, you’d best find a nice big rock to hide next to, lest you disturb that lion you’re trying to photograph.. that wouldn’t be a good thing at all!
10/12/2009 Cars Race-O-Rama (DS/DSi/PS2/PS3/PSP/Wii/Xbox 360) Midnight Club: Los Angeles Complete Edition (PS3/Xbox 360) NBA 2K10 (PC)
10/13/2009 A Boy and His Blob (Wii) Afrika (PS3) Brütal Legend (PS3/Xbox 360) Cake Mania 3 (DS/DSi) Fallout 3 Game of the Year Edition (PC/PS3/Xbox 360) Fate: The Traitor Soul (PC) Half-Minute Hero (PSP) Hero’s Saga: Laevatein Tactics (DS/DSi) Ju-on: The Grudge (Wii) MagnaCarta 2 (Xbox 360) Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (DS/DSi/Wii) Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3) Where the Wild Things Are (DS/DSi/PS3/Wii/Xbox 360)
Big week for a few titles and it’s only going to get better from here – let’s take a trip, shall we:
Demon’s Souls is of course, my pick of the week, if not the year for PS3 owners (go read my review), but if you’re not into the insane level of challenge this one provides and perhaps require something a lot less intense (and family friendly), Natsume’s Afrika might very well be up your alley. Think of this grand photo safari adventure as a passport-less trip and a really cool way to see a bit of nature (and interact with it without getting eaten alive or trampled). Fifty bucks for an African Safari and you don’t need to get shots? Sign me up!
For you shooter fans, try and play Codemasters’ superb tactical FPS Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising as if it’s a mere run ‘n gun and you’ll be in for a very quick trip to the morgue for you and your squad mates. And, hey – isn’t it a total trip to see a new Star Wars game show up on every console and portable platform? Wii owners even get a few special peripherals to help them enjoy their version of Clone Wars: Republic Heroes.
A Boy and His Blob is a trip of a different sort, as this remake of the NES classic goes a long way in reinvigorating that nostalgia vibe. Trippy might describe elements of Obscure: The Aftermath, a survival horror game that’s inspired by teen slasher flicks and horror games, while tripping over something trappy in SAW could cause poor Detective Tapp to lose his life. Finally, don’t trip on that balance board when playing Wii Fit Plus or Jillian Michaels’ Fitness Ultimatum or else that busted femur will have you laid up in bed exercising your stylus hand in the DS version of The Biggest Loser instead.
Wait… an exercise game for a handheld system? Er… hmmm… I don’t even know what to say about that… Anyway, here’s this week’s list:
10/04/2009 Wii Fit Plus (Wii)
10/05/2009 Obscure: The Aftermath (PSP/PSPgo) Squeeballs Party (DS/DSi/Wii)
10/06/2009 A Boy and His Blob (Wii) Afrika (PS3) A Witch’s Tale (DS/DSi) The Biggest Loser (DS/DSi/Wii) Cabela’s Outdoor Adventures (PC) Demon’s Souls/Demon’s Souls Limited Collector’s Edition (PS3) Disney Sing It: Pop Hits (PS2/PS3/Wii) Fate: The Traitor Soul (PC) Game Party 3 (Wii) Imagine: Zookeeper (DS/DSi) Jillian Michaels’ Fitness Ultimatum 2010 (Wii) Naruto Shippuden Legends: Akatsuki (PSP/PSPgo) NBA 2K10 (PS2/PS3/PSP/PSPgo/Xbox 360) NBA 10: The Inside (PSP/PSPgo) NBA Live 10 (PS3/PSP/PSPgo/Xbox 360) Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising (PC/PS3/Xbox 360) SAW (PS3/Xbox 360) The Sims 2 Best of Business Collection (PC) Star Wars: Clone Wars Republic Heroes (DS/DSi/PC/PS2/PS3/PSP/PSPgo/Xbox 360/Wii) Spore Hero (Wii) Spore Hero Arena (DS/DSi)
Here we go – pretty much from this week onward, it’s going to be crazy in terms of new releases. Lots of top quality stuff this week along with a few sleepers.
Dead Space Extraction should creep you out with not only how good it looks “for a Wii game” but also with some really scary moments that give the game a nicely cinematic feel. Obscure: The Aftermath brings the teen horror flick to the PSP in fine form with co-op play and lots of monsters trying to kill the hell out of you and your AI (or second player controlled) partner.
Give Tornado Outbreak a whirl (it’s a lot of fun and not a Katamari Forever clone at all), Valhalla Knights Eldar Saga should please RPG fans who love to grind away for levels, The Wizard of Oz: Beyond the Yellow Brick Road DS is one of the best-looking games on the handheld and a unique entry level JRPG variation on the classic book and film. Risen looks and plays wonderfully, so give it a try if you’re a PC role-player (360 owners have a few months more to wait for their version).
Midnight Club Los Angeles: Complete Edition is a great deal for racing fans of any stripe. Speaking of racers, if history is any indication, Gran Turismo PSP might boost up sales on the handheld a bit (as well as sell a few more PSP GO! units), Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days will wow the Square-heads while Battle of Giants: Dragons and Undead Knights look intriguing to me… I’ll have to look into getting review copies on those two.
Yikes. Well, I DID say it was going to be a busy week for games, soooo, here goes:
9/14/2009 Art Academy: First Semester (DS/DSi) Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story (DS/DSi)
Mart Racer (Wii) My Boyfriend (DS/DSi) Oscar in Toyland (DS/DSi) Princess in Love (DS/DSi) Spaceball: Revolution (Wii) Texas Hold ’em Poker (Wii)
9/15/2009 Age of Empires III: Complete Collection (PC) Animal Planet: Vet Life (DS/DSi/Wii) Ant Nation (DS/DSi) Batman: Arkham Asylum (PC ) Bleach: The 3rd Phantom (DS/DSi) Chicken Blaster (DS/DSi/Wii) Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (DS/DSi/PC/PS3/PSP/360/Wii) Dreamer: Top Model (DS/DSi) Heroes Over Europe (PS3/360) Learn Geography (DS/DSi) Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 (DS/DSi/PS2/PS3/PSP/Wii/360) Monster Trucks Mayhem (Wii) NHL 2K10 (PS2/PS3/Wii/36o) NHL 10 (PS3/360) Need for Speed: Shift (PC/PS3/PSP/360) Our House (DS/DSi) Our House Party (Wii) Pacific Liberator (Wii) Pinball Hall of Fame – The Williams Collection (PS3/360) Qubed: Lumines Live! (Xbox 360) RACE On (PC) Red Faction: Guerrilla (PC) Resident Evil 5 (PC)
Runes of Magic Chapter II: The Elven Prophecy (PC) Scribblenauts (DS/DSi) Time of Shadows (PC) Tornado Outbreak (PS3/Wii/360) Toy Story Mania (Wii) WET (PS3/360) Women’s Murder Club: Twice in a Blue Moon (PC) 9/16/2009 Panzer General: Allied Assault (360)
9/17/2009 Madballs in Babo: Invasion (PC)
9/18/2009 Majesty 2: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim (PC) Supreme Ruler 2020 Gold (PC)
“When six girls are born on the sixth day of the sixth month to different mothers in the small, devout village of New Bethlehem an ancient prophecy is set in motion – on their 18th birthday one of the girls will become the Devil’s Hand. As the day approaches and one by one the young women begin to disappear, terror overtakes the quiet community and those remaining girls band together to uncover who or what is behind these treacherous acts.”
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 