Kingdom Come: Deliverance – Thy Wow Be Done (and Then Some)…

Posted on November 26, 2014 by geelw

So, I’ll probably need to buy a new PC after all thanks to Polish developer Warhorse Studios and their incredible-looking (and still in development) game, Kingdom Come: Deliverance. That trailer below says and shows it all and the “Dungeons… and No Dragons” tagline made me laugh out loud because I thought of it as I was watching the footage and picking my jaw up off the floor. Crytek’s versatile CryEngine 3 is really getting a workout here and that realistic medieval setting is even more intriguing. The game was a successful Kickstarter project that got a great deal of attention and over $1.7 million in pledges. The game is still being funded by new backers on the official site and to date, almost $2.2 million has been raised, meaning people REALLY want to see this game come to a PC or next-gen console near them next year…

Continue reading →

Batman: Arkham Knight Ace Chemicals Infiltration Trailer: Rocksteady Gets Operatic

Posted on November 24, 2014 by geelw

Well, well well. If developer Rocksteady made last generation consoles sing with their technical prowess, as you can see here, with Batman: Arkham Knight they’re making the new systems a whole symphony orchestra blasting out perfect overtures. This blend of stunning in-engine gameplay and cinematic sequences almost gives the upcoming game the look of a feature film, but it’ll be the next revel that’s the bigger one. On December 1, 2014 at 9am Pacific Time on the game’s official site (that’s noon here in the eastern US), more will be revealed in an attempt to break the internet (without anyone dropping their clothes, of course).

Given that the game’s latest delay has it now shipping out on June 2, 2015, it’s a more than sure bet that each new trailer or set of screens will get pored over and dissected a ton of times on the internet and in conversation. Hey, if the game is as good as it looks, it looks like Rocksteady will still be the Batman developer for the ages to many fans. Now, if only Harley Quinn were available to play on the disc or download and not as a DLC bonus, things would be perfect. Ah well, that’s the digital life for you these days, I suppose…

Oh, Zojoi! Shadowgate Gets A Nice Retro-Packed Sale Today

Posted on November 22, 2014 by geelw

Hey, Zojoi Games! I fixed the typo in your email ad (you’re welcome and sorry about the spacing, as there’s only so much I can do in MS Paint in under three minutes) and thankfully, you fixed it before it went up on Steam. There’s nothing worse that dealing with nit-picky fans raking you over the coals for a misplaced “a” or other letter. Anyway, overexcited typist/layout person aside, this deal on the new Shadowgate game and two well-aged adventure classics cannot be missed, folks.

You’re getting a lot of awesome point and click-ness for that $20 and if you want your brain to jump up and thank you for making it work hard figuring out puzzles and trap solutions, well, here you go. A gift to you from you (because I don’t know you and wouldn’t give you something you may not want). Go get these NOW!

Review: Adventure Time: The Secret of the Nameless Kingdom

Posted on November 21, 2014 by geelw

Platform: PS3/PC

Developer: WayForward Technologies

Publisher: Little Orbit

# of Players: 1

ESRB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10+)

Official Site

Score: A- (90%)

In the Nameless Kingdom, there’s a huge shop early on that “sells” nothing but the clay vases Finn been smashing to bits in that first dungeon you went through that opens the game. Finn can’t actually BUY a vase at all as far as I can tell. He can only lift one up to carry around and eventually try to leave with it. Or he can smash as many as he can with a weapon or just throw that lifted vase to the ground, breaking it. The only thing that happens when he does any of those things is an alarm goes off and a timer starts ticking down. Fifteen seconds later, a guard from the castle grabs Finn and then he’s outside the shop. When you go back inside, the clerk/owner scolds you a little and that’s that. Well, that is until later in the game when you discover a way to really get that guy’s attention by busting every jar at once. Such is the weird world of Adventure Time.

But that one event and its oddball randomness yet familiar to the show sameness is neither here nor there. The third time’s the charm (and how!) for WayForward Technologies with Adventure Time: The Secret of the Nameless Kingdom being the best of the three games they’ve made to date with Finn and company. This latest title is clearly influenced by Nintendo’s older games in The Legend of Zelda franchise to the point that it feels like a really spectacular mod that happens to be Adventure Time related. It’s also a surprisingly tough game, or not so surprisingly tough if you’re well versed in how this style of game should be played. There’s no hand-holding here, you learn what needs to be done by observing the environment and enemies while paying attention to (and using) what’s in your inventory. You’ll very likely get stuck in spots, but the game has enough hidden stuff and offbeat side quests that make up for the vagueness it often bashes you on the head with…

Continue reading →

Adventure Time: The Secret of the Nameless Kingdom Saves My Sanity This Week…

Posted on November 18, 2014 by geelw

Okay, between the kitchen ceiling and walls here STILL not being repaired (oh, it’s a comedy of errors on the whys and hows of that nonsense – worth a post in of itself, but I’ll do that tomorrow or Thursday) and me pulling what’s left of my hair out at other things, I’m glad to have one nice diversion today: Little Orbit’s Adventure Time: The Secret of the Nameless Kingdom. WayForward Technologies has cooked up a very inspired top-down adventure with gameplay and aesthetics that are going to be VERY familiar to fans of a certain marquee mascot character. Okay, the game is a shameless homage to the sprite-based Legend of Zelda games, but I’d say that Link HAS to be jealous. Why? Well, he’s only in a big deal fighting game and a nice non-canon beat-’em-up this year on two platforms while Finn is in a game that’s actually a solid Zelda adventure with Adventure Time humor packed into it.

Okay, let me get back to it. Tomorrow, another wall gets partially knocked in and I hope to heck there’s not anything leaky behind it, grrrr… Oh yeah, a bunch of AAA titles arrived today, but I’m not playing any of them (yet).

Review: Rollers of the Realm (PC)

Posted on November 17, 2014 by geelw

Platform: PC (also on PS4, Vita)

Developer: Phantom Compass

Publisher: Atlus

# of Players: 1

ESRB Rating: ?

Official Site

Score: A- (90%)

While it may seem like a super-easy casual game at first glance, don’t let the either the art style or offbeat hybrid concept fool you one bit. Rollers of the Realm offers up a serious challenge to pinball aficionados and is one of the bigger indie surprises of 2014. However, you really don’t need to be a pinball wizard to fully enjoy what’s here. The game offers up enough fun to get pretty much anyone who picks it up pulled into its unusual blending of genres. Developer Phantom Compass gets some decent mileage from its medieval fantasy epic setting, dedicated voice actors and yes, the all-important element of making the gameplay both fresh and rewarding… Continue reading →

The Marvellous Miss Take Trailer: Consider Your Heart Stolen!

Posted on November 17, 2014 by geelw

“Wits not Fists” is the name of the game in The Marvellous Miss Take, the upcoming game from indie developer Wonderstruck, a small team of ex-Lionhead Studios developers and other industry veterans. It’s not the only non-violent stealth game on the way (Mike Bithell’s intriguing Volume springs to mind as an upcoming contemporary worth a look), but it’s looking like a more (and most likely the most amusing) one I’ve seen.

Rising Star Games is on quite the roll with these fun indie titles, but I hope this slick lady thief and her two friends show up on a few other platforms and isn’t stuck on PC forever. This is exactly the type of game I’d love to play on the road on a Vita or some mobile whatever and not seeing it there would be a (wait for it) Miss Take. Ba-dum-bum! Yeah, yeah – corny as hell, but it’s raining cats, dogs, squirrels and frogs outside and I need to make myself chuckle on this dreary Monday…

Anyway, The Marvellous Miss Take is out on Steam November 20. We’ll need to take a peek at this one soon once the backlog has been cleared up a bit.

All Work and No Play Makes Jack a Dull Boy. Therefore…

Posted on November 14, 2014 by geelw

This is about to happen. Well, later this afternoon once I get a few updates in. Yup, Rollers of the Realm on the Vita will be my savior for this rather crap-tastic week with the asbestos and the yucky kitchen situation and other stuff that’s still unresolved. And that’s not all, ladies and germs. I also have the PC version of RotR here as well as this to dive into for a bit:

I got home last night and played Adventure Time: The Secret of the Nameless Kingdom for about 20 minutes, which definitely helped lighten my mood considerably. So, that’s also going to get reviewed but good shortly. Okay, that’s my fast “what the heck am I doing?” update, minus a few other recent games and books I need to cover. Back in a bit. I’ve got to poke through my inbox and whittle down the pile of requests, review codes, news and other potential work making stuff. Back in a bit…

GTA V Online Screens: One More Reason To Hop In For The Long Haul…

Posted on November 8, 2014 by geelw

The hit parade keeps on coming as Rockstar Games drops these new Grand Theft Auto Online screenshots. I’ll keep it short because these images are so nice. Take a look and see for yourselves:

In addition, Rockstar has also released a list of the many changes the console and PC versions of GTA V and GTA Online will feature over the last gen versions. Get ready for all this coming your way soon (well, as soon as you click away and head below the jump):

Continue reading →

Some Late Humble Bundles to Keep You Humming…

Posted on November 6, 2014 by geelw

Well, humming on the road with engines revving or humming a calming tune because you’re playing a scary game with a blanket half over your head from under your bed or couch. Let’s take a peek at what’s up this week (and nope, I’m not intentionally trying to rhyme here – I’m typing off the top of my head quickly so I can pend this post for later today and that happens a lot when I do this):

The Humble Weekly Bundle Racing has some nice games in its six title deal. Pay what you want for three games, but I say drop the nine bucks down and get all six games, as they’re well worth the money. Real World Racing will probably be the standout for some players thanks to its high-quality aerial imagery used for courses set in actual locations around the world. Take a peek:

Meanwhile, the Humble inDIE Bundle 13 features some scary games, not so scary games and a chance to snap up some cool collectibles if you go above and beyond the call in your charity spending. Again, pay what you want for three titles, but spend a bit more and get a load of great stuff as well as six game soundtracks. $12 gets you nine games and if you have a spare $65, you not only get all 11 games, but get a gift box sent your way filled with swag! Everything here makes for a nice way to lose some hours, but I’ll say that Minor Key Games retro first-person adventure/shooter Eldritch got the most of my attention:

Even better, just for visiting the page, you can get a Steam code for the awesome Teleglitch: Die More Edition for FREE. This top-down pixel-packed retro shooter manages to be challenging and slightly scary thanks to clever old-school design and some pretty tough enemies in its procedurally generated levels. Anyway, you’re busy – I’m busy! Go get some games for cheap and play them when you can.