Gamescom 2013: Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 Trailer: Blood, Right.

Posted on August 21, 2013 by geelw

Every time I see more of this game, I have to run to the nearest closet, get a hat, put it on and tip it in the general direction of developer MercurySteam’s offices. These guys and gals are knocking it out of the park and onto another planet with this sequel to the first LoS and February 2014 can’t come soon enough. What’s all the more amazing is the game is looking so great on what’s considered “old” hardware by many, but that’s been the Spanish developers very strong point since their first game. As noted previously, this is their final chapter as far as their run on the Castlevania series goes, so anyone else taking over in the future will have a hell of an act to follow, that’s for sure. Of course, the diehard fans of the classic 2D Castlevanias who didn’t like any of the 3D games in the franchise are most likely going to miss out on this one as well, but I don’t think Konami needs their approval these days unless they have something more constructive to offer other than hating the LoS games for their success.

October’s Dark Souls II Live Beta Will Test the Best (and Kill the Rest)…

Posted on August 21, 2013 by geelw

If you’re a big Dark Souls fan, you’d better pay very close attention to the game’s facebook page. Namco Bandai is going to be running an exclusive closed Beta for the PlayStation 3 version of the game over Sony’s PlayStation Network starting October 5, 2013 for players in North America and Europe. From the press release, it sure looks as if developer FromSoftware is going to be showing off an all-new area packed with death in every corner, but don’t take it from me – get a load of this snippet:

The depth of the DARK SOULS II Closed-Beta experience will truly test players’ skill, intestinal fortitude, and their sheer will to survive. The DARK SOULS II Closed-Beta will delve into one of the most treacherous areas of the DARK SOULS II world; players will not only get an opportunity to explore an entirely new area of the game, but also experience overwhelming enemy encounters, diabolical challenges, and the unrelenting difficultly that only the developers at FromSoftware can deliver.

Yeah, that sounds like a double-dog dare with a side of fries and cheese (the cheese coming from the game’s notoriously vicious and crafty enemy AI – trust me, it’s BRUTAL on the unprepared player!), so you know what to do if you accept that challenge (and you’ve survived being slapped upside the head with that metal gauntlet you just got served up fresh and hot). “Prepare to Suffer” needs to be the slogan for that Beta, I say…

The Walking Dead Lives Again on PlayStation Vita (Buy It. Or Buy It Again!)

Posted on August 19, 2013 by geelw

Well, tomorrow the game is up and kicking on the PSN Store and yes indeed, if you’re a Vita owner looking for a nice and superbly scary as well as excellently written horror adventure, well, here you go. Even if you’ve played this already on any of the other platforms it’s been on, it’s worth a buy just to support Telltale Games (and scare the crap out of some poor soul sitting next to you on the train or bus on the way to work). This one’s going on the top of the queue, although at the moment that just means it’ll be played within the next month or so (yeah, the backlog is THAT big here, but progress has been made! You’ll see…). Of course, in a perfect world we’d see MORE of Telltale’s past games popping up on the Vita, but I guess that depends on a few things (such as this one doing well enough and fans beating down the company’s doors like a pack of starving undead)…

Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I DON’T KNOW! Teaser: Oh, I Certainly DO Know!

Posted on August 19, 2013 by geelw

Yup, I’ll be diving into these cartoon dungeons because… TRY AND STOP ME! I happen to like dungeon crawlers, comic or not, so this one will get a workout here at the home base. With the fine folks at WayForward Technologies on the case, it’s a guaranteed great time for fans of the show and tourists who happen to be passing by and own a PS3, Xbox 360, Wii U or 3DS. Hmmm… if I had to choose a platform, I’d have to go for the Wii U version just because that’s a system that needs more good games and yes indeed, I want to see what WayForward does with that GamePad (don’t disappoint me, guys!).

November 12, 2013 is the day, so mark those calendars. Wait a minute, now… FIRST, go take down LAST YEAR’S calendar, go to the nearest supermarket, barbershop or bank, get a NEW calendar and mark that one. Yeah, I know you forgot (again), but you need to be more on top of things!

Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 Full Burst: The Return of TOO Much Content!

Posted on August 19, 2013 by geelw

If there’s one thing eternally busy developer CyberConnect2 knows how to do, it’s pack their Naruto games so full of content that trying to pin the tail on how many hours it takes to complete is a futile proposition. Despite that timer showing how long you’ve been at it for the last few weeks or whatever, you really don’t want to know how many hours you’re sinking into a game with a ton of playable characters and customization options unless you’re going for some sort of bragging rights someone can easily match by firing up the same game and letting it sit on a status screen while they do the Rip Van Winkle for a month or so.

For those of you who’ve blown through, are still playing, or missed out on and plan to purchase Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 3, you may want to hold onto something or just have a seat. Namco Bandai and CC2 are about to drop an even better game on your heads in the form of Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 Full Burst, set for a PS3 and Xbox 360 release on October 22 and followed later by a PC release through Steam. Full Burst packs in the original game with reworked cinemas, all the DLC content and some all-new and insanely tough challenges that will test the best players with some truly brutal battles. A build of the new game was up and running at Namco Bandai’s press event a few weeks back and just listening to the staggering number of changes was exhausting yet showed that CC2 really loves its fans and wants them to have the best game possible…

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The Bureau: XCOM Declassified Launch Trailer: On Loving (or Hating) the Alien…

Posted on August 19, 2013 by geelw

After a complete shift in development from a tactical first-person game (that drew instant and completely unwarranted hatred from die-hard fans of the original PC game) to a third-person squad-based tactical shooter, 2K’s XCOM origin story rolls out on August 20. I actually liked the more stylized visuals and perspective in the original concept, but I’ll still play this as a fan of the series who happens to have a more open mind. Now, I don’t have a review copy incoming as far as I know, but I’m betting this drops in price quickly thanks to some obstinate embargo breakers at another site that ran a negative review already (which seems to have been taken down – I guess 2K put the kibosh on that kibosher). Oh well – I rarely pay attention to other reviews anyway, as it’s never a good thing to rely on the opinions of others when they go in expecting something entirely different than what’s on the plate. As usual… we shall see…

Gamescom 2013: Thief “Uprising” Trailer: Garrett’s Got A 2014 Date With You (Lock Your Stuff Down)…

Posted on August 16, 2013 by geelw

Well, for whatever good THAT will do, as it’ll just make him want to make YOU unconscious faster so he can have at that lock you paid good money for. Look, just make it easy on yourself, people: When February 25, 2014 rolls around, just pretend Santa is coming down that chimney, but instead of leaving out some milk and cookies, you just put out a plate of valuables and a note to not hit you upside the noggin with that blackjack. Hell, he’ll even take that hideous costume jewelry you were planning on donating to Goodwill, as anything he can sell all goes to getting his gear upgraded.

Of course, if you’re jerking his chain and plan to ONLY put out the cheap stuff while stuffing that Pink Panther somewhere… er, safe and warm. Oh, he’ll figure that out FAST. He’s been watching you all week and when you walk with that gem stuffed where the sun doesn’t shine, he’ll see that right away. Just so you know, it’s exactly these sort of observation skills that make an excellent thief…

Young Justice Legacy Hands-On Update: Still Kicking (and Punching) For A November Launch

Posted on August 16, 2013 by geelw

First, the “bad” news (which isn’t bad at all when you read the good news): Young Justice Legacy is coming out in November for multiple platforms, not September as noted a few updates back. The “good” news (which is actually great news): the delay (which is thanks to the started later Nintendo versions) will give developer Freedom Force more time to polish this already fun action “RPG-light”. The gameplay is heavy on the easy to tap out combo attacks and special moves, while the character customization should appeal to gamers who like to beef of their heroes to be better, faster and stronger versions of their already powerful selves.

Some additional hands-on time this week when Little Orbit dropped into NYC revealed that the game is really shaping up to be a solid and pretty decent game experience that’s not going to reinvent any wheels, but should please fans of the canceled show in terms of where the story fits into the canon and the dozen playable characters from the show. You’re getting an action-heavy pick up and play game along the lines of Justice League Heroes or Marvel Ultimate Alliance with more stylized visuals, a nice set of locales from and inspired by the show, a voice cast full of folks from the show and some classic DC villains to go up against solo or with up to two other friends offline or online.

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Grand Theft Auto Online Gameplay Reveal: There’s A Game in The Game That’s A Completely Different Game…

Posted on August 15, 2013 by geelw

If there was any doubt that Rockstar had nothing new coming in terms of Grand Theft Auto V‘s online play, well… those doubts just got run over by a really huge armored car packed with money headed for Rockstar HQ. Grand Theft Auto Online comes with every copy of GTA V when the game launches on September 17, 2013 and will be a free to play persistent online game world for up to 16 players set to kick off on October 1, 2013. GTAO will feature new content created and uploaded regularly and is a completely separate experience from the main story mode.

Oh, there’s a lot more to babble about, but I’m busy and you need to go see and read it from the horse’s mouth. Just click on that big image above or the link in the post and see what’s coming your way soon. Me, among other things, I have finger exercises to do because I know I’m going to be fighting off hand cramps from gripping a PS3 pad for way too long once GTA V ships out…

Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut Gets A Ridiculously Awesome iPad App…

Posted on August 15, 2013 by geelw

With Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut headed full steam ahead onto Steam soon and an even MORE enhanced edition, Rising Star Games is celebrating by making fans who don’t own iPads (that use iBooks 3.0 or later on an iPad with iOS 5.1 or later) want to run out and buy one just for a single (and VERY cool) new app that’s more a game encyclopedia packed to the rafters with pretty much anything and everything about the game.

Set to launch October 14, 2013, Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut – The Official Visual Companion is a whopping 352 pages of info (some of it interactive) including plenty of plot spoilers, art, maps of every location in the game, in-depth notes on the story and characters and even a soundboard/soundtrack function. Of course it’s also got a trunk full of SPOILERS, so if you’re planning on snapping this up with intent to ruin the game’s plot, it’ll do that just fine, thank you much…

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