My experience with Diablo III on PC was an ab-Normal Hell Nightmare of an Inferno thanks to the always online requirements, Error 37 woes and a raft of other issues that have finally been patched up over time by Blizzard, but not quickly enough to get me playing again once I finished up my initial review. When the console version of the game was announced, I was one of those people jumping for joy at the news because I know that the game would soar as an untethered from the internet solo or co-op experience because other chase ‘n chop dungeon crawlers were plenty of fun without the online ball and chain. On the PS3 however, the game is not only superior to the PC version in nearly every respect (save for visuals, but it’s not a bad looker at all), it makes for both a great entry level and hardcore experience that’s a must-buy.
While the story isn’t what you’d call “deep”, Blizzard keeps things rolling along through some fine CG cinemas and a few nifty (if not too unexpected) twists before things are wrapped up (sort of) in this sequel. You don’t need to have played Diablo II (or even the first Diablo) to get off and running into the fray at all. But it helps if you’re a continuity freak or someone looking for references to previous installments. Of course, the chances of Blizzard getting those two older games onto any console is slim to none, but it’s something to dream about since this super-enhanced “port” that’s not a port turned out so well… Continue reading →
Dark Souls II is going to be the toughest thing many gamers will touch all this year and love. And hate, as the game’s relentless enemies and crushing difficulty will chew up and spit out all comers from seasoned veterans to new players who THINK they can survive unscathed. Nah, not gonna happen, people. You will die (well, your character will die) and you’ll be glaring at your controller with malicious intent when you should be holding up a mirror and heavy breathing into your fogged up reflection. Hey, what did you expect from a game with the tagline “Prepare to Die”, hmmmmm? On the other hand, to the victor go the spoils… but most of those spoils happen to be of the “Holy crap, I survived THIS long before I got stepped on/skewered/roasted/run over, et cetera…”
This one’s going to be a killer, people. Watch the skies for flying controllers and keep an ear out for banshee-like howls from above, I say…
Hmmmm… As predicted, with The Creative Assembly on the case this time out, Sega’s upcoming Alien Isolation is looking pretty impressive in this introductory teaser and developer diary. Hopefully, the story will work as intended, as I can see some folks not being all aboard the playing as Ellen Ripley’s daughter thing. Me, I’m a wait and see guy myself because I trust The CA to do their best and they’ve always done just that when they make their games. I do like that it’s turning out to be NOT a stupid shoot everything that moves experience and seems to be focusing on story and characters first and foremost.
The only major sticking point to some will be the lack of a Wii U version as the gameplay seems perfect for that GamePad, but such is life in this generation of consoles I suppose. Someone HAS to get a suitable Alien game out on that system one of these days, I say. I’m not sure who, but it would be nice to see one at some point…
Mine were scared off a little and if this trailer is any indication, some of you out where will also be scared out of, jump out of or simply pee your own pants (or worse) when playing this PC and PlayStation 4 exclusive upcoming horror fest with the randomly generated maps. Expect THRILLS! at every turn when something jumps at you from the shadows! Feel those CHILLS! as yous spine tightens then freezes as you’re too afraid to… Take. Another. Step! And prepare for SPILLS! when your poor bladder decides it’s constantly had enough of your foolish attempts to not be afraid and tells your brain it will keep peeing until your kidneys spit up sand! Ouch. Okay, perhaps this one isn’t THAT scary or painful at all, but I think the fine folks at Atlus have a nifty little sleeper on the way thanks to veteran developer Zombie Studios and Epic’s Unreal 4 engine.
That procedural level generation should keep the game replayable for some time in the vein of familiar rogue-like role playing games and more recently, Ubisoft’s excellently frightening ZombiU on the Wii U, making this a must-play game for horror game fans. That said, I so, SO want Zombie to include a very special Easter Egg in here in the form of a ONE ROOM level where it’s just you starting out in one corner and a quick run to the exit to conclude the stage… before it drops you into a second smaller room with you and a thing that’s about to eat your face right in front of you. Yeah, pants will be jumped out of, scared off, peed and pooped on all at the same time. That would make those now tired and CHEESY and many obviously faked for view clicks “Oooh, lookit me, I’m scared playing this SCARY new game!” videos have some actual meaning for sure. Of course, some of you are wondering if this will get the sales of adult diapers booming if indeed the game is THAT scary.. to which I offer a snazzy “Well,… that Depends!”
As usual, I win again!
DAYLIGHT will be popping up shortly… Keep and eye peeled over your shoulder for more updates…
So, here we go folks – once more into the breach with Sega and the somehow tougher to make it work right as a video game Alien license. Can you name a decent game made this century with the license that’s not only on PC? I thought not.
While its last two attempts were decidedly of the “mixed results” and “missed opportunities” trains, this time out it’s veteran developer The Creative Assembly at the wheel and Alien Isolation is looking pretty darned scary where it counts (as you’ll see in Three… Two.. One.):
Of course, the boo-bird naysayers are out in force on this thanks to the critical mass that was Aliens: Colonial Marines, so Sega has a lot to live up to and live down even if Isolation is indeed the best game using the license to date.
I trust this team quite a lot as in addition to the incredible Total War franchise on PC, they’ve also had fun making more action-heavy game experiences such as the excellent Spartan: Total Warrior (which is being remade as a PlayStation 4 exclusive!) and the solid Viking: Battle For Asgard (which could use a nice remake or sequel one of these days). So an Alien game from these guys and gals should be (wait for it…) a “walk in the park” to some extent.
Of course, we shall see what the future brings and of course, I’m hoping that people aren’t all screaming into space for all the wrong reasons again. But again, I trust The CA to not go where man has gone before and deliver an Alien experience that’s truly memorable and frightening for all the RIGHT reasons. More on this as it develops…
Ah, Diablo III. Other than the PC version, you haven’t failed me yet. Yeah, I’m an offline solo guy who had to deal with the original game being a total pain in the neck to get up and running, so I more than welcomed the PS3 version which I gladly paid for. Having blazed through two difficulty modes (so far), it pleases me to no end that the PS4 is getting this expansion and yes indeed, I can transfer my save files over when I finally get that PS4 in a bit. Hell may be other people (and how), but I like my personal hell packed with demons I can decimate on my own time and walk away happy and sane afterwards. Granted, Inferno mode awaits and I know I’ll be in for a fight against that lord of darkness and his many, many minions (and how, according to some folks who’ve survived the blitz of beefed up baddies raining hell down on them in solo play). But the game is supposed to be HARD. Hell, Normal mode is basically training for the others. You may not think so, you uber-core players who seem to LIKE your avatar dying endlessly until you get your skills together. Me, I prefer to have a fighting chance and enough room to run away when needed on those randomly generated maps.
Some people think the PlayStation Vita is dead in the water. I’m not one of those people for a few darn good reasons, number one being I actually OWN one and aren’t some overpaid analyst or internet troll with a grudge. Although the few titles listed below are only a tiny slice of what I played during this year, they’re all highly recommended because they managed to pack a load of fun into that system while being completely different game experiences.
Earth Defense Force 2017 Portable was the first “big” game of 2013 for me and Japanese developer Sandlot didn’t disappoint in bringing an enhanced “port” of their former Xbox 360 exclusive to Sony’s handheld in fine form indeed. You’re not buying an EDF game for the best visuals nor a deep and engaging story at all, folks. But if you’re a fan of 1950’s giant insect and Japanese sci-fi flicks, the mash-up here is relentless and supremely entertaining. That and the game can take weeks or months to complete if you decide to go it solo like a true EDF maniac and play through all the different difficulty levels while trying to get every single weapon and trophy you can. Toss in Pale Wing from EDF2 (she changes the gameplay up drastically and is a blast to play around with) and the ability to play with like-minded EDF mates in co-op (which makes the tougher difficulty levels much more bearable if you’re fighting for all the Trophies) and you get a fun little evergreen that’s addictive and makes you want more. Thankfully, Sandlot’s newest EDF game is headed to the PS3 and Xbox 360 in February here in North America and it’s packed full of all-new content and even tougher enemies to defeat.
If you like things grimmer yet still action-heavy, Soul Sacrifice is not only right up your alley, it’s calling out to you and drifting onto your Vita before you even realize it. Given that Sony very wisely released a lengthy demo that allows your save file to be transferred into the full version, this ends up as one of those games where you’ll try before buying and end up happier because of it. Between the dark, disturbing storyline and the combat-packed gameplay where dispatching or saving enemy souls changes up the game considerably, there’s a solid sense of progress felt as you clear each chapter and gain some formidable powers. While you can (and should) clear the game solo, a solid co-op mode insures this one will be played about as much or more with a few friends. There’s already a sequel coming to Japan and it’s bound to land here as well (most likely sometime in 2014), but it would be even better to have this as a PS4 (and PS3) game for those of us who like our games on larger screens…
Tearaway caught me way off guard because I hadn’t been following it at all until I saw screens and a fantastic gamplay movie sometime after E3. Media Molecule’s quirky art style gets a flat paper makeover and as a Vita exclusive, the use of both touch screens is superb and yes, better implemented than anything on the 3DS as far as input goes (Although you DO need to watch your fingers when that bottom screen poking action is in play). The game is part adventure, part platformer, and all extremely wonderful to sit down with for a spell. Watching someone watch someone play this game is also great, as non-gamers tend to be more amazed at what we take for granted and yep, they’ll want to try this one out after about a minute or two of watching you getting tap-happy. Between the main game and the incredible chunk of freedom you have in customization, this in one of those titles you’ll probably go back to many times after you’ve completed it…
I really wanted to play Ruin ever since I saw the demo at a Sony press event waaaaay back before the Vita launched, but it seems that the cross-platform PS3/Vita action RPG is either dead in the water or still in development hell. It’s too bad about that game, but Doki Doki Universe, while not a substitute at all, manages to be the first Vita/PS3/PS4 cross platform experience available and it’s a non-stop charmingly goofy one at that. You’re a robot that was abandoned on a tiny asteroid with a red balloon and after being picked up by a UFO, it’s up to you to explore a bunch of different worlds in order to discover what humanity means as you help a bunch of folks with assorted problems. It’s basically Toe Jam & Earl as a side-scroller (one of the guys who created that Sega Genesis classic worked on this new one), a ton of stuff to collect and optional facebook mail integration that’s great for those of you social butterflies that LOVE to share all sorts of stuff. The whimsical art style recalls a child’s drawings come to life and won’t make you think of the power of any system running it at all. Nevertheless, the game hooks you in from the beginning and keeps you playing perhaps a bit longer than you thought you would (which is always a good thing)…
Honorable Mentions (and then some!): Killzone: Mercenary, Ys: Memories of Celceta, Valhalla Knights 3, Terraria, The Pinball Arcade.
That said, I think even Sony realizes the insanity of forcing PS4 owners to pay for the “privilege” of multiplayer gaming on their new console. Stick around until the end of this trailer and note how that stupid little thing about paying to play online is shoved in quickly at the end. Granted, they just hit you on the head HARD with the free games mallet and you’re already so dizzy you didn’t even realize you’d whipped out that credit card and signed up. The free games are MORE than worth that $50 and yes, Sony’s not kidding about that “instant game library” thing. The drawback to this is STORAGE space, as even though you get free cloud saves and a nicely sized HDD this time out (which is still small when you consider the size of some new games), you can’t access them should PSN go down for the count for a few days or even a few hours for simple maintenance.
Thankfully, the PS4 will play disc games and anything you have stored locally offline if the game has offline play. Anyway, I think they need to DUMP the requirement to pay to play MP games, as it’s NOT a privilege at all. If a game is made to be played online, any fee should be part of the price of the game, period. Asking people to pony up as part of a package is lame, even if they do get what amounts to a few thousand bucks a year in free content. Granted, having thee time to PLAY all those freebies AND buy and play NEW games requires either quitting one’s day job, renting out a TARDIS so you can go back in time to fire up a game, complete it and go back to start a new one and some other time magic. But hey, who can pass up FREE when the buffet is so tantalizing?
As some of you may know, I hate making “best of” lists, as it’s always a case of what one DIDN’T experience not making the cut almost always being as good or (or better) than what was chosen. That goes double for public choice where popular seems to outstrip good by a few leagues. That said, if you kidnapped me, tied me to a couch with a bunch of random strangers and submitted them to some rather strange blood testing to see who was infected with an alien virus, I’d fess up beforehand that yes, I’m one of those Things just because I hate me the hell out of needles and sharp objects (unless I’m in the kitchen cutting up stuff to cook). I’d also probably admit that out of all the games I’ve played this year, I probably put MORE time into a few than most did because I liked them a lot more than most did. Okay, that and my backlog is insane and I no longer review too many games in a “speed to the finish!” manner, as that’s how you miss some important stuff… Continue reading →
When I first heard of Zombeer, I laughed quite long and loudly at the idea of boozing it up in order to fight zombies as a gameplay mechanic. talk about becoming an easy target! Later, as screens started appearing, I warmed up to the stylized comic look of the game and my arched eyebrow sunk down to its normal position.Of course, as soon as I found out the game’s mechanic of drinking a certain type of beer in order to keep from becoming a zombie as you rushed to save the love of your life from a similar fate, I had to keep an eyeball peeled (eww) on this one as the months crept onward…
Now, this new kind of NSFW music video shows off an even more intentionally campy tone that makes me want to play this boozed out gorefest just to see if it lives up to the crazy tune cooked up for this clip. Spanish developer Moonbite Studios is making what could be a cult hit for PS3, PC and Mac gamers that, while not exactly screaming visual perfection, just might be fun and funny enough to outstrip any criticism. Besides, the color palette alone is just too awesome to ignore as you’ll see in these new screens:
And remember gang… YOU can even (sort of) be IN the game! Check out this link for the gory details – it’s easy to register and should make a nice surprise gift for someone who’s not expecting it.
Platform: PlayStation 3 (also on Xbox 360)
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 