Remember Me: Behind the Music Trailer (No, This Isn’t MTV, Silly)…

Posted on February 1, 2013 by geelw

Capcom, we love you like a long lost dog that’s been newly found in fine shape, but… you have to be a tiny bit more original with your promo video titles. That’s pretty much the sole negative thing I have to say about this look at the process of scoring the upcoming action adventure game developed by Dontnod Entertainment set for release in May 2013. I’m hoping we get the option of hearing both versions of the score, as it sounds pretty cool so far. Hmmmm… Neo Paris, huh? I wonder if any Parisians not parkouring about the City of Light in 2084 are still going to get that two months paid vacation or whatever is is they enjoy. Nice city, confusing navigating those districts if you’re easily distracted. I haven’t been there in ages, but I’ll get to take a virtual trip soon enough through this excellent looking game. Now, I want a good glass of wine, some nice Camembert and a hunk of good bread. Good Night…

Carnage Heart EXA: Yes, They Still Make PSP Games!

Posted on January 30, 2013 by geelw

I had to do a genuine double take when I saw these videos Natsume sent my way. First of all, a new Carnage Heart game from Artdink? Wow. The original was a relatively obscure cult hit on the old PlayStation amongst those who dared to brave its unusual gameplay mechanics and high learning curve. A strategy game where you chose AI routines, placed them into a small team of mechs and let the game play out battles you didn’t control wasn’t exactly a system seller. That said, once you spent time poring over the manual and experimenting with customization, the game opened up considerably. There were three more PSOne games made with the Carnage Heart name (Carnage Heart: EZ Zapping and two with similar sounding titles: Zeus: Carnage Heart Second and Zeus II: Carnage Heart) and a PSP game from 2006 (Carnage Heart Portable), but none of those were ever localized. EXA is a 2010 PSP release that originally got both a retail and digital release in Japan, but Natsume is localizing this strictly for North American PSN users (a smart move given how much of a niche title this is). Custom color me intrigued. Natsume has yet to drop a release date on this one, but it’s coming this year and most likely sooner than later. I still have three working PSP’s here, so they’re practically giddy at this news…

Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time Short: I’d Buy That For a Dollar!

Posted on January 30, 2013 by geelw

OK, so it’s not old and classy like Boomerang when they rock those old Hanna Barbera and MGM ‘toons I grew up glued to the tube on, but if there were ever a Sly Cooper animated series made, I’d probably shell out for a DVD or Blu-Ray after the season was over (yeah, that’s right – I like to own discs over downloads any day of the week). Granted, it would need to be better written than say, an average episode of Secret Squirrel or Tom and Jerry, but there’s a gold mine of heist flicks to steal story ideas from. Topkapi, The Great Train Robbery, The Lavender Hill Mob and so forth and so on. So, Sony… find a fine writing team with good transforming skills (who won’t be sued for plagiarism because they got too lazy) and some old-fashioned 2D animators who know their stuff and get that ball rolling – you’ve got a few customers waiting outside the gaming space…

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen Trailer: Once More (But in Japanese)…

Posted on January 29, 2013 by geelw

Hey, I can do this all day, Capcom. You run a trailer for a Dragon’s Dogma game and yep, it’ll get watched and maybe posted here or elsewhere. That what you get for making a game so much fun to play, scary as hell in spots and quite challenging for almost anyone (save for some hard-case blowhards who consider it “too easy” because they’re going at it and chewing through content like a hungry pet being fed a nice big chicken dinner. Anyway, I’ve got my new PS3 controller coming and I’m doing a few extra sit-ups (like that will help against that Ur-Dragon), so yeah, bring it…

BioShock Infinite “Columbia is Icarus” Trailer: If So… Get Off That Floating City!

Posted on January 28, 2013 by geelw

Funny, you’d think that comparing an fake alternate past colonial steampunk-inspired floating mega-metropolis being compared to that mythological dope who made himself a nice set of wings for flying to the sun that weren’t heatproof would be a dead giveaway that Columbia would be a pretty awful place to visit. But, nope… we’re all headed there as gamers in BioShock Infinite and both 2K Games and Irrational Games are going to be counting stacks of bills and probably trying to make wings out of them as well. Hopefully, they won’t use the same adhesive as poor Iccy did. Then again, I say let them. Just as long as I get a flight schedule and a big ass butterfly net. I’m not saving any lives from a fall at that height, folks – I just want to scoop me up some of that free money when it comes raining down…

Dead Space 3 Hands-On: Two Players Makes For A Far Freakier Experience…

Posted on January 28, 2013 by geelw

When I heard that Dead Space 3 would have an all-new co-op mode included, I was a tiny bit skeptical (not as crazed as some on the internet raging madly about it, however). Still, I trusted that Visceral Studios would not only deliver something memorable in terms of the scares and gore fans expect, the developer would also bring a bit of innovation to the gameplay simply because standard co-op play would have been too generic for a series known for giving the horror genre a nice kick in the pants. It turns out that my initial skepticism wasn’t even necessary as from what I played, players on either end of that Xbox Live or PSN connection are in for a total mind trip that’s different for both players.

Continue reading →

Ni no Oopsie: Namco Bandai Sells Out of Wizard’s Edition A Wee Bit Too Early…

Posted on January 26, 2013 by geelw

Well, it’s getting stellar early reviews from the critics and fans who’ve gotten their copies on day one, but it seems that some folks who ordered the Wizard’s Edition of Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch in North America had to “settle” for a refund and $20 coupon after the publisher seems to have not produced enough copies of the limited edition to go around to those who paid for it. Oops. Digital River, the distributor for the game issued the following statement:

“We apologize for the discrepancies you may have encountered with your order of Namco Bandai’s Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch – Wizard’s Edition. As one of our valued customers, we want to assure you that a Digital River representative will be reaching out to you individually via email to address your specific issue. We sincerely appreciate your patience as we work through this situation”

In plain English… Oops… Continue reading →

Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen May Need a 12-Step Program Expansion…

Posted on January 24, 2013 by geelw

April 28, huh? Retail and digital download available (so MORE people can play this from day one)? The addiction begins anew, it would seem. Count me in and I’m hoping to be taking a few of you with me. In case you missed out on the original game, fear not, potential Arisen candidates! You can hang out near your favorite game emporium and pick up this “expansion” that features a huge new area, quests, monsters to pee yourself over and more. By the way, kids… that MORE just so happens to include the original game as a “bonus” that makes perfect sense. As you’ll see (or already know), the land of Granysys is one massive place to explore and Capcom should get a hearty hand-clasp and a pat of the back for doing this up right. Of course, the usual unwashed internet fools who can’t seem to read are thinking this is all DLC or something, but by now, Capcom knows not to listen to those folks too much. I’m buying this just to see how the new area fits in with the old. Will I replay the game from the beginning once more or use an old save file? We shall see, I guess… I’m tempted to do so, but time (as always) is the big factor…

Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Is in Stores Now. If You Own a PS3, Buy It.

Posted on January 22, 2013 by geelw

Granted, if you own a PS3 and all you play is the yearly Madden, CoD or other manly-man, chest-puffing, square-jawed games that require hyphenation when describing them, welllll… perhaps you shouldn’t buy this. But then again, why the hell not, I say? I think you should take a well-deserved break from the testosterone-fueled sausage-fests and get out in the beautiful virtual outdoors only Level-5 and Studio Ghibli can bring your way, courtesy of Namco Bandai Games, of course. No matter what sort of beefy action or sports games you like, you absolutely NEED to dive into something lighter (but still challenging). Ni no Kuni offers up some absolutely beautiful visuals, a score for the ages, surprisingly tough battles and many hours of content that doesn’t require you hanging out online downloading or waiting on your stumble-bum buddies to roll out of bed or back home from whatever they were doing when they were supposed to meet up with you hours ago. Anyway, STORY matters as well (yeah, I watch stuff on AMC. So sue me), and this game will make you more emotional than the time you accidentally rubbed your eye while eating those hot wings last week while watching your team lose and not make the playoffs. Yeah, that’s right – you need a good game that will hook you in and make you care about more than some bad call a guy with bad eyesight in a striped shirt made. Anyway, I bet you know someone who’d play this game even if YOU won’t… so get up off that sofa, you slug and do the right thing… You’ll be a more rounded gamer for it, trust me…

Defiance Pre-Orders Kick Off: MMO Innovation Is On The Way…

Posted on January 21, 2013 by geelw

If any MMO deserves to succeed in a far too crowded market, it’s Trion Worlds’ upcoming action-based tie-in the the upcoming syfy TV show. As you can see above and below, it’s absolutely NOT another licensed game tossed out the door by a studio looking to cash in on the rubes who buy anything attached to a genre like clockwork, folks. At least five years of hard work has gone into the game and show and they’re kind of joined at the hip in that watching the show and playing the game link the narrative in a few ways. Like a few other MMO’s you’re paying for the retail version, but the game will be free to play after that. While offline play is a no-go (a shame, as the game is fast-paced and plays just like a great action game should) I’m hoping it does well enough that Trion can spin this off onto other platforms in some way as a solo experience that doesn’t require an online connection. I’d bet there are loads of potential players without decent online connections that would love to give this one a shot at some point. As always, we shall see…