BioShock Ultimate Rapture Edition: Now Bundled For Your Gaming Pleasure…

Posted on January 21, 2013 by geelw

In case you missed out on the original award-winning BioShock and its sequel, 2K Games has done you a huge favor and bundled the pair together as the Ultimate Rapture Edition along with every bit of download content for both games and yes, you can grab this NOW at your favorite brick & mortar or online game emporium as a retail version for the PS3 and Xbox 360. If you happen to be one of those folks who lives in a shoebox and has no space of who just wants your games digitally, methinks you are out of luck, you console hating loopy soul, you. For the record, neither game has much to do with the upcoming BioShock Infinite save for certain gameplay elements, unsettling enemy designs and a story that tosses a few moral curve balls your way as you play. I’ve got both games here, but no DLC for them, so I may just pick this up at some point. The $29.99 price tag (which includes $40 of bonus content) is certainly right on the money and I can see a few new players grabbing this up to play before 2K Games and Irrational get their new game out the door on March 26 of this year.

Champagne for everybody! Or, at least the nose-tickling bubbles part, given the underwater city setting and all those Big Daddies and Little Sisters you’ll be interacting with in both titles. If you’re one of those jaded types saying “Aw, who wants to play THOSE old games?”, well, kid – the classics never, ever die. SO shaddup and eye yer oatmeal, ya brats – I put broccoli in it with some sugar so you won’t even notice. Damn kids…

Review: Earth Defense Force 2017 Portable

Posted on January 20, 2013 by geelw

Platform: PlayStation Vita

Developer: SANDLOT

Publisher: D3Publisher of America

# of Players: 1 – 4

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Official Site

Score: A (95%)

Much more than a straightforward “port” of the former Xbox 360 exclusive, Earth Defense Force 3 Portable comes screaming onto the Vita as the game developer Sandlot most likely wanted to make in the first place. The return of Pale Wing and her energy-based weaponry (from EDF 2 on the PS2 and EDF 2 Portable PSP) adds a new way to experience the game while an up to four-player co-op mode, rebalanced and all-new weapon drops, new enemy types, trophies galore and seven new levels makes this an absolute must-buy for anyone with a Vita. For those who’ve played the 360 version to death, there’s definitely enough new content there to get you equally obsessed (and yes, perhaps it’s finally time to get that Vita if you’ve been on the fence). Don’t let that $39.99 price point for a download put you off one bit, as there are dozens, if not over a hundred hours of gameplay here, especially if you’re looking to grab one really hard to obtain Platinum Trophy.

Continue reading →

Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory Trailer: Your Daily Dose of Too Many Anime Sweets…

Posted on January 17, 2013 by geelw

I still haven’t decided to buy this one yet thanks to me not having enough time to dive back into another lovely new JRPG that’s going to eat up too much free time and well, me just being on the outs with the super-kawaii stuff for the time being (don’t worry, my time away from the genre won’t last more than a few months). Of course, watching the trailer made me almost change my mind, so perhaps that was a bad idea (for me and a good thing for NISA’s online shop if I decide to order a copy). And nope, Ni no Kuni doesn’t count as part of this category – that one was a must buy and play from the moment I found out it was getting a US localization…

Dead Space Dev Edition: Swag in the Box Makes Me Jittery (But in a Good Way)…

Posted on January 16, 2013 by geelw

You’d think the dev team at Visceral Games would totally wiped out after working on Dead Space 3 for so long to even think getting together to cram a bunch of cool stuff into an awesome collector’s edition,but here you go. From what I played last year, the co-op is pretty impressive and innovative (trust me, it’s a total mind f#@k when one player is seeing stuff the other isn’t and is freaking out while you’re not) and overall, it looks as if Visceral has gone and done it once again. I;m in this for the solo play, but if you were worried about the co-op being shoved in to appease EA or whatever, feel free to kick yourself gently, as it works (and yup, the game is still scary when it needs to be). As for what’s in that big ol’ box? Go on ahead and watch the video. I’m just wanting the game itself (PS3 version, as my 360’s are dead) but my oh my, that bonus stuff just may tempt me back over to the dark side. I just need to find the shelf space (which is kind of non-existent at this point)…

The Cave Full Character Trailer: The Gang’s All Here (and Ready to Play!)

Posted on January 16, 2013 by geelw

Ahhhh… Smell that, kids? It’s the scent of ADVENTURE! Well, adventure gaming to be exact. Wait, you don’t have a “Sniff” key on that keyboard? Hey, it’s 2013 – where have you been? OK, I’ll try and describe what adventure games smell like. It’s sort of a rainy weekend, hot cocoa, graham crackers and recently laundered blankets. A touch of pet hair (*achoo!*) and if you’re really lucky, the lingering scent of tomato soup (not from a can) and a grilled cheese sandwich can be detected. You may only get a hint of that overall aroma, but it’s all in there if you close your eyes and lean back…

Defiance Co-op Trailer: Looks Great as Ever (But Offline Play Needs An Invite)…

Posted on January 16, 2013 by geelw

I’ll say right now that I loved playing that fantastic Defiance demo last year, but as the game nears its eventual launch this year, I’m sort of hoping Trion Worlds has a “Plan B” for all that hard work should the show not be accepted by the more jaded fans out there. Sure, the MMO space needs a game changer and in terms of third-person console shooters, this game adds some great things to the genre that makes it even more player-friendly than DC Universe online while having the challenge core action gamers expect. That said, the game needs a way to play offline or co-op with friends just in case gamers aren’t biting as much as they should on the line. I guess I’ll keep my fingers and toes crossed that the game succeeds as the best new cross-platform action/ MMO on the market, as I really want to see gamers embrace this soon to be classic.

Review: Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath HD (PS Vita)

Posted on January 16, 2013 by geelw

Platform: PlayStation Vita

Developer: Just Add Water

Publisher: Oddworld Inhabitants

# of Players: 1

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Official Site

Score: A

Even if you’ve already bought and played the PS3 version back in 2011 or still own the original 2005 Xbox release, it’s absolutely worth picking up Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath HD on the Vita just to see how well the game was tweaked for the system. As with the console version, the reworked HD visuals from the Xbox game, smooth animation, newly recorded voice acting and other features translate quite nicely to Sony’s portable. It also holds up incredibly well as a stellar single-player game thanks to a great story with an excellent plot twist or two, some fine and witty dialog and a great Oddworld vibe that’s still fresh today as it was back in 2005. There are some issues with the touchpad and game camera being a wee bit too touchy, but otherwise, the game is a solid effort that’s long and often challenging if you’re trying for the least violent means of playing through the game. Continue reading →

DmC Hits Retail, Kicks Haters In The Groin Area By Actually Being Good

Posted on January 15, 2013 by geelw

See, I told you Ninja Theory could knock this out of the park. The game is getting some decent reviews all around and yes, it’s still not stopping the crazier conspiracy theorists out there who’ve been saying Capcom “paid off” people for those scores. Worse still are the folks picking apart reviews for their negative points about the game and using them as ammunition to claim the game isn’t good at all because there are issues that keep it from the “perfection” they think every game needs to meet their standards or whatever. Of course, neither Capcom nor Ninja Theory are going to pay any of these folks any mind at all because they had total confidence in the end result. That said, I did see a funny in-game cinema that seems to poke the haters in the eye for all that bile they’ve been spewing from the moment the game was announced. Eh, whatever – congratulations to the developer, publisher and any fans who respect both companies and are enjoying the hell out of DmC on the PS3 and Xbox 360. PC owners, you get your chance to dive in and beat the crap out of demons on January 25…

(And… here’s the PS3 trailer just to rub it in a little more…the game is good. Deal with it! Or maybe actually PLAY it and enjoy all the hard work NT has done!)

Aliens: Colonial Marines TV Spot: Gearbox Going 2 For 2? Seems Likely…

Posted on January 14, 2013 by geelw

Borderlands 2 was a very huge hit in 2012 for Gearbox, but yeah, I’ve been keeping an eyeball on you too, new game. It’s pretty clear that Randy Pitchford and company love the James Cameron film to the utmost degree and this looks to bring fans of the franchise that sequel they didn’t quite get with Alien 3 (I actually like David Fincher’s debut, warts and all, especially the longer Assembly Cut). I’ll be playing this primarily for the campaign mode, as I’m not a huge multiplayer guy and yes, I’m looking forward to seeing how well Gearbox translated the assorted sets and gear into game form. I’ve only seen Aliens a few dozen times, so I can be as picky and precise as a developer head over heels for the source material. So far, I’m not complaining at all.

February 12 is sneaking up fairly quickly… now, I just need to decide what I want to play this on. I’m leaning towards the Wii U just to see how that GamePad gets used, but I want the PS3 version as well…

Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch: Meet Joe Hisaishi, The Final Piece of a Perfect Puzzle…

Posted on January 9, 2013 by geelw

As you’ll see here (and hear here, ha ha), Joe Hisaishi’s stirring score for the Level-5/Studio Ghibli collaboration Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch fits the game wonderfully well. It’s definitely one of those cases where every element of the game’s development flowed together into what’s looking to be a truly spectacular and memorable experience for JRPG fans. North American PS3 owners only have about two weeks more to wait before the game hits retail, but it’s absolutely going to be one of those games that was not only worth the wait, but worth every penny spent on whatever edition you end up owning. Namco Bandai has a big hit here, I say – hopefully, it’ll do as well as the company and all involved in the project hope, as these sorts of expensive epics may be going the way of the dinosaur thanks to too many publishers focusing on quickie casual, social and mobile titles more and more for faster revenue generation.