Earth Defense Force: Iron Rain – 13 Days ‘Til The Worldwide Airdrop

Posted on March 29, 2019 by geelw

This latest trailer for EDFIR is pretty goofball stuff, but definitely enjoy it for what it is. Of course, you can check out a more “serious” trailer and a nice set of screenshots on the PlayStation Store page (and pre-order the Standard or Ultimate digital edition of game if you like). Everything is shaping up to be the most epic entry in the long-running series to date and yes, that worldwide release insures EDF fans everywhere can play together or alone and not feel left out of the action.

Oh, for the record, I’m finally finishing up my Earth Defense Force 5 review (yeah, it took a while thanks to the ridiculous amount of content in the game, but that’s show biz, folks!) and should have it up over the weekend. Pop back in and see if it’s a total blast of a game more folks need to jump on (spoiler: it most certainly is).

-GW

Review: Achtung! Cthulhu Tactics (Nintendo Switch)

Posted on March 27, 2019 by geelw

Yeah, there’s a review hidden in here somewhere, but first, a lengthy foreword of sorts before the main event. I blame American International Pictures for my unapologetic appreciation for H.P. Lovecraft’s fiction, but I’ll also blame a particular English class teacher way back in my high school days who assigned the class to write a book report on anything they’d recently read and liked, no matter the medium.

We had to each bring our book of choice in so he could approve it and (eek) everyone had to go up to the front of the class and explain why we chose that particular read, which was mind you, quite a challenge for some of the more socially awkward students (*cough*, ahem!). Of course, one smart-ass decided to be funny and bring in Clifford, the Big Red Dog as his choice and was surprised as hell when his choice was approved… with the caveat that it had to be twice the length of the 500 words the other students were assigned as well as “the BEST damn book report on Clifford, ever!” (eek). So much for that dude trying to get off easy, right?

Not quite what one thinks of when “Eldritch” is the subject, but it kind of works.

Me? I ended up picking Lovecraft’s “The Colour Out of Space” from a collection of his works thanks to seeing the so-so 1965 film “Die, Monster, Die!” on TV a few times and later finding out via either Famous Monsters of Filmland , The Monster Times, or some other sci-fi/horror flick-related magazine that the film’s story was very loosely based on that well-aged 1927 short story. I distinctly recall after struggling through my intro speech in front of the class, I ended up getting a note to see the teacher after class (Yipes!). But all he did was complement me on my “mature” selection and note that I’d maybe find out later in life that ol’ H.P. was a tad controversial for a few reasons I didn’t know at the time. Personally, I didn’t care because I wanted to explore the story in question more than I wanted to stumble over info later that would maybe make me not like what I’d read way back when I was in those formative years.

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Path of Exile Finally Arrives on PS4: Ethical F2P FTW

Posted on March 26, 2019 by geelw

It’s been a long road, but this will be a Path well worth traveling.

So, I’ve had Grinding Gear Games’ excellent free-to-play ARPG Path of Exile installed in my Steam account for a few years, but only put just over 11 hours into it before quitting cold. The reason for that was the game was so good that I really wanted to play it on a console and although I’d later discovered an Xbox One version was in the works, PS4 was and is my platform of choice (and yeah, I really couldn’t afford another new system). Finally, after a few delays (which weren’t at all disappointing to me because I knew the dev team would be adding in new content to keep the PS4 version up to date with the other versions), it’s here and yes, I’m in the process of downloading it.

PoE’s more “ethical” approach to F2P means the game is yes, entirely free to play from the start to the endgame. Yes, additional storage space, cosmetic items that don’t affect gameplay and special character packs cost extra, but as far as I’ve seen and read, NOTHING makes the game a “pay to win” scheme. Seven playable character classes and a skill tree that allows for an astounding amount of customization means any class you choose is going to be great once you grasp how deep your options are. As I’m a huge fan of isometric action/RPG games such as Diablo III, The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing, Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor – Martyr, Victor Vran, and the like, there’s no doubt I’ll be playing PoE for quite some time.

Ah, that comforting feel of the ol’ chase ‘n chop is still captivating stuff this old dude just loves.

Of course, that means ditching one of the other MMO’s I’ve been dinking around with, but that’s an easy choice to make when one is replacing a game that’s only OK with one that’s got much more of an immediate pull. Anyway, off to check on the status of that download and see how well this not quite new to me (but perhaps very new to you) game plays. I’m thinking it’ll be even better than I recall, so if you don’t hear from me after a while, don’t call out a search party, as I’ll likely be camping out at home, controller in hand.

-GW

System Shock! Piko Interactive Brings It With a Great Retro Games Selection

Posted on March 25, 2019 by geelw

Whoa. Good thing I’ve kept that old SNES and a bunch of controllers here.

They say time travel doesn’t exist, but seeing this rather cool selection of a dozen upcoming games from publisher Piko Interactive (all available for pre-order NOW) makes me think otherwise. My brain is still doing back flips reading the press release and dang it, although I have every console listed and yep, want each and every game on this list, I wish I still had my Atari Jaguar here for Impossamole and Head Over Heels (as well as the other Jag games I still own sitting in the library).

Anyway, the press release with pre-order links is below the jump, so get to the reading more part and yeah, go broke going for broke, those of you who are thrilled over these new but old soon to be quite collectibles.

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Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen Pre-Order Trailer Flips the Right Switch

Posted on March 13, 2019 by geelw

As noted previously, I’ve played Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen on every platform save Xbox One and can’t wait to see how it translates to the Switch next month. If the frame rate is smooth and performance is solid in either docked or handheld modes, I can see this game becoming even more of a go-to action/RPG than even Capcom is anticipating.

That $29.99 price point is also definitely going to be a huge key to the game’s success, as you’re not only getting the original game’s content, but that lengthy and supremely challenging Dark Arisen expansion that features the deadly as hell Bitterblack Island that will haunt you with its incredible level of challenge (as in don’t make it your first stop once the game proper begins… or else.

Better hope that spell gets cast before that Cyclops starts swingin’ that club, pal…

The hardest part for a DDDA veteran like me will be finding the time to play this one. I know I’ll go the Mystik Archer route for the first play because its way too much fun to send a volley of homing shots down a twisty corridor and hear the sounds of monsters expiring before they’re seen, but I may totally flip a coin and choose a different class, as all are fun to play and rewarding when all is said and done. I guess it’s time to get in some sort of shape so I can log a ton more hours across the lovely but oh-so deadly island of Gransys and those intricately detailed dungeons packed to the gills with assorted dangers. If you’ve got a Switch, go put this one on your wish list, I say.

-GW

Super Phantom Cat: Or, Meow-Rio World, Switch Bound

Posted on March 13, 2019 by geelw

Currently available on Steam, and in the App Store, Veewo’s colorful, super-cute Super Phantom Cat will make the big leap to Nintendo Switch around March 21. This retro-inspired platformer with is super-colorful visuals seems geared for more casual play, but this isn’t a bad thing at all given the more or less “Try and die!” fervor some of these old school themed games go for on a regular basis.

Now, there’s nothing really wrong with these more difficult experiences that hearken to those days when checkpoints and auto-saves weren’t a thing and you had to replay maps from the start each time you lost a life. On the flip side, both kids and adults who aren’t as fast on the jump buttons these days deserve games they don’t need a walkthrough for because they’re nigh on impossible to complete sans some sort of online assistance. Granted, there are indeed walkthroughs for this game out there, but I think most of you who want to can complete this gem of a game with no help at all. This is a good thing, I say.

-GW

Hell to Pay 4: The Savior’s Gang is a Holy Hoot

Posted on March 13, 2019 by geelw

This post probably needs some (im)proper mood music, so feel free to click here or here if you want like a bit of earwiggy sacrilege. Catness Game Studios (HIVE: Altenum Wars) second game, The Savior’s Gang ($4.99) is guaranteed to ruffle a few feathers among the easily offended, but you have to give the developer credit for knowing how to get a few laughs in the right places. Here’s five minutes of gameplay for you (and nope, you won’t go to heck in a hound biscuit for watching):

There’s quite a bit to like here, from the isometric viewpoint to the amusing quips when some poor soul buys the farm in one of many painful-looking ways. A few bugs are being fixed thanks to user feedback, so the game is in that improvement phase pretty much every game goes through post-launch. Fortunately, all this mayhem won’t be exclusively for PC players, as Catness is working on console ports (nice!) to be released at some point in the future. It’ll be interesting to see how this translates to a game pad, but I think it can indeed be done and work quite well.

So, The Life of Brian meets Diablo, but as a simulation/action game? OK, I’m in.

Of course, we shall see what happens in regards to those ports, but unless there’s lightning bolts randomly hitting the space around Catness’ studios (hey, who called Zeus up anyway?), let’s keep a finger crossed that this one gets played and enjoyed by as many gamers as possible

-GW

Review: The Wizards – Enhanced Edition (PSVR)

Posted on March 12, 2019 by geelw

Yep, buy it.

BOOM. Carbon Studios has cooked up an absolutely incredible and fun VR experience in The Wizards: Enhanced Edition ($24.99), a game so immensely entertaining it’ll make you want to run out and buy a PS4 and PSVR setup just to play it. If you’ve already got that rig and are ready for the next instant classic… well, here you go.

Granted, there are a nice selection of other exceptional games for PSVR fans (Moss, Astro Bot, BattleZone and many more spring immediately to mind as must-owns). But as a huge fan of action/adventures with a fantasy setting (this isn’t quite a RPG despite having plenty of RPG inspired content), the game’s got that great “Just one more level!” pull to it that keeps you pushing forward with a rather huge grin on your headset-covered face. Well, an hour or so at a time if you’re not able to sit for long VR sessions and need to take breaks (I’m in that category, by the way).

As I haven’t played the PC version, going into the world of Meliora completely cold made for an even more thrilling time right out of the gate. Dual PS Move controllers in hands, the game does quite an excellent job at making you feel like a full on magic-slinging, monster mashing champ. While there’s likely going to be a bit of a learning curve for new players, for PSVR vets, the game excels at making you feel as if you’re in its solidly rendered environments with a level of immersion so great that even those glove-covered hands you’ll be casting and blasting with are pretty flawlessly animated. Once you learn how to time your spells and cast them properly, any initial frustrations will melt away (along with a few waves of weaker foes). Bosses are a challenge on a few fronts, but overall, this one’s a well-made chunk of entertainment. No new ground is broken here, but this comes recommended because it gets what it gets as right as can be every chance it gets.

“You’ve got the touch… you’ve got the POWER!… ZZZAP!

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Hell to Pay 3: Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice Launch Trailer

Posted on March 12, 2019 by geelw

Shadows may Die Twice, but I’ll die quite a lot more playing this and be totally happy with that.

Confession: I’m notably terrible at FromSoftware’s Demon’s Souls/Dark Souls games and Bloodborne, but I keep playing them all because of my overall love for the developer’s work and generally very solid lineup since the King’s Field days and the fact that they make some really damn fine games that have been varied, fun to play and challenging. I fully expect to be even more terrible at their new game, Sekiro™: Shadows Die Twice, set for a PC, PS4 and Xbox One release on March 22, 2019.

This trailer is, to put it mildly, absolutely magnificent:

Granted, it’s a given that Activision and From have a guaranteed evergreen hit here that’s a gorgeous reminder the dev cut its teeth on some superb single player experiences way back in the 32-bit era. But this game also makes me wish someone would nudge the developer to get to work on Otogi and Otogi 2 remakes or remasters, as those were two very well-made original Xbox titles that deserve a new life on current-gen hardware or hardware yet to come. We shall see, of course, but hey – if we’re also getting Metal Wolf Chaos XD this year from Devolver Digital, anything is somewhat possible in the future.Micro

Hey, pal… got a light?

-GW

Hell to Pay 2: Diablo Makes a Comeback

Posted on March 12, 2019 by geelw

Excellent. After years of requests for a legitimate re-release, Blizzard and gog.com have teamed up to get the classic PC game Diablo out exclusively on the popular DRM-free digital platform for a measly $10. That tenner it costs gets you the original 1996 version as well as a separate build updated to run on Windows 7, 8, and 10 that includes “a host of bug fixes and high-resolution support via aspect ratio-correct upscaling”. While Mac and Linux versions are currently not available, I’d imagine someone clever will figure out a way to get those up and running for those fans who may want them. At this point, you won’t get that much-requested Hellfire expansion in this deal and I’d gather that will never be a thing to buy as that content wasn’t created by Blizzard

Blizzard and gog.com will also be getting both Warcraft: Orcs & Humans and Warcraft 2 out as digital-only re-releases at some point in the near future. As for the still superb Diablo II? Well, there’s no news on an updated version at this time, but both can currently be purchased through Blizzard’s Battlenet online store. Personally, I’m hoping for this one to get the same treatment along with the Lord of Destruction expansion, as it’s pure hell trying to get them to run from the original discs without some mucking around with a bunch of config options. The last few times I played DII, I used the amazing Sven’s Glide Wrapper to make the game look better (as well as add a clock to the game screen so I could keep track of time, as DII is a total time-sink).

There’s going to be a hot time in the old town tonight…

I still recall way back in 1996 when I walked into an Electronics Boutique to hunt down a few Sega Saturn games and saw a playable demo of Diablo with no one at the kiosk, stepping up to try the game and being floored by the dark tone and gloomy soundtrack. The game felt like a meaner, more complex version of Gauntlet that required a more methodical style of play and yep, I was hooked in. Even the less stellar PlayStation port was a thrill to play multiple times (and yes, I still have that here in the library). While Diablo II never got a console port, it sure would be very nice to see one appear for consoles in the not too distant future just so a bunch of us who want to check that off our wish lists can be giddy for a spell (even if there won’t be mods to mess with).

-GW