Gallery Update: Dynasty Warriors 7

Posted on January 8, 2011 by geelw

As the lovely Sun Shang Xiang's come-hither (so she can kick your ass) stare shows, in terms of graphics, Omega Force is clearly doing its best work to date on this latest game in the long-running Warriors franchise. As you'll soon see in the gallery below the jump, the rest of the in game characters share that same level of polish. Fans of the series can expect a few tweaks to the familiar formula to go along with the upgraded visuals when the game hits retail on March 22, 2011 for the PS3 and Xbox 360.

Memo to Omega Force – nice new engine you've got there. Three words: Crimson. Sea. Sequel. Two more words: Destrega 2. Make it happen, people!

Gallery: Warriors: Legends of Troy

Posted on January 8, 2011 by geelw

Koei Canada has been “quietly” working away on a very interesting twist to the long-running Sengoku Mousou franchise, Warriors: Legends of Troy, set to storm onto the PS3 and Xbox 360 across North America on March 8, 2011 (3/25/11 in the UK). On first glance, the game has the makings of the more familiar Dynasty Warriors series, a good thing for fans of the series who want more. However, the combination of Greek and Roman “historical” and mythological elements plus copious amounts of blood (and the Mature rating that comes with it) should give this one enough potential to draw in fans of everything from Spartan: Total Warrior, God of War, 300 and Showtime's awesomely gory Spartacus series. The grittier visual style here is in direct contrast to Omega Force's work (as you'll see in the latest Dynasty Warriors 7 screens), but this more realistic route fits the brutal hack & slash gameplay all the more.

Activision Wants You To Go To Hong Kong For Some True Crime…

Posted on January 7, 2011 by geelw

Nope, it’s NOT a contest with an amazing prize (although that would be really cool). It’s just the single screen shot sent along to promote True Crime: Hong Kong along with a lengthy game description. In a nutshell, the upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 game will be the first open-world game set in Hong Kong, it will feature a ton of familiar HK talent doing voice-overs, over 100 songs, hand-to-hand combat inspired by HK and Hollywood action flicks, guns galore (Woo, Woo!), plenty of illegal activities to participate in and I’m sure, a Mature rating based on all the other info in the sell sheet. If anything, it should be a heck of a lot better than Stranglehold was. Developer UFG (United Front Games) has quite a task at hand here, so I’ll shut up until I get some hands-on time with the game…

X-Men Destiny Trailers 1 & 2: Silicon Knights Is Back In Action…

Posted on January 7, 2011 by geelw

http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/atUe79-Eijs?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0

Normally, most super-hero games make me all yawny, but they've definitely been getting interesting over the past few years. X-Men Destiny is Activision and Marvel's newest take on the familiar mutants, allowing players to create and play as a completely unique mutant character as he or she carves out his or her own path in the upcoming action/adventure game. With developer Silicon Knights at the helm, this could be quite interesting. Like pretty much everything else out there, the game has a dedicated, official Facebook page you can go check out if you're wanting to dive in and interact with like minded mutant fans. Trailer 2 below the jump – enjoy!

ICO & Shadow of the Colossus Collection Demo Shows Off The Benefit of Really Blurry Screen Photos

Posted on January 6, 2011 by geelw

I'd initially planned NOT to use these ICO and Shadow of the Colossus Collection pics at all, but after much debate (well, not that much), I decided to run a few of the shots I took last month of the live demo of Sony's upcoming PS3 HD (and 3D)-enhanced twofer. If you've never played either game before on the PS2, you're in for a real treat. ICO is shorter and more puzzle/platform oriented, Shadow is much longer and has more action and they both show off some of the best hand-animated 3D characters you'll ever see. (You'll have to play them to get what each story is about – I'm not going to go ruin anything for anyone new to the games).

Anyway, you're getting two amazingly well-done, innovative gems with a nice HD polish for a great price. That 3D effect is an option for those with 3D TV's, by the way, but if you're fortunate enough to own a Bravia or other 3D setup, you'll see that the game looks absolutely spectacular. The blurrier the photo, the more incredible the effect is. So yes, the worst looking pic below the jump is the one where I had to stop taking pics and just watch more of the game being played (I didn't snap away when that first Colossus showed up, but the 3D there is nearly mind-blowing). This one's going to be a keeper…

Gallery: No More Heroes: Heroes’ Paradise

Posted on January 6, 2011 by geelw

Travis Touchdown is baaaaaaaaack (and so are the ladies!), and this time, they're coming to you on the PS3 (with Move controller support, so go buy one if you haven't yet). You all get one guess what this one's going to be rated (don't let that RP fool you one bit). I absolutely loved the first two Wii games (quirks and all), so it will be ridiculously interesting to see how the game turns out on a more powerful platform. So far, Santa Destroy and its denizens look pretty darn slick in HD, that's for sure. Go ogle the screens below the jump – I'm off to play some games… (edit! a few more screens added)

Review: TRON Evolution

Posted on December 28, 2010 by geelw

Platform: PS3 (also on Xbox 360, PC*)

Developer: Propaganda Games

Publisher: Disney Interactive Studios

# of Players: 1 (online 1 – 8)

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Official Site

Score: B–

As licensed movie games go, TRON: Evolution does a pretty good job of bringing gamers into its world as a mostly enjoyable experience that while not a masterpiece, has some pretty cool elements going for it. It's not the usual licensed title that repeats the movie experience, but a bridge between the 1982 original and the new sequel (TRON: Legacy) that you may want to play BEFORE you see the movie. Enjoying the game fully requires a bit of knowledge (and yes, nostalgia) about the original's film's plot and characters, but you can complete it without knowing who's who. However, If you just want a new action game to play and go in cold with no intentions to see either film, the story might seem weak and hard to follow in spots. On the other hand, if you're a fan of the original and have seen (or plan to see) the new film, what's here does a solid job of updating and expanding while making you want more in the process. There's also the kernel of a great MMO experience here, should Disney decide to allow the developer to add to what's here and take the game further in future installments.

Tecmo Koei’s Q1 2011 Lineup: A Cast of Thousands In Three Games (Plus Two 3DS Titles)

Posted on December 24, 2010 by geelw

Tecmo Koei is getting an early start on 2011 by announcing three upcoming console games for the first quarter of next year as well as two 3DS exclusives with release dates and more info on the portable games to be announced shortly – (at or around CES, I’m guessing). Here’s what’s on the way:

Trinity: Souls of Zill ‘Oll (PS3 Exclusive) – February 8, 2011
Warriors: Legends of Troy (PS3/Xbox 360) – March 8, 2011
Dynasty Warriors 7 (PS3 and Xbox 360) – March 22, 2011
Dead or Alive Dimensions (3DS)
Samurai Warriors Chronicles (3DS)

I’ll run updated galleries for each game as new media comes in.

inFAMOUS 2 Behind the Scenes Video

Posted on December 24, 2010 by geelw

http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/BnagF1gV4lE?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0

SCEA and Sucker Punch’s Holiday Cheer, part deux – check out this chunk of “making of” footage from inFAMOUS 2 and go kiss your PS3 for getting yet another great game in 2011. I’d say someone needs to build a time-stopping machine so we can all set aside enough of it to actually play ALL the great games coming next year for every system…