Slender: The Arrival on PS3: Return of the Jump-Scary (If You Like That Sort of Thing)…


 
Hmmmm. Sorry, but I’ve never really been a fan of this game or the many variants that feature one of the least “scary” urban myths I’ve ever heard. But hey, I’m an old fogey and prefer my scares a great deal more cerebral (or not so obviously made for the “Ooh, lookit my YouTube video where I leap out of my seat if FEEEEAAAAR!” crowd). Anyway, this one’s coming to PSN on September 23, so if that floats your boat and you’ve a PS3 at home, prepare to be scared out of your socks or whatever. Hey, I’ll give the whole Slenderman thing this, however: it gets some people so creeped out that they think some tall thing in a stiff suit is actually frightening. Maybe I can get in lines at movie theaters, post offices and banks dressed like that, say “Booooooooo!” a lot and see my place in line jump from last to first within seconds. That, or some kid with a can of mace will let out an screech, spray me and get in some cellphone snaps or a movie to post on facebook as they’re running away. Damn kids…

Adventure Time: Secret of the Nameless Kingdom Screenshot Update: Looking Legend of-ary!

Jake&Fairy Little Orbit may have gotten off to a small start back in January 2010, but the publisher is sure making some waves lately among some gamers. Its recent acquisition of developer Vicious Cycle (and their VERY versatile Vicious Engine) means LO now has a studio that can crank out good looking and highly playable licensed and (hopefully) original games for consoles and PC in a decent amount of time. Nice. And speaking of nice, here are a handful of screens from Adventure Time: Secret of the Nameless Kingdom, coming to PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo 3DS in November.

JakeApes2 JakeFairyClap JakeFinnFlamboShelby JakeOrgan StarchyFinn Jake&FinnatRest

Based on these new screens and the older game info I’ve cobbled up, this latest AT game looks to be more of a Legend of Zelda-type top down experience and not the Gauntlet-inspired solo play or couch co-op fun of the last game, Explore the Dungeon Because I Don’t Know!. Keep an eye on this one, folks – I smell a sleeper coming a few months down the road…

Bundle Fest Deals 4 & 5 Offer Up Pains, Trains, & More Awesome Deals…


 
Ha! See what I did there? No? Oh well. I’ll let you off the hook this time because I just KNOW you were distracted by one of both of these awesome Bundle Stars deals. Go let of some Steam with the Trainz Bundle, which gives you Trainz Simulator 12 and eight DLC packs for a mere $3.99 (try getting a real train ticket for that price!). This surprisingly addictive set of train simulations and construction tools allow anyone to run their own railroad and even hop online to share content with other users anywhere in the world.


 
If, on the other hand you’re in the mood for a lot less train travel and a great deal more fantasy and horror coming your way, well… the Night Dive Bundle has your name stamped all over it. Classic RPGs Wizardry VI, VII and VII are here, as is the scary sci-fi masterpiece, System Shock 2 (looking better than the trailer shows thanks to some great patches that come with the game install). You’ll also get the gory adventure chiller, Harvester, I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream (the great Harlan Ellison story that was turned into quite a memorably bleak adventure game experience), More horror with Shadowman, The 7th Guest and The 11th Hour, and finally, the intentionally “buggy” tale of a very unique cockroach in Bad Mojo: Redux $3.49 nets you these nine titles and you’ll get a few weeks or longer out of the Wizardry games alone.

Summer may be coming to a close, but these two deals will make your backlog GROW like it’s spring inside your computer’s hard drive, I say! That goodness can be all yours in a couple of clicks and I don’t want to stop you at all from getting what needs to be done DONE. So, get to it already!

Crimes and Punishments (Sherlock Holmes) Update: A Little Macho Disguise & Some Arm Wrasslin’ Get Our Man A Clue…


 
Okay, Focus Home Interactive and Frogwares, you’ve got me now. I just HAVE to play Crimes & Punishments: Sherlock Holmes now just because of those goofy disguises the dashing detective can don in the game in order to help in his decidedly deducting ways. This trailer made me laugh for a few reasons, but not AT the game at all. I just like how the series has evolved from its stuffier Victorian era settings to a more modern (but not too modern) set of scenarios that looks as if it will have a wider appeal among a few types of more adventuresome gamers willing to take a chance on something new. Hmmm… I wonder if Holmes can deduct the cos of his disguises from his taxes? Or is that even allowed in foggy Londinium? Ah, the mystery… the mystery…

Crimes & Punishments: Sherlock Holmes is out on September 30, 2014 for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PC.

Adding Steel Battalion to the Collection Is A Total Space-Eating Experience…

SBXbox
So, my Steel Battalion finally arrived yesterday. Woo and hoo. The outer box is a bit beat up (hey, it was on the frontline, man!), but that big honkin’ special controller and pedals are in great shape and the game itself is complete and works excellently. Amusingly enough, for YEARS I’d been saving up some space just to store this behemoth if I ever got one and when I finally manage to find it, it’s after my brother moves back in and takes over the space I was going to store this in. Ha! Oh well. This is on top of the old tube TV in the bedroom for the moment. I have a backup spot for it, but it’s going to take some moving around of stuff to clear that space. I guess that’s my Sunday project, huh?

-GW

Falling Skies: The Game Teaser #2: Angry Aliens Asking For It Are Landing Sooner Than You Think…


 
September 30th is peeking around the corner and Little Orbit’s upcoming Falling Skies: The Game keeps popping up on my radar as a game that needs to be played. Sure, it’s swiping its style from the classic X-Com series, but as I’ve noted earlier that’s all good with me if they swipe the best parts and make it fit with what works in the popular TNT TV series. It may not be the prettiest nor the most hyped game of the year at all, but I’m betting it finds its niche among strategy-starved gamers who want a new title to keep their interest for as long as it takes to complete (and be replayed a few times). Keep an eyeball peeled on this one, folks…

Rollers of the Realm Priced (YES!) and Dated (Sort Of): Get Ready To Roll This November!


 
ROTR battleA mere penny under ten bucks for this Pinball/RPG hybrid AND it’s cross-buy/cross-save on the Vita and PS4? Yep, I’m in day one and you should be too. I’m all over this one and have been since I heard about it early in development because I’m a pinball maniac with no room for an actual machine in my place (boo!) and a love for developers who keep the silver ball flame going by every means necessary. I also love RPGs, so developer Phantom Compass had me from day one. Atlus picking this up to publish also made me grin a wee bit too much because this means it’s going to get that extra push and pedigree their best games get and hopefully score some point among the fans who’d normally avoid a western-produced game for some oddball reason.

Anyway, I’m betting on Rollers of the Realm being a total no-brainer buy when it finally hits PSN in November. Heck, even if you avoid digital games like the plague, I’d day lift your “nope” restrictions, drop the ten bucks on this PSN download and play a game that will surprise your socks off at how good and FUN it is.

Go Wish Happy Birthday to Rogue Trooper (And Blow $#!t Up While You’re At It)!

Rogue Trooper Bday Sale
 
It’s been a long 33 years since Rogue Trooper appeared in comics form and to celebrate, veteran game developer Rebellion is offering up the PC version of their 2006 action game at the great low price of $2.49 (or £1.49 if you’re in the UK). I own this on console and PC and it’s quite fun for a third-person shooter and actually has a decent story behind all the stuff blowing up.

While the game isn’t incredibly long, it’s well made and quite a bit of fun to play, funny when it needs to be and don’t be surprised if you find yourself liking the lead character and his fellow troopers as you play through their story. Now, isn’t THAT cool? A birthday where YOU get to spend money (and not a lot of it at all) on a gift for yourself!

Bayonetta 2 Direct: Yeah, It’s A BUY, Nintendo, It’s a BUY!


 

BOOOM. Can’t talk. Watching. back in a bit. My Wii U is at home bouncing around the room. Go, PlatinumGames! This Nintendo exclusive has been making competing console owners green with envy and red with raaaaaaage for over a year, so here’s more fuel for those fires. The game looks INCREDIBLE and yeah, yeah, super casual touch screen mode aside, should be a MORe than worthy sequel to the original game. Now, will it sell Wii U consoles? That’s VERY hard to say at this point. However, given Nintendo’s coming games from now until 2015, I’d say we’ll see a lot more units moving during and past this holiday season.

Double Your Bundles, Double Your Fun (And Double Your Backlog!)…

bundle fest logoOkay, I missed yesterday’s Bundle Stars deal in this five days of bundles (or Bundle Fest, as they call it), but that’s not bad news at all as each bundle doesn’t expire for about a week. So today you get two (*smooch!*), TWO times the bundles! First up, it’s The Arctic Bundle, where $2.49 nets you SEVEN complete adventure games including classics like Benoit Sokal’s Syberia and Syberia 2, both Still Life games, Post Mortem and the gorgeous, bizarre Enki Bilal/Benoit Sokal game Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals. If you love your games packed with puzzles and memorable female characters, this bundle’s for YOU.

Today’s other deal is the Reboot 7.0 Bundle, six Steam games (and a DLC pack for one of those games) that are a nice mix of genres and hybrids. I’m LOUSY at poker, but I see that Runespell: Overture is batting its eyelashes at me and I may groove on over to see what’s up with this oddball RPG that uses poker hand-based combat.

This cool bundle will set you back a measly $1.49 and has a nice set of other action-based games for you to dive into. Okay, now that I’ve hit you over the noggin with too many games, GO GET SOME! I’ll wait here and rest for a bit while you log a few hours of playtime. I could use the vacation…