New Mario Kart 8 Gameplay Trailer: HD Does Make A Difference, Doesn’t It?

Posted on April 3, 2014 by geelw

While a few previews I’ve perused say it’s more or less the same old Mario Kart in terms of gameplay, on the visual front at least, Nintendo has a killer game here. Now, I’m not a big fan of this series because I prefer more realistic looking racers and have been karted out for years thanks to too many sessions with older entries in this franchise. But it’s hard to ignore those shiny (finally) CG-quality visuals doing their thing (and how!). Granted, the Wii U needs more than one game to push its sales numbers up and this one will indeed sell to fans of the games and maybe even move a few folks to finally commit to purchasing the console. On the other hand, at the rate new first-party games are dropping on the console, Nintendo will need to hope this one blows the doors off anything else released in May just so sales are steady or at least massive within the first month. As always, we shall see, but I predict yet another “evergreen” for the company that sells for as long as they continue to make games for the console.

Dungeon of the Endless Update: Your Multi-Almost Everything Game is Almost Ready!

Posted on April 3, 2014 by geelw

Amplitude Studios’ upcoming multi-hybrid game is looking quite spectacular in this new trailer and updated screens combo plus the mix of genres (just watch the trailer, as the very thought of writing all that out is making my fingers hurt. Here, go ogle some new screens and make sure to read some of the amusing descriptions in the pics that have them:

Okay, let me get back to work, because I got caught up in reading some of those screens as well. You can get more info on Dungeon of the Endless HERE (official site!) and HERE (the game’s Steam page where you can sign up for early access and more!)

Risen Comes to GOG.com: Adventure (And Lots of Dying For The Impatient) Await!

Posted on April 3, 2014 by geelw

One of my favorite adventure/RPGs of the past few years is finally DRM-free and ready (once again) for its close-up. While the Xbox 360 version of Risen suffered from a terrible downgrade in visual quality, the gameplay was intriguing and challenging enough to keep me playing. Of course, the PC version is the way to go if you can run it smoothly with all the settings up, so here you go for a measly four bucks. While the game is shorter than developer Piranha Bytes’ Gothic games, there are a ton of things to do and places to go on that deadly island your character gets shipwrecked on. The solid sense of accomplishment you get from surviving those early encounters is bolstered even further as you take down enemies that previously caused you grief (and there are many right from the beginning of the game) and your character grows into a force to be reckoned with.

Anyway, I’ll shut up now and let you get to checking this one out. It’s a really nice surprise for fans of European made open world RPGs as well as quite the sleeper that should have gotten a lot more attention. As for Risen 2? Well, we’ll talk about that one later, as I still need to finish it one of these days and can’t say whether or not I like it just yet…

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing 2 Gets Knockbacked Into May…

Posted on April 3, 2014 by geelw

Game delays are nothing new, so this isn’t really a big surprise. Still, you have to love the press release Neocore Games sent out to announce the delay:

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II Delayed due to Monster Invasion

Slightly delayed, but no need to worry – all that extra time will be spent polishing the game. The new release date is set to May 22, 2014.

So, what happened to the April release date of The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II? Well, we could blame the supernatural or the bad Vrikolak meat in the fridge, but the truth is, we want to release a superb game as polished as possible on release and that will take a little longer than we thought. We want to make sure the sequel is superior to the first game in every aspect and it keeps you nailed to your chairs all the way to the end with its engaging new story. Now the new date will also mark the anniversary of the first game’s release. So be ready to hunt down the new swarm of monstrosities when the game hits Steam on May 22, 2014.

All of you are reaping souls right now anyway, aren’t you?

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II is available for pre-order on PC. To pre-purchase the game, head to neocoregames.com/store and choose from the various supporter packages in various price ranges.

Me, I’m currently NOT reaping souls because Blizzard has ignored PS3 and Xbox 360 owners of Diablo III, but I have other stuff to keep me occupied while I wait for the man with the hat and Lady Katarina to make their second appearance in a more polished form. That, and I can also replay the beta a few more times just to see how all those other character classes do against the hordes.

Child of Light is My Game of the Month (And I Haven’t Even Played It)

Posted on April 2, 2014 by geelw

Well, what else is new, right? As soon as I saw screen shots of Ubisoft’s upcoming RPG Child of Light, then video of it in action, I had to immediately add it to the top of my “PLAY IT OR ELSE!” pile and add both a background and banner using the gorgeous art to the site. It’s coming out April 30, 2014 for PC, PS3/PS4, Xbox 360/Xbox One and Wii U, so if you’re currently owning one of these systems or have a PC capable of running this game, you pretty much have zero excuse not to snap this up. That new UbiArt Framework tech makes the game look like a storybook come to life and I’d love to see it get used as a game making tool by an even wider range of artists as the years go by. Of course, as this is a digital only release, I’m hoping it’s not gone and forgotten by gamers out there who still prefer packaged titles for a few key reasons. But as with anything rolling out these days in this economy, we’ll see what happens…

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II Beta Hands-On: It’s The Reckoning For That Hunter…

Posted on March 31, 2014 by geelw

Thanks to the fine folks at Neocore Games, I had the opportunity to take a beta version of The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II for a spin and am happy to report it’s looking like a bigger, badder, meaner and harder game than the first one, especially if you’re hopping into it with your saved hero from the original. I hadn’t played the first game save for some hours with the demo, but Neocore also sent me a code for the Complete Pack, which got a marathon playthrough over the past week or so (and me a nicely maxed out Level 30 Hunter by that cliffhanger ending).

The new game starts off with a rather massive siege on a factory by many enemies being airdropped in capsules and a large army of civilian soldiers assisting Van Helsing and Katarina, his ghostly (and snarky) AI companion. Granted, one could play the beta using a few default high level characters in a few classes, but after trying out a few of these overpowered guys, I decided to take the longer, tougher (yet highly enjoyable and rewarding) route and go through the first game just to have a more personalized experience… Continue reading →

Dark Souls II TV Spots: Oh, The Places You’ll Go (Just To Die Over and Over)…

Posted on March 30, 2014 by geelw

Heh. I get a phone call during The Walking Dead finale from a friend asking me “So, what’s this Dark Souls II all about?” right after this ad airs. Whee! Of course, I had to tell him to ring me back in an hour or so or just wait for a quick email. He’s not a gamer at all, so I’ll give Namco Bandai props for getting an ad out that gets people not into the hobby all hot and bothered. Amusingly enough, I actually don’t have a copy of the game yet – it’s in my backlog of stuff to grab for the PS3 once I make a bit more money. I’ve played a bit of it already thanks to walking another friend through the first two or so hours of the game as he grabbed it on launch day and was having a hard time because yep, it was his first time playing something that difficult. Anyway, I got to play and he got to keep the character I made, so that’s a fine trade off, I’d say. Naturally, he got the poor guy I created killed a few times since, but my tech support ends when I leave the premises. Otherwise, I charge a flat fee (and it’s not cheap), heh…

Demon Gaze Trailer #2: Come For The Dungeon Crawling. Stay Because You Can’t Get Out.

Posted on March 29, 2014 by geelw

Ha and ha. Sure, Demon Gaze has a mapping system in play, but you and I all know that there’s that ONE person who’ll buy this who even with maps galore has the WORST sense of direction to the point that they can’t find their own socks to take off without a handy guide (LOOK DOWN. SEE FEET… and so forth and so on). Me, I love this old school influenced stuff (Wizardry, Ultima Underworld and Dungeon Master FTW!), so I’m all over this like a cheap suit. Wait, that old saying never made sense to me, but I’m using it NOW? Eh, it’s a crappy, rainy, nasty day out today and I’m in a kind of lazy mood (despite having a lot to do and doing some of it all at once), so you get what pops out of the brain oven, fully cooked or not. Anyway, happy times for Vita owners are coming soon and I can’t wait to play this one.

Alien Isolation Gets October 7, 2014 Release Date

Posted on March 29, 2014 by geelw

Wow, I need to pay more attention (Part XVIX), as I didn’t know that Alien Isolation was being made for the PS3 and Xbox 360 as well as PC, PS4 and Xbox One. Well, now… that changes things up considerably as I can live with the game on the PS3 as long as it’s got a solid frame rate and has the same content as the new-gen versions. Sure, I like fancy graphics and all, but my PS3 still gets a load of usage and I’m not about to knock Sega or The Creative Assembly for thinking smart and realizing from the outset that casting a wider net on this game means MORE people will play it if it gets great scores and they still don’t have a new system in their homes. Granted, as a system SELLER, it’ll work quite well indeed for those looking for a reason to snap up that nice new console or upgrade their gaming rig. On the other hand, those who can’t buy into the newer systems yet will appreciate not being let out of what could be the best Alien game to date. As usual, we shall see… but as I’ve said previously, I trust the CA to do this one up right (and then some)…

Conception II Hands-On (PS Vita): Raisin’ Space Babies, Beatin’ Beasts With Rabies…

Posted on March 29, 2014 by geelw

Atlus’ upcoming JRPG,Conception II: Children of the Seven Stars, is sure to get the dirtier gamer minds over-activated into the puerile zone what with it’s show and tell “Classmating” sequences, too-jiggly females, an aged priest with some intentionally pervy dialog and plenty of direct and indirect references to sexytime antics mixed in with a cosmic religion theme. But hey, it IS an M-Rated game and some of the people who are going to be playing this probably shouldn’t be. But you know how that goes, right?

Here’s a game where you play as a young man called “God’s Gift”, and yes, that means not only in terms of the terrific monster bashing powers at his disposal, but in terms of his ability for Conception with the game’s nubile young females. Did I mention that this is basically a futuristic high school setting and this is more or less a dating sim with random dungeons packed with plenty of monsters to wail on? Yeah, par for the course for the genre, I know, I know. Yet, for all the lovely visuals and solid combat there’s a decidedly cute yet creepy vibe here that may make a few players cringe as they groove on the lovely visuals and catchy tunes.

Continue reading →