Batman Arkham Knight Is Now A June Bride. It’s Worth The Wait For That Wedding…

Posted on September 8, 2014 by geelw

Yeah, I’m sure fans all around the internet are raaaaaging about having to wait even longer to get this game, but I say let them. I don’t mind at all that developer Rocksteady needs more time to make this one the best Batman game it can be and yep, I’m sure while WBIE would love to see this one ship earlier just for the financials and such, it’s clear that the game needs to cook longer. GOOD, I say. I hate this age of massive day one patches, games that don’t run properly out of the box or worse, games that DO run, but end up not pleasing reviewers who sink it with low scores before it can get a patch. I’m thinking both developer and publisher want NONE of that noise, so the delay is on and I coudn’t be happier. Well, I could be happier if I could actually see this in person and play it at some media event here in NYC before it ships out next year, but that’s up to WBIE’s PR team, I suppose.

Oh, if you’re drooling at those collector’s editions, let me let you in on what’s in the box in case your fingers are trembling too much to click on either image and see them full size (they’re MASSIVE):

Batman: Arkham Knight Limited Edition will include:

· Custom Art Book – 80 Page, Full Color Art Book Showcasing the concept art of Batman Arkham Knight

· Limited Edition SteelBook™ – Unique SteelBook™ case and game disc

· Comic Book – Limited Edition DC Comics Batman: Arkham Knight #0 Comic Book

· Exclusive Character Skin Pack – Three Unique Skins from DC Comics – The New 52

· Batman Memorial Statue – Imposing statue commemorating Gotham’s Protector, the Dark Knight

· SRP:

o Console – $99.99 / 119.99 € / 89.99£

o PC – 99.99€ / 74.99£

Batman: Arkham Knight Batmobile Edition will include:

· Custom Art Book – 80 Page, Full Colour Art Book Showcasing the concept art of Batman Arkham Knight

· Limited Edition SteelBook™ – Unique SteelBook™ case and game disc

· Comic Book – Limited Edition DC Comics Batman: Arkham Knight #0 Comic Book

· Exclusive Character Skin Pack – Three Unique Skins from DC Comics – The New 52

· Transforming Batmobile Statue – Fully transformable Batmobile statue realised in exquisite detail by TriForce

· SRP: $199.99 / 199.99€ / 169.99£ (Console only)

Hmmmm.. it would seem North America doesn’t get a PC edition with all that swag, but these games sell better on home systems anyway. Granted, those running beefy rigs will be griping a lot about this, but most people who don’t have a computer that costs as much as a decent car part won’t care because they’ll be playing this on their PS4 or Xbox One with hopefully no trouble. Anyway, with this game now nine months away, you can concentrate of completing some of the other blockbusters rolling out from this year to next June, right? RIGHT. Now stop jamming out your whining on some message board and get back to doing something more interesting with your time, I say…

Bundles of Joy For Your Monday Will Make Your Backlog Ache!

Posted on September 8, 2014 by geelw

Humble Flash Sale, Meet IndieGala Every Monday Bundle! You two play nice, now. Well, I’d betting they’ll each be too busy with themselves to notice each other in that sandbox, but hey – I tried. Anyway, this weeks Humble Flash Sale bundle is So Cute! No, seriously, that’s the name of the bundle. Whaddaya mean you don’t believe me? That’s what that link is for, silly! Click it and watch your wallet flit out of your pocket or purse and fly around the room before your credit card goes zipping into your hand and you end up with the five games and three soundtracks in this bundle. Cute stuff does that to some people, I hear.

As for that Every Monday Bundle, this week’s a DOOZY. $1.89 nets you six games including the deep retro greatness of Eschalon Book I & II, the incredibly creepy Five Nights at Freddy’s, and three other indie games: Stonerid, Memories of a Vagabond and the oddly titled Me & Postapocalypse 2: Scraping. I’m grabbing this because of the Eschalon games and hell, I keep hearing how scary Five Nights at Freddy’s is, so I’m hoping it lives up to the hype and this video (Ha! How SCARY can it be?):

Oh. well, then. Carry on. I think I’ll need to have a defibrillator handy. And a nurse. Eh, we’ll see. Anyway, go check out one or both of these bundles, support charity and get some gaming in while you’re at it!

Today’s IndieGala Bundle is Quite Grotesque! Which Means You’ll Want It Anyway…

Posted on September 7, 2014 by geelw

Nice. Ten games, two bucks, 24 hours. Should you? Well, in a word… YES. If you like isometric action RPGs, Space Hack will get you at least 50 hours (it’s actually MORE, as I’ve played this one a few times through) of alien blasting goodness with a pretty compelling story as the game progresses. Greed: Black Border is another space-centric blast-fest that’s quite good for what it is. The two games this bundle gets its name from in the Grotesque Tactics series are fun fantasy romps with a turn-based battle system familiar to fans of Final Fantasy Tactics and other games of that sort.

Avencast is an unconventional adventure/RPG with a magic-based combat system and Robin Hood: The Legend of Sherwood mixes in a sort of tactical combat/puzzle solving/adventure game blend with its older school visuals for a nice and challenging time. You’ll also get a couple of post-apocalyptic car combat games, an open world highway/street chase game based off a cheesy German TV show and a surprisingly engrossing game about trading in space all for what a cup of coffee costs (or two, if you’re REALLY cheap and get someone else to pay the tax, you cheapskate!).

So yeah, shut up and do what you need to do, already. I’ll be here in the back cackling madly when you’re trying to chase me around the room for “making” you buy all those games for so little money and realizing you need to now make time to play all those games. Hey, welcome to MY world, folks!

Tiny Troopers Joint Ops PS4/PS3/Vita: Simple, Hard to Pass Up Fun For Casual To Core Players

Posted on September 6, 2014 by geelw

I really liked the PC version of Kukouri Mobile’s former mobile-only game Tiny Troopers enough to give it a 90% rating, so as soon as I saw this upcoming PS3/PS4/Vita game that combines all the content from the first AND second games, is a cross-buy title and definitely a must-buy if you’re into fast-paced arcade-like games that start off simple and get more challenging as the levels zip by. I’m gathering this PSN game will be inexpensive enough to nudge some skeptics who’ve never played either of the games to give it a shot, but I guess we’ll see. Heck, if it’s as fun as the PC version was and contains that zombie add-on content, I think I may have to score it higher than I did the older game. Well, that’s how it SHOULD work if fairness is the name of the game (which it is here, folks)…

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

Posted on September 6, 2014 by geelw

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!

Posted on September 6, 2014 by geelw

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.

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…

Posted on September 5, 2014 by geelw

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…

Posted on September 5, 2014 by geelw

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…

Posted on September 5, 2014 by geelw

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…

Posted on September 4, 2014 by geelw

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…