The Walking Dead Debut Trailer: Proof That Good Zombie Games Aren’t Dead (Yet)…

The whole “add zombies to anything” style of game making is finally playing itself shuffle by shuffle after much success, but Telltale Games is definitely doing it up right in their upcoming episodic series based on the award winning comic. Actually, Based AROUND that award-winning comic would be a better description, as the game looks to introduce a whole new set of characters and situations rather than do the “expected” thing and let players dink around with what’s already in the comic (and on the TV show). Of course, some internet ranters aren’t hip to this and are giving the company both barrels on Facebook, Twitter and anywhere else they can set up a soapbox and bleat away mindlessly.  Obviously, “Braaaaaaaaiiinnnns!” aren’t doing too well working, so even if Telltale and Kirkman sent a barn full of walkers out to get the haters, they’d all come back more pissed off because half those heads they chewed on were empty already (or filled to the brim with bile, yuk).

Personally, I rather like that the game isn’t trying to expand the older stories because there are absolutely a ton of other tales that can be told about other survivors, so you won’t be hearing any complaints from this direction. As for those excellent “making of” videos that have also been posted by Telltale, I’ll be dropping those into the other blog later this afternoon or so, as I’m about to go to bed. I’ve a long day later on – got a 7am wake-up call inbound, so I’ll be the one at the train station looking like a zombie, eek!

Jeremy McGrath’s Offroad Launch Trailer: Fast, Cheap And Out Of Control (In The Best Possible Way)…

 

Based on this gamplay footage and info from the press release, 2XL’s new off-road racer is looking like pretty slick  stuff. It also looks as if D3Publisher of America has a hot little hit on their hands here for PSN and XBLA. It’s too bad this wasn’t tossed on a disc as a budget game under a US “Simple 2000” series or something like that, as I could see this being the PERFECT impulse item at a Wal-Mart or some other retailer where you’d see a beefy pickup or three towing some ATV’s or dirt bikes in the parking lot. This is just that sort of game you’d like to have handy while on the road traveling between race events when you’re in the back of the camper and there’s nothing to do but play a fun game because you’re in an area with crappy internet service.

Ridge Racer Unbounded’s City Editor Should Settle The Rumbles On The Street Down A Tad…

Hmmm. Here in the US, Namco Bandai seems to be tiptoeing on eggshells when it comes to hyping Bugbear’s upcoming game and that’s too bad. I’m gathering the jaded types that have been slamming them since the game was announced is flummoxing their PR team here as they try and get the good word out over the drone of haters who want nothing but the same old Ridge Racer with very few changes (or more of the same with a few modern tweaks).  I see it like this: when you have a developer that’s already done some excellent racing games working on a spin-off of a world famous franchise, you should be more than confident that the game coming is going to be worthy of the name. That said, this City Editor trailer from the UK should go a long way in quelling the stream of leaky gas fumes coming from some out there who just seem to have nothing good to say about a game they haven’t even played yet.  As I’ve said before, at the end of the day, it’s all about respect (and actually spending quality time with what you’re criticizing so much)…

Warriors Orochi 3 Has Over 120 Playable Characters. You’ll Need A Few New Controllers Before It’s Done, I’d Bet…

Of all the Dynasty Warriors-inspired games out there, only Koei’s assorted development teams (primarily Omega Force) have really nailed them perfectly. They not only invented the sub-genre of beat ’em up the games fall into, they’ve also been doing them for so darn long that even the ones that aren’t so hot are still incredibly addictive to play.  Warriors Orochi 3 is looking as if it will the ultimate in fan service hack ‘n slash greatness as it packs in characters from nearly every Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors game ever made (except the DW Gundam series, no doubt for licensing reasons and the fact that it would be deadly stupid to have life-sized heroes fighting 30-foot mecha). That and you get playable characters from other Koei games such as Ninja Gaiden, Warriors: Legends of Troy, Bladestorm, Trinity: Souls of Zill O’ll and Dead or Alive. Yikes.

Sure, the 120+ roster isn’t as nuts as the 210 playable fighters found in Squaresoft’s still amazing Tobal 2 by a long shot. Then again, I’d rather play as Areus, Ryu Hayabusa or Joan of Arc than the bottom head of a totem pole, a pile driver or an over-sized polygon star any day of the week. Yeah, I want this one, but I hope I’ll actually have the time to finish the game with a few favorite characters, as I know doing it with all 120 will take a bit longer than one should camp out in front of the TV. Crazy me will probably do this, but obviously, I won’t get to ALL 120 characters for a review. I’d need a time machine and a box of Dual Shock 3’s for that…

Behind The Scenes With “Kara” – Making The Magic Happen

Granted, we probably won’t see Kara starring in an actual game anytime soon, but Quantic Dream has definitely laid the groundwork for a future game project that’s going to blow you away. I’m still not sure if that project will be a PS3, Vita or PS-whatever game, but no matter what Sony platform it appears on, it’s going to get people talking. Personally, I’m hoping for something totally new or that Omikron remake/sequel I mentioned previously, but I’m not picky…

Resistance: Burning Skies Story Trailer: The Life of Riley Is No Honeymoon, That’s For Sure…

What? You were expecting a HAPPY new Resistance game or something? Super-busy developer Nihilistic is looking to bring those nasty Chimera onto the Vita with a great-looking shooter that shows off how well the system can handle a top drawer FPS. First party power in the house (again!) and so far, so good from what I’ve seen. I’m also hoping we see a reboot of the original Killzone at some point just because that game deserves an update with certain things fixed and fiddled with. Anyway, that’s something for the future. For the moment, let’s get back to aliens invading New Jersey and wiping out most of the population there. I blame Snooki and the usual suspects down at the Shore. That brain-rotting show must have been what set the Chimera off once they started getting episodes sent back through time or something. Anyway, I gotta run… The Situation looks pretty grim from here…

Sleeping Dogs’ “Undercover: Hong Kong” Trailer: Square Enix Is Pitching Woo, Big Time

Clearly, the team at United Front Games has a lot to live up to, but it looks as if gamers fond of the True Crime series (warts and all), will have a completely new game experience from a different publisher and developer that just may make them forget about that series (or at least, make them stop comparing it to this new IP). Hey, as long as I don’t have to worry about having a rapper as an unlockable character or anything overtly silly like that, I’m a happy camper. As I say again and again, We. Shall. See… (but I DO think Square Enix is on quite the publishing roll these days)…

Review: Street Fighter X Tekken (Special Edition)

Platform: Xbox 360 (also on PS3)

Developer: Capcom

Publisher: Capcom

# of Players: 1 – 4

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Official Site

Score: A-

Capcom’s Versus fighters have a definite appeal to gamers that crave taking their favorite characters from different media and pitting them against each other in some truly outrageous battles and in terms of reinventing that particular wheel, Street Fighter X Tekken may be their best game to date. Although the Xbox 360 version is sorely missing the offline tag-team mode found in the PS3 version, there’s absolutely no reason to miss out on this game if you’re a huge fan of either franchise. From the outstanding visuals and animation to the excellent tutorials that will get any new player into the game with ease, this one’s a no-brainer for fighting games fans. Sure, there are some quibbles with the total number of unlocked characters versus who’s available as paid DLC, but this is one of those games where if you’re hooked in, you probably won’t mind paying a bit extra for even more fun.

Continue reading

Driftmoon Hands-On: The Top Is Down And The Weather’s Just Fine For Traveling…

Yes, it’s taken a bit of time for me to get around to playing that new Driftmoon demo I mentioned last month, but I’m absolutely more than pleased that I spent a few hours yesterday exploring the early part of the game which was awesome enough to leave me begging to see how the final build will turn out. Instant Kingdom (that’s Ville and Anne Mönkkönen, last time I checked) have created a lovely top down Adventure/RPG that can be tailored for anyone from novices who prefer a lighter combat option to hardcore players who want enemies that bite back hard. It also doesn’t hurt that the writing here is well done and often amusing in tone, offering a RPG experience that allows for different outcomes to certain quests. Toss in an excellent map system, some very well thought out combat, a great soundtrack and the ability to send feedback to the developers as you play and what’s here is shaping up to be a superb little indie game.

Continue reading

Review: Tales of Graces f

Platform: PlayStation 3

Developer: Namco Tales Studio LTD.

Publisher: Namco Bandai

# of Players: 1 – 4

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Official Site

Score: A

While heavy on the JRPG 101 clichés (even borrowing from previous games in the popular series), Tales of Graces f manages to be a stellar, addictive chunk of gaming goodness thanks to a lightning fast combat system, a fairly engaging cast of characters and a healthy dose of old school charm that keeps the hours flying by.  Right from the beginning, you can clearly see and feel Namco Tales Studios’ commitment to making this the best Tales game possible and for the most part, they’ve succeeded. As the game is an enhanced update of the Japan-only Wii game Tales of Graces (with even more content and a few notorious bugs fixed), it’s not shooting for the stars in terms of overly detailed HD visuals at all.  What you get is a very pretty looking game with a whole lot of things to do that doesn’t set any new genre standards, but manages to have enough variety to keep you dialed in until the wee hours.

Continue reading