Schrödinger’s Cat and the Raiders of the Lost Quark: Buy It For The Title Alone, I Say

Posted on April 29, 2015 by geelw

A game with a name like Schrödinger’s Cat and the Raiders of the Lost Quark just SCREAMS out “Shut up and BUY me, Meow!”* and even if it’s the crappiest game with Schrödinger’s Cat in the title, it’s probably still more than worth the $14.99 asking price on Steam because it’s probably better than you’re thinking. Yeah, this logic puzzle of a post has been brought to you by Wednesday because it’s not yet Thursday and by Friday you’d have moved on to something like “Hey, what’s for dinner two weeks from next Monday?” or something like that.

Developer Italic Pig seems to have done their homework here as the game looks nice and amusing and yes, a bit of quantum physics come into play as they usually do when you have a cat who may or may not be very dead or very alive. The Particle Zoo is in chaos with Leptons, Gluons and Bosons all running amuck and only ONE cat can tackle the problem in his interestingly quark-y manner. Of course, it’s a sure bet that most people won’t appreciate the humor in this one unless they’re ready to do some reading or already know what’s up with the figgy Newton-ness of a clever developer doing it’s thing. Hmmm. I wonder if the dev team gave that cat nine lives, one or none for the entire game?

*(of course, if the cat is dead, this game doesn’t exist and renders this post completely null and void. The cat was alive when watched the trailer three times, so it’s a safe bet the game is real as well).

Konami Kills Silent Hills; P.T. Probably Gone For Good

Posted on April 28, 2015 by geelw

If you own a PlayStation 4, love horror-related games and have yet to play P.T., get ready for a little shock. You only have a few hours before that title (which stands for Playable Teaser and was actually a concept demo for the Guillermo Del Toro/Hideo Kojima Silent Hills project that was to feature The Walking Dead star Norman Reedus as the lead) is probably gone forever.

Konami has canceled the project entirely and will be yanking the demo off the PlayStation Network on Wednesday the 29th. The company still plans to keep creating games in the long running Silent Hill series in the future, but the loss of this demo comes as yet another blow to fans of Mr. Kojima’s work. This latest business decision comes not too long after both Kojima and Kojima Studios’ name were removed from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain after still unrevealed disagreements between the creator and company. Both his name and his studio’s name were also chopped from the P.T. demo site in Japan and it seems that once the free demo is gone, it’ll not even be available to download even if it’s been placed in one’s PS4 queue for play at some point in the future.

As a bit of a gaming historian and big (but sometimes easily rattled) horror fan, this irks me to no end as well as shows how lousy digital distribution really is in terms of preserving content. Pulling a game demo may not seem like a big deal to many of you and it’s not really a huge deal at the end of the day. That said, given that P.T. showed off more creativity and genuinely freaky scares than some completed games, not having the demo around to show off in the future doesn’t bode well for any other demo or full game deemed disposable by companies who want to erase the past. Foo. Hopefully Konami will reconsider and at some point make the demo available at some point down the road. However, given the company’s kicking Kojima to the curb so abruptly after decades of service (no matter the reason, it’s a shame how things seem to be ending), it’s a bad sign of things to come if other games deemed doomed get dropped on the chopping block.

Anyway, if indeed the demo does disappear forever, there’s always YouTube for watching videos of people playing it. Konami’s official P.T. clips on its Japanese channel seem to be already gone, which is annoying because there were some reaction videos featuring gamers and non-gamers that were flat out hilarious. Oh well. Life goes on… but with a little less great scary as hell stuff to share with like-minded folks.

What a shame.

Godzilla The Game PS4: There Goes The Neighborhood, Toho Style!

Posted on April 25, 2015 by geelw

Sure, it’s all fun and games, but YOU try and get some decent sleep when there are a bunch of over-sized rubber suits banging away on the buildings on YOUR block. BOOM! ROAR! CRASH! “Hey, keep it down!” just doesn’t work on a pair or more of bent on destruction giant beasts like these, you know. Fortunately, all that glorious wreckage is only on the PS3 and PS4 and not for real, as I can see real world property values sinking but also growing back after a short while. You know people would probably move in JUST for the monster battles because humans are dumb and love to watch any sort of fight (provided they don’t get hurt).

Oh, and as for that “Hollywood Godzilla” pre-order bonus, I laughed out loud because for some reason I thought of this film clip when that image and text popped up onscreen. Yeah, I’m a nut. I know, I know. Hey, I didn’t make that old and too loud film. But I did pay good money to see it when it came out (and still want my five bucks back, Mr. Spielberg!).

Mad Max Gameplay Overview: We DO Need Another Hero!

Posted on April 24, 2015 by geelw

If there was any doubt that Avalanche Studios could do Mad Max justice as a game property, well.. let’s just say some mind erasing has just taken place with this new video. The game is set to land on September 1, 2015 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC and that means a bunch of gamers will finally be upgrading to something they can play this on. I’d write more, but there’s the matter of that puddle of drool I need to clean up before someone slips in it. Yep, I do need this game, folks. If the film and game are as good as they look, I’d say we’ll be seeing more of the man himself sooner than later.

Star Wars Battlefront Trailer: Yes, The Force Is Strong With This One

Posted on April 18, 2015 by geelw

Well, it looks as if some of you holding out on getting that fancy gaming PC or new gaming console may want to consider upgrading if you’re wanting a new Battlefront to play in. While this isn’t actual gameplay footage (“not actual , this Star Wars Battlefront trailer uses the in-game engine to spectacular effect and shows how developer DICE intends to bring the look and feel of classic Star Wars to the masses this November 17. PS4, Xbox One and Windows PC via EA’s Origin service only on this one, meaning you old console owners are going to have to make some new friends or finally retire your old beasts to a closet somewhere.

This one’s going to be huge. HOW huge? Well…

Is that huge enough for you? I thought so.

Some Late Bundles For Your Sleepy Saturday

Posted on April 4, 2015 by geelw

Yeah, yeah… it’s Saturday and I’m posting this IndieGala Friday Special Bundle now. I had a little computer hiccup yesterday before I could get to this deal, so it’s a bit late. Anyway, get three games for a buck or a dozen for $2.99 this time. Flip a coin and choose the latter if you need a hint. There’s a nice set of stuff here from a Match-3 puzzle game, a few adventure games and even a couple of retro platformers with some shooters tossed in for good measure.

Also, if you poke around the IndieGala Store and actually buy something there, you get a free gift just in time for Easter:

Yup, it’s a real game! You can also get another freebie just for stopping by in the form of Space Hack, a single player action/RPG set aboard a spaceship besieged by tons of bug-like aliens. It’s old, but quite addictive once you get into it.

Over at the Humble Bundle, you can scoop up six really hard games in the Humble Weekly Bundle: ARGGGHHH!! These games are hard! Bundle. I’ve only played three of them, but can confirm that you will indeed want to toss a controller or keyboard at something if you’re the impatient sort. The Humble Store has a crazy sale on Deep Silver titles all weekend, so check out that link for a nice assortment of titles from a few genres.

Finally, Bundle Stars has the awesome Vortex Bundle, a total STEAL at $2.99 just for the Alien Breed Trilogy. If you’re not into shooting xenomorphs while being scared half to death, there are a bunch of other titles in that bundle bound to please. And don’t forget to check out the Bundle Stars Store for MORE great deals on single games. Hmmmm. I think that’s it, but I’ll let you know. Oh, right – check out Indie Royale, Desuragog.com, and of course, gog.com for even MORE deals!

GTA V PC: Beyond The Almost Uncanny Valley of the Dolls

Posted on April 3, 2015 by geelw

Oh the places you’ll go next week when Grand Theft Auto V finally hits PC. Well, those of you who have systems capable of running the game, that is. The two high-end system trailers that show off the main game and Online Heists multiplayer mode look spectacular enough to almost fool the eye. This should be the definitive version of the game, which means those who can play it will have some fine bragging rights and fun videos to post as they play through the game they’ve been waiting for for quite some time. As long as there are no crippling launch issues and day one patching woes, I’d gather there are going to be a great deal of happy campers spending all their free time with this one.

New Batman: Arkham Knight Gameplay: Something to Tide You Over While You Wait A Little Longer

Posted on March 23, 2015 by geelw

“Why so seriously delayed (again!)?” Actually, at this point the game looks so phenomenal that it’ll get snapped up even if it slips into the holiday season. I’m gathering this latest wait is due to the developer making sure the game will run as smoothly as possible out of the gate without the dreaded day one patching issues many games slap players in the face with. I’m wondering just how much better things would be if this was a completely single-player game with no online play, but such is the modern videogame development cycle that allows for DLC, season passes and other stuff that needs to work right out of the box or it’s unhappy campers complaining all over the internet. Well okay, it’s not THAT much longer a wait, but I can see a few Bat-fans leaping around and huffing and puffing in their hockey pads.

Puzzle & Dragons Finally Comes to Nintendo 3DS, Wii U Owners Forgotten (Once Again!)

Posted on March 17, 2015 by geelw

Leave it to Nintendo to once again do something flat out awesome yet still manage to make me NUTS because they’ve once again forgotten about a slice of their loyal consumers. Sure, it’s absolutely GREAT that the ridiculously popular and profitable Japanese mobile hit Puzzle & Dragons is coming to the Nintendo 3DS soon as Puzzle & Dragons Z this May. And sure, it’s great that Nintendo has wisely realized that many US gamers probably don’t yet know P&D so they’ve had Puzzle & Dragons Super Mario Bros. Edition cooked up just for those gamers as part of the same package. One price, two games? Yup, lovely and double yup, all that is fantastic news. What’s NOT at all fantastic is once again, Wii U owners get stiffed out of a game (or TWO games) a lot off them would probably want to play on a TV with friends, as a standalone product or hell, as something that would connect with one or both of the 3DS games in one way or another.

To me, that kind of forethought makes for a better product, but once again, Nintendo does it halfway. Again, it’s great halfway, but halfway nonetheless… Continue reading →

Batman: Arkham Knight “Gotham Is Mine” Trailer: Everyone Wants a Piece of the Pie

Posted on February 25, 2015 by geelw

With Rocksteady knocking things out of the park with their best work to date and Scarecrow doing his best to make Batman’s life a living hell by gathering up the worst of his Rogue’s Gallery, Batman: Arkham Knight is clearly going for instant classic status. All that in-game engine visual bliss on display means the game will look phenomenal on anything it runs on and that new Batmobile just makes me wish it were a real ride. Well, just so I could say I saw it blaze by while I was out strolling about to the store. Hey, you put me in a cape and black costume and I’m going to go home and straight to bed. Sleepman to the rescue! See you in your dreams, ladies and gents! Yeah, that’s about all the heroics I’ve got.

Anyway, Batman: Arkham Knight hits retail and digital shops for PS4, Xbox One and PC on June 2, 2015. That’s not to far away at all, really. Just one big super-nap for Sleepman! I’ll see you in a few months, folks. It’s Rip Van Winkle time, Zzzzzzzzzaaaawwwww! *snnxxxx* Zzzzzz!