E3 2013: Sunset Overdrive – Insomniac Pokes Sony (And Themselves) In The Eye With This Xbox One Exclusive

Posted on June 10, 2013 by geelw

Ouch and double ouch. Bringing Ted Price on stage to state their new game could ONLY be done on the Xbox One was pretty a nasty shock to some longtime Sony and Insomniac fans who thought the companies were inseparable. The again, as soon as FUSE was announced initially as Overstrike, I figured that the relationship was over as far as a one-console future for the developer. Well, here you go – it looks like this one will do well based on the response, but some hate the visuals for looking “too Xbox 360” or “too cartoony!”… which is hilarious, as that’s what they wanted with FUSE when it was called Overstrike. Ha and ha ha. Well, it’s still early as far as the dev process goes, so stuff may or may not change as development continues…

E3 2013: New Dark Souls II Trailer: “Beyond Death”… You Still Get To Try Again…

Posted on June 10, 2013 by geelw

Lovely. From Software’s upcoming multi-platform game is looking very nice and yes, it’s going to be hard as hell in all the most fun ways. I think PREPARE TO DIE needs to be updated to EXPECT TO DIE, as that’s going to be the vibe hitting new players on the skull again and again until they realize this isn’t an easy hack & slash-fest.

E3 2013: Watch_Dogs – Exposed Trailer: Your First Case of Carpetjaw Today…

Posted on June 10, 2013 by geelw

Yeah, yeah – it actually leaked last night on Vimeo and a few other places (and I was up when I noticed it, but decided not to post because it wasn’t the best quality AND hell, it’s not like waiting for an official trailer would kill anyone), but here you go in case you haven’t seen it yet. Of course, this is some mind-blowing CG work mixed in with actual gameplay (at least until we find out otherwise), so as amazing as this looks, grain of salt and watch out it doesn’t end up in your eye – just aim for that mouth saying “Oooooh!” Back in a bit…

E3 2013: Murdered: Soul Suspect: Dead Man Walking in This New Game Most Intriguing…

Posted on June 9, 2013 by geelw

Finding a truly original game idea is like looking for ice cream on the sun, but here comes a really nice surprise headed to current and next-gen consoles: Murdered: Soul Suspect from developer Airtight Games (Dark Void, Jet Pack Joyride). In this PC/PS3/Xbox 360/Xbox One game, you play as a murdered detective named Ronan O’Connor who rises from the dead thanks to a mysterious power and seeks out his killer. The game’s Salem, Massachusetts setting makes for an intriguing choice thanks to it’s somewhat compelling real life witch trails, and yes, there’s indeed a mystical element added in here as Ronan’s spirit can possess townspeople in order to solve cryptic puzzles, do a bit of combat with evil spirits and while indoors, pass through solid walls. Yes, to some out there the concept may sound very close to Capcom’s Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective for the Nintendo DS and iOS, But among other things, Murdered is without the 2D side-scrolling gameplay and main ghost character’s amnesia affliction found in the portable sleeper hit.

It’ll be interesting to see how this turns out as more information surfaces, but I’m already ticking it off as a must-play title. Of course, not being at E3, I’ll need to hope Square Enix comes flying into NYC like many other publishers do after the big show is over and done. I have the feeling that this is one of those new IP they’ll want to show off to as many editor types as possible just to get the engine firing up on that hype train. If it’s going to be as intriguing as the concept makes it sound, I’ll be there with bells on when they come a-calling. Back with more on this one soon – stay tuned…

E3 2013: DARK Trailer: A Modern Vampire Tale Minus The Tween Sparkly Crap…

Posted on June 8, 2013 by geelw

While its protagonist might not be a frightening disease-bringing fiend like the one in W.F. Murnau’s asolute eternal classic Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens (which is my ideal vampire tale for the ages thanks to its visually striking villain and zero camp elements), I’ll give DARK props for going against at least SOME of the grain today’s too-handsome teen/young adult vampires are cursed with. Sure, it’s more of a Deus Ex/Thief/Splinter Cell hybrid with an anti-hero who’s probably in deep doo-doo if he runs into a Hot Topic and fries up but good when he runs past all those fake silver goth crosses on display, but that’s OK with me. If the game is well-made (so far it seems so) and fun to play (so far it looks as if it will be) and keeps me hooked in with its story (that’s still to be determined), then it’ll be something that’s played and more than once around here. As usual… we shall see…

Project Eden Finally Hits GOG.com: Core’s Sci-Fi Action/Puzzle Game Still Has It…

Posted on June 8, 2013 by geelw

Of course, my old post about this forgotten gem probably had nothing to do with gog.com getting it added to their games library at all, but let me at LEAST get a swelled head and think so, OK? Anyway, my boxed copy still runs perfectly, so I won’t need to grab this digitally at all (yet), but don’t let that stop YOU from giving it a try. It’s actually quite well done and the non-frustrating manner in how death is handled keeps the game constantly moving. Granted, it goes from moody to creepy to weird as your party gets deeper into that Real Meat factory and the monsters come out. But by then, you’ll have gotten with the program. Anyway, it’s only six bucks and more than worth it, so give it a shot…

E3 2013: Wolfenstein: The New Order Trailer – So Wrong, It’s Reich…(The Remix!)

Posted on June 8, 2013 by geelw

Hey! Quick WordPress editing tip, kids! If you open multiple Add A Post tabs in separate windows and do two different posts, one will overwrite the other when the second one is done! Whee. I just found that out after I zapped this original Wolfenstein: The New Order post with the one for Project Eden, so if you see this post twice in your feed, it’s not you going nuts… it’s me trying to save time but wasting it instead! Whee! Anyway, get me rewrite!

OK, I was interested in this sequel already, but this compelling trailer for Wolfenstein: The New Order REALLY makes me want some hands-on time just to see how it all plays out. Yes, it’s intentionally raising hackles on the back of some necks, but don’t get the wrong impression. The game is all about the return of that Nazi killing force of nature B.J. Blazkowicz and how he’s going to deal with this updated alternate future threat. The reworked imagery here is striking to the point where there’s the usual YouTube and message board debating about the wrong things (real world history) as opposed to how this game twists its of that into its narrative “What If” world (Nazis on the Moon! Yikes!) and packs a wallop with those images and finale that basically screams “PLAY ME!” So yep, I’m looking forward to doing so should Bethsoft truck on into NYC with a build… I’ll keep you posted should that indeed happen.

E3 2013: Might & Magic X Legacy: “Old School, New Rules”, Huh? OK, Does It Run In DOS?

Posted on June 8, 2013 by geelw

Alright, I’m kidding, Ubisoft (sort of). Anyway, Limbic Entertainment’s plan of a partially user-aided development process for its upcoming Might & Magic “sequel”/reboot is both a great and terrible thing. Great indeed, as we’ll see some fine ideas implemented that make the game what longtime fans want to play (er, hopefully without too much fighting amongst the gamers helping out). Terrible because I’m betting the game will require a higher-end PC than what one would think should run this, the game may have modern elements that make it less than enjoyable (if too many ideas make it in that kill any challenge thanks to casual play modes)and finally, at the end of the day, it’s still a niche RPG that will be over the heads of the crowd that can’t get past the grid-based movement and lack of stuff blowing up every three seconds.

Then again, this isn’t the game for them at all and goofy cartoon trailer aside, Limbic looks as it it might be able to resurrect this franchise and make me forget all about Might & Magic IX, an under-polished mess of a game that crept into retail with way too many issues to make it playable for long. Anyway, the art I’ve seen so far looks great – as long as the results are solid (and yes, this also gets a console release at some point so more can play it), this could be a more than welcome return to form…

E3 2013: Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2: Putting The Bite Back In Dracula…

Posted on June 8, 2013 by geelw

I can still remember parts of the internet going nuclear when Spanish developer Mercury Steam was chosen to do a new 3D Castlevania game with Hideo Kojima doing a it of supervision. Konami, the developer and even Kojima himself got raked over a few coal beds, the game was deemed to be doomed before anything was playable and the usual crowd of “if it isn’t 2D, it sucks!” folk were there to condemn the building as the foundation was being laid . Of course, 2010’s Castlevania: Lords of Shadow definitely wasn’t the train wreck many predicted and in fact, it was one of the nicer surprises in terms of aged franchises getting a chance to shine on current generation consoles.

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E3 2013: DAYLIGHT Trailer -You’ll Need a Night Light When Playing This Horror Game…

Posted on June 8, 2013 by geelw

To some gamers, Zombie Studios is actually better know for its military-themed shooters, but this isn’t their first time at the scary games rodeo at all. The developer has also done the two Konami-published SAW games (which were pretty interesting to play through) and I suppose you could label their surreal 1996 game ZPC as a sort of “horror” game thanks to the twisted visual style and weird enemies. But let’s look a little it into the future, shall we?

Daylight is coming for the PlayStation 4 and PC from publisher Atlus in 2014, and if this trailer is any indication, fans of jump scares and pesky ghosts rattling their cages will be all in and dying for more. The Unreal Engine 4 visuals look appropriately creepy and the procedurally generated levels will give the game almost infinite replay value (and make for yet another modern horror twist on the rogue-like RPG). Clearly, this isn’t going to be a “one time play and back to the shop it goes” experience, but it’s really going to be up to those gamers who “get” the concept and latch into it that keeps this one in play stacks. Translation: it better scare the hell out of us each time it’s played. Back with more on this one in a bit…