It’s all done and gone gold, folks. Dragon Age: Origins has gone into production, so those final retail copies are only a short time away from your hot little hands. BioWare has also announced a DA:O social network which you’ll be able to read more about below this week’s character update. Anyway, without further adieu, heeeeeeere’s Oghren!
From FromSoft, with Love (BOOM!), Department: PSP and PSP go owners can do the happy dance while folks who want their retail UMDs are crying in their root beers. An all new PSP Armored Core game is here and ready to go over the PlayStation Network, so drop the fifteen clams on this one and get with the customizing and mecha blasting action, whydontcha? Now, I’m hoping that FromSoftware sees fit to localize and release King’s Field Additional I and II in the US via this method one of these days (especially with Demon’s Souls blowing up the charts all over the map)…
Press release and images below:
FromSoftware Inc. today announced that Armored Core® 3 Portable, the latest installment in its popular mecha action game series, will be available for download on the North American PlayStation®Network on October 22, 2009. The Armored Core franchise has sold more than 3.5 million copies worldwide, and the original Armored Core 3 for PlayStation®2 has stood the test of time as a fan favorite.
In Armored Core 3 Portable, players battle as members of the mercenary organization “Raven,” piloting customizable mecha Armored Core (AC) units. The ACs are customizable with different weapons and machine parts that can be reconfigured as necessary to complete a variety of combat-intensive missions.
Features:
* Over 50 action-packed missions
* Enhanced menu interface and in-game visibility
* Pilot a fully customizable AC unit, configuring weapons, parts, armor color and emblems
* Over 200 parts available to assemble and create your own machine, including parts from the previous games in the series
* PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) Ad Hoc Network support; easily battle up to four friends using a wireless connection
* Challenge opponents nationwide over the Ad Hoc Party on PlayStation®3 (PS3™)
* A new opponent from the Japanese Armored Core novel
* Future-proof data can be saved and transferred to future Armored Core PSP titlesArmored Core 3 Portable is rated T for Teen (Violence) by the ESRB, and has a purchase price of $14.99.
In Valve news, good and not so good:
LEFT 4 DEAD 2 DEMO PRE-LOADING NOWThose who have pre-purchased Left 4 Dead 2 via Steam may now pre-load the game demo, which is due to launch for early access on Tuesday, October 27. Early access to the L4D2 demo is available for both retail (360, PC) and Steam (PC) customers. Those who pre-ordered via participating retailers should be able to pick up their early access codes this weekend and be ready to play on Tuesday when the demo launches.
As for the ratings deal Down Under… well, it looks as if Australian gamers wanting their zombie killing unaltered will be out of luck as:
“In the review board’s opinion, Left 4 Dead 2 could not be accommodated within the MA 15+ classification,” it said. “The computer game contains a level of violence which is high in impact, prolonged, repeated frequently and realistic within the context of the game.”
Well, duh… But I guess the board has to protect the folks over 18 who want to buy the game from themselves and any potential bad behavior seeing exploding zombie heads will cause. Ah well… EA and Valve appealed the rating after presenting a ‘sanitized’ version of the game to the review board, but the board stood fast. Soooo, Down Under gets the game… but it’s going to be a lot less gory than what’s hitting here.
I’m guessing the US PC version may be the way to go for you guys, unless it’s been banned from import into the country…
One of the things that irks me as a collector of games is this trend of releasing certain console and portable titles as download-only product (grrrr!). While it’s indeed great for those folks who feel no need to have a physical product, the simple fact is some of us out there would like the choice to have one or the other (or even both in some cases). Heck, what if you’re in an area without decent (or any) broadband access or just want the simple pleasure of actually reading a manual you can hold in your hot little hands?
Don’t get me wrong, folks – the ability to pay for and download new games and game content works amazingly well for those gamers who don’t give a hoot about the above issues, but SOME games would actually enjoy a much LARGER user base IF they were made available in as many (legal) forms as possible (grrr!). Yeah, that means you too, Konami (the otherwise superb Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment SHOULD also get a darn disc release on the Xbox 360 AND PS3 for those of use who want it! grrrr!!!)
As I think I’ve said previously (and on more than one occasion), BioWare really loves you, particularly if you’re a fan of their games. Here’s a nice bit of pre-order info about Mass Effect 2 that may come in handy. Nice armor, huh?
Sure, you’re probably thinking “Whaaaaaaaat, ANOTHER social networking site?” But hell, how many are for what could be one of the best console or PC RPGs you’ll play this year? Think about that for a hot minute after you read this press release, hit the DA:O website, check out the Sacred Ashes video if you haven’t seen it yet and click on over to the main page to create an account and play around with the character editor… (*whew!*)
This week’s Kenka Bancho: Badass Rumble entry is even funnier than last week’s. Shabai vs. Shibui, indeed… hilarious. November 11, 2009 is the date to remember, folks… pre-order it or else some punk dressed up all in black with a big slicked back pompadour is going to be kicking your butt down the street, into the nearest game store and all the way back up to your house. Meaning you’ll be too sore to play the game sitting down…
Anyway, here are a bunch of new screens to pore over below the jump, also funnier than last week’s batch:
Well, well, well… -looks like Capcom and Tesla Motors have teamed up for quite a killer giveaway. Yup, you can enter and WIN a Tesla Roadster or a free trip to Vegas to test-drive one of these speedy electric beauties. Nice… Check out the details below and if you’re a US resident, try your luck! If you win, don’t forget who sent you to the site to enter… I’d like a spin in that red Roadster just to see how fast it can go!
Just when you thought it was dead and gone (or at least delayed indefinitely to the ninth circle of development hell), Namco Bandai unearths a few new screens and info from Splatterhouse, set for a Q3 2010 release on the PS3 and Xbox 360. Given all the stormy stuff that took place during the game’s bumpy early development process, it’s excellent to see the project still going strong and looking quite nice (well, “nice” in a gory, horror game sort of way).
Now that this is an in-house development deal, my one suggestion to Namco Bandai (and I’m sure they’ve gotten this request already) is to PLEASE add some awesome bonuses to this one for us fans of the original games! It would be really fantastic to see either the Arcade version of the original or perhaps the Genesis versions of Splatterhouse 2 and Splatterhouse 3 as bonuses. Heck, how about the very fun Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti, a hilarious Famicom game with great SD graphics and a pretty funny storyline? If that’s not possible, at LEAST give us a gallery of classic and new images that’s high-res with a zoom feature so folks can check out the art and not have to squint their eyeballs out of their sockets…
Xseed Games is at it again, folks. They’ve got a lot of nerve, ONLY letting us in on the cool official Half-Minute Hero web site on such short notice before its October 13 release date! Hmph… it’s as if they think their newest game is supposed to be some sort of riff on classic RPGs with rapid-fire 30-second battles and oodles of ridiculously addictive fun in single and multiplayer modes or something AND with a killer metal soundtrack to boot. Geez… darn publishers and their half-baked ideas!
Of course, I’m kidding about hating on Xseed, kids – go get a copy of HMH the half-minute it comes out, or you’ll be sorry! Oh… and get a copy of Ju-on: The Grudge as well – it’ll scare your Wii right off of its stand and right under the couch (along with you and the family pet)!
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 