DOOM: Campaign of Pain Awaits The Hardcore FPS Fans

Posted on February 4, 2016 by geelw

doom-frontcover Ha and double ha. Releasing DOOM on Friday the 13th (5/13/2016, to be precise) is a PR masterstroke created courtesy of the calendar naturally falling on that date and players worldwide hoping the final product is indeed ready for its garishly gory close up on day reserved for superstition and bad luck galore for those who believe in such stuff.

From the video below the jump (it’s kinda NSFW with all that mostly demon blood and bits splooshing all about), it’s clear to this writer that the game recalls the original’s unrepentant and dark tone, amped-up modern visuals side.

Remember, folks: you’re NOT buying DOOM because you want happy-happy rainbows and flower-draped unicorns prancing about with flitty faeries giggling psychotically as rosewater (gently) sprays into your face from your PC’s speakers. You’re buying DOOM because you know what you’re getting into: One space marine on Mars stuck in a ravaged space base racking up a rather impressive and insane body count comprised of demons who’ve entered the place through a recently activated portal to hell.

Yikes, but hey – simpler is best in a game like this, particularly is it’s trying to get the feel of the original games right. “Nailed it!” is what Bethsoft and id want to hear (or “BFG’ed it!” or “Chainsawed it!” if you want to get into the proper game groove lingo stuff) from fans this May and if that trailer is any indication, they’ll be hearing that and more.

Speaking of more: click below if you darrrrrrre… Continue reading →

Enter The Gungeon: Take Your Best Shots Soon In This Pixel Perfect Dungeon Crawler

Posted on February 4, 2016 by geelw

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So, I’m hitting myself in the cranium with a day old baguette (ow!) because I’ve been ignoring Devolver Digital and all those great games they’ve been putting out for some time. Let’s see if we can remedy that with a nice post on Enter the Gungeon, which is set to land on Steam and (so far, one) selected console at some point this year. “April” seems like logical time frame if you watch the entirety of that rather amusing gameplay video below. PC, PS4, Mac, SteamOS, and Linux (sorry other platforms, although a Vita version would have been REALLY appreciated. By me, at least).

Anyway, the game takes the lovely pixel graphic dungeon crawler I’m a huge fan of, adds 2000% more guns, couch co-op fun and so far, looks like yet another crowd pleaser from those guys I should have bugged a while ago about getting preview code (bats eyelashes at Devolver Digital). Developer Dodge Roll Games (or is it Dodgeroll Games? It’s hard to tell on the internet how things are properly spelled, isn’t it?) has got a winner here that’s guaranteed to eat up even more of your free time and yep, you probably need this game in your library just because it will keep you indoors and out of trouble.

Of course, if you’re getting into THAT kind of trouble, you probably shouldn’t be playing many video games. The other kind of trouble? That’s okay. Another one for the want list? Yes indeed.

Path of Exile: Ascendancy: So Much For Anything Resembling Free Time

Posted on February 3, 2016 by geelw

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After years of ignoring it because of it’s lack of an offline mode (which is still a sticking point for me, but hey – I’m flexible), I’m finally giving the award-winning (and time chomping) action/RPG Path of Exile a try. This ends up being somewhat amusing because my inbox tells me (thanks Michael!) that a new expansion is coming March 4th, 2016 in the form of Path of Exile: Ascendancy. Which also means given the reviews I’ve seen from players who’ve sunk (*eep!*) thousands of hours into the original game, yours truly may never even see that newer content given the short amount of time per session I’ve mapped out for myself. Yes, I’m conducting another goofball experiment, folks. This time it’s playing a game that’s made to be a time-eater in small sessions and seeing how that goes. I predict it won’t go well given my love for these sorts of games. On the other hand, I’m limited by time and bandwidth so my 30 minutes per session is going to have to be adhered to or else this site is toast because I’ll never get anything done on the posting front.

That trailer above with it’s many ACME brand traps (that actually work!) gives me an idea of what to expect. but as noted above, I’m not going to be seeing this stuff for quite some time. I think Grinding Gear Games won’t mind my slow boat trek through their game, given that their already massive user base is keeping them busy with these updates and I’m just a small fish in a bigger ocean. That said, I bet a shiny new penny that getting their game ported to consoles at some point would be an instant smash, particularly if it went the Diablo III route and features offline play and/or even some means of couch co-op. You know, for those cases where the internet is all colicky or gets mucked up by some black-hatters looking to prove a point.

Anyway, the experiment begins this week at some point. This should be interesting to say the least given how addictive these games can be and my current workload.

Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth Arrives on PS4, Vita

Posted on February 2, 2016 by geelw

Bandai Namco’s Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth (now available on PS4 and PS Vita) should do well among North American fans of the Digimon games who’ve been starved for content for a few years. The game is a quite decent mix of action-based “dungeon” crawling and yes, features plenty of creatures to digivolve. The game skews older than previous entries with more mature looking main characters and a darker overall tone. But it’s still a pretty family friendly game at heart, so no worries about picking this one up for the kids if they ask.

My eye is set on the Vita version as it’s supposed to have bonus pre-order content if you buy it this month. That and this seems like the perfect game to take on the road to kill a few hours when traveling. I’ll probably play it most at home, however. Anyway, enough babbling on this end – you have a city to save (and Tokyo always seems to be in trouble in games like this, right?)

And remember, folks: You can peek over Bandai Namco’s digital shoulder anytime you like. Just follow Bandai Namco Entertainment at one or more of the links below. They won’t mind, really!

Er, unless it’s after work hours and you’re trying to follow them home:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BandaiNamcoUS
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BandaiNamcoUS/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bandainamcous/
Tumblr: http://bandainamcous.tumblr.com/
Twitch: http://www.twitch.tv/bandainamcous

Disgaea PC: You’ll Never See Sunlight Again (Unless It’s In This Game), Dood!

Posted on February 2, 2016 by geelw

Disgaea PC 01

dpc_3d So, Nippon Ichi Software has decided to bring the legendary SRPG Disgaea to PC on February 24. Well, for those of you curious about the game, you can watch that trailer above and add about a million or so variations to any questions you’ll have.

As noted in that trailer, the game allows for some *insane* play that’s completely up to each player as to how he or she wants to complete a mission. It takes a tiny bit of time and a few fun tutorials to get to that point where you’re stacking up allies and tossing them to reach enemies or treasure, using Geo panels to win seemingly impossible maps in one turn, or raising item/equipment levels to ridiculous amounts by entering the items and beating the monsters inside of them. But it’s all worth it and with a level cap of 9999 for each character, you’ll be hooked in and not even caring that all you do once you get home from work or wherever is sink a few more “Just one more map!” hours into your new passion.

Disgaea PC 05

You can (and should, dood!) pre-order Disgaea PC digitally on Steam for $19.99 or go all in and get a nice Disgaea PC: Deluxe Dood Edition from Nippon Ichi America’s online store for $29.99. That extra loot sent nets you a Steam code for the game, digital art book and soundtrack… PLUS you get a physical 44-page art book, a physical soundtrack CD and a beautiful collector’s box to keep it all in sent to you in the mail. Santa comes in February bringing one of the most addictive and time-chomping games ever made? Wait, that’s NOT Santa… I was a few letters off in the spelling, heh. Note: you’ll REALLY need to dust off that collector’s box regularly or else Etna might get pissed off and come for you while you’re sleeping with a couple of exploding Prinnies. “Who’s Etna?” you ask? Oh, you’ll find out soon enough once you fire up the game proper.

Odin Sphere Leifthrasir: Plain Vanillaware Is Awesome, Omake Makes It Even Tastier

Posted on February 1, 2016 by geelw

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I don’t believe in magic at all, but whatever George Kamitani and Vanillaware are using for creative energy, it needs to be packaged and sold at cost just so more game developers can reap the rewards. Odin Sphere Leifthrasir, the upcoming HD reworking of the PlayStation 2 classic looks as if it will introduce a new and larger legion of fans to the game when it ships out for PS4, PS3 and Vita on June 7, 2016. While North Amrican PS4 owners looking to collect the most omake luck out big time with the limited Storybook Edition at $79.99, PS4, PS3, and Vita-only owners in NA who pre-order can score a softcover version of that hardcover 64-page art book in the Storybook Edition. Continue reading →

PC Review: MOVE OR DIE

Posted on January 31, 2016 by geelw

MOD_Thumb3 Platform: PC (also on Mac/Linux)

Developer: Those Awesome Guys

Publisher: Those Awesome Guys

# of Players: 1 – 4

MSRP: $ 14.99

ESRB Rating: N/A

Official Site

Score: A- (90%)

Can’t type… playing…

Okay, I had to drag my tired self away from my ongoing battle with MOVE OR DIE just to drag myself back to the computer and bang out a quick review. This game is a total blast and pretty much everything it’s cracked up to be in one package. Simple enough for the kids to pick up, but only the best and most clever and cheap players will survive… that is until they get bested by someone or some random element that’s smarter or faster. The name of the game says it all. If you don’t MOVE, your little avatar will DIE, period. If that wasn’t impetus enough, you’re tasked with a number of randomly rotating mini-games, all of which last a mere twenty seconds each and consist of trying to stay alive longer than the other players whether AI or live.

Between the chainsaws, falling block walls, time bombs and other hazards, this is a game where everyone dies at some point and the key to survival is dying less than anyone else you’re playing against. This simplicity plus the intense speed of each round keeps the game fresh even if the currently limited number of game modes randomly loops back on itself multiple times. The greatest thing about the game is it allows anyone who can hold a controller and keep moving to play and win (and lose).

This one’s a game where the cute factor of those avatars only vaguely mask the title’s dedication to keeping players in a constant state of tension and/or hilarity. You can win a match with a split second remaining and lose the next one in the same manner. That “friendship destroying” element the trailer promises isn’t really a good selling point because the players you’ve beaten are going to not want to quit playing until they get some payback. Continue reading →

My Backlog Is Killing Me (Part XVIII)

Posted on January 30, 2016 by geelw

(thanks, CptNem!)

Yeah, yeah. Barney above is so damn right. I’m in the middle of so many games and films that I’m getting them mixed up with dreams about other games and films in my backlog. As I prefer to beat and like to complete stuff before doing a review, it’s trickier to do when some games have more depth than others. This leads to me saving and bouncing between games looking for those that can be tackled over a few days as opposed to a few weeks or more. Of course, I’m in no hurry to be the first up with a review, but it does lead to some kinks in my schedule when I find myself seeing the sun come up with one eyeball while the other is glued to my monitor or TV. That’s a problem that needs fixing, stat. Cloning is still illegal (allegedly) and expensive, so that’s out. Too much coffee is either a bad thing or the best thing ever according to who writes whatever study of the week on that stuff. Helper monkeys and service animals are really awful at videogames and fall asleep during movies, so they’re of no use to me at all. Okay, cute factor points come into play there.

Eh, I’ll get this all sorted out soon. It’s the middle of winter, my hibernation skills keep trying to kick in and that’s no good when the postman is ringing twice outside. That and this post took up some of my game and film time, gyaaaaaah! Okay, back to work. Sisyphus in the Salt Mines sounds like a nice title for today…

Agatha Christie: The ABC Murders Hands-On: “Little Grey Cells” Get A Nice Workout

Posted on January 29, 2016 by geelw

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Microids‘ upcoming Agatha Christie: The ABC Murders hits European retail and digital outlets next week for PC (via gog.com or Steam) and US online and retail a few weeks later. Some hands-on time last week with the demo reveals mystery fans will have a fine time indeed playing dapper detective Hercule Poirot as he takes on that clever killer with the alphabet fetish and a talent for leaving clues galore. The demo features Poirot investigating the first murder (a shopkeeper found dead in her tobacco store) using his “little grey cells” in some simple to learn gameplay that should please casual to expert gene fans. Continue reading →

Conan Exiles: “What Is Best In Life?” FunCom Has An Answer For That

Posted on January 28, 2016 by geelw

conanexiles_conan Hmmm. Online only multiplayer games don’t hook me in any more (I prefer my adventuring solo and antisocially unconnected), but Conan Exiles might make me change my mind. Well, provided it can be played offline. FunCom is betting the farm that this announcement and short, glorious teaser trailer can get those who DO play online thrilled and judging from the response from a few friends, their strategy has worked. The game is certainly going to do well among fans finally getting that open world carnage they want with a familiar license drawing them in, but I don’t expect that players will actually get to BE the man himself. Conan the Clone isn’t much of a selling point, but I’m betting my own farm (it’s a tiny one) that the character creation system is fantastic to the point of having too many options for male and female avatars alike.

Those pre-alpha screens above look a bit barren at the moment, but that’s part of the process and both are in no way to be seen as “final” release code. Early Access on Steam will get the dev team hearing from the masses once it’s up and running and should help make for the best Conan experience to date provided the input isn’t all whiners whining and actually coming up with useful suggestions. My only one so far is to make the game work offline like the traditional Elder Scrolls or Grand Theft Auto games, both of which did exceptionally well for years as primarily single player experiences. Granted, the GTA series has had online play over the past two console and PC installments. But I’d bet a shiny new nickel that FunCom will see more people play the game if they have a dedicated story mode added in that works in lore from the books and films. Just running around crafting, hacking and slashing is something many open world games already do and do quite well warts and all. Here’s hoping FunCom manages to take that to a new level of polish as it gets another Conan game ready for its close up.