Tekken Tag Tournament 2 “Girl Power” Trailer: Er, If You Say So…

Posted on July 16, 2012 by geelw

Hmmm. Since when did Tekken turn into Dead or Alive? While it’s really cool to see live-action versions of some of the gals from the game and for those that want it, there’s a crazy pre-order deal where you get 150 swimsuits for the ladies, I’m not at all interested in the game for collecting bikinis and ogling digital cuties. Eh, maybe I’m complaining too much and maybe we’ll see an even mix of trunks for the guys in that lot, as I can see some female fans of the series getting a bit ticked at this. Then again, it’s great for a bit of competition as any new Dead or Alive game will probably want to beef up the ante significantly by adding even more swimsuits and perhaps (ack!) bringing back Zack Island and those awful mini-games in some sort of open world format. Oh, it’s going to be pure hell for those of us who just want a decent fighting game…

Too Much Bondage Leaves My Head Spinning. A Little Skyfall Makes Me Happier

Posted on July 15, 2012 by geelw

So, I’m thirteen films into my 19-flick James Bond 007 marathon (and again, thanks, Encore, but no thanks for running the SAP versions and not the original theatrical formatted flicks, grrrrr) and I’m a bit more disappointed with the middle run of the series than I thought I would be. Nostalgia value aside, seeing all of these films one after another is like getting stabbed to death by an army of ants with really tiny knives. For me, once you get past On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (and realize how good it is), most of the films after it (mostly the Roger Moore era ones) haven’t stood up so well. Sure, Diamonds Are Forever is amusing (to a fault), Live And Let Die makes for a great 9albeit controversial) intro to the Roger Moore era and The Spy Who Loved Me at least tries hard to be ten years younger than it really is. A few of the other Moore films have interesting performances and plot points, but clearly, the series was devolving into campy, self-referential humor at the expense of whatever sensible elements remained.

Yes, I know the four Pierce Brosnan films (which I haven’t seen in a few years, but will get to this week) have great key moments that helped usher in today’s more serious Bond films, so I’m looking forward to seeing them at least once more. That said, the 70’s to 80’s Bond films range from adequate to flat out dumb to trying too hard to be serious before degenerating to the usual plot point of Bind dropping his pants and bedding anything he can before getting conked on the head and delivered to the bad guy’s hideout or some other location where he’ll escape before popping up to surprise the potential world dominating fool and set into motion his usually sightly to highly comical (explosion, falling, impalement, etc.) demise.

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Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power Of Two Opening Cinema: The Mouse, The Rabbit And The Really Odd Place

Posted on July 15, 2012 by geelw

OK, I’m no Carl Barks, but I figured I may as well try and make up a title that’s not quite as necessarily unwieldy (or even more, depending on your tastes) as the one the game has that more or less explains as much as possible while not giving anything away. Yeah, I left out the musical aspects, the new game camera, drop in/drop-out co-op play, the lovely visual upgrades across the board and the still innovative Paint & Thinner gameplay choices players can make. In fact, my hands-on preview was better! Ah well..

Hey, YOU try and describe all of that in a title without burning up a few brain cells. Yeah, see? Told you so. Anyway, November 18th is the big day, so get yourself prepared…

DragonBall Z Kinect: You’ll Probably Want To Punch Your TV For Real, But…

Posted on July 14, 2012 by geelw

Remember… it’s a game for kids, so there’s that. Motion controls aside, it’s also a tiny bit close to what the Bandai Playdia DBZ games were in a few aspects, so there’s that as well. That means again, it’s a game for KIDS, first and foremost. All the Super Saiyan furor boiling up and way over about this one is a bit much, I think. Hell, if you’re screaming about a motion-controlled DragonBall game and you’re old enough to vote or drink, you should probably be consuming less caffeine and sugar or something. Maybe go read some Shakespeare, get out for a nice walk? I hear there’s some nice jazz in the park somewhere near you… Cultchah, folks, cult-chah…

007 Legends “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” Gameplay: License To Thrill

Posted on July 13, 2012 by geelw

I’m really interested in 007 Legends because Eurocom has been doing a pretty stellar job with their last few Bond games and this trailer shows off a nice level inspired by my favorite Bond film. I do wish that all the music in the trailer was taken from the original film, as the main theme was and is one of the best in the series and still works double duty as an intro and action scene piece. Amusingly enough, Encore is running 19 Bond films this month, so I’ve been watching one per night (in order, of course) for a bit of reminiscing and for a future article. Yup, some of them haven’t held up well at all in terms of a few prickly points I’ll discuss later (and a big fat BOO to Encore for not showing these in their original theatrical formats!), but for the most part, I’m still entertained by what I’m seeing. As for the game, I’m just itching to play it just to see how well Eurocom translated and condensed each film they chose down to what’s looking like a nearly non-stop thrill ride of a game…

Borderlands 2 ‘Wimoweh” Trailer: Now, That’s What I Call Confidence!

Posted on July 12, 2012 by geelw

You just know Gearbox Software and 2K Games KNOW they have a hit when they can take a hit song recorded from before most of the game’s target audience was even a twinkle in their parents’ eyes (and hell, was old as the hills before their parents had even met) slap it into an awesome trailer and make a must-see many times instant classic. Of course, to the kids that think that tune is corny, well, so much for knowing much about music, I guess. Now I can’t get the tune out of my head (nor the image of Claptrap rolling along repeating “Wimoweh” in his own way. Ah well, ring me up, 2k – that’s another sale your way!

Remember, Borderlands 2 hits retail on September 18 in the US and September 21 everywhere else.

Tomb Raider’s Final Days In Development: Lara’s Makeover Is Complete

Posted on July 10, 2012 by geelw

Here’s a brief look at Crystal Dynamics’ upcoming reboot, courtesy of game journalist Geoff Keighley’s Final Hours series of ‘making of’ documentaries. It’s a great piece for those of you curious about what goes into making a game and heck, anything that gets people not into the medium to see the magic happening is all right by me…

Of Orcs & Men Summer Trailer: Looking Great With Two Months To Go…

Posted on July 6, 2012 by geelw

Here’s the latest trailer for this intriguing Cyanide Studios/Spiders developed RPG coming in September for the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 from Focus Home Interactive. It’s certainly got the looks of a sleeper hit and the nicely quirky twist of playing as an Orc/Elf team setting out against humans in a rich fantasy world setting is appealing. That means it’s all up to the gameplay, which I’m hoping is solidly action oriented and as bug-free as possible. Go pop over to the game’s official site to check out more gorgeous screens and art and keep this one on your radar, as it’s looking pretty good.

Marvel vs. Capcom Origins: Capcom Does A Bit Of Heavy Eyelash Batting At Its Fans…

Posted on July 5, 2012 by geelw

Oh, Capcom, you’re such a big tease, flashing those ankles like that from under that floor-length skirt and conveniently dropping linen hankies as you pass by under that new parasol. Of course, the mean boys down the block want the whole Can-Can thing, so I see they’re getting a bit frustrated. The internet is going nuts about this (and more nuts in some places than others, thanks to the usual gang of Capcom detractors that aren’t happy with ANYTHING the company does), but I see this upcoming release as a gateway to more returns of Capcom’s classic arcade battlers remixed for the modern era. Sure, who wouldn’t want a new Darkstalkers, X-Men: Children of the Atom, or Punisher game?

As for me, I’m happy as hell about Origins, but I’m hoping to finally see a fighting game that rolls along sometime in the next few years that features every single character from Capcom’s history pop up in as a playable character. That, or a crazy action/RPG hybrid that packs in as many of those favorites as possible. Eh, it’s a big dream, I know… but games like this make me think even bigger.

Assassin’s Creed III July 4th Trailer: A Bit of Flag-Waving From A Few Directions…

Posted on July 4, 2012 by geelw

How amusing that US ad agencies make stupid “patriotic” commercials with stuff like the founding fathers driving Detroit muscle cars into battle (Um…. oooookaaay?), while a non-US based company like Ubisoft does stirring stuff like this that manages to draw interest to both their product and a traditional American holiday in a more inspiring manner. Anyway, enjoy the rest of the holiday and please try not to blow anything off you’ll need for work (or play) later on.