The Evil Within Looks to Scare You Sillier Than You’d Like to Be Scared, So Get With the Program!


 
Let’s see now: one part Resident Evil, one part Silent Hill, One part F.E.A.R. and a lot of what’s inside Shinji Mikami’s head certainly go a long way in his latest game, The Evil Within. Set for an October 14, 2014 release on PC, PS3/PS4, Xbox 360/Xbox One, this survival horror game marks Mikami’s return to the genre that made him a master to legions of horror game fans. I’m holding out until I play this one, but from all those trailers and behind the scenes videos that have been popping up, this one looks as if it will deliver the goods to those who can take what it throws at them. Granted, if you’re one of those jaded types scared of nothing and think this game is “dull” when you haven’t touched a controller connected to a console or PC running it, then Bethesda Softworks and Tango Game Studios more than likely have no use for your commentary on some message board where you’re all anonymous and filled with bile for some reason or another.

I’d bet they’d LOVE more constructive and useful criticism from people who may run into something that keeps the game from being what it needs to be (but that doesn’t include being a direct Resident Evil clone, I’d bet), so maybe go PLAY this before you go online and whine expecting for someone to back you up when the developer and publisher would rather see you fall off a cliff onto something sharp. Or something like that. I’m betting Bethsoft and Mikami don’t care what anyone who hasn’t played this thinks because at the end of the day, those people are wasting their time rambling on about themselves and speaking for others when they should just shut up and maybe play some of those games they hate on for no reason. Just a thought…

Alien Isolation Launch Trailer: At Home, Everyone Will Hear You Scream…


 

AI PS4 CoverIt’s almost here and yours truly will be popping up at a certain retailer bright and early to snap up my copy and trot back home so I can dive in feet first and come up for air with knuckles and hair all white from fear. Yay, fear! Hmmmm. I should e dreading this experience a bit more because I’ve not been really freaked out by any horror game in a while.

On the other hand, I’m knowing I’m going to enjoying seeing what The Creative Assembly has cooked up for people like me who’ve been following this from the shadows who want to go in cold and not have spoilers hitting us on the head because we hung out on the right message boards and want our “fun” spoiled. Of course, I’m less expecting this to be “fun” and more expecting it to be “Holy $#!+, I can’t take another step because I’m TOO damn scared, but that damn Alien is somewhere in the room, Gyaaaaaah!”


 
Or something like that. (sings) The sun will come out, tomorrow… Hmmmm. I wonder if they sell cork panels at the K-Mart across from the game shop? I may need a bunch to line the living room with so my neighbors don’t keep calling the cops on me. “GYAAAAAAAAHHHHH!”

Did Someone Say TWIN PEAKS Was Coming Back? Why, Yes it Is!


 
No wonder I woke up feeling weird and nostalgic this morning with a slight headache and a hankering for strong coffee and a slice of pie. It won’t be until 2016 (and hopefully, we all won’t be dead from ebola or nuclear bombs dropped willy-nilly across the landscape), but David Lynch is back on TV and in complete control of his baby. From the press release (read it while I do slow-dwarf dance around the room for a bit):

The groundbreaking television phenomenon, Golden Globe® and Peabody Award-winner TWIN PEAKS will return as a new limited series on SHOWTIME in 2016. Series creators and executive producers David Lynch and Mark Frost will write and produce all nine episodes of the limited series, and Lynch will direct every episode. Set in the present day, TWIN PEAKS will continue the lore of the original series, providing long-awaited answers and a satisfying conclusion for the series’ passionate fan base.

So, yeah. That’s erasing any crappiness that a Monday usually brings around. Yeah, now… about the earth still being here? Well. we’ll work on that. Showtime, you just take care of paying all involved and keeping Lynch happy in his work. I know a certain game director who just had a nice Xbox One exclusive hit is probably a very happy man. Actually, I’d LOVE to see Swery meet Lynch and perhaps collaborate on a project, but let’s get these nine episodes of the new TP out of the way first…

TRI Hands-On: Rat King Games Wants You to Go After the Fox…

TRIAllLevels 

Okay, my preview for TRI is a bit late (the game drops onto Steam this Tuesday), but this is one of those wonderful indie gems that NEEDS to be played and enjoyed. Developer Rat King Games has made a fun and very challenging first-person puzzle/platformer that’s got influences from Portal and Okami to even a teeny-tiny bit of Minecraft. The build I spent some time with offered up some fine and challenging large levels that grew progressively trickier and from that simple tutorial, opened up into a game that’s going to surprise fans of quirky visuals and complex gameplay that keeps you hooked in. Come meet the Odd Gods and stay for a while – you’ve got a fox to catch (if you can)…

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D4 Needs Me, But I Don’t Have That Xbox One Yet…


 
Despite some solid reviews from folks that appreciate its weirdness, I’ve heard that the episodic adventure experience known as D4: Dark Dreams Don’t Die doesn’t seem to be selling in decent enough numbers… yet. Granted, so far it’s only the first two chapters of what’s going to be a multi-part story and I’m betting that some Xbox One owners are holding out for some sort of complete disc or download version so they can play the entire game from start to finish. On the other hand, I also know that there are a good deal of people who yes, don’t want to play this game on anything but the hardware they own and I can respect that side of the argument to some extent. Between them and the crowd that ignores odd and innovative games like this because they refuse to step outside their comfort zone, that’s probably a lot of gamers missing out on what seems to be quite an interesting adventure… Continue reading

Mythos: The Beginning – Dark Gaia Studios Back In Action With This Horror/RPG Must-Buy!

Mythos TB
 
Say, do you love horror-themed games and trying new titlesVideo that should scare you up good and right? Well, you need to go slap down six bucks for Mythos: The Beginning NOW (or later today, if it’s too bloody early in the morning for you. Hey, I couldn’t sleep, so here’s a post for you). What? You’re a skeptic, are you? Well, go download the demo and try out a portion of the game and don’t be surprised if you wake up later with six bucks missing from your wallet and the game’s title screen glaring at you from your monitor. For me, it’s the 1930’s setting, the creepy atmosphere, the RPG Maker visuals that give the game a nice 16-bit look and yep, D. Robert Grixti’s writing style that gets under your skin and sticks there for a bit. Ooooooh, I’m getting cold now… wait, I left the window open (oops!).

(Thanks, Genocider Rina!)
 

No, seriously, it’s a great and creepy game with a nice Lovecraftian vibe and the fact that you create your own character and play as him or her investigating a not so right asylum adds a nice personal touch to the proceedings. Okay, I’ll shut up and let you go try this one out. And BUY it. Or else. Hey, one to one support for indie developers like Dark Gaia Studios means they get more money without their work getting forever lost on some big mega-site before they have a chance to shine, so go make DRG happy!

Eh, You May As Well FAKE Scare Yourself to Death This Weekend…

(Thanks, Sleaze-O-Rama!)
 

Let’s see now… this week, no, most of the last few months have been absolutely annoying and in you sit in front of the TV news for more than five minutes, terrifying. Woo hoo. Anyway, not that ignorance is bliss or anything, but sometimes it’s just good to drop everything and chill (your spine) out with something fake, stupid and scary to counteract something real, stupid and scary. Or you can go serious and scary – it’s your move. I’m probably going to watch ALIEN again at some point just to prepare for Alien Isolation on Tuesday. I was thinking about watching more disease-related stuff like Outbreak, Contagion, The Andromeda Strain, Scream and Scream Again or Coma, but a friend’s mother just went through some surgery today and I didn’t want my choice to see out of place for any reason.

Well, fake panic is always a good diversion, right? Sooooo… PANIC!

(Thanks, Horror Theater Video!)
 

There’s also some stupid ongoing game industry nonsense kicked up by fools for no other reason than a weird political agenda that’s seeped into things and has boiled over into weirdness and ugly stuff, but I’ve only wasted about a half hour of my life reading up on the basics and it’s pretty much garbage and fake outrage that’s gone way overboard because of a select, vocal class of internet idiot. Blech, and make mine a double, bartender. Anyway, go catch something primal scary or extremely silly this weekend, say away from the news (or internet if need be) and just ENJOY the hell out of this weekend, folks.

Interstellar Trailer #4: Kick Kirk to the Curb, This Is The New Final Frontier…

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November 7 is zooming up faster than I have time to think about it and with each new trailer, Interstellar is slooooowly nudging me closer to the door to maybe go and see it sooner than later. On the other hand, I’m supposed to be immune to marketing tactics (IMMUNE, I say!), so perhaps it’s my lack of proper rest this week that’s forcing my hard chocolate shell to finally crack?

(Thanks IGN!)
 
Eh, whatever. Nolan’s got what looks like a hit here, but I expect the usual suspects to hate on him and this film because they didn’t like something he’s done previously. Meh, I have less and less time for those jaded folk who have low opinions of creative people and not a single idea in their own heads because they tend to drag down even the simplest conversation with “Well, my friend says…” and “I didn’t see it, but I heard it’s…” as their constant mantra. BO-ring! Me, I’ll climb a damn mountain just to stop hearing that noise. Anyway, slap this flick on your radar and make some time to see it even if you hold out for the reviews like many do these days.

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Alien Isolation #HowWillYouSurvive Final Update: Last Chance to Stomp Down to the Store, But Have an Egg First!


 
So, some early reviews are in and it seems that the reviewers that got it REALLY got it good and that’s a good thing. The ones that didn’t? Well, they came in looking for the wrong game and yep, boy were they surprised at the game not being what THEY wanted and what the developer intended. You have to love that sort of misguided missile writing, ladies and gents.


 
Anyway, as Sega seems to not like me, I’ll still be buying this one on Tuesday and reviewing it a bit later than the madding crowd that already has. But that’s just fine by me because I don’t plan on rushing this through at all. Nor one bit. Nope.


 
As for that eggy breakfast, Well… I’d like one of these, please. It can fit in the living room in place of that stupid recliner or the other chair that just dropped its lousy, crumbling cloth underside on the carpet like a misbehaving pet. Yuck. Anyway, I should probably catch up on some sleep over the weekend, as I’m betting Alien Isolation will be keeping me awake and creeping into my sleeping time for a while…

Guardians of the Galaxy Headed to Home Video in November and December. Talk About a Holiday “Surprise”!

I wish I were more of a betting man, as I predicted well before it was released Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy would be out for the holidays (as in Christmas) and yep, it’s making it out earlier than that as in before Thanksgiving on Digital 3D and HD Digital (November 18) and before Christmas on 3D Blu-ray, Blu-ray, DVD and On-Demand (December 9!). This new normal of movies shooting out on disc and legal download so soon after being released still drives me somewhat batty, as it’s almost not worth going to the movies because I prefer to see films in the comfort of my own home without worrying about nasty theater situations, screaming kids and now, Ebola (heh, I had to get that in because every news channel is screaming mad cow over this latest fear). Yaaaaaaah!

Er, anyway… I finally saw GotG in a pretty decent theater and a few kinks aside, in my opinion it’s one of the better recent Marvel Studios movies. Granted, I prefer the stuffier more noble Star-Lord from his second Marvel Preview appearance (issue 11 with that wonderful Byrne/Austin artwork), but the kids like that newer snarkier model just fine and Chris Pratt did a stellar job as the character. Well, this one goes on the gift to me list at some point. Damn list is getting longer by the second, but I need to stock up on entertainment for the Ebola-free bunker, right?