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Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 13, 2013 in Videogames 
Microsoft never really did much themselves with HD remakes on the Xbox 360, despite the efforts shown by Sony and various third-party publishers. The only one they put out was Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, which gave the original Halo a new coat of paint and some other bonuses. While the core game was the same (meaning that level design was pretty mediocre — that’s right, I’m one of the few who didn’t enjoy it), the gorgeous graphical overhaul and reorchestrated music went a long way towards making the game feel modern (and even alleviating level design issues). Now Microsoft is releasing its second HD remake: Fable: Anniversary, and it’s dated for February 4, 2014. Read more…
Tags: Fable, Microsoft, Xbox 360
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 13, 2013 in Videogames 
Next-gen consoles like PS4 and Xbox One may be considered “current-gen” now that they’ve released, but as with the PS2, it will be a while before developers fully abandon the PS3 and Xbox 360. Case in point: Namco Bandai has announced that Tales of Zestria, a game marking the 20th anniversary of the Tales series, will be released on PS3, presumably sometime in 2014. The announcement was a worldwide announcement, confirming the game’s release in North and South America, in addition to the usual Japanese release. Other statements seem to imply a European release as well. Read more…
Tags: Namco Bandai, PS3, RPG, Tales
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 12, 2013 in Videogames 
While there are plenty of Christmas movies, there aren’t a ton of Christmas videogames, even counting the ones that include a winter holiday level. (My personal pick is Freezezy Peak in Banjo-Kazooie.) Saints Row IV is doing its part to fix that with a new DLC mission pack called “How the Saints Save Christmas.” For $6.99 (or free if you purchased the season pass), you can help restore the Boss’s Christmas spirit to go deal with what appears to be an evil antlered Santa Claus. Yep, this is Saints Row. I fully support more games offering holiday levels in the vein of this DLC or Christmas Nights (on the Sega Saturn). Read more…
Tags: DLC, Saints Row IV
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 11, 2013 in Videogames 
In Grand Theft Auto V, there’s an area in the game called North Yankton that is only used for the prologue. Once the main game begins, it’s inaccessible and not on the island with the rest of Los Santos and its northern wilderness. There is, however, a way to get to it again, thanks to a glitch discovered by CVG. Basically, you start a new game and play to a certain spot, at which point a friend invites you into Grand Theft Auto Online, the multiplayer component. Once there, you fly a helicopter to the southeast section of the map, where you’ll see floating mountains in the distance. Fly to those mountains, and you can land and explore North Yankton to your heart’s content. You can even get other people up there to play with you! Read more…
Tags: Grand Theft Auto
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 9, 2013 in Videogames 
Also at the VGX Awards, Tim Schafer showed up and braved the dark world of Joel McHale and demoed Broken Age. The Kickstarter game has become quite the project now, and also has a star cast of Jack Black, Wil Wheaton, and Pendleton Ward. The big announcement for the VGXs? Elijah Wood will be voicing one of the two main characters, Shay. Rather than being the “big Hollywood actor” though, he actually fits the role perfectly and definitely brings something to the part. Check out the trailer below and then watch the demo footage here (part 1 & part 2). Read more…
Tags: Broken Age, double fine
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 9, 2013 in Videogames 
The other day, the VGX awards were pretty lame. That said, there were a few bright spots, and No Man’s Sky was one of those. HelloGames, developers of games like Joe Danger, have begun work on an insanely ambitious sci-fi exploration game where everything is procedurally generated. You can hop in your ship and take off into space and then fly to another planet — all seamlessly and without any loading screens. And it’s online. It seems like a huge project for a team of four people to tackle, but given how cool this first trailer looked, I have high hopes! Read more…
Tags: HelloGames, No Man's Sky
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 8, 2013 in Videogames 
Cross another game off your spring release list! Destiny, Bungie’s upcoming massive online shooter, was originally scheduled for spring of 2014. Now, they’ve announced the official release date, but it’s a bit further back than you might’ve expected: September 9th, 2014. The beta that was supposed to start soon has also been pushed back. It sounds like Bungie wanted more time to work on the game, and given that they’re Bungie, Activision was perfectly willing to make changes. The wait might be a bit longer, but at least you’ll have plenty of other games to keep you preoccupied in the meantime! Read more…
Tags: Bungie, Destiny
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 5, 2013 in Videogames 
Okay, we had to have known that Bravely Default: Flying Fairy was getting a sequel when Japan got an updated version of the game called Bravely Default: For the Sequel. The new version wasn’t a sequel itself, but it added new content and revamped the battle system in a way that would be used for a future sequel. Now a leaked Japanese magazine has confirmed Square Enix’s sequel: Bravely Second. I’d like to get excited, but the English translation of Bravely Default (based on For the Sequel, not the original Flying Fairy) is only just coming out in Europe this Friday, while North America has to wait until February 7, 2014. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Bravely Default, square enix
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 4, 2013 in Videogames 
Microsoft’s creativity game/software Project Spark has entered beta, and you can test it out right now, with some conditions. First, you had to have signed up on the game’s website; don’t worry if you haven’t done it yet, because you can still sign-up now. Beta invites are going out, so you may have already received yours. The biggest barrier to entry, however, is the fact that the beta is only available on Windows 8.1. That’s right, there’s no Xbox One beta support, and the beta won’t run on Windows 7. So if you’re one of the people suffering through Windows 8.1, feel free to sign-up and away. All those who thought buying an Xbox One might let them into the beta, you’ll be disappointed. I know I would be, but Microsoft still hasn’t replaced my broken Xbox One Kinect and controller because they cancelled the replacement orders without telling me, so I’m not even using my launch unit yet. Huh. Read more…
Tags: Project Spark, Windows, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 3, 2013 in Videogames 
2013 is almost over, but it’s apparently not too late for one last celebration of “The Year of Luigi.” Not content with putting out a bunch of other limited edition 3DS XL systems this year, Nintendo has just released a Mario & Luigi 3DS XL. Besides a snazzy silver and gray color scheme, the case features the Mario Brothers. The system comes bundled with Mario & Luigi: Dream Team, which of course is pre-installed because Nintendo seems to have abandoned giving out cartridges that could be traded away. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Mario Brothers, Nintendo
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 2, 2013 in Videogames 
Well, Valve’s Saxxy Awards are over! All the votes have been tallied and the winner is… Lil’ Guardian Pyro! It’s an adorable short film feature a Pyro doll defending a sentry from a Spy doll. It’s really well done, but so were most of the nominees this year. Valve’s Saxxy Awards always bring out the best Source Filmmaker artists, directors, and animators out there, so be sure to browse the full site and watch them all. I really enjoyed Disruption, Crackpot, and Chinatown Getaway as well as the overall winner. Check it out below. Read more…
Tags: Saxxy Awards, Team Fortress, Valve
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 1, 2013 in Star Wars, Videogames 
According to job postings on EA Canada’s Vancouver studio, it seems like the company is working on an open-world Star Wars game. This is obviously super-early, but I wonder if there’s anything that could be salvaged from the open-world game Lucasarts was supposedly working on before they shut down. EA signed a 10-year deal with Disney and Lucasfilm, so they’ve got exclusive rights to make Star Wars games right now, so you’d better believe they’re going to milk it for all it’s worth. Hopefully we’ll hear some more details about EA’s plans in the next year. Read more…
Tags: EA
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 1, 2013 in Hobbies and Collections, Videogames 
The previous Nendoroid of Isabelle from Animal Crossing was so popular (and so adorable) that they’re bringing another one out, in her winter outfit! It includes a new “smug” face, star-shaped effects, “hands on hips” arms, and arms in a stretched out pose. Apparently, it also comes with these new arms in “summer” versions, so if you own the existing Isabelle Nendoroid, you can spiff her up too. She’s available for pre-order now, but won’t arrive until April next year. You can pre-order her on AmiAmi, HLJ, Hobby Search, or CD Japan. More images below! Read more…
Tags: Animal Crossing
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 29, 2013 in Videogames 
It’s that time of the year again! Gabe Newell and co. are coming for your wallet, and there are tons of great deals on Steam for this year’s Autumn Steam Sale. This time, the items on sale didn’t leak early, so each day is going to be a surprise! Already there have been great deals on games like Gone Home, Papers Please, Skyrim, and The Walking Dead. And don’t worry if you miss something one day, because all daily deals stick around until the following day, and at the end of the sale an encore occurs, giving you the chance to grab popular titles you might’ve missed. Check out everything here. Read more…
Tags: Steam
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 28, 2013 in Videogames 
One of the major new feature of Super Mario 3D World (besides it being the first must-play Mario game since Super Mario Galaxy) is the Cat Suit, which provides lots of mobility and new abilities, as well as making whoever wears it completely adorable. Mega64 brainstormed and realized that if Cat Mario loves jumping around his candy-coated world, maybe real cats would too! Hence this video, in which cats prove that they are not going to play along with your Mario fantasies. Now if only Mega64 would put out more videos like they used to, because I can’t remember how long it’s been since their last one. Read more…
Tags: Mario Brothers, Mega64, Nintendo, Wii U
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 27, 2013 in Videogames 
While everyone is getting excited about the start of a new console generation, it’s easy for smaller, niche games to get lost in the holiday madness. So allow me to draw your attention to Ys: Memories of Celceta, a JRPG for PlayStation Vita that just launched. Ys is a long-running series from Nihon Falcom that has been on tons of platforms, including many obscure Japanese computer systems. XSEED did everyone a solid and localized several PSP remakes and sequels in recent years, including the wonderful Ys: The Oath in Felghana. Memories of Celceta is a 25th anniversary celebration for the series, and it’s looking great. Read more…
Tags: Playstation Vita, Ys
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 26, 2013 in Videogames 
I’m still steaming because my Xbox One was broken out of the box (though my PS4 works great!), so let’s talk about what’s currently the best system out there: the Nintendo 3DS. Yes, what was once seen as a sign that Nintendo was doomed has made a major comeback over the last two years, with a library of must-play games that the PS4 and Xbox One won’t have for a year or two. (Let’s hope Nintendo can repeat that success with the Wii U, which is finally getting amazing games like Super Mario 3D World.) What’s that, you don’t have a 3DS yet? I wouldn’t admonish you if this were 2011, but it’s something you now need if you’re a gamer. Luckily for you, there are several Black Friday deals highlighted by Nintendo themselves in a recent press release. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Nintendo
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 26, 2013 in Cinema, Videogames 
Normally, I’d approve of more Lego videogames. It’s practically impossible to keep up with them all, but Traveller’s Tales makes solid games that aren’t just for kids. But the latest announcement out of Warner Brothers seems like one step too far because of the franchise it’s adapting. Lego The Hobbit will be out in Spring 2014 for (deep breath) PS4, Xbox One, PC/Mac, Wii U, PS3, Xbox 360, Vita, and 3DS. That all sounds good, but the problem is what’s actually in the game. Because it’s coming out before the third installment of Peter Jackson’s Hobbit film trilogy, it will only include 2/3 of the story from the book. As if the book wasn’t being milked enough by being split into three movies, even the game can’t cover everything. Is Warner Brothers concerned about spoilers for a 75-year-old book? Read more…
Tags: Lego, The Hobbit, Warner Brothers
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 25, 2013 in Videogames 
It was a buffet of Persona news as Atlus announced Persona games for everything. Ever. First up, they announced the much anticipated Persona 5 for PS3 next holiday. No other details aside from the announcement itself came out, though. Persona 4: Dancing All Night, on the other hand, is an unexpected Persona dancing game for PS Vita. Then Atlus also revealed Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth on 3DS, a dungeon crawler directed by Daisuke Kaneda (Etrian Odyssey 4). Lastly, they also listed a sequel to their Persona 4 fighting game spinoff, called Persona 4: The Ultimax Ultra Suplex Hold for PS3, which will arrive Summer 2014. Whew! Talk about a lot of Persona! Read more…
Tags: Atlus, Persona 4
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 24, 2013 in Videogames 
An era is over! John Carmack, one of the original founders of id Software, who was the lead programmer and helped create many iconic video games such as Doom, Wolfenstein, and Quake, has officially left that company. This is not particularly surprising, as in August he stepped down into a more distance supervisor role and join Oculus VR as their CTO. This was just the final step, as now he has changed his focus from games to hardware. It sounds like he finds the possibilities of the Oculus Rift very exciting (as do I) and wants to devote his full time to it. It’ll be interesting to see where id Software goes from here, as they haven’t really put out anything exciting in the past several years. Carmack will certainly find success wherever he goes, though! Read more…
Tags: id Software, john carmack
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 23, 2013 in Videogames 
We haven’t had too much luck with video games based off of the Game of Thrones series. The last one was pretty lackluster and didn’t really do anything interesting. However, our luck might be about to change: IGN is running that they’ve heard from multiple sources that Telltale Games (the makers of the famed Walking Dead games) have gotten the license to Game of Thrones. IGN admits that they’re not sure whether the license is for the books or the TV show, though, and having the rights to the HBO version would allow them to use the likenesses of the characters, presumably. However, it could also tell a story that avoids any characters from the books, too. There’s a lot of possibilities here, so I hope we hear something soon. Read more…
Tags: A Song of Ice and Fire, Game of Thrones, Telltale Games
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 22, 2013 in Videogames 
Team Fortress 2, despite releasing just over six years ago, is still going strong. A committed player base and continuous updates from Valve adding new items, weapons, and maps have made it the (in my opinion) best free-to-play shooter on the market. Oh, and yes, hats. The latest update, the Two Cities Update, for TF2 arrives today and will add new maps to the popular co-op defense mode, Mann Vs. Machine, along with new cosmetic items that allow you to deck out your items with colorful effects. With these Killstreak Kits, your weapon can glow and you can show off how good you are and killing “tiny baby men.” At least check out the site for more of Valve’s trademark humor and promotional stuff for the update which is absolutely hilarious. They released a new animated short, which is always cool! Read more…
Tags: Team Fortress, Valve
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 19, 2013 in Videogames 
Took them long enough! Square Enix has finally announced a Western release date for their HD remastering of Final Fantasy X & X-2 that has taken entirely too long to produce. At least their work looks great, with reorchestrated music and redone models in certain places, besides the game being presented in widescreen and HD. You can check out the improvements yourself on March 18, or March 21 in Europe. As a reminder, this collection includes most full-featured versions of the games: Final Fantasy X International, Final Fantasy X-2 International + Last Mission, and a 14-minute video bridging the two games called Final Fantasy X Eternal Calm. If you preorder the game, you’ll get it in nice limited edition packaging that holds the game in a book of concept art and commentary, similar to Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX. I’ve had mine preordered for what feels like forever, but watch this new trailer if you’re not yet convinced. Read more…
Tags: Final Fantasy, PS3, square enix
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 17, 2013 in Videogames 
Sure, the PS4 just came out, and yes, the Xbox One arrives next week. But you know what I’m really excited for? Forget all that next-gen junk! I’m ready for Super Mario 3D World and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds! Both games arrive on November 22nd, and Zelda will also come with the gold 3DS system if you’re so inclined. This final launch trailer for the game shows off a little bit of everything: story, gameplay, and new features. It’s been getting rave reviews so far, proclaiming it one of the best Zelda games ever, so if you’ve been out of the Zelda loop for a bit, maybe now is a great time to jump back in! The trailer is embedded below. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Legend of Zelda, Nintendo
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