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Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 20, 2012 in Videogames 
With the Wii U out and fully “online” compared to the Wii, you’d think that Nintendo was finally getting the whole “online gaming” thing. Of course, none of their games are online, and while there are cool things about it (notably the Miiverse social network), there are many missing features found in PlayStation Network and Xbox Live. But hey, baby steps! How about releasing some DLC for a recent game like the DS’s Pokemon Black 2 and White 2? Read more…
Tags: Pokémon
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 20, 2012 in Videogames 
That Legend of Zelda is pretty special. Even with Nintendo’s best efforts to muck up the latest installments with excessive handholding, the series still manages to retain a sense of wonder and nostalgia. It’s why fans clamored so much for an official timeline that Nintendo finally put one out in The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia, a companion book covering the entire series (minus the CD-i games, I’d imagine) filled with art and info. The book is coming out on January 16, 2013, and since that’s so close, publisher Dark Horse has released this trailer for the game. A trailer not for a game, but for a book about a game, and not even an adaptation of that game’s story — can you believe it? Read more…
Tags: Legend of Zelda
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 18, 2012 in Videogames 
Well today is finally the release date of Nintendo’s Wii U, their successor to the incredibly popular Wii. It’ll be exciting to see how well it sells and if Nintendo will be able to keep up with demand. Will it become the hot commodity this Christmas, much like the Wii did? Or will it end up being a bit more on the Gamecube side of things? Only time will tell, but at the very least, the launch lineup seems solid. If you’re picking one up, the day one update is out, so be sure to grab that to activate all the online features. Going to go digital? A full list of retail games available digitally is below! Read more…
Tags: Nintendo, Wii U
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 18, 2012 in Videogames 
Team Fortress 2’s annual fan-made video contest, the Saxxy Awards, have started up for their second year. You can now vote on the best Source Filmmaker video and best replay, as well as their individual categories. Comedy, drama, and all the variety and entertainment of a real awards show, without all the pomp and fancy dresses (except for maybe that Magical Heavy Fairy video). The voting period goes until November 27th, and the winners will be announced on November 30th… aside from Best Overall. That one will be shown live on Spike TV’s Video Game Awards pre-show and aired on TV. Now that’s pretty sweet!
Tags: Team Fortress, Valve
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 17, 2012 in Videogames 
The Wii U arrives tomorrow, November 18th, and I’m sure many of you are getting one. It looks to be a fun system and I like the direction Nintendo is taking with it, although I’m unsure how mainstream audiences will react to it. One of the biggest selling points for casual audiences (and perhaps gamers too) is using the Wii U Gamepad as, essentially, the best and biggest universal remote ever. You’ll be able to control your TV via the pad, including input switching and all the basic features. Combined with TVii, Nintendo’s app that will unify many streaming services (like you cable, Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Video) it could do wonders for streamlining the living room experience. But bad news: it won’t arrive until December. Read more…
Tags: Nintendo, Wii U
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 15, 2012 in Videogames 
Square Enix has been putting out practically every other main Dragon Quest game on DS, so it seems natural that they’d work on a new version of Dragon Quest VII for 3DS. The game was originally released in America as Dragon Warrior VII for PS1, all the way back in 2000, where it was met with only moderate attention, possibly due to an overly lengthy quest and sprite graphics. If it isn’t obvious from these new screenshots, the sprites are gone, replaced with full 3D graphics. Read more…
Tags: Dragon Quest
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 14, 2012 in Videogames 
The best way to get me to buy a major game at launch is to include a fancy, well-made statue with it. I’ve moved past being okay with dinky little figurines that barely look like the character; it has to be big and detailed so I can show it off with pride, space be damned. That’s why even though I just recently got a nice figure of Assassin’s Creed III‘s Connor when that game released, I’m salivating at this Songbird statue that is being included with the BioShock Infinite Ultimate Songbird Edition. Read more…
Tags: BioShock: Infinite
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 14, 2012 in Videogames 
Has it really been over two years since StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty came out? I’ll be honest, despite my interest, I haven’t even had a chance to play it yet. So I feel really behind now that Blizzard has actually given out a release date for their upcoming expansion, StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm. It’s too soon for a gamer like me who is constantly behind, but for those who have been playing since Wings of Liberty‘s release. Read more…
Tags: Blizzard, StarCraft 2
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 13, 2012 in Videogames 
You can’t have a new AAA game come out anymore without offering a collector’s edition or limited edition of some sort with additional goodies that only hardcore fans care about. (Considering that even new IPs come out with collector’s editions, targeting fans who haven’t played the game yet seems odd.) The new Tomb Raider reboot is no exception, with a collector’s edition being made in limited quantities. Read more…
Tags: square enix, Tomb Raider
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 12, 2012 in Cinema, Videogames 
I’ve always had a love for the Angry Video Game Nerd. James Rolfe does a great job with the character and you can really feel his love for games shine through all the rage and excitement. His fundraiser to create a movie based around the AVGN was a big success, and after a ton of filming, they finally released the first trailer for the project. I hope you were expecting something as campy and hilarious as his usual stuff, because the 80s B-movie style shines through wonderfully here. The Nerd looks to be investigating one of gaming’s best-known urban legends: the Atari E.T. cartridge burial grounds. A perfect subject for the movie, I’m really excited to finally see it when it’s done. Watch the trailer below! Read more…
Tags: Angry Video Game Nerd
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 10, 2012 in Star Wars, Videogames 
Have you ever wanted to see the Mos Eisley Cantina scene re-enacted with the various feathered characters from Angry Birds? No? Why are you backing away nervously? Are you sure you don’t want to see? It’s not that bad, I promise! Well, maybe. Angry Birds Star Wars is out on every mobile platform now, basically, so this animated video has been released to promote it. There’s not much to say – it’s an angrier, featherier version of the Cantina. But I wonder who this will sell on the game? Read more…
Tags: Angry Birds
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 9, 2012 in Videogames 
The long-titled and frequently-compared-to-Smash Bros. game, Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale, has finally gone gold. To celebrate, they’ve released the intro trailer for the game, so you can see exactly what you’ll see when you start the game up. Pay attention at the end, and you’ll get a glimpse of the final boss too! Can you guess who the shadowy character is? I’ll give you a hint: it’s a former mascot for Sony in the US. Read more…
Tags: PlayStation 3, Sony
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 8, 2012 in Videogames 
Like most console launches, the Wii U is getting a lot of ports to fill out its launch window. A lot of these are pretty much what you’d expect, but Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Wii U Edition is getting some nice exclusive content to differentiate this version. Besides being able to draw on your characters with the GamePad to customize them, there are further customization options to make the Tekken characters look like Nintendo characters. That’s almost weird enough, but the extra content doesn’t end there.
Read more…
Tags: Namco Bandai, Tekken, Wii U
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 8, 2012 in Videogames 
Okay, so Diablo III might not have set the world on fire when it came out earlier this year. The game certainly sold well enough, but between simplified skill trees, a completely unnecessary always-online requirement, and numerous other issues, Blizzard’s highly anticipated follow-up didn’t capture gamers’ hearts. With competition like Torchlight II and the availability of Diablo II, it’s questionable whether gamers will still be playing what many think is a short-lived game years from now. Maybe some additional content would fix that? Read more…
Tags: Activision, Blizzard, Diablo 3
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 7, 2012 in Videogames 
Many gamers remember the N64’s Super Smash Bros. for having a memorable, almost anti-Nintendo commercial that still gets posted in forum threads to this day. Despite being low-budget, it had charm, and watching beloved characters hit each other around was funny. Fast-forward to 2012, and Sony is releasing PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, their take on the Smash Bros. formula, and they have a predictable ad for the United States. But in Russia, the ad is quite different. Read more…
Tags: PS3
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 7, 2012 in Videogames 
I mainly enjoyed Portal 2 for its story and the exceptionally clever sections, not quite as much for its puzzles. They were certainly well-made and the main focus of the game, but the world that Valve built around these puzzle mechanics is what sticks with me most. However, I certainly enjoyed the co-op campaign, which has a much lighter story set around its interesting two-player puzzles. PlayStation 3 owners now have even more puzzles available to them, provided that they also have a PlayStation Move controller.
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Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 6, 2012 in Videogames 
Fresh off the heels of the rather-boring “Hearthfire” downloadable content, Bethesda has announced the next bit of DLC for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The main character of the game is a Dragonborn, but this latest content, also called “Dragonborn,” pertains to literally the first Dragonborn ever. He looks pretty tough too! Read more…
Tags: DLC, Elder Scrolls, Skyrim, Xbox 360
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 5, 2012 in Hobbies and Collections, Videogames 
Looking for the perfect figure to top off your Pokemon collection? Well if you weren’t, you are now. This new figure from D-Arts of Mewtwo is.. well… awesome. It’s got a ridiculous amount of articulation and in general looks solid. He comes with a projectile, a Pokemon stand, and if you pre-order in the first wave, a small figure of Mew will come included as well. Sadly, it looks like he’s sold out at most of the usual haunts online, but if you keep an eye out you might be able to catch one. Mewtwo releases in March for ¥3,990. Read more…
Tags: Action Figures, Pokémon
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 5, 2012 in Videogames 
Interested in checking out a new trailer for the upcoming Wii U game from Hideki Kamiya, The Wonderful 101? It’s one of the best-looking games coming out for the system, in my view. It features a bunch of colorful superhero characters (who might remind you a bit of Viewtiful Joe) that team up to fight an alien menace. And we do mean ‘team up.’ The collective combines into a giant sword, a fist, or other objects to tackle your enemies – all you need to do is gather citizens and recruit them to your cause. Check out the trailer here, in 60 frames per second, so you can get a full feel for the fluidity of the game! Read more…
Tags: Platinum Games, Wii U
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 4, 2012 in Fandom, Videogames 
One of the most impressive-looking indie games on the radar right now is StarForge. Combining the building of Minecraft with the guns of Borderlands and a heavy dose of random terrain generation, the three-man team looks to be doing a great job tackling the (seemingly) huge job. They’ve started an Indiegogo campaign to help them finish the game, and already have gotten a solid amount of money for the project. I love this era of indie creativity and uniqueness. Although there’s always going to be a few bad apples, the outstanding games more than make up for it. I hope StarForge fulfills their goals! Watch the trailer below. Read more…
Tags: Indie Games, StarForge
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 3, 2012 in Cinema, Videogames 
It’s been quite a while since we heard anything about the Castle Wolfenstein movie. Last news was, Roger Avary, who worked on Silent Hill and Pulp Fiction’s scripts, had been working on a script. Now it seems that Panorama Media and the producer, Samuel Hadida, have gotten sick of waiting and threw their hands up in the air. “You know, Avary, why don’t you just direct it?” He’s directed plenty in the past, so I can see why they’d go this way. However, will a Castle Wolfenstein movie really be a hit with audiences at this point in time? I kind of feel like its relevance has gone way down. Maybe they’re just interested in doing a pulpy, violent action film with no rules or guidelines? Read more…
Tags: Castle Wolfenstein
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 1, 2012 in Videogames 
Halloween may have been yesterday, but that doesn’t diminish how scary this trailer is. I couldn’t play Amnesia: The Dark Descent, only watch my roommate play it. And while we only made it halfway, I can still visualize many memorable moments of horror, or even just the common moments of wandering around a very dark castle as the character’s sanity slipped away. Frictional Games and thechineseroom’s follow-up, Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, looks to be just as haunting as its predecessor, and possibly more aggressive. Read more…
Tags: Horror
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 1, 2012 in Videogames 
Of the PS2’s three mascot platformers – Jak & Daxter, Ratchet & Clank, and Sly Cooper — I least expected Sly Cooper to get brought back. Not many people seemed to talk about the series, though what I did hear was uniformly positive. But lo and behold, the PS3 is getting a fourth installment in the series, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, from Sanzaru Games, the studio that did the HD conversion for The Sly Collection. And of course, while traveling through time, it’s not a bad idea to change your outfits to match the locale. Read more…
Tags: PS3, Sly Cooper
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 31, 2012 in Videogames 
We knew it was coming, but now we’ve got a clearer idea of when: Grand Theft Auto V is coming as soon as Spring 2013. Rockstar North announced on their blog that the highly anticipated game would release for PS3 and Xbox 360. The company made no mention of a PC version, but PC versions of previous games in the series have typically released after the console versions. Read more…
Tags: Grand Theft Auto, PS3, Rockstar, Xbox 360
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