I’ve been a DDR player for around 8 or 9 years now. I’m not one of those professional plays-on-two-arcade-machines-at-once kind of gals, but I’m certainly decent. If you’ve read my E3 hands-and-feet-on preview of the Wii version of the upcoming DDR game – you know my dilemma with how the series has changed over time. It’s gone from a tracklist of Eurobeat, hardcore, and Japanese-inspired songs to Britney Spears and Sean Paul songs slowly but surely. That’s when I left the scene… And waited ever so patiently for a return of the music that devoted DanceDanceRevolution players have been waiting for on current-gen consoles and arcades. We’re tired of tap dancing around on the PS2 if we want good music! Luckily I had a chance to try out the upcoming PS3 version of DDR at a Konami preview event in NYC this week which also utilizes the PlayStation Move hardware.

Sneak Preview: The music is back!

(more…)

Today Konami released a new set of screen shots along with a full 7 minute video of actual gameplay from  Pro Evolution Soccer 2011. The video shows some gameplay from Germany vs. Netherlands and Argentina vs. Portugal. It also showcases the much improved graphics, the very cool celebrations, the excellent presentation and the new control scheme. I think this will get fans very excited for the next PES, check it out!

(more…)

Last week, the demo for Crackdown 2 landed on the Xbox Live Marketplace, and not having had a chance to jump into the game at E3, I cheerfully downloaded it.  I had recently picked up the original Crackdown for a mere twelve dollars, but had yet to play it, making this demo a fresh experience.  I played through it, then immediately put the original game in my Xbox and played through the entire thing that very weekend.  I guess you could say the Crackdown 2 demo makes a good impression.

(more…)

Ivy the Kiwi? was created by Yuji Naka former head of the Sonic Team for the original Sonic the Hedgehog game, now head of Prope. With such a massive notch like creating Sonic under his belt, he’s now gone on to create his first fully original game of his own. Ivy the Kiwi? creates a slight edge of its own genre by what feels like a platforming puzzle game where the main character, Ivy, is a flightless bird who is born into the world without her mother in sight. That’s where the question mark in the title comes in — IS Ivy a kiwi? Poor Ivy doesn’t know and is saddened to be without a mother so she goes on to find her.

(more…)

When Natsume announced that the original developer Neverland would be remaking Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals for the DS, it immediately sparked feelings of nostalgia and warmth in me.  The two Super Nintendo Lufia games had given me hours of pre-teen enjoyment, and I never forgot the tender love story that each game attempted to convey.  It was games like Lufia, and obviously Lufia itself, that attached me so firmly to the JRPG genre of games.

(more…)

When Final Fantasy XIV was first announced, I met the news with trepidation and curiosity.  I really liked Final Fantasy XI, but couldn’t stick out the massive grind that the first year or so of the game required.  I quit and looked back with regret later upon hearing that they’d actually improved things quite a bit over the years.  I am a fan of the series to the bitter end.  There has not been a game I didn’t love, despite the criticisms levied against the majority of them lately.  It was with all this in mind that I sat down at a computer at Square Enix’s massive E3 booth for some hands on time with Final Fantasy XIV.  My opinion has changed, but not drastically because I’m still hesitant to endorse the direction it’s headed.  However, I also find myself wanting to play more, and have a hunch that this might be the game that brings me back into the MMORPG fold.

(more…)

At the 1C Company’s recent annual press event, Another Night in Moscow, they showed off the latest in espionage action with the latest build of Death to Spies 3 on the Xbox 360. Set in the the incredibly tense Cold War period, you will be taking the reigns of Captain Strogov from the Soviet Russian counter-intelligence team SMERSH, which literally stands for “Death to Spies” in Russian. As an undercover spy, you will be infiltrating various areas in North America, Cuba and Europe. For being in such an early stage of development still, this stealth action title looked incredibly impressive. In this demo we played, we visited a 1962 New York police department.

(more…)

The Spawn Kill crew recently got a hold of several Lost Planet 2 multiplayer demo codes, and though we gave many of the codes away, Snarkasaur, TheHerp, and K-Tuck couldn’t help but check it out for themselves. The multiplayer itself was met with some mixed results both in terms of gameplay and game mechanics, so the crew took it upon themselves to run through the previously released co-op demo and compare the results between the two.

(more…)

I’ll going to be straight with you, reader, as I generally am.  I have never watched the show Prison Break.  I thought the premise interesting, but missed the first season, and then when there happened to be a subsequent season I couldn’t help but think, “they broke out, they either need to change the name or quit.”  So it was with some skepticism, but still an open mind that I sat down in a dimly lit but comfortable room and watched Tigresa of Spawn Kill play some Prison Break on the Xbox 360.  I managed to gather quite a few conclusions about what has the potential to be an interesting… prison break.

(more…)

A couple of weeks ago we got a chance to check out an updated version of Black Rock Studio’s racing game Split/Second. The demo that was playable at this year’s PAX East showed off a new level never seen before, Downtown Central. The track looks like a melding of cities all over the U.S. We already know from previous demos that Split/Second looks great, but now that it’s getting close to release there were still some questions about multiplayer and stability issues that needed to be answered. Unfortunately they have yet to allow the general public get hands-on time with the multiplayer and there are still some areas that need to be ironed out. That being said, the game is still a lot of fun and judging by the reactions of the many people who played the game at PAX, Split/Second could do very well in May.

(more…)

If there’s anything I love to see combined, it’s flashy animation and gratuitous violence. Happy Tree Friends makes me giggle like a schoolgirl. There’s nothing quite like the juxtaposition of kid-friendly caricatures rife with color and oozing style, wacky personalities, and copious amounts of blood. Entrails do an animated character good. The upcoming 2D side-scrolling Xbox Live Arcade/PSN/PC title Shank, brought to us by the good fellows at Klei Entertainment, delivers all of this and more in full force. If Quentin Tarantino, Penny Arcade, and slasher film junkies had a meeting of the minds, they’d likely submit this game for our gaming pleasure. Forget the delicate worlds of Braid or P.B. Winterbottom. Shank is hardcore. And if you don’t believe it, he’s got a Head-On chainsaw — to be applied directly to your forehead.

(more…)

In the wake of Grand Theft Auto and the inherently similar titles we all like to compare to Rockstar’s powerhouse, we tend to forget that many of those titles that are cut from the same cloth are veritable great choices to turn to if you’re not feeling the Tommy Vercetti or Niko Bellic vibe. It’s the God of War phenomena. Sure, Dante’s Inferno was largely inferior, but it could stand on its own as a decent alternative. I’d liken Mafia, released on the PC back in 2002 via Gathering of Developers, to the Bayonetta position in the great God of War/Devil May Cry-styled game wars.  While it shares the same elements that its “parent” games possess, it makes a name for itself through its finesse and campaign that’s an absolute blast to play.

(more…)

With only one more day to go, the follow up to last year’s best baseball title, MLB 10 The Show looks to once again provide gamers with the most realistic baseball game in the market. For those who haven’t been closely following the upcoming title or if you just missed something, we created a one stop shop for everything you need to know about The Show. What you’ll find in this preview are some highlights of key features and additions to MLB 10 The Show and all the videos released, and yes that includes the “Dear Playstation” commercial that we all love.

If you haven’t seen it already or even if you have, the commercial for MLB 10 The Show is hilarious. Check it out.

The realism that Kevin Butler is talking about in The Show comes from all the little subtleties in the game.  Last year I was blown away by how accurately they were able to capture certain player’s rituals or mannerisms at the plate or on the mound.  This year’s version will include all of that and will also bring a more realistic environment. MLB 10 will have real-time players in the dugouts and bullpens, fireworks, rally towels/tundersticks, working clocks and home run counters like the one seen in San Francisco. Of course you can’t bring a game to life without fans and this year crowd detail has also been improved. They will be much more active this year, reaching over the wall for foul balls, scrambling for home run balls and making more noise in pressure situations. This might seem like very small additions but brought together it helps bring the real game to into the virtual one.  Here’s the trailer showing off some of these features.

Road to The Show (RTTS) is one of the best modes of the MLB The Show franchise. It has been the leading sports title in creating a realistic and engaging “create a player” mode. This year in RTTS you’ll have much more control over what your player looks like and his accessories. Once you create your player you’ll be sent right to the Double-A season. While last year’s version had you start in spring training, starting in Double-A will give you a more realistic approach to working your way to the majors as most players don’t receive an invite to spring training until after their first year. Before you get into a game you now have the option to participate in pre-game batting practice or when you get called from the bullpen you’ll get some time to throw practice pitches. Just like batting practice and your time warming up on the mound, it doesn’t help you gain experience, but it will help you get ready for the game or at-bat. Once you are in a game you have full control of what you want to experience. You can play out every pitch/play in the game, only the last pitch in the at-bat, or just plays that involve you. Whether you are on the field or in the batters box there is a bigger emphasize on fundamental baseball. Throwing to the wrong bag, stealing when you shouldn’t be or failing to cover a base will put you in a bad spot with the manager. Lastly a huge emphasis went into gaining skill points and the flow of the game. New training modes have been added for both hitters and pitchers, and goals throughout the game will be shown in way as to not break from the pace of the game. You can also hit the D-pad to show the goals of the game in case you missed it, which is really nice.

To go along with RTTS you now have the full control as the catcher in the new Catcher Calling the Game mode. You’ll be calling for pitches and locations which includes 9 zones inside the strike zone or 8 zones outside. Just like in real life it is your responsibility to know the batters and your pitchers strengths and weaknesses. The pitcher might shake you off so you can pick another pitch but sometimes the catcher knows best and he’ll throw that pitch if you keep asking for it. You’ll have to also watch out for wild pitches and base runners, which adds to the difficulty of being a catcher. It’s a really cool mode and I’m excited to get a chance to call a game but then again, playing every game as a catcher might take it’s toll.

Making it’s return to the series is the Home Run Derby. Fans have been asking for this to be added to the game for some time now and we finally have it. You won’t only get the Home Run Derby, you’ll be getting the entire All-Star experience. During your franchise or RTTS season you’ll get a chance to play in the All-Star Futures Game along with the Derby and the regular All-Star game. Check out this trailer that showcases the new All-Star experience.

MLB 09 The Show suffered from very poor online play, mainly due to lag. Sony has been saying they have worked very hard on fixing that issue for MLB 10 and if they can then I think fans will enjoy the improvements to the Online Leagues. In addition to added customization when creating the league, people can now drop in and out of leagues during the season. If someone can’t handle the season and needs to back out, the commissioner can find a replacement to take over that team. Fatigue is also another factor managers will have to deal with as you will no longer be able to use your ace for every game. Here are some of the key features of the new online leagues:

·    Additional Commissioner Slot (6 total leagues now)
·    NEW Auto-resolve feature. Set to On/Off when creating a league and helps keep leagues progressing
·    Ability to Drop and Replace players within an In-progress league
·    Apply a Custom Slider to a league
·    League Invitation system upgrade
·    New My Complete Leagues list, showing a summary of all completed leagues, the winner and playoff participants
·    New League Round-up and League History tabs in Gamer Card
·    More emails and communication on league changes
·    Players Needing Leagues upgrade. Commissioner can now send invites directly from that screen
·    Additional information about users for a commissioner resolving a game
·    Quit a league at any time (commissioner or league member). No more being held hostage

Finally Real Time Presentation Mode is one of the brand new features to this year’s game. The new presentation mode should give gamers a further sense of realism by attempting to capture the camera angles and shots seen while watching a game on TV. Instead of going in-depth on how this new system works here is a short video displaying the Real Time Presentation.

There is a lot of detail put into every offering of The Show and I don’t expect MLB 10 to be any different. If you want to learn more about the game you can read the full preview here. I am extremely excited about the upcoming title and I hope that all of these new features can come together to bring us the realism that we have come to know and love from this franchise.

Putting out a solid sports game every year isn’t the easiest thing to do. Companies either don’t improve enough from the successful title or they try to do too much and turn a game that was once great into a disappointment. Sony’s MLB series was struggling to break through the baseball market with 2K Sports’ and EA’s titles getting all the spotlight. It wasn’t until they decided to take a couple of years off to create The Show that they became the baseball franchise for three years running. With MLB 10 The Show, Sony hopes to yet again provide the best baseball experience to gamers by introducing some new features while improving presentation, Road to The Show, and the all-important online play.

(more…)

Oftentimes when a developer tries to make a title more “accessible,” that means serious “hardcore” gamers are left in the dust with a dumbed-down experience.  However, Atlus, in its latest blog post on the upcoming Wii game Shiren The Wanderer, Scott Strichart, project lead, assures us you will find plenty of strategy and challenge, especially when it comes to the game’s bosses.

In the blog entry,  Mr. Strichart emphasizes the importance of preparation for these battles, especially the “escape scroll” item:

“There is no shame in going into a battle, testing the waters, and running away before you find one of the game’s hundred-plus ways to die. This allows you to throw yourself back into the fight armed with knowledge, and it’s a great way to pad your levels! If I could put a “theme” on all of the blogs for this game, it would be that caution will win the day.”

For those of you die-hard Shiren fans who laugh in the face of such claims, don’t worry: if the main bosses aren’t challenging enough, there’s always the post-game.  Hardcore players only, who know the game inside and out, have acquired the best gear, and developed a perfect strategy.  Less serious fans can skip these, of course, as finishing the main game is still a significant accomplishment.

Famitsu rated the game nearly perfect (9/9/8/9), and you don’t have long before you can try this incredibly addicting game for yourself.  Shiren The Wanderer comes to Wii on February 9, 2010.   For more on the game, check out the official website: http://www.atlus.com/shiren.

[Source: Atlus]