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What are we playing this week?

After a hectic two weeks covering E3, we are finally back to the swing of things here at Capsule Computers…which means we’re back to asking our editors what they are playing! Check out the latest games we’ve thrown into our consoles, and don’t forget to tell us the games you’re playing too!

Editor-in-Chief: MasterAbbott

Konnichiwa everyone! MasterAbbott is in the land of the Rising Sun (Japan for everyone that didn’t know where that was). I’ve just spent a really relaxing week in Kyoto but also got to visit some other great places outside of Kyoto like Osaka (the home town and headquarters of CAPCOM). I also had some great food, like killer takoyaki (octopus balls) and okonomiyaki (Japanese style pizza made out of cabbage and batter and also noodles). I also checked out Nagoya and Kobe as well, and I’ve been having a blast so far. While travelling between places I’ve been playing my iPhone and also my Nintendo 3DS (Street Fighter, DOAD and Samurai Warriors). Since I’ve been here I’ve picked up approximately 50 new Japanese friends for my Mii collection which is fantastic. Streetpassing this many Mii’s back in Sydney would take me like a month to do.

I’ve now made my way to Tokyo and staying in geek central: AKIHABARA (electric town)! Its full of games, anime, maid café’s (which I know Linkage would be living in 24/7 if he was here with me), and a whole lot of other weird and wonderful things which I can’t go into detail as we have children reading!  I’ve already picked up some cool goodies to share with all of you once I get back – just make sure you check the Capsule Computers CUBE Points section soon for some new arrivals to redeem your hard earned Cube points on.

I’m very tempted to go buy myself a Nintendo 3DS (NTSC – JAPANESE) so I can play Resident Evil Mercs, Zelda Ocarina of Time, One Piece, Gundam and so many other games which we probably never end up getting in AU or even in US .

And now it’s time for my daily hotspring therapy and Japanese massage by that hot Geisha I met in Gion, Kyoto. Remember…play hard or don’t play at all!

Senior Editor: Travis Bruno

With the release of Duke Nukem Forever and Alice: Madness Returns I spent the majority of my time switching back and forth between these two. Duke Nukem Forever certainly doesn’t deserve all of the flak that it keeps getting around the internet. Sure it is quite old in appearance and also has plenty of old mechanics but that doesn’t mean that Duke isn’t the best thing you could as for as a long time Duke Nukem fan. I’ve only made it about halfway through the game but I can say that this first playthrough certainly won’t be my last.

Alice: Madness Returns on the other hand has plenty of things that are making me frustrated about it. I love the art and the way that the game treats itself, but I absolutely hate the constant platforming and jumping around that you have to do. Couple this with the fact that Alice seems to clip into the environment more often than not and you’ll find yourself disappearing into a flutter of butterflies quite often. Also the fact that American McGee’s Alice comes within the game itself, as opposed to a separate XBLA game is disappointing.

Senior Editor: Dustin Spencer

Over the past week, my Wii has finally gotten something new, that being Wii Play: Motion. Yes, it is a mini-game compilation, but I would say this may be Nintendo’s finest mash-up of mini-games to date as each really bring out the Motion Plus controls and are actually fun to play. If you have been wanting the attachment to finally feel useful, this is the game that achieves that purpose. I spent 3 hours just skipping stones with a friend earlier, so if that is any indication, there is certainly a lot more going on with this title than just a free WiiMote. A review should be up very shortly, so keep an eye out for that.

I guess the game that is making news this week is Duke Nukem Forever, and for good reason of course. Reviewers just about everywhere panned the game for just about every reason imaginable. While I don’t think the game is technically bad by any means, I will say Duke’s character is a bit different than I remember it. I remember Duke as a “macho tough guy who likes the babes”, but I feel DNF tried to throw in an over-the-top element that made Duke seem uncaring and simply offensive for no true reason. It’s one thing to be offensive and still be funny, but it is another when the punchlines change the shape of a character to be a crude ass. I did however enjoy the gameplay as it felt like a Duke Nukem title and the interactivity and attention to detail throughout the levels give the game a lot more depth. No matter what the score, I guess you can definitely say Duke made an impression that will be remembered for years to come.

I also picked up both Alice & Record of Agarest War Zero, which are both fantastic titles from what I’ve played so far and hopefully I can get a bit of time to progress further in each over the next week.

Editor: Kyle Moore

The beginning of my week has mostly been taken up by my 3DS. With the release of the new e-shop I logged on and got myself the free Pokedex and Excitebike. I wouldn’t really call the Pokedex a game even, it’s most just something to have really, but I’ve at least managed to “capture” legendary Pokemon using Augmented Reality, so that is okay. Pity you can’t really do anything with them. I was pretty impressed with the 3D on Excitebike, but other than that, it’s not so exciting. After I got sick of downloadable games, I decided to get back into my Sims 3 for the 3DS, resetting my character and forcing him to become a master of guitar! So where ever I have had spare time I’ve been getting annoyed at my Sim for always want to sleep. Lazy simulated little thing he is.

Running with the EA theme, I recently bought Mortal Kombat and Sim City for the iPhone. Needless to say, I’ve had a blast playing Mortal Kombat and reliving playing it on the SNES at my friends house across the road. While the screen is significantly smaller, I am impressed with the graphical improvement. At least, from what I remember of my Snes days. I also recall not being very good at it, which I am sad to say, has not really changed. Luckily I have benefited from the huge update that has recently come to the game and get a big list of characters who I can play, and lose as! Having tried out both the 5 and the 6 button control, I have been having a lot of fun trying to remember all the old special attacks in the game. Sim City on the other hand is nothing like I remember it once was, and is a little difficult to play on the iPhone. Either way, I still love the nostalgia I’ve gotten from both games and they still have been great fun to play.

Editor: Matt Vella

I’ve been hitting the arcades a little lately, and the other day I finally fulfilled my life-long gaming dream. I found an arcade that plays the original Killer Instinct! I’ve only ever played the SNES version, which I was obsessed with my entire childhood, so this was a dream come true for me! It’s unbelievable how rusty I was, I think I may have to go to a GameTraders soon and grab myself a Super Nintendo with a copy of the Super Nintendo Port. I’ve also given X-Men vs Street Fighter alot of love, for reasons unknown to me because I could just as easily play one of the Marvel vs Capcoms, and I’m still terrible at Daytona USA!

As for home console gaming, I’ve just started playing the PS3 exclusive White Knight Chronicles ll, and you can expect a review to hit the site late next week. It’s an interesting JRPG, it’s very inspired by MMORPG’s such as World of Warcraft, with that whole Final Fantasy Xll feel to it. Oh yeah, and I can’t stop daydreaming about the Wii U. I can’t wait to see what it can do, and play titles like Zelda on it!

Editor: Jack Joly

I’ve been playing a few different games this week. Firstly, there’s Williams Pinball Classics which I was testing out for my review of the game. It’s a fantastic pinball simulation and feels like one of the few games I’ve actually enjoyed playing for a quite a while.

I’ve also dusted off the Kinect for some games on that. It always seems like a huge effort to do Kinect as I have to create space to play it, and this has been even more evident playing this week; some of the games that involve stepping on panels were particularly frustrating as a lot of the time, some of the panels were in fact under the sofa. I played Kinect Adventures which seems to be getting worse every time I play it and nowadays the only game I enjoy playing on it is RallyBall.

I briefly played Carnival Games in Action which is mediocre, with only a few fun mini-games, and Your Shape: Fitness Evolved to try to get fit again which was great and so far has given a good workout. I preferred playing the Cardio Boxing classes above anything else, and I usually had enough space playing alone, with the exception of kicking the odd piece of furniture here and there.

Editor: Jared Hilliers

I finished some old games and sort of started catching up to new releases, including LA Noire and playing through Assassins Creed: Brotherhood again, I thought why not? LA Noire is proving to be more frustrating than I thought it would be and it’s only a matter of time before a controller earns teeth marks. It’s not that I don’t enjoy it, it’s just the interview process is sometimes flawed because of the baiting (ha!) that’s required to catch people out, but it’s a joy to watch! The dead naked lady thing is getting old too, how this game made is through the Aussie classification board baffles me, they don’t leave much to the imagination. Fewer bushes, more boobs please…. maybe in the sequel.

I also got a PS2 emulator in my apartment now, we call it that because its basically a PS2 sitting next to the PS3, which should play the freakin’ games itself man! I’m going to play through FFX again because it’s my fav, but then again I haven’t finished 12, which I also have within reach. I own no PS2 games, but my roomate has a bucket load of them for he’s emulator, it is threatening to take away alot of time. The idea of re-living the naughties isn’t a bad idea; I was off my head for much of that decade anyway!

Finally… I have Sniper Elite, I spent most of the weekend playing it as I’m reviewing the thing, this game makes me look like a psycho. It’s like Time Crisis, but with a giant Sniper peripheral, now imagine someone walking into the room as I’m firing it. Yep, it’s sort of strange, especially since the plastic rifle actually looks legit. Nintendo and their crazy motion controls, just some casual sniping on a Sunday kids!

Editor: Michael Irving

This week I’ve gotten into the infamous Duke Nukem Forever, and was actually surprised at how vocal everyone seems to have gotten over it. I wasn’t really following the whole debacle, and had no real emotional investment in the franchise, so maybe that explains why I wasn’t too disappointed when it turned out to be a sub-par game. I mean, it isn’t terrible, but it does seem unfinished – still.  The humour may not be as sharp as the PR train would have you believe, the graphics are somewhat dated, and the shooting and movement mechanics feel a little unresponsive, but I am enjoying it, despite its flaws.

I’ve also ploughed through a fair chunk of Resident Evil 2 this week. A while back I played through the Gamecube remake of the first game, and once I finished that I started the second. I don’t like to be “That Guy”, but while the first game’s remake had updated graphics, the second was a direct port of the original Playstation version, and I couldn’t handle the pointiness, and didn’t get far. This time, I sucked it up, and am really enjoying it now. I much prefer the style of the first few games; the slower pace, the puzzle aspects, and the focus on survival rather than action. A single zombie in a hallway is enough to freak you out, whereas in RE4 and 5 they throw heaps at you at once to make it more actiony. I’m looking forward to the new Resident Evil on the 3DS, which apparently brings the series back to the survival horror roots.

Editor: Luke Halliday

I was playing an iPhone game called Top Girl. I think I am either a ghost or god right now guys. Either way, my eyes have been opened and made to cry ominous blood. My ear’s didn’t fair too well either as a matter of fact. Anyone have the Hospital’s fax number? Terrible game overdose… Someone call me a carpenter, I’m flat-lining!

 

Kelly Teng
Kelly Tenghttp://about.me/kellyteng
All kinds of awesome :) That's all you need to know.