Who doesn’t or hasn’t at one time loved The Simpsons? Now you can add them to your world all over again as Microsoft and Mojang have released a brand new skin pack featuring Springfield’s finest for Minecraft.
While you will have to utilize your own creativity to recreate that famous setting, players can now don a good chunk of the cast for the low price of $2.99 for the Xbox One and Xbox 360 versions of the game. Sure, its a bit gimmicky, but I am all for support and with a title like Minecraft, more skins are more than welcome. Check out the trailer below to get a better look at the latest skin pack. Keep in mind as well that the “Story Mode” game is also coming soon.
If you happened to be a big fan of the first Xblaze game, the visual novel spin-off of Blazblue, then you’ll be happy to hear that Aksys Games is planning on bringing the sequel, XBlaze Code: Embryo to North America sometime this summer. When the title is released it will be available for both the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita just like XBlaze Lost: Memories was.
The title will expand upon the events that occurred throughout the first game while also introducing new characters and adding extra elements to the story all while offering branching storylines and multiple endings with unexpected twists and turns to give players “hours of compelling gameplay.”
If the various developments about Fable Legends were concerning to longtime fans of the series, then the most recently revealed news from Microsoft and Lionhead Games may have been the last straw. The companies recently announced that Fable Legends will be a free-to-play game when it is released later this year on the Xbox One and PC.
The base game will offer four different heroes to play for free and every two weeks these heroes will be swapped out and replaced with new ones. You can unlock characters permanently by either spending in-game currency or using real money. Players will also be able to purchase chests using either form of currency which will provide the player with random items including weapons, augments, armor, and more.
With Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory II set to be released in Japan on April 23rd for the PlayStation 4, Compile Heart has chosen to release the opening video for the game. You can check out the video below where not only are we given another look at the older version of Neptune as well as some of the mascot characters in the title but also a look at the recently revealed Next transformations for Purple Heart, Green Heart, White Heart, and Black Heart.
Also shown is Uzume, a new CPU Goddess, that is capable of transformation where, unlike the other Goddesses, will see her act as a younger lighthearted version of herself.
Earlier this week Seven Seas Entertainment was teasing an announcement concerning some new licenses and a few days ago they delivered. The company has announced that they have acquired the license for Kashiwa Miyako’s The Testament of Sister New Devil, also known as Shinmai Maō no Testament, as well as Eiji Masuda’s Jitsu wa Watashi Wa manga.
It is worth noting that the localized name for the latter manga is a bit strange as it is now My Monster Secret. The first volume for The Testament of Sister New Devil is set for release in February 2016 while the first volume of My Monster Secret will be released in January 2016. Of these licenses, the first series currently has an anime adaptation airing while the latter currently has an anime adaptation planned.
For those who don’t know, Jitsu wa Watashi Wa is a romantic comedy manga following a boy named Asahi Kuromine who is terrible with keeping secrets though he has always managed to keep his crush on the mysterious girl Youko Shiragami hidden. Then one day he manages to find out that she is in fact a vampire, and a rather strange one at that. Now that he knows her secret, he plans on keeping it as best he can while using this new found closeness to spend time with her despite the numerous other strange oddities that appear around the school.
The other day Mortal Kombat X had quite a “brutal” reveal, and now we have some meat to go along with it (not that Meat). Today, Netherrealm have dropped a trailer, detailing the story for Mortal Kombat X, and it seems to be quite involved. While the previous installment was more of a reintroduction of sorts to the tale, this version looks to carry much more weight with Raiden leading a pack of new combatants yet again.
I won’t spoil it, but quite a few veteran fighters can be found within the clip, as well the new faces such as Cassie Cage. Check out the clip below while trying to ignore the fact that Goro is a pre-order bonus (c’mon Netherrealm, he is a mainstay), and get ready for MKX to drop next month.
Earlier this year Bandai Namco shocked the Western gaming scene when they announced that they would be localizing J-Stars Victory Vs.+ for release in North America and Europe for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation Vita. While no release date has been announced as of yet, English gameplay footage of the PlayStation 4 version has recently made its way online and can be found below.
For those who haven’t been following the game, J-Stars Victory Vs.+ is a crossover fighting game featuring characters from numerous popular Jump series including well known characters such as Goku from Dragon Ball Z, and lesser known ones such as Medaka from Medaka Box.
A pair of new trailers for Persona 4: Dancing All Nighthave been released by Atlus and they happen to focus on the Protagonist of the game, generally known as Yu Narukami, and Rise Kujikawa. It is worth noting that these trailers are the Japanese release for the game which means that the Japanese voice actors are voicing the same characters as before, though hearing Rie Kugimiya as Rise takes some getting used to.
Following the incident in Yasoinaba, Rise has returned to her idol work and Yu happens to meet up with her in the city where she asks him for help before calling in the rest of the Investigation Team to help solve the problem.
After finishing up their terrifying adventure in the horror genre, Creative Assembly is returning to their strategic mainstay, the Total War franchise. The franchise is venturing into the often forgotten era between the collapse of the Roman Empire and the Middle Ages in Total War: Attila. Gamers will take control of one of the many factions battling for power and lead their armies into battle while managing the political intrigue at home.
Story
After several centuries of Roman power, the Roman Empire has split into two and the Huns are invading from the east. The power vacuum created by the split has left many factions fighting over the remaining pieces. The grand campaign will let players choose one of ten factions and lead them to glory. Beyond the initial cinematic setting the historical stage, the real plot will be the one the player creates from success and failure.
Gameplay
Total War: Attila plays much like previous titles at its core. The campaign mode gameplay is a turn based strategy where players will build their armies and their kingdoms. Players will start out with a small empire and a ruling family. From there, they will begin to build their cities, research technology, make friends, and start killing off enemies.
Whether through more peaceful means or through military conquest, players will need to complete a series of objectives to claim victory. There are three levels of victory, minor, cultural/military victory, and major victory. Each have their own set of requirements, such as surviving to a certain date, controlling a certain number of territories, and so on.
Conflict can be sorted out by leading the men into a real time strategic battle or allowing the computer to come to a decision for the player. Unless the battle is completely pitched in the players favour, it is almost always the better choice to let the player command their troops in battle. Unlike more traditional RTS titles like Starcraft and Command & Conquer, the focus in Total War: Attila is troop movement and positioning. Players will face off in a battle against the enemy with their army numbers already established. With a maximum of 20 units to begin and another 20 for reinforcements that will march into battle after a short delay, a successful commander must be able to position their troops for the greatest tactical advantage and strike at enemy weaknesses with the correct unit. Creative Assembly builds on the simple premise with unit morale, exhaustion, ammunition types, and formations, creating a surprisingly complex battle without need for resource management or special abilities.
Creative Assembly has made a valiant effort in making Total War: Attila as newbie friendly as possible. The prologue campaign serves as an extended tutorial and the advisor provides a stream of helpful gameplay advice. With the difficulty cranked down to the easiest level, the game is still pretty daunting to those new to the genre. Part of the challenge comes from the sheer scope of the game. Managing internal politics, external diplomacy, cities, and the armies is a lot to digest at once. Although the prologue campaign tries to ease new players into the game, there is still a lot for a new player to learn in such a short period of time.
There is a ton of content in Total War: Attila, making its $44.99 USD asking price quite reasonable. The grand campaign has a starting scenario for each of the ten factions that range in difficulty. Campaigns can be played solo or with others. For those who would prefer to skip the turn-based kingdom management and get straight to the fighting, a variety of battles are available in single and multiplayer. Notably, players can participate in some of the most famous battles in the era in Historical Battle mode.
The controls in Total War: Attila are solid. As most with most RTS titles, the game has hotkeys up to the nth degree and those migrating from other genres will be at home with the WASD camera controls. The combat UI is well designed, lining the bottom of the screen with unit commands and keeping a full list of units and their statuses prominently displayed at the bottom of the screen. Troop position uses a drag and drop system that is so easy that it only takes an extra drag to have the unit facing in the exact direction and formation you may desire. The campaign map’s UI is a little more complicated and convoluted. A lot of important screens have been banished to unlabeled buttons at the bottom of the screen, making it a bit more challenging to master.
Visuals
Total War: Attila is an excellent looking game. The landscape is detailed and lush. Once fights begin breaking out, the ordered units begin engaging in chaotic skirmishes that is quite a sight to see. It is very easy to forget how good the battles look in the game when players tend to be obsessed with the larger picture, but remember to zoom in once in a while and enjoy Creative Assembly’s attention to detail.
On the hardware side, Total War: Attila can be demanding. I noticed that particularly nasty sieges can cause frame rates to drop substantially. Good news for those with weaker computers though, the game has quite a few options that can be dialed down to support aging systems.
Audio
The soundtrack is a finely composed piece of work. It strikes the right notes of epic and exotic, which fits in perfectly with the game’s Dark Ages theme. It is an absolute shame that the soundtrack is not available on its own, while soundtracks for previous titles like Shogun II: Total War are widely available. The sound effects have also been treated to an equally solid performance. Small touches like hearing the noises of nature when the camera is zoomed in is a nice touch.
In stark comparison to the soundtrack, I found the voice acting to be extremely weak. The voice actor behind the advisor does a good job of his lines, but the remaining tends to range between just acceptable to downright cringe worthy. Part of the problem is that the lines written for these actors are a bit lame to start off with, but poor base material is little excuse for how utterly poor some of the acting is.
Overall
Total War: Attila is a solid title for anyone into RTS games. It is a decent choice for people new to the genre who are willing to muscle through a serious learning curve for a big payoff in the end; however, those looking for an easier entry into the genre should pick another game. Total War: Attila combines solid gameplay, great visuals, and a stellar soundtrack into one polished RTS.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
We are getting close to Wrestlemania. The Grandaddy of them all, the Super Bowl of Sports Entertainment. WWE builds the first three months of every year towards one day that defines the rest of the calender. This is where careers are defined, memories are made, and legends are born.
If it were only that easy. Not every WrestleMania is laced in gold, and not every match has been a showstopping experience over the years. That is why we are here today, folks. While we will eventually get to the best of the best for this yearly show, its time to reflect of the worst moments in the history of WrestleMania. Doing just that, you can not even reflect upon a bad moment without recalling sad circumstances where one Superstar became guilty for overshadowing another, taking away that moment of success for another. It can happen on a personal level or a larger scale, and this list covers the worst limelight thieves ever to strap on boots.
So, let’s begin, shall we?
5.WrestleMania 9: Yokozuna vs Bret Hart – The Hogan Show
So this match didn’t start off that bad, to be honest. After a bit of build-up, Bret Hart and Yokozuna went one on one for the WWF Championship. This was the main event of a very forgettable WrestleMania, and it could have been serviceable as such if the original thought processes behind the pairing actually stuck. Bret Hart had very good chemistry during this match with the big man, and the whole gimmickry surrounding the fact that Bret was a technical wrestler and had to change his entire style in order to win made him an instant underdog. I know some hate these bouts, but I have always been a huge fan of the concept alone. This was not David vs Goliath, it was Einstein vs Goliath, as one man had to use his brain in order to come up with a strategy to defeat a large foe, and the crowd was mostly into it.
The crowd however did not have the “privilege” of listening to a special guest commentator Randy Savage. Sure, this was sort of awesome, but Savage was not good at calling this match and spent most of it hypothesizing about if he could take on Yokozuna. The number one rule of ringside commentary is not to up-sell yourself over the in-ring competition, and while Savage was fine, he did not do Bret or Yoko any favors with his words. After around eight minutes of back and forth, Mr. Fuji blinds Bret, allowing Yoko to get the pin. Sure, short matches suck, but we were not even ready for what would come next.
Hulk Hogan came from out of nowhere, intruded upon Yokozuna’s moment, and then managed to get his own match and win the WWF Championship in less that thirty seconds. What just happened? It was terrible, it was disgusting, but the crowd was happy. Back then, smarks were not a thing and people were just happy to see their favorite wrestlers live. It was all about the experience, and this match is really where a turning point would take place and fans would simply decide with their voices on who to support. Bret Hart went on to be one of the most beloved entertainers in history, Yokozuna fully recovered- winning the title again later that year, and Hogan kept being Hogan in every promotion he would visit. I wouldn’t call it the birth of the smark, but it was a breaking point – where change was needed and fans could finally see how backstage politics worked. It wasn’t about who they wanted to win or making a star, but instead another way to give Hogan a title he did not need at the biggest event of the year. In retrospect, the fans hate this match, but back then – it just another reason to feed into Hulkamania, brother.
4. WrestleMania 27: Jerry Lawler vs Michael Cole – For Far too Long
There isn’t a lot to say about this terrible match. I would not even have it on this list under normal circumstances, as lets face it, it kind of can be interesting to see the commentators duke it out, especially someone as seasoned and sharp as Jerry Lawler. Sadly, nearly 27 agonizing minutes of promos, match (if you want to call it that) and Stone Cold shenanigans took away from what could have been another person’s spot. Sure, Cole has earned a piece of the pie over the years, but it was like the writers just wanted to keep adding more and more to this match – and it didn’t even conclude the feud as it ended in a disqualification. A voice – or the “Anonymous General Manager”, called a DQ, to which Stone Cold accepted. Fans should be grateful that since this match, there has not been a lot of commentary feuds, and Cole and Lawler have since made good with each other.
3. WrestleMania 12: Ultimate Warrior vs Triple H – Warrior Rises
You ever wonder who create the monster that buries talent that is Triple H? Well, that would be none other than The Ultimate Warrior. Warrior was primed for a huge return to Wrestlemania, fighting Hunter Hearst Helmsley in what was one of the most disappointing efforts of all time. Triple H delivered a pedigree right off the bat, but without even missing a beat, Warrior rose up, hit his signature moves, and got the lightning fast win over the cerebral assassin. At least Sable was there, I suppose?
Like Bret Hart, this did not hurt Triple H whatsoever as c’mon, the man is the COO and married to Vince’s daughter. It is however an embarrassing match to watch and if you are one of those wrestling fans who like to show your non-interested friends good matches to get them hooked – the absolute last piece of footage that should ever be shown. Warrior passed away in 2014 and while this match is still terrible, it does kind of add to that stubborn charm that he embodied in his larger than life personality.
2. WrestleMania 19: Booker T vs Triple H – HIT THE MUTE BUTTON!
A lot of you may remember this as a decent bout with a huge build-up. Booker T finally brought the Houston Hangover out of his arsenal, and we got to see a very technical Triple H. If you have fond memories, un-mute the television and then watch this match. Leading up to Wrestlemania 19, Triple H hounded Booker about his criminal past. It was a sterotypical storyline that was nearly as bad as the Katie Vick scenario, but it worked to hold the feud together between the two until Wrestlemania 19 took place.
Before the bell even rung however, Jim Ross and Lawler started bickering and taking sides and it was on. For the entire first half of the match, fans at home had to hear these two yell at each other over who was right and who was wrong and constantly relive Booker T’s merits over and over. Its over-acting at its finest and completely soiled the match for many listening in, expecting to hear such a great team call a match. Normally, Ross and Lawler hit it out of the park, but I remember this match very clearly and while it was nice to have backstory, it was not a good thing to hear Jim Ross nearly lose his breath from yelling at King over and over. This bitter back and forth subsided and both men calmed down (though JR was the main one who was agitated), but over the years this one match that sticks with me for all of the wrong reasons. This match is wonderful, but due to poor commentary, it comes in at this spot as both men lost the limelight entirely that night.
1. WrestleMania 25: Divas Battle Royal – Kid Crock
I understand the premise of a musical guest for a wrestling event. These events are a big deal, and having a decent act to lead into a match can honestly do a lot to make the show feel that much more special. Kid Rock however was terrible. Performing a mini-concert of outdated songs, this musician definitely got his Mania moment by destroying a match that would not have been good, but ended up taking terribly.
You see, this wasn’t just any Divas Battle Royal, it was a homecoming for Divas who paved the way for the division. Current talent was joined by older faces, eager for one last moment to shine in the business. Entrances are the way to do this, as we get to know who is in the match and soak in a bit of nostalgia at the same time. Much like the gimmick battle at Wrestlemania 17, this match featured a lot of divas, including Sunny, Molly Holly, Victoria, and…well….Joy Giovanni? Instead of having entrances, we just saw all of the divas head to the ring and hop in during this Kid Rock concert, leaving fans scratching their heads as to what was happening. No one on commentary knew who was in the ring outside of one or two divas being eliminated, and the ring work was atrocious due to the large amount of chaos happening all at once. I like the Divas, and Santina winning was odd, but still humorous in its own way, but this match was disrespectful, poorly executed, and a stain on a division that has never really recovered from the joke WWE played on the Divas during what was supposed to be a fun way to pay tribute.
So there you have it. All of these moments are our personal worst, but don’t worry – the best is yet to come. I can say that I had a ton of honorable mentions, but I find Giant Gonzalez and Undertaker to be just a hair better that our contenders here, and who doesn’t love some fun filler? WrestleMania 31 is right around the corner, and let us hope that every moment is golden for the year of 2015.
Earlier this week 
