Have you ever noticed while playing a horror game, that your character has the amazing ability to never freak out. While we’re hugging our blankies, he’s like ‘Sure, lets follow the creepy sound of children’s laughter. Oh, check that out, it’s a giant terrifying flesh beast from hell’.
A new video game, Darkest Dungeon by Red Hook Studios, is breaking the mould of endless violence and destruction with the Vancouver developers focusing on the heroes’ mental health and emotional well-being instead.
“A lot of games celebrate the heroic ideal and these aspirational qualities of being immutable and untouchable … But I feel like we pushed that envelope pretty far, and maybe there’s some interesting game play to be found on the other end of the spectrum.” -Chris Bourassa, Red Hook Studios co-founder and creative director of Darkest Dungeon.
In most video games, characters can be hurt or killed, but they rarely have any psychological damage as a result of all the death and destruction that surrounds them. We have seen past game touch this idea, such as in Amnesia: The Dark Decent. However, the ‘fear factor’ didn’t really affect the gameplay; this is the first time that we see it used as an integral part of the gaming experience.
Though it has some interesting art styles, Darkest Dungeon has a classic setup; a band of heroes questing through dungeons and fighting villains. However, the things they see and do affect them psychologically — sometimes with unpredictable results. The personality traits of the characters are permanently changed by their experience; it’s much like having active character development.
Characters can become paranoid, masochistic, and irrational and act differently as a result, forcing you to factor that into your game choices. You can relieve the stress for your character by going to church, a tavern, or by gambling and drinking.
The game has got a very positive response so far and is available on PC, OSX, Linux, PlayStation 4 and PS Vita.
Visual learner? No problem! check out the video review at the bottom of the page.
As a reformed heathen former console gamer, one of the biggest console experiences I miss while PC gaming is the rumble feedback. Sure, I could use a controller for all my games, but as any PC gamer will tell you, a mouse and keyboard is way more precise than a controller thumb stick. As a dedicated headphone user, finding great sound and bass strong enough to rattle your skull in one set of headphones is like trying to find the perfect lover, nearly impossible. So enter the Buttkicker Gamer 2, a tactile transducer system designed for the common office chair that might just solve both these problems.
Tactile transducers or bass shakers have been around for quite some time. These nifty little gadgets take a sound signal and turn them into a vibration. These devices have been used by drummers during performances to help “hear” their performance, by the military for vehicle simulators, and by some amusement park theatre shows. Although it is perfectly possible for someone to put together a tactile transducer system themselves, not everyone may have the know-how to do so. This is where the Buttkicker Gamer 2 comes in.
The Buttkicker Gamer 2 is a tactile transducer, amplifier, and cable system that is designed to be installed on an office chair by anyone and everyone. The package itself is hefty 12 pounds due to the weight of the tactile transducer unit and the amplifier. The kit comes with the Buttkicker Gamer 2 tactile transducer, a 90 watt amplifier, and a slew of cables to connect everything together.
The transducer is a metal device about a foot in length that securely clamps onto the vertical pole that connects the office chair to the wheel base. The device can also be fitted on a Playseat chairs with either a kit from Guitammer or some DIY modifications. A short cable leads from the tactile transducer and plugs into a longer cable that connects to the amplifier. The short cable allows users to disconnect and move the chair around without having to remove the entire unit from the chair. The amplifier accepts any old analog audio signal through an RCA cable. The kit comes several audio cables that can connect with any 3.5mm or RCA source. Installing the Buttkicker Gamer 2 took less than five minutes and most of that time was spent trying to run the cables around my desk in a neat manner.
The generalized inputs makes the Buttkicker Gamer 2 compatible with almost all consoles and computers with a little bit of tweaking. The only thing the Buttkicker will not work with is a set of USB headphones. I did figure out a bit of a work around for Windows. Some sound cards have a “What U Hear” (Creative sound cards) or a “Stereo Mix” input in the Recording tab in Window’s sound options. Set Window’s default output to the sound card or the motherboard’s on-board sound under “Playback”. Then go into the “Recording” tab, right click “What U Hear” or “Stereo Mix,” and get into the device properties. Here, under the “Listen” tab, check off “Listen to this Device,” set the playback to the USB headset and hit ok. With the Buttkicker Gamer 2 plugged into the motherboard/sound card, the USB headset should be getting the same output as the Buttkicker Gamer 2, allowing both devices to be used at the same time. I found this trick worked under Windows 8.1 and it should work older versions of Windows.
Ideally, the Buttkicker Gamer 2 should be connected to the subwoofer out of your sound set up, but the system will happily accept signals from your headphone jack. Not using a subwoofer out jack may cause the tactile transducer to rumble during very low voices or in-game music. The amplifier comes with a few cut off features that will help cut down on rumbling at certain frequencies. The high cut off will lower the frequency that the tactile transducer will respond at, based on a dial on the amplifier. The low filter cut off drops the response in the lowest frequency by 12 dB. The manual comes with some recommended settings for music, games, and movies, but I ended up happiest with the low filter cut off disabled and the high cut off set to 40 Hz.
The amp comes with a wired remote that can turn off and on the amp and control the intensity. On the amp, the intensity controls is actually labelled volume. There are three LEDs on the amp. One represents power, while the other two represent signal and clipping. The green signal LED will light up whenever the amp receives a signal strong enough to trigger the transducer. The clip light will flash red every time the input volume is so high, it begins to clip and overdrive the tactile transducer. The occasional clipping should not cause too much issue, but if too much clipping occurs for too long, the amp may overheat from overdriving.
The amp is a pretty large unit. Thankfully, it can be positioned vertically with the included stand. This cuts down the amount of desk space the amp takes up. It is important to note that the amp needs some airspace as almost half of the amp’s body is covered in holes to allow it to cool.
In practice, the Buttkicker delivers on its promise. My first real test was Titanfall, as I figured the Buttkicker Gamer 2 would thrive with the game’s heavy footed mechas. I was right. Each footstep hit my chair with a satisfying thud and letting the XOTBR-16 chaingun rip rattled the chair. When I landed hard on my feet in Dying Light, my chair thumped from the impact of the landing. The Buttkicker Gamer 2 provides an awesome feeling immersion, that sim nuts will eat up.
The Buttkicker can get a bit noisy in operation, especially when there are loose parts on the chair. I ended up having to tie down the height adjustment handle to cut down on the noise. Open headphones should be aware that the headphones will allow some of the tactile transducer’s noise to leak in. Due the nature of vibrations, the Buttkicker may not be ideal for those on the top floor of a house or in an apartment building.
Guitammer has created a system that makes tactile transducers accessible to everyone. The device is a must have for the gaming enthusiast who is looking for a way to feel fully immersed game. The idea of a chair rumbling while a space ship makes its landing through the atmosphere may sound a little gimmicky, but the Buttkicker Gamer 2 is possibly one of the coolest experiences I have had in my years of PC gaming.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
The first volume of episodes was crazy, even by anime standards. It is not for everyone, but it is capable of being entertaining at times. Do these next five episodes feature an improvement over the previous ones?
Story
‘Hikigane,’ the fifth episode overall and the first episode in this set, introduces an organisation known as ‘Nudist Beach.’ Its members prefer not to wear clothing, as the name suggests. However, they specifically have a problem with the Goku Uniforms that Lady Satsuki has produced for her loyal minions and the Elite Four. Tsumugu Kinagase is one member of this organisation, and is bent on forcing Ryuko to strip off her Kamui, all while insisting that he is not a pervert. The two inevitably begin fighting, and during the episode, many club presidents fall victim to Ryuko’s finishing move, ‘Sen-i Soshitsu.’ Aikuro Mikisugi, Ryuko’s disturbingly perverted homeroom teacher, is also a member of Nudist Beach and is in league with Tsumugu. Discovering this, Ryuko demands information out of her teacher, so he tells Ryuko about the strangely-named organisation.
Most of the episodes in this set are spent showing Ryuko fighting the Elite Four, however episode seven, ‘A Loser I Can’t Hate,’ takes a break from Ryuko’s revenge plot and presents some unexpectedly powerful social commentary about social class and status. Although it has been mentioned before that the amount of stars a student has determines their social status, this episode takes it further and looks at what it means for someone to be successful, to move up in the ranks of social hierarchy. As Ryuko helps Mako gain more stars, the Mankanshoku family is moved into more expensive housing and can now afford much greater luxuries. They are all happy with their new lives initially, but Ryuko finds herself lonely now that the Mankanshoku family is so busy all of the time due to their newfound success. Mako continues to gain more stars, becoming consumed with power in the process. This episode demonstrates the potential that the series has to delve into real-life issues.
It is becoming more and more evident that the plot is not simply about revenge for the murder of Ryuko’s father. The issues of friendship, family, success and social class are all explored in a way that may hit home for some people, and they are explored effectively, even if something completely random and insane occurs merely seconds after something serious or emotional. Scenes featuring Ryuko talking to Senketsu, for example, provide one such example of seriousness dissolving into comedy as everyone around her thinks she is lonely and crazy for talking to her school uniform.
The comedy in this series is great way to remove any tension that a scene would have otherwise had, and it never feels like a bad decision to have comedy intermixed with all of the seriousness. Mako gets more of her random short speeches, and is frequently shown to be oblivious to the insane stuff that keeps happening to Ryuko. Her family is also great for comedy. In particular, Mataro, the son in the Mankanshoku family, has some moments in the spotlight. Even though his actions have negative real-life implications, they can be a great source of comedy.
The set concludes with the beginning of the ‘Naturals Election.’ We find out more about Satsuki’s past and how Ira Gamagoori came to be one of the Student Council’s Elite Four. In this flashback, we see just how status and power has gone to the heads of some middle school students. This demonstrates once again that this series has the potential to discuss social issues and does actually use it sometimes. The seven-day ‘elections’ pit student against student, and at the end, Ryuko must face each and every member of the Elite Four in battle.
Visuals
The visuals are great for the most part. The animation is fluid, even during the high-octane action scenes that this series is known for. Ryuko’s homeroom teacher Aikuro is shown transforming from a regular high school teacher into a creepy, ‘sexy’ member of the anti-Satsuki resistance group, yet whether that is the most bizarre thing to happen in these episodes is debatable. Although genitals and female nipples are once again left undrawn in scenes depicting characters naked, Aikuro once again has his nipples on full display for Ryuko and the viewers at home. The animators go so far as to light up his nipples just to draw attention to them. These scenes are disturbing and little else.
A significant amount of male and female nudity is present throughout these five episodes. While much of it is played for comedy, it is disappointing that Ryuko’s body is pointlessly exposed yet again. Camera angles often show her from an angle that makes her almost entirely exposed breasts the main feature of a shot, and, similarly, her behind is also often shown with varying levels of clothing covering it up. It is unfortunate that such ‘fan-service’ is present, especially in a series that seems determined to at least attempt to challenge stereotypical gender notions by portraying Ryuko as a strong and independent girl.
Audio
The audio is even better. The background music continues to be impressive and well-suited to the scenes it accompanies. The English dub also continues to impress; the talented voice cast provide excellent performances as their characters, and each and every voice actor stands out in their roles. English dubs are hit-and-miss, so this is proof that English dubs can be good if enough time, money and effort is put in and if the right voice actors are hired.
Extras
The extras in this release are limited to the textless opening and ending animation sequences. The textless version of the ending scene from episode seven is not included.
Overall
That such a crazy, high-octane series can maintain the fast-paced action and nonsense is a testament to Trigger, an animation studio formed by ex-Gainax employees. The single-disc releases of this series will undoubtedly bother some people, but Kill la Kill is worth watching if you are able to look past the blatant sexual objectification of its female characters. Japan rarely produces original anime series quite like this, so if you have not already jumped on the bandwagon, you may like to see what this show is like for yourself.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Author’s note: The initial score given for this review was inaccurate and has been updated by the author to reflect Capsule Computers’ ongoing commitment to providing reliable reviews for its readers.
Ahoy there! Time to swab the decks, unfurl the sails and get ready to set-off on an adventure because Assassin’s Creed: Rogue is finally about to lay anchor on P.C. Rogue was originally released on Xbox 360/PS3 last year and was surprisingly good.
So when will you be able to take to the seas? Well quite soon actually as Assassin’s Creed: Rogue is making its way to PC on March 10th, and Ubisoft are offering a few extra goodies to those who pre-order. Players who pre-order any edition of Assassin’s Creed Rogue for Windows PC from the Uplay Shop will receive one of seven bonus Assassin’s Creed games of their choosing. Pre-ordering the PC digital version will also grant two additional bonus packs: The Siege of Fort de Sable and The Explorer.
Assassin’s Creed: Rogue will also be implementing eye-tracking technology into the game as an additional way to immerse yourself in the game world.
Rise of Incarnatesmixes of shooting and melee gameplay in maps featuring New York City and Paris. The game has a roster of eight unique characters that have a range of special abilities that will reward skilled players. The game is developed by a team composed of developers behind major fighting games like Tekken, Soulcalibur.
Bandai Namco plans on keeping the game in Early Access for a few more months as bugs and balanced are ironed out.
Rise of Incarnates is supported with a real money shop in-game. Bandai Namco has announced that these prices are not set in stone and may change based on player feedback. Currently, characters will cost $10 to unlock permanently. Like many other battle arenas, a roster of characters are made free to play each week.
Rise of Incarnates is available for download on Steam for free and only runs on Windows systems.
The original 1974 The Gambler is considered a niche classic of Hollywood cinema for its portrayal of a character is similarly charming and repulsive. The original and current film were both influenced by the nihilistic and existential perspectives of Dostoevsky’s short story of the same name. The original movie was known for its morally ambiguous protagonist and its bitter, ambiguous ending. This movie was original slated to be directed by Martin Scorcese and to star Leonard Di Caprio but, for whatever reason, ended up with Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) at the helm and Mark Wahlberg in the lead.
Story
The film starts off with a very low-key opening as the protagonist Jim Bennett (Mark Wahlberg) goes through mourning with the final he has with his grandfather. His passing becomes a defining moment for Bennett who deals not deal well with the trauma. At sparse moments through the film we watch flashbacks by Bennett who regresses to childhood memories to deal with his grief.
Another, more destructive coping mechanism he has is his gambling addiction which puts him in a quarter of a million dollars in debt to vicious, criminal loan sharks. His life spirals out of control as he borrows more and more money, only to gamble it away on increasingly high stakes. His abrasive, nihilistic demeanour isolates him from his family and the students he lectures to a professor of Literature at a university.
There isn’t too much narrative to spoil as the whole story unfolds over seven eventful days as Bennett implodes in on himself emotionally and his life collapses around him. The meat of the film lies in the interactions which he has with the people around him as he abrasively rejects their efforts to reach beyond his nihilism.
There is honestly little to endear Wahlberg’s interpretation of the character to the audience. He is intelligent but not witty. Charismatic but abrasive to a fault. Protective of his students but indifferent to his family. He is the sum of his flaws and unfortunately, due to the very deadpan nature of Wahlberg’s performance, he is a very difficult character to get emotionally invested in. Basically: why should I care about the troubles of a man who is completely indifferent to them himself?
This effectively means that the protagonist has very little variation in his energy and mood through the film as seduction, threats of disownment and violence do not faze him. The side characters are the ones which steal for me in this piece. John Goodman and Jessica Lange are especially noteworthy with former playing one of the loan sharks that Bennett owes money and the latter playing the bereaved mother of said protagonist. Both play roles which attempt to instil a sense of gravity into the protagonist but are continually shut down. Goodman and Lange are a credit to their art for being able to maintain their energy while performing against Wahlberg’s stonewalling demeanour.
The dialogue in the film feels bloated in parts with many lines coming across as superfluous and not particularly adding to the story or characters. What the script and editing did very well, however, is to deny cinematic climaxes to the audience. The film brings out a veritable arsenal of Chekhov’s guns and then refuses to fire them. Couple that with the fact that the stakes keep getting higher (even if the protagonist doesn’t act like it) and you get a film will keeps its audience in constant suspense for a dramatic payoff. The constant build up this movie creates is a wonderful example of how to create tension, although you will probably leave the theatre drained.
The script does heavyhandedly engage with ideas of nihilism and existential angst to explain the indifferent reaction of Bennett. To a certain extent, this creates an ambiguity in the film as we question whether or not the protagonist’s sudden change in character is the result of an epiphany or simply how he is dealing with the grief of his grandfather’s death. Unfortunately, the film’s end resolves this ambiguity and I felt it would done better to leave its audience on a cliffhanger.
Visuals
The visual style and choices in direction are interesting, to say the least. Sequences which actually involve the Bennett gambling are generally very well edited with excellent pacing to create a sense of tension. The director also experiments with some surreal moments interspersed throughout the film but these are not particularly developed. I felt like those moments were drowned out by the pedestrian nature of the bulk of the film. Overall, his style is very restrained and practical which are unfortunate as the moments when he does let loose are quite a sight to behold.
Audio
This film makes excellent use of diegetic sound to fit the action and create humour in some instances. Having Pulp’s ‘Common People’ play a scene after the protagonist delivers a monologue about the pointlessness of mediocrity or having an extremely upbeat pop music play in the background as a character contemplates suicide will generally get a snicker out of me (what can I say? I’m morbid like that). It’s a shame nobody else in the audience noticed them but if you keep a lookout for them, you’ll be able to find them too.
Overall
I’m very conflicted about this film. It engages with some interesting ideas about happiness, nihilism, and existence which I did enjoy. Some of the visual sequences were engaging and interesting to watch and performances from some of the side characters are equally engaging. Unfortunately, these positive aspects are sidelined by an abrasive and boring protagonist. Don’t watch this movie if you’re a fan of Wahlberg as I don’t consider this to be one of his best or interesting performances. Cinephiles would get some enjoyment out of the film’s excellent ability to play with dramatic build up but I have trouble recommending it to anyone outside this niche. I’m not saying there’s no enjoyment to be had here, but you’re best off seeing something else if your choices are limited…
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Anyone who has played the Empires versions of Dynasty Warriors games in the past know that these releases always allow the player to have some customization available and today Koei Tecmo released a giant batch of screenshots for Dynasty Warriors 8 Empires showing off just how much players will be able to customize when the game is released on February 24th in North America.
Dynasty Warriors 8 Empires will allow players to not only create their own original creators to fight in Empire Mode but now players will be able to edit the appearance of allied soldiers, warhorses, banners, and more. Players can even edit maps and create brand new scenarios to completely rewrite history if they see fit.
Atlus capped off their ridiculously long live stream event and live concert at Nippon Budokan today by showing off the first real trailer for Persona 5. The trailer can be found below and boy there is a lot to see here. Not only are we given a look at the protagonist of the game walking around a real looking world, traveling on a train, attending class, and spending time in the mall with his friends, we also see three new playable characters.
A currently unnamed blonde girl and guy are revealed in the video as well as a black cat and it seems that in combat the characters, including the cat, will transform into masked thieves/vigilantes to do battle against their enemies and it even appears that a stealth system of sorts may be implemented.
Today Atlus USA released a new trailer showing off another class that will be playable in Etrian Mystery Dungeon and this time around the Medic is focused on. As one would guess, the Medic’s role is to keep the party alive by healing party members as well as reviving those who have fallen in battle. The Medic does have some offensive capabilities but their primary role is to serve as a dedicated support character keeping the team alive.
You can check out the class trailer below and those looking to pick up Etrian Mystery Dungeon can do so when the game is released in North America on April 7th.
Today Square Enix released a new Japanese trailer for Final Fantasy Type-0 HD and while the footage is primarily focused on showing more footage of Final Fantasy Type-0 HD while covering the story of the game, the trailer also comes as a way for the company to announce that the demo for Final Fantasy XV will indeed be playable when Final Fantasy Type-0 HD is released on March 17th in North America and March 19th in Europe.
Previously the status of the demo for Final Fantasy Type-0 HD’s launch has been somewhat up in the air but with this we now know that Final Fantasy XV -Episode Duscae- will be available for everyone who picks up a launch copy of Final Fantasy Type-0.
