Our planet has known a great and dangerous enemy. In 2017 we encountered an alien life force that was set to destroy everything on our planet. The Earth Defense Force (EDF) engaged this threat and persevered by destroying the insect alien race maintaining peace throughout the past years. However, I am here to inform you that our win that day was only the beginning of the conflict. We have sufficient evidence that our foes did not truly perish in that war years ago. Citizens of Earth, it is time again to join forces and combat against the alien race!
Earth Defense Force 2025 will be made available by D3 Publisher for Microsoft Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in February 2014. Check out the trailer below and let us know your thoughts on these giant insects.
“I am rubber and you are fat, don’t you dare touch my hat!”
One Piece: Romance Dawn has only just been released around Europe and Namco Bandai games have decided to celebrate this occasion by releasing a brand-new trailer for the game. It’s called the “Memories” trailer and works as a quick look/revision over the entire “One Piece Sea Survival: Super Rookies Saga” which begins at the “Romance Dawn Arc” and goes all the way up until the “Post-War Arc”. The game does NOT continue onto the “Final Sea: The New World Saga” which covers the Crew’s adventure after the timeskip but there is so much content in the game that you’ll be entertained for hours and hours on end.
You can head down below to our Featured Video Section now to see the new trailer and for all you Americans out there don’t be too jealous because the game hits your shores on the 11th of February next year (2014), you’ll just have to wait a little longer but hopefully it’ll make you enjoy it even more. For us here in Aus and around Europe; One Piece: Romance Dawn is available on the 3DS in all good game stores now.
Can you believe 2014 is only a month away and with that comes a brand new selection of incredible Anime one of which just so happens to be Space Dandy? The answer is: “Of course I can believe it!” and today Toonami is helping you believe even more by releasing a brand-new teaser trailer for the upcoming Shinichiro Watanabe series Space Dandy. The action, sci-fi, comedy which was recently licensed by Madman, is fast approaching and the entire Anime community is excited for it to crash land here on Earth!
As I just mentioned; Adult Swim’s Toonami has only just begun streaming the new teaser trailer and the Anime is looking great! We’re seeing more aliens, more characters and more Dandy alongside the comedy and action of it all. You can see the Second Space Dandy Teaser Trailer below in our featured video section but don’t take off just yet because along with the trailers release comes some new information about character that will be appearing in the show:
– Dr. Geru and Bee –
Dr. Geru is a gorilla-like humanoid being who is said to be a great scientist and is to be voiced by Unshou Ishizuka. Although it is yet to be fully explained to the audience so far, Dr. Geru is in pursuit of Dandy while he’s on his adventures through space. The cucumber-like man is Dr. Geru’s trusted assistant, Bee, who is to be voiced by Kosuke Hatakeyama. Bee is a humanoid creature from the planet Pylori and, despite his appearance, he is a creature extremely similar to that of a human and not at all an ingredient in a garden salad. I think it’s safe to say that these two men will be seen a great deal throughout the series, at least, I hope we’ll be seeing them a lot.
– Scarlett and Honey –
The two lovely ladies above are Inspector Scarlett and the beautiful waitress Honey. Scarlett, who is to be voiced by Houko Kuwashima, is an inspector at the “Space Alien Registration Center” the place Dandy and all alien hunters to go register brand-new species of aliens that have just been discovered. The blonde bombshell to the right of her is Honey. Honey is a waitress at Dandy’s favourite establishment “Boobies” which is not to be mistaken with the real-life restaurant “Hooters”. Much like Dr. Geru and Bee, we can all assume that Dandy and his small crew will be coming into contact with these two beauties a fair amount.
Now head down to the Featured Video Section so that you can finally watch the new Space Dandy Teaser Trailer and don’t forget to head below that to the comments section, we want to know what you’re thinking about this new series and you can show us your excitement (or lack thereof) right down there. See you, space…dandy.
Hajime No Ippo – Rising Episode 9 – A Savage Scenario
Continue directly from what has been happening in the last few episodes of Hajime No Ippo – Rising the team are still trying to evolve the “Dempsey Roll” into something that can overcome Ryuuhei’s threats and, once again, allow Ippo to defend his title against an opponent that swears he can crush the technique. Vorg, who we saw in Episode 8, is still hanging around the Makunouchi household as he trains his days away, he’s attempting be one completely ready for his trip to America where he will begin rising the ranks of the boxing world.
He trains to the pint of exhaustion yet cannot seem to outdo Ippo despite them being on equal grounds the last time they were together, it doesn’t get him down entirely though, not until he is presented with the task of being the man to crush Ippo’s “Dempsey Roll”. The other gym junkies feel as though Vorg is the best candidate to beat down Ippo and force him into evolving his technique, they give him notes on what needs to be done and he heads back to training but he’s soon running out of time, his trip to America comes up fast.
By the time I finished the episode I realised that it is my favourite one from the series so far, despite the lack of any official match the animation was forced to rise to an incredible level to simply show the bout between Vorg and Ippo. The two fighters got into the ring for what was meant to be a quick and easy match but as soon as it had started the team knew that these two men were out for blood.
For the most part, Vorg was getting pummelled but he did hit back at Ippo with some serious force, the time came for Ippo to step into a rhythm and set up his “Dempsey Roll”, Vorg was full of fear at first but the small shred of confidence he had in him pushed him through to the “win”. Ippo began the technique and was laying into Vorg with everything he had, this went on for a bit until Vorg realised that, within a couple more hits, his guard will break and Ippo will absolutely decimate him. Knowing this Vorg put the plan into action, between beats he jumped back away from Ippo knowing that he cannot stop his motions without hurting himself and therefore stunning him.
Ippo, not being able to stop, leans in to reach for Vorg while still in the “Dempsey Roll”, Vorg throws a counter that lands a hit on Ippo’s face which not only knocked him out but proved that the “Dempsey Roll” is beatable with nothing but a single punch. I’ll skip ahead a little bit to when Ippo regains consciousness, he almost immediately begins training now that he knows he’s easily beaten. Coach gives him a little talk but doens’t entirely open up to what Ippo must do to win, the only thing he can think of is for Ippo to quickly change up his rhythm mid roll and take the opponent by surprise, though doing this will put a great deal of strain on his entire lower body and will, eventually, push him into an extremely early retirement from the sport.
Ippo continues to train as Vorg begins his leave for America, I found these last two scenes to really define the characters and to really define what the series is all about too. Vorg departs from the Makunouchi household, he says his farewell to Mrs. Makunouchi and the memories of his departed mother come rushing back to him.
He says something in Russian that we’re not alerted to straight away and asks her to repeat it back to him, he leaves and the audience is left in a bit of a daze until the next scene where he reveals what he said: “I pray for your success, my son” is what he asked her to say to him with his response being “Thank you, mother”, it was a touching moment for Volg and the audience that really put across the type of person he really is.
Ippo on the other hand continues to train while continuing to doubt himself and the “Dempsey Roll”, he thinks and thinks but can’t seem to get exactly what it is he needs to do until he stops, breaks into a “Dempsey Roll” and realises exactly what the Couch had been thinking of the whole time. Ippo switches up his rhythm part way through the roll and a sharp pain shoots through his lower body, it stiffens him up and forces him to realise exactly what he has to do and exactly what he cannot afford to do. Like I’ve been saying each week; I cannot wait for this match, the lead up is incredibly intense and I can’t imagine the fight itself to be any less intense. Check out more Hajime No Ippo – Rising Impressions HERE.
Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition Publisher:Beamdog Developer:Overhaul Games Platforms:PC (reviewed), Mac Release Date: November 15, 2013 Price: $24.99 – Steam; $24.95 – Beamdog
Overview
Thirteen years have passed, and now Overhaul Games has re-launched Baldur’s Gate II as an enhanced edition for modern systems. Once hailed the greatest RPG of its time, Baldur’s Gate II: Shadow of Amn had garnered the attention of many D&D and role playing fans everywhere. But does the enhanced edition measure up to the thirteen year old legend?
Story – *No spoilers*
When the title was first release the story was one of the many aspects that made the Baldur’s Gate franchise popular. You first created and defined the hero of the game which provided endless amounts of replayability. Once the game began you could decide who you wanted in your party to further customize your playing experience as those characters provide side quests to pursue. In essence you built your version of the story while playing around the main storyline being any facet of good or evil.
In the enhanced edition, more side stories have been added to give not only the old timers but also new players more options for party members. Spawning from the original Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition, three “new” party members return with additional quests to undertake. Neera (wild mage), Rasaad (monk), and Dorn (blackguard). The newest addition lies in a rogue-like figure named Hexxat whose appearance at first is not what it seems. Adding any of these four characters to your party will result in newly created content in enhanced editions of both Shadows of Amn and Throne of Bhaal.
Also, the re-launch includes a new arena experience with The Black Pits II: Gladiators of Thay. If you recall from the original Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Edition, The Black Pits was an add-on that involved personally creating a party that became captured by a twisted arena master named Baeloth. After defeating many of his monstrosities for his audience’s viewing pleasure, the adventuring party rose up against Baeloth and his minions to attain freedom. The deeds from the first adventure have not been forgotten, and another insane entertainer (Dennaton) decides your adventuring band requires servitude once again. Only this time there is a interesting twist to who is actually pulling the strings…
Gameplay
Those who remember the 2000 version of Baldur’s Gate II: Shadow of Amn will recognize that the gameplay has not changed. This was a crucial factor for Overhaul Games as they wanted to leave the gameplay alone and focus on revisiting visual content as well as additional storyline moments. By leaving the foundation for a legendary game alone, Overhaul Games truly listened to the public in bringing back an epic role playing game.
As mentioned previously, The Black Pit II: Gladiators of Thay introduces a separate extension to the title that involves an unique flavor of pre-existing gameplay. Instead of adventuring all over Faerûn to lay waste mercenary bands or slaying outer planar creatures, an evil magic wielder named Dennaton has conveniently brought them all to you in a single arena. The rules are simple: you fight and win many riches OR die.
Overhaul Games has said most of the included updates have been completed in the background which involve bugs and glitches in the original title. While this may be true to a certain extent, glitches and storyline mishaps still occur in this enhanced edition. A noticeable glitch that may be all too common – though not terribly distracting – is the “loading/reloading” of a level. The glitch presents itself as a short preview of the loading environment then quickly black screens and shows the updated environment. This does not hamper the gameplay experience and is only a minor annoyance.
A storyline mishap can be noticed with our new character Hexxat. Though this isn’t a true bug as it is fixable, our new character must have a certain item in her inventory before leaving Dragomir’s Tomb. The fix is simple as you can re-enter the tomb and speak to her about the misplaced item. As this instance is well documented, I would assume Overhaul Games will implement a more permanent solution in their next update.
Audio/Visual
All previous audio works have been maintained to ensure that the original title was preserved, but additional content has been overseen and created by Sam Hulick who is well-known for his work on Mass Effect. Overhaul Games did exceptionally well in choosing Sam to embed his musical talents as the new content can be felt rather than heard. Take a listen to the snippet in the link for “Storming the Silver Heaven“.
User interface has been dramatically overhauled which provides a crisper look to the title. Whether you are navigating through the game options or accessing individual character sheets, you can notice that the interface has been revisited and cleaned very up well. Resolution played a major factor into the interface remodeling and can be noticed in the screens above.
A smaller visual victory can be attributed to character portraits developed by artist Keiren Yanner. This pack provides six male/female portraits that can be used for your Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition experience. However, you are able to upload your own portraits into the game title which belittles the addition of added portraits. For those that aren’t as manipulative these portraits are great as they come pre-loaded.
Overall
Whether you are craving the nostalgia from the original series or a new face to the revived titles, Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition has the content for gamers to delve hours upon hours into. While some may argue that mods along with the previous version will suit your needs at a cheaper price, the continual updates and additions are worth the price. Begin your journey as the the child of Bhaal and forge your own destiny!
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here
Queen’s Blade: Exiled Virgin Studio:ARMS Publisher:Siren Visual Format: DVD Release Date: 16th October 2013 Price: $49.95 – Available Here
Overview
Queen’s Blade: Exiled Virgin is an Anime based on a visual novel that has had many iterations and actually a couple story sequels too. It mixes adventure, fantasy and eroticism that definitely targets a certain type of Anime fan. The story follows royal daughter Leina in her quest to be victorious in the battle of the Queen’s Blade but you’ll read more about that soon. As stated in the rating, Queen’s Blade: Exiled Virgin is full of violence, sexual references and nudity and is really not for the younger audience. This is the first of the series’ many Anime titles and, essentially, it works as the kicking off point for the rest of the story, if there’s anywhere to start on this Anime it’s right here.
Story
Queen’s Blade: Exiled Virgin follows the adventure of Leina who is part of the royal family that has a fairly wide rule in the land that the series is set in, she’s in constant need to escape from the family and actually does so many times before we’re actually introduced to her. She eventually does escape with a thief who captured her when she escaped previously in the hopes that the royal family will reward her. Leina travels with Risty the thief and finally gets a glimpse of what life is like outside of the walls of the royal castle, she sees that the world around her is full of poverty, disease and downtrodden people.
She hears of a tournament called the “Queen’s Blade” where the lands best female fighters come together to do battle, the woman who wins gains ultimate control, power, wealth and basically whatever else you can imagine. As you can probably already tell; Leina plans to enter the tournament, win and finally have the power to change the land for the better. The story is actually very interesting and, to a degree, very in-depth but had it been done differently it would have been so much better. Had a storyline of this calibre been placed within an Anime series that wasn’t made with the intentions of getting an audience, let’s say, “excited” I could imagine it being something incredible.
The story is almost pure adventure and what I enjoyed about it was that adventure. Leina travelled through a few different lands which were all based on different areas of the globe, she came from a section of the world that closely resembled Europe, she met fellow female fighters that came from an area based on ancient Japan and she even fought an enemy in what seemed to be a very authentic-looking pyramid reminiscent of those in Egypt, so I wouldn’t consider the landscape of this series to be a boring one but, once again, if it wasn’t filled entirely with fan service it may have gone down much differently.
All the characters were two dimensional, they had these one-track minds and they were all hyper sexual, none really showed any qualms about being mostly naked. Leina did show embarrassment at first but she soon came to, essentially, not give much of a damn at all. There were a lot of scenes that were unnecessarily sexual and other which, had a male been thrown into the mix, would be considered extremely distasteful and out of line. There was basically only one male character and he only ever popped up in maybe three or four scenes, all other side characters were simply bumbling idiots or, once again, very perverted.
Without getting too much into the details of the story, it did leave on a cliffhanger that was extremely cool, possibly the best scene of the show was the ending scene, the way they executed that was actually really well done I just feel like they should have done that the whole way through. There was so much they could’ve done with the backstory and the stories of the individual characters but instead they chose to focus on the sexual tension between them all.
There was some backstory for certain characters, it turns out they were the characters that actually kept their clothes on the whole time, but it was minuscule and when compared to the rest of the series was highly insignificant.I’ll look at it from a different perspective: For those out there who enjoy this type of thing, there was just enough story to justify what happened throughout the series. All the fights that began with the reveal of one or both breasts of the female fighters all, in a way, made sense according to the story. I’m trying my best to see this from every angle but it has already gotten difficult.
Visuals
Queen’s Blade: Exiled Virgin is an older series so I never really expected as big an animation level as titles released in 2013 so I went in with a, let’s say, opened mind about how it would come across aesthetically. It’s animation is good at best and, while it seems to get better during certain combat scenes, it stays mostly average the whole way through. Unfortunately the next point I want to make is more of a backhanded complement than anything else: The costume design is actually very impressive on some of the characters, the backhanded part is that most of these characters wear barely anything.
Certain costume themes are fantastic but it is taken away to a certain degree when armour is basically just a small chest plate and a tight G-String. It varies from character to character, Leina’s design would have to be my favourite because, while still skimpy, it does actually resemble real armour whereas the others are just designed to simply “excite” the audience. It is clear that all of these costumes were designed to show as much of these ladies’ bodies as possible despite the fact that they are in a constant flow of danger and battle, it is fan service to the extreme and I’m sure people that enjoy that kind of thing will absolutely love the ways these characters and their costumes are designed, I just found that it was far too overboard.
Audio
It’s unfortunate to say but a great deal of the audio in this release was all too forgettable. The music fit fairly well but it felt as if I had heard it all before, almost like it was a general set of tracks that had been used in other releases similar to this. I’m sure that wasn’t the case but it just didn’t feel like the most amount of effort could have been put into it, in saying that though I will give the series points for having a score that fits well despite the different styles and themes that continue to shift and change throughout the series. The voice acting throughout the 13-episode series was, once again, fairly good.
Much like a lot of other similar titles it seems as though only a few voice actors made their mark while a great deal of the others were just unlucky enough to land bland or infinitely annoying roles. Thankfully the best voice acting in the series came from the main character, Leina, so we’re lucky enough as an audience to have to sit through her dialogue a lot more than the others. I dont really think these actresses got a chance to do the best they can considering most of the characters were laughably serious, sarcastically cute, overly sexual or just straight out moaning. I can’t imagine these being the best roles to make s voice acting impact.
Extras
I will give credit to the fact that this release came with a great deal of sweet extras that I can imagine fans of the series will really get into. It comes with the usual stuff like Anime trailers, TV Spots, clean opening and closing sequences, but it also comes with the series’ four OVA episodes alongside Voice Actor Interviews and footage from the Tokyo Anime Fair. I actually enjoyed watching the extras moreso than I enjoyed watching the actual series and that was strictly on in industry basis, I enjoyed seeing the behind-the-scenes stuff like the Voice Actor Interviews and what not. I feel as though, had the series been executed a bit better, I would have enjoy the extras a great deal more but that’s just obvious. There’s no physical extras but I can’t take points away for that because it is simply a standard release.
Overall
Queen’s Blade: Exiled Virgin is what it is, that’s the most simple way it can be put. It has traces of action, a great deal of adventure and enough eroticism to make a pornographic film jealous and while it didn’t quite work for me it may work for many others and, I guess, I can see how. I’ll say it right now; don’t bother getting into this Anime if you’re looking for a well fleshed-out story because that’s not what it is, it’s story could’ve used work and with a bit more effort put in it could have been something a lot better.
The series is for those who are fans of fan service, simple as that, it gives us characters and reasons for them to be together or even near each other and what that leads onto is exactly what you may be looking for, the fact is that the series doesn’t hide this, it knows what it is, it doesn’t come at you like a adventure/fantasy and then surprise you. It’s good for what it is but it is definitely for a suited audience so don’t just jump into it without a thought.
The Shivah: Kosher Edition Developer: Wadjet Eye Games Publisher: Wadjet Eye Games Platforms: PC (reviewed), iOS Release Date:November 21, 2013 Price:$4.99 –Available Here
Overview
The Shivah, first developed and released in 2006, was the first game from designer Dave Gilbert, who after the success of The Shivah would go on to form indie studio Wadjet Eye Games. Wadjet Eye are best known for point and click adventures like Gemini Rue, Primordia, and the Blackwell Series, each of which feature heavy science fiction or paranormal themes, designs and characters. The Shivah in contrast is utterly grounded in the real world and features a Rabbi as it’s main character.
The trademark pixel art of Wadjet Eye is still here, and fans of the developer are in for a treat if the game has never quite made it to their radar before this 2013 overhaul. The Kosher Edition boasts a new soundtrack and some overhauled artwork, and has also been ported to the iPhone and iPad.
Story
Players take control of Rabbi Russell Stone, a somewhat cynical man who is having a crisis of faith. His synagogue is empty and run down, his congregation abandoning him because of his increasingly negative view of the world. After one particularly lonely service, Rabbi Stone is visited by the police. An ex-member of his congregation – Jack Lauder – has been murdered, and Rabbi Stone has inherited a large sum of money from Lauder’s will. Stone and Lauder parted on very bad terms, so the police and are suspicious of the circumstances surrounding Lauder’s death. Stone is equally curious and decides to investigate the murder and clear his name, paying a Shivah call to Lauder’s widow as his first point of call.
It’s a credit to the writing of The Shivah that a female atheist with no knowledge of the Jewish faith can become attached to a middle aged New York rabbi within the confines of a two hour point and click adventure. Stone is immediately likeable, and the dialogue options include a wonderful “rabbincal response” option which plays on the joke of the opening sequence – “Why do rabbis always answer with a question?”.
Stone’s journey is dark, at times bleakly comical, and centers around the nature of morality. As well as his own doubts about his faith, Stone must contend with corruption, and the nature of power and respect. Whilst the point and click mechanics and puzzles are strong, it is Stone and the dilemmas that he faces that make The Shivah stand out as an experience.
There are multiple endings available depending on your in game choices, which is surprising itself for such a short game, but it is the strength of the main character that really drives home the weight of these decisions. The need to have the right thing happen, not just as a player wanting to win a game but as someone willing Stone to succeed, is a sure indicator that The Shivah is a success.
Gameplay
The Shivah is a point and click adventure, so that conveniently about sums up the gameplay. Movement is simple and the interface works well. Moving between areas is handled by a basic map, and locations disappear when there is no more to be found in them, making The Shivah a frustration free experience. In contrast to most adventure games you’ll actually pick up precious little items, instead progressing through close observation to your surroundings and linking together noted clues to draw conclusions. It is incredibly refreshing to play a detective story that actually feels somewhat realistic, abandoning the old notion of ‘combine things till it works’ in favor of nurturing your inner Sherlock.
The inventory slides down from the top of the screen, and the only frustration I had with the game was the fact that you couldn’t do this when using a computer. Rabbi Stone carries around a Yiddish phrasebook, which you have to consult to figure out passwords. Given that the words were totally unfamiliar to me I had to go back and check them occasionally, which means extending sequences as you have to log out of the computer to check the phrasebook. Utterly minor, but that is the significance level of the flaws that The Shivah has.
Audio & Visual
Wadjet Eye games have a very distinct visual style, and as the first effort from the developer The Shivah is no different. For the re-release things have been given an update, with the character portraits coming in for particular attention. If you’re not a convert to this type of pixel art then this game isn’t going to convince you any different, the locations and scale of it are fairly simple.
The Kosher Edition also boasts completely new music, which is subdued and melancholy but fits the rest of the game perfectly. Voice actor Abe Goldfarb is utterly convincing as Rabbi Stone, and the rest of the cast give solid performances – the only quibble is the quality of the recordings, some of the loud moments are prone to crackle regardless of how high or low your system volume sits at.
Overall
The Shivah is a brief experience that will hit home with a very particular niche of gamer. For those that sit in that particular corner of point and click fandom it will be an enjoyable and thought provoking experience anchored by a strong and memorable main character. The art style is classic Wadjet Eye, and whilst the lack of any science fiction or fantasy stylings may make The Shivah less interesting on a visual level, it does have more emotional weight than some of it’s younger siblings. Certainly worth picking up if you are a fan of Wadjet Eye Games.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
A few days ago, the highly anticipated Ashes Cricket 2013 was cancelled following a long and troubled development cycle. Cricket fans felt like they had been bowled out for a duck, and had no idea what the future of video gaming cricket had in store. Well, like the true Aussie legend that he is, Sir Don Bradman has come to our rescue with the upcoming Don Bradman Cricket 14.
Don Bradman Cricket 14 is being developed by Big Ant Studios and published by Tru Blu Entertainment (the two have worked on previous Aussie-sport based games such as AFL Live and Rugby League Live). Not much is known about the game, other than the fact that it will fill the void in cricket fans hearts, but today we get our first glimpse with the official trailer hitting the web.
Check out the trailer below and let us know what you think in the comments? Are you a cricketing fanatic who can’t wait to hit some digital sixes, or are you too scorned from Ashes Cricket 2013 to open yourself up to more cricketing games just yet? Let us know, and as always be sure to stay tuned to Capsule Computers for all the Don Bradman Cricket 14 news as it becomes available.
LocoCycle Developer:Twisted Pixel Games Publisher:Microsoft Studios Platforms:Xbox One (Reviewed) Xbox 360 Install Size: 13 GB Release Date: November 22, 2013 Price: $19.99 – Available via the Xbox Games Store
Overview
Well known for their innovative and character-driven indie titles, Twisted Pixel Games is back on the Xbox market with their ambitious Xbox One launch title, LocoCycle. When I first heard the title ‘LocoCycle’ during the E3 announcements, I thought the game resembled a crazier version of Happy Wheels (don’t pretend like you haven’t played it at least once). Twisted Pixel Games takes both previous and next-gen players into a quirky extreme of entertainment; where the assassin motorcycle controls the Mexican mechanic. So let’s determine whether this outrageous adventure embraces a wild ride or crashes into a dead end.
Story
The story begins with an absurd live-action sequence, featuring the Chairman of Big Arms (James Gunn) celebrating the creation of two strategic AI motor vehicles with potential buyers. Here we are introduced to I.R.I.S. (Lisa Foiles) and her to-be-nemesis, S.P.I.K.E. (Robert Patrick); both sophisticated and armoured fighting motorcycles. When a storm breaks out and lightning strikes I.R.I.S, she is taken by a bodyguard to a mechanical shop for service. The Mexican, Pablo (Freddy Rodriguez) is assigned to take care of the motorcycle, and starts sweet talking to I.R.I.S. during repair; “Vamos a ver lo que está pasando en el bebé”; only to become dumbfounded by her ability to speak and understand him (and every other language that exists in the human race). I.R.I.S. tunes into a television advertisement in the shop for the Freedom Rally in Scottsburg, Indiana and forces Pablo to help her escape, by dragging him along for the ride.
As LocoCycle progresses, the story is framed through drawn-out full motion videos, revolving around the Government Agency trying to pinpoint the motorcycle’s destination by utilising S.P.I.K.E (unsurprisingly) and activating the mysterious project. As for the live-action footage, it was unclear as to how relevant each of the cut scenes were in storytelling and keeping the audience engaged. Players have the option of watching the film within the game, although the dry sense of humour throughout LocoCycle would convince them otherwise.
Gameplay
LocoCycle is built into a short singleplayer campaign and provides players with the option to go through different missions at their own pace, none of which has a level of difficulty to choose from. Players will find that the gameplay is relatively simple, quick to learn and tedious, based on the insane amount of repetition carried throughout the game. After the first, of five chapters (each with three parts), it became apparent that the gameplay style was reiterated throughout and ironically, does not offer players the room to move outside the boundaries of the game.
Players are constantly pushed forward on the road; dodging and/or destroying obstacles (vehicles, road blocks, explosives, armed agents), quick-timed events for bonus points and engaging in endless combat against agents and different types of outlandish bosses; Big Science Balls, Cruisin Bomber, Agent Vel-Fro, S.P.I.K.E. and many more. It was frustrating having to go through the same type of enemy wave in each level; especially considering there were no specified check-points to save the game.
Nevertheless, the most impressive aspect of the gameplay is the fast-paced martial arts fighting style; combining the combo attack damage of both Pablo and I.R.I.S. by using the variety of skills, such as flame mode, earned through melee and combat technique upgrades. I thought it was handy to provide players with an upgrade system after completing missions, allowing them to spend their HP on various fire weapons and boosting health and turbo, for the motorcycle and her companion.
I thought the appraisal – BEARDED, APOCALYPTIC, MINDBLOWING – for excellent hit combos, worked well as an incentive for players to do their best. Additionally, players are rated based on kills, accuracy, best combo percentage and overall grade. The purpose of this rating system is directly related to the leaderboard, for players to compare their overall scores. However, I found the achievements for exceptional performance in different levels to be more rewarding, including, ‘Back in Yo Face’, ‘Conquered Canyons’ and ‘Adio Mexico’.
Visuals
On a visual spectrum, LocoCycle uses a vibrant art and cartoonish style, that better suits the graphics quality for an Xbox 360, rather than the Xbox One. For a game that focused on travelling a great length, it was disappointing to see nothing beyond the mundane and very basic scenery through the highway, snow tracks, waterways and farmlands. The camera switching that followed I.R.I.S. and Pablo and their next human or environmental hazard was visually disorienting, particularly during combat. If Twisted Pixel spent more time on in-game visuals, than live-action footage between levels, the visual experience would be more rewarding for players.
Audio
The highlight of LocoCycle was the original music score and lead audio, conducted by Matt Chaney, a.k.a. “CHAINSAW” and the orchestration, assembled by Donald Grantham. The fast-paced and endearing soundtrack differed from Twisted Pixel’s trademark silly tracks, by taking a more serious approach to the in-game atmosphere. However, the downside was having to listen to the painful and ongoing dialogue between I.R.I.S and the wailing Mexican. Of course, players have the option to turn off the voice through settings and use subtitles instead, but it’s harder to follow the motorcycle’s objectives that way.
Overall
LocoCycle is not your average racing game, instead Twisted Pixel Games delivers players with an action packed fighting game with two unlikely characters; a Mexican mechanic and rogue motorcycle. Although the original idea is far-fetched, especially for an Xbox One launch title, it was the repetitive gameplay that triggered the downfall of LocoCycle. The game did not excel into a wild ride nor crash into a dead end, but the execution was definitely not up to the high standards for next gen consoles. I was disappointed that I could not entirely control I.R.I.S. and Pablo and make my own decisions in-game; rather I was limited to following the set path of the motorcycle to Scottsburg, Indiana. That being said, LocoCycle is a decent game that deserves a test-ride, whether that be on Xbox 360 or Xbox One is up to the players.
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Last time in my Ace of Diamondimpressions for episode 6, I wondered who would be the man to bring out Eijun’s inner diamond – who would be the one to make him shine? Well with this episode it looks like we have our answer and his name is Chris.
After the intense game between the first years and upper classmen, talk has spread like wildfire throughout the school about some of the upstart rookies that left quite an impression. Of course the most impressive was Furuya, who was instantly placed in the first string for Seidou. But more interesting is the developments for Eijun and Haruichi, both of whom are moving up in the world, straight to the second string. Sure its not quite the first string, but Eijun definitely has a real chance to shine in second string games. He now has a platform to improve himself and his first real step towards become the Ace of Seidou.
Coach Kataoka now has his work cut out for him with two upstart pitchers both keen to become aces. He must assign them both a mentor to help them with their training. He introduces Eijun and Furuya to Chris (a second string veteran) and Kazuya (the star player of Seidou, with whom the boys are already acquainted). Eijun is dead set on Kazuya becoming his mentor, but Kataoka has other plans and much like has become the norm with Ace of Diamond, something unexpected happens – Eijun is paired with the mysterious veteran Chris.
Eijun is far from pleased and Chris isn’t exactly happy himself. We soon come to learn that Chris has quite a reputation. Chris is known as the rookie killer, why is that you may be wondering? Well it is because every player he has mentored has been ruined by his training techniques. Will Eijun be the next on the chopping block of Chris? Well that remains to be seen. My bet is that Eijun and Chris will struggle with each other’s conflicting personalities for quite some time, before ultimately finding a common ground. But this is Ace of Diamond after all, so it will most likely play out entirely different.
The thing that really defines Ace of Diamond however isn’t Eijun’s determination to be ace, it is his journey to unite a team as an ace. He wants to be the guy that brings everyone together. Characters like Chris seem to be placed in his way for him to win over. Eijun is constantly in a position of having to prove something to someone. It is a story that fits like a glove for the character of Eijun and I expect to see him unite Seidou one by one as a true ace. That is of course a long way off for Eijun, but we are seeing this journey etched out clearer and clearer with each passing episode.
Ultimately this episode marks a major step forward in Eijun’s journey and introduces a character who looks to be a major player moving forward. Chris has all the makings of a classic sports anime antagonist turned mentor and his odd couple relationship with Eijun is sure to make for some interesting viewing as the series progresses.
Ace of Diamond is definitely making a case for itself as the best sports anime this year and with emotion running high and writing this good it is hard to imagine anything coming close to the awesome watch we are getting with this anime. Each episode feels over too soon and that is the real benchmark of a great anime series, the kind of anime that you just don’t want to end, that is Ace of Diamond.
