At this year’s San Diego Comic Con, Marvel Games, and Disney Interactive, like most other entertainment companies, held a a panel discussion regarding their upcoming projects. One of the main focuses of the discussion was the hit Facebook game; Avengers Alliance.
The first bit of Alliance news was the fact that the Facebook iteration would be receiving a massive content update. The content will bring the game forward into its “Season 2” stage, and offer a new new Chapter Mastery system, as well as new missions, bonuses and rewards. The most anticipated feature of the ‘Season 2’ Update is that Heroic Battles will be finally implemented into the game. Heroic battles are fights between superheroes and villains, without the aid or input from agents. These Heroic Battles will feature some popular match-ups like Wolverine vs Sabertooth.
A new Spec Op mission will also be introduced. This mission will revolve around the “Dark Reign” storyline from the comics, and will have S.H.I..E.L.D’s Defense Mandate overruled by the World Council after an industrial accident, while a team of Dark Avengers has been created to battle the Avengers. If the player successfully beats this mission they will unlock Ares as a playable character.
Avengers Alliance will also be making its way to Playdom.com. Playdom is a free online gaming site, and players who sign up to Avengers Alliance through them will receive an exclusive in-game item that cleanses strike teams of all negative effects, and imparts healing effects to all allies.
Marvel also announced that the latest Spec Op mission for the iOS iteration of Avengers Alliance will be coming in the very near future. Also mentioned was the fact that Chapter 1 – Episode 6 would be available on the device in early August. If you haven’t done so yet, grab Avengers Alliance for iOS here (the game is free of charge and is definitely a fun experience).
That is a heap of Avengers Alliance news, (which ties in nicely to the Avengers 2 news that was revealed at the con) and there is definitely no shortage of ways for you to play the great game. Facebook, Playdom and iOS all offer the game free of charge (although with optional microtransactions) so be sure to give it a whirl.
Comic Con is wrapping up for another year, but the news doesn’t stop there. Stay tuned to Capsule Computers for all the Avengers and Video Game news as it becomes available.
Aarklash: Legacy is an upcoming adventurestrategyRPG being developed by Cyanide (Of Orcs And Men, Game of Thrones). We recently had the opportunity to get our hands on a preview build. Note that this does not represent the final product and some things may still change.
Based on the Confrontation figurine universe, Aarklash: Legacy puts you in command of a band of mercenaries. Known as “wheel swords,” these mercenaries are the hands that carry out the will of the guilds they serve and are grouped together in “quorps”. You’re initially given control of four such wheel swords – Nella, Denzil, Wendaroo, and Knokka.
Nella is a strong-willed mage. She’s the leader of the quarp and a fiend with a flame. Denzil is the group’s thief. He’s also the only goblin who’s been known to steal both for and from the Goldmonger’s guild. Wendaroo is a Wolfen with a truly canine ferocity. She’s also both a determined warrior and a fantastic healer. Of the initial quarp, that leaves only Knokka. She is almost a sort of free-willed golem, created by the Scorpion Fleshmages for the purpose of seeking out precious metals. She is the group’s tank and a heavy hitter with her great two-handed sword. You’ll get to meet up to four more as you progress through the game as well.
When the game opens, your quarp is retrieving an item from a wealthy lord that is owed to the Goldmongers’ Guild. When they have to fight their way out and reach him, they realize there’s something far more sinister going on than a man that didn’t want to pay his debts. This sets up a much more epic journey that our adventurers will have to undertake, and it will be no easy task.
Aarklash: Legacy will immediately feel somewhat familiar to some – especially fans of games like Baldur’s Gate or Icewind Dale. Like those classics, it’s an isometric role-playing  game where you’re granted the ability to pause the action. Doing so allows you to assign commands to each member of your team. You’re then free to unpause the game and let action play out.
The way the combat is designed, halting the action will be required for nearly every encounter. You’ll want to make sure your tank is drawing fire, but you also want to ensure your entire party is working effectively to dismantle the foes at hand.
In a game with such an intense strategy element, knowledge is power. You’re granted the ability to look at each foe you face. Expanding on their portraits in the interface will let you see their special skills. More importantly, it lets you see their defensive strengths and weaknesses. This allows you to decide who to attack, in what order, and how. Not everything is cut-and-dry, as battle situations literally shift on the fly, so you have to constantly monitor the entire situation. It does a great job keeping the players engaged in combat while maintaining the feel of strategy over action.
Combat can be devilishly difficult at times. If you fail to size up an opponent correctly or you don’t use a particular skill in certain situations, it can turn the whole battle on its head. You can go from being handily on top of the situation one second to scrambling for your life the next.
For that very reason you need to make sure you’ve got everything ready to go before engaging in combat. This includes saving the game. Autosaves currently feel like they’re spaced too far apart, so if fail to save it yourself and get wrecked in an encounter, you could be retreading a lot of familiar ground.
Outfitting your team is going to be a constant endeavor. Finding treasure chests and taking out difficult enemies will reward you with a handful of rings, necklaces, and talismans. You’ll want to make sure each member of your quarp has what best suits their role equipped. Unfortunately, that’s the extent of outfitting your team as of right now. There are no weapons or armor you’ll get to work with, and that’s a little disappointing.
Skill progression is also a big part of how you’ll make your characters your own. Each character will get up to four skills at their disposal, but you can hone and customize these via the skill tree once its available. This presents a fantastic sense of making the characters your own while adapting them to fit your playstyle.
Storytelling is done through both written text and spoken dialog. The voice acting feels like they do a fine job of delivering their lines. Denzil and Wendaroo feel particularly well played, from the shady, high pitched goblin to the snarling, growling Wolfen warrior. There are no CG cutscenes. Everything is done with the game engine, and it works great.
The game looks fantastic at this stage. Characters are well animated, spells and attacks feel fluid and look fantastic, and environments are vibrant and lively. The interface is easy to deal with, too. Fans of those classic isometric titles looking for a modern twist will be pleased with Aarklash: Legacy.
There are some hidden goodies mixed into the game as well. You can find hidden treasure or rare, difficult fights that yield some fantastic prizes and challenges. These extra little flares show that the dev team isn’t just working to finish their title – they have a real love for the product they’re pouring themselves into. That’s an excellent, reassuring feeling.
Whether an old-school fan or a newcomer to games of this style, Aarklash: Legacy is definitely something worth getting excited about. The game looks and sounds fantastic, the characters are unique and fun, character customization will be deep enough to sink your teeth into, and the intense strategy gameplay will keep you coming back for more until the tale of the wheel swords has come to a close. Be sure to keep an eye out for this game when in the coming months. It’s currently set to be available to the public in September 2013, but it will be worth the wait. In the meantime, you can check out their official website and forums to see what’s going on.
We have 10 From Up On Poppy Hill prize packs to give away courtesy of MADMAN. The prize packs include the following:
A copy of From Up On Poppy Hill on DVD Or Blu-Ray
Plus – Key Ring, Charm and A4 folder
To win simply leave a comment below answering the following question along with with what format of From Up On Poppy Hill you’d like you win (DVD or Blu-Ray) and we’ll pick 10 lucky winners:
Why do you want to win From Up On Poppy Hill?
We’ll pick 10 lucky winners on the 31st of July. Make sure you use a  valid email when you register/post your comment so we can email you if you are one of our winners.
We see a lot of titles that are based off a big-screen adaptation these days. Around five years ago, we would have expected mediocrity from licensed titles, but developers such as Rocksteady and WayForward have shown us that good things can happen from these little romps – if the said game is handled correctly. R.I.P.D. The Game tries to ditch substance and provide players with a wave-based third person shooter, featuring elements from the movie and plenty of power-ups and the usual fare mixed in. It sounds like a simple concept, but that is exactly the kind of game that works for licensed brands these days – and at a lower price point than usual, most would easily indulge in this game on idea alone. Does R.I.P.D. The Game do enough to warrant a purchase? Let’s find out.
Gameplay
With most licensed titles, I would normally have a little “Story” section at the beginning of the review, but R.I.P.D. The Game has nothing even close to a narrative, so that is one element fans of the flick should not expect. Instead, this title is a wave-based shooter that features the likeness of Jeff Bridges and Ryan Reynolds, who are tasked with arresting and taking down “deados” (think the zombie equivalent of ghosts) throughout several encounters on each stage. Sound familiar? Well, that is because this title gets a lot of its inspiration through the likes of Gears of War 2’s “Horde Mode”. Its a simple concept that has been proven successful as a bonus add-in for a lot of games, but on its own, there just isn’t enough content at large to be worthy of a purchase.
Allow me to explain that, as even if this were a Horde clone, it would still be a decent time-killer. The main concept of R.I.P.D. is to collect gold from enemies by simply surviving and making arrests. After defeating a few waves, one of the deados will be golden themselves, and you will have the choice of making an arrest or an execution by standing close to the downed for a specific amount of time. That concept works fine, but the gameplay doesn’t lead anywhere. The only type of progression is the leveling system – or “Gold Meter”, which takes around six stages to level up. After all of that work, you are told the battle must continue on – to which you simply repeat the same process again and again until the final boss shows up.
Along the way, you can level up, upgrade, or switch out a small arsenal of weaponry in-between stages by spending the salary awarded upon stage completion, but most of these weapons don’t feel that different from the next other than the grenade launchers, so aside from a few joke items like a banana that cost an absurd amount of in-game currency, you shouldn’t expect for your guns to feel very unique during this journey of monotony. Making matters more troubling is the lack of variety with the enemies, as these gun-toting deados have minor differences from each other, meaning you will see either a standard thug, a door-toting foe, or a bigger, more substantial threat that can kill the player with as little as a touch. A balancing factor of power-ups was implemented here, where you character can summon a turret, regenerate health, or blast all on-screen enemies with one button tap, but these only come available with a certain amount of enemies killed, and must be used wisely due to how long it takes to refill that ability bar.
The stages themselves are well made and feature fauna that is interactive, meaning if you blow up a bunch of crates, they can be used as cover. Sadly, there is no true cover system at hand here, as these environmental obstacles are your only protection from the large amount of bullets you will face. There is no crouch button – only a roll that can be problematic amongst chaos. I can’t count the times I rolled the wrong direction and suffered a kill because of it, and that frustration leads to an overall product that simply feels rushed and lacking of polish.
The shining moment of R.I.P.D. comes in the form of the game’s multiplayer. Two players can partner up to do the same type of wave-based fare, and like with many similar experiences, this title feels more enjoyable with a friend. At the start of a stage, players can place bets as a form a competition, where the one with the most headshots, kills, and so on will be rewarded for over-achieving with a nice cash bonus. Challenges also come up from time to time, and try to get the player to think outside the box when gunning down enemies. These challenges include the likes of not using abilities during an encounter, making a certain number of headshots, or fighting off enemies with a melee attack (that is so close range that it is nearly impossible to execute without taking a hit), and while the idea works, I had many of these challenges glitch out while playing, freezing the objective at the top of the screen while other challenges were literally pasted over the tasks later on. Again, this is simply the execution at fault for this small headache, and did not happen on every stage – but did occur enough to prove rather irritating.
Visuals and Audio
If I had to say anything positive about R.I.P.D. without a “but” being involved, it would be a bit of praise for the visuals. The first time you start the game, you are treated to an awesome comic-book styled cutscene, which shows good things to come in the form of a story. Reynolds and Bridges also look fantastic as well, and even enemies’ models appear to be out of a much better product with a good amount of color and detail applied. Its when you start playing the game that you realize that nothing is as it seems, as it is almost impossible to tell if you are even damaging an deado due to no proper hit detection, and the animations prove to be stiff and lifeless for a good portion of the in-game experience. Sure, it looks nice in the menus and at the start, but after a few minutes of hammering 15 headshots into one foe with very little to show for it, it becomes obvious that the production budget for R.I.P.D. was used for less important portions of the game.
The music in the game is generic and grinding. There is no other way to describe it. This is a game you can play for 20 minutes during each stage, and the same looping track that serves as no atmosphere whatsoever is made present, making the experience less exciting and borderline “lifeless” (no pun intended). There is a very small collection of dialogue pieces that reek of cheese as well, but this is based off a Ryan Reynolds flick, so that does not effect my opinion whatsoever as I kind of expect that with any film from the actor. I can even say that some of the lines have a tad of charm that foreshadow a product that might have had more, but was rushed out before more could be added in.
Overall
R.I.P.D. The Game is a title that doesn’t take any risks and leads the player in circles, with little incentive for progression other than frustrating moments of gameplay and weapon upgrades that cost an arm and a leg. As I mentioned, you could get some life out of this title if you have a friend to suffer with you, but that can only go so far, so other than the decent visuals and solid level design, there isn’t a lot else to see in this “in the middle” licensed romp. Wave based shooters are really starting to take off as a genre and the simplicity of the concept would indeed make for a perfect licensed title. However, R.I.P.D. The Game is not a good example of what can be done with the genre, but more of a repeat of why gamers are so distrusting with anything based upon a bigger namesake. Sure, there is entertainment to be found here, but with much richer experiences on the market, R.I.P.D. The Game is simply a title that misses its mark and does little to stand on its own two feet.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
1st – Ben Kilby 2nd – Hugh Ronzani 3rd – Jordan Bradley 4th – Peter Seo
The Seniors and Juniors division both took place on the Sunday. The Junior division is for any competitors born on or after 2002, but don’t let their young age fool you, these kids really know their stuff and would of given some of the older competitors a run for their money. There were only 10 competitors for the Junior tournament so a Round Robin format was conducted with the top 4 battling off in best of three battles until a winner was found. The results for the Junior competition were:
1st – Nick 2nd – AJ 3rd – Peter 4th – Blake
Finally the Senior division was for anyone who didn’t fall into the other age groups. 32 competitors entered the age group and all battles were conducted as best of three. The standings for the Senior competition were as follows:
1st – Michael Z 2nd – Brent 3rd – Matt 4th – Larry
Those who are looking for yet another solid FPS should be keeping the Source Engine created INSURGENCY on their radar, as the game is truly shaping up to be great. Today, New World Interactive released a brand new trailer, showing off the game that was based on Half-Life 2 – Insurgency: Modern Infantry Combat.
You can watch the clip below, and if you are itching to play this title early, that is an option as the game is available through Steam‘s Early Access program for $14.99, which you can purchase by following this link. If you have ever wanted to be a part of a PC game’s development process, now is your chance.
PAX Australia 2013 has showcased some of the best, local indie projects. The ANZ Indie Pavillion was constantly bustling with activity, but there was one other title that garnered much attention and praise throughout the event, detached from the “indie alley” as it were: a top-down, paint gun shooter called Painters Unite.
Located right next to the entrance to the expo hall, and besides the apparently lone ATM machine on the grounds, Canvas Interactive couldn’t have been more pleased with their positioning, and it’s an especially good thing because their game-in-progress certainly deserves those eyes on it. Painters Unite looks to be on the path to becoming a fully-fledged, fun multiplayer game that puts a twist on the “infection” game-type and the shooter genre itself. There’s no killing here – only painting and converting. To get a better idea of the concept, its development and the studio’s future plans, I conducted a brief interview with Creative Director James Betar.
Let’s start off with the obligatory ‘tell us about your studio and how it got started’?
It started out while I was a lecturer, and I had this awesome idea and realised I don’t have anywhere near the skills to be able to program and do the art and all of the level design, so I began recruiting my expert team and we’ve all been working on blood, sweat, tears and passion and got it to the point it is today on effectively part-time. I’m pretty proud of the team so far and what we’ve got.
So tell us the basic concept for the game.
So the basic concept for the schoolyard kids who remember, was sort of like schoolyard tips. Essentially, each player on the default mode starts off on their own team and the goal is paint your opponents enough to convert them onto your team. Last man standing gets a bit of a power-up as sort of a last ditch effort for their team. And beyond that we’ve got lots of supplementary mechanics like a shower for health, ammo power-ups around the level, different weapons that you can unlock based on your performance in the map, and soon we’re going to have different modes like “chase the invisible guy”, painting buildings for territory control and a few other bits and pieces like that.
How would you be scored in the game? I’m assuming – seeing as there’s the possibility that you could just as soon be converted to another team multiple times over – that it’s not team-based scoring?
It’s not team-based scoring, no. So you have individual scores regardless of what team you’re on, but we are gonna have other bonuses and unlocks based on long you can stay on your team, how many players you can convert and all that kind of stuff.
You’ve mentioned future modes like the “chase the invisible man” – is your mind racing with ideas of what else to do with this theme? Have you got more in the pipeline that you’re just waiting to try out already?
Oh there’s tons of stuff coming. I’m sure once we release, I’ll have three other expansions in my brain and starting to get on paper and on screen straight after that.
Are you guys considering an iOS/mobile version down the line?
We’re thinking about it…
What engine did you use?
UDK (Unreal Development Kit). All UDK. So first Steam, then console, and then we’re thinking about making an adaptation of the game for mobile, but that’s probably the last slate.
I went to the Indie Showcase Panellast night and some of the panellists were talking about how tough it can be to even get on Steam through Greenlight. Are you guys readying for that?
Because of what we know about Greenlight and that whole process, we want to make sure that we’ve got enough behind us so that there isn’t a fall off of interest. We want to be almost ready for market by the team we get it on Steam so that we can get people playing it and just push it over the finish line.
How long do you think further development will take on this before it’s ready for that release?
Well, here’s my plug: depending on funding – for all the readers – we’d love to be able to get some funding which would help us accelerate the production. Ideally, we’d want to be hitting beta – closed beta most likely – by the end of the year and sort of aiming for release sometime during 2014.
In terms of those potential funding avenues, where are you looking as the primary (or preferred) source?
We’re looking at getting a publisher. So not giving away the company through ‘angel investors’ or anything, but getting a publisher to ideally give us some seed funding and then help us get a bit more presence when we actually go to market. That’s the goal.
I guess to wrap up, let’s maybe give everyone a pitch of sorts on why this is a fun game and why they should check this out when possible down the line.
This is a fairly accessible, online multiplayer game, and instead of the whole death and violence paradigm, we’ve chosen something more collaborative. So instead of death and violence, it’s more about team collaboration, dynamics teaming, keeping things vibrant and fun, and we’ve found that we’ve actually engaged a range of demographics, from the 10-14 – just for the fun and accessibility of the whole paint idea – but the older players really love the competitive nature of it, which is still a big emphasis for us. So come one, come all – lots of demographics are getting a lot out of it.
We look forward to seeing more from Canvas Interactive and the unique Painters Unite. You can visit their Facebook and Twitter pages, give them a ‘like’ and a ‘follow’ and keep an eye out for the beta, hopefully later in the year.
Going into Comic Con, X-Men: Days of Future Past was definitely the film that was on everybody’s mind. With The Wolverine around the corner (click here to enter our competition to win a double pass to see it), X-Men and Mutants are at the forefront of everyone’s mind. Knowing this, Bryan Singer, the director of the upcoming mutant epic gave the fans what they wanted!
First up we were treated to our first official cast-shots, which you can see below. These cast shots show Professor X (Patrick Stewart), Magneto (Ian McKellen), Colossus (Daniel Cudmore) and BISHOP! (Omar Sy). These characters are from the future timeline and are in a world where mutants are hunted mercilessly. To adapt, they have donned suits of armor and look absolutely badass.
Furthermore, a sizzle reel for the upcoming movie was shown. The reel focused on Professor X (Stewart) and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman). Xavier is wearing the armor which you can see above, and Wolverine’s hair has the grey streaks that he had in the original comic book series. Professor X tells Wolverine “You have to do for me what I once did for you … We must end this war before it ever begins.” From here Wolverine wakes up in his younger body (looking exactly like you expect him to). The footage then cuts to the younger mutants, Including a beaded, manic looking Professor X. Stewart’s voice is heard again, telling Logan “I was a very different man then … Lead me, guide me.”
There is more to it, but I don’t want to spoil the rest for when the trailer is eventually released online. Suffice to say it is incredibly well put together and it is already the makings of an absolute champion of a movie. After the sizzle reel, some of the stars answered some questions, and some interesting bits of information surfaced. After months of speculation, Peter Dinklage has confirmed that he will be playing Bolivar Trask, wealthy industrialist, anti-mutant extremist, and inventor of the Sentinels.
That right there is a massive amount of news from one tiny afternoon, and I barely scratched the surface. Needless to say, X-Men: Days of Future Past delivered as a Comic Con panel, and will hopefully continue to deliver a stand out movie. Stay tuned to Capsule Computers for all the X-Men news as it becomes available.
Considering they purchased them over a year ago now, many of you likely know that Tecmo Koei purchased Atelier developer Gust and it seems that they are going to be taking advantage of Gust’s library of games when it comes to adding more characters to their re-release of Warriors Orochi 3.
Today Tecmo Koei revealed new screenshots for Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate which show off Sterk, from Atelier Meruru, in action as well as two new fighters by the name of Yinglong and Mae Tamamo and a handful of Halloween costumes that will be an early buyer bonus. Could this mean we’ll see some type of Atelier Warriors game in the future? Possibly.
About a month ago, Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers was announced for Europe, Mexico and South America as well as Japan, leaving gamers in North America left in the dark, a rare occurrence in the game industry. However it seems that fans of Saint Seiya in North America won’t have to worry about importing the title, since it has been confirmed that Namco Bandai will indeed be bringing Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers to North America.
In a discussion with Siliconera at San Diego Comic-Con, a Namco Bandai rep said that Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers will be released as a digital download in North America and the reason for this is to gauge the fan-base of the series in the region.
