August 22, 2013 is the next date to book in your Neverwinter calendar as the upcoming free module “Fury of the Feywild” will be set to release. The free content will include the enchanted forests of Sharandar, new playable races – Sun and Moon Elves, and plenty of new items to collect/earn/trade. Jack Emmert, CEO of Cryptic Studios, had the following to say regarding the encroaching module:
We’re excited to announce the release date of our first free expansion — what we and D&D fans call a Module — for Neverwinter. Come August 22, we’re releasing our first expansion. That’s less than two months from launch; pretty cool. New and exciting content is at the heart of making and expanding a persistent world. Our goal is to deliver engaging and constant updates to our players so that they always have something new to discover in game. Fury of the Feywild is the first of many Modules to come in Neverwinter.
You have heard it yourself! Straight from the mouth of the CEO of Cryptic Studios. Only one of the “first of many Modules to come”, and you better believe with as much heat as this MMORPG is getting new mods won’t be too far in the future. Until then you can learn how to become a “Knight of the Feywild” by either tuning into the video below or simply clicking (here). Be ready to join the battle against King Malabog and his formidable ranks of fomorians!
Many Saints Row fans were shocked when they saw Johnny Gat die at the beginning of Saints Row III, and if that is a spoiler then try to keep up with games a little bit more, but they were slightly pleased by the fact that he could come back as an allied zombie.
Well it seems through some manner of retconning or other method, Johnny Gat will be appearing in Saints Row IV from Deep Silver. As you can see to the right, the official Saints Row twitter has tweeted out that Johnny Gat is back and considering the amount of bodies under him, he’ll be back at full capacity.
You can check out the latest trailer for GAT below.
Today perhaps one of the most unique looking JRPGs in recent memory has been released on the PlayStation 3 in North America. NIS America‘s Time and Eternity is now available for purchase now in North America, both physically and digitally.
The title follows the story of Toki who must travel back in time to prevent a disaster from occurring during her wedding and the entire game has been animated by Satelite, giving almost every element of the game an anime look. You can find my review for the title here, but it is worth noting that despite the score, it is still an intriguing game.
Mad Catz have recently announced that their new premium quality fighting game controller, Killer Instinct Arcade FightStick Tournament Edition (TE) 2 will launch this Holiday 2013. The fighting game franchise, Killer Instinct, developed by Microsoft and Double Helix, is coming exclusively to Xbox One with the first fighting game controller available for the new console.
Darren Richardson, President and CEO of Mad Catz stated, “E3 greeted us with a positive reaction to our Tournament Edition 2 FightStickand we’re pleased that the controller will provide passionate fans of Killer Instinct with an even richer gaming experience. We believe that Killer Instinct Tournament Edition 2 FightStick perfectly illustrates our commitment to the next generation of entertainment.”.
Mad Catz TE2 FightStick offers players an extensively designed and high-quality arcade controller, in addition to button mapping tuned specifically for the game and the official artwork of Killer Instinct.
Stay tuned with Capsule Computers for more information on the expected November release of Killer Instinct, alongside Xbox One!
DARK Developer: Realmforge Studios Publisher:Kalypso Platform: Xbox 360 (Reviewed), PC Release Date: July 9, 2013 Price: $49.99 BUY NOW!
Overview
Back when it was first announced, the idea of DARK was something to get excited about. You see, I love modernized vampire flicks (aside from Twilight), but the console market has looked the other way for the genre, other than releasing a few duds over the years. Sure, Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines had its time and cult following a good while ago on the PC, but this little market has gone untapped for the most part up until Kalypso’s latest. DARK blends together a stealth/action game with RPG elements, and attempts to grab the player with a tale of one man trying to find answers as he battles his bloodlust. How does it stand up? Let’s find out.
Story
Players jump right into DARK, taking the role of a newly turned vampire by the name of Eric Bane. Bane has no memory of how he turned or who his creator was, but soon finds out that if he does not drink the blood of his maker, he will be turned into a lifeless ghoul. This means that our motive for progression comes in the form of a rather solid plot, with one genuinely interesting protagonist surrounded by some one-dimensional allies and enemies.
As the player continues on their path, DARK commits a sin against itself and stretches out its own plot to make the game longer. This comes obvious as the player must traverse to other locations in order to find specific targets, and while padding can work in something like Mario, it does nothing but fill this promising vampire tale with way too many filler moments. If you have an awesome gameplay experience in-between, filler is perfectly fine. I mean, look at Darksiders II and even Mario (in another castle…is she?). Dark sadly doesn’t have gameplay that comes across as satisfying though, and that alone makes the narrative feel shallow and underwhelming compared to what it could have been if there were more strong points.
Gameplay
If I could compare DARK to any other title gameplay-wise, it would be Metal Gear Solid: The VR Missions. I say that because DARK does not have much else going for it than stealth, and while an ability tree adds a lot to the experience, this alone can make things feel rather repetitive. Each stage is made up of several areas, where the player must sneak by enemies in order to progress. To do this, a good number of abilities have been provided at Eric Bane’s disposal, to which he can make use of to sneak through a stage unharmed. The gimmickry of being a vampire is taken further, as these vampiric powers are the only weapons at your disposal, but that really is what makes DARK feel unique to start with – so I see that as a good thing. Sadly, a lot of these powers come off as useless to the player, with some failing entirely during the most chaotic of situations.
The Shadow Leap is your main power within the game, allowing the player to jump to another side of the stage at the press of a button. This means that if there are some menacing guards ahead, you could in theory jump behind them for a surprise attack, or leap to a ledge in order to get out of harm’s way. If only it were that easy. In order to execute this technique, the player must hit the shoulder button and control a reticule along ground to aim where you want to go. Every single time I would try to drag the reticule however, it bounced all over the floor and usually would teleport my character into danger. In a stealth title – even one with a super vampire of sorts – I don’t expect to be an expert in parkour, but not being able to master such a simple gameplay mechanic due to a faulty design was very frustrating, and one of the most glaring problems DARK has.
On the up side, the general core gameplay – while basic, is solid enough. The AI all have their set patterns that they patrol, and the player must sneak around or kill each target to get to the next. Bane has an ability wheel that he can utilize to execute special attacks and abilities to get around guards and thugs, which comes at a cost of Vitae. Think of Vitae as your mana bar of sorts, as it can be filled up by feeding on enemies, and empties out as these powers are performed. The abilities themselves include mind control, creating a distraction, or even regeneration for health purposes. There are plenty more, but many don’t prove useful due to the poor AI. In a lot of old stealth titles, we were used to a guard just staring at a wall for no reason whatsoever. DARK however has been released at a time where standards are higher, but still applies the archaic placement of enemies to each stage. This means that your general task for every stage will be to lure the enemy out, make a quick kill, and move on to the next. I even had some stages where I would intentionally step on glass to grab the attention of guards, and just by hugging a wall, I was able to take out ten as they trampled up stairs, clueless about their surroundings due to the dead bodies that would always grab their attention first.
Even with the option to upgrade powers and attacks, DARK fails to deliver. It does not matter if the game is clunky or has a few problems. That does not effect this review in the slightest, as my favorite game of all time is a budget title by the name of Deadly Premonition, and it is full of bugs and we all know that fun gameplay can make up for the minor frustration. The problem is that DARK is a vampire game with a protagonist that does not fit his role. Eric Bane is slow and lacks any type of agility. That is acceptable if you are playing as Snake, but when you have powers that almost demand speed and precise movement, it is simply not good enough.
Visuals and Audio DARK does do well when it comes to visuals, outside of the stages that is. The entire world and characters within are all cel-shaded, set in a dimly lit world during nights filled with neon lights and bright undertones. Yes, it is a pretty game to look at, but the animations are not nearly up to par with the scenery. As characters converse, mouth movements rarely match to the dialogue. The movements of characters during cutscenes and in the actual game are also stiff, making it hard to get behind any of the main cast as they attempt to portray emotion. Bane’s finest moments can be found when he is feeding or executing a kill as there are some nice animations to be seen there, but those alone do not cover up all of the same, bland design in the rest of the game.
The voice acting is well done within DARK, as the actors seemed to have really tried to bring these characters to life, making the non-expressive animations even more damning to the final product that was released. There is a good group of haunting melodies during the gameplay as well, staying under the radar to keep the player on their toes, and being replaced with the more up-tempo tracks when Bane is discovered. It makes for some intense moments, but again, without being the complete package, this is yet another mark missed.
Overall DARK is a game full of potential. The core gameplay engine works well enough, but sluggish character movements and the extra padding to the plot mess with the experience, making the player feel great restriction as they control what is supposed to be an all powerful being. Forget that bullets are killing vampires and all of the other plot holes. DARK is not nearly as enjoyable as it should be due to every room being a copy of the next, and every ability taking a hit due to the poor AI that require zero ingenuity from the player. Every now and then, a budget title will rise up and shock us, making us wait in angst for the next hidden gem. Sadly, DARK is not one of those games, but instead a hollow shell of what could have been something truly special.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Yesterday Bethesda announced the release date for Dishonored‘s newest DLC, The Brigmore Witches. Continuing on from where The Knife of Dunwall left off, this newest DLC brings a close to Daud’s story. Your power, weapon and item upgrades, Chaos level and player actions from The Knife of Dunwall carry over into The Brigmore Witches through your save file.
In the up-coming DLC, after being betrayed by your lieutenant, you rely on feuding gang factions (the Dead Eels and the Hatters) to negotiate your way through the previously unseen districts of Dunwall as you find Delilah’s, the head of the Brigmore Witch coven, stronghold. Equipped with newly added whale oil-powered stun mines and Chokedust, players set out through Draper’s Ward, exploring it’s streets, hazardous sewers and rivaling gangs’ home bases. Brigmore Witches allows the player to revisit Coldridge Prison, in which you must infiltrate to free the imprisoned leader of the Dead Eels.
As you quest to thwart Delilah’s plans, players are able to approach each mission in their own style. Daud’s redemption, or turn towards darkness, depends on the player’s skills and the decisions made throughout the game. Only you can determine Daud’s final fate.
Dishonored‘s The Brigmore Witches will be available for download from August 13th. For PS3 and Steam, it will cost $9.99 and for Xbox it’ll cost 800 Microsoft Points.
Join Capsule Computers editor Joe Morgan as he recaps all of the video game and anime reviews for the week of July 7 – July 13, 2013. This feature is intended as a way to give you, our readers, a quick recap of every game we’ve reviewed on the site each week. The goal is to let you get the review information you want in five minutes or less.
Killer is Dead, the upcoming action game from Suda 51 and Grasshopper Manufacture, has gotten a new trailer. The trailer, featuring music from Jessie and The Bonez, is being released simply as “Trailer #6.”
The video, which clocks in around 4:44, is really less of a proper trailer and more of a music video with some gameplay footage spliced in. While that may not quite suit your tastes, any fan of Suda 51 will quickly see that it fits his typical stylings quite well.
The gameplay shown off in the video showcases some of the stylized combat gameplay, as well as showing off some of the characters in the game.
You can check out the video in the player below this article. Also be sure to check out their age-gated official website here. Keep your channels tuned right here for the upcoming game being published by XSEED and Deep Silver.
A new trailer was released today by Sega showing off some brand new wisp powers that Sonic can utilise in the upcoming Wii U game Sonic Lost World. The trailer focuses on the color powers that Sonic obtains when he comes into contact with a Wisp, a returning mechanic from the Wii game Sonic Colors. We also get a brief look at The Deadly Six and hear them speak, so it’s good to know they won’t be mindlessly groaning, roaring and mumbling the whole time.
The first new power shown was eagle, which allows Sonic to take the skies and dash in short bursts to collect rings suspended in the sky. The asteroid wisp is probably the strangest wisp shown yet, and turns Sonic into some sort of small floating planet with a ring of small asteroid chunks around him that presumably acts as a shield. The final new power shown was rhythm. This power turns Sonic into a pink music note that allows him to traverse pits by bouncing across these small echoing balls that send out vibrations.
We also see some returning powers, some which we were returning such as the laser power and some we didn’t know would be returning such as drill and rocket.
Sonic Lost World will be releasing for both Wii U and 3DS on the newly announced date of October 22nd. Both versions are said to be fairly different from one another in terms of level design and gameplay. Check out the trailer and screens below and leave a comment letting us know your opinion on the new Wisp powers.
Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is still a ways out and even though the last trailer was focused on the pirate life in terms of gameplay, Ubisoft just hasn’t gotten out of the pirate mindset yet with a new trailer today flaunting itself in the pirate swagger. Understandably, as piracy is set to be a big part of the newest in the Assassin’s Creed series.
This trailer does it really right though, featuring seas shanties, drinking, and ship to ship combat. Assassin’s Creed IV looks to be capturing the mood and setting just right, but to see just how well it will all fit together within the open world remains to be seen when the game releases.
Those wanting to watch the trailer for themselves can find it embedded below. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is currently set to release in North America on October 29, Australia on October 31st, and Europe November 1st for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii U, and PC, then sometime later for Xbox One and PlayStation4.
