Today Ubisoft unveiled their very first trailer for the upcoming game The Mighty Quest for Epic Loot. The game is being developed by Ubisoft Montreal and will take place in the world of Opulencia, an medieval fantasy world where wealth, status, and loot drive everything.
In the humorous, lighthearted trailer we meet Sir Painhammer and his pet Nigel. After showing you around his own castle a bit, he’ll give you the breakdown on the keys to happiness, success, and good health in the world of Opulencia. You’ll even get to see his neighbor, the Archer, show up for a while.
The Mighty Quest for Epic Loot will be a free-to-play dungeon crawler. You can register for the closed alpha and check out more information for the game at their official website. Also be sure to check out the trailer for the game below this article.
Nintendoannounced today that their next promotion entitled, “So Many Games!” will be available for Nintendo 3DS owners to take advantage of.
Beginning April 23, player who register three games from a range of 3DS titles will get a fourth game to download from the Nintendo eShop for free. Players will need to register three of eight possible games with Club Nintendo by June 30th to be eligible for the free game. Games players can choose from include the other five titles on the the list they didn’t register. They can also choose to share a title they already own with a friend!
The eight titles eligible for the promotion include:
You may remember that at the end of 2012, sometrademarks were filed by Namco Bandai that pointed towards a possible Western release of the Idolm@ster series in both Europe and the US. Well today Namco Bandai has indeed released three Idolm@ster games but hold your horses. These games, originally released on the PSP in Japan, have now been released on the iOS without any actual announcement from the company and they cost $54.99 a piece.
Each of these three games feature different idols and a special half hour OVA that has been given English subtitles as well. It is interesting to note that despite the fact that purchasing all three of these iTunes games would cost $164.97, it is actually cheaper to buy these on the iOS than simply trying to import the original Japanese PSP releases. However one can’t help but wonder if the iOS was really the best place for such a high-priced, low-profile release when the PSP/Vita likely would have been a more viable option.
Just a scant two weeks ago Ubisoft let gamers know that Splinter Cell: Blacklist would be making its way to the Wii U in addition to Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC, but as we all know developers are always trying to utilize the Wii U’s unique GamePad. So, the question on some minds was what all would Splinter Cell: Blacklist use it for?
The pictures show off a few of the controls, a new trailer has been released focused on showing off a few more, as well as in action. While the picture above confirmed being able to quickly select weapons, the trailer also shows off controlling the trirotor drone, controlling Sam Fisher’s snake camera, and to mark targets for execution, which seems the most functional over gimmicky.
Players can watch the trailer embedded below to see all of the controls in action. Regardless of which platform they prefer those looking to get their hands on Splinter Cell: Blacklist can do so August 22nd.
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Metal Gear Solid franchise, the Playstation 3 exlcusive Metal Gear Solid: Legacy Collection will be releasing in North and South America in June.
Tomoyuki Tsuboi, President of Konami Digital Entertainment had this to say about the collection:
“We wanted to give Metal Gear Solid fans the opportunity to experience the series from beginning to end, all on one console… with the collection’s multiple titles, players can truly see how Metal Gear Solid evolved into the critically acclaimed and beloved franchise it is today.”
With over 33 million units sold to date, if you haven’t tried any games in the Metal Gear Solid this legacy collection looks like a great place to start, especially if you want to get clued in with the story before the release of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain and Metal Gear Solid:Ground Zeroes. Are you excited for this collection? Let us know in the comments section.
After 26 years since Sierra Entertainment’s original release, Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards, the initial creator Al Lowe and writer Josh Mandel have re-made, expanded and improved in every detail their new game Leisure Suit Larry Reloaded.
As for the ‘mature’ audiences, they can expect just as much naughty (but nice) humour, adventurous gameplay, expanded puzzles and locations, along with high resolution, hand-drawn art and animation to accentuate the experience.
To top it off, a re-written musical score from Grammy-nominated and BAFTA-winning composer, Austin Wintory featuring Al Lowe on saxophone!
Keep June open for endless hours of Leisure Suit Larry Reloaded; availableon PC, Mac and Linux for only AUD $22.23 (USD $22.85).
After losing many game developers over the last few years, from prominent established big names like Team Bondi through to the multitude of smaller companies that shut its doors in the wake of the financial crisis, it seems the Australian gaming industry is again on the rise. Having finally clued on to what the rest of the world already knew the Australian Government has sparked into action with a modest 20 million dollar funding for new and existing companies and projects.
In a recent ABC interview, Screen Australia’s Fiona Cameron said although times had been tough for the industry, their was a ‘seismic shift in the games industry’ that will hopefully start to rectify the 50% drop in the workforce across the industry since 2009. She credits the huge increase in the adoption of smartphone technology worldwide as a catalyst for the growth, with games now being able to reach a much larger and broader audience than ever before with 92% of households owning a gaming device and the proportion of female gamers on the rise.
Local developers still have a lot of faith in the market, and who could blame them, with Fruit Ninja, the second most popular smartphone game with 400 million downloads being developed in our own backyard (or someone elses in Brisbane), something that seems to be a common changing thread throughout the industry. While there is and always will be a place for the huge gaming conglomerates, the days of the backyard developer are among us, with many choosing the comfort of their own homes in place of the office environment.
Morgan Jaffit, a Brisbane Game Technician says “We’ve moved away from working in what I would style a factory environment, where we’re working on intellectual property owned by other people in large companies, towards a home-grown ethos where we build our own IP, our own brands. Many individuals and groups alike have banded together and new companies have sprung up full of like, new ideas and more importantly, in the majority of cases, years of experience working for multinational gaming companies.
The Governments 20 million dollar funding will begin soon and will involve grants and business loans to assist existing companies as well as provide a basis for incentive for others to follow.
As everyone has been made previously aware, Disney have acquired the rights to the LucasArts company, and with it, the Star Wars brand. This means that the company Disney will be in charge of all things Star Wars unless they choose to license parts of it out.
What makes this interesting is that there hasn’t really been a lot of news being spread about the franchise. Even more interesting is that it seems that a popular Youtuber has some pretty keen information hunting skills and has in fact found what could very likely be legitimate casting news for the latest Star Wars film, Episode VII.
This latest piece of news shocked me, and it is almost unbelievable. So I’ll be labeling this as a rumour until it is absolutely verified. But the hints are still there. Check out the video embedded below to find out the latest in Star Wars Episode VII casting.
Hellsing Ultimate Collection 2 Blu-Ray Studio: MadHouse Publisher: Madman Entertainment Release Date: Out now Price:$59.95 Available here
Overview
As many fans would probably know by now, Hellsing Ultimate, the well known and much loved successor to the original Hellsing anime series, recently made the jump to Blu-Ray release in Oceania. This is a series that has become well known for its up-front level of violence, surprisingly deep and structured character development as well as the creation of one of the most sadistically popular anime badasses of all time. Hellsing Ultimate is designed to appeal to a certain special variety of anime fan. These are the fans who laugh maniacally at the feast of violent madness that is so consistently offered throughout the course of this series.
So far, two Blu Ray collections have been released, containing OVA episodes I-IV and V-VIII respectively. A review of the first collection can be found on our site here. If you were a fan of the first collection for the afore mentioned reasons, then you’d best be prepared for what collection 2 makes to offer. The box art for collection 2 has been outfitted with a shiny black R18+ rating, which is a promise of a step UP in violent content in comparison to collection 1’s MA15+. Long time fans will already know what they’re in for, so the real question is: how does the Blu Ray Collection 2 stack up?
Story
In the first collection of Hellsing Ultimate, new viewers were introduced to Alucard; an honor bound vampire lord whom had sworn an oath to serve an order of Protestant Knights known as the Hellsing Organization. In their quest to protect the world from numerous supernatural forces, Alucard serves as the organizations ultimate weapon. Audiences were also introduced to Seras Victoria, Alucard’s vampire fledgling who was still coming to terms with her new status as a member of the living dead. The events of the first collection revolved around the pair being dispatched to investigate and VIOLENTLY put down a number of supernatural insurrections around the world. Throughout their battles, one thing had become abundantly clear: that an enigmatic group called Millennium was orchestrating these events for some yet unknown grand design.
Collection 2 opens with Millennium on the cusp of launching their major assault on London. With only the Hellsing Organization standing in the way of their mad slaughter of millions, the enigmatic ‘Major’ sends an elite attaché of Nazi Zombies to strike at the beating heart of the organization. At the same time, the Iscariot Organization gears up to take on Millennium with an army of their own, though their intent is quickly revealed to be more sinister than their catholic makeup belies. Close to the end of the collection, each of the three groups: Hellsing, Iscariot and Millennium, reveal their respective “trump cards”, creating one crazy three-way confrontation.
Many characters of the series undergo a significant amount of character development in this collection, chief among them being Seras. Her struggle with her clashing human and vampire nature’s reaches a head, and her role quickly changes from that of a comedic support character to one of the most badass chicks in anime history. On the other hand Alucard’s role in the series is very much downplayed in this collection, only making an appearance in the final episode. However, this protagonist’s lack of screen time is quickly made up for when Alucard reveals his most powerful ability, known as “Level Zero”. This revelation also comes with a significant dose of character development and an explanation as to why a vampire as powerful as he is bound to the will of humans.
Where the first four episodes of collection one dealt with character introductions and contextual set up, the episodes of Collection two are centered on what is widely considered to be the major conflict of the series. All four episodes are structured in an arc style of storytelling, unlike the episodes of Collection 1 which featured more one-shot standalone episodes. Even so, the story still flows at a well considered pace. Despite the abundance of over-the-top action sequences, such scenes are broken up by some very well written transitional dialogue which serves to not only let the viewers metaphorically “catch their breath” but also heighten suspense at the next action scenes to come. And with a series so intently focused on delivering fast paced, bloody action, this effect makes the viewing experience all the more attention grabbing.
This particular collection is a completely madness induced slaughterfest from start to finish, but like the first collection, the level of violence is never so realistic as to cause nausea in the viewer. That said, the R18+ restriction should be adhered to quite strongly, not just due to the violence, but also due to numerous disturbing scenes audiences are shown in Alucard’s and Seras’ pasts. The warning is there for a reason people. However, for all the brief unpleasantness, Collection 2 of Hellsing Ultimate is still an intense roller coaster of action driven events and one insanely entertaining anime (both figuratively and literally.)
Visual
The presentation of Hellsing Ultimate in Blu Ray is nothing short of amazing. Much like the first collection, the presentation of a series that is still a good five years old still stacks up, and in fact outshines many other anime series of the modern day. Character modeling is handled with a great amount of care with its detail, as is the manner in which said characters are bloodied, torn apart or liquefied in action sequences. Each character’s design is handled in a way which exemplifies their individual visual characteristics, which are at their richest in looking at Alucard’s and Seras’ transformation forms. After each transition, you can still tell that they’re the same character, but the look and feel of both is completely different.
If there would be a single colour that viewers are liable to get used to seeing, it’s RED. The fires of London and the bloody execution of violence will provide exposure in droves, which contrasts very strongly against the dark drawn backgrounds. Speaking of which, the background detailing is similarly well presented, highlighting a great visual juxtaposition between the colorful foreground elements with dark environmental ones. With the exception of confusing elements of mangled anatomy, there is never a scene where the viewer can’t visually discern what is going on.
Audio
The soundtrack of this collection is very much on par with that of the first collection, though the themes associated with action sequences do feel much faster paced to compliment the rapid deliverance of action. The increased intensity of the musical scores appropriately fit the increase in pace and euphoria as the bloodiest battle yet takes place.
Voice acting is equally as well handled in this second collection as it was in the first. The English translations are still performed exceptionally well, with a hugely respectable performance going to Crispin Freeman once again. However, this time around Katherine Gray and Steven Brand steal the show for their portrayals of Seras and Anderson, whose character performances really shine given their great level of development, and for continuing to nail those British and Irish accents without making them sound forced.
Extras
As is standard for a Madman DVD and Blu Ray release, Hellsing Ultimate Collection 2 is filled with a variety of bonus features. Of course the standard episode commentaries, trailers and textless openings are present, as is standard fare. The collection also contains a special round table segment which addresses both fan questions of the series creators and voice actors. A dubbing session for the show is also shown in a part of this presentation, which gives fans a great insight into what things are like behind the scenes in a recording environment.
The bonus features also includes a special panel event in Las Vegas 2010 for AnimeVegas, and most interestingly of all, a special subbed “prequel” episode called The Dawn, which explores the roots of the conflict portrayed in this collection, as well as the presence the Hellsing Organization had in one particularly famous conflict in human history. Like the first collection, if you enjoy your series extras, you won’t be disappointed.
Overall
Hellsing Ultimate Collection 2 takes everything from the first collection and makes it a faster, bloodier and crazier than the first. This series still remains a joy to watch from beginning to end with its intriguing characters; unique world perspective and challenging what some are liable to consider heretical views. Each episode will keep you fixated and wanting to see more, a feeling which is exemplified at the end of this collection’s events. Nonetheless, the madly maniacal rush of adrenaline you will get from this series is something which has yet to be challenged or reproduced in any series, and is something that truly must be experienced.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
U.S. data collection company Superdata has crunched the numbers to reveal the health of the video game industry. While the numbers are for the U.S. only, it’s fair to say the results will impact gaming globally. So broadly speaking, what do the numbers look like?
On the plus side March showed an increase of 2.9% month-on-month dragging the annual numbers up 1.3% year-on-year after February’s decline. This increase is due to sales reaching $875 million in the U.S. alone for March. Unfortunately this has been balanced off by social gamers tuning out as time passes on the bigger titles. The data shows that it’s the casual gamers ditching the joystick as conversions and revenue per user are up.
Free-to-Play MMOs are still pulling in audiences, with an extra 3 million players joining the fold in March. Monetisation is improving with time as well with revenue in the sector increasing by $195 million. Hawkenand MechWarrior Onlineare currently doing a lot of the heavy lifting in the sector.
Despite Pay-to-Play MMOs losing badly, having dropped 289,000 subscribers in the last month, revenue is stable at $86 million. Further decline is projected in April.
Mobile gamers are starting to show a disinterest in the platform but revenues are still strong in the ever expanding mobile platforms. A 7% year-on-year increase in revenues has converted into a pay day of $157 million for the sector this month.
Downloadable PC and console games are doing the largest amount of leg work for the sector. Of the $312 million revenue generated in March, equalling a 19% increase from last year, Bioshock: Infinite and Tomb Raider by themselves account for 9% of total growth.
That’s it for the numbers. Unfortunately the industry has seen better days but these numbers are still healthy; even if they do indicate negative traits that we’ve seen in the gaming world.
