Capcom has today announced that 90s arcade classics Marvel vs Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes and Marvel Super Heroes will be coming to Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network in the form of Marvel Vs. Capcom Origins.
Originally released in arcades in the mid-1990s, Marvel Super Heroes features traditional one-on-one brawls between iconic Marvel heroes and villains. Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes introduced tag-team battles into the fray, and as the name suggest brought in a slew of Capcom characters into the fight.
The new Marvel Vs. Capcom Origins compilation features both classic arcade games in full with updated HD graphics, online multiplayer, 8-player lobbies, spectator mode, dynamic challenges and replay saving – along with the classic 90s arcade fighting action.
Marvel Vs. Capcom Origins is set to be released in September for XBLA and PSN for 1200 Microsoft points/$15 respectively.
Marvel Studios has reveled a really awesome piece of concept art for Iron Man 3!
Iron Man 3 is heavily into production, and this new piece of concept art is looking pretty cool. Fans already know that the storyline for Iron Man 3 will be loosely ased around the Warren Ellis’ Iron Man: Extremis storyline where Tony has the suit bonded to him via nanotechnology, so it’s possible that’s what could be happening in this concept art here. However that being said it could also just be a tease of Tony getting into the suit itself. Most exciting however is that fans attending this year’s San Diego Comic-Con will be able to get this concept art as a poster for free!
Iron Man 3 will blast it’s way into theatres May 3, 2013.
The Avengers will assemble for home release on September 25, 2012!
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment has released a trailer alongside the cover art for the Blu-ray and DVD release of Marvel’s The Avengers and man, it is looking sweet!
Marvel’s The Avengers is the third highest-grossing movie of all time, so you know Disney has big plans for the home release! In anticipation of the release Marvel is launching a new App this month titled The Avengers Initiative: A Marvel Second Screen App, which gives fans a unprecedented access to exclusive content as it is released for the App throughout July & August.
Fans can expect to pick up Marvel’s The Avengers on Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray, DVD, Digital and On-Demand platforms on September 25, 2012. The 4-Disc Bly-Ray Combo Pack provides 5 unique ways to enjoy the film, on Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray, DVD, Digital Copy and a Digital Download of Avengers Assembled: Music from and inspired by the film.
Special Features includes a gag reel (first time for a Marvel Studios film),talks with the cast and Joss Whedon, a behind-the-scenes look at visual effects and cinematography, the creation of the S.H.I.E.L.D Helicarrier, a Music Video for Soundgraden’s Live to Rise, deleted scenes and more!
Marvel’s The Avengers will be available on September 25, 2012. Suggest retail price is $49.99 for The 4-Disc Blu-ray Combo pack, $39.99 for the 2-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack and $29.99 for the 1-Disc DVD.
Good news for fans of Half Moon Studios’ upcoming Transformers: Fall of Cybertron, the game has been given an earlier release date.
Fall of Cybertron has been given the new release date of August 21 and 24for US and Europe, a whole week earlier than originally planned on August 28 and 31.
Half Moon Studios states ‘pride in its work’ and continued fan requests for the game as reasons for the unexpected move.
Transformers: Fall of Cybertron has also received a brand new trailer in light of the announcement. The trailer shows off the city-size transformer Metroplex in all his glory, aiding the Autobots against the Decepticon.
Transformers: Fall of Cybertron is set to be released for Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and PC on August 21
343 Industries has released a brand new trailer explaining Halo 4’s multiplayer and Spartan Ops modes. The new video reveals that Halo 4 will in fact have two campaigns, its main story and Spartan Ops.
Spartan Ops missions will be released episodically and each episode, complete with CG cut-scenes, will contain five cooperative missions.
Halo 4’s multiplayer is now dubbed War Games and will take place on the UNSC Infinity. Player progress will be track, much like in Halo: Reach however this time around this also extends to Spartan Ops as well.
Halo 4 is set to be released exclusively for Xbox 360 on November 6.
The next title handed down from the gods of Mojang. Scrolls lies somewhere between Magic the Gathering and Heroes of Might and Magic. One commands an army in turn based combat on a battlefield of hex’s and effects the tide of battle with spells in the form of cards. Mojang has said that like Minecraft the game will be available to purchase in its open beta stage for a reduced price and fittingly purchasing the game also buys you a subscription to recieve a new scroll each week to add to your deck.
The game is set to include Multiplayer, Singleplayer vs AI, an auction house and a deckbuilder to build decks out of the many scrolls you will accrue as a young apprentice journeying through the world earning gold for winning battles. Then the decision becomes whether to spend your hard earned coin on gear or scrolls. Open beta is approaching fast and I for one can’t wait. Just..
Ahead of the highly anticipated release ofNew Super Mario Bros. 2available on Nintendo 3DS from 17th August, Nintendo is releasing a one-off collectable gold (coloured, not actually made from gold) coin case as an exclusive pre-order gift when you pre-order your copy at GAME and gamestation stores. The small case – a replica of Mario’s iconic Coins – can hold any number of small objects, including theNew Super Mario Bros. 2Nintendo 3DS Game Card itself if you’re that way inclined.
Simply pre-order New Super Mario Bros. 2 at GAME UK or gamestation to receive the collectable gold coin case, a bonus to suit Mario’s coin-collecting ways.
Studio: Gameloft Publisher:Gameloft Platform:iPhone (reviewed), iPad, Android Release Date: June 28, 2012 Price:$6.99 Available Here
Overview
The most amazing thing about The Amazing Spider-Man by Gameloft is how surprised I am. It should be referred to as The Surprising Spider-Man from now on. Movie tie-ins are generally considered to be really average or sucky games, and on mobile devices they tend to be some of the worst crap you could ever possibly play. But Gameloft have lived up to their reputation of providing high-quality hardcore games for mobile devices, and delivered a solid title reminiscent of the classic Spider-Man 2 web-heads fell in love with back in 2004. What’s even more surprising is that while this is the 2nd Spider-Man title by Gameloft, they actually went back to the drawing board and pretty much reinvented the gameplay all together resulting in a very, very different type of game. While it isn’t perfect, The Amazing Spider-Man is easily one of if not the best movie-based mobile game I’ve played and is definitely worth picking up if you’re a Spider-fan!
Gameplay
First thing that you’ll notice is how freaking awesome it is to swing around Manhattan from your mobile device. While the web doesn’t actually have to connect to any particular building, this is easily forgiven as it does make navigation easier. With a simple tap, you can swing to insane heights and letting go will have you lunging towards the ground creating an intense adrenaline rush. Speed and crazy acrobatics provides a really rewarding experience which really fights the problem most sandbox games have – navigation is typically boring, but here it’s probably the most exciting aspect of the game. Players can also take advantage of Spidy’s web to create a zip-line to travel at even faster speeds, which is also effective. Of course, navigating a city is pointless if there’s nothing to do in the city, and The Amazing Spider-Man does deliver to some extent. While there is very little variety of crimes to stop in the city (it’s usually just stop the bad guys beating up the cops), challenges are provided which do switch up the gameplay a little bit. What’s really surprising however is how much the camera doesn’t suck. Most Spidy games often have crappy cameras, yet even after completing the entire storyline, I had no complaints for the most part. That being said there are a few bugs here and there, but most are so insignificant it’s easily forgivable.
But Spider-Man does more than just swing around a city right? Doesn’t he kick all kinda of bad-guy butt and stuff? You bet he does! Unfortunately combat can get a little repetitive. Luckily Gameloft attempt to distract you from this with a variety of mission objectives such as chasing people, stealth missions, etc. However the combat while decent in The Amazing Spider-Man, it doesn’t have the same impact as it did in Gameloft’s last Spidy game, Ultimate Spider-Man: Total Mayham. That being said, it’s not half bad. While there is a nice tech tree to level up and buy new moves and upgrades from, none of these unlockable moves really improve gameplay at all, and are easily forgotten. Furthermore switching from combat mode to navigation mode is awkward, and the lack of variety in enemies is very dissapointing. Unlike every other Spider-Man game made ever which features multiple super villains, this one features one – The Lizard. So this lack of variety leads to some very repetitive and unsurprising gameplay. Perhaps if some more were thrown in, the game would’ve been a little more interesting. The game’s biggest problem however is a lazy and confusing one. At a particular part of the story mode, a section has Spider-Man lose his powers. But he only loses the ability to web swing. He can still zip-line, crawl walls, everything else. The worst part is, the film it’s based on clearly states that shooting web isn’t even a power, it’s a technology he uses so the entire section of the game is just annoying.
Audio/Graphics
The Amazing Spider-Man clearly doesn’t have the same actors as the film it’s based on. Voice acting is cheesy as hell and the only thing in this game worse than that is the terrible dialogue the poor voice talent was forced to perform. I cannot stress how painful it is to hear the Amazing Spider-Man actually call himself ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’. Music however is very typical of the Spider-Man universe and does a great job of setting the tone of the game. Graphics on the other hand are much nicer. While cars can look a bit block-ish, character models and textures are absolutely stunning and the frame rate is perfect. I don’t know how they done it, but there is nothing more rewarding than getting some massive air and looking out at the horizon and seeing the beautiful scenery with buildings as far as the eye can see – and that you can travel too. Simply put, it’s amazing. See what I did there?
Overall
The Amazing Spider-Man is a top quality mobile game. While it does suffer from a few flaws, it’s still a very solid and fun game to play. Gameloft have perfectly captured the feeling of being Spider-Man with the navigation aspect of the game. While the combat isn’t perfect however, it is still charm to play. It’s clear a lot of effort went into this title and it has certainly paid off. This is a must have title for Marvel Superhero fans and solid evidence that not all games based on films are cheap cash-ins. Hopefully we can see more Spidy titles from Gameloft in the near future.
BBG Entertainment announced today the worldwide release of Einstein™Brain Trainer, which sees the theoretical physicist and his celebrated cerebral conundrumsappearon the Apple iPhone for the first time.
The game is now available on the App Store, priced £1.79.
In addition, BBG Entertainment has launched an update to Einstein™ Brain Trainer HD for the iPad, granting users access to 12 extra activities for free.
EinsteinBrain Trainer Features:
30 exercises in all, with 15 specially developed for the App
Scientific background including a tutorial for each exercise
Daily Tests to check your current “Brain Fitness”
Dynamic adaptation of the difficulty level of individual exercises
Continuous interaction between Albert Einstein and the player
Detailed help system accessible from anywhere in the game
Trophy room for awards received
Hot Seat mode – multiplayer mode on a single iPhone
Game Center support for a global high score ranking
Personal coaching by the likeness of Albert Einstein
Rosario + Vampire: Season II Volume 9 Author:Akihisa Ikeda Publisher:Viz Media Release Date: July 3, 2012 Price: $9.99 –Available Here
Overview: It is standard practice for a manga to introduce a powerful new force which is capable of soundly defeating every main character, leaving them with barely any life left in their bodies. This usually then leads into the cast doing everything that they can to try and become stronger and defeat this new opponent. While Rosario + Vampire Season II may originally have been billed as a romantic-comedy with elements of action mixed in, the series has seen quite an increase in action, with Volume 8 being no exception.
Those curious about our review for Volume 8 can find it here. Now that Rosario + Vampire Season II Volume 9 has hit shelves, does the heavy atmosphere of combat continue or will it provide readers with some new romantic developments between characters?
Story: Volume 9 picks up immediately after the end of Volume 8, throwing readers into the middle of the battle between the seemingly unstoppable Aqua and LingLing who may be Tsukune and the group’s only hope of protecting Moka from Fairy Tale, a group that appears hell bent on kidnapping Moka for their apocalyptic plans. With LingLing and Aqua battling against one another, Kurumu just barely manages to rescue Tsukune, Mizore and Tohofuhai from Moka’s seal. However all of their struggling is for naught with the wave of Aqua’s hand and a sinister trick that stays the angry group.
After witnessing just how weak he truly is, Tsukune swears that he will do anything that he can to save Moka from Fairy Tale, even if it means risking his life. However with Tohofuhai taking charge of the training, his life may very well be the cost of power. Can Tsukune possibly survive such torturous training and can the rest of his friends become strong enough to take on the powerful Fairy Tale and save Moka?
With the finishing of Moka’s backstory last volume we have a stage set for the beginning of a mild training arc accentuated heavily with fast paced action. From the battles with Aqua and the twist that Tsukune’s training takes, there is no shortage of fighting throughout the volume. On the other hand, the humor of Rosario + Vampire does return slightly as we have a few breaks in the action for small jokes made at the expense of Aqua or Tohofuhai.
Volume 9 also sees the solidification of a number of Tsukune’s harem members, with Mizore and Kurumu having to come to grips with Tsukune’s sudden heartfelt confession in Volume 8. This is a nice piece of character development for these two who have been given smaller segments of the story lately. Along these same lines, readers will also witness Aqua go through a number of bi-polar changes in personality, which raises a number of questions about what exactly made her who she is today.
Artwork: With an action heavy volume such as this one the story’s artwork has remained pleasantly consistent and well detailed throughout. These fights are well drawn and the emotions that the characters are feeling are very evident in their faces as it seems that Akihisa has went through quite some effort to detail these faces, some of which can take up page-sized panels. The final few pages are especially worth mentioning in their quality though what they happen to feature is up to you to read for yourself.
This time around Volume 9 includes what is described as two mini-posters, however it is simply one poster which is double sided. This is a bit unfortunate for those who would want to use both images, as one side features Tsukune with a slightly opaque Outer Moka standing against his back while the other features both Mizore and Kurumu in their swimsuits.
Overall:
With Moka’s past revealed, Rosario + Vampire Season II Volume 9 successfully capitalizes on the cliffhanger from the past volume by bringing readers plenty of action, some interesting character developments while also weaving a bit of comedy within the dramatic turns that the story has been developing over the last few volumes. Volume 9 doesn’t leave off with much of a cliffhanger, instead ending in a resolution which will leave fans eager to see the outcome in of such a resolution in Volume 10.
The Avengers will assemble for home release on September 25, 2012!
BBG Entertainment announced today the worldwide release of 
