When the Nintendo 3DS was released last year it was seen as a symbol that handheld gaming was in a slump and the sales of the new handheld gaming device were rather poor. However the Nintendo 3DS has long since been on the rise and Nintendo has revealed today that they company has sold 5 million units in Japan since its launch on February 26, 2011 until yesterday.
Nintendo has also revealed data from Media Create which shows that the GBA hit the 5 million sales mark after 58 weeks with the DS hitting that level after 56. This means that the 3DS hitting 5 million in only 51 weeks makes it the fastest selling handheld from Nintendo ever. Quite an accomplishment from a system which some were thinking was going to die by the end of 2012.
Remember Double Fine started up a Kickstarter to fund an old school adventure game’s development? Well you may remember that they only asked for $400,000 in donations from their fans at the time. However Kickstarter allows for as many donations as possible while the fund is project runs its 31 day campaign.
Well, fans were so generous that they reached the $400,000 goal in only eight hours and everything since then has been pure budget improvements for the title. Double Fine studio head Tim Schafer himself stated that the extra money would go into more production values for the games and accompanying 2 Player Productions document. Well, it seems all of those factors will have quite a lot of money pumped into them because with 22 days to go the total amount raised sits at $2,015,350 which is over 500% of what was asked for. Is it possible that the fund could reach $4 million before those 22 days are up? It is looking very likely as of now.
We have a few codes to give away for Grooh on iOS courtesy of DigiDingo. To win simply leave a comment on MasterAbbott’s iOS Suggestions #7 and we’ll pick a few lucky winners.
We’ll pick the lucky winners once we have a few entries. Make sure you leave a valid email when you post your comment so we can send you your code via email if you win.
Good Luck to all!
Want to know what Grooh is all about? Check out gameplay video below:
MasterAbbott returns with his Japanese Vita to run through the features of Sony’s latest handheld console. Take a look at applications such as near, the location based application which detects other Playstation Vita users, Party, which allows the user to create a party of Playstation Vita gamers and chat with them during gameplay and Welcome Park, which is the tutorial of the Playstation Vita system. All of the apps mentioned in the video will be available for Western gamers when the Playstation Vita launches this Wednesday (North America, Europe and PAL territories excluding Australia and New Zealand) and this Thursday (Australia and New Zealand).
Earlier this week EA announced that a new CG trailer for Mass Effect 3 would be released during the US airing of the newest The Walking Dead episode. And, like the evil sentient machines intent on harvesting all life in the universe, it has arrived with a bang.
The minute-and-a-half trailer depicts Earth being invaded by the Reapers (you know, the big evil machines that the Council “dismissed” as a figment of Shepard’s imagination… that turned out well) and Shepard coming back to the planet with Ashley Williams and a whole lot of troops, tanks, and gunships. Queue epic music, epic special effects, and an all too short-lived epic battle that features a lot of the Commander going all Kratos on a bunch of husks.
But why are you reading about it? Watch it. And then you’ll probably watch it again a good 500 times before realising you’ve spent the past five hours retreading the same minute and thirty seconds over and over and should probably head to bed.
You’ll feel like immediately turning on your console of choice and saving the galaxy, but that’s not possible until March 6th.
EA Sports have published a trailer to accompany the upcoming release of the SSX demo, which hits the Xbox Live Marketplace and the PlayStation Network tomorrow.
So check out the video down below to get a bit of a preview of what you’ll be able to do once you download the demo and save yourself a bit of time trying to figure everything out.
Creative director Todd Batty revealed that the demo will allow you to play four events from the full game and also offers two tutorials. Zoe Payne will be the only playable character unless you “refer” the demo to a friend in which case you can unlock Mac Fraser.
SSX hits shelves in just over a week (Feb 28th for US, 1st for Australia and 2nd for Europe), so the demo should be enough to keep you going until then.
The Creative Director of the hotly anticipated Ghost Recon Future Soldier, Jean Marc Geoffroy, has done a nice little Q&A session where he goes into detail about the game’s cover system and animations.
There are many comparisons with other military shooters, what makes Ghost recon special and how do you address the FPS Vs Third Person debate.
Being a third person shooter allows us to put the player in the heart of the action while also creating a connection with the story. This perspective is more immersive in that it gives the player a different relationship with the character and team. It allows the player to engage more naturally with the protagonist, and in GRFS it gives an insight into the world of Special Forces.
In terms of actual gameplay it allows us to do several things, besides the added visceral and physicality of seeing your character, we have an advanced cover system. This allows you to have a secure position to plan your attack and to analyze the battlefield. It means you can recon and prey on your enemies. Obviously you also have the peek feature which allows you to see around corners or pop up easily from behind cover and pick off enemy targets.
The third person view also allows us to inject supportive elements such as the UAV drone more naturally. You can secure a cover position and throw up your drone to plan your attack or use the “Tag ‘em and bag ‘em” feature to have you and your unit carry out synchronized kills.
Finally, we wanted to make sure the player felt like they were playing a precise shooter. You are an elite operative and the experience is all about shooting. We were very conscious of how an FPS has that precision and that is why we have 3 states for the player to choose from. You have the OTS “Instinct” view, “Aim” and then “Scope” all workable simply and on the fly.
What else has been added to the Ghost Recon since the previous series?
We wanted to provide the player a modern “Recon” experience. The game was founded on similar principles described by Charles Alvin “Charlie” Beckwith. Some people know him as one of the founding fathers of Delta Force. He was responsible for changing the perception and functionality of Special Forces in the 70s. He created special units of elite soldiers, able to adapt to all situations effectively and in a highly autonomous manner.
What’s key with these types of units is that they are made up of highly trained warriors who carry out missions very differently than traditional soldiers. This is what we want the player to experience and we constructed the game with all of these principles in mind. Intel and information dictates how they will attack and deal with an operation whether it’s taking out a key target or rescuing a VIP. Throughout, we give you various gadgets, such as a drones, sensor grenades and added intel that are fun to experiment with and use on the battlefield.
The cover system also adds to this “preparation” and intel gathering phase. The cover system allows you to quickly identify your next cover position (using the augmented reality provided Via CROSS COM device; the blue projection over your eye) and move to it fast and fluidly. When you’re in danger of getting pinned down, this allows the player to reach a safer position as fast as possible. It is especially useful since covers are dynamic and can be destroyed with sustained enemy fire, leaving the player out in the open and vulnerable. The cover swap varies depending on your approach. If you cover swap in recon: your visual signature is very low and you can get close to enemies while keeping your cover. This allows you to flank quickly without being spotted and giving you a tactical advantage to start the fight.
GRFS is the only modern military shooter that allows you to pass from recon to action whenever you decide. It means the game supports true classic recon throughout, but the fight scenes are not scripted. The AI reacts to the situation and the player, not to what a designer decides will happen. This means when you approach a situation, you use your intel and tools to prepare and you trigger the fight that gives you a tactical advantage over the enemy. Just like the principles taught by Beckwith. It allows the player to push the limits of how they want to play.
Could you tell us a little more about the animation and what makes it special?
First, it’s about working with the best, most elite operatives. We aim to be the most authentic and realistic military shooter on the market. Authenticity is the foundation of both the franchise and of the Tom Clancy Universe. Throughout our motion capture, we worked with former Navy Seals who gave us guidance and helped us capture that precision and realistic movement. These are big guys, but their training and skills allow them to effectively move like cats, which is crucial to their survival in the field. This led us to creating over 2500 animations on the main character alone to ensure that the player really enjoys the movement and can identify with his Ghosts. There were two phrases that they used that always stuck out in my mind: “Be a predator don’t be the prey.” And my personal favorite, “Fast is smooth, but slow is f*cking slow” J
One of the most rewarding aspects of our animation system and something new to Ghost Recon, are the CQC attacks and Stealth kills. We are really proud of the character’s movements as he busts out some Krav Maga or Jujitsu moves to take down an enemy and finish them off. We also extended this into the Ghosts’ characteristics – things like little twitches, peeks, ducking their heads when under fire, all the things that real humans do naturally.
Our designers were very demanding and wanted to inject the best of everything, reactivity in the player’s movements, a wide range of moves that are compatible between all different stances and movement speeds. However, the most important was to achieve perfect accuracy in the character’s movements and aiming as we are a precision shooter above all! Much of the development in terms of our animation system was created to allow for this agility. The system uses a huge number of transition animations, mixes additive and procedural animations, inverse Kinematics and other tricks. This enables the animators and programmers to match the designers’ expectations in terms of functionality, reactivity, and realism. For the player it means they fully control an elite soldier of the future, who has a group of highly trained warriors backing him up. It means he feels part of an intelligent, elite unit that supports you and knows what they have to do.
How does the animation deal with the 20 million different varieties of Gun Customisation?
This was a real challenge with Gunsmith as our system has to adapt to the 20 million different variables. The fact is that real operatives in the field customize their guns, so we had to figure out how to do the same with our animations system. We are very pleased with how the system now adapts to each weapon, but it also allows the player to see the left to right shoulder swap. This may sound like a small detail, but it’s an important tactic that is primarily used by seals which allows for a better line of sight when peeking, or breaching.
Well there you have it folks! it sounds like this game will bring something fresh to the military shooter market. You can also view the latest trailer below.
News regarding the latest instalment of the Sonic the Hedgehog 4 has revealed some very interesting information to the Sonic fanbase. Retro fans of Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 in particular will find reason to be excited about Sonic 4: Episode 2. Some of the revelations included those of screenshots, the return of the classic 2.5D Sonic 2 special stage and the announcement of a brand-new physics engine to replace the unfortunately questionable model from Episode 1. A recent update of the product page on the Xbox live marketplace has revealed to the world that not only will players be able to play as Sonic’s ever reliable sidekick Tails, but players will have the ability to play CO-OPERATIVELY in either Local or Online multiplayer! This is a feature not seen in use since ‘Shadow the Hedgehog’, in which a second player is able to take control of the sidekick character with the simple addition of a second controller. Only a few select Sonic games have implemented this feature in the past, and, as a hardcore Sonic devotee, it’s good to see the return of this feature.
While it was quickly removed from the marketplace, many fans were quick to copy it down into the information consuming miasma that is the internet. The leaked announcement from the marketplace can be found below, with a number of the afore mentioned screenshots.
The Sonic 4 Saga continues as Sonic reunites with Tails for all new collaborative play! Following the events of Episode I, Metal Sonic has returned to form a formidable alliance with Dr. Eggman! To face this new threat, Sonic will have to call upon an old friend to help him save the day! Joined by Tails, utilise ingenious combination moves and race across four brand new Zones, in order to put an end to their evil plans! Play alone, or with a friend locally (and online), in an evolution of Sonic 2′s collaborative gameplay! Unleash Sonic and Tails’ devastating joint attacks and combination moves to fight the united force of Metal Sonic and Dr. Eggman. Episode II features an all new game engine, bringing you updated physics and an original graphical style as you race through four unique Zones and a new Special Stage.
Raid Leader Developer: Crescent Moon Games/ Red Zebra Games Publisher: Crescent Moon Games Platform: iPhone(Reviewed)/ iPad Release: 9/2/12 Price: $0.99 – Available Here
Overview
You’re on a train home, eagerly waiting until you can sit down and play through hours of your favourite MMO or RPG. Your legs begin to shake, your hands start to twitch – all you can do is attempt to plan out attacks in your head. That is, until you reach down to your pocket and realize that you’ve recently purchased the latest iOS game from Crescent Moon Games and Red Zebra Games – Raid Leader. Raid Leader allows MMO/RPG fans a little taste of their favourite titles, not by creating a full length game with immersive story, but by taking elements of the genres and creating a unique strategy game ideal for gaming veterans wishing to practice their skills, or new comers willing to learn the ropes before taking the deep plunge into massive online worlds.
Story
It’s easy to interpret the story of Raid Leader either non-existent or ‘three heroes quest to rid Eldentir of evil. In doing so, one cuts the title completely short and is at risk of devaluing the 99-cent title for what it is – categorising it a casualisation of ‘hardcore’ game mechanics. The story is essentially the latter, the quest to rid the land of evil – told primarily through a few stills and text blurbs when the game is started. Yet, by keeping the story concise the developers have allowed for the story to be spoiled by cheesy story elements or predictable plot twists. Rather, it’s possible to just appreciate the title as a quest for self-improvement – which is what the game itself can be seen as. Giving players the option to replay levels and earn coins, to upgrade attacks, to try out numerous strategic plans, a long and arduous tale of progress is told. The story is pushed forward again by the visual style of map – moving from light to dark and a start to finish – ending with the victory of both the heroes and the players.
Gameplay
Raid Leader gives players control over three characters, a knight, a hunter and a priest. Each character will need to strategically utilise their unique skills in order to defeat a string of enemies. The majority of enemies appear in boss battles, spread across the land of Eldentir, with the odd exception of survival-based levels. The control system is highly intuitive, comprising of click and drag controls to move characters and a simple tap to unleash special attacks. Characters will automatically attack the enemy (or heal allies) they are targeted on, and it is up to the player to strategically move their characters away from danger or use special attacks, which will take different amounts of time to recharge. The upgrade system is a little watered down, with very few upgrades available for special attacks and not the widest range of attacks to purchase with in-game currency as there could be. The lack of character leveling up may also be a bit of a sting for RPG fans too. Yet, the basic essence is still alive and well – and utilised amazingly. Boss battles can go on for five minutes – five minutes of unleashing magic, healing allies, dodging attacks, setting off traps and hopefully claiming victory in the final seconds.
Visuals and Audio
The graphics are an odd little mix. When the game is opened players are greeted with a cartoony and friendly trio – the heroes. Immediately after, the world map appears, with a similar rendering of colours. But the graphics portray a much more serious game. There are animated clouds that float across the land of Eldentir that give it that extra little touch of an enclosed world. Once entering a boss battle/level, the world transforms into 3D – with the characters all able to roam around a small area. The heroes loose their cartoon-like appearance and take on a more serious form, which is a good thing too has some of the enemies look rather menacing. The original character design, especially for the enemies is particularly well done – especially considering the wide range in enemies there are to encounter throughout the game. The only thing that isn’t progressive through out the game is the audio. The soundtrack is the same for each level and the menu, and the sound effects don’t vary much between enemies or special attacks. However, I’m willing to overlook the repetitiveness because of the fact that the audio fits perfectly – I didn’t even notice the reuse of background music until I had to actually think about it.
Overall
Whether you’re a veteran MMO or RPG player, or new to the genre and wanting to introduce yourself to some of the mechanics – Raid Leader is the game for you. Scrap that, if you have an iOS device and want an excellent game, Raid Leader is the game for you. The interesting combination of game mechanics to create an entertaining and strategic string of boss battles will keep you tapping away for hours – even revisiting older levels just for the fun of it or to gain experience points. The graphics are progressive and look fantastic of both the iPhone and iPad – and with a universal application Apple fans are sure to reap the benefits of this well designed title. Whether you’re a gaming veteran or new to videogaming, especially MMO’s or RPG’s, this is an iOS title not to be missed.
The House of the Dead III Developer: Wow Entertainment Publisher: Sega Platform: Playstation 3 (via Playstation Network) Release Date: 14/02/2012 Price: $6.99
Overview
The House of the Dead III was originally an arcade game back in 2002. After ports onto the original Xbox, the PC and the Wii, the game makes its Playstation debut as a downloadable Playstation 3 title, with the next game, The House of the Dead 4, making its console debut on the Playstation Store later this year. The arcade rail shooter puts players into the shoes of either Lisa Rogan or G, both who have links with Thomas Rogan, who is the protagonist of the first game. With shotguns, plenty of zombies and Playstation Move support, will it unlock the inner zombie hunter within every gamer?
Story
The year is 2019 and civilisation has collapsed. You take control of either Lisa Rogan, daughter of ex-AMS and ex-captain agent Thomas Rogan, or a man who goes by the letter G, who had worked with Thomas Rogan before. Thomas Rogan was sent to investigate the EFI Research Facility with the theory that it may have been linked to the collapse of the world and all of civilisation. However, something happens in the facility and contact with Rogan is lost. It isn’t until two weeks later when Lisa and G arrive at the facility, hell bent to find out what happen to Thomas Rogan.
Even though there is a story behind it, don’t expect it to be a stellar one. In fact, it acts as motivation to kill the zombies and that’s that. Lisa and G have a connection to Thomas and are worried about his safety after they lose contact. That’s it. With the length of the game quite short, there isn’t time to divulge into the characters themselves, so no deep psychological torture here. As a horror story, it certainly suffers. The atmosphere isn’t there, thus not making the game scary. Then again, when does story have any importance in a game where you shoot zombies with a shotgun? There is back story for one Dr. Curien and his son, Daniel, through flashbacks. These flashbacks detail his motives before the infamous Curien Mansion case.
Gameplay
The House of the Dead 3 is your typical arcade rail shooter. Players must use a shotgun against a horde of zombies that take a life when the player is hit. Unlike the arcade version, however, the player does not need to use a light gun. The standard controller can be used. Three actions are only used in the arcade rail shooter. The analogue stick/ directional buttons are used to manoeuvre the cross-hair, the shoulder buttons shoot the shotgun and the action buttons are your reload buttons. However, if you do have a Playstation Move, then I would suggest using it, as it is quite accurate and responsive. It is the closest to the arcade experience with actions such as waving the Move controller across the screen and shaking it to reload the shotgun, close to the “off the screen” reloading that is accustomed with the arcade version of the game. If shaking the Move controller up and down is not your forte, then you can use the action buttons. Considering that the standard controllers have Sixaxis motion control, I am a little surprised that the shaking motion was not included in addition to one button reloading.
There are two modes of play: survival and time attack. Survival is basically going through the game and trying to beat it before you run out of lives and die. If you want two player action, then Survival is your only mode where partners are accepted. In Time Attack, it’s you against the clock as you shoot your way through the game, adding valuable seconds in order to survive. Time Attack is an addition over the arcade game, but was present for previous console ports. Both modes can be played for a position on an online leaderboard, but there is no online multiplayer. Trophies are also present, adding replay value to the game. Some of them, however, are beating a chapter, so you may grab a few during your first playthrough.
The range of zombies in the game is staggering. Of course, there are the typical zombies, like the fat, belching types and the overly jumpy ones, but there are also zombies this reviewer has not seen in his zombie shooting career. Zombies of that nature include cutlery throwing maniacs, zombies that look like overgrown versions of Cousin It and many more. Also expect the big type of zombie, such as one dressed as a security guard, as the boss battles of the game. These boss battles involves a light orange “Cancel” bar, underneath the green health bar of any boss, which must be drained in order to cancel an attack. These are the weak points of the boss, so it also does a little extra damage to the boss. If there is more than one weak point, then the bar will reflect that by adding extra sections in a different colour.
After each chapter, there is a ranking and grading system (different to the online leaderboard), assessing how you went in that particular chapter. The House of the Dead III was the first to use a ranking system in this capacity. During gameplay, you are rewarded with extra points depending on how fast you take down the zombies. These are Excellent, Good, Faster, and Twin Shot, where you take down two zombies with one bullet, which does happen at times. These, along with how you progress, contribute to a letter grade at the end of the chapter. These are, from best to worst, S, A, B, C, D and E. Gaining a high enough rank will give the player extra lives. An A rank gives one while a S rank gives two. Other ways to gain points are from different items found in crates and barrels, including coins that require the play to shoot multiple times and golden frogs. Gaining lives is different to. “Rescue” events occur once or twice during the chapters. The player must save their player from taking damage from a zombie, with the most threatening ones highlighted in red. If the player has the maximum number of lives (which can be set before the game begins), then it is added to the players total score. In terms of extra content, don’t expect much. Only additional difficulty levels and a short interview about the game are included.
Visuals and Audio
The visuals won’t blow anyone away, but they are slightly above average for an arcade port of a game from 2002. The enemy design shows both some imagination and a fall back to zombie clichés. Enemies I did like were the cutlery throwing maniacs and a massive sloth-like zombie which hangs on the inside of a cage. I was even surprise at the frame rate of the game, even if there was quite a bit of action. There was no noticeable slowdown, it held its ground. However, graphics of a port is usually a double-edge sword. The environments and the character models are basically retouched sixth generations graphics. It also lacks that creepy, scary feeling that it is meant to embrace.
While the graphics are not bad, the audio takes a hit. The soundtrack is not bad. There are horror clichés within the tracks, but some of them are quite upbeat, something I do not believe fits with a game like House of the Dead III. However, they are enjoyable. Voice acting isn’t bad but there is better in other games. What should have been polished before release, however, are the sound effects. Most of the zombies have the same groan, which made me grown quite a few times. The shougun effect is also quite bad. It cancels itself out after the halfway point, making sound like something is wedged right into that barrel.
Overall
The House of the Dead III is a great port of the arcade game. The Playstation Move support is accurate and responsive, which emulates the experience one finds when at the arcades. Features that were available for both the arcade and previous console ports are present with the addition of trophies, which will unleash the trophy hunter within all. Visuals aren’t bad but the audio could have been polished more. As an arcade shooter, this exceeds expectations. However, that is all I can say. In the broader scope of things, the lack of depth, as well as no online multiplayer and a lack of bite from the story, will turn gamers away. This is a game only for the hardcore zombie hunters.
