Sideway: New York is bright, cheerful, colorful and charming in its latest trailer. Although the city is dark with the cover of night, New York does not have a foreboding look in this game. Instead, Sideway: New York looks rather like a Cartoon Network production. And indeed, the developers behind the game are attempting to kickstart a cartoon property with this video game, instead of the other way around. Priced at $9.99, this game will release on October 11, 2011 on the Playstation Network. This 2D platformer has definitely piqued our interest due to the outstanding art direction and different idea.
Upcoming PSN game – ‘Sideway: New York’
‘Rochard’ – New game for PSN
Rochard is an upcoming game for the Playstation Network, wherein you play an old timey space miner with a Texas accent. Created by former employees at Remedy, the new studio, named Recoil games, is releasing this game for $9.99 on September 27, 2011. Although the accents are a little ridiculous, we did enjoy the humor, and the guffaws were many and loud. Check out the trailer below, and let us know what you think. Will you be going underground to save Rochard from the dangerous enemies beneath? This puzzle-platformer certainly looks like it has the action to be exciting enough.
Surviving High School goes High Def for the iPad
High school is one of the most dramatic times of your life so it was only a matter of time until a game based around that drama was made. EA mobile have released Surviving High School HD on the iPad based on that concept.
I’m sure a fair few of us would have enjoyed high school a lot more if we’d had the control over events then that you can have in this game; you can choose your place in the high school hierarchy, interact with evolving storylines, and participate in some epic first loves. Every week there are new free episodes that come out as the characters around you get into their own angsty teenage dramas and you can either get involved or keep away.
The iPad version comes with a visual upgrade to High Def that improves the graphics of those pretty faces. It also comes with the addition of ‘Faceplace’ a Facebook imitation where the characters post about their feelings and maybe what they ate for lunch. Along with these two features the interface and general look is given a facelift, improving the gaming experience overall.
If you want any more information about Surviving High School HD head on over to www.eamobile.com.
Well, what are you waiting for? School’s in!
New Atari execs are here
New guys are moving up the totem pole at Atari. A new CFO, Robert Mattes, senior VP of digital publishing, Owais Farooqui, and new VP of mobile, Mario Pacheco, are coming to town and they will enable Atari to “shift its core focus to casual gaming experiences designed for mobile, social networks and emerging platforms” through Atari.com, Facebook, Google+, browser-based gaming, tablets and smartphones. Now if we could just get Twitter on the list…. (just kidding).
Dungeons and Dragons: Neverwinter will be launching on Facebook as one of the first games to test out Atari’s strategy. Of course, Atari’s retro games will also be helping them make the switch, with the likes of Asteroid, Missile Command, Centipede, Breakout and Pong heading up the list.
Rayman Origins release date & video from Gamescom
Ubisoft announced the release window for Rayman Origins at Gamescom this week. At the end of the trailer embedded below, it is revealed that the game will be coming to the 3DS, Wii, Xbox 360 and PS3 in November 2011. However, the Playstation Vita version of the game will not be coming out in November, as the system will not reach European or North American shelves till 2012.
If you have a weak stomach, you may want to avoid the trailer below. It features music made from the digestive processes of Rayman and Co., and then a meek angry old lady tears her husbands head off, all in a charmingly animated 2D style.
Gamestop Overall Sales Drop, Digital Sales Rise
Gamestop, the giant video game store of the United States, has plummeted in terms of overall sales and profit in the second quarter compared to Q1 2011 and compared to the same period of 2010, according to a report on GamesIndustry.biz. The company has revealed a drop of 3.1% to $1.74 billion. Slow hardware sales and lack of compelling software titles are cited as reasons for the drop. Quarter profit is at $30.9 million, a drop from $40.3 million from Q1 2011.
However, there is some good news for the store chain. Sales of their digital distribution store have shot up 69%, which was above expectations. Second hands sales also saw an increase, albeit a small one of 12%.
“GameStop’s resilient retail model enabled us to achieve our earnings plan despite a challenging period for the industry,” said Paul Raines, CEO.
“Through the back half of the year, we expect industry software sales to accelerate based on an exciting title line-up. Meanwhile, the digital and loyalty programs we have brought to market continue to gain traction with consumers and position us as a leading partner with publishers.”
I think it’s time for a breakdown. First, the period between Q2 2010 and Q2 2011:
• Profit from second hand software & hardware: $292.4m (46.2%)
• Profit from new software and hardware: $152.8m (29.5%)
• Profit from other, including digital sales: $98m (41.7%)
Below are the second quarter of 2011. These are all in percentages since there are no monetary figures available:
• Used games and hardware sales: 36.3%
• New games sales: 34.4%
• New hardware sales: 15.8%
• Other: 13.5%
Red Hot Chili Peppers come to Rock Band
8 Red Hot Chili Peppers songs will be playable in Rock Band on August 30. Most of the songs are from newer records, as the older Red Hot Chili Pepper songs are already available as DLC. Pricing is set at $1.99 on the Xbox 360 and PS3, while the Wii songs cost a whopping one penny more. The entire set list that will be available is as follows:
Included in the “I’m With the Chili Peppers” pack ($13.49):
“By the Way”
“Californication” + $0.99 for Pro Guitar and Pro Bass
“Look Around”
“Monarchy of Roses”
“Otherside” + $0.99 for Pro Guitar and Pro Bass
“Parallel Universe”
“Scar Tissue”
“The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie”
Harmonix and Red Hot Chili Peppers are also hosting some prize pack giveaways on their Twitter and Facebook pages. Check out Facebook.com/ChiliPeppers, Facebook.com/RockBand along with @ChiliPeppers and @RockBand on Twitter for giveaways on 8/23 and 8/30 featuring Red Hot Chili Peppers I’m With You CDs, t-shirts, posters, Rock Band 3, and Xbox 360 codes for the “I’m With the Chili Peppers Pack”.
SSX – Newest Gamescom screens & video
The winner of 7 E3 awards, the latest SSX game from EA Sports was promoted heavily at Gamescom. With the announcement of Ridernet, a feature that is similar to Autolog in Need for Speed, and the addition of online “ghost” runs, EA Sports next SSX game will be on the wish list of many gamers. In addition, it was revealed that up to 100,000 people can race all at once all around the globe, although it is unlikely they will be on the same map. *Wink*
Check out the latest screenshots and pre-alpha footage of the game below, and then get prepped for a January launch… down the side of a mountain!
Ubisoft debut new trailer for The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn…
During E3, Ubisoft introduced us to The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn, which will be released right alongside the upcoming cinema production. I honestly didn’t pay much attention to the game right off hand, but the more we are seeing from TinTin and the large variety of gameplay mechanics within, the more I am feeling like Ubisoft might be setting out to shatter the Movie-tie in curse that has plagued gamers for years.
A new trailer was shown at Gamescom, showing TinTin explore a vivid and colorful world with a classic and cheerful atmosphere. The abilities this young protagonist possesses are also impressive, as the player will be able to wall jump, use stealth, and also play as several different characters as they platform throughout the game’s many stages. Check out the new trailer below, and let us know what you think about The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn in the comments below.
Tekken 3D Prime Edition includes Blood Vengeance
At Gamescom 2011 Namco Bandai announced that a special version of Tekken 3D, called the Tekken 3D Prime Edition, will include “the forthcoming full-length animated feature film TEKKEN Blood Vengeance… on the game cartridge in full 3D. TEKKEN Blood Vengeance is produced by Digital Frontier (Resident Evil: Degeneration, Death Note, Appleseed) and directed by Youichi Mouri (opening movies for TEKKEN 5 and TEKKEN 6: Bloodline Rebellion).”
In addition, this game will also include the King of Iron Fist Tourney, which can be played with 40 characters, and of course, it will be in 3D. Plus, it will make use of the WIFI functions on the console.