The slew of remakes and reboots continues on September 14, just a day before the Tokyo Game Show, when Radiant Silvergun launches on the Xbox Live Marketplace. For only 1200 Microsoft Points, or $15, you will receive the classic vertical-scroller, online co-op for two, “Saturn” and “arcade” game modes, different graphic options, and an an optional Ikaruga scoring variant.
With all these companies releasing their past games in newly repackaged formats, it will certainly be interesting to see if they try to come out with a new game based on the franchises they have previously released, or if they merely continue to port their games with added features. Which do you like better?
A brand new mystery will be at hand for puzzle fans when the Testament of Sherlock Holmes is released in fall this year (that’s in the Northern hemisphere of course, my dear Watson). The latest in the series of puzzle games based around Baker Street’s most famous Robert Downey Jr lookalike will see the detective framed for a series of crimes including theft, fraud, and, murder? The people of London, the bobbies of Scotland Yard, and even the ever loyal Dr Watson will all begin to lose their faith in him as Holmes finds himself unable to prove his innocence.
Players will step in to give Holmes and his genius level intellect a hand, examining clues, re-enacting crimes and interrogating witnesses in an effort to clear the detective’s name and solve the mystery.
Testament will be the first of the Sherlock Holmes games to be developed specifically for the PS3 and Xbox 360 rather than PC (although it will release across all three platforms), so the controls and visuals should be a step up from the previous adventures. The screenshots released today are all about showing off the “lush, captivating environments” made possible by an all new game engine, and they do look promising. Dr Watson has his trusty revolver on hand, and Victorian London looks like it should.
Hopefully the success of the Guy Ritchie film (with an upcoming sequel of its own) has revitalised interest in Holmes enough to make the title something worth investing in for both developers and gamers. The focus on consoles seems like a good thing for the series, so hopefully come the end of the year there will be an intresting little mystery on the hands of Holmes fans everywhere.
After a week off we get right back into the mix with new editor to the site Joshua Spudic. We get into what game creatures we would like as a pet, Alexis gets his shipment from NYC and is finally able to play video games again and we all get into the weeks game news.
Cast: Alexis Ayala, Michael Marr, Luke Halliday and Joshua Spudic
Oh yes people, there are some new screenshots and info available for the Nintendo 3DS WWE All Stars game, which for the first time will literally be able to say that it’s in your face. THQ is promising fun arcade style gameplay that will appeal to casual followers and hardcore fans alike – all in spectacular 3D. Every wrestler will have grapples, combos, finshers and signature moves, and the usual create-a-superstar mode is along for the ride as well.
So what about the line up? Well All Stars claims to have the best roster ever, with a total of 43 Superstars and Legends. Current gen superstars like Rey Mysterio and John Cena will be able to battle it out with Andre the Giant, Bret ‘Hitman’ Hart, and for the first time ever in a THQ/WWE game, Macho Man Randy Savage.
“Oooh, yeah!”
There will also be two game modes exclusive to the 3DS: Gauntlet and Score Scramble. A single man at a time style Royal Rumble, Gauntlet sets up the player against every Superstar and Legend in the game, taking them on in consecutive matches with showing off your skills the only way to regenerate health. Score Scramble challenges players to be as over the top as possible, and pull off the most outrageous moves to land the win with the highest score.
Another highlight are the ‘Best of All Time’ match ups, with past and present superstars pitted against each other to determine who’s the champ when it comes to ‘Best Big Man’ and ‘Most Impressive High Flier”, to name a few.
WWE All Stars 3DS will so far be coming to North America (22 November), Australia and New Zealand (24 November) and Europe (25 November).
So can a 3DS WWE title really have the best roster ever? Excited for some 3D brawls? As ever – let us know below…
It’s all lights, camera, action as Driver San Francisco shows up with yet another promo video, this time showcasing the ‘film director’ mode. Racing fans who fancy a sideline in movie making will be able to record their own driving using several different cameras and angles, edit all the footage together, and upload the finished product for the Driver world to see.
It’s difficult to tell how in depth the editor will actually be from the brief flashes of interface on show here, but the premise is a good one – being able to recreate your favourite movie car chase can only be a good thing after all. By the look of the opening few seconds, it’s only a matter of time until we get a Bullitt remake a la Driver San Francisco!
Crazy Machines: Elements
Developer: FAKT Software
Publisher: DTP Entertainment
Platforms: XBLA (reviewed), PSN, PC
Release Date: August 24, 2011
Price: 800 MSP – (Available Here)
Overview
A tennis ball rolls down a tube hitting a lever. Suddenly, the lever flings the tennis ball at a nitrous flask. As the flask falls off the ledge, a box of fireworks rests below. BLAST OFF!! This type of phenomenon can only be reached in the labs of Crazy Machines: Elements. Whether you are using electricity to start a fire or a steam machine to power a treadmill, the game takes machine creation to another level. Time for the nuts and bolts break down!
Gameplay
Each level displays a main objective for the player to achieve. Once the objective is completed, the level will be finished. Then the player may choose to retry, go on to the next, or exit the level. An objective could be anywhere from dropping a ball through a hoop to breaking a jar.
The inventory is the mad professor’s arsenal of tools for each round. Through the main levels the inventory is automatically set. By having limited amount of tools, the difficulty is basically a guessing game to match the developer’s line of thought. Starting off the levels are very simple and easy to figure out – i.e., put plank under basketball tilted towards the hoop. However, levels become increasingly complex and take several hours to complete.
The complexity of the each level is also determined by the number of gears to collect. A set number of gears are placed throughout a stage and must be touched to attain a perfect machine. A player may continue on to the next stage even if all of the gears are not collected. All gears must be collected at the time of objective completion. Even if your machine plays past the completion, any gears attained after will not be calculated. I became enraged after finding this little tidbit out. RAWR!!!! Make yourself accustomed to delaying objects.
My personal favorite aspect of the game is to design your own machine. Integrating this custom option lets the player take the reins. A challenge option also becomes available to players. Other players may pose a greater challenge than the developers at FAKT software. Machines can be uploaded online to prove who is the craziest scientist of them all with leaderboards as proof.
Graphics/Audio
Graphics are usually the main cause of misguidance. Inventory items like gears can only be placed on a solid backdrop such as metal or wood. Tools cannot overlap each other, and boundaries are more than likely a factor in item placement. Items like the punching bag need to be correctly positioned on a surface in order to be locked in place.
The in-game items mesh well with each other and deliver a solid animation performance. When a small toy truck is making its way to a nitrous flask, you know for sure that something is going to blow.
On smaller resolutions the text boxes are very small and hard to read. The objectives are crucial to understand the purpose of each level, and a hardly legible text is an unnecessary flaw. After several seconds the text disappears but can be accessed from a hint tool. Having larger text would make gameplay easier on any resolution.
Level music is not annoying which is a definite plus. The scores are tasteful and somewhat relaxing. Depending on the player’s ability, the levels may not last longer than a few minutes but on the off chance the music may become repetitive.
Audio effects are probably the most detailed in the game. While not every action is given its own *ding* or *swoosh*, Crazy Machines: Elements has quality sound effects that tickle your eardrums. A lightning zap here and a cracking jar there is a necessity to the game’s fruition. Without these effects, the audience would not grasp the entire picture. Fireworks without booms and pops are just pretty colors.
Overall
Crazy Machines: Elements delivers a solid backbone of levels for play. By providing a limited inventory basis, the FAKT software minimized available solutions for each stage. While this aspect can be seen as a negative, the player is challenged with collecting all of the gears with limited tools.
But creating a custom machine is exactly the freedom a mad geek needs. Creating a machine and having others try to master your creation can only extend the game’s life. The challenge mode will certainly entertain those who have completed the original levels and give players a chance to rank higher on the leaderboards.
What would Crazy Machines: Elements be without sound? Boring. Explosions, zaps, and crashes make more amusement as well as common sense. With a mellow background music and neat sound effects, this nutty game makes for quite a ride.
With a super tight marketing period, Hard Reset was announced only a month ago and it will release on the 13 of September. This game is aiming to create a new breed of videogame marketing, one where it doesn’t take countless hours of hopeful waiting on your part for the game to release. So far, it appears to be working out well for the team behind the game.
Hard Reset will launch with a price point of $30, although by pre-ordering on Steam, you can get 10% off. The operating specs for the game and the official website are below. It certainly looks like a game to keep an eye on.
MINIMUM:
OS: Windows XP/Vista/7
Processor: 2.5 GHz Intel Pentium 4 / AMD Athlon 64
RAM: 2 GB
Graphics card: 512 MB NVIDIA GeForce 8800GS / ATI Radeon HD 3870 or better
Sound Card: DirectX Compatible
DirectX: DirectX 9.0c
Hard Drive: 4 GB free hard drive space
RECOMMENDED:
OS: Windows XP/Vista/7
Processor: Intel Quad Core 2.3 GHz / AMD Phenom II x4 2.5 GHz
RAM: 3 GB
Graphics card: 512 MB NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GT / ATI Radeon HD 4870 or better
Sound Card: DirectX Compatible
DirectX: DirectX 9.0c
Hard Drive: 4 GB free hard drive space
Back at E3, Sony announced a Playstation branded 3DTV, which is to retail at USD $500. There was a vague late 2011 release date attached to it until now, as Sony has announced that the TV shall land in stores in November. Now that’s a little less vague.
The TV features SimulView technology, using the 3D effect to display each player a separate screen, which rids of the half screens of the split screen. The TV will also come with an HDMI cable, one pair of 3D glasses (extra pairs come at a price of $70) and Motorstorm: Apocalypse. Pre-order the TV before September 30, however, and receive an extra game, Resistance 3, on top of the already sweet deal.
Although not an early adopter of 3D, having a full screen for local multiplayer is actually a good idea. I guess, though, the feature will be limited to two players, if you have the extra pair. Have you say below. Are you guys going to pick it up or give it a miss?
Amazing Lego Artist, Bowkenken, has recreated several popular Mecha anime series opening theme songs – in Lego Stop-Motion. He recreates some amazing sequences, such as the opening for Getter Robo, Gundam Victory and my personal favourite Eureka Seven.
Bowkenken has a website in which he explains how to create Lego version Mecha and how he made the opening theme recreations. You check out his website here and several of his other videos here.
Also check below for what is without a doubt my favourite of his videos – side by side with the anime version – Eureka Seven’s opening theme. Please leave a comment below letting us know what you think.
The year is 1962, and weird things are happening. It is your duty to find out what is going on and to put a stop to it. Luckily, you have access to some alien weapons to help you out on your journey. That is the premise of XCOM, the upcoming game from 2K.
Although this video demo was originally shown off at E3, it has just been declassified and made available for public viewing. With commentary from the developers, this demo shows off a lot of the features, gamplay and other things you’ll come across in XCOM. The game is scheduled for a March 6, 2012 release date. Are you ready to investigate and survive the 60s?
