With only a week until the highly anticipated fourth season of the emmy-award winning series Breaking Bad commences, AMC has given fans a chance to get an inside look at the undoubtedly epic continuation of the series.
The past 3 seasons have solidified Breaking Bad in the history of television as one of the greatest television series of all time, with season 4 looking to continue to hold that reputation. You can check out the inside look videoes below, featuring many cast and crew members discussing what to expect from the next season as well as recap the unanswered questions from the past seasons and whether we will get some answers this time around.
After waiting over a year for this, finally the time has almost come. Until then, check out these videoes from AMC below:
Another week gone…l haven’t done much gaming, but I was lucky enough to get some hands-on and play a few hours of Driver San Francisco and Call Of Juarez Cartel multiplayer over at Ubisoft offices here in Sydney. Check out both of our previews here and here. As always I’ve been playing with my 3DS, I’ve nearly finished Shantae which I recommend anyone that’s got a 3DS (or on DSi, you can pick it up from the Virtual Store). I have also been playing some Resident Evil Mercs as well. It’s not a bad game and you can check out our review of it here. It’s something to keep us all busy till Resident Evil Revelations comes out next year. I’ve bought a few games on Steam (even though I have them already on my consoles) as they’re so cheap I couldn’t resist…I might end up playing them one day.
That’s it for me. I’ll see you all again next week. Remember, play hard or don’t play at all!
Senior Editor: Dustin Spencer
This week I finally finished Mystery Case Files: The Malgrave Incident for the Nintendo Wii. It is pretty much like all other hidden object games we see released on the PC, but the combination of a point and click adventure was done rather well and the story is actually well made, which I guess was a bit of a surprise considering the genre. I have also been working on Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition, which is about the same as every other SF release, but with extra characters and a few new trials, characters, and new achievements. Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon is also a fantastic new release so far, and while it’s just a shooter with bugs, it still feels well made and completely polished.
I also have been doing a bit of iPad gaming as of late, as I finally got my first Apple product ever. I am not crazy for some of the controls on the console ports, but the casual titles in the marketplace perform near flawlessly from what I have downloaded so far. On the 3DS, I have been working on a bit more Resident Evil: Mercs as well as Shantae: Risky’s Revenge to finish off the week of gaming.
Senior Editor: Jed Bradshaw
This week I celebrated Bungie Day by playing Halo: Reach of course. I won a 30,000 cR jackpot, but I didn’t get to play with any of the Bungie employees. I did buy an avatar t-shirt for charity though! Woohoo. By the way MasterAbbott, Halo eats Gears for breakfast!
Other than Halo though, I played MLB Bobblehead Pros for review. You can check out my feelings for it in a review that will hit soon. So far though, the game feels like a really well designed baseball sim. The bobblehead part of the game is a gimmick for sure, but the rest of it is very hardcore. Buy it if you like playing actual baseball and not just arcade baseball.
Finally, I have been addicted to Angry Birds on my Windows Phone. There is nothing better than finally having a reason (achievements) to get 3 stars on a level. Its still the same ole awesome game, except for $2.99. Oh well, achievements are worth it.
Editor: Kyle Moore
This week I have been sticking with my portable gaming. I’ve played the odd bit of Tiny Tower, like I am sure most iOS users have been over the past few weeks. Essentially I just check it twice a day, but that counts as playing right? even if it is only for 1 minute a day? Great! Apart from that I have been playing Swords and Soldiers on my iPhone, which is a fun little battle game, expect a good review of it coming in the near future. You can also expect another review from me about a little 3DS game called Sports Island 3D. So far I am not overly impressed, it has some redeemable features, but overall it is a little dull. I am still hoping to stumble on some really awesome hidden game play feature that makes me jump up and say YES! but time will tell. I have also been getting into the Steam sales, which (at the time of writing) end in I think three hours. By the time you read this, it will be over and I hope that you all got a good haul! So far the only game I have played from my collection is Lume, which I was blown are by, despite it being a really small game. I finally got my hands on Portal 2. It is currently downloading, but hey, it should be pretty nice, and can have a nice little feature spot on next weeks “what are we playing”. That pretty much sums up my slow but substantial weekly game play.
Editor: Matt Vella
This week I had the pleasure of visiting Ubisoft’s Sydney office with MasterAbbott and LinkageAX, where we got to try out some multiplayer builds for Driver: San Francisco on Playstation 3 and Call of Juarez: The Cartel on Xbox 360. Both games were big chunks o’ fun and are looking great, Ubisoft never disappoint! You can see my hands on, in-depth preview/impressions here, and LinkageAx’s impressions here. I also had Blue Valentine on Blu-Ray playing which I reviewed here. An amazing indie romance film, not usually my thing but the direction and acting is beyond superb and just blew me away. If you don’t believe me when I say how good it is, just ask our editor Kelly who is currently Blu-Ray deprived, and therefore is planning to steal my PS3 and copy of the film!
As for gaming I’m mostly on the iPhone at the moment, going nuts on Street Fighter IV: Volt Battle Protocol which is nothing short of a masterpiece. I’m more than impressed with it’s Wi-Fi capabilities, controls, content, sound, graphics….so far it seems almost flawless! I MUST own game for fighting fans with iPhones, expect a review up within the next day or two. On top of that, I just bought an Angry Birds cover for my iPhone, so that got me playing a lot of Angry Birds, and now I’m addicted again. It’s only a matter of time until one of my family members call an intervention…
Editor: Jared Hilliers
So here we are again, I’m possibly still playing the same games since the last time I did this as I haven’t finished them, I’m determined to finish games I start these days. I don’t want a pile of shame anymore and it’s hard to avoid being sucked into the hype, buying the game, spending a few hours on it then losing interest because of the next big thing or a fail attention span. So right now I’m towards the end of LA Noire, Portal, Dragon Age and Assassins Creed: Brotherhood is on the do list. There’s alot on the plate, but I have limited time, I use it carefully. Luckily I can’t really think of anything that’s come out lately that I actually want, other than Portal 2, I’m still behind the release calender. How does anyone keep up?
Editor: Jack Joly
Without anything to review this week, my gaming has been fairly sporadic, namely putting into some time on Lazy Raiders on Xbox Live Arcade to complete it as part of my achievement challenge. Other than that, this week I’ve briefly played some tables on Williams Pinball Classics, and visited my Nintendo DS courtesy of copies of Pokémon Platinum that I picked up recently.
Editor: Jorel Alvarez
This week, I borrowed some of my brother’s games and ended up playing Resident Evil 5. I did the co-op and considering I’m kind of a scaredy-cat, I usually panicked when the zombies came out to get us. Panicking for me means confusion, plus fingers moving crazily by themselves, plus shouting foul language; this equals to basically the brink of death. Thankfully my partner is pretty attentive and heals me before dying ( I know, how embarrassing). For me, playing Resident Evil 5 is like my relationship with roller coasters. I’m game and courageous trying to convince people to go on the ride with me, but as the start of the line approaches, fright starts creeping in and I start sweating, shaking and hyperventilating! All in all, the game was thrilling and fun.
Editor: Luke Halliday
Oh it’s that time of the week again eh? Well I have been playing a few things this past week. One Piece for the GBA enjoyed a large amount of play-time from me, as I Gum-Gum Kicked some pirate ass, in what is one of the most underappreciated titles for the GBA. It was indeed a hidden gem on the handheld that a lot of people neglected due to the stigma attached to the series at the time, because of the dreadful 4kids dub of the anime series.
I’ve also cracked into Game Dev Story for iOS at the request of my fellow editors. It has in the span of a day and half stolen my soul, dreams and heart. I am freaking obsessed with this, so much that as I type this I am playing it with my other hand. My game just won game of the year guys! Take that Indendro with your god damn Super Sergios Bros.!
TimeGate’s latest game, Section 8: Prejudice, is releasing some new map packs for the PC and Xbox Live Arcade. Called the Frontier Colonies Map Pack, the DLC will cost a mere 320 Microsoft Points or $3.99. Wth both online and offline play, includes two maps called Desolation and Overseer. All game modes are playable on the map packs.
A new Skirmish game mode is also releasing on all systems for free later this month. Skirmish is, at its most basic, a team deathmatch mode. Except, victory points are awarded for kills and completed missions. However, Control Points can not be captured or hacked in this game mode, so your tactics might have to be changed.
The PSN version of the game will release later this summer. The Frontier Colonies Map Pack will be available on the XBLA and PC on July 13 and July 27, respectively.
As to how the game is breaking the unbreakable laws that surround us? The game is “breaking numerous laws of physics to jam more content into what is already a ridiculously value-packed offering.” Sounds awesome. Check out the official website here: warisprejudice.com
Bethesda has just released the second out of six developer diaries for their next up and coming blockbuster: Rage. This video is called, The Dawn. Characters, enemies and plotlines are all discussed by the members of id Software.
Featuring incredible, amazing, beautiful, lovely and awesome graphics, plus FPS or vehicular combat, this game aims to revolutionize the gaming experience. It will release on October 6 on the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. Check out rage.com for some more facts.
What are your thoughts on the game? Are you happy so far with its progress? Are you angry because you are crying about the graphics looking so darn insane?
If you have checked the 3DS eShop as of late, you may have noticed a newly added price-tag on Excitebike 3D. As of July 7th, the once free 3D remake is now $5.99(US) from this point forward. This kind of update isn’t huge news by any means as Excitebike was only free for the first month of the eShop, but what it does imply is a set pricing range for the future 3D Classics that the handheld’s download service will see in the future.
The 30 day free period was certainly nice to have, but I honestly can’t say I have played Excitebike more than twice since downloading. I am a bit curious of what the future will hold for 3D Classics however and also if the more popular first party titles will be priced like those of the Game Boy Virtual Console (for instance: Alleyway is $2.99, while Super Mario Land is $3.99). Either way, now we can just wait to see what is next and hopefully Nintendo will start sending out the big-hitters soon.
The once Xbox Live exclusive Limbo is now branching out to the PS3 and Steam, and thankfully those who have been itching to give this artistic platformer a try will not have to wait long. Limbo will be available on the PSN starting next week, on July 19th (July 20th for the EU), a date that was recently revealed by developer Playdead.
Steam users will have the chance to download Limbo on August 2nd. I am happy to see this title go multi-platform as in my opinion, it was one of the finest offerings on the Xbox Live Arcade in 2010, and I think many who have tried it would probably agree the same. Check out the new PS3 trailer for the game below.
SNK PLAYMORE has brought the legendary fighter King Of Fighters to the iPhone! While capturing the same beautiful style of art design of the series, the game brings 14 classic fighters to iOS devices. Players can play alone or with friends via Bluetooth with the classic KOF 3-on-3 gameplay, or have a more traditional 1-on-1 fight, as well as have a go at the Endless mode to test their endurance with only one life. You might want to check out the Training mode first to learn some of those sweet combos and get a feel of the controls that includes a special button to quickly preform special unique attacks, much like the one seen in other successful iPhone fighters such as Street Fighter IV and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Unlockable content like trading cards and illustrations are also available,and you can trade it with friends via Bluetooth as well as replays you have saved. To make things better SNK PLAYMORE says extra fighters and exclusive background stages will be available to download in October this year-up to 20 characters! Check out the gameplay footage below courtesy of The Game Trail! King of Fighters-i is available now for the iPhone and iPad on iTunes, and you can pick it up here.
And fellas before you ask, YES! Your dream girl MAI is a playable character, complete with her big, bouncy, umm….personality!
Bobblehead day at your local ball park is always a special occasion. With your favorite team member reduced to bobbing minutares, the game feels like a totally new experience. Now, you can have that experience in your living room, as Konami has released MLB Bobblehead Pros for the Xbox Live Arcade. All players can be downloaded and played within the game. Online features are also included, as well as 30 ballparks and a full 162 game season modes. DLC in the form of MLB Bobblehead Stars will be released in mid July. MLB Bobblehead Battle will feature a batting battle that will be out later this year. Look for our review of this game, coming very soon. The game costs 800 Microsoft points or $10.00.
As the debate over the role of retailers in console and especially PC games continues, the CEO of Paradox games, Fredrik Wester has voiced his opinions about his success in online sales as well as the negative impact he believes retailers to have. Wester claims that Paradox have seen more and more of their business go digital with it now accounting for roughly 90 % of their sales. He goes further, stating that any sale made through a retailer is really just considered a bonus, incinuating that a lot of these publishers dont rely too heavily on retail forecasting when setting their budgets and finances.
Wester beleves retailers are responsible for stifling the industry and not allowing it to grow. The break away from such a heavy reliance on retail outlets for sales he believes will act as a catalyst for newer exciting IP and more innovative ideas. Paradox are no stranger to success, and are probably best reknowned for publishing such titles as Magicka, which has sold over 600000 copies, enjoying much success through online shops such as Steam.
Wester went further, blaming retailers for the boring “seen it all before” sequels that have been flooding the market recently, claiming retailers push for known titles as they can more easily forcast sales and budgets as opposed to an unknown title.
From reading various articles and mainly peoples comments it looks like retail still has a place in the games market, especially in relation to console gaming. Companies like Steam, able to pass on savings that cant be avoided in a bricks and mortar shopfront enjoy much success which is often driven purely on price. If i was paying anything over $20 for a console game i wouldnt be fulfilled only having an online console linked version to play, i would want the game in my possession.
Its always nice to hear of new smaller independent studios emerging especially when they arise from the collapse of a major developer or publisher putting countless staff out of work. When Bizarre creations closed up shop in February a number of talented developers were forced out of work, all bursting with creative ideas to tantalise our greeding gaming senses. Fortunately a number of projects and studios have emerged from the ashes that once were Bizarre including a very new player on the market called Totem Studios. Headed by Matt Cavanagh, formerly of Bizarre Creations, it is a UK based studio with relatively little information known about it. In the words of its creator “Totem Games is joining all the shiny new indie games companies in their mission to make the world a happier place”. Other studios to have emerged from Bizarres collapse include Hogrocket and Lucid games both also UK based and focusing on IOS games and applications. Matt also makes it quite clear on his twitter page that he had nothing to do with Blur even though it is being written up everywhere that he was the lead designer on the project.
So everyone interested go have a look and support these smaller guys as they continue to essentially bring us what we all want, more innovative and creative games across all platforms.
