Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and NetherRealm Studios have released a new video giving a sneak peak at the latest kombatant set to enter the tournament on Mortal Kombat for Xbox 360 and PS3. Kenshi, the second Mortal Kombat DLC warrior, is blind and on top of a series of telekinetic moves, wields a large samurai sword for brutal fatality action. The downloadable blind warrior will be available on Tuesday 5th July for Xbox LIVE and Wednesday 6th July on PSN and will join the first downloadable warrior, Skarlet who is currently available for download.
Who will be getting Kenshi when he becomes available? He’s a throwback for fans and a solid addition to the growing roster.
The Summer of Arcade promotion is back for its fourth year and it will be an absolute scorcher by the looks of it. Microsoft have detailed all the prices and release dates of each game in the five week promotion which delivers some of the top downloadable games of the year, consecutively! Plus, it wouldn’t be a Summer of Arcade without a special reward, details of which have also been disclosed. When you buy all five Summer of Arcade titles, you’ll receive a free copy of “Crimson Alliance” (Certain Affinity) – valued at 1200 Microsoft Points!
If you didn’t already know, Resident Evil: The Mercenaries is now in stores in the U.S. as of today. While many are getting ready to pick up their long awaited pre-orders, many are finding out some very disappointing news about Capcom’s latest entry into the series. Everything you do in Resident Evil: The Mercenaries is permanent, as no data can be deleted due to no reset option being in the game. I honestly can’t recall the last time we have seen this happen, but many are speculating that Capcom might have introduced this “feature” to combat used videogame sales. Capcom have since denied this, telling Eurogamer “The game’s value at second-hand in the UK is not affected by whether or not the game can have its data reset”.
I honestly don’t know how I feel about never being able to restart my game quite honestly, but this of course will effect the many rental services such as Gamefly (who have already canceled the ability to rent Mercenaries due to this save reset issue) and all secondhand video game shops as only one file will be tied to the cartridge at all times. Personally, I enjoy resetting my save files on a game I enjoy or starting a new game if there is an option for multiple saves as it adds new life to the game’s lifespan later on. Hopefully Capcom will offer a bit more reasoning behind this save reset fiasco soon enough, but for now those who are planning to purchase Resident Evil: The Mercenaries should make sure they buy a new copy for now if they want to start from scratch.
The developers behind F.E.A.R. 3, Day One Studios, have compiled a list of insider tips to aid players when playing their newly released FPS. The game’s available for PS3, PC and Xbox 360 now, and the following tips and tricks can apply to pretty much any of the versions, achievements tips aside. With 14 pieces of advice in total, for players with the game or planning to buy the game it’s well worth checking out.
Tips and Tricks
1. Maximize your score by fulfilling multiple challenge requirements, playing on higher difficulties,and completing each level as fast as you can. Use your special abilities often and combine the challenges to make sure you maximize each kill.
2. Exploration is crucial – search each level extensively for hidden ammo caches, psychic link bodies, and the all-important Alma doll. The psychic links and Alma dolls appear in randomlocations, so make sure you fully explore on each playthrough.
3. When playing co-op, psychic links can be shared or stolen. If you’re looking to set an individual high score, steal them. If you want to set a team high score, share them. Even though you onlyget 750 points for psychic links, since you both receive the reward it adds a total of 1,500 toyour team score.
4. Ranking-up improves various stats including things like ammo capacity, health, and slow-mo. Maximizing your Rank is essential to play on the Insane difficulty. Replaying a level with a higher rank also makes it easier to set a high score and compete for the top position on theleaderboards.
5. The ranks are determined by your total score and the perks are universal in main campaign, coop, and multiplayer. If you are having trouble in one mode, go spend some time in another torank up and then try again.
6. The Arc Beam weapon reflects off of walls and floors to hit nearby enemies, and can hit more than one at a time – very useful when Armacham Soldiers are hiding behind cover.
7. The Phase Caster is one of the toughest enemies in F.E.A.R. 3. Make sure you kill him as soon as possible. The Phase Caster will keep calling in reinforcements as you take them out.
8. The Scavengers can be difficult for Fettel to defeat. One method to quickly dispatch them is tolevitate the enemy, get close, and push melee for the instant kill. At the same time, if there are multiple Scavengers, you can always suspend one while killing another with the stun blast.
9. In multiplayer mode ‘F**king Run!,’ sending a teammate ahead with a Riot Shield is a good way to add an extra layer of protection to the rest of the team.
10. Also in ‘F**king Run!’ multiplayer mode, the slide tackle is your strongest asset. Not only does it keep you moving forward, but it also takes out enemies.
11. Plan ahead when playing multiplayer mode ‘Contractions.’ Storing all of your ammo on the top level of your safe house will take longer, but pays off in later waves.
12. Don’t try to stay in one body when playing multiplayer mode ‘Soul King.’ Body to body possession is a strategic part of the mode. You can escape other players by jumping from bodyto body across large portions of the maps. If you’re going to die, possess a new body with fullhealth. If you see an enemy getting the drop on the competitor, possess it and get the kill.
13. Multiplayer mode ‘Soul King’ is designed to be competitive all the way until the end. The last 30 seconds of each round are the most hectic and critical. You should try to stay in second or third place so that you can sweep in for victory in the closing seconds of the round by killing the King.
14. In multiplayer mode ‘Soul Survivor,’ getting a kill while in Last Stand will revive you. However, ammo is limited, so try not to use your Last Stand handgun ammo unless absolutely necessary. Have squad members revive you whenever possible.15. The “We’ll Try Again Tomorrow” achievement / trophy is easiest to get in the first 3 waves ofThe Commute multiplayer map.
When Deadly Premonition was originally released, it split opinion right down the middle, with scores ranging from 2 to 10. With such contrasting reviews for critics and publications, many felt compelled to try the game, if only to see how it managed to please and displease so many people at the same time.
Now, Rising Star Games is bringing the game to the Xbox Live Games on Demand service to open it up to a new audience and provide digital copies of the game for those who may be struggling to locate the game in shops or would like the convenience of not having to leave their home to purchase the open-world murder-mystery.
Deadly Premonition will be available on the Games on Demand service from 5th July this year. Did anyone miss out the first time around?
For those who love entering contests and who are highly anticipating Dark Souls, this bit of news should catch your interest. The Dark Souls Facebook page is offering a pleasant time killer in which your creativity can be rewarded greatly. What do you have to do? Create a shield using one of three templates provided and simply enter it in to be voted on by the fans of Dark Souls. The three winners will see their design in the actual game as Dark Souls post-launch content.
Here are all the official rules/details on how you can get in on this fantastic opportunity:
● Create up to three original masterpieces of heraldic design
● Submit your finished designs via Facebook on or before July 13th 2011
Fans will be able to vote for their favourites on Facebook throughout the competition, with voting open until July 20th to allow last minute entries time to gather votes.
The top ten designs for each of the three shield templates as voted for by you will then go to FromSoftware for the final decision, with the winning designs being announced via Facebook on 28th July 2011.
Each of the ten winners will receive a copy of Dark Souls signed by game director Hidetaka Miyazaki. The final 3 winners will see their designs brought to life for all time in the Dark Souls universe, and will receive a signed copy of the limited edition game plus their names in the game credits, ensuring immortality no matter how many times they die while playing.
Sign up today for this unique opportunity to carve your name indelibly in Dark Souls lore and earn the envy and respect of legions of fans around the world. To read the full rules and enter the competition, go to www.facebook.com/darksouls.
And there you have it! Simple as that. In my opinion these prizes are incredible as each winning design will be used by all of the players of Dark Souls post-release, making the grand prize rather priceless (Of course those autographed copies of the game are also a nice incentive). Now get to it! If you enter, make sure you share your creation in the comments section below.
Whenever I hear any news that includes Wayforward and an original title, my face is usually grinning afterwards. Wayforward have been behind some of the better games on the DSiWare such as Shantae, Mighty Flip Champs, and the more recent Mighty Milky Way that just seen a release on the service a little over a month ago. In the most recent Nintendo Power, Matt Bozon revealed Mighty Switch Force, which will put players in the role of law enforcer Patricia Wagon, coming exclusively to the 3DS eShop.
Mighty Switch Force borrows a bit from Metroid and is being by many members of the same team that worked on Contra 4, with a seemless integration of puzzles that will fully utilize the 3D feature on the system while Space Hooligans meet their doom thanks to the fiesty protagonist. There hasn’t been an official date yet for what is sure to be another fantastic entry into Wayforward’s resume, but stay tuned as I’m sure more updates will be coming shortly.
Good news for PC gamers that felt disappoint over Shift 2 Unleashed lack of downloadable content support for the PC. EA games have today announced that the once console exclusive Shift 2 Unleashed ‘Legends‘ and ‘Speedhunters‘ DLC packs are finally comes to the PC. But with a extra special treat of being absolutely free of charge.
Both DLC packs will be available from EA’s official digital distribution website store.origin.com. Both content packs contain a slew of new cars and tracks. The Legends pack features a dozen of cars and tracks from racing’s golden age, and the Speedhunters Pack adds two new game modes – Drag and Standing Mile – along with fourteen new cars.
So definitely download these packs on June 30th because their absolutely free!
Ninja Rescue Developer: Althi Inc. Publisher: Althi Inc. Genre: Puzzle/Physics Platform: iPhone(reviewed)/iPad Release: 23/6/11 Price: Free (Buy Now Aus or US)
Overview
While it’s common to utter the phrase “when pigs fly” no one tends to say, “when pigs master a form of martial arts” when attempting to describe the unlikely nature of an event taking place. One reason might be because this phrase doesn’t really roll of the tongue. Another reason could be because smart-phone developers Althi’s latest game for the iPhone and iPad features a savvy swine who, despite all odds, has stuck to his goals and succeeded in becoming a ninja. Ninja Pig is out to help his fellow pigs who have managed to get themselves captured. However, Ninja Pig can’t do this with just his own cunning, he needs your help. All you will need to do is strategically place objects on the screen, and let Ninja Pig do the rest.
Game Play
Ninja Rescue is a touch and drag puzzle game for iOS devices featuring twenty-five levels for you to test your skills against. While the levels may start off fairly simple, with direct routes available to get through the puzzle and rescue the pig, the levels become increasingly complex as you progress through all twenty-five. After you manage to save a pig you are awarded either one or three stars, depending on coins collected, enemies defeated or how quickly you solved the puzzle.
The puzzles really come to life after you click the floating Ninja Pig. Tapping on Ninja Pig will release him from his in-air suspension and drop him into the puzzle, after which it’s down to the physics of the game. This is the highlight of the game, the physics are well constructed and Ninja Pig bounces with ease as he navigates across the objects you have strategically placed. With the difficulty of the puzzle solving side of the game being rather easy, it’s nice to just sit back and watch the game function for a few seconds and hope that you’ve placed everything in the appropriate place.
Graphics and Audio
Graphically, Ninja Rescue won’t blow you away, casual games for iOS rarely do. However, this isn’t to say that Ninja Rescue doesn’t possess some well-designed and executed graphics. The background for the green field levels, which at the time of this review is the only level available, is suitable to the description. A few cute yet twisted tree/mountain hybrids sit in the back with some low shrubs in the foreground. This background is used as a skin for all twenty-five levels. While it’s possible to argue that this becomes a bit repetitive, it really helps focus on the task at hand. My favourite design feature is Ninja Pig himself. Before the puzzle starts, Ninja Pig flaps his fans to stay a float in the air. Sitting their mid air in his ninja outfit, you can’t help but want to help him on his quest to save his fellow pigs.
In terms of the audio, Ninja Rescue features some quirky sound effects; popping and clicking when objects are moved, sad yelps when the timer runs out and little piggish grunts when Ninja Pig bounces from objects. The music provides a nice atmospheric background for stealthy ninja missions, but with slight optimism to suit the friendly brand of graphics.
Conclusion
The puzzles aren’t overly challenging, unless you are aiming for perfect scores on every level. Also there are only twenty-five of them and it won’t take you long to get through the game. Luckily, Althi plan to have those who are quick in puzzle solving covered and have a “coming soon” section in the select area menu of the game. Overall the game has an interesting premise; some well designed puzzles, fantastic physics and some pretty cute graphics. Ninja Rescue has all the elements you could ever ask for in a casual puzzle game, and considering the game is free it’s well worth investing some time in.
From the very second you open the App, BackStab blows you right out of the water. Opening with stunning cinematic cut scenes, you’re immediately thrown into the world of naval officer Henry Blake. Betrayed by his own navy, Blake has had his life stripped from him. Jailed and broken, Blake sets out on his quest into the dangerous world of an 18th century Caribbean island in order to seek revenge from those who betrayed him. Time to draw your sword and help Blake claim his revenge.
Game play
The first few levels are a little rigid in their structure. You are given quests that you need to complete to exact your revenge. Without giving too much of the plot away, this direct path ceases to exist once you make your escape from prison. From here on out, you have the option of picking side quests and roaming across a number of different lands. While I found the first few levels limited, they really pushed the narrative forward and project you into the exploratory nature of the latter part of the game. As I said, the earlier levels have a clear path for you to follow, but they still utilised some explorative elements in order to navigate through them. Much of the work Blake needs to do is best kept to the shadows. Attempting to take down an entire naval force single-handed is no easy task, and drawing attention is a luxury both you and Blake can do without. In order to make your way through the dangerous world, you will need to scale countless numbers of walls and jump from roof to roof. While a few of the scalable walls are a pain to make your way across or over, it really adds to the sense of adventure of the game as a whole. For the moments when you simply cannot avoid conflict, Gameloft have provided some truly impressive combat.
The 18th century was a pretty rough time, especially in the Caribbean. At least I assume it was I’m basing the majority of this opinion on watching Pirates of Caribbean. Despite my historical inaccuracy, Gameloft have captured my expectations of 18th century Caribbean life with some impressive, and often gruesome in-game combat. Your trusty weapon for the most part will be a sword, which varies in type and strength the further your process. This isn’t the only weapon you’ll pick up along the way though. No renegade naval officer would be complete without a trusty pistol. The pistol can be utilised, as a weapon out of combat for some sneak attacks, however the loading time is rather slow depending on the quality of your weapon. As well as this, the pistol also comes into play in combination attacks while you are crossing blades with enemies. While pressing the aptly labelled sword button, you will wield your blade wildly, striking enemies who dare to cross your path. But if you still want a bit more of a bang in your attack, pressing the button labelled with a skull that appears during combat will bring your pistol into the mix for a final deathblow. The combat is an integral part of the game, one that Gameloft have done extremely well in this title. So well in fact, that I will be mentioning it again in this review.
Graphics and audio
As I’ve mentioned, BackStab has some amazing combat during game play. While a great deal of this is due to the mechanics of the game, the large part the graphics play cannot go unmentioned. For the duration of combat the graphics are up to the games standard, but when you hit the final nail in the coffin and kill your enemy, the graphics jump out with explosive force. Killing an enemy moves to a small cut scene (no pun intended) where Blake will ram his sword into their stomach or face and expel a large amount of blood. Cut scenes also appear during combat if you use a combo-attack that utilises the pistol, again, which results in a really gruesome death. If you sneak up on an enemy from behind the game will run in slow motion while Blake jumps into attack. Designing the fighting style like this really emphasises the role of combat in the game, as well as the cutthroat nature of 18th century naval/pirate life. Cut scenes are also found throughout the whole game, not just in combat. The graphics in these are nothing short of amazing. You are given the option to skip most of these, but honestly why would you when they look this good.
Backstab’s audio is constructed much like a movie. Each character has their own distinct voice; each scene has an array of atmospheric musical scores, as well as a wide range of sound effects through out the game. Background music doesn’t play through out the whole game, rather it is implemented in certain times to signify tension, the start of new areas, or just to personify the area you are currently in, working well with the graphical representations of the world. This is paired with some great sound effects that really give life to the world, such as wind on the beach levels or birds twittering in the trees in forests. It couldn’t possibly be a naval themed game without some impressive sound effects during combat. Canons exploding, steel clanging and gunpowder igniting, there is great attention to detail throughout the whole game.
Conclusion
To be completely blunt, play BackStab, you will not regret it. With a strong narrative running through the whole game, justifying every sword swing and enemy killed, BackStab makes for a highly addictive adventure game. Combine this with amazing graphics and audio and a highly detailed construction of a vast world to explore, and you have a winner.
