Ever since Dead Island’s trailer went viral on the internet, the buzz for this game has blown up alot and subsequently more and more assets were shown of the game. Everything from game footage and interviews to screen-shots, everything but the box art… until now that is. Set your eyes upon this awesome cover and hopefully the game lives up to the excitement and hype.
This game will be appearing at E3 and perhaps we’ll find out more, it seems the more they reveal the better the game looks. Dead Island is scheduled to release sometime in August 2011, but I think a halloween release would be more fitting, even though I’d rather not wait that long. Need zombie decapitation now please!
With E3 being a week away you know that rumors are flying around rampantly. But this one seems to have a little bit of truth behind it. Apparently the writers at Game Pundit received an E3 fact sheet which labels Sony’s PSP successor, which originally was being called NGP, is now listing the thing as the PS Vita. A picture of the Fact Sheet shows something similar in appearance to the previously shown NGP so it could be legitimate. At this point though this is all rumor with no official word from Sony.
Sony’s E3 press conference will happen on June 6th and Sony will most likely put all the rumors to rest and unveil the PSP 2/NGP/PS Vita with whatever name they are actually going to call it and show off the working product. We’ll find out more next week at E3.
With Resident Evil: Mercenaries 3D being released in about a month, it is about time Capcom decided to show off every character in action. They have done so in the latest trailer for the game which shows all eight characters killing zombies in their own way, and also destroying plenty of glowing orange clocks. The most interesting of which is Rebecca who smashes into it with her hip…
You can catch the trailer below but you should remember that none of these characters are actually canon in the storyline. It has been years since we have even seen or heard mention of Barry, but he still will be a playable character on June 28th when the game is released in North America. At least everyone will have a new 3D game to play as well as gain a taste of what Resident Evil: Revelations will be like with the included demo.
Namco Bandai held their Tales of Festival last night in Japan and there they announced a bit of information for Tales of Xillia, namely an actual release date for Japan at least. Tales of Xillia will now be released on September 8th 2011 in Japan and will be sold for 8,379 yen a piece ($103). 4Gamer who was at the event also reported that there will be a special edition PlayStation 3 released alongside the game with the bundle. The PlayStation 3 bundle will sell for 37,980 yen which is around $470 dollars American.
Usually these bundles are just a cheap way to get fans of a game to spend extra money on a console they may already own, but in this case I’d have to say it is actually quite impressive as you can see above. Besides a release date and an announced bundle, Namco also detailed some pre-order costumes from past Tales games, which you can see in the trailer below. The interesting thing with this trailer is actually the gameplay shown for the first time. Now if only Namco Bandai would announce a localization effort for the game, everything will be right in the RPG world.
Earlier this month Bethesda announced that they would be releasing a free pack of content as DLC for Brink players. This news was announced alongside the information that a patch to fix the game’s terribly laggy online play. The update has since went live for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 and now we know what will be in the free content pack when it is released early in June.
Titled the Agents of Change DLC package, it will contain two new gameplay maps, five new class abilities and a few new weapon attachments and character outfits all for the price of some hard drive space. Also announced today was a statistic website that will show PS3 and Xbox 360 players their statistics online tomorrow, the PC statistics will be coming in the near future. Check out the full details of the Agents of Change DLC pack below:
“New Maps
Founders’ Tower – The revolution finally reaches the island’s iconic spire and takes the battle for the Ark to dizzying heights.
Labs – Venture into the depths of the Ark’s original research and development laboratories, a submerged high-tech facility so far untouched by the civil war.
New Player Abilities
UAV – This stealthy and lethal device allows Operatives to automatically mark nearby enemies on their radar. For more explosive fun, they can even take direct control of the UAV and detonate it near unsuspecting foes.
Napalm Grenade – Soldiers can use this new grenade to cover an area in a sea of deadly flames.
Pyro Mine – Engineers can plant these mines and leave enemies in the epicenter of a massive napalm explosion.
Field Regen Unit – Medics can deploy these units to increase the health regeneration of any nearby teammates.
Tactical Scanner – This universal ability allows players to reveal the active buffs of their opponents, allowing them to pick off enemies more strategically.
New Weapon Attachments
Bayonets – Gain the edge in melee combat and cause extra damage with these deadly blades.
Weapon Shields – Take cover from enemy fire and prevent headshot bonus damage behind riot-style shields.
New Character Outfits
The Sad Punk – Add a touch of Steampunk to your Resistance character.
The Limey – Bring order to the Ark with this outfit inspired by traditional European police.”
Highly regarded soccer simulation series Pro Evolution Soccer, or PES, is going to be coming into its latest iteration with the upcoming PES 2012.
To tease audiences and to satiate interest, Konami have released three entirely new, never before seen screenshots of the game in action. These screenshots detail various types of actions within the game, as well as the incredibly pretty graphics. The jostling system implemented in the last game makes it’s return with some enhancements that are to offer new forms of bodily contact and more physical reactions within the game.
PES 2012 is going to give players complete control, with refined mechanics and artificial intelligence to create a more enjoyable experience.
Here are the latest screenshots for your enjoyment!
Bleach the Movie: Memories Of Nobody Tag Line: One hour to seal the fate of two worlds Produced by: Viz Media Run time: 87 minutes, Feature length film Language: English, Japanese Genre: Action, Shounen, Supernatural Available for purchase at Madman Online Store ($29.95)
Overview:
That’s right folks, the fate of two worlds is on the line again, as often is the case in stories involving two worlds. But this is the first true time for Bleach that the fate of both the Human world and the Soul Society have been simultaneously threatened with destruction (oh no! Won’t somebody please think of the children!) .
Bleach is a series of little subtlety and in it’s first silver screen outing, let’s just say I had prepared for the worst, with memories of other shonen anime movie adaptations slowly but surely becoming a tumour on my cerebellum (why can’t I forget Naruto: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow!?). But hey, I went in with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised to see that it in fact; didn’t suck.
Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody is a rather sound first feature length outing for Ichigo Kurosaki and friends. With a concise plot that would put some story arcs from the series to shame and some battles on par with the best fights of the series, the movie was a pleasant surprise. But is it without it’s pitfalls?
Story:
The movie should be treated as a side-story as it does not particularly have a canonical fit into the anime or manga. But, if you are going to watch it, the perfect time would probably be right after the Soul Society arc. Though, it could essentially be watched at any time, it does have the problem of relying on the viewers knowledge of Bleach as it doesn’t reintroduce characters for the new viewers. It simply tells a story aimed towards people in the know with Bleach. Just a word of advice to those who haven’t watched anything to do with Bleach, this series has several truck-loads of characters and most of them appear in this movie. Sadly, most of them play little role in the actual story and instead just play part in a battle or two or watch on helplessly whilst shouting out Ichigo’s name.
But, as to the nature of the story, it details the appearance of a mysterious girl named Senna who appears to be a Soul Reaper, but she is generally just a very confused girl who needs Ichigo’s help. Long story short, a league of villains appear revealing a plot to destroy the human world and the soul society and as you’d expect, the Captains and Ichigo defeat them all and save the day. This is a cause of irritation and definitely a pitfall of the film, though it is later redeemed by the time the credits roll.
Thankfully there is more heart underneath all this predictability and even a little unexpectedly bitter sweet. The film has a warmth to it that is not as easily found in the series, which tends to shoot more for badass bravado. The gooey center of this warmth is Senna, the mysterious girl, but to say any more would spoil things (lets just say the title is a hint of what to expect). The film left me feeling both melancholy and happiness, something I never thought anything Bleach related was capable of. Perhaps it’s because Kubo had nothing to do with writing it.
Artwork:
As you’d expect from a film’s budget, the artwork and animation is of a much higher quality then it’s source material could be, and rightly so. With bright visuals, crisp character designs and a vivid scenery; it provides a stark contrast to the series and even more so to the manga (famous for minimal backgrounds). It certainly creates the big screen feel that other anime movies fail to achieve. The fight scenes are animated spectacularly and the characters move more gracefully than ever before, it all makes this film feel large (that’s a good thing trust me).
There isn’t much to say really, the visuals were very impressive and made everything feel so much bigger than in the series. In film adaptations of anime, if they can achieve this, they at least got something right.
Audio: I have to say, I love the soundtrack of the Bleach series and thank god they kept some pieces for the film. To me personally it would not have felt like Bleach without the classic “if you want to see some action..” roaring over the battles like rolling thunder. It is both my favourite musical piece of the series and also of the film.
Though I have to give kudos (no not Kubos!) to the film’s original pieces such as the theme for Senna which was beautifully used when she parts ways with Ichigo and in her past revelations scene.
Characters:
Ah the biggest and most glaringly obvious pitfall of them all, the characters. Not that there is anything particularly or fundamentally wrong with them (mostly), it’s just that there is far too many of them. Surely not all of them needed to be in the film. I mean come on, side lining some of the most developed characters in place of under-developed ones such as most of the captains and introducing villains and then not bothering to expand on them at all?
I know this is more of Tite Kubo’s fault for introducing so many characters in the manga (and thus the anime), but surely it wasn’t necessary to include so many of them. Especially when the majority served little to no purpose beyond killing the baddies in the end.
Fortunately there was one saving grace in this department, the introduction of Senna (and unfortunately farewell as she isn’t a canon character). She is expanded upon so greatly that you would think that she was actually a character in the series. Her story is more heartfelt and painful than any other characters, besides Ichigo of course (the hero must always be the most emotionally wounded, just letting you know).
Her entire character, in tandem with Ichigo, is what holds the movie together and is what actually makes the movie, you know… good. For me personally, seeing her journey was the true story of this movie, I was more concerned with whether she survives, rather than whether the two worlds are destroyed – which says something.
Special Features: Madman has really done a great job with this release, which includes a special movie booklet which features character bios and information on the film and we also are given a reversible DVD cover (which isn’t half bad). The discs special features section includes an inside look at Viz Media’s work on the dubbing of Bleach the series and particularly this movie. We also get some interviews with the japanese creators (no Kubo trolling unfortunately), some trailers and the good old line art that Viz loves to put in the majority of their releases.
Overall:
This movie certainly surprised me, I didn’t expect it to be this good, that’s not to say there wasn’t the expected down-sides. But overall it was a great film that puts a lot of it’s source material to shame. And isn’t that what a film based on a series is supposed to do? It is supposed to be bigger than the series and justify itself being a film. Fortunately Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody does all this and more.
Siren Visual wants to be your friend. They are even willing to eagerly nudge you with DVD samplers to get their coveted Facebook “Like”. They have recently announced that everyone who liked their page in the month of May is eligible to recieve a free booklet and DVD sampler featuring 3 noitaminA (a late-night television block in Japan) anime series.
The sampler includes episodes of:
Welcome to Irabu’s Office
The Tatami Galaxy
House of Five Leaves
As an added incentive, “liking” their Facebook page enters you into the draw to win a Clannad: After Story lithograph worth $250 with the winner being drawn on July 15th, 2011. So if any of this tickle your fancy, you have a whole day left to become eligible for the offer.
For the past few months, we have been bringing you all coverage on Zordix’s Valet Parking 1989, a game in which players must use their best time management skills in a hip 1980’s setting to please both their evil boss and celebrity clients as they rush to park cars in a strategic fashion. Today the wait is over and Valet Parking 1989 is now available on the DSiWare download service.
Also released was a comdedic list of features for the game, giving potential parkers a look at what to expect from this snazzy new title:
Park and return cars to patience impaired guests.
One evil bossman!
Intense and stressful gameplay
Set in a neon lit California 1989, or something like it.
Two modes of play, endless play and a teen movie story mode.
Shoulder pads galore
30 characters that you may or may not (n)ever have heard of.
Mullets, mullets everywhere!
15 songs (quite but not like, anything you heard before)
Two words, handcuffs and ice-cream
15 cars all with Hollywood style steering and Hollywood style screeching tires.
Never ending play, with or without a story.
A nice ambulance, you will need it!
Mullets, ice cream, handcuffs, and 80’s flare sounds like a great time to me. Valet Parking 1989 has had my interest for a long while as it just seems to stand out for the obvious reasons along with the addictive gameplay formula that has been advertised by Zordix. If you own a DSi though and have been looking for something to grab with those points, the only “Totally Rad” choice is now available in North America with Valet Parking 1989. Stay tuned as well as a review is coming soon.
SBS is always filled with multi-cultural and Australian goodies, and August 2011’s lineup is no different. Here’s a pick of a few of our favourite Madman/SBS coming soon titles here at Capsule Computers!
Coast and Beyond – Series 5
Release date: 3rd August 2011
Following the success of the first four series exploring the mysteries of Britain’s coastline, the BAFTA awarding-winning COAST is back with eight hours of brand new content, celebrating the unique character of the British Isles. Lead by Neil Oliver (A HISTORY OF SCOTLAND), the fifth series covers new ground as the team embarks on ambitious voyages to Brittany, Denmark and Ireland, where they climb the stunning sea cliffs of the West.
In Their Own Words
Release date: 3rd August 2011
This is the story of the 20th Century novel, told by the authors themselves, featuring great novelists talking candidly about their life and work. IN THEIR OWN WORDS includes Arthur Conan Doyle, HG Wells and EM Forster through to Salman Rushdie, Jeanette Winterson, Martin Amis, Kazuo Ishiguro and Hilary Mantel. The series provides fascinating insights into what mattered to writers about the times in which they lived, and includes the only recording of Virginia Woolf in existence and William Golding explaining LORD OF THE FLIES to a room of young school pupils.
The Buddha – The Story of Siddharta
Release date: 3rd August 2011
This two-part series by award-winning filmmaker David Grubin and narrated by Richard Gere tells the story of the Buddha’s life, a journey especially relevant to our own bewildering times of violent change and spiritual confusion. It features the work of some of the world’s greatest artists and sculptors, and we hear insights into the ancient narrative by contemporary Buddhists, including His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
