Remember when there wasn’t a huge lead up to a game’s trailer and the company would simply surprise us out of thin air with new information? Well that still happens nine times out of ten but this is one of those exceptions. Ubisoft has released a teaser trailer for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations which has Ezio providing the voice over. We see a number of different in game locations as well as a small bit of gameplay footage.
Of course this whole teaser was simply to get people excited for E3. The end of the teaser states that the full trailer will be shown on June 6th, the day before the beginning of E3. So tune in in under two weeks and you’ll be seeing a whole lot from Ezio in the final chapter of his story.
Sega has made it official, they will be bringing the Shinobi series to the 3DS. Announced today for a September 2011 release Sega has stated they will be relaunching the series on the 3DS with the first game being called Shinobi. Not very imaginative maybe but perhaps the proper thing to do since the series hasn’t seen a game in nine years.
Shinobi will be a 2D side scrolling game with 3D capabilities mixed into it. Released alongside this announcement was a gameplay trailer that shows off Shinobi’s lineage as a series as well as everything that they have added to it. Apparently there will be new magic and new skills to learn as well as impressively crafted 3D gameplay mixed in. Lets just hope it isn’t like a bad 3D movie where they simply make things fly at the screen for no reason other than to show off the 3D. Catch the trailer below.
Disney must have knocked their shelf of movies onto the floor and saw the giant pile as a good idea. Disney announced today that they are working on creating a game called the Disney Universe. It will be a multiplayer action title that will be released this fall season on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and of course the Wii.
The game itself will allow players to select from 40 different Disney character costumes such as Alice, Mike, TRON and Stitch to name a few. There will be six different Disney themed worlds to explore and do battle against enemies. Each suit will have a different power, allowing players to level up whichever one they choose to. Alongside the announcement a teaser trailer was released which you can catch below.
FAST – Racing League (DSiWare: Shin’en, 1000 Wii Points)
Mighty Milky Way (DSiWare: WayForward, 800 Nintendo DSi Points)
Successfully Learning English Year 5 (DSiWare: Tivola, 500 Nintendo DSi Points)
Unless you are looking to learn English (I can’t imagine you are if you have managed to read this far), then there are two releases to interest you this week out of the three. The first is FAST – Racing League, a F-Zero style high-speed racer for 1000 Wii Points. The next is Mighty Milky Way, an interesting-looking space adventure game from the developers of A Boy and His Blob which you may remember appearing on Wii.
Let us know if you decide to pick any of these up.
Frog Minutes Developer: Grasshopper Manufacture Inc. Publisher: Grasshopper Manufacture Inc. Genre: Exploration, Relaxation, Education, Casual Platform: iPhone/iPad (universal app) Release: March 30 Price:$0.99 (all proceeds go to Japan Red Cross)
Overview:
Suda 51 and Grasshopper are known for a certain type of game. Namely, blood-soaked action packed “punk rock” affairs that typically express a commentary on the gaming industry as a whole. So I find it rather curious that their first iOS outing is hardly a game at all. Frog Minutes is designed as a charity release where all proceeds go to Japan Red Cross. I suppose when you think of it as a tool for charity, a guy charging up his power sword by mock masturbating probably isn’t the right image to convey.
Gameplay:
As I stated above, Frog Minutes isn’t a game in the typical sense. It’s actually designed to be more of a relaxation/educational tool. The game world consists of just one screen that you explore. You start off with one small location to prod at, making a frog or critter (frog food) come out. The more you play the more locations you find to check for frogs or their food. You catch frogs by fattening them up by feeding them things they like. Because they’re all classy and require you to buy them a meal first. You can catch grasshoppers, dragonflies, butterflies, flies or snails. When you decide on a frog to capture, you simply tap on it which will display a thought bubble of what it wants to eat. Just feed the frog what it wants until it’s full and it’s all yours for the taking.
For every new frog or critter you capture you’ll be rewarded with an entry in your field guide. The field guide is an encyclopaedia of everything you catch and provides you with some real world information on the subject. Every entry is narrated in addition to being written out. There are a total of 10 frogs for you to find and 5 critters. There’s also a list of in-game achievements which complete a picture the more you play the game. Game Center leaderboards and a single achievement are available for you to compare yourself to all the other frog hunters in the world. There isn’t much verity in the game play and you may grow tired of simply catching bugs and frogs, but I’d say this is perfectly suited for a small child. They’ll learn something about frogs and critters and get some interaction as they do so.
Presentation:
Frog Minutes is a very… zen like game. Everything is hand painted with water-colours and has a great look. The leaves and stream shimmer and move appropriately enough and all the frogs and critters animate, if a little rudimentary. The thing is, this game isn’t really about giving you super awesome graphics. Everything is very peaceful and deliberate. There’s no real music to speak of. There’s just the sounds of the environment. Every frog has a distinctive sound when found and the rustling of the grass and leaves along with the sounds of the stream and nature all certainly give you a calming sensation. It’s all very inviting. I feel Grasshopper certainly accomplished what they set out for with this.
Conclusion:
I have to say, this is a tough title to review. There really isn’t a lot of gameplay in the traditional sense of the word, but that wasn’t what Grasshopper was going for. You have to know what you’re getting into when making a purchase here. I’d recommend it for a small child, or if you want to just zen out with something that’s slightly interactive. I don’t want to compare Frog Minutes to other games as that’s not it’s intention, as it’s not really a game in the same sense. If you’re looking for a deep experience to entertain yourself with this may not be the right thing for you. However, if you’re fully aware of what Frog Minutes has to offer and that sounds like something you’d be into then I implore you, download away. Besides, your money will be going to a good cause.
So it begins. Ubisoft announced today that it’ll kick off E3 with a press only conference on June 6 at 2:30 PST at the Los Angeles Theatre showcasing it’s never before seen demonstrations of their fiscal year 2012 line-up and exclusive announcements. Following the conference, attendees will be be able to view and play Ubisoft titles at the booth located in the South Hall of the Convention Centre from June 7-9, 2011.
Ubisoft is also celebrating it’s 25th Birthday! The company will be celebrating it’s quarter century by delivering it’s strongest and most diverse brand portfolio to date, with titles spanning all major genres and platforms. Which is certainly more productive than I was on my 25th birthday.
“Ubisoft has been delivering top-notch entertainment for 25 years, and we’re incredibly grateful for all of our fans,” said Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer at Ubisoft. “We plan for the upcoming years to be just as exciting and full of innovation, and the wide range of creative, fun and unique titles we’re demonstrating at E3 illustrate the stellar talent of our development teams and Ubisoft’s ongoing investment in delivering entertaining and innovative products to consumers.”
Madfinger Games, creators of Samurai II: Vengeance (available for iOS, Android & Mac), have decided to take things up a notch and announce a brand new property, SHADOWGUN. Designed for mobile and tablet platforms, SHADOWGUN looks far nicer than it has any right to. I mean seriously… that looks like a console game. It’s melting my face with it’s pretty pictures.
By focusing on mobile platforms and tablets, Madfinger has created an extremely advanced handheld game for the market, optimized for performance and delivering a fidelity and quality typically reserved for a console experience.
Authored with the Unity development platform, SHADOWGUN combines tactical combat with third person harrowing action, ushering in a new visual standard for handheld gaming. SHADOWGUN puts players into the role of John Slade, a professional bounty hunter in the year 2350. Slade’s mission: hunt down Dr. Edgar Simon, renowned geneticist and former employee of the trans-galactic corporation Toltech Enterprises. Players must lead “shadowgun” John Slade as he infiltrates Dr. Simon’s mountain fortress and fights his personal army of mutants, cyborgs, and genetically-enhanced humanoids. Using state-of-the-art weaponry, ships, and the assistance of S.A.R.A.—Slade’s personal android assistant. The story is written by award winning author Micah Nathan who has joined the MadFinger team as executive creative consultant for SHADOWGUN.
With SHADOWGUN, Madfinger is hoping to expand the perception of what a mobile game can be. It’ll be available for iOS (iPhone, iPad) and will support Android mobile devices powered by the NVIDIA Tegra super chip, and will be available on the Tegra Zone app and Android Market.
Look for SHADOWGUN, available in an app store near you in 2011.
Wayforward and Majesco’s upcoming downloadable title BloodRayne Betrayal is honestly my most anticipated game for the summer. While news broke of this title a while back, we haven’t seen the actual gameplay as of yet aside from a couple of quick teases. That is history now though as Majesco have released the debut trailer from the game, and as expected this title looks to be fast paced, full of action and yes, very bloody.
The trailer shows off the hack and slash gameplay as well as giving players a first look at the newly designed Rayne, who has been a bit shy from coverage up until now. I am really digging the art style and the retro-esque vibe though, which are two elements Wayforward are well known for. Also take notice in the combo system, which is a nice touch that is sure to deepen the combat as you hack away at foes. You can check out the intense trailer below and get ready, as BloodRayne Betrayal will be coming to the Xbox Live Arcade and PSN this summer.
With so much being released ahead of Infinity Ward’s schedule, another leak has emerged of the proposed screen menu for Modern Warfare 3.
Infinity Ward has struggled to maintain anything under wraps after the storyline, character designs and the trailer was notoriously leaked days before they were supposed to. The developer stated they would seek legal advice on how to approach the alleged staff member who leaked the plot and character designs.
Fans have analyzed the new trailer like an investigator, believing the beloved Ghost will return. The studio or developers are yet to confirm however if the plot is to continue on from Modern Warfare 2. If so then Ghost will only live on in memory.
Natsume have reason to celebrate as the company’s first 3DS title, Reel Fishing Paradise 3D has gone gold. Reel Fishing Paradise 3D is of course a 3D fishing experience that takes players through 15 locations as they aim to catch a large variety of fish, from wily largemouth bass to bluefin tuna. To deepen the strategy behind this, 100 pieces of tackle are available with three types of lures to let you nab the big one.
“Reel Fishing Paradise 3D delivers an experience that couldn’t exist on any system but the Nintendo 3DS,” said Hiro Maekawa, President and CEO at Natsume. “With gorgeous 3D environments and fish that leap off the screen at you, this is a fishing game like none you’ve ever seen before!”
I normally wouldn’t be that excited for a fishing game, but the low price combined with the depth and the experience that Natsume bring to the table with the Reel Fishing series has me thinking this may be one title that any 3DS owner should reel in when it is released on June 28th.
