For some, the world may be ending in 2012, for soccer nuts PES 2012 is coming out instead. Konami has announced the first details of PES 2012, including a new trailer. The previous entry to the series was said to be the best in years, the new game is looking to improve upon features which pleased fans.
The game development news is that the AI has undergone a major overhaul to bring the title more in line with the experience of being on an actual team. Teammates now make runs and offer more support in one-on-one situations. Players can also draw defenders and rely on the AI to help better move the ball around. An emphasis on teamwork is going to be key to the players success, well that’s the idea anyway.
The trailer shows the series’ Creative Producer, Shingo ‘Seabass’ Takatsuka detailing the first batch of key innovations in the new game, and extends upon last year’s game’s freedom of play motif. Three images of the AI elements are also available, alongside pictures of the dev team. Further announcements on PES 2012 are scheduled in the coming weeks. PES 2012 is due to launch this fall on all platforms.
As the Playstation Network finally starts it’s restoration, Aussie gamers seem to be having trouble, supposedly the restoration was to start from 5am this morning. But if you’re like me, you’ve been having trouble and can’t exactly sign in. I’ve been trying since last night as I wasn’t sure of our regions restoration, but at 8am this morning password resets started working, since then the servers seem to have gone down because of too many password rests (check the EUblog), Pretty funny isn’t it?
There’s also been a delay in finalizing the details of the welcome back program and we won’t find out until tomorrow, apparently the servers were only meant to be down for half an hour, but it seems the wait will be longer for Australia.
The best way to get updates is through Sony’s twitter, it’s also the best way to complain directly at them, that’s the general feeling across twitter right now as people struggle to reconnect to the PSN. All good things come to those who wait and I guess we’ll be waiting for abit longer. Let us know if you’re able to connect or have any more issues.
Just as Sony are slowly phasing the PSN network online across the globe another gaming company has fallen victim to the wrath of childish hackers. Honestly, its almost got to the point where the bigger picture of what is going on has been forgotten in lieu of a cat and mouse style “game” between hackers and large entertainment corporations. This has gone beyond piracy issues, pride and morals and entered the territory of large scale theft.
The latest attack involves Eidos, the company that has brought the wonderfully lovely lara croft to us via tomb raider as well as the Deus Ex franchise which has an upcoming release. The company has confirmed that up to 3 sites under their control had been breached and consequently taken offline. Via their official website SquareEnix released the following statement.
“Square Enix can confirm a group of hackers gained access to parts of our Eidosmontreal.com website as well as two of our product sites. We immediately took the sites offline to assess how this had happened and what had been accessed, then took further measures to increase the security of these and all of our websites, before allowing the sites to go live again.
Eidosmontreal.com does not hold any credit card information or code data, however there are resumes which are submitted to the website by people interested in jobs at the studio. Regrettably up to 350 of these resumes may have been accessed, and we are in the process of writing to each of the individuals who may have been affected to offer our sincere apologies for this situation. In addition, we have also discovered that up to 25,000 email addresses were obtained as a result of this breach. These email addresses are not linked to any additional personal information. They were site registration email addresses provided to us for users to receive product information updates.
No dissemination or misappropriation of any other personal information has been identified at this point.
We take the security of our websites extremely seriously and employ strict measure, which we test regularly, to guard against this sort of incident.”
In what reads like a soap opera worthy of any bored housewifes viewing, the hack was an apparent attempt to frame a young member of the group Anonymous named Ryan who had caused some sort of internal rift between other members. Seriously guys you all need to get girlfriends and grow up a little bit its getting old. Sort your crap out in the schoolyard and put your skills to good use.
If you are a fan of MMO games then look no further than 505 games new upcoming title Dawn of Fantasy. Based in the world of Mythador where only 3 main races remain in significant numbers, players have the choice of Elves, Orcs and Men across 9 different homeland territories. Even in terms of MMO games this looks epic, with a thoroughly detailed and immersive storyline. Here is a really basic run down on the different characters and what you can expect from the game.
Elves: The Elves, who have divided themselves into 2 groups many centuries ago, inhabit the Nhob’ru forests. The High Elves pursue alchemy and knowledge and live harmoniously in the capitol city of Illas Tiltos with the Wood Elves who devote themselves to nature and lore. The Knob’ru forests are made up of 3 areas, being Bolfores’l, the birthplace of the elvish race, Erthee L’Bala and Taltos.
Elves are the best archers in the game and possess exceptionally potent defensive forces. It is rumoured their kingdom is currently divided with the kidnapping of their king.
Orcs: The Orcs crush their enemies with sheer ferocity and numbers. They inhabit vastly different environments being Brankental the Desert, Flattan Rol swamps and Thikken Dal forest. Orcs fighting styles range from melee to archery depending on the location they inhabit. Orcs rely on recruiting others such as Goblins and Ogres as well as breeding wargs for armies.
Men: The men of Mythador are crossed the sea in older times settling on the shores of Teria. They are more balanced in offensive/defensive tactics and have a stable and effective army. Within Teria the men can either inhabit Southmont with its natural alpine defences, Rolling plain or the grasslands, all of which offer their own pros and cons.
Complete with Dwarves, Dragons and other hidden goodies across the land Dawn of Fantasy looks like it has much to offer fans of the genre. Each race and sub-group comes complete with a rich and long history that intertwines amongst each other over the centuries that have gone by. Planned and detailed tactics are a must as players use the advantages of their homeland environment as well as the natural and acquired resources and skills of their race to build an epic city.
Keep a look out for Dawn of Fantasy released exclusively on PC June 17th 2011 and judging by the effort put into the storyline and screenshots should have a very good adoption rate amongst MMO gamers. Check out the official site here.
“You know that song, “There’s a zombie on your lawn”? Well there are zombies on your lawn. Stop singing! You need powerful plants to stop ’em. Play now to save your brains.”
Luckily, Popcap are giving you the chance to save your brains at a third of the usual price! Be quick though, the offer only lasts another couple hours, after which, you have to pay full price to spring your brains’ ransom.
Crazy Dave, the zombie-fighting-plant specialist, has chosen his favourite Popcap games and is offering them for at least 50% off for crazy Dave’s Deal Days. The first was the classic Plants vs. Zombies, ending at midnight PDT (Google it – I did). After that, another Popcap game will be on sale for 48 hours, and then another, and so on.
Get over to Popcap‘s site quick, and see what’s on sale. Or follow them on Facebook or Twitter to see what deals are coming up.
Game Name: Gatling Gears Platform(s): Xbox Live Arcade, Playstation Network Publisher(s):EA Developer(s):Vanguard Entertainment Genre(s): Twin-Stick Shooter Release Date: May 11, 2011 (XBLA) PSN Date TBA Price: 1200 MS Points ($14.99) DOWNLOAD NOW!
Gatling Gears is now officially out on the XBLA (and coming soon to the PSN) and has set out to breathe some fresh life into the somewhat niche genre that has flooded the indie scene for quite some time. We could have seen the standard fare with Gatling Gears and I honestly thought I was in for the usual experience that twin-stick shooters typically bring, but Vanguard have molded Gatling Gears into something quite more with an interesting world to explore as well as a well balanced and highly addictive experience. Here is my review for Gatling Gears for the Xbox Live Arcade.
Story
There is a bit of a story in Gatling Gears, but it really isn’t too noticeable. Players take the role of a pilot by the name of Max who has abandoned an evil empire in the world of Mistbound (Which some of you may be familiar with from Greed Corps, a slightly similar title created by the same studio). Soon after, Max has a new mission to take down the Empire and the corrupt forces behind it before they drain the world of it’s resources. The main story plays out with bits of dialogue as well as a few loading screens which set the scene for the next level.
While the cast for Gatling Gears isn’t too well defined, the world is bursting with character around every corner with a steampunk/industrial revolution setting that is very well visually detailed and even more enjoyable to actually see as you guide Max’s mech throughout each area. I probably could have invested in the overall narrative a bit more as it did it’s job fine for this title, but Gatling Gears is all about the action and the plot is just a mild incentive to trek along on this wild ride.
Gameplay
The heart and soul of Gatling Gears is how the game actually plays. Like most twin-stick shooters for the Xbox 360, the left stick moves your character and the right stick auto-fires your trusty gatling gun, with a few of the face and shoulder buttons assigned for special attacks and weaponry in your mech’s arsenal. Max’s standard gatling gun works well and is fluent, but due to the short range of the weapon, you are given a cannon which shoots missiles as well as grenades to provide more of a balance the the loadout. The grenades are used by holding down the left trigger and quickly firing at any self-targeted enemy on the screen while missiles play out a bit more standard as they shoot in just one direction but with a much further range and stronger attack power than the gatling gun. Both of these methods of destruction are limited in a small way though, with a few seconds needed to reload each. Thankfully though ammo is infinite and this brief cool-down period adds a small layer of strategy and timing to take down the much larger foes in the game.
The whole game sits on a top-down camera angle, allowing for a full view of the screen to be seen at all times and is usually pretty effective at giving the player the full scope of what is present on the screen. The only issue I really had with the camera was that at certain points I would just barely miss a power-up or item and the camera’s view would pull away while moving forward. It wasn’t a big deal as nothing is truly mandatory to collect, but it is a tiny bit frustrating to see an item just out of reach if you missed it while traveling onward.
Gatling Gears consists of six chapters, broken up into five areas a piece. As Max moves along, swarms of enemies are ready to destroy him around every corner so the action never really dies down. There is a huge variety of foes as well, with foot soldiers boasting all sorts of weaponry from standard guns to flamethrowers, turrets, large and small tanks, and other mechs equipped with a similar arsenal to your own. This is where things get chaotic though, as enemies come from the air, sea, and land (and usually all at once), with weapons on full blast. It is your job to learn the pattern of the fire, dodge it, and quickly take out every enemy on the screen before they destroy your little mech. At times, enemies firing projectiles can get so intense that the whole screen is filled with bullets and chaos, but after a while learning to fit in-between the openings of fire to get off proper shots becomes second nature and is pretty fulfilling. Power ups can be found scattered throughout the stage as well, enhancing a certain weapon greatly for a short period to better fight off a swarm of enemies. These are all well placed and always seemed to make an appearance when they were most needed, allowing for full utilization.
The first four areas of each chapter all lead to one big boss battle to finish with at the 5th and final area, which usually consists of a huge mech with three life bars to deplete. One thing I loved about boss battles was how varied they truly are as once you deplete the first bar, your strategy must be altered due to the boss changing up his technique, quickly becoming more of a challenge as you go on. This adds a nice unpredictable feel to each battle and lets each chapter end on a rewarding high note of pure accomplishment.
Gatling Gears is a bit repetitive as the gameplay usually stays the same, but to help with that feeling comes an XP system and the ability to upgrade your mech over time. Every time you destroy an enemy, the trademark gears are dropped onto the ground which need to be quickly acquired. As you collect large amounts, your score rises and a multiplier begins to take off, rewarding even more points for the number of gears collected. Once an area is complete, XP is given out based on your performance and score which is then used to upgrade Max’s mech with new skins and add-ons. Another useful upgrading system comes with the gold Max collects. Each area has a set number of gold bars placed throughout, which can be used as currency at shops found in the game where you can fully upgrade your arsenal over time. A pet is also rewarded after so much experience at several points, but honestly all pets really do is run around and tag along on your journey. I even had a swarm of birds that I unlocked that I quickly was mistaking for airborne enemies, so while it is a clever idea for a companion in the game, this addition just felt a bit unnecessary overall.
Level design is yet another ingredient that makes Gatling Gears work so well. Each area has you move throughout several points, stopping to take out huge swarms of mechs and other foes. Levels are varied for the most part and while we do see many of the same type of enemy often, the sheer quantity and positioning of these foes make for a more varied strategy to be applied. With each stage being action-driven until the very last bullet is fired, it is hard to leave the whole experience with a feeling of boredom.
A multiplayer mode is available, which allows you to carry over your mech straight into Xbox Live for co-op or local play. Adding to this, a survival mode which also utilizes multiplayer sets different objectives to perform with an extra level of challenge added in. Gatling Gears is already a long game as it stands with a campaign clocking in at about 5 hours, but this certainly helps add even more replay value into the title and will keep the hardcore that are looking for a challenge coming back for more.
Graphics/Audio
Each chapter in Gatling Gears provides a somewhat different experience due to the changing scenery. From bright green forests, snow covered landscapes, and lively factories, there are quite a few sights to see and each feature high attention to detail to every tree, mech, and building that inhabit the land. In the past, I have seen many titles with the amount of action that Gatling Gears presents having a hard time staying stable with a bit of framerate problems. Thankfully, Vanguard have made the trek through this title nearly flawless and combat comes across as smooth and fluent even during the most chaotic environments. The whole “steampunk” setting fits the game remarkably well and gives Gatling Gears a bit of it’s own stylistic flare which truly sets it apart from other contenders of the genre.
Each chapter also features it’s own soundtrack, which changes as you move throughout each area. Each tune used fits perfectly with the setting presented at the given time, adding in a bit of atmosphere that keeps the combat exciting and engrossing while you do war in the many intense battles within. Small details such as rain pattering onto the soil and roaring rivers and waterfalls also give each level a more distinct feel. The sound effects never miss a beat either and each of the many explosions sound as they should and keep the destruction fun and addictive throughout.
Overall
Before I started Gatling Gears it had been quite some time since I had played a twin-stick shooter as the whole genre usually presents a very indie, low budget feel. After completing this game though, I can easily say this title may be one of the best examples of a high quality exception to that as the combat, XP system, and high presentation value work together cohesively to create one of the most finely detailed twin-stick shooters in recent memory. It may not be a flawless journey, but Vanguard have done a great job in crafting Gatling Gears into one of the most action-packed titles on the Xbox Live Arcade to date.
Croteam and Devolver Digital have all things Serious Sam on steam marked down by 75% on Steam RIGHT NOW! This has apparently caused financial executives at Devolver Digital some serious tension. “I can’t believe you idiots are selling some top-tier premium content like Serious Sam HD for a few bucks,” said Fork Parker, Devolver Digital CFO in a press release. “I’ve been known to pay more than that for a tug job out behind the racetrack.” The sale has been going on since the 12th of May, and finishes tomorrow, on the 16th of May. As a result so far, Serious Sam is now two of the top five sellers slots on Steam. Seriously!
Prices via Steam goes as follows:
Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter:$3.75
Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter:$4.99
Serious Sam HD: Gold Edition (includes both HD & classic versions of both First & Second Encounters):$9.99
According to the press release from the company, Serious Sam is not just dropping his price for this short period, but apparently he’s dropping panties as well. But as we say here on the internet, “Pics or it didn’t happen!”
When asked to comment on the price drop, Croteam Lead Designer Davor Hunski responded. “Please leave me alone, we’re working on Serious Sam 3: BFE.” Serious Sam 3: BFE is due for a late serious summer release.
Yes, you read that right. Sony have officially announced that they have began the process to re-launch the Playstation Network. The company announced today on their official blog that users can now log in and download the new mandatory firmware update and multiplayer functionality will be the first to return.
You can watch the official announcement/apology below in which Kazuo Hirai explains just what will start to happen in a video statement below (which really just explains the expected firmware/password changes we all have looked forward to), but I am sure many of you shall be running to your PS3’s and waiting in line to return to the PSN. A map can also be viewed for U.S. users to show states in which the service has returned in. It has been a long time coming, but hopefully this can soon be put behind Sony users everywhere and lessons about security were learned.
Yesterday NIS America announced what titles they will be localizing this year. These titles include Bleach: Soul Resurrección and Atelier Totori: The Adventurer of Arland. But besides their localizations they also released a very long trailer that explains practically everything you would want to know about Disgaea 4. Including the weapon systems, grinding, the random dungeons, the help system, the punishment system and practically everything else.
I’d have to say that the voice over work for the trailer alone is worth a watch, but anyone should take a look at the trailer even if they don’t know what Disgaea 4 is. Because Disgaea 4’s goal is to have a title in every home, they even say so. What other game lets you deal over a hundred million damage with outrageous looking attacks? Disgaea 4 that’s what. You can have your chance to pick up Disgaea 4 when it releases in the U.S. this September for the PlayStation 3 exclusively.
A few days ago I reviewed Brink and found it to be a very enjoyable experience that was broken apart by a number of odd design choices as well as a terrible online experience. The Online multiplayer was practically unplayable at times due to game stopping lag that occurred when more than a few people played together at once.
It seems Bethesda and Splash Damage took my review and others to heart as they have announced yesterday via the Bethesda blog that they will be updating Brink with some content to hopefully fix the experience. First the title will receive the first DLC pack for free which adds new maps and other new content sometime in June.
More importantly however was the fact that Brink for the Xbox 360 will be getting an update that doesn’t require a download. It places a cap on the humans available for Campaign and Freeplay modes making it so that there can only be eight players online at a time instead of sixteen. This effort is to prevent the game breaking lag that has plagued the game since its release. Although this eliminates 8 vs 8 matches, the new Big Team selection will place players in a match of 8 vs 8.
