THQ and Relic’s Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine finally has a little less vague of a release window. Today the companies announced that rather than a Summer release window the extremely changed Warhammer game will be available some time in August of this year.
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine takes a different approach from the normal RTS game that is Warhammer (or table top game for major fans). The game will take place in third person and appear to be quite similar to Gears of War. Of course this game will have plenty of Orks to kill instead of locusts. Currently few titles have been even announced for an August release date which currently puts Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine in a good selling position when it releases for the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3.
Nothing says a strong Western fan base like getting a classic looking title from Japan localized for the U.S. and other countries. XSEED is going to be handling the localization and of course the release for the classic, old school looking dungeon crawler series Wizardry. The title itself is going to be an exclusive release for the PlayStation 3.
The dungeon plays as a first-person crawler where the RPG itself grew out of originally. The series as a whole is well known for creating some of the most recognizable changes to the RPG ever since its creation years ago. The enemies and sprites will all be hand drawn by Yuki Hayabusa and will consist of 120 different enemies and give players a chance to play with a party of six that they can create from five different races and assign eight different classes. Currently XSEED has only just announced the fact they are localizing the title and only has a release window of Spring 2011.
If you have a decent amount of disposable income and want to help further a good cause while also getting some interesting game merchandise at the same time then now is the time to do it. SEGA is currently holding a video game item auction where they are selling a number of cool and rare items related to some of their popular franchises.
There are a number of items up for auction and is performed by eBay and everything is currently still available. All proceeds from the auction will go to the Red Cross to help fund efforts in Japan. The current item that has the largest price at the moment is the above Valkyria Chronicles promo poster. At the time of this writing it is at $560.00 which means it will certainly be a great collector’s item. If of course you don’t have enough money to enter these auctions you can still donate to help Japan through our own fund raising efforts here.
It looks like everyone will start getting their FEAR on a bit sooner than expected. With the previously release window only being Summer of 2011 it is now been announced by Warner Brothers that FEAR 3 will be released in the United Kingdom on May 27th. That means that in under three weeks, people in the UK will be able to see what Alma has in store for everyone this time.
Then again the rest of us in the United States, and Australia of course, have yet to hear any release date for ourselves. One can assume however, that considering the release dates between nations often varies only by a week or two then the US release date could be anywhere between May 20th to June 3rd. However we have contacted Warner Brothers themselves to see if there is any sign of a definitive US release date.
Sure this was bound to happen eventually. There may be an app for this already on the iPhone, or you could of course just store the pictures themselves onto your phone and have the 3DS pick them up but I digress. There is now an app for the Android phone which you can pick up here that makes it so you won’t have to worry about carrying those Augmented Reality cards with you in public if you want to do something involving the 3D camera outside.
Of course the APP downloads for free and contains all of the AR cards that otherwise come free with the Nintendo 3DS: Question Mark Block, Mario, Link, Kirby, Samus and the Pikmin. For those who do not know what the AR cards do, they allow the 3DS to place 3D objects ontop of the card as if they were there in real life, even though they are not.
Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime Developer: Behavior Studios Publisher: Atari Consoles:XBLA (Reviewed), PSN, PC Release Date: March 23rd 2011 (PC, XBLA), March 22nd 2011 (PSN) Price: 800 MSP – Buy Now!
Overview:
Ah… Ghostbusters. Is there any franchise that is more recognizable involving ghosts? Perhaps so but the Ghostbusters’ logo and theme song will always pull at the heart of gamers for being an amazing movie franchise. After the release of Ghostbusters: The Video Game back in 2009 fans of the franchise have been waiting to see what would happen next, and now we have Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime on the XBLM. Will G:SoS live up to the franchise name?
Story:
The year is 1989, and being the year Ghostbusters 2 came out, the story picks up with the museum curator Janosz Poha being submitted into a mental hospital after the events of Ghostbusters 2 and his work with Vigo. Once in the hospital he meets a man named Ismael, the last member of the cult of Dumazu whom is seeking the Relic of Nilhe. The relic contains the power to bring back Dumazu the Destroyer and without much hesitation, Janosz agrees to help Ismael as long as he gets his reward; Dana Barrett.
As years pass we come to modern day March 2011 and it seems that things have gotten so busy around New York City with countless ghost manifestations. So much so that the Ghostbusters themselves are getting worn out from running all over the city. In an effort to lighten their load they recruit a team of rookies: Bridget, Gabriel, Samuel and Alan to help battle the ghosts while they get some rest. The rookie team then must track down the source of these outbreaks and this takes them to many different venues familiar to Ghostbusters fans such as the Sedgewick hotel and others.
The story itself is told through unvoiced comic cutscenes and through little dialogue blips that appear during gameplay. The rookie Ghostbuster team feels relatively similar to the original team, with Bridget being the comedic relief most of the time and the rest of the team providing the scientific outlook of what is going on.
Graphics:
The comic like cutscenes are hit and miss at times. Most of the time the drawings look relatively impressive and show the characters’ likness quite well but sometimes it is hard to tell who exactly you are looking at, especially involving the classic Ghostbuster team, due to the drawing. Also considering the game is not voiced the player must read the comic dialogue bubbles that show up.
Unfortunately, much like the comics, the dialogue itself is hit and miss because there was a number of times that, due to a large panel of a comic being shown off, it was hard to read what the dialogue even said on a 50” HD screen. This problem can lead to the player having to either move extremely close to the screen to understand what is going on or simply ignore that dialogue bubble in the hopes of it containing no dire information.
Audio:
Unfortunately the game itself is not voiced so that means while Behavior Studios was able to avoid paying the original actors for taking part in the game, it also means you won’t be hearing Dan Aykroyd or Bill Murray in Sanctum of Slime. But what it does have thankfully is the original theme song which is a huge plus considering how die-hard fans can be for Ghostbusters. The background music that plays during each level is suitable enough, attempting to provide a
Gameplay:
Ghostbusters plays as a twin joystick shooter, with the left stick moving your character around and the right stick aiming wherever you want your proton pack to shoot at a ghost or piece of furniture. The camera angle stays at a nice overhead angle and gives the game a Gauntlet-like feel, especially when played with friends. There are a few levels consisting of the players riding on the Ecto-1 where the players have to watch the car’s health as well as their own.
Since the original Ghostbusters are worn out after the above mentioned spree of ghost sightings and the rookies are in charge that means that you will have to choose between Bridget, Gabriel, Samuel and Alan when you begin a level. As you enter a level you will be attacked by a number of different ghosts, which are color coded by the proper weapon you should use to defeat them.
When you first start the game you will only have the red proton beam (ah… the classics) to start out with, and thankfully enemies are only of that variety at the moment. As you progress through the game you will unlock a yellow spread shot weapon and a powerful blue shot as well which then can be used on ghosts of that color variety. It is possible to defeat ghosts with weapons of other colors but it is more difficult because they do less damage.
Now even if you happen to play solo you will still have three other Ghostbusters to back you up at all times. The AI partners seem to understand their job quite well and will usually do a good enough job reviving you and each other if you happen to go down from being hit too many times by a ghost. Reviving your teammates involves rapidly pressing the A button until a small bar fills up. It isn’t the best way to revive however and can sometimes involve getting knocked down yourself simply because you took too long.
But who would want to play a Ghostbuster game alone when it is easy to see the fact that it was meant to be played with friends. There are two different options for multiplayer, local and Xbox Live. Local is self-explanatory, giving players the option to have four different players on the screen at one time with each player taking over one Ghostbuster. Xbox Live will give players the ability to jump into any created match by searching for active lobbies, or making a quick match of your own. From my experience the game played fluidly online without any major lag between players with four on screen at one time.
Now what would a Ghostbusters game be without destructible environments? Not a Ghostbuster game but Sanctum of Slime neatly jumps that hurdle by allowing most furniture and even items on the wall to be destroyed via your proton blasts. There are even collectibles hidden throughout the levels which the player can find by destroying the objects containing them.
Overall:
Despite a new team and a new playstyle Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime still provides the classic feel. Unfortunately the original team does not return outside of a few minor comic book appearances and the comics themselves can be a disappoint most of the time. Despite this however there is plenty of fun to be had when playing with a group of friends on your couch or online.
I give Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime
Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime
Developer: Behavior Studios
Publisher: Atari
Release Date: March 23rd, 2011
Price: 800 MSP – Buy Now!http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/Ghostbusters-Sanctum-of-Slime/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d80258410a89
Overview:
Ah… Ghostbusters. Is there any franchise that is more recognizable involving ghosts? Perhaps so but the Ghostbusters’ logo and theme song will always pull at the heart of gamers for being an amazing movie franchise. After the release of Ghostbusters: The Video Game back in 2009 fans of the franchise have been waiting to see what would happen next, and now we have Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime on the XBLM. Will G:SoS live up to the franchise name?
Story:
The year is 1989, and being the year Ghostbusters 2 came out, the story picks up with the museum curator Janosz Poha being submitted into a mental hospital after the events of Ghostbusters 2 and his work with Vigo. Once in the hospital he meets a man named Ismael, the last member of the cult of Dumazu whom is seeking the Relic of Nilhe. The relic contains the power to bring back Dumazu the Destroyer and without much hesitation, Janosz agrees to help Ismael as long as he gets his reward; Dana Barrett.
As years pass we come to modern day March 2011 and it seems that things have gotten so busy around New York City with countless ghost manifestations. So much so that the Ghostbusters themselves are getting worn out from running all over the city. In an effort to lighten their load they recruit a team of rookies: Bridget, Gabriel, Samuel and Alan to help battle the ghosts while they get some rest. The rookie team then must track down the source of these outbreaks and this takes them to many different venues familiar to Ghostbusters fans such as the Sedgewick hotel and others.
The story itself is told through unvoiced comic cutscenes and through little dialogue blips that appear during gameplay. The rookie Ghostbuster team feels relatively similar to the original team, with Bridget being the comedic relief most of the time and the rest of the team providing the scientific outlook of what is going on.
Graphics:
The comic like cutscenes are hit and miss at times. Most of the time the drawings look relatively impressive and show the characters’ likness quite well but sometimes it is hard to tell who exactly you are looking at, especially involving the classic Ghostbuster team, due to the drawing. Also considering the game is not voiced the player must read the comic dialogue bubbles that show up.
Unfortunately, much like the comics, the dialogue itself is hit and miss because there was a number of times that, due to a large panel of a comic being shown off, it was hard to read what the dialogue even said on a 50” HD screen. This problem can lead to the player having to either move extremely close to the screen to understand what is going on or simply ignore that dialogue bubble in the hopes of it containing no dire information.
Audio:
Unfortunately the game itself is not voiced so that means while Behavior Studios was able to avoid paying the original actors for taking part in the game, it also means you won’t be hearing Dan Aykroyd or Bill Murray in Sanctum of Slime. But what it does have thankfully is the original theme song which is a huge plus considering how die-hard fans can be for Ghostbusters. The background music that plays during each level is suitable enough, attempting to provide a
Gameplay:
Ghostbusters plays as a twin joystick shooter, with the left stick moving your character around and the right stick aiming wherever you want your proton pack to shoot at a ghost or piece of furniture. The camera angle stays at a nice overhead angle and gives the game a Gauntlet-like feel, especially when played with friends.
Since the original Ghostbusters are worn out after the above mentioned spree of ghost sightings and the rookies are in charge that means that you will have to choose between Bridget, Gabriel, Samuel and Alan when you begin a level. As you enter a level you will be attacked by a number of different ghosts, which are color coded by the proper weapon you should use to defeat them.
When you first start the game you will only have the red proton beam (ah… the classics) to start out with, and thankfully enemies are only of that variety at the moment. As you progress through the game you will unlock a yellow spread shot weapon and a powerful blue shot as well which then can be used on ghosts of that color variety. It is possible to defeat ghosts with weapons of other colors but it is more difficult because they do less damage.
Now even if you happen to play solo you will still have three other Ghostbusters to back you up at all times. The AI partners seem to understand their job quite well and will usually do a good enough job reviving you and each other if you happen to go down from being hit too many times by a ghost. Reviving your teammates involves rapidly pressing the A button until a small bar fills up. It isn’t the best way to revive however and can sometimes involve getting knocked down yourself simply because you took too long.
But who would want to play a Ghostbuster game alone when it is easy to see the fact that it was meant to be played with friends. There are two different options for multiplayer, local and Xbox Live. Local is self-explanatory, giving players the option to have four different players on the screen at one time with each player taking over one Ghostbuster. Xbox Live will give players the ability to jump into any created match by searching for active lobbies, or making a quick match of your own. From my experience the game played fluidly online without any major lag between players with four on screen at one time.
Now what would a Ghostbusters game be without destructible environments? Not a Ghostbuster game but Sanctum of Slime neatly jumps that hurdle by allowing most furniture and even items on the wall to be destroyed via your proton blasts. There are even collectibles hidden throughout the levels which the player can find by destroying the objects containing them.
Overall:
Despite a new team and a new playstyle Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime still provides the classic feel. Unfortunately the original team does not return outside of a few minor comic book appearances and the comics themselves can be a disappoint most of the time. Despite this however there is plenty of fun to be had when playing with a group of friends on your couch or online.
With the tragic release that was Medal Of Honor, EA hopes to redeem themselves with confirmation of a sequel to the first person shooter coming this year. Medal Of Honor failed to deliver in 2010 that EA’s stocks fell and fans were left scratching their heads over the developer’s motives. Retailers saw a huge increase of returns and trades of the game and many were left to drop prices significantly in order to resell it.
With the fallout between Infinity Ward and Activision running rife throughout the industry, left many Infinity Ward staff running to EA, who in return decided to make MOH with the new talent. No one could predict the outcome. The game was highly anticipated, in demand and many believed the title would finally take back its award winning rank from the Call of Duty series.
When it was released in mid October, the military shooter met with an influx of eager fans awaiting to play the newly renovated title. Within days, MOH saw an early death.
EA took its time to announce a sequel to the shooter in fear it will encourage a public backlash. However so far, the newly titled Medal of Honor 2 will resurrect its predecessor and shed a new light on the brandished title.
Over the years we have seen many incarnations of both Resident Evil 4 & Resident Evil: Code Veronica, but it now appears that both titles are looking to get a new HD coat of paint and a release on the Xbox 360 and PS3 under the name “Resident Evil: Revival Selection”. A recent posting in this week’s Famitsu mentioned that these two titles would be getting a single disc release in the future. With Resident Evil: The Mercenaries & Revelations just right around the corner for the 3DS, it makes a lot of sense for both of these classics to be next in line for the HD treatment.
No other details have been given but now the cat has seemed to have come out of the bag, Capcom should be coming forth soon to shed some light on exactly what this selection will truly hold.
When Konami acquired Hudson a couple of months ago, it seemed unclear just what would happen to their line-up of scheduled releases, both for the 3DS and other consoles. In the release calender in Japan’s Famitsu magazine it has now been confirmed that all of Hudson’s projects have officially been canceled. This means that the upcoming 3DS games such as Bomberman, the new 3D version of Bonk, Kororinpa and Omega Five are now done for.
Bonk: Brink of Extinction, Bomberman and Real Boxing which were all headed to the PS3 are also listed as canceled as well as Deca Sports for the Wii. As grim as this news is, especially seeing Bonk and Bomberman on this list, I still have a gut feeling that it is possible that a few of these titles may see the light of day again if Konami decides to use any more of Hudson’s properties as Bomberman is shown in the screenshots for Konami’s upcoming Sudoku title for the 3DS. For now though it is a sad say for Hudson fans and gamers everywhere as we have lost a lot of potentially great titles. I’m sure we have not heard the last of this story so stay tuned and we will bring you any further developments as they are released.
In a join effort between developers TRION Worlds and Ex-Hacker, ManWitDaPlan, comes a fix to to the MMORPG ‘RIFT’.
While neither Trion or the hacker have given specifics as to how the game could be exploited, they have slightly detailed how it occured. Apparently there was an exploit in the games code that allowed users to not be authenticated as they were logging in, or something (this really goes over my head), and could entirely skip the logging in system. This would allow hackers access to your characters and gold. Though, strangely enough, not your characters mail. This is strange event of not being able to touch a players mail is what led ‘ManWitDaPlan’ to find the security flaw.
After working out the problem, he immediately contacted Trion and they worked together to fix the issue. The game was patched two-hours later and a security fix put into place.
