SyFy and Bigpoint are developing a Battlestar Galactica game, and you can be a part of it! Register for the open beta before February 8th and then get ready to get your frak on! Hmm, I’m not sure if I used that word correctly. Regardless, the game looks pretty awesome and it is FREE!
That is right. The game will be web browser based and it will be a free to play MMO. Micro transactions will be available for purchase though. Battlestar Galatica Online will feature a deep story in the BSG universe, and you will be able to command multiple ships in intense space combat.
For those of you who managed to already order a the special edition of Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, you should already know that the steelbook set comes with two extra characters, those being Marvel’s Shuma-Gorath & Resident Evil’s Jill Valentine. If you played Marvel vs Capcom 2, you should be aware that Jill and Shuma-Gorath were strong members of that booming cast, and it looks like they will both be a force to be reckoned with in this sequel.
In the screens below, the first thing you might notice is the costume choice for Jill is straight out of Resident Evil 5 role in which she had the P30 device on her chest, her sleek new battle suit, and of course the cyro bleached hair. Shuma-Gorath on the other hand looks about the same aside from an updated model, but both are sure to be very popular among fans. Remember if you don’t get the special edition of Marvel vs Capcom 3, Capcom will be releasing both characters just a few weeks after the game launches (but of course at a price through either the XBLA or PSN via DLC) on Feb. 15th. Check out the shiny new screens below and let us know if you will be throwing down with either when the game is released.
Gameloft have been masters to their craft when it comes to innovation on mobile and portable devices in the past, and their brand new action RPG, Sacred Odyssey: Rise of Ayden is doing that by being a free to play app. You may be scratching your head on this new title that is “free”, but this one goes the route that we have seen many other mobile games take as of late, where the player can jump right into the game and unlock the full version through an in-app purchase.
Sacred Odyssey has players take the role of Ayden, a young hero chosen by a god to save the Kingdom of Lasgalen from the Apocalypse. It is a rather simple plot, but this title does pack a lot when it comes to a wide variety of areas to explore as well as some old school flare that will surely catch the attention of the fans of the genre in general.
Features Include:
A TIMELESS LEGEND
The peace of the world is now being threatened. Reunite the 4 fragments of Uryah’s Grail and gain supernatural powers to defeat Amonbane, the dark lord at the heart of Lasgalen’s suffering.
The fight against the demonic Amonbane will mean difficult decisions for Ayden, and Princess Lyanora will help him throughout. But when the moment comes to save the world, will Ayden be ready to make the greatest sacrifice?
AN EPIC ADVENTURE IN A FANTASTIC OPEN WORLD
Ride your horse, Miya, across the expansive plains of the kingdom and launch powerful sword strikes as you gallop through fields of enemies. Your journey will introduce you to many locations and foes.
Defeat evil creatures in the Plains of Urvale, fend off enormous bosses in the icy Temple of Altemagus and the volcanic Firepitch Keep to ultimately face Amonbane himself in the royal halls of Kivira Castle.
ALL THE GREATNESS OF A TRUE ACTION/RPG
Begin your journey with but a simple sword, acquiring new weapons and abilities along the way. Soon, you will wield the Sacred Shield, Locrian Hawk (boomerang), the Nagual Cobra (grappling hook) and even the platinum Gauntlet of Brakor.
Each new piece of equipment will grant you access to new areas, new techniques and greater danger. They will even help you to overcome the many enigmas and challenges you face.
Sacred Odyssey: Rise of Ayden is compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation) and the iPad.
While this game does indeed look like a deep, interesting Action-RPG, what I really like about it is the free price tag. Yes, you have to pay for the full experience, but by listing it in this way players can base a purchasing decision by how they like the game as they play it. Think of it as a demo on the XBLA or PSN more less for the free version.
Players can now download and give this game a try at the official page on the Apple iTunes Store and those who fall in love with the game can purchase the full version instantly for $8.99. I really think this whole technique that Gameloft is using is brilliant and for all the users out there who end up compulsively filling up their memory on games they didn’t care to try before, I’m sure I can speak for everyone when I say I hope more developers follow suit. As I mentioned, this app is now available to try out, so get to downloading what looks to be a charming and addictive title that is certainly worth looking into.
So there’s a new Dynasty Warriors coming out. Big deal right? What are they up to now? 20? 21? Oh wait, it’s only 7. But they never really changed with each new installment right? I mean, it’s always just the same story with the same characters in the same environments with slightly better graphics…right? Oh wait, they added in a completely new faction? So for those of you who don’t know what that means, Dynasty Warriors is a franchise that retells Chinese history from the feudal era (with some stylish embellishment, giant swords and ultimate attacks, you know). Traditionally the Dynasty Warriors games have sported a total of 4 factions, Wu, Shu, Wei and “other” (other consists mainly of mercenaries and those who don’t really have an alignment to any one army). Now in Dynasty Warriors 7 they are throwing in a completely new faction, Jin. That should mix things up a bit.
But that’s just ONE tiny little thing, right? I mean if that’s it then the game is barely changed from the previous…what? Oh…you can now change each characters weapon types, allowing them to bring 2 weapons into and battle and switch them at will, even mid combo. Well I SUPPOSE that’s a meaty change since traditionally the characters have always had their one iconic weapon type (except for some of the more recent games, much to my chagrin). Still though, big deal. It’s just the same assortment of weapons, axes swords…ARM CANNONS?!!?
Ok Ok Ok, so maybe this game has a FEW new things…wait…is that a guy riding an enemy soldier like a skateboard through a hoard of enemies?
Yup. Alright, so this Dynasty Warriors looks poised to take home the gold. Check out the official site for more details about everything revealed in this trailer and more. Even if you aren’t a fan of the Dynasty Warriors series you should keep your eyes on this one, it looks like it’s changing things up in the best of ways. The game is set to release on March 22nd in North America and March 25th in Europe.
Who’s That Flying Platform(s): PC Publisher(s): Kalypso Media Developer(s): Mediatonic Genre(s): Action, Casual, Indie Release Date: February 1, 2011 Price: $5.99 USD (Steam)
Who’s That Flying, created by MediaTonic and published by Kalypso Media through the steam digital distribution system, follows the Trial of the ‘Guardian of Earth’ as he must prove his innocence in a hearing as held by the Galactic Council of Justice. The trial itself is a recount of events, as told Guardian of Earths perspective, from days prior concerning the invasion of the Doom Beasts. As the game progresses you find out the reason behind the Doom Beasts invasion as well as why they were able to penetrate so far into the Earth before being noticed by the Guardian of Earth.
Story –
The Story of Who’s That Flying is quite an entertaining experience. The game follows the Trial of the Guardian of Earth as held by the Galactic Council of Justice in order to ascertain as to whether the Doom Beast invasion of the Earth was indeed the fault of the Guardian of Earth. The Council plugs a device into the defendant in order to show his memories as he recounts the events leading up to the trial.
The Earth Guardian strikes a Pose.
The trial focuses on four integral parts to the invasion, the cities of New York, Tokyo, Mexico and Moscow. The Guardian of Earth recounts the happenings of these places in order to clear his name. Each part of the trial is connected to a 3 act level for players to complete.
Graphics –
Who’s That Flying utilises a basic graphical design with the game being completely two dimensional. Everything in the game is run on a two-dimensional plane, from the characters to the backgrounds and enemies. This is, however, not to the detriment of the game as the style suits the game perfectly and is likely to not have the same feel if it was built in a three-dimensional plane.
The character and enemy design, while basic, are well executed and each unit has their own unique feel while not being out of place. The enemies range from simple black coloured puff ball things to really big wormy looking things. The main cast all have a similar look to them so that you can easily tell that they are all a part of the same organisation while all having their own unique look to set them apart, like how Earths colours are primarily a blue theme and Mars has a more red theme going on.
Character Design, simple yet effective.
Across the game the player will visit four different cities in order to save them from the Doom Beasts. Each city appears similarly in the game as the background of the area while retaining their own unique identifiers. A cool thing that can be observed is that, as the city takes damage from oncoming Doom Beasts, the city in the background will become more and more wrecked as the damage progresses. While in the early stages of damage the city is near indistinguishable from having taken no damage whereas the more damage it takes the more and more obvious it is that the city is being damaged.
City with high amounts of health.
City with low amounts of health.
The heroes and enemies attacks are quite basic, with the enemies attacks consisting of mostly ramming into the player or shooting green blobs at the player while the heroes attacks are mainly a barrage of laser bolts hurled forth primarily from his arm cannon. The heroes attacks do vary when you get the opportunity to use a special attack and range from a much faster firing barrage of laser bolts to a singular straight firing beam and then to a singular straight firing huge beam. There is also a melee attack that can be used on the smaller enemies which involves you flying into them and ripping them apart, though there’s no blood so it stays with the artistic design.
Overall I found the graphics quite enjoyable, it is quite refreshing to see a game that doesn’t try to be an ultra-realistic gore-fest or have an art style that doesn’t quite fit the feel of the game. More stylised games please developers. Also, as an aside, I found that there was a fair amount of vertical-tearing in the game with no V-sync option to fix it. It’s not game breaking but gaming rigs like mine should expect it.
Sound –
The sound in this game is quite amazing. Each zone has it’s own theme which are a mixture of the Earth Guardians theme with a more ‘traditional’ piece from that city.
The City of New York has a more patriotic theme which (I find) is quite reminiscent to the classic StarFox64 while sounding distinctly American and pretty awesome. While New Yorks theme is quite patriotic, the Tokyo City theme is more of a Para-Para (fast-paced pop style music from japan) version of the Earth Guardians theme; it’s also my personal favorite from the game. Mexico city has a spanish-folk kind of feel which is quite entertaining to listen to, players who enjoyed the Gerudo Valley theme in Ocarina of Time will quite enjoy this piece. The final city in the game, Moscow, uses a song that anybody growing up with Tetris may know as the song from ‘Tetris Type A’. It is actually a Russian folk song by the name of ‘Korobeiniki’. Although the player must battle through cities in order to save them, the final zone of the game is set in space and this means that it gets it’s own theme. The space theme is slightly more rocking than the other theme’s and reminds me somewhat of the first level of the Sega side-scrolling shooter; Sol-Deace.
The sound effects of this game are simple but do their jobs well. From the heroes differing weapon noises (depending on which power he has activated) to the enemies sounds and weapons they fit quite well and are never confusing to the player and best of all, they’re not annoying even if they repeated across the entire game (or for some players, like me who keep the spacebar depressed, from the first second to the last second of each level, never relenting, never stopping).
The voice acting in this game is quite simple with the language spoken by the main characters being in a made-up language more closely resembling grunts or the language used by the Sims than anything intelligible. Not that this is a negative, not at all! This is a huge positive in the game as it follows the cartoony and simplistic feel of the game more closely. It’s kind of reminiscent of sticking StarFox64 language mode into Lylatian as opposed to English, only it’s much more entertaining and fits the game much better.
Gameplay –
Who’s That Flying is a simple side-scrolling shooter with the player taking the left hand side of the screen and facing to the right with the enemies coming in from the right and heading left. Basically, The Earth Guardian must stop the Doom Beasts from getting past him and damaging the city. In lieu of health, the player has to manage the damage to the city. This means that the Earth Guardian can get hit as much as you want him to and he will not die, but should too many (50 is the limit) Doom Beasts get through the game will be over and you will have to try again or quit.
While you have to prevent all 50 Doom Beasts from breaking through and destroying the city, it is more beneficial for you to let none through as this will ensure your powerups appear more frequently (from what I could tell) so you can better terminate the enemies. The weapon powerups are not the the only reason to keep the cities health up, players will also receive a medal at the end of a level depending on how well they defended the city, the less enemies that break through, the better the medal you receive at the end.
The better the cities health, the better the medal.
At the end of each zone comes a boss. In boss fights it’s essentially you versus the clock and you versus the boss. That’s not to say that you can’t have your city lose health during a boss fight, because you can, as mooks tend to spawn during intervals of the battle and will try to overcome you to try and wreak havoc on the city. The bosses will generally try and hit you with paralytic attacks to try and slow you down so that; either the mooks overtake you and engage with the city, or that your timer runs out and forces you to retry the level or quit.
The game offers three modes for players to play through; Story Mode, Infinite Mode and Challenge mode. Story mode is the mode that allows players to play through the games story which is split into 5 chapters, one for each city and then the final chapter, which detail different testimonies of the Earth Guardians trial. Infinite mode is pretty much a ‘play until you die’ mode, which is to say that its more of a time-trial and score busting mode, which is quite fun to play through. Infinite mode also carries a scoreboard which makes it highly competitive and, well, who doesn’t like to have their name appear in that number one spot in a game? Lastly there’s challenge mode. In this mode the developers have players play through pre-made challenges within the game. This game modes title is not just a throw on name either as the challenges are quite challenging… even the first one.
Throughout the game players can unlock various pieces of ‘Evidence’ and ‘Magazines’ and the like through completing various in-game goals, like finishing a level without letting a certain number of enemies pass you and completing the challenges. There are also a fair few Steam achievements for players to unlock, for those players who like to hunt down achievements, which range from quite easy to really difficult to unlock. These unlocks should be an added challenge for all 100% completionist gamers as well as players who just want to spend 15 minutes and try to achieve something, especially with the challenge mode, it really is quite rewarding should you complete one of the challenges.
See your unlocked unlockables from the menu.
Conclusion –
Who’s that flying is an excellent shooter with an entertaining story line and interesting art design. It provides an entertaining story with sometimes hilarious dialogue and a plot that keeps your attention. The gameplay, while simple, is quite engaging and players will often find themselves wanting to have another go to beat their previous high scores or to get the next trophy up. With plenty of unlockables and fun gametypes this game is well worth it’s price. Even if you won’t play it all the time, when you do you’ll have a blast.
PROS
Extremely fun
Challenges are challenging
Great art style
Doesn’t force you through twenty minute cutscenes
Entertaining story and gameplay
Simple yet complex
Varying difficulty, players can just rush through the story with all bronzes, but they can also go for higher scores.
The worlds of Star Wars, Batman, Indiana Jones and Harry Potter have all been re-imagined as LEGO bricks, and now the little plastic yellow guys are embarking on another licensed adventure: the Pirates of the Caribbean.
Of course, the game’s release coincides with the release of the fourth Pirates film, On Stranger Tides, in May.
The basic details have been announced, and it sounds very much like previous games in the LEGO series: players will control Cap’n Jack Sparrow, plus around 70 other characters (are there 70 characters in the films?), and explore 20 levels based on the original trilogy and the upcoming fourth film. Key scenes from all four movies will be re-enacted, and the blend of the film franchise’s irreverent humour, with the LEGO series’ almost parody style of humour, is a sure winner.
As always, the animation looks great, and the characters are recognisable and appealing as their LEGO caricatures. Gameplay has been described as “action-adventure”, which is vague enough to be almost anything. But if the other games are any indication, it will be solid and entertaining, if not particularly innovative. The game is due in May for a blanket release on Xbox 360, Wii, PS3, PSP, DS, and PC.
Dead Space Platform(s):iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad (reviewed) Publisher(s):Electronic Arts Developer(s):Iron Monkey Studios Genre(s):Action Release Date:January 25, 2011 Price:$8.99 (iPhone/ iPod Touch), $12.99 (iPad)
A few people (myself included) were a bit ‘iffy’ about Dead Space for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. Rumour had it that it was going to be an on-rails shooter similar to what iD did with RAGE for their iOS conversion. But thank god, my speculations turned out to be completely false. Iron Monkey Studios have done a fantastic job in bringing a complete and fully-fledged Dead Space package and overall gaming experience into the palms of player’s hands.
Story
A good amount of detail has been given to this game’s story. Set as a prequel to Dead Space 2, the story fits in nicely with the events of Dead Space 2. Without giving too much away, you are Codename: Vandal, who is sent on a secret mission into the mines of Titan, however the real truth of your mission becomes very apparent with deadly consequences with an outbreak of Necromorphs. Characters from Dead Space 2 reappear in this version and it’s nice to see that there is a level of crossover between the two games, although both their stories are self-contained and you will not need to play either to fully understand them both, they work well by themselves.
Gameplay
Perhaps the most striking thing about Dead Space on the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad is that is looks and plays exactly like its console counterpart. Apart from the obvious changes eg touch based controls, gameplay and graphical tweaks, this game is a near identical Dead Space experience. Survival horror has probably never played this good on portable device. Players will need to conserve ammo by strategically dismembering Necromorph’s limbs whilst keeping an eye out for useful power nodes, credits and of cause more ammo.
New exclusive weapons have been included in this game for example the Plasma Saw, a nifty melee weapon great for up close and personal kills and the Core Extractor, a ‘BFG 9000’ of a weapon (probably the biggest gun I’ve ever seen) extremely useful in taking out multiple enemies. Whilst the touch controls may take some time to get use to, the first ‘tutorial’ level work very well to sort out any issues no messing about here, but once you get the hang of them you’ll appreciate the superb job Iron Monkey Studios have done with their tight streamlined controls. Manoeuvring, running, aiming and shooting are all just a tap away, not to mention other nice additions such as rotating your iOS device to change the Plasma Cutter firing mode. Try doing that when you’re in a really frantic fight, it’s fun!
Graphics and Audio
I’ve probably said it before but I’ll say it again, this game looks and plays exactly like its console version. Obviously, gamers on the iPad will have the better experience simply because of the larger screen but that’s not to say that iPhone or iPod Touch players are getting a watered down copy either, the game looks great on whatever iOS device you decide to play it on. The graphics in this game look extremely clean and crisp especially in the animations, they look and run very smoothly with no frame rate issues or texture popping.
The game states that ‘its best played with earphones’ and I can’t argue with that. Dead Space features full voice acting, immersive music and of cause high tension noises in the ‘scary parts’. Oh and yes, there’s a lot of them. Audio cues, music and voice acting are all top notch no corners have been cut here, again, it is on par with its console counterpart.
Overall
Dead Space for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad is definitely a great survival horror game, no denying that. The fact that the developers, Iron Monkey Studios, have literally recreated a fully featured Dead Space experience filled with its intense horror and action into your the palms of your hand is an achievement in itself, the game looks, plays and even sounds like it’s console brother. Funnily enough, speaking of achievements the game also features 40+ achievements to unlock. Great for replayability and the completionists out there but that’s not all, by registering the game with EA.com you’ll also unlock exclusive content for Dead Space 2 and that’s really a cherry on top for Dead Space fans.
I give Dead Space for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad:
The amazing L.A. Noire is coming soon. In the intervening time leading up to release, Rockstar has provided some very interesting data regarding how Team Bondi, the developers behind the game, were able to accurately recreate the 1947 era themes that the the game will feature. Part One of these “diaries” deals with Locations and Set Design.
The artists and graphics designers at Team Bondi actually used real color palettes from the ’40s to match and create their own colors in the game. Other materials were also used.
“I bought from eBay old House & Garden magazines, along with Architectural Digest, Sears catalogues and Interior Decorating guides from the 40’s. These were invaluable as not only did it show you the best of how they styled their homes, but it showed you how they lived,” says Simon Wood.
The Barclay Hotel in Los Angeles was used to recreate the feel of the 1940s. This hotel has not changed much in the last 60 years, and so it was a perfect source of detailed design schemes that could be implemented in the game.
“We created ‘Production Bibles’ which are like production design style guides for all the locations in the game,” said Wood, “The bibles have floorplans, material, dressing, graphics and signage, lighting details, and any other reference images that are needed to create the locations in the game. We made over 140 of them altogether.”
As usual, Rockstar made sure that their game would express exacting details that would really bring each character to life.
“I had a checklist of which styles of architecture and colour palettes would work well with the characters Brendan was writing, so that their persona was reflected in their personal surroundings,” Wood said.
Team Bondi has strived to make this game have very high production values. As a result of this effort, they researched these wardrobes and sets as one of their first steps in the design process. Often times, in the movie industry, these aspects of creation are left to do until the end.
Last week Namco Bandai released a mysterious teaser website that was called A Tale of Two Richards. There was a distorted image that looked vaguely like a Tales game logo but at that point there was no actual confirmation of the rumor and Namco Bandai was not willing to let the cat out of the bag early. Now however if anyone goes to the website they are no longer greeted with a distorted image, but the logo of Tales of Graces F.
There isn’t a whole lot to be said about the logo other than that below it, there are the words “Coming soon to North America.” Oh and you can join them on Facebook as well. There currently is no information as to whether or not the game will be released on the PS3. Who knows they could even make an Xbox 360 version as well but for now all we can do is wait for more information.
Earlier we mentioned that Namco Bandai is going to publish From Software’s Dark Souls when it arrives later this year. Now From Software and Namco Bandai’s partnership doesn’t end there, as they will be also handling the publishing for Armored Core V when it is set to ship to the US and Europe in the early months of 2012.
Armored Core V is said to be focused more around online multiplayer where fighters will form teams with each other and attempt to capture enemy bases. Rather than not allowing players to jump into already running games, the From Software team is now implementing a feature that allows players to jump in and wait for the match to finish so they can instantly begin the next round.
The online multiplayer isn’t the only feature either, as the single player mode will also combine elements of the online multiplayer by allowing players to continue their battles in single player mode if all of their friends leave them before the battle is over. Now Armored Core V has entered the stage where being an easy to play online mech game is the priority. We’ll find out more as the months go on.
