This latest video from the sequel to Colin McRae DiRT 2 shows some virtual recreation of the Gymkhana – a new rally-racing turned street-racing stunt driving discipline, in which you display your amazing control of the car through the showcase of some impressive manoeuvres.
This has been recreated in DiRT 3 in this trailer, and shows not only a robust build of the game running very fluidly, but some accurately fine-tuned handling. The person putting on the show must have had a lot of practice, and I’m sure that instead of a one long, fluid run, they resorted to pieceing together clips of each section of the routine. Either way, it is a good display of control in this new game-mode of Gymkhana, and although it’s still going to be while for before DiRT 3 comes out, it shows Codemasters aren’t resting on their laurels and are actually building on its predecessor with new features.
Kinectimals Publisher: Microsoft Developer: Frontier Developments Console: Xbox 360 – Kinect (Reviewed) Release Date: November 4 2010 Price: $49.99 US, £39.99 UK, $89.99 AUS
Overview:
Now little children are a hard market to design video games for. Sure they can have childrens’ games made specifically for their age group, but then what about anyone else who would be interested in playing them? What about a game that not only appeals to children, but to adults as well and anyone in between? There may have been a few times in the past that this had been attempted but it usually always ended up leaving the middle age group in disdain. But now that the Kinect has been released there is a completely new way to appeal to every age group; especially one with cute animals.
Kinectimals may have been designed for a younger audience but never before has any game that involves caring for an animal been so interactive. Of course your cat or dog may look at you with disdain when you start petting the virtual cubs. But in the end does Kinectimals really have enough going for it to make it not only a great game for the family, but also showcase the capabilities of the Kinect?
Graphics:
Something that will astound many players right off the bat is the fact that the graphics are beautiful to look at. As you first begin the game and see each of the different wild cubs playing around it is evident that a large amount of care has been given to the design of each cub. Seeing the realistic looking fur on each of the different cubs is an amazing sight including their real to life movements that makes it seem like you are taking care of a real tiger cub of your own.
Not only are the cubs amazing to look at but the areas are also very well designed. The jungle and island scenery that you play with your cub in are brightly colored and designed to be quite real to life. Simply taking a look at the ground that your cub treads shows how realistic the world can appear as the cub walks through the lush grass.
Audio:
The world of Kinectimals is filled with easy listening melodies that play in the background as you play with your pet and explore the island. The cubs themselves are very cute and the purring is amazing to hear. Too bad that there is an almost constant prattling on narrator talking in your ear. The narrator is Bumble, voiced by Richard Horvitz who had previously worked as Invader Zim on the show of the same name. He may not be a problem initially thanks to his believable delivery of the dialogue, if only he wasn’t always bothering the player. There are many instances inside of the game that the player will be wishing they could just ignore Bumble and play with their cub like they want to.
Gameplay:
As you arrive on the island of Lemuria you are immediately introduced to each of the different wild cubs that you will be able to take care of on the island. There is a small semblance of a storyline which revolves around finding the lost treasure of Captain Able Blackwood but that isn’t the focus here. What is the focus are the cute little balls of fur that you have to choose from. Right off the bat you can choose from any of the five starting felines; the Royal Bengal Tiger, Black Panther, Cheetah, African Lion and African Leopard. You are also introduced to your constantly talking buddy Bumble whom I spoke of before, which appears to be a flying fairy lemur. Thus begins your wild cub caring adventure that consists of not only taking care of your cub, but teaching it new tricks and playing different minigames with your furry friend.
Your cub never truly needs to have a specific amount of treatment, but that doesn’t mean you won’t want to take care of the poor little guy either. As you explore the island your cub can grow dirty and require a quick washing to clean that dirt right off of them. You can also feed and water your cub as well to keep them happy. Plus you are able to buy different items at a store inside of the game which allows you to buy brand new toys for your cub. All of these different activities are handled through a mildly confusing menu which may seem a bit much for children at first but can be figured out with a little teaching at the hand of Bumble.
The Kinect easily recognizes the different motions that you perform as you care for your pet. Petting and washing, though similar in appearance, are some of the most enjoyable aspects of the game as you see phantom hands mimicking yours and petting your cub as it purrs wonderfully in your ear. Menu navigation can also be a little troublesome with the Kinect controls, especially considering the previously mentioned fact that it may be confusing to some only made more troubling with occasionally dodgy Kinect navigation.
Through this same method players will be able to teach their cubs a variety of different tricks and have their cubs mimic your motions wonderfully. There is little to no latency or mis-communication between your actions and the Kinect’s recognition system. The most noticeable issue that may arise is some detection problems with throwing objects as the Kinect seems to have difficulty determining your accuracy. Yet this is excellent considering the fact that players must use not only their bodies and hands to interact with their cubs but also with voice commands to have your cub perform tricks on command.
Not only are the tricks essential to Kinectimals’ gameplay but so are the minigames. These minigames range from throwing a ball at a target, maneuvering through an obstacle course, batting a ball into the air and a variety of others are definitely some of the best moments in Kinectimals outside of taking care of and interacting with your cub. As I mentioned before the only game with minor detection issues are those involving tossing motions, while the obstacle course is quite adorable as you perform the actions displayed by Bumble to help your cub make its way through the course.
There is an underlying purpose to these different minigames and tricks however as you are able to complete a variety of different challenges that provide new toys, areas and even a handful of new cubs to play with as time goes on. The more challenges you complete the more variety can be found within Kinectimals. To top it off there is also a small money system involved with these challenges. Money can be used to buy different toys and collars that have been unlocked through the challenges and even furniture that you can decorate your cub’s home with. Yes you are able to customize the home of the cub you are playing with, though only by changing an item with a similarly typed item. This means that while there is customization it is somewhat limited by the pre-set model.
Overall:
While younger children and even pre-teens will find themselves easily drawn in by Kinectimals cute and beautiful visuals and the lifelike wild cubs, more discerning gamers will still find a wonderful experience inside of Kinectimals. Surprisingly enough Kinectimals does sport a lengthy amount of game time, but of course that is only if you are set on your goals instead of taking care of your furry cub. Whether it be the challenges, or connecting to your inner child it is nigh-impossible to avoid falling in love with taking care of your cub. The joyful reactions it has to your interactions is simply a sight to behold; making Kinectimals a must have for anyone who either has children or simply knows how to enjoy a cute game. Especially one who loves animals.
Been eager to fight as the squirrel girl Makoto in Blazblue: Continuum Shift but never wanted to pay the full price for her? Then you are in luck because not only is she on sale, but so is the new character Hellsing as well as a bunch of other different additional content for Continuum Shift. Now with this deal that means you can not only unlock a bunch of new colors for your fighters, but also voice packs for your game which can create an entirely new aesthetic experience.
Keep in mind however these deals have not quite started yet as the Xbox Live DLC will begin in a few days on December 20th and end January 7th of next year. But those who have Continuum Shift on the PS3 will have to wait a bit longer as their sale will not begin until January 4th and end on January 25th. You can find the different DLC that is on sale and what their prices are below. PSN prices in parenthesis.
Unlock Playable Character “Mu-12” from 160 Microsoft Points ($2) down to 80 Microsoft Points ($1)
Additional Characters Colors #1 from 320 Microsoft Points ($5) down to 160 Microsoft Points ($2.50)
Additional Characters Colors #2 from 320 Microsoft Points ($5) down to 160 Microsoft Points ($2.50)
Additional Characters Colors #3 from 320 Microsoft Points ($5) down to 160 Microsoft Points ($2.50)
Unlock All Unlimited Characters from 400 Microsoft Points ($6) down to 240 Microsoft Points ($3.50)
Additional System Voice Type-K from 400 Microsoft Points ($6) down to 240 Microsoft Points ($3.50)
Additional System Voice Type-C from 400 Microsoft Points ($6) down to 240 Microsoft Points ($3.50)
Additional System Voice Type-M from 400 Microsoft Points ($6) down to 240 Microsoft Points ($3.50)
Unlock Playable Character “Makoto Nanaya” from 560 Microsoft Points ($8) down to 320 Microsoft Points ($4.50)
Unlock Playable Character “Valkenhayn R. Hellsing” from 560 Microsoft Points ($8) down to 320 Microsoft Points ($4.50)
People who live in Europe are definitely lucky because just a few days ago they were able to buy Prinny 2: Dawn of Operation Panties, Dood! from the PSN much earlier than the rest of us in the US. That doesn’t mean that all is bad however as US residents will be getting the game next month in January.
This means that European residents can no get a taste of the side scrolling hack and slash action that is NISA’s latest game. Also you may be wondering as to what that image up there means when we are talking about Prinny 2. The reason that is there is because Prinny 2 contains an extra game within itself that is playable after you finish the main storyline.
Titled Asagi Wars players will be able to take control of Asagi who had died accidentally via her own explosion, as she tries to compete against six other Asagi wannabes. Can she prove that she is the real Asagi in these six stages of battle? It is up to you to make sure she will.
Enough about Asagi Wars though, here are some of the key features for Prinny 2:
1000 Prinnies: Players will get 1000 lives to beat this tough action side-scroller!
Lift & Throw: Prinnies are able to lift and throw objects on the battlefield.
Vehicles: Steal and control powerful vehicles, like tanks and UFOs.
Hip Pound: Jump and pound enemies to stun them. Then you can inflict multiple combo attacks for extra damage.
Break Mode: If you charge up enough energy you can execute powerful skills to wipe out enemies using Break Mode or even have a brief taste of invincibility. The more enemies you hack up, the longer this mode lasts.
It definitely is very interesting that they will provide you with all of your lives right off the bat. Sure 1000 lives may seem like a lot but that also shows off just how hard the game could possibly be. Then again you could always play on the Baby mode which makes everything much more simpler to get through as there will be fewer enemies and traps so you can get through just like a baby would, nice and easy.
Square Enix doesn’t only focus on videogames, they also have a decent library of manga that are released in Japan on a regular basis. They have decided to make these different manga available via their own online store. This store will offer English translated manga volumes digitally for those who purchase them. Currently the online store offers the first volume of Fullmetal Alchemist and Soul eater, plus the first two volumes for Yumekui Kenbun: Nightmare Inspector and The Record of a Fallen Vampire.
These volumes are available for $6 currently thanks to a sale being held at launch, think of it as a grand opening sale. There will be new titles released twice a month with the first update in manga available on Janaury 11th. You can also read the first few chapters of each title for free to give yourself a little taste, because you never know whether or not you’ll like a series until you try it a bit.
Feel like getting your chainsaw on early? Because EA announced today that there will be a special edition of the 360 version of Bulletstorm released alongside the standard edition. The good news is that the price for the so called Epic Edition will be the same price as the normal edition at $60. The even better news is that this Epic Edition will include an early access code to the Gears of War 3 beta.
On top of receiving the early access code you will also be getting a set of new armor and boots, something they are calling visual upgrades for the glowing leash, a new gun called the Peace Maker Carbine and also a cool 25,000 experience points free of charge. While there isn’t any news on when the beta for Gears of War 3 will start, Bulletstorm will be released on February 22nd of next year.
Looks like we finally have a release date for Knights Contract next year and thankfully it is quite early in the year. It was just announced today that Namco Bandai and Game Republic’s hack and slash bloody buddy game will be released on February 22nd for the US and Europe on both the Xbox 360 and the PS3.
This is great news considering the fact that before this the only release window we had was some point in 2011. But enough about that, how about a little bit more information about the game instead?
Armed with a razor sharp scythe and explosive witchcraft, players will use these tools to return civility to the land. As players succeed in their journey, they can deal tremendous damage onto their tormentors or unleash a gruesome finisher by coordinating the efforts of Heinrich and Gretchen. However, players must also keep a close eye on Gretchen as her magical prowess and mortality is the key to the duo’s survival.
Sounds like it will be a good time, especially with the fact that it looks like a much more intense and fantastical world than the one we found in Enslaved which was previously released by Namco Bandai a few months ago. There was also a plethora of new screenshots released that show off two of the main enemies in the game, the witches Trude and Straeggele.
You may remember that we mentioned the fact that Record of Agarest War 2 will be getting a patch in the future for Playstation Move support, but that future is now the present. Of course the game is currently only out in Japan, but Japanese audiences will be able to patch their games so that they will be able to use their move controllers for the interactive minigames.
As you can see Compile Heart has also released a video that shows off the minigame being performed inside of the game. Still it is a very questionable bit of gameplay as you more or less are using the Move controller to massage your female party members, and it looks like you are rewarded with experience points and items for doing well enough. Sure it may seem strange to us but after playing the first Record of Agarest War it definitely doesn’t seem out of place at all. Again could this beg the question for possible Kinect support if it is localized and made for the Xbox 360 as well? Only time can tell.
Divergent Shift (DSiWare: Konami, 800 Nintendo DSi Points)
101 MiniGolf World (DSiWare: Teyon, 500 Nintendo DSi Points)
Arc Style: Everyday Football (DSiWare: Arc System Works, 500 Nintendo DSi Points)
Biorhythm (DSiWare: Cinemax, 200 Nintendo DSi Points)
It’s a fairly weigthy selection this week in comparison to previous weeks, with cartoon hero Ben 10 leading the charge. However, it is merely a taster of what is to come. There is, in fact, another Nintendo downloads update of new additions coming on Christmas Eve, with an even more exciting line-up including Hydroventure and Mario Party 2 for the Virtual Console.
One of the all time greats of Sega, Golden Axe is currently being given away this weekend as part of the 21st anniversary for the classic game. GamersGate have partnered up with Sega and will be distributing codes for the PC version of the title. Now I am sure you want to know what you need to do to get in on this steal and it is really quite simple.
First thing you need to do is become a fan of the official Sega Facebook (which you can find by clicking HERE)
Next, well… that’s it really. Sega will be giving out codes that will need to be redeemed within the first 24 hours of receiving, which you must be a registered user to redeem at GamersGate. It only takes a few seconds to register though, so I can easily say to jump on this freebie while it is…well, free. Golden Axe is a timeless classic and for those who have not even tried it yet, you now have no reason to get a chance to play one of gaming’s most beloved franchises. For more information, you can check out Sega’s official post over on their blog by clicking here.
