Its been just about about 5 years since the Xbox 360 was released and 4 years since Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii have been on store shelves. Some are already talking about the announcement of the eighth generation console(s) coming as soon as this E3; some say it’ll happen next year and few say it might not even happen anytime soon. Either way — new consoles or not — change is always coming. With Sony repeating the idea that they are “future proof”, and as expensive as their console is (or ‘was’ depending on your preference) you can count on it lasting you for at least a decade. I think it’s safe to say there won’t be an announcement from Sony anytime soon for a Playstation 4 and Nintendo seems to be content with their stance in the market at the moment. So if there was an announcement of a new console coming soon most will suspect it will be Microsoft; while many beg to differ with the approach of the “Natal” release and some speculate that it wouldn’t be that far-fetched of an idea if Microsoft was already planning on a next-gen console to release as soon as 2011 or 2012 with Natal compatibility.
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It seems like there haven’t been many western video games in the last couple generations. There was Gun a few years ago and most recently there was Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood released just this past summer. This May you’ll be able to experience a sandbox style Western that makes use of the same engine applied in Grand Theft Auto 4 (Euphoria and RAGE) from Rockstar San Diego. The game has been compared to GTA4 and has even been called “Grand Theft Horse” because of the unique cast of characters you will meet on the course of playing the game and that it’s basically a Grand Theft Auto game set in the Wild West. Not much has been said about the large mass of land you will be able to embark on in the game, but what we know is that it’s going to be even bigger than what we saw in Grand Theft Auto San Andreas.
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Today, GameInformer’s Jeff Marchiafava revealed Portal 2 will be the cover of the next issue. After two unprecedented updates to Portal 1 this past week many fans and journalists had taken the add-on’s as a hint for a sequel or an expansion of some sort. The updates give you 26 audio transmissions you are able to hear through the in game radio, and if you’re so inclined to search– some hidden Morse code recordings. Portal first started off as an experiment that was bundled in The Orange Box with Half-Life 2 and Team Fortress 2, and it became something bigger than Valve ever thought it would be. Hit the jump for all of the art work.
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Just about anyone with a PlayStation 3 has been waiting for this game since its announcement, and it’s almost here. I recently got a hold of the God of War 3 E3 demo shown this past summer, and I probably played it about 5 times through by now. The game feels the same — which isn’t a bad thing at all. God of War is known for its fluid controls and its ability to let you do a lot by pressing one or two buttons leaving you satisfied with the amount of damage you’ve just bestowed upon your enemy. Many said that this game looks like an HD God of War and I agree that it does; that being said the original God of War on PlayStation 2 looked pretty damn good for its time and it still holds up. (God of War Collection on PS3) The fact of the matter is God of War 3 looks gorgeous. It’s only a matter of weeks before Kratos is officially back and I can’t wait for the full experience!
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“It’s easier to iterate on a product than to bring something totally new.” Says Remedy’s Matias Myllyrinne. It must be true given the fact that Remedy’s last released game was Max Payne 2 back in 2003. Ever since the release of that game seven years ago Remedy has been working on Alan Wake; a project that has undergone so much change in its style and scope. Myllyrinne explained at DICE this past week that one of the hardships they have faced in the development was giving up their first idea of mixing a thriller type story with a sandbox type game– this decision was sacrificial to the time they spent for the first 6 months creating the game and the couple millions that it cost. The game is finally complete now and we are just months away from the full experience of Alan’s journey.
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This game is the breath of fresh air the series needed. I remember back when this title was first announced and the screens of shaggy haired Sam Fisher that shortly followed. Today Fisher looks very different, and it looks like the developers are trying to totally redefined the series. For the last couple years a lot of designers were trying to find a way to keep your HUD totally clean so that you can have a fluid and visually pleasurable experience with the game; also giving you a level of immersion that game developers always try to hit on. I think the team at Ubisoft Montreal are probably doing it the best with Splinter Cell Conviction.
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Remember back when we weren’t even sure what Nintendo’s next console was going to be named. All we knew was it would be something totally new, it would make use of motion control, and its code name: The Revolution. The first title to really interest me (other than the Zelda port from GameCube, Twilight Princess) was Red Steel from Ubisoft. When the game came out I went over to a friends house and played it — I beat the whole game within a week, and you know what? It wasn’t that great at all. That being said when I heard that there would be a sequel I wasn’t as pessimistic as some would be after having my experience with the first game, but I found myself more optimistic and sure that they’ll see through their flaws of the first game and fix it for the second. We’ve seen Ubisoft do this with Assassin’s Creed and I think they might just have to do it again for Red Steel 2.
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David Cage of Quantic Dream wants to change the way we think about gaming. So he challenged gamers with a question: Can video games bring a person to tears? Having only played the demo, that is now available on Playstation Network, I’m not fit to answer that questions just yet. Though I can say that after playing the demo I can tell what Cage was going for. Many films over the years have proven to be able to evoke emotion in the viewers and that’s exactly what the french developer is aiming to do with Heavy Rain. In a number of interviews in the past he equates the experience one would have with the title to an “interactive drama”, and that’s exactly what it is. +Continue Reading
Dante’s Inferno: Trials of St. Lucia has been scheduled to release on April of this year. The DLC will be a 2 player co-op experience where a one plays as Dante while the other is in the role of St. Lucia, also a character from Dante Alighieri’s epic poem. Have fun experiencing hell with a friend come this April.
Travis Touchdown returns this week in the sequel title Desperate Struggle from Grasshopper Manufacture. As I watched footage of the game it seemed relatively close the the gameplay and combat in the first No More Heroes. Although the Combat in the first NMH was fun it did get a bit repetitive after a while having to fight many of the same enemies over and over but maybe Desperate Struggle will change that formula. Suda51 has confirmed in previous interviews: “Expect some really cool new wrestling moves,” and there will no be more Beam Katanas to choose from including the new Giant Beam Katana. Contrary to Suda 51 previous comments on Wii MotionPlus — there is no usage of the peripheral in the game.
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Polish developer Nibris announced their working title horror for the Nintendo Wii back before the console was even released. In fact the game was announced back when little was known about “The Nintendo Revolution” in March of 2006. The last bit of news the public received from this mysterious game was the developers choice for a game engine; Gamebryo. The title is set in the pre-WWI era of Eastern Europe where you play as an aristocrat, Maria who is to protect her blind son after a train accident. The horrific adventure is supposed to be based on old Slavic legends. Their mini-site states the trailer is “coming soon” and that the title is slated to release in fall of 2009 — which obviously hasn’t happened. For more about the game click on the picture above, and make sure to stay tuned when more information is revealed to the public.
CVG has released a report that the next AC game will in fact star Assassin’s Creed 2 hero Ezio. Ubisoft has also revealed that it will be designed by the same team that brought you AC2 and it is also a follow up story of the last game. Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemo states: “We have a new Assassin’s Creed that we expect will be a very high quality product that as well as an offline component will have a multiplayer component”. Their goal is to release the sequel by March of 2011, and it will also be sold at “full price point.” The real question is what will the title be released on?
