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JASON!: Hey Ash Is Playing Heavy Rain

2010-03-19T17:00:00Z

This week over at Hey Ash, Whatcha Playin'? "Dad" is playing Heavy Rain and is having about the same level and type of fun that I'm having with the title. Now before you go judging me, don't pretend that you didn't think about doing some of these things too.

I know what the lords of the GayGamer castle talked about it on the podcast and Tiny even gave it a glowing review, but not everyone's experience with Heavy Rain is the same. While far from terrible, I think the game has more similarities with Space Ace than Silent Hill 2, Bioshock, Half-life and other games known for their masterful plots and story telling, but hey... that's just me. I better not say anything more or else I'll end up in the castle's dungeon again. Enjoy the video, folks!

GDC 2010: Blade Kitten Demo Impressions

2010-03-16T19:00:00Z

If GDC is any indication, there's going to be a lot of downloadable titles this year across every platform. One of the few PS3 only downloadable titles I ran into was Blade Kitten from Krome Studios. As their first original IP since Ty the Tasmanian Tiger back in 2002, Blade Kitten shifts away from Krome's predominately E-rated history and into T-rated territory.

Playing as a 2.5D action platformer (3D graphics with 2d gameplay), players hack and slash their way through enemies as Kit, a bounty hunter with cat ears and a pink tail. The action and climbing aspects of the game felt smooth as Kit gracefully destroyed anything standing in her path, but frantic as a lost SNES/Genesis game. More specifically, the game's biggest influence appears to be Strider, and Kit easily stands toe to toe with the arcade classic. With a giant floating sword with a personality of its own, Kit is able to use it as a melee or range based weapon with ease. As she pummels numerous foes, her rage meter will build, allowing her to perform more advanced take downs when activated. Along the way, Kit will occasionally put her cute flying squirrel-like sidekick character to good use and interact with some of the background elements. Purists will be happy to know that the game isn't set to include any type of SixAxis control as Krome felt that they didn't fit into the game naturally.

One of the most pleasant surprises about the game is how Krome was able to find a balance between what I would call "annoyingly super cute" and "Team Ninja Sexploitation." Yes, Kit is an anime-inspired cat girl with sizable breasts, but the character isn't some vapid sidekick waiting to happen. In cutscenes, she's a capable and just a little bit sexy without over doing it. Whether this is because the lighthearted nature of the plot or how Blade Kitten originally began as a comic book created by Krome Studios co-founder, Steve Stamatiadis, it's clear that Kit isn't just there to be ogled at.

Players will be able to get their paws on Blade Kitten this spring in the form of two episodes, with DLC possibly released down the road. There will be plenty of trophies to earn and final cost for the two episodes will only set you back about $20.

GDC 2010: Civilization V Demo Impressions

2010-03-16T16:00:00Z

One of the biggest games that we got a first peak at was the latest installment of Sid Meier's turn based strategy series, Civilization V. Sitting down with for a short demo of the game, it was pretty clear that a lot of careful thought and detail has gone into making this into the biggest, most flexible entries into the series. Looking at a screenshot of the game, it should be pretty obvious to fans of the series that a lot of things have changed. Instead of just adding new features to an existing series, Firaxis Games took a step back and looked at what players wanted to do with the game and built an experience reworked from the ground up.

Speaking of ground, the biggest change you'll notice is that the grid system is gone and replaced with a much appreciated hex system. This made unit movement a whole lot smoother and gave the world map a much more pleasing aesthetic with more realistic shapes. The grounds itself looked stunning with a new graphics engine that takes advantage multi-core systems with DX11 (don't worry, I was assured that the casual-friendly game would support low end systems as well).

In a nod to the breakout success of Civilization Revolution, advisors make a return to the Civ V. The player isn't required to take advantage of their services, but the developers found that players enjoyed their presence in Revolution and placed them in here as a gameplay element that players can take advantage of them if they want. Experienced, or more stubborn, players can ignore them all together and do whatever they want.

Firaxis also applied a lot of the lessons they learned creating Revolution's UI here as well. The overall presentation felt like a lot of the UI was pushed back, only appearing when the player requests it or if an event calls for it. Part of this includes a new notification system that updates plays between turns of the actions that they may have missed. With a quick click, you can automatically move the point of interest and adjust units as needed. Even though Civ has been and still is a turn based game, it's good to see how these changes make the game much quicker.

Another big change in gameplay seen here was how the combat system has been almost entirely overhauled. Gone is the "stack" system that let players totally over power their opponents by over producing. Now, each unit takes up one hex, giving the game a much more traditional tactical feel. With no stacks, cities defend themselves and players form lines of defense.

Unfortunately, we didn't get to see all that the title has to offer at GDC. There's still a bit of time between now and the game's fall release to go over the changes in store for culture, science, and multiplayer. Expect to see more at E3 in a few weeks.

GDC 2010: Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse Impressions

2010-03-15T16:00:00Z

The first two seasons of Sam & Max have taken players to some strange places, but in the third season Telltale Games is venturing into what could be the strangest place of all, Max's brain. Kicking off with a simultaneous release across the PS3, PC, and Mac on April 15th, this five episode season titled The Devil's Playhouse aims to do something a little different with the point and click adventure series. Telltale invited us to swing by their booth at GDC to check out what's new with everyone's favorite dog and rabbity thingy crime fighting team.

The first thing players will notice is a brand new approach to control. With interfaces and controls revamped for the PS3 controller, this marks the first time that players will have direct control over their characters. Also new are the "Toys of Power" that give Max strange new abilities, allowing him to teleport through phones for a Pre-Skool like play phone, read people's minds with a deck of cards, and a special kind of Silly Puddy that will let him transform into any printed object he can find. To use these powers, players will enter Max's psyche and see the world through his eyes with a first person perspective. Being the rattled like psycho that he is, this means the player is treated to strange hidden images and subliminal messages they reveal Max's deepest inner thoughts and fragile emotional state. Watching a brief play through of the tutorial area showed how these powers will come into play in a variety of ways while naturally blending in the whacky humor the series the known for. The new season (and new platform) gave the team an opportunity to step up their visual presentation with a visual art style reminiscent of 70's and 80's creature features.

In an effort to get even more people into the series, Telltale is stressing that season three is an excellent entry point into the series and to prove this they'll be including a some impressive pre-order bonuses. A pre-order for the PC and Mac version will let players into the Freelance Police Elite, an online portal that will connect gamers with Telltale creators, downloads, and a few other surprises. In a PlayStation Network first, players will be able to pre-order the season at a special price of $29.99. The Ps3 version is set to include Trophies, one of which can be earned by finding every line of dialog with some form of innuendo attached to it.

While it's the same old Sam and Max that gamers have grown to love over the years, it feels like season three could be a big step for the series. We'll find out for sure on April 15th when the first episode is released.

GDC 2010: Paradox Interactive

2010-03-12T21:00:00Z

I may not be the biggest online PC gamer, but after checking the games that Paradox Interactive brought to GDC I'm starting to think about what it's going to take to bring my ancient PC up to specs to play some of these games.

First up was Magicka, a co-op action adventure that started out not that long ago as a student project and quickly evolved into a commercial game. Using the 360 gamepad, players are wizards from a sacred order setting out on a lighthearted quest steeped in Norse mythology. With a heavy focus on co-op multiplayer, wizards act as a team combating spiders, trolls, and all sorts of nasty looking bad guys using a clever spell casting system. Players gather elements of spells using the 360's right analog stick and unleash them as focused attacks, area attacks, or stat modifiers on fellow wizards. Aside from the basic earth, fire, water attacks, players can combine the elements to forge more power spells that can slow enemies down, heal each other, and more. The action is pretty frantic and with three players running around in my demo there was always something happening on screen. In a nice touch, the game's character dialog sports a sly Monty Python styled sense of humor. While the game looked quite far along in development, we'll have to wait till this fall to get our hands on the final game.

For a more serious look at a medieval setting I was pointed to Mount & Blade Warband. For those unfamiliar with the series, think of this game as a refreshing combination of Demon's Souls and CounterStrike. While there's no magic or wizards, the game presents players with large scale online multiplayer battles across 6 modes and numerous maps. Battles were extremely quick with some players mounting horses and sniping from castle towers, and the competition amongst the beta players I saw was fierce. Those ready to ride will be able to storm the castle later this month when the game releases.

My last stop was to check out Lead and Gold: Gangs of the Wild West. I'll try to be unbiased here, as I tend to love Western themed games, but what I saw here was a ton fun. Taking the fundamentals of Team Fortress and bringing it into the ol' west with a 3rd person perspective, this lean 5 on 5 shoot out looked nice, ran smoothly, and featured some very thoughtful game design. Players are given 5 game types across 6 maps that put a new twist on shooter staples. While the four character classes might sound too light, the game's design doesn't call for dedicated support players and each character type comes with special abilities that cover multiple character types. You've got a mysterious Gunslinger (the quick shooter), a ginger-bear Blaster (who specializes in shotguns and dynamite), a dapper Deputy (with advanced tracking skills), and the lovely Trapper (can set bear traps). This results in matches being exclusively focused on the action with little set up time getting in the way. Those players with Steam accounts should expect to see the game appear on the digital download service in the next week or two, and 360/PS3 gamers can expect to jump in April.

GDC 2010: Puzzle Quest 2 Impressions

2010-03-11T17:00:00Z

Puzzle Quest was one of the biggest surprises of 2007. Initially launching on handhelds and spreading like wildfire across console and PC platforms soon there after, the "just right" mixture of puzzle fundamentals and RPG storytelling struck a chord with casuals and core gamers. In making the true sequel (remember, Galactrix was a spin-off), Infinite Interactive has the challenge of finding ways to improve the game for both audiences while maintaining the careful balance between the two. Going by the demo they showing off at GDC, the developers behind Puzzle Quest 2 did a fantastic job of accessing what they needed to be reworked and what should remain untouched.

In the "reworked" category, you'll notice a total revamp of the story presentation. No longer will players move a little marker around on a map. Instead they'll move a character around the world through a Diablo-like isometric perspective. The overall art style has moved away from an anime inspired look into something I would describe as "Heavy Metal" fantasy. It sounds like a small change, but seeing your character and their environments up close really helps set the stage and new look is definitely an improvement.

The simple "match 3" styled puzzle game remains largely the same, but a few new additions keep it fresh. For starters, character information that doesn't have much to do with the battle (experience points, gold, etc.) have been removed from the screen, allowing the grid itself to be a little bit larger. Your character will be able to use weapons this time around once they've cleared special "Gauntlet" gems. Weapons work similar to spells, but help balance out the differences between the game's 4 character classes. For those that want to fully customize their character, the sequel also features stat modifiers that can give your characters enhanced attacks or buff your defenses.

Infinite Interactive's demo did a great job of looking at what other have done with the genre since they entered the scene in 2007 and added their own twists. From adding smaller elements of visual flair to reworking how story progresses, the game feels like a true sequel in every way imaginable. The only bad part about it was that it ended and now I have to wait until late spring for the 360 or DS release.

GDC 2010: Lara Croft And The Guardian Of Light Demo Impressions

2010-03-10T21:30:00Z

For Crystal Dynamics, the makers of Lara Croft and The Guardian of Light, the question isn't how do you keep a one of the most recognizable faces in gaming fresh, but rather how do you best present it to the audience. Today I had the pleasure of sitting down with some of the team members behind the recently announced digital title and got to see for myself why this isn't your typical Tomb Raider game. Powered by the engine used in the current-gen trilogy of Tomb Raider games, The Guardian of Light aims to tell an individual experience that is custom tailored to digital platforms (XBLA, PSN, and PC). While this might impose some technical restrictions, the team sees this as a chance to do something different.

The most unique element shown off today was the title's emphasis on 2 player co-op. In the game Lara is paired with an ancient spirit named Totec during an expedition gone wrong in Central American temples. By working together and using each character's special abilities, players will be able to launch Lara up to elevated areas using Totec's shield as a moving platform, use Totec's spears to create makeshift ladders, and even make death defying leaps of faith across bottomless pits with Lara's grappling hook. With so many puzzles highlighting how each character's abilities complimented the other and how many of them can be solved in multiple ways, I felt that the puzzles gave off a strong Ico-like vibe, without the "useless princess" stereotype of course. In between puzzles, players will encounter all sorts of bad guys, spiders, and demons to shoot up. With the change in perspective, this title manages to shed the "jump and shoot" mentality of previous games for something more akin to classic top down arcade shooters.

For an Alpha build with only one year behind it, seeing this game in motion was a delight. Screen shots don't give this game the design and artistic credit it deserves. With a fully developed engine behind it, the game showcases smaller details that would prove too costly for other downloadable titles to include. There are plenty of destructible objects throughout each level, plants will move and shake as you brush past them, and some attractive real time lighting and shadows set the scene well.

The team at Crystal Dynamics didn't just set out to enter the downloadable games scene, but enter the highly competitive platforms while raising the bar with something the new. The demo that I saw today definitely set the right tone. While it didn't feel like a Tomb Raider game, it still retained Lara's character, which will hopefully allow players a new perspective on the iconic explorer. Lara Croft and The Guardian of Light releases at towards the end of this summer for $15.

GDC 2010: Power Gig: Rise Of The Six String Demo Impressions

2010-03-10T01:00:00Z

While Rock Band and Guitar Hero may be content with fighting with each other over similarly flavored music rhythm experiences, new comer Power Gig: Rise of the Six String is set to call out two of the most recognizable names in the genre like it's nobody's business. Coming our way from Seven45 Studios this fall as a "full band experience," developers were on hand to give me a brief demonstration of a pre-alpha build and showcase what sets it apart from the rest of the pack.

The most notable difference between this title and Rock Band/Guitar Hero wannabes is that Power Gig lets players pick up a real guitar with real strings (see image). While this may be a slightly intimidating sight for those of us more accustomed to "toy" guitars with Fischer-Price colored buttons, the realities of how this effects gameplay becomes immediately obvious. Hammer-ons are no longer a button pressed combo, but are performed for real. Same with sustain notes, chord progressions, and other musical technique that makes music actually music. In fact, the controller is so real that it can be hooked up to an amp and played as an instrument.

The guys at Seven45 were quick to note that a real guitar would help ease new players into the experience with a flexible difficulty curve, but also give hardcore music rhythm gamers an experience they cannot find anywhere else. In addition to a beat matching mode similar to Rock Band/Guitar Hero, Power Gig offers a Chording Mode that gives players string specific note patterns, essentially having players learn the real chords to the "original masters only" soundtrack. Don't worry if this sounds like a little too much to handle at first. Chording Mode is something that players can be eased into as they wish, and not required to play through every song.

As with all intriguing demos, some of the most enticing details of Power Gig have yet to be revealed. The developer slyly referred to an excited new approach to Story Mode that goes beyond the "garage to rockstar" formula, a mysterious drum set, and promises of new type of vocal performance. The juiciest bit that I was able to learn from the demo was that because the game features a real guitar, there have been a few musical artists who have been previously reluctant to having their work featured in music games rethinking their stance. While the developers had a bit of a laugh at my request for Prince's When Doves Cry or anything by Peaches, they were serious about this title offering players music they won't be able to find anywhere else.

While we'll have to wait until E3 for more details, the demo left a significant impact on me. Power Gig doesn't want players to like they're playing music, but want to enable players to perform it for real. It felt like the next, most natural step in the genre and could become total game changer.

Opinionation: GDC 2010

2010-03-09T17:00:00Z

Starting today we'll be hitting the Game Developers Conference (otherwise known at GDC) located in the ever-so-lovely city of San Francisco. Its event that's packed with the latest and greatest that the interactive entertainment industry has to offer and we'll be bringing you hands-on impressions along and breaking stories along the way. While I'm very excited with the schedule we'll be posting, I'm also kind of curious as to what you dear readers hope to see or hear about during one of the industry's biggest events. Do you want to hear more about Microsoft Natal and Sony's Arc? Perhaps, you're more interested in the recent announcement of Sid Meier's Civilization V? Maybe you're hoping that one of the big names will release a sequel/reboot of your favorite series? Don't hold it in, let us know! Share your thoughts in the comments.

Now this is the part of an Opinionation article where I usually inject my thoughts, but I figured it would be cheating for me to chime in since I already know (most) of what we'll be seeing at the show. My blue sky hope is that either Microsoft or Sony give their licensed developers the means to make motion controlled games on their respective platforms (read: free or close to free supplemental dev hardware). It's a long shot, I know, but we all need a dream, right?

Impressions: Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing

2010-03-08T17:00:00Z

So I originally wanted to do a full review of this game, but since I'm running low on time as I'm preparing to make my way to GDC later this week I figured I should at least get some impressions out while the game is still on people's radar. Also, the fact of the matter is that Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing is a kart racing game featuring Sega characters. The concept either immediately pulls you in or pushes you away. These impressions are for the folks that are interested in the idea of what this game has to offer, but unsure if it's worth the cash right now with so many other games coming out.

Sega's solid offering mostly lives up to its promise with a few blemishes holding it back from catching up with the likes of Mario. You've got just over 20 playable characters no matter what system you play it on (Wii has its Miis and the 360 gets avatars and a useless version of Banjo) and even more tracks that span Sega's heritage of games. The karts themselves come with everything that one would expect to see from your standard kart racer (items, weapons, heavy emphasis on a "drift to turbo" sliding mechanic), but they also feature unique "Star Powers" that will transform Sonic in the Super Sonic or Big the Cat's ride into a giant Froggy. It's pretty much All-Stars Racing equivalent of Mario Kart's Bullet Bill, but since it's tailored to each character's strengths and abilities so I found them to be pretty fun. It should be noted that there is no form of a Blue Shell in this game (a weapon that can be fired from last place that will strike the 1st place player no matter where they are located on the map). There are some pro's and con's that come along with this, such as a more "fair" race that comes at the expense of the tension that comes along with the existence of powerful weapon like that, but the end result is one that is fairly balanced. Some people will like it, others will dislike it, but it isn't that big of deal to ruin or break the game.

I'm going to admit that my main motivator to picking this game up is because Mario Kart's online is so bad. Friend codes, wonky response times, less than stellar options. I was wondering what it was like to play something similar on the Xbox 360. As I expected, the online gameplay was pretty good. In my short playtime so far I've had great connections and only a few hiccups that come along with just about every online racer.

Unfortunately, I've spotted a few framerate drops that take the game's sily smooth 60 frames per second down to just below 30 for a brief moment. To be honest my biggest gripes with the game come from some of the character, track, and music selections. As a long-time Sega fan I was sad that series like Streets of Rage, Golden Axe, Phantasy Star, along with Toe Jam and Earl don't get any kind of representation here while less popular series and characters get more attention than they deserve. I would like to believe that Sega can smooth things over with some DLC, but that remains to be seen.

As an avid kart racer fan, it always puzzled me why people like Sega (and many others) wouldn't make their own renditions of the Mario Kart formula considering just how well Mario and his friends do on the retail sales track until now. Sure, All-Stars Racing isn't exactly the most original thing on earth, but neither was the original Crash Team Racing and that was a pretty awesome game. While not perfect, All-Stars Racing gets the same response from me. It's a fun romp and a title that's worth your time if the premise interests you, especially for those without a Nintendo system.

Shank, Deathspank To Be Published By EA Partners

2010-03-05T17:00:00Z

Back at PAX in September I had the absolute pleasure of discovering a lovely little game called Shank. At the time its developer Klei Entertainment had yet to secure a publisher for the title. All that changed due to all the positive buzz generated from its first public outing and Electronic Arts struck a deal with Klei to bring players the comic book styled beat-em-up / action / shooter hybrid through their EA Partners initiative. While no release has been released, they were willing to spill the beans that Shank will be stabbing its way onto the PlayStation Network and the Xbox Live Arcade.

Also coming your way to PSN and XBLA from EA Partners is similarly cartoonishly violent title named Deathspank. Similar to Shank, Deathspank got the attention of players and EA at PAX with its pick up and play approach to the action RPG genre. This title comes our way from Hothead Games, better known as the fine folks that brought us Penny Arcade Adventures.

[EA Partners to Publish Shank, Deathspank] 1up.com

Video: Valve Updates Portal With New Ending, Still Doing Things Like A Boss

2010-03-04T17:00:00Z

Portal Super-Spoilers are contained within this article and video! Viewer beware!

Valve just updated their PC version of Portal just a few days ago with all types of cryptic messages and images hidden deep within the files of the game. I was expecting for Valve to draw this out more, but those crazy guys and gals in Bellevue went and did something even crazier by updating the game again. This time the changes are a little more obvious with the inclusion of an altered ending to the game! Thankfully a nice user over on YouTube uploaded the new ending for those that don't want to briskly breezing through the relatively short game again or those poor saps that played the 360 version (who are missing out on all the update fun).

While the new ending does not drastically change the events leading up to the game's climatic finale, namely the fate of the perfect date for the HAL 9000, it does manage to answer some questions of the nature behind these updates and give us a moment to ask some more. Whose voice is heard at the end of clip? Where is Chell being dragged away to? I would ask what a "party escort submission position" is, but I think I've seen enough adult entertainment to give me a good idea what that's all about.

Anyways, between the two updates (so far) this week and the new content that we're seeing, I think it's safe to expect to more teasing from Valve and hear some sort of an official announcement regarding the Portal universe in the near future.

Video: Metroid: Other M Cinematic Footage Trailer

2010-03-03T17:00:00Z

Last week our own Pixel Poet ventured on over to a Nintendo's latest media summit to check out a batch of their upcoming titles, including Metroid: Other M developed by Team Ninja. When describing the game's cinematics as "outstanding," I guess I was hearing a nagging voice inside my head that shouted, "...yeah, for a Wii game maybe." Judging by this brief "cinematic footage trailer" I may been slightly unfair to the title.

It's really interesting to see how drastically different this title is shaping up to be. I'll admit that I was more than skeptical about Samus getting involved with the makers of Ninja Gaiden, but so far the results look encouraging. While the game seems a little heavy on plot, I like this trailer because it still gives the feeling that the woman featured in it (Samus?) is feeling the same type of loneliness and isolation that permeated Metroid 2 and Super Metroid. On top of that, the visuals seen here look fantastic, even if they aren't playable.

For a series well over 20 years old and 12 titles deep, it's refreshing to see that Nintendo is unafraid of taking pretty big risks with one of their biggest brands. In light of less than original content getting recycled on an annual basis, it makes me appreciate some of the riskier choices that Nintendo and company have made in regards to the series over the years.

Valve Releases Portal PC Update, Shows Every Viral Marketing Team How It's Done Like A Boss

2010-03-02T17:00:00Z

Long story short: Valve updated the PC version of Portal. It includes a new achievement. Pretty dull, right?

Wrong! What makes this update so fascinating is that it appears to offer some type of tease a future Valve title. That's right, the infamously tight lipped company appears to be readying to spill the beans something. Could it be a sequel to the cake enhanced puzzle game? Or maybe it's the hotly anticipated Half-Life 2: Episode 3? Let's look at what exactly is being teased and how...

Yesterday afternoon Valve released a Portal patch that "Changed radio transmission frequency to comply with federal and state spectrum management regulations." Noticing the odd nature of the update, fans started manually looking through files to find that the update downloaded files labeled "dinosaur." As fans dug into the files they discovered Morse coded messages, odd sounds, and even more odd were the congratulations from the game's Enrichment Center.

The Morse coded messages turned offered possible hints like "interior transmission active external data line active message digest active," "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog," and (I'm totally not joking here) "beep beeeep beep beep beeeep beeeep beeeep beep beeeep beep beep."

An Aphex Twin fan must have realized that the odd sounds were a little too familiar and decoded them with a computer program that lets users see sounds through a spectrogram. The images themselves are grainy, filled with obscured images of keyboards, dry eraser board with mathematical formulas and even a magic 8 ball.

What does this all mean? We're not exactly sure yet. But Valve is indicating that something big is coming down the line. It's only a matter of time before fans decode the answers for themselves.

[Portal Update Released] Steam

Craft Time: A Ton Of Persona Papercraft

2010-03-01T17:00:00Z

Because a week can't go by without me covering some form of Shin Megami Tensei and its incredible kookiness...

Importing toys from Japan is fun and all, but when you're keeping your eye on your wallet and looking for a new craft idea sometimes you have to get a little creative. Instead of shelling out hard earned cash for just one figure, why not make 24 super cute glueless papercrafts spanning the Shin Megami Tensei series for the low cost 24 sheets of paper. I'll let you pick out what grade of paper you want to work with, but these designs by Jason Harlan are A for adauwibble! With so many different characters to pick from, it's hard to find a starting point. You've got Raidou, Trish, Igor, and a sort of confusing version of Maya. At the bare minimum, every series fan should check out The Two Jacks at the bottom of the page.

[Harlancore Digital Devil BoxPunx PersonaFan Series] Harlancore.com vis Tomopop