http://dungeonfighter.nexon.net/News/Content.aspx?boardNo=200&contentNo=00Ftx

Dungeon Fighter Online was officially released in 2009, and in retrospect that's really not a long time for an online only game to close it's doors. I personally was a fan of this game despite not playing for about a year. Perhaps I'm part of the problem, but it still saddens me to see a game go like this. DFO was free to play, yet players could spend money on in game items and features. It's one of those catches to playing an online only game, and while you can look at it like a subsription fee, that's money and time that will have to be remembered, but never seen again. According to the closing message on the games official site, Min Kim (Nexon USA CEO), claims there simply wasn't enough players to support DFO. Hopefully this isn't the end of Dungeon Fighter forever, as it's still up and running in other countries.

For the old Sega fans who remeber Shenmue, there is perhaps some good news regarding the series return. Shenmue II left off with a cliffhanger ending, and fans were displeased. Shenmues' hero, Ryo Hazuki needed closure to his quest, but Shenmue III  never came to be. Series director Yu Suzuki, has recently meet with famed game designer Mark Cerny. What this actually means for Shenmue is completely unknown, but fans are quick to speculate. Yu Suzuki no longer works for Sega, who still holds the license to Shenmue, but it isn't out of the question for him to buy the rights from them. Keep your fingers crossed for Shenmue III; for the sake of the fans, and for Ryos journey to come to an end.

 

Arc Sytem Works revealed they are indeed working on a new fighting game according to an interview found here http://news.dengeki.com/elem/000/000/617/617432/index-2.html

Arc System Works is a famed fighting game developer, first becoming popular in the fighting game scene with the series Guilty Gear. Although there isn't a lot of new information as to what they're working on, it's exciting to know their brand of fighting game expertise will be brought into the next generation.

EA officially unveiled Battlefield 4, and while it's obviously a high end graphics beast, it's also not going to be released on Nintendo's Wii U. The Wii U is a decently powerful piece of hardware, with graphics matching and possibly surpassing what's capable on the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. It's very possible Wii U sales are a big part of the problem, and there simply may not be enough of a user base to bother with a release. The biggest problem however, is how far gone Nintendo's system is from the rest of the pack. Battlefield 4 is officiallly coming out on the PC, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. It will most likely come out for the next Playstation and Xbox as well. Leaving the Wii U out of the equation, is a serious issue for Nintendo. Whether or not Battlefield 4 is a game a Wii U owner wants isn't the point, but setting a precedent for what gets released on a Nintendo system is what's important here. Nintendo's Gamecube era was already slim pickings for 3rd party software that saw releases on Playstation 2 and Xbox. This coming generation can be even worse. Nintendo games sell Nintendo systems, but even their 1st party line up is seriously lacking at the moment. Hopefully they announce some big names at E3 this year, because the future looks bleak at the moment.

Square-Enixs' CEO Yoichi Wada joined with Square in April of 2000, under the title of executive director. By December of that year he became the chief executive officer the company. Arguably, many of Squares games throughout his lead soured long time fans opinions of the company. It isn't correct to put the blame on one man for many of Squares misteps in the past decade, but even if it's a coincidence, change is welcomed. Wada will be replace by former company director Yosuke Matsuda.

The following is from a press released .pdf by the company earlier today.

"NOTICE OF CHANGE IN REPRESENTATIVE DIRECTORS
SQUARE ENIX HOLDINGS CO.,LTD. (the “Company”) expects that the Company’s representative directors will change. Such change is subject to a resolution by its 33rd annual general meeting of shareholders to be held in late June, 2013, and a resolution by its board of directors meeting to be held after the said meeting of shareholders.
1. Reason for the election
Renewal of the Company’s management team
2. Change in the representative directors
Yosuke Matsuda 
Representative Director President and Representative Director"

In 2012 I've decide that since I like programming and playing video games, I should combine these two activities. So together with a friend I've founded Tavern Games, an indie game development company, and we've started working on our first project - Noverat, a side-scrolling RPG.

The development of Noverat has started at the beginning of 2012 when the core team (John as 3D artist and Ana as programmer) started experimenting with various ideas for an RPG (for PC & Mac). With the power of the Unreal Engine we were able to quickly get things rolling.
Once the first environment concepts for the Noverat world were ready, we contacted Anthony Sweet from Handwritten Games, who took our drafts of the story and straightened the logic, filled in the gaps, and in the end weaved a truly exciting and beautiful tale.

We've also recruited Oscar (or Chosker as he is known on the UDK forums), who handles most of the programming now, including the combat and AI code. He also tempers us when we come up with crazy ideas, and so together we discuss the implementation of game mechanics.
Afterwards we've gathered a team of very talented collaborators for animations, FXs, sound, music and finished the prototype for the game.

Until now we've been paying for everything out of our own pockets, while also keeping a full time job. However, after realizing exacting where this game is going, we have decided to dedicate ourselves entirely to its development. So we've quit our jobs and are now looking for other ways to finance our project. Because it's what we've been dreaming to do for a very long time. Because we really want this project to happen.

So we've launched a crowdfunding campaign because we want to have the freedom to do what we and the players want, not what some big investor requests, without caring about the quality of the game.
We invite you to check out our campaign, and if you like it, please help make it happen for Noverat!

http://igg.me/at/noverat/x/2113077

Thank you,

~Ana

Although everyone knows that Gamervision's Legend of Zelda video is the best there ever has been or ever will be, there is still room in the ether for other perspectives on the Nintendo classic. Take for example this latest from Cracked, wherein we see a pair of Ganon's henchmen attempting to follow their boss's orders out:

Among Konami's big name offerings was a title most of us had probably either forgotten or never played, Little King's Story. New Little King's Story will tell the tale of King Corobo as he attempts to reclaim his kingdom from "The Nightmare", a devil king who has also incidentally kidnapped several of King Corobo's princesses with the help of his Evil DarkLords. While this iteration of the cult pikmin-like game won't be coming to the Wii or even the Wii-U you can find it on a far more mobile platform: the PS Vita. Admittedly, I've never really spent much time with the original LKS but I've always wanted to and have almost consistently heard good things about it, the most notable changes between NLKS and LKS were the graphics, art style, and controls. Now before you have a mini-tantrum over the art shift it should be noted that only the character art has changed, the in-game art style is still very much cute and very much Little King's Story. Graphics on the other hand, have been totally upgraded (as you'd expect from the vita); the frame rate was silky smooth, the models were crisp and the animations were fluid. New Little King's Story utilizes the Vita's front touch screen for group selection of your peons, a welcome change from its predecessor's method, and allowing for rapid selection in the heat of battle. Likewise, taping and holding on the back touch pad will give you intel on monsters and animals in the world (provided you taped the correct spot). As of now New Little King's Story is scheduled for a Fall 2012 release window with no specific date or price point set.

Today I got to checkout the HD update for Zone of the Enders, while I didn't leave with a bunch of new details, I can assure you that it looks fucking gorgeous and moves at a buttery smooth pace. Z.O.E HD now actually has all new, fully animated cut scenes; the bulk of which use sexy cell-shaded graphics for Zone's fantastic mechanoids. Sadly, if you were clinging onto rumors of online multiplayer for the title's versus mode, you'll be sorely disappointed; more so if you were hoping to see the notoriously overpowered Vic Viper rebalanced like he was in certain iterations of Z.O.E 2nd Runner. Even still things are shaping up nicely for its Fall 2012 release window, I couldn't get a solid release date out of any of Konami's people so we'll just have sit easy knowing that it'll be buyable "between September and...whenever" as one booth staffer told me.

New games are all the rage at E3, but so are new retro games. Enter, Retro City Rampage, a downloadable title for XBLA, PSN, and Steam due out this summer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JE7on_-iec&list=PLE2A4A347E96A308B&index=10&feature=plcp

The development of Retro City Rampage started nearly 10 years ago when budding game programmer Brian Provinciano attempted to make Grand Theft Auto into an 8 bit title. The game has evolved into an encompassing of our NES gaming childhoods. We're all looking forward to reliving those moments!

After the oddly lackluster Sony press conference, gamers wonder if the Vita has been forsook. Well, Vita games do exist at E3 2012, however they're not in the spot light whatsoever. Here is the latest trailer for a very interesting upcoming title, Soul Sacrifice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iInFqPuz898

The game is in development by Marvelous AQL in conjunction with Japan Studio. Its concept was developed by Kenji Inafune of MegaMan fame, and is technically his first title since leaving Capcom.

Josh Trank, the man responsible for the recent film Chronicle (or "that movie that kinda reminds me of Akira" as some of my friends call it) has recently signed on with Sony to develop and direct a Shadow of the Colossus live-action film adaptation, the film we be produced by Kevin Misher (who is also helming the Carrie remake). Now before we get all up in arms over something that some of us may hold very dear as possibly the best argument for why games can be a legitmate art form, it should be noted that they haven't even chosen a writer as of now, so nothing is set in stone yet. That said, I can only hope that Sony will atleast contact Fumito Ueda in hopes of having him lend his guidance to the project to insure things do dissolve into a Super Mario level clusterfuck. Personally, I feel that this is something that could succeed as a movie, but shouldn't be made because by creating a movie from a videogame, you lose the most important part of the former's experience: interactivity. By losing the interactive nature of Shadow of the Colossus, you may almost lose the conflicting sense of remorse and accomplishment that accompany felling one of the massive deities roaming the forbidden lands. My other qualm is with the planned roles each character will play; most notably, how Trank plans on making Mono and Wander lovers from the outset of the film, this only bothers me because I feel thats not something that is ever blatantly acknowledged and the ambiguity of their relationship lends alot to the mysterious aesthetic of the whole story. Also, it was said that Dormin is supposed to be a demon that fools Wander into slaying these beasts for his own selfish goals, which would basically cast him as the story's villain, which in reality was something that was left up to the player for interpretation- this ever present question of morality and loyalty always dances around the player's mind as they scale massive beasts in hope of resurrecting a dead girl. All of my reservations aside though, I'm willing to wait until we've atleast seen a trailer before passing such harsh judgements. Other the aforementioned gripes, I really think that if handled correctly this could end up being a really good film...if.

E3 is literally right around the corner, and although a plethora of games have already been announced in the past couple of weeks, there are still bound to be exciting announcements on the way. What can we expect from E3 2012? Microsoft and Sony claim to not be showing any new hardware, where as Nintendo will be focusing on the Wii U. So where will that leave the industry? Many gamers are eagerly awaiting the next generation, but if we technically won't see it for another year or so, will what the industries offering be enough?

Nintendo is of course focusing on their new flagship console, the Wii U. I fully expect to get announcements of its price,launch date, and launch window titles. Pikmin 3 was already revealed, but I'm predicting its time for a new Fzero title too. Other than the Wii U, the 3ds is likely to be in the big Ns' spotlight too. Will we get a system redesign? I believe its very possible. I also think the Wii will get a final price drop, to the 100 dollar club.

Sony needs to bring their Vita up to speed this year. if they don't show us the games, the amazing handheld could be sent off to a horrible fate. Sony could very well announce a price drop to boost sales too. The ps3 front is looking a little sparse, with major titles like God of War Ascension and Playstation Battle Royal already announced. The other eagerly awaited Sony title, Last Guardian is unfortunately said to be a no show. So what's this leave us? Expect a lot more information on Naughty Dogs latest game, The Last of Us, or Sucker Punches latest sequel to the Sly Cooper series. I don't expect many surprise titles this year. Sony is rumored to also be expanding their Playstation Plus services, and I believe a large portion of their press conference will be devoted to this.

Microsoft is also rumored to be launching more services for Xbox live, including an application that further bridges the gap between the home console experience and the on the go gamer. Lately Microsoft has been focusing on the kinect, and other tools that can transform themselves into a home media powerhouse. The games seem to be a lighter focus, and although we'll see a lot more of the already announced Halo 4, I don't foresee any special surprises. Possibly Crackdown 3, including a Halo 4 beta invite of course, or even a sequel to Bulletstorm. although the company behind that one , People Can Fly, is already working on a Gears of War spinoff. I also believe we'll see a price drop for the 360 itself.

Because we're nearing the end of these consoles life cycles, I understand why Sony and Microsoft would like to remain tight lipped about their newer machines. It would only hurt sales of their current ones. This year has been odd in particular because game companies seem to be spilling the beans early. From Halo 4, to Shin Megami Tensei 4, to the Elder Scrolls Online, many of these bigger titles were once huge reveals for the show, but now that they're already revealed there seems to be a lot less room for exciting announcements. We'll see if they can shock us soon enough, but my predictions for the biggest surprises and completely out there guesses are as follows. Nintendo reveals an open world online Pokemon game for the Wii U. Sony gets Kingdom Hearts 3 for Vita and Ps3. Microsoft announces Perfect Dark 3..... with Kinect support..... but it doesn't suck. Yeah I can dream.

The Premise: There are 52 weeks in a year, my goal is to beat a game a week. The game has to be, or have been, a console or hand held release at some point. Virtual console and emulated classics count. I also have to have started the game this year(2012) and have to play all the way to the ending credits for at least the single player component of the game.

Today is Tuesday, May 29th, 2012 and we are in the 22nd week of the year. Here is the list of games that I have beaten so far and meet the above criteria:

Week 1: Metroid Fusion (Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console[Ambassador Download])
Week 2: Metroid: Zero Mission (Game Boy Micro)
Week 3: Star Fox 64 3D (Nintendo 3DS)
Week 4: Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (Playstation 3)
Week 5: Kirby's Dreamland (Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console)
Week 6: Megaman ZX (Nintendo DSi)
Week 7: Uncharted 2: Among Theives (Playstation 3)
Week 8: Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Playstation 3)
Week 9: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword(Nintendo Wii)
Week 10: The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console[Ambassador Program])
Week 11: The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords (Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console)
Week 12: Uncharted: Golden Abyss (Playstation Vita)
Week 13: Journey (Playstation Network)
Week 14: Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack (Playstation Vita)
Week 15: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (Playstation Network)
Week 16: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Nintendo 3DS)
Week 17: Megaman Maverick Hunter X [X Mode Completed ](Playstation Portable)
Week 18: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (Nintendo Wii Virtual Console)
Week 19: Wipeout 2048 [Single Player Campaign Completed] (Playstation Vita)
Week 20: Gundam Extreme VS [Japan Import-Arcade Mode Completed] (Playstation 3)
Week 21: Mortal Kombat [Story Mode Kompleted] (Playstation Vita)
Week 22: Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy (Nintendo 3DS)
Week 23: Portal (Playstation 3)
Week 24: Megaman ZX Advent (Nintendo DS)
Week 25: Diablo III [1x] (PC)
Week 26: Portal 2 [Chell Story] (PC)
Week 27: Megaman X Collection - Megaman X2 (Playstation 2 on Playstation 3)


This past weekend, with finishing off Megaman X2, I have made it past what would be the halfway mark for the year and June is just a few days away. I am on good pace and should be able to not only stay ahead but keep gaining ground. On the PS3 I will finish up the hero story on LEGO Batman, and then start and get through a couple of missions on Ghost Recon Future Soldier. I need to put lots of time into Metroid Prime over the next week and a Half, the same goes for Oracle of Ages. I may get through a mission or two in Reach but I started reading "The Fall of Reach" and feel like I will get hyped for Halo again after I finish that(Fest on the 16th will help too). I'm sure I will complete another tournament in Mario Tennis Open, but other than that my handhelds (both 3DS, Vita and PSP Go) wont see much action. I am a little more than half way through F.E.A.R.(PC) and will reach the half way point in my second playthrough of Diablo III(Nightmare difficulty, PC) by the weekend.

Game franchises still left on the slate to be played through are:

9 more Zelda Games in their remaining order as indicated by the Zelda timeline.(I have already made it through a good chunk of Oracle of Ages.)
All 5 Halo Games(I am 4 missions in on Reach)
The remaining 7 Metroid Games (2 down, I should be able to beat Metroid Prime if I put the time into it.)
The next 6 Megaman X Games
All 6 Kingdom Hearts Games(Birth By Sleep has been started and I am working through Terra's story.)
All 5 Metal Gear Solid Games
Both Okami Games
The 3 Zone of the Enders games (2 Playstation 2 games and 1 Game Boy Advance game)

With other games that will be coming out and games that I already plan on playing, I am projecting to have beaten somewhere close to 80 games or more by the end of the year. We'll see how close I actually get to that and if I can continue to keep ahead of pace and stay ahead.
I've been asked how I am able to find the time to play all of these games with a wife, full time(and then some) job, and still try to socialize with my friends and go to movies, ect. My wife works nights and I normally take her to work. I work satellite for my job and have a home office/mancave that I spend most of my time in. Because I work from home and my wife works at nights, we are lucky enought to be able to have lunch together and be around each other during the day. Most of the rest of my time goes into gaming and now and then hanging out with friends.
So even though I tend to get a lot of my gaming done while my wife is at work, I still end up spending a lot of the time that we do have together on my handhelds, on a laptop, or entrenched in my mancave plowing my way through games. So I want to make sure that I take the time to thank my wife for being so awesome and putting up with all of my gaming, whether she is around for it or not.
You are the best, thanks sweetheart!!

Hi, Thanks for looking at my page, I live in Manchester UK i`m 39 years old and my interests are Boxing , keeping fit, UFC and travel. I also love learning the Thai language which i have been doing for 4 years now.

Having put 60 hours into Diablo III this past week, I must say it's highly addicting. I've made my way to the hardest difficulty, Inferno, and now I'm sitting back reflecting on my experience. While basic combat is satisfying and engaging, the rest of the game actually has quite a lot of problems.

First of all, there are balance issues abound. Characters have already received "nerfs", which is insane to me because the game as been in development for so long. You would think play testers could figure out what works and what works a little too well in the game. Many of the skills become wasted, because they are not nearly has effective or even viable to use on later difficulties. Even item drops are very unbalanced at the moment. While unique drops are infrequent, they are many times worse than that of the rare and magic items. Their stats are simply not impressive enough to be considered "legendary". Because the stats are randomized, finding one doesn't necessarily mean it'll be good. Hunting for a good item on the auction house is far more viable. The auction house however, breaks a lot of general concepts and mechanics that were established in the Diablo franchise. There is less incentive to stock pile magic find builds thanks to the auction house. You can just as easily save up gold and find what you need. There is also less incentive to trade and farm in general, which was a major feature in Diablo 2. Even the gem crafting and blacksmithing is near useless in Diablo III, simply because it costs more to do it yourself than to hit up the auction house for a quick item. It drastically changes the game.

There are odd design choices in Diablo III that truly make me wonder how this game could've took so long to develop. There is a global exp gain for quest completion that allows for lower level characters to be boosted. Many have already begun exploiting the game and leveling to the max in short amounts of time. This is easily done because the checkpoint system is horribly implemented. The checkpoints not only make way points a near useless feature, but they are so easily exploitable that Blizzard had already hot fixed certain points of the game where players could hop in and out to continuously farm chest points on the maps. Speaking of maps, their random generation is far more restricted than that of other randomly generated games. There are many permanent sections giving the player the feeling of redoing the same area over and over again.

The last of the terrible problems I feel should be brought to attention are the DRM(digital rights management) issues. Due to Diablo III constantly needing an online connection, there can at times be lag. Lag even while playing single player is heart breaking. There are server dropouts, maintenance times preventing play, and weird delay issues in both the game play and even the aforementioned auction house. Diablo III was not released without a hitch. There have been many problems in it's first week. This isn't to say it won't be fixed, but because of the constant changes that may occur Diablo III is a difficult game to judge or review properly. Aside from all of these griefs, it is still fun to play. With 6 million + players there certainly isn't anyone denying that fans wanted Diablo III. Unfortunately it's a far from perfect experience. Either way, it's time for me to sink more time into this wonderful mess.

Here's a fun little trailer to introduce the spiritual sequel to Madworld. Anarchy Reigns is due later this summer, but the demo will be released on the Japanese online stores next week. So if you have a Japanese account for either PSN or Live don't hesitate to try it out! The game looks to be filled to the brim with content and new characters just keep getting added to the roster! I still have my fingers crossed that Sam from Vanquish will somehow make his way in there. As you can see at the very end of the trailer, Platinum Games isn't opposed to cross overs!

Check out the awesome 4 minute long trailer here!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=XKJ_HVmGjHY

And here's a bonus character reveal for you all with newcomer Douglas.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iH8NGrBEPyM&list=UUz7S6LMS5Vb1UN_9xU37cNA&index=2&feature=plcp

With E3 right around the corner, the rumor mill is spreading like wildfire. Allegedly, an Ubisoft employee has spilled the beans on some of the features, power, and pricing points of the upcoming Wii U. Here's what he had to say.

- Wii U supports DirectX 11 and is already running Unreal Engine 4

- Wii U will support two touch-screen controllers

- The console has 2GB of RAM, 560MB dedicated to the OS

- The launch date will be 23 November

- Launch price hasn't been decided but will be between $350 - $450 (£220 - £285)

- Rayman Legends, The Avengers, Assassin's Creed 3, Just Dance 4 are all on Ubisoft's Wii U schedule, with Killer Freaks from Outer Space set to arrive weeks after launch.

- There are currently multiple versions of the console with developers

- Graphics are powered by the Radeon HD 6770 chipset

- Assassin's Creed 3 will run at 60fps at 1080p, compared to 720p on PS3 and Xbox 360

- Wii U will come with pre-installed software

- Crytek, EA and Valve are all working on Wii U

- Valve are working on a digital distribution platform and Portal ports

- Wii U will support achievements

- Wii U's UI will be customizable

- The new button has some link to the Wii Vitality Sensor

- The trigger buttons won't be analogue

We'll see what comes true in just a couple of weeks!

Last years reveal of Nintendos' new Wii U was slightly disappointing. It barely even felt like a true reveal but this year is set to change that, with actual games planned for the launch of the console. Having held the new controller last year, my only concern was in regards to the analog thumb sliders. Being placed on a home consoles controller didn't feel like a good decision, and thankfully early leaked pictures seem to have quelled my fears. It looks like the Wii U tablet will have true thumb sticks after all.

Gamefly is a decent service if you don't want to spend $60 for every game you buy. Gamestop is notorious for giving terrible offers for their trade ins. This commercial is fairly blatant with its' message.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zB3u-GsmzU

As a long time arcade goer, I've witnessed first hand the downfall of the American arcade scene. Arcades used to bring an experience that could not be replicated with our home entertainment systems, but slowly they were phased out. Arguably, fighting games were always a large draw for the arcades. Being able to play against others for that precious spot in front the cabinet was exciting, and an experience I think all competitive gamers can appreciate. In Japan, arcades still flourish, and the fighting game scene is still huge. Even with the advent of the internet and online games, the arcades in Japan still make a profit. So without further ado, here are Japans' most popular and profitable arcade fighting games as of April 2012....

10. Guilty Gear Accent Core XX

9. Blazblue Continuum Shift II

8. Dragonball Zenkai Battle Royale

7. Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike

6. AquaPazza: AquaPlus Dream Match

5. Super Street Fighter 4: Arcade Ed. Ver. 2012

4. Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown

3. Tekken Unlimited Tag Tournament 2

2. Gundam vs Gundam Extreme Vs Full Boost

1. Persona 4: The Ultimate in Mayonaka Arena

Fantastic lineup. Makes me wish I could travel to Japan at moments notice. It's actually pretty amazing to still see such old classics like Street Fighter III 3rd Strike and Guilty Gear Accent Core on the list. Those two in particular are around 10 years old!

The PS Vita is getting more and more games announced, revealed, and ported every day. Here's a look at the upcoming Metal Gear Solid HD Collection.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTmePksjE7Y&feature=player_embedded

Lookin' good!

Platinum Games released a new multiplayer trailer for its' upcoming Anarchy Reigns today. Team battle modes are the show case of this trailer and include a survival mode that features 3 player co-op.

Check it out here, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eybYy3E4zU&feature=g-all-u

Anarchy Reigns is out July 3rd and published by Sega.

Persona is a long running role-playing game series by Atlus. It's popularity increased tenfold last generation with the Playstation 2 release of Persona 3. Since then the Persona franchise has spawned an anime series and now, a fighting game! But it's not just any fighting game, it's a fighter made by the renowned Arc System Works, creators of Guilty Gear and Blazblue. Due out this summer, Persona 4 Arena features the cast of Persona 4 as well as a few from Persona 3. Here's the first game play tutorial video. Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx8VKwYUbFQ

Virtua Fighter 5:Final Showdown is Sega's latest incarnation of the long running Virtua Fighter series. The game is slated to come out this summer as a downloadable title on XBLA and PSN, but if you think you have what it takes you will now be able to play the game at EVO 2012. EVO is short for Evolution, and is the biggest fighting game tournament in the states. Hundreds of fighting gamers attend this tournament including myself when it used to be much smaller and held in California. It's currently held at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada this July.

Sega recently announced they will be putting up $15,000 to be split among the top 16 winners in the Virtua Fighter tourney. No doubt the top Virtua Fighter gamers will be there, including the big names from Japan. If you think you have what it takes, why not give it a shot? When there's a will there's a way! You may register for EVO 2012 here, http://evo.shoryuken.com/evo-2012-player-registration/

The Premise: There are 52 weeks in a year, my goal is to beat a game a week. The game has to be, or have been, a console or hand held release at some point. Virtual console and emulated classics count. I also have to have started the game this year(2012) and have to play all the way to the ending credits for at least the single player component of the game.

Today is Sunday April 29th, 2012 and the beginning of the 18th week of the year. Here is the list of games that I have beaten so far and meet the above criteria:

Week 1: Metroid Fusion(Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console[Ambassador Download])
Week 2: Metroid: Zero Mission(Game Boy Micro)
Week 3: Star Fox 64 3D(Nintendo 3DS)
Week 4: Uncharted: Drake's Fortune(Playstation 3)
Week 5: Kirby's Dreamland(Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console)
Week 6: Megaman ZX(Nintendo DSi)
Week 7: Uncharted 2: Among Theives(Playstation 3)
Week 8: Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception(Playstation 3)
Week 9: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword(Nintendo Wii)
Week 10: The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap(Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console[Ambassador Program])
Week 11: The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords(Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console)
Week 12: Uncharted: Golden Abyss(Playstation Vita)[First completed game franchise of the year]
Week 13: Journey(Playstation Network)
Week 14: Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack(Playstation Vita)
Week 15: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World(Playstation Network)
Week 16: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time(Nintendo 3DS)
Week 17: Megaman Maverick Hunter X-X Mode Completed[Megaman X Remake](Playstation Portable)
Week 18: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past(Nintendo Wii Virtual Console)
Week 19: Wipeout 2048-Single Player Campaign Completed(Playstation Vita)


So in 7 games I will be at the halfway point for the year(26/52=1/2) and I definitely think that I can hit that point before the the end of June(end of the 6th month). I am still doing a pretty good job of keeping ahead of pace and still feel confident going forward that I have enough progress spread over enough games to steadily beat title after title over the rest of the year. Keeping the balance between making progress on handheld games and console games seems to be working well and makes things a lot easier to manage.

So with completing A Link to the Past and Wipeout 2048 this past week, I'm going to be turning my attention to Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons, and to the other games that I already have save files started on(Dungeon Hunter Alliance[Vita], Kid Icarus[3DS], Halo: Reach[Xbox 360], Shinobi[3Ds], Ace Combat[3Ds], Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep[PSP Go]). I will also be starting Lego Batman(PS 3), the first game in the Metroid Prime Trilogy(Wii) and Metal Gear Solid 3DS as well. I know that seems like a lot to get through but my wife works in the evenings which leaves me with downtime after work to get through these games, especially given the fact that I normally pick her up at the end of her shift(2 am) to save the cost of parking while she works for 8 hours.

Game franchises on the slate to be played through are:

All 16 Zelda Games in order as indicated by the Zelda timeline.(I finished Link to the Past this past week and have already made it through a good chunk of Oracle of Ages.)
All 5 Halo Games(I am 3 missions in on Reach both co-op and solo and will be putting time into it this upcoming week so I can go ahead and move on to the next Halo game. Just as a note I am going to play through the rest of the games solo on Heroic, co-op on Legendary. I want to be able to beat all of these games before Halo 4 comes out this fall.)
All 9 Metroid Games (2 down 7 more to go)
All 8 Megaman X Games(I cleared X-mode on Maverick Hunter X.)
All 4 Uncharted Games (FRANCHISE BEATEN!!)
All 6 Kingdom Hearts Games(Birth By Sleep has been started and I am working through Terra's story.)
All 5 Metal Gear Solid Games(I am starting Metal Gear Solid 3DS this week.)
Both Okami Games
Both Megaman ZX games(Beaten ZX already, working my way to the third boss.)

With other games that will be coming out and games that I already plan on playing, I am projecting to have beaten somewhere close to 80 games or more by the end of the year. We'll see how close I actually get to that and if I can keep ahead of pace and stay ahead.
Even though I tend to get a lot of my gaming done while my wife is at work, I still end up spending a lot of the time that we do have together on my handhelds plowing my way through games. So I want to make sure that I take the time to thank my wife for being so awesome and putting up with all of my gaming, whether she is around for it or not.
You are the best, thanks sweetheart!!

Two years ago Namco Bandai released Mobile Suit Gundam: Extreme Vs. , into Japanese arcades. The game play was very similar to Sega's Virtual On series, which pits giant robots against each other in arena style battles. Gundam as you most likely know, is a very long running franchise, and Extreme Vs. features many of the most famous Gundams from various Gundam series. It is quite a dream match for Gundam fans, and as a fighting game it happens to be quite good too. In 2011 the game was ported to the Playstation 3 and although you can purchase it from your favorite import stores, it carries a heavy price tag. It's so sad that the arcade scene is defunct in America, otherwise this cabinet would be a sure fire hit. Just this month Namco Bandai released the "super" version of the game into arcades. Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme Vs. Full Boost (hell of a title), features more Gundams, game play balances, and extra goodies for the fans. Expect it to come out in the states, NEVER. This is the sad fact of the matter, and the release of the new version just gave that blade in my side another twist for good measure.

I long for the days of wandering into arcades and popping a quarter into a huge display of awesome character art and custom made controls. For those that are to young to share this experience I am terribly sorry. There are still a few arcades around in select areas and I suggest locating your nearest one and checking it out. I'm currently on the look out to see if any awesome arcade owners will be importing a Gundam Extreme Vs. into their place of business, as I would love to be able to play it. If anybody happens to come across an Extreme Vs. machine out in the wild, do leave a comment and let us know! For the rest of us, we'll just have to watch these newly released videos of the game in action. Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaTt-7a309E

After the events of Captivate, Capcoms' annual exposition for their upcoming games, many were surprised that very few games were even shown. We received a new trailer for both Devil May cry and Resident Evil 6 seen here,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qlj7A1HWUrM

and here,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCiov6ehVQg&feature=relmfu

Capcom also announced Lost Planet 3. Here is its' debut trailer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhH0w0u8x30&feature=relmfu

But was that really it? Fans on Capcoms' community site asked for Monster Hunter news, and here's what Capcom Unity leader Sven had to say...

"Alas, MH announcements tend to be made in Japan... as such, I have no news to share at this moment but you shouldn't be worried."

I guess we can look forward to a Monster Hunter announcement at E3! Keep your fingers crossed.

The Sega Saturn was notorious for its' difficulties in game coding and developing. Due to this problem, many of the Saturns' classic games will most likely never see the light of day in our current generations high definition port scene. One of the best games for the platform was Panzer Dragoon Saga, a rather short but sweet RPG based on the rail shooter series Panzer Dragoon. The game was phenomenal, but unfortunately goes for hundreds of dollars on online auction sites because of its' short print run. Only the lucky few Saturn fans ever had the opportunity to play this gem. It was also rumored that Sega "lost the code" for the game, and could never have ported it to anything else.

Apparently the game indeed had a running port for the PC. According to Giancarlo Varanini of Gamespot, the game was up and running. On the most recent Giantbombcast, he spoke of his time working at GameTap, and how Panzer Dragoon Saga was one of the games they had worked on bringing to the service. Due to financial woes, the port never came to be. Sad but true for the fans. Perhaps someday the public will get an opportunity to try this relic from the past. For now, the port is in limbo.

You can listen to it here, http://media.giantbomb.com/podcast/giantbombcast-040312.mp3. Varanini chimes it about it at 19:50.

There have been many recent reports and rumors about the next step in video game hardware. I personally have been taking every bit of information with a grain of salt. Out of the big three, Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony, which company can we count on to help bring us happily into the future?

Nintendo is set to show off what the Wii U is really about this coming E3. Last year it garnered a lukewarm reception and I certainly hope the big N has prepped some stellar games to help show us what the new console is capable of. While the Wii U is set to come out by the end of the year, it is also supposedly the most under powered of the new gen systems. The Wii was still very successful despite being technically limited, but can Nintendo pull its magic again? When the Wii was first introduced, it was right around the time when HD TVs were becoming the norm. Because of this, the fact the Wii could only be displayed at most in 480p was not as much of a stigma as it is today. The Wii U is indeed making the jump to high definition, but what else does it have to offer? The controller for the Wii U is catering toward the current trend of the popular tablet device, but will it allow for fresh new ideas? We can usually count on Nintendo to deliver quality games that innovate with what ever hardware they're made for. Let's just hope they keep their streak going on the Wii U. Nintendos other issue is with their online services. While it's functional, gamers are definitely tired of Nintendos' friend codes and their service begs to be updated.

Microsoft is rumored to transform the next Xbox into a complete Windows media center. This is all well and good for those who want all of their computing entertainment needs in one spot, but what will this mean for the gamers? It does not feel like Microsoft is focused on appealing to the hard core crowd, as their current trend has been all about pushing the Kinect. Let's be brutally honest here, the Kinect is not good as a stand alone video game device. It's merely a supplement to what the long time gamers could want out of their games. It's far to technically limited to stand on its own. But if this is Microsofts idea of what gamers want, then what can we really look forward to? It's unclear what their next generation console will bring to the table, especially when they've been so dependent on 3rd party companies making games to keep their hardware successful. Xbox Live has been their mainstay and has kept the Xboxs' popularity intact. Having said that, with other companies offering free online services that are just as feature heavy as Lives', can Microsoft keep subscribers happy and content? If their new console is even more integrated into the PC market, how can they compete with stellar services such as Steam?

Sony is rumored to use a completely new chip set in the next PlayStation, and unfortunately not keeping backwards compatibility intact. It's worrisome that the next Sony console may not play the PS3s library, but even more bothersome that it may not play any of the downloadable content gamers may have bought over the PS3s life span. Again, this is all speculation, but it's cause for concern. While it should be a safe bet that PlayStation Network accounts will transfer over to the next device, the PS3s architecture was so vastly different that in order to get the games to run correctly on new hardware it may be a pipe dream. We can only hope these companies actually care about the consumer enough NOT to completely screw us over, but at the same time digital downloads are very new to the industry. When buying a digital game, it's become more of a purchased service than it is an owned product. Due to this change in how we obtain our games, it's uncertain how long the companies will support the digital distribution of said games. There have been many instances in which a digital game is pulled from the network, leaving the buyer empty handed if they were ever to attempt to download the game again. It's a touchy subject that can be a future problem for all gamers.

So who can we trust to deliver a secure future? Who can deliver a consumer friendly console? Time will tell, but I can't help but be a little worried....

Hi, my names Casey B. As an old school gamer, I'm a sucker for 2d sprites and 2d gaming in general. I've been playing for over 25 years and plan to continue for a very long time. It's just fortunate that in today's scene there exists indie games to satiate my hunger for that specific flavor. That's not to say I don't appreciate current generation gaming, as a good game is a good game! When I play and review a game, I won't write down my thoughts until completion. I don't believe you can truly know a game until you've seen all it has to offer.

Likes: 2d sprites, unique ideas, air dashing, ninjas, Sega

Dislikes: Evil corporations, DLC on the disc, crazy fans

Popular Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu has given Kid Icarus Uprising a perfect score of 40/40. (Four reviewers on a 10 point scale). This bodes well for the upcoming 3DS game, and although Famitsu certainly isn't as prestigious as it once was, the popularity of the publication will certainly garner attention from the gaming community.

Famitsu's first perfect score was awarded to The Legend Zelda: Ocarina of Time in 1998, and has since given the 40/40 mark to titles such as Vagrant Story, Super Smash Bros Brawl, Bayonetta, Pokemon Black/White, and the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Kid Icarus Uprising becomes the 19th title to receive the honor, though it should be noted that as time has gone on, Famitsu has been more lenient as to what games get that perfect score.

Either way, the game certainly seems phenomenal and looks to be packed with content thanks to Nintendo's own Masahiro Sakurai at the helm of the project. He's the lead developer responsible for many titles in the Kirby franchise as well as the Super Smash Bros series. It should also be stated that he happens to be a columnist for Famitsu magazine. Does this mean any of the reviewers opinions are swayed due to this fact? I certainly hope not, but we'll be the judge of Kid Icarus when it hits the states March 23rd!

The Premise: There are 52 weeks in a year, my goal is to beat a game a week. The game has to be, or have been, a console or hand held release at some point. This means that virtual console and emulated classics count. I have to have started the game this year and have to play to the ending credits.

Game franchises on the slate to be played through are:

All 16 Zelda Games in order as indicated by the Zelda timeline.(I am now almost a 1/4 of the way through the saga)
All 5 Halo Games on Legendary(I am 3 missions in on Reach both co-op and solo)
All 10 Megaman Games(11 including Megaman & Bass)
All 9 Metroid Games (2 down 7 more to go)
All 8 Megaman X Games
All 4 Uncharted Games (BEATEN!!)
All 6 Kingdom Hearts Games
All 5 Metal Gear Solid Games
Both Okami Games
Both Megaman ZX games(Beaten ZX already)

This all adds up to more than 52, I may not get to all of those as other games come out during the year, but I have them lined up to play and help reach the goal of 52. I feel like its better to overshoot or to have more options than to have no plan for this at all.

Today is Tuesday, March 13th and it is the third day of the 11th week of the year. Here is my progress so far:

Week 1: Metroid Fusion(beaten on Nintendo 3DS virtual console[ambassador download])
Week 2: Metroid: Zero Mission(beaten on Game Boy Micro)
Week 3: Star Fox 64 3D(beaten on Nintendo 3DS)
Week 4: Uncharted: Drake's Fortune(beaten on Playstation 3)
Week 5: Kirby's Dreamland(beaten on Nintendo 3DS virtual console)
Week 6: Megaman ZX(beaten on Nintendo DSi)
Week 7: Uncharted 2: Among Theives(beaten on Playstation 3)
Week 8: Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception(beaten on Playstation 3)
Week 9: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword(Nintendo Wii)
Week 10: The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap(Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console[Ambassador Program])
Week 11: The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords(Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console)
Week 12: Uncharted: Golden Abyss(Playstation Vita)[First completed game franchise of the year][1 week ahead of pace]
Week 13: Journey(Playstation Network)[2 weeks ahead of pace]

I am doing a pretty good job of keeping ahead of pace for now and feel confident going forward that I have enough progress spread over enough games to steadily beat game after game over the next few weeks. Trying not to overwhelm myself with all of this, but there are sooo many games to play!! Keeping the balance between the handheld games and the console games seems to be working well and making things more easily manageable. Currently I am working on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time(3DS), Wipeout 2048(PS Vita[already through 2 of the 3 seasons]), Touch my Katamari(PS Vita), Rayman Origins(PS Vita), SSX(PS 3), continuing my Legendary run through Halo: Reach(Xbox 360) and will begin Mass Effect 3(PS 3) soon.
I do want to thank my wife for being so awesome and putting up with all of my gaming.
You are the best, thanks sweetheart!!
How many games have you beaten this year?

Red and Blue. Silver and Gold. This has been the theme for the Pokemon games. The latest Black and White versions, are now getting numbered sequels. Has Nintendo run out of ideas for more colors? Not only that, they are still DS titles.

The franchise has always had a great scheme going for itself. Two versions of the same game, with a few differences in order for gamers to trade with players of the other version. Or, buy two copies of practically the same game. It's really quite genius. I've been a pokemon fan since day 1. The latest installments Black and White, were actually the first main line Pokemon titles I did not purchase. It's sort of sad to not get a real sequel on say, the 3DS, which still desperately need more quality games. None the less, here is the next Pokemon, Black and White 2. I can't help but feel this is a little lazy.So far the only information we have is that these sequels will possibly be set in the Hoenn region, the same region where Pokemon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald took place.

Here is a link to the official site. http://www.pokemon.co.jp/ex/b2w2/?a001=msign

It's no surprise that this generations game developers just love adding extra content into their products.It's also not shocking that it's a business of making money. We, as consumers, make our choices depending on the value we see in each product. We can only hope that the developers make fair decisions as to what they add later and what price points they decide on. Voting with our wallet seems to be the obvious choice in the matter, but sometimes it seems very unfair as to what we get in return.

Let's take a look at the latest iteration of Arc Systems Blazblue for an example. Blazblue Continuum Shift was already the second release in the franchise, which built upon the original Blazblue Calamity Trigger. While there was an entire year between releases, there was also no brand new character DLC included in Calamity Trigger. The only DLC for this iteration was added color selections and boss character unlocks that could also be unlocked via playing the actual game. Imagine that! Unlocking characters through means other than money! It's like the old era of video games all over again! Anyway, because Continuum Shift was more of a significant upgrade, and along with a budget price point, it was an easy purchase for fans of Blazblue. Over the course of the next year, Arc Systems released 3 brand new characters that were included in the arcade version over seas. These characters were $7.00 a piece, but because there were no foreseeable plans for a new Blazblue, we consumers did what we do best and bought them up.

Fast forward to this past Feb 14th 2012, and despite having a 3ds release of Blazblue that included the 3 newcomers, there is now a third iteration of Blazblue, titled Continuum Shift Extend. This new Blazblue includes story modes for all the DLC characters that are now included on the disc, as well as one brand new character! This would be fantastic news for the fans, if it weren't for the fact that the new Blazblue makes the old one obsolete, and that the new character isn't downloadable to Continuum Shift. He's exclusive to Extend. To make matters worse, Continnum Shift Extend retails for a full $59.99. They couldn't even lower the price like they did with Continuum Shift. Tsk tsk. And this is where the disconnect with game developers and their fans really come into play. For the gamers upgrading their 3 year old copies of Blazblue Calamity Trigger, this is a great step up. But for the rest of the loyal fan base who bought those pricey DLC characters, it's like a kick in the junk. Maybe we should know better. Maybe developers need to use these tactics to even stay in business. What ever the case may be, it's a sad state that we are in. And this is just one example of many, many games that have pulled DLC problems as of late. I for one, am passing on the new Blazblue until it drops in price. This is disheartening to me, because I like to support the games I enjoy, but this just doesn't seem fair. Of course, there's also a PS Vita version...... oh what's a consumer whore to do?

So having put a good amount of time behind the belt of Twisted Metal, I must say, it's fantastic. It's an incredibly fast paced and fun experience. The silky smooth frame rate and spot on controls instantly make it a blast. However, there is one ,major, glaring flaw in its success. The matching making system is fairly broken. Granted, this is only the first week of release, but it's far to difficult to get into a match at this point.If Sony doesn't fix the network errors soon, the online community could take a large hit.

Unfortunately, this generation of games have taken the, release now, fix later approach. With the advent of better online connectivity, it's now common place to patch and update games after consumers plunked down their hard earned cash for a product. It's unacceptable in my eyes, although being the consumer whore that I am, I have to grin and bare it. Twisted Metal is the first online multiplayer game in a long time that I feel I can play non-stop. It's a shame it can take so long to to find a match because this takes away from valuable game time.

For those playing and having a rough time getting into matches, try this method I've been successful with. Go to the list of games available and sort the ones that are just in a game room. Try hopping into any of these near the top of the list. You can also keep refreshing the list to see how many players are in. Try to join games that have 2-5 players already, this seems to up your chance of joining the match dramatically. Once you're in, and have played, quit out and find another. For whatever reason if you stay in the same game room you will be kicked as soon as the second match starts. The game tells you its a network connection error on your end, but it's simply some faulty problem with the servers.

Good luck to everyone who's sticking with the game, as I know I am. It's just a great game hampered by this terrible network problem. If Sony doesn't get their act together and address the issues soon, it could make an otherwise successful game die in a week.

The Premise: There are 52 weeks in a year, my goal is to beat a game a week. The game has to be, or have been, a console or hand held release at some point. This means that virtual console and emulated classics count. I have to have started the game this year and have to play to the credits.

Game franchises on the slate to be played through:

All 16 Zelda Games in order as indicated by the Zelda timeline.
All 5 Halo Games on Legendary
All 10 Megaman Games(11 including
Megaman & Bass)
All 9 Metroid Games
All 8 Megaman X Games
All 4 Uncharted Games
All 6 Kingdom Hearts Games
All 5 Metal Gear Solid Games
Both Okami Games
Both Megaman ZX games

This all adds up to more than 52, I may not get to all of those as other games come out during the year, but I have them lined up to play and help reach the goal of 52. I feel like its better to overshoot or to have more options than to have no plan for this at all.

Today is Monday, February 13th and it is the second day of the 7th week of the year. Here is my progress so far:

Week 1: Metroid Fusion(beaten on Nintendo 3DS virtual console[ambassador download])
Week 2: Metroid: Zero Mission(beaten on Game Boy Micro)
Week 3: Star Fox 64 3D(beaten on Nintendo 3DS)
Week 4: Uncharted: Drake's Fortune(beaten on Playstation 3)
Week 5: Kirby's Dreamland(beaten on Nintendo 3DS virtual console)
Week 6: Megaman ZX(beaten on Nintendo DSi)
Week 7: Uncharted 2: Among Theives(beaten on Playstation 3)
Week 8: Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception(beaten on Playstation 3)

With the progress that I have made, I have beaten a title for this week and I have next week covered as well. I am going to use the time to get ahead and beat Skyward Sword and finish the first of the 16 Zelda games. I'm not actively working on any other console titles right now, but have a bunch of handheld titles I have already started and am working my way through(Megaman ZX Advent, Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, Monster Tale, New Super Mario Bros. DS, Shinobi 3DS, Resident Evil: Revelaiton[yes, its misspelled on purpose] and Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep).

I do want to thank my wife for being so awesome and putting up with all of my gaming.
You are the best, thanks sweetheart!!

Lethal Enforcers was a arcade game released in 1992, it is best known for its revolver-shaped light gun known as the Konami Justifier.

I'm one of those weird people that buy the Call of Duty games for the single player campaign, so here is a list of my five favourite NPCs, limited to one per game.

5. Gaz. He taught me how to knife watermelons.

4. Archer. He speaks with an Essex accent, like me! And he stays in one spot of the map with a sniper rifle, like me!

3. Chernov. He's sensitive, but if there is one thing he does more than talk about the fine line of morality that is frequently crossed in war... it's completely owning the Third Reich with his Mosin Nagant.

2. Guzzo. He is voiced by Brian Bloom.

1. Frank Woods. He says "fuck" about 800 times, and does something incredibly badass just as regularly. Like this. 

Sega is releasing a limited time demo for Sonic Generations over Xbox LIVE and Playstation network. There is a catch though, only classic Sonic will be available, and only 1 Act of the stage. Yes, this is rather weak for a demo, but it's at least an E3 demo everyone can try. The game isn't out for quite awhile.

It will only be available June 23rd through July 12th and afterwards will be removed from the market place. Sega has stated the demo itself will expire as well. So get on it if you want to try out the E3 build of classic Sonic!

Translate this page http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20110622_455127.html for more details.

Segas' beloved mascot has had plenty of ups and downs over the recent years. Sonic saw his biggest low in Sonic the Hedgehog for the Playstation3 and Xbox360, released in 2006, which housed an insane amount of glitches, bugs, and horrendous loading times. After that train wreck, Sonic fans are still uneasy whenever a new Sonic game is announced. Sega knows this, and things have been getting better. The most recent console release, Sonic Colors was a solid effort. The downloadable Sonic 4 however was severely lacking. They know they need to make up for any wrong doings in the blue hedgehogs past, and Sonic Generations looks to be what Sonic fans of old and new have been craving. It offers two distinct modes of game play. One as a classic side scrolling Sonic that's a blast from the blast processing past, and the other as the current era rail grinding extreme version of the hedgehog.

Sonics' character design has changed over the years, and both modes feature the two different styles, Classic Sonics' shorter, rounder, and slightly lighter blue hue will bring back tons of nostalgia to long time fans. Thankfully, the game play in his stages feel very close to the Sega Genesis Sonic games. There is a solid feel of the inertia based platforming found in older Sonics, where building speed is key to running up ramps or spinning down hills. Sonic also has access to his trademark spin dash which allows for a burst of speed even from a dead stop. There are classic robot enemies, loop de loops, gold rings and power ups stored in monitors. This is everything old school Sonic fans will instantly recognize. It's a great treat to play as this old style Sonic again.Sonic 4 as mentioned above, didn't feel at all like the old Sonic games, Sonic Generations' classic Sonic definitely does.

The current generation Sonic features incredibly fast movement with a more cinematic flair. The camera is mostly placed behind the back of Sonic allowing for players to see much further ahead. It occasionally will switch to a side view in order to allow modern Sonic to partake in side scrolling platforming. This modern Sonic can use his homing attack to auto track jumping on enemies or cross huge gaps in the stages by chaining together attacks in this manner. There is still a very big emphasis on grinding rails, and while playing as modern Sonic, expect to do this multiple times through a stage. Unlike some of the other more recent 3d Sonic games, Sonic Generations' modern Sonic feels much tighter in control. The stages ,so far, look to be much better designed as well. Overall there were far less problems of typical 3d Sonic games such as getting stuck against obstacles or falling into bottomless pits.

Only two stages of Sonic Generations have been revealed so far. One fantastic facet to the game is how you get to play through the same, yet completely rehauled zone for whichever Sonic you choose. The E3 demo featured Green Hill Zone, a series classic from the original Sonic the Hedgehog on Genesis. Both classic and modern Sonic have their own stage themes. Green Hill Zones' memorable tune is remixed perfectly for each of the hedgehogs. The remixes sound fantastic, and hopefully this is an indication of the care given to the soundtrack of the game. Music has always been a very strong point for the series, and here it's no exception. The other stage revealed via game trailer, was City Escape from Sonic Adventure2. This stage features classic sonic on a skateboard fighting against the newer batch of Sonic game enemies. It also takes after the orginals' level by having a giant truck chase Sonic throughout the stage. The nostalgia aspect for this Dreamcast era Sonic Adventure2 is enormous.

Sonic Generations looks great, sounds great, and plays very well. The Playstation3 and Xbox360 versions of the game are very well off despite some poor motion blur found in the demo. There is also a Nintendo 3DS version in the works. The E3 demo only featured classic Sonic game play that was similar to the console version, but was plagued with massive slow down and held a poor frame rate. The Sega representative stated the 3DS version was still very early in development and only 20 percent complete. Sonic Generations does not have a firm release date but looks to be due by the end of the year, if not a bit later for a spring 2012 release. I for one cannot wait to see what other stages are incorporated in the final game. Sega has a ton of great Sonic zones to choose from. I have my fingers crossed for Chemical Plant, Flying Battery, Ice Cap, and Stardust Speedway! You Sonic fans know what I'm talking about!

Segas' Shinobi has been a long running series since 1987, and has spawned over 10 games. Shinobi for the Nintendo 3DS is the newest offering and despite being titled "Shinobi", is a brand new game for the series, Taking a step into the past, the main character is Jiro Musashi, head of the Oboro clan of Shinobi lore. Jiro also happens to be the father of the main character from many of the past Shinobi titles, Joe Musashi. The E3 demo already shows a lot of promise despite still being an early development build of the game. Jiro can use his blade, throw kunai, double jump, and cast ninja magic spells just as the previous Shinobi games characters could. New to Jiro is the ability to counter attacks, Right before an enemy attack makes contact, you can hit the counter button and negate all damage as well as leave your enemy open for your own assault. The timing for this is fairly strict, but very necessary if you want to get a good score at the end of the stage. It also makes for a great way to show of your ninja reflexes. The Sega representative stated there was a lot of difficulty balancing left to be done, and the game was still undertaking many tweaks to damage of both Jiro and the enemies. Based on the E3 build, it was a moderate challenge.

Jiro currently has access to 4 different magic, or ninpo, spells and can swap freely between them. They range from attack types like fire ninpo that blasts the whole screen clearing out enemies in its' way, or defensive types like electric ninpo that shields Jiro to prevent any damage from incurring. Throughout the stages there are various power ups like health recovery items or extra kunai pick ups like previous Shinobi games. The side scrolling stages are generously lengthy with multiple checkpoints and plenty of enemies to get through. Overall they are very straight forward and linear, with only one clear way to traverse them. the E3 demo also had a brief horse riding sequence that placed the camera behind the back of the player. This portion lent itself well to the 3d effect and had the player jumping over fallen tress while being attacked by other ninjas on horseback. It was very basic in design but broke up the standard side scrolling game play. One other useful tool in Jiros' arsenal was a grappling hook. This grappling hook, in conjunction with the double jump,can take the player to great heights. It only shoots upward however, so its' usefulness was only there when the stage design allowed for it.

Graphically, Shinobi gets the job done but has very little texture along with low polygon character models. It looks much better in motion than it does in still screen captures. The game will feature unlockable characters and weapons according to a Sega representative. It will also utilize the 3DS street pass functionality, although it remains to be seen what that will entail. Other cool features are animated cut scenes and the ability to save replays of completed stages. This Shinobi feels like a good mix of the older games with a dash of some new. The game is due to be released this fall 2011.

In recent years, there has been a rather large shift in the Western and Japanese success and development of videogames. The Japanese style of game design has been in a slow decline, and many facets that differentiate the two design philosophies have been in favor of Western games. Arguably, one of the best game studios out of Japan is PlatinumGames. Game after game they have shown they have what it takes, and they do it it with style and flair. They began their careers in 2006 as Seeds Inc, and soon after became Clover Studios. During their run with publishing partner Capcom, they were responsible for Viewtiful Joe, Okami and God Hand. Currently under Sega, their most recent contributions to the action game genre have been Madworld, Bayonetta, and Vanquish. Despite somewhat weak sales, PlatinumGames has quite the track record of great videogames. They know what it takes to make a fun game, and their newest offering Anarchy Reigns, follows suit.

Anarchy Reigns has both a single player offering and an online multiplayer mode. The E3 demo focused on the multiplayer facet of the game. The first comparisons one can draw from the multiplayer, is that it has a similar design to Capcoms' fighting game Powerstone. You are placed in a small arena and forced to duke it out until the time limit runs its' course. Unlike Powerstone, you are expected to die a lot, and are given unlimited respawns to do so. There is a basic light attack, and heavy attack, in which you can string attacks to form your own combos. There is also a powerful weapon based attack which is very distinct to each of the playable characters. You can block, dodge, throw, and basically have as much control as any typical 3rd person action game. There will be many more multiplayer modes in the final game, but during the E3 demo the game pit 4 players against each other in a free for all battle royale. Having this many players definitely causes a lot of chaos on screen, and because every player is out to get you it's beneficial to always watch your back. There is a simple lock on mechanic to keep one of your opponents in your sights, but this feature should be used while going into an attack, and removing it afterwards to make sure nobody else is coming after you. Much success seemed to come from timing your attacks against a player, after they completed an attack animation against somebody else. This caused a few players to attempt to try and stay out of a fight, and then go in for the kill on the weaker players. The amount of points a player gained when defeating another did not seem to change even when using this sneaky tactic. Like many recent fighting games, if both players attempt to throw each other they will both be pushed away, but throwing had some other minor annoyances. The animations can not be interrupted once initiated, which leaves any other player who's not involved to sit and wait. During this, the thrower can not be damaged in any way until the attack is completed. Unfortunately, lengthy throw animations cause the characters involved to be sitting ducks if they're not paying attention to outside attackers waiting it to be over. Many characters have stronger, charged attacks, and these were especially brutal if timed correctly against the other players completing the throw animations. This is still a very early build of the game, so these little nuisances may change when it's finally released.

Anarchy Reigns has great looking animations for some pretty crazy characters. Those familiar with Madworld will instantly recognize Jack, the chainsaw wielding main character, and Black Baron, the pimp television show host. Even though the single player is still a mystery, these characters hint that Anarchy Reigns will at least take place in the same universe. Also joining the fray are characters Zero(a ninja), Sasha(an ice powered blonde), Big Bull(a cyborg bull with a giant hammer), Nikolai(a large lightning gloved man), Leon(a cybernetic arm bladed return from Madworld) and Matilda(Black Barons S&M looking assistant). These 8 characters seem to just be the beginning, as Platinum games have been releasing more characters as time has been going on. Expect more character reveals down the road. The music is also reminiscent of Madworlds'. It features a mix of hip hop and rock and sets a good tone for the game with fast paced fighting tunes. Anarchy Reigns has plenty going for itself, although there is still very little known about the rest of the game. So far, it's a fun beat 'em up style action game, but is a bit rough around the edges. The overall graphics need work and the gameplay feels a little stiff compared to PlatinumGames other action titles. There is still work to be done, and with a Playstation3 and Xbox360 January 2012 release date, plenty of time to get it right.

Most people these days would be lost without their personal computer. We can access, analyse and send information in seconds. This has meant that we can now know within a matter of minutes what is happening within our business, social group, country or around the world. Surfing the Internet has become an authentic entertainment option for many. Many businesses also have a large online component that requires workers to spend hours in front of their computer screen. This type of work is often tedious and boring, not to mention that using that level of concentration constantly is also very tiring. The best way to fight boredom in these instances is to have the best logitech z-5500 speakers connected to your pc or laptop. There is nothing like listening to your favorite playlist while working or watching webinars, you tube videos and DVDs that are accompanied by terrific stereo sound. Even gaming can take on a whole new dimension How do you make a decision on what would be the best wireless computer speakers for you? It seems that each brand and each model has a slight difference in performance and price. Before deciding on which speaker to buy, you must first settle on the price range that you are willing to pay. This is one of the easiest ways of finding out what sort of speakers you can buy. One of the phrases that you will hear often is the 2:1 speaker system. This means that you have two speakers and a sub woofer. The 2:1 is the most popular set up and the one that is most readily available . Your speakers give you mid to high range sounds and your sub woofer gives you your deep bass. Most office desks and home computers would suit this type of speaker configuration. To get the full effect from your computer game or movie you can also get surround computer speakers. There are even speakers available that will give you a premium sound quality for those that love their music and want the absolute best listening experience. There are even wireless computer speakers for those who don't like the clutter that extra wires can cause. Many people automatically assume that the best computer speakers will come with a hefty price tag but this is often untrue. Many of the speakers in the mid to lower price brackets are very capable of delivering excellent quality sound, particularly at high volume. Even more amazing is that these speakers are now designed to be as subtle and stylish as possible. No matter what size desk you have there is a speaker that will fit into a space on it. Cost, performance and physical appearance/size; these are the three elements that must be taken into consideration before buying the best bose companion 2 speakers for your needs. For many people these speakers really do make the difference between having a boring computer job and having a job that they love.

When looking at headphones sound quality and comfort are the two essential features that you must have.. With wireless headphones you get the best of both worlds. Headphones are a brilliant way to get the most from your TV or stereo without upsetting other people. If you think that the sound quality of your wireless TV headphones won't match your surround speakers then you might like to think again. In most cases it will easily beat out your speakers. The only downside with many of these headphones has been the wires attached to them. For those that have experienced this - there was nothing more annoying than attempting to dodge wires while using your controllers - imagine attempting to play a game of tennis with a wire strung out in front of you - that is what playing the Wii or Playstation is like with a wired headset. The evolution of wireless TV headphones has not come a moment too soon. How do wireless TV headphones operate? They work by using a transmitter located in the control box and a receiver based in the headphones. They transmit symptoms through either radio frequency (RF) or infra-red (IF) technology. Radio Frequency headsets work on radio or sound waves. The wonderful thing about this technology is that you do not want line of sight for the headset and controller to communicate. Bluetooth is an example of modern Radio Frequency usage.. You can whip out to the kitchen, check on the kids or even walk around the garden and not miss a beat. Because it works on sound waves you do have to watch for interference from other electrical equipment. The IF headset actually sends out a small beam of light so works on line of sight, when the line is broken so is the signal. The real benefit of this is that so long as your signal remains unbroken your sound quality will always be brilliant. There are an incredible array of wireless TV headphones, from small ear buds for the active or fully enclosed surround sound headphones for the connoisseur. You can also fully customize your listening experience as several the ear force x41 headphones also have equalizers built into them. Volume controls on the side of a few models also make life a lot simpler. I wouldn't be without my enclosed sennheiser wireless headphones. At the push of a button I am transported from my living room to the movie scene or to my favorite concert. I can even grab a mid concert drink without missing a bar of music. And no-one else needs to hear us!

We all love to watch DVDs and play our games through our TV's. While many of us buy the highest quality screen to get the full experience not many people think about having Surround Sound Headphones. The quality of the speakers that comes inbuilt in TV’s is of sub standard quality. By using a set of surround sound headphones you really can get the full effect of your movie or game. Now you are able to enjoy more lifelike sound where you hear every crack, every pop, each blast and every yell. On top of the amazing sound effects you also get to have the sound follow you wherever you go, no more having to reposition speakers if you decide to vary your seat for the night. You can watch your DVDs or play your games at any time and at any volume you want - you won't disturb anyone. Talk about a bonus for those in shared living situations! The need to purchase pricey, bulky and ugly looking speakers and then arrange them in such a way that they would create a 360-enveloping surround sound is no longer necessary. This is where surround headphones like the Tritton AX Pro differ because they use a small processor that actually tricks the brain into thinking that the sounds that you are hearing are coming from different parts of the room. The quality of sound put out by these headphones is truly remarkable considering that they cost a fraction of what a surround sound speaker system would cost. Every model of headphone also comes with slightly different features and has a slightly different look. There is a headphone set for anyone, whether you choose the fully enclosed over ear experience or the lightweight earbud. They are also designed to be as user friendly as possible and have features like adapters, padding and the ability to fold up for travel or storage. My own preference is for the enclosed surround headphones as these also cancel out most of the peripheral noise. The trick to getting great sound quality is to have bass waves that are both longer and higher, creating less distortion at volume while creating the full bass sound at lower volume levels. You get this with surround sound headphones Over the ear range of these headphones produce better lower end sounds as they have sound drivers that have larger diameters. There is no need for you to endure the poor sound output by your TV as even the most basic of these headphones will easily outperform your built in TV speakers. For the true audiophile you can also get premium headphones that will really give you a theatre quality sound. These may be a bit more expensive, but the investment is definitely worth it as they will last you years. Pioneer SE-DIR800C Wireless Headphones take it to the next level of comfort and convenience. Imagine being able to watch television, move around the room or move your remote without stressing about wires getting in the way?. When you look at headphones make a list of what you really need them to do. Is sound quality more important or size? Do you want wireless or do you want ear buds? Do you want all of the above? Once you know what you want you can begin to narrow your search and find the best headphones for you.

One of the big 3DS announcements of last years E3 was Kid Icarus Uprising. A sequel, or reboot, to a relic of Nintendos' past. Kid Icarus debuted on the NES back in 1986 in Japan, and was released in the U.S. July 1987. The main character, Pit, was rarely seen throughout the years. He starred again, in a second Kid Icarus game, subtitled "Of Myths and Monsters". He also played a small role in the cartoon Captain N:The Game Master, and has had a few cameos in a handful of Nintendo games. Pits biggest role in recent years was as one of the combatants of Super Smash Bros Brawl. Now, he's returning in a big way, starring in his own brand new 3ds adventure. Pit is the star of the single player show in Kid Icarus Uprising, but the newly announced multiplayer mode at this years e3 is our focus at the moment.

Instead of playing as Pit, you play as either an Angel of light, or dark. The two sides are pit against each other in a classic style death match, with a goal to kill the opposing team more than they kill yours. Each individual player has their own health bar, but when it depleted, the teams health bar will drain. Once the last of the teams health is drained, one player will respawn as a more powerful angel in the form of Pit or Dark Pit depending on which team they're on. If the opposing team can locate and defeat this newly powered up player, they win the match. Uprisings multiplayer is based on the ground combat portion of the single player game. It consists of ground dashes, locking on to opponents, and attacking with short or long range weapons. There is no sort of jumping or flying involved, and because of this the battle fields are almost entirely flat. There are pillars and other objects placed around, but from a geographical stand point it is a bit dull and plain. Thankfully, the up to 6 player battles can fill the screen with tons of action. At the beginning of a match, you select one weapon that you will be stuck with for the duration of the battle. These weapons are also acquired in the single player and include double blades, claws,a sword, floating turrets called orbitors, a canon, gloves that hurl boulders, and a few others. Weapons directly affect both long range and melee range attacks, as well as your movement speed. Health pickups and grenade type items spawn in designated points of the map too, and are one time use items.

Unfortunately, lefties may be out of luck with this particular game, although, the Nintendo representatives stated there is a control scheme in the works for left handed players. Hopefully that pans out, because as of this E3 build there is only one control scheme. You control your movements with the 3DS' thumb pad, and fire shots or attack with melee by tapping the L shoulder button. Using the stylus with your other hand, you must control a rather large retical to target enemies while also controlling the camera view. The characters move quickly, especially when equipped with lighter class weapons such as the claws. Adjusting the camera takes a little getting used to and thankfully there is a lock on feature that will always keep your target in view. Overall, the game controls very well, with a small learning curve.

Uprising looks and sounds like a quality game. It has a good amount of that Nintendo polish and is shaping up to be one of the better 3DS titles. The 3d effect looks very nice, but unfortunately may be jarring simply because the game requires you to hold the system with one hand. Gamers will have to keep it steady for this one. Kid Icarus Uprising is due this fall 2011, so stay tuned for a single player preview and the games full review as time goes on.

Have you noticed that the more that you’re attempting to concentrate the louder the noises in the background tend to be? If you've ever worked in a cubicle, you appreciate what it's like to have to overhear several conversations taking place around you. Whether it is a work mate trying to close a deal, construction workers on a building site near your office or the constant ringing of your phone - it is all noise and distraction that doesn't do your focus any good. So what can we do? One of your simplest and most effective things that you can do is to grab a pair of noise reducing headphones. Now before you laugh, hear me out. They literally do work to drown out the frustrating background noise. The best part is that while Bose quietcomfort 3 headphones will reduce the ordinary hum, they may not block out the sudden noises - like the phone ringing or a sudden shout. Ambient noises are the classic background noise, like a humming engine, the construction site drills and hammers and chatter from around the room. Noise reduction headphones are perfect for these types of distractions. Noise reduction headphones also helps to improve your concentration as it cuts down on outside distractions. Business people on flights, students on buses and stay at home parents who want time out can also find the quiet time that they need with these headphones. Noise reduction headphones offer a variety of uses and you can get sets that don't just adequately reduce the interference from other sources but that also have a superior sound quality as well. The hardest part of wearing headphones is to avoid getting an 'anti-social' tag! There is no way to hide the fact that you are wearing a set of headphones, so people will be mildly interested in your reasoning. It might even look like you’re messing about instead of concentrating. So you need to be very upfront and honest about what's happening and explain that you need noise reduction headphones so that you can concentrate and focus on your work. After a couple of days I bet that you’re rapped with your ability to focus on your work and your workmates have all moved on to other matters. There is a great range of sennheiser pxc 450 headphones available over the internet at very reasonable prices. You could be just days away from being able to work in blissful peace and quiet. These headphones are perfect for anyone needing to lose some of the frustration and stress bought on by the inability to concentrate properly. I really recommend giving these headphones a try - they will make a world of difference.

There is an increasing popularity of Compact Projectors and with good reason. Imagine having a movie theater in your house! This is what owning your own projector is like. Going out to watch movies is no longer necessary for you and your family you can now enjoy the theatre inside your own home. As you would imagine, there are many things to think about before buying a home theater.

First thing you must do is set a budget and settle on a price range that you are willing to spend for your home theatre projector. Learning which type of projector you want is the best way to set your price. There are two main types of projector; the LCD and the DLP projector. There are LCD projectors to fit any almost budget and although the DLP projectors such as the LG HS201 Slim LED Projector might be a bit more expensive the extra high definition that you get is well worth the price.

Brightness and image quality are really important features to look into when deciding which of the home theatre projectors to choose. As an example, LCD projectors have a far brighter picture than their DLP counterparts. On the other hand, DLP is known to provide better video quality and it is up to you to decide which is more important for your needs. When projectors first came out the image thrown out appeared to be curved. These days we have a simple process called a 'keystone correction' that we can use to make sure that the image stays in the correct rectangle for the screen

Another thing that must be considered is the mounting of home theatre projectors. While some people like to have their projector professionally built into a ceiling mounting, others like the portability of a stand or even a steady table. Both of these have distinct advantages and disadvantages. If you want a system that you simply turn on and watch the movie without having to find the spot that gives you the best picture then a ceiling mounted projector is the best option. It also makes your set up look far tidier and more professional . If you are stretched for space, don't like the idea of a ceiling mounted projector or want your projector to be portable then a free standing pico pocket projectors would be your best option . Not all projectors are suitable for mounting on a ceiling. For those that do choose to mount their projector on the ceiling it is recommended that you get it professionally done.

Imagine no more queuing for tickets, expensive snacks and rowdy strangers next to you! With home theatre projectors this can all be a distant memory. You can enjoy theatre quality movie viewing in the comfort of your own home.

It seems that everywhere you look there is the GPS navigation system in play. No longer is the GPS confined to luxury cars or boats, now you can get directions delivered direct to your mobile. Handheld GPS units are extremely helpful for those heading into unfamiliar territory and particularly essential when search and rescue operations are in progress. GPS units are also very useful in sports such as mountain/trail biking, golf and hunting. When it comes to golf there are brilliant golf gps units and range finders available. Several golfers have realized the benefits of having a cheapest gps to develop their game of golf.

Garmin nuvi 255w allows you to download the layout of a course and store it for future reference. There are literally tens of thousands of courses available for downloading through golf GPS units. It is like having someone that has expert knowledge of your course advising you on which is coming up at the next hole. In the past you have had to search for distance markers on sprinkler heads, flags and even rocks! As each course seems to have its own system you also have to interpret what each marker means - now you can focus on making the shot based on the measurements that your golf GPS unit has given you. This also makes club selection a breeze. There is no need to worry about those sand-traps and bunkers either because your unit will also point them out.

Some of these golf GPS units have functions such as inbuilt electronic score cards and range markers to help advance your game of golf. The enormously brilliant units have a video fly-over of your course - this advantage alone is worth the cost.

Golf is one of the toughest mental sports that there is.. The key to having a fantastic game is to be as mentally prepared as possible. By using these golf buddy tour gps range finder review to tell you the specifics of the game that you need to play you will master the course and improve your golfing game no-end.

Walking the course before you play is something that takes a lot of energy and time. Nearly everybody would rather just get on and play. Well, now you can, and you may even get a second round in! Anyone serious about getting their score down and improving their handicap needs to look at using golf GPS units. In fact your golf GPS unit is the fastest method to get that all important handicap down.

Street Fighter X Tekken, pronounced "Street Fighter cross Tekken", is Capcoms next big fighting game. Both Capcom and Namco have joined forces to bring together two of the biggest fighting game franchises ever, and they're both developing their own versions of the game. Although Namco has announced they are making a Tekken X Street Fighter, not much has been shown of that version. This is Capcoms take on the franchise, and this early E3 build of the game is already very promising.The game looks strikingly like Street Fighter 4,but it plays more similar to Tekken Tag. You choose two characters and can freely swap between them as the fight goes on. If one of your characters life bar is depleted, its a KO. Just like Tekken Tag, even if your second character has full health, that's the end of the round. Utilizing both characters to their full extent is a must here.

Kazuya and Ryu trade blows

The entire game is much faster paced than Street Fighter 4, and a lot of the game has been simplified quite a bit. It definitely feels more user friendly than Street Fighter 4, where as in Street Fighter 4 chaining moves together took quite a bit of timing, here it feels more forgiving. Also, like in Street Fighter 3, whiffing normals will build super meter. Blocking and attacking will build super meter. Using special moves will, as usual, build super meter. All of this means you'll be gaining a ton of meter to use supers, special tag attacks, and ex special moves as well. The game looks very flashy because of this. When taking damage, your characters also have regenerative health similar to the Vs. series of Capcom games. You may switch a character out to recover health while you use your other character to continue the fight. The game is heavy on chaining combos together. You get your standard Street Fighter 3 punch and 3 kick buttons, and you can chain light, medium to heavy for a simple 3 hit combo. You may also tag your other character in after the 3 hits, to continue another chain of light, medium, heavy, and end with a special or super attack. The super moves are performed by completing a standard quarter circle or similar Street Fighter-esque motion, and pressing all 3 punches or kicks together. Over all, they are simpler to do than some of Capcoms' other fighters. Taking a note from Tekken, you can juggle your opponents fairly easily too. Hitting them or launching them into the air by pushing heavy punch and heavy kick together, will cause them to be in a state of aerial hit stun. This will allow you to easily beat on them until you drop or finish your combo. Another new gameplay mechanic to Street Fighter X Tekken is the charge move. Every character in the game has a charge move, where you hold down the button used to perform a special attack. For example, Guiles' Sonic Boom can be charged. When you perform the move and hold the punch button for a moment, it becomes an Ex version of the attack, hold it down longer, and it becomes a super version.

As of this E3 build, their are 14 characters to choose from. The developers have stated the game will have a very large roster, and that they are going to try and make it as big as possible. There are quite a bit characters to pull from these huge franchises after all. On the Street Fighter side, we get Ryu, Ken, Guile, Abel, Sagat, Chun Li, and Cammy. The Tekken characters are currently Kazuya, Nina, Bob, King, Marduk, Julia, Hwoarang, Asuka, and Lili. Capcom has also announced that Cole, star of the Infamous games on Playstation 3, will be in the both the PS3 and PSVita versions of the game. Capom's Seth Killian has stated there isn't any Xbox360 exclusive character in the works. That could of course change. The game has a long way to go, and there will be many revisions of the various game mechanics as it goes through play testing. So far, so very good. It's fast, fun,and easier for newer players to jump in and do something cool. Don't expect the game to be out until 2012, but do look forward to many character reveals along the way. I, for one, am eagerly awaiting it's release.

Wow, Nintendo is giving Robin Williams a pretty sweet Father's Day gift!!

I will be picking up my copy this weekend (June 17th release). Look for a full review shortly thereafter.

Most 2d games in today's industry are to be found on the handhelds, or as smaller, downloadable offerings. This is not the case with Rayman Origins, which will have a disc based release on the xbox360, Playstation3 and Nintendo Wii. It will also be released for the Nintendo 3ds and the newly announced PlaystationVita. If you're a fan of 2d platformers Ubisoft has given everyone an opportunity to partake in a fun and frantic brand new Rayman. Little is known about the story of Rayman Origins, but let's be honest here, the intrigue comes from the gorgeous visuals. They are a work of art, and based on the E3 demos stage selection, they have a lot of variety. They range from jungle, desert, underwater, lava and snow environments among many more. Any major locale that's been in a 2d side scroller looks to be represented here. The absolute biggest and best facet of Rayman Origins, is the 4 player simultaneous action. You play as Rayman, his larger blue friend Globox, or two differently clothed Teensies, which are a race of smaller creatures found in the older Rayman games. Taking a page from New Super Mario Bros on the Wii, when a player dies, they will come back as a balloon, allowing another player to pop them when hit. If all players die and are left floating aimlessly without anyone to rescue them, its game over. Instead of simply being encased in a bubble, the characters puff up their bodies in hilarious manners. The visual charisma of Rayman helps set it apart from other typical 2d platformers. The slapstick humor and impressive visuals also make Rayman stand out of a crowd, and are very welcome to see, especially in an era that lacks many high profile 2d games.

The controls felt near perfect even in this early build. You have a basic attack button that can be used to not only damage enemies but also to smack your friends around for fun. The attack button can also be held down for a stronger hit. When used in the air, it's used as a stomp attack which will hurl your character to the ground below. The platforming is simple and feels accurate. You won't have trouble feeling out how far you must jump to land on a distant platform. Your character can also float down slowly by holding down the jump button. Each character(of the 4) have their own set of animations. For example, Rayman will twirl his hair like a propeller, and his big blue friend Globox will flap his arms like a bird. This makes navigating the side scrolling stages a breeze. You can grab hold of certain objects and wall jump in order to get to higher platforms. There's a run button very similar to most classic side scrollers as well. With multiple players, you can hold up in order to put your arms in the air and act as a mini platform for other characters to stand on. Holding down a shoulder button will cause your character to emit an air current(again,each character has a different set of animations for this) that can propel your teammates to greater heights too. There is no shortage of ways to navigate through the stages. However, the sheer amount of enemies and obstacles on your way to victory will cause you to die..... a lot. Rayman seems to be a forgiving game with many checkpoints throughout the levels, but expect to die and try again especially when playing with 4 players. There's a lot going on all at once and the screen at times can be a colorful mess of animated pixels running about. Gorgeous to watch, but it can be a bit to chaotic for some. Of course, you can always dial it back and just play 1 or 2 players if it gets to be to much.

Rayman Origins has a release date for fall of 2011 and I for one can't wait to see all the environments that will be in the final build. Each one displayed in the demo is a joy to look at, and all the characters and enemies animate so wonderfully. If you can't get enough of 2d platformers or 4 player co-op sidescrollers, you have one heck of a game to look forward too.

Since Star Fox Command was released in 2006, I've been waiting for a good Star Fox game to come out on Nintendo's handheld platform. This fall that game finally comes, sure its not a new story or a new game made from the ground up for the 3DS, but its a childhood favorite, one of the better Star Fox games, and on the 3DS, so i'll take it.

At E3 last week, Nintendo had two setups where they were showing off Star Fox 64 3D, one area was showing the four person local multiplayer and the other spot was running score attack, I was able to get my hands on both and here is what I thought.



Local Multiplayer: Like like its console counterpart, Star Fox 3D will have support for 4 person local multiplayer. The mode that I played was a timed point match with 3 other people on a lava planet with giant tower in the middle of the map. The game played very smoothly even when there were multiple Arwings on the screen and lasers flying all over the place, and is still just as fun as I remember as a kid. After two minutes of barrel rolling, blasting and blowing people out of the sky I emerged victorious and able to see the look of defeat on my opponents faces. Yep, Star Fox watches you while you play it. During multiplayer games the inner camera is on and streaming the video of your face in real time in a box above your craft, which realistically is somewhat unneccessary during the match but I like post match photo op and can see younger gamers enjoying the in-match video stream.

Score Attack: Set in different stages of the game, Score Attack lets you re-fly missions with speed and accuracy being your goal. The mission that I flew was the first mission of the game, Corneria. Score Attack is pretty self explanatory and will be a good way to get a little more life out of the game after completing the game to get all of the endings.



Overall: The 12 and 26 year-old in me is very excited to see this title come to Nintendo's handheld, I do wish that it was coming to North America sooner or that the 3DS games were region free still(the game has a late July release date in Japan, which the first time I played Star Fox 64 was the Japanese version). Star Fox looks great with the standard picture or with the 3D on, however, like with any 3DS game, if you are using tilt controls I recommend truing the 3D effect down to improve the picture quality while you are moving around. My only other though is that I do wish that they would figure out something for Streetpass or Spotpass before the game launches but even without support for either, Star Fox will still be worth picking up on Sept. 11. Check back on Gamervision.com for more details as we get closer to release as well as the full game review around release.

I met my husband on here XOXOXOXO

Welcome to the Continue? Super Bowl Special!  Today we're playing Super Tecmo Bowl for Super Nintendo.  We'll determine the outcome of Super Bowl 45 as Paul plays as the Pittsburgh Steelers, and Dominic as the Green Bay Packers...from the 1993 rosters of course.

Going through the lists and lists of things for sale here on gamervision makes me want to punch people in the fucking face. I sell all my games through half.com and that system usually lends to buying games at a price lower than your local game store. Looking at the prices here, it makes me realize someone didn't take an economics class.

• 58 dollars for Crackdown 2? Suck a fat one.
• 300 dollars for a slim 360? Why even try? I'm going to go buy that in a store, not risk some dude I don't know from the interwebs butt slamming me and never hearing from him again.
• LEAUGE OF FUCKING LEGENDS....A FREE DOWNLOADABLE GAME...ON SALE FOR 10 DOLLARS.
• 0 Day Attack on Earth, which is a Xbox Arcade game. How the hell does that even work?
• Bayonetta: 30 dollars. I bought this game for 10 dollars.
• Any PS2 game that isn't rare being more than 10 bucks...lick my taint.
• Twilight Princess for the Wii can be had for 20 something bucks. Gamervision Swap-n-Sell? 48 dollars. What a steal.

 

I could go on, but people, please get your shit together and realize you will never sell shit if you just make it 2 dollars cheaper than sold in stores OR EVEN WORSE, THE EXACT SAME PRICE.

 

 

The internet isn't quite the Wild West frontier land is used to be. That said, there are still plenty of lawless brigands who do whatever the hell they want, whenever the hell they want. One of those outlaws? Francis Ford Coppola. The man is one of the most respected and important filmmakers of all time, and when he has an opinion on something so delicate as internet pirating, people are going to listen. People like us. So when the Epic Boobs posse rounds up their opinions on the current state of downloading anything and everything, you know you're in for a good show.

Most people who are following the roster updates for Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 are already aware of the rumored boss who will appeatr in the character, but today, an unofficial video has surfaced showing the mysterious final challenger in action.  Anyone who doesn't want to be spoiled as to the identity of the final boss should turn away now, and wait until the game releases on February 15.  Of course, if you've been following the character reveals up to this point, you probably already know, or don't care about being spoiled, so go right on ahead anfd watch.

Shameless.  Dirty.  Whore.

 

Call it (or me) whatever you want.  I WANT YOUR VIEWS!!!!!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_bEdIiHcqE

So, the Half-Life series is hands down my favorite video game series of all time.  The story, the gameplay, and the attachment I have to the characters just makes it a really beautiful game.  It's something that a lot of FPS don't have today.  You pop in the game, beat the story in 5 hours, and then have to listen to some little kid make fun of your mom until you can franticlly find the mute button while you play multiplayer.  Oh, by the way, that multiplayer is just a rip off of CS which is a game made from the Half Life engine.  Basically any FPS multiplayer experience you have right now you should thank half Life for. 

Anyway, today I stumbled upon an awesome video that needs some more exposure.  Hopefully the Gamervision gods don't strike Kevin Brawn down for posting video content that isn't their own but I thought it deserved it because it's so well done.  If you never played any of the original Half Life expansions then you won't know who this main character is.  Here is a back story on him directly from the Wiki page.

 

Adrian Shepard-Half Life Oposing Force

Shephard, a 22-year old U.S. Marine Corporal assigned to the Hazardous Environment Combat Unit (HECU) from the fictional Santego Military Base in Arizona, is one of the personnel sent into the Black Mesa Research Facility to kill the aliens and later silence the witnesses, especially a scientist named Gordon Freeman, the player character in the original game. However, during the events subsequent to the "Resonance Cascade", Adrian finds himself separated from his unit and fighting for his life.

Unlike the other Marines, he works with the increasingly distrustful scientists and guards in order to make it out of Black Mesa alive. This is likely because he never received the orders to kill them, as his Osprey was shot down before his commander could inform the squad of their mission. Shephard and Freeman do cross paths during the game, but at that point Shephard is merely an observer to a climactic event from the original game. He never fights alongside or against Gordon Freeman. The G-Man appears to take an interest in Shephard's movements, even before the Black Mesa Incident. As early as three months prior, Shephard spots the G-Man during the boot camp training mission. Shephard deactivates the thermonuclear warhead brought in by the Black Ops, but the G-Man reactivates it and Black Mesa is destroyed. In the end, the G-Man reveals that he has successfully argued for Shephard's life, detaining him in some unknown void. The G-Man expresses a degree of respect for Shephard, offering praise for his ability to "adapt and survive against all odds" which "rather reminds [the G-Man] of [himself]."

 

Neet.  Anyway here is a link to the video.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOrH5tfWorg

Our friends, The Retro Hunters, recently went and passed on a copy of Spawn  for Super Nintendo that they found at a local flea market.  There's been some debate as to whether or not they should've bought it, so here we are to settle the arguement.  We curse a bit in this episode.  Sorry in advance.

I KILL GIANTS
Written by JOE KELLY
Art by JM KEN NIIMURA

Joe Kelly’s story is a wonderfully brilliant fantasy tale set in our time. Young heroine Barbara must face some difficult obstacles during this tale, and even with her strength, she just might not be able to handle the impending challenge the giants present. I love this book. I have an autographed copy on my book shelf. I’ve read it more than a dozen times. It’s hard growing up, and Joe Kelly and JM Ken Niimura hold nothing back in this emotionally charged journey.

Last night, around 1AM EST, Sony revealed plans for a new Hot Shots Golf title. For those of you who don't know, I'm an absolute Hot Shots junkie. Unfortunately, there wasn't really very much to talk about beyond that the game was in development. To pass the rest of the time alotted for the press conference, Sony also revealed to the world the PSP2 NGP, their brand-new handheld gaming system. I guess they figured, "Hey, we've got all these gaming press members here today, let's give them something to talk about."

For comics shipping 01.26.11 or The Week Four Became Three. Again. Every week I’ll check Diamond’s shipping list to see what you absolutely, positively need to spend all your hard earned cash on at the Local Comic Shop.

Dead Space 2 came out today, and I happened to get my hands on the PS3 Collector's Edition. Chock full of awesome goodies, but at a premium price, I knew there'd be some folks out there who wouldn't get to see the great bonus items included therein. For you, we've put together this unboxing video where we inspect each and every inch of the box, the intricacies of the Plasma Cutter replica, and more.

Give it a watch. You just may find that you regret not plunking down the extra cash. Or, you may consider me a bigger fool than you already do.

Honestly, if Bethesda took the old Oblivion engine and slapped a new map on it, and called it Skyrim, I’d probably be in line on day one.  This is Bethesda, though, and the creators of the Elder Scrolls universe aren’t ones to rest on their well-deserved laurels.  Skyrim may be over a year away, but Bethesda has detailed some interesting changes to the game system on GameInformer.com.  From all indications, Skyrim should be a far more robust combat experience than its predecessors.

I’ll be honest with you; before today I had no interest in Duke Nukem Forever.  Maybe it’s because the game is so unapologetically puerile and juvenile in its concepts of sex, violence, and machismo, or maybe it was the 12 year development cycle that left me indifferent.  Either way, Duke Nukem Forever was barely on my radar.  Then I saw this trailer.  It’s now on my radar.

UPDATE: Hey, we're not live anymore, but you can watch all the antics in the replay.

In space, no one can hear you scream. Except for your neighbors when you get spooked by a necromorph that just jumped into your elevator, and wants to eat your insides. Dead Space, and the upcoming sequel Dead Space 2, provide a brilliant mix of suspense and horror in a science fiction landscape. The video game was clearly influenced by an eclectic combination of movies that pushed the envelope psychologically, scientifically, and thematically. Tonight, in celebration of the sequel's impending release, we're counting down our own version of the top twenty-five films that clearly had a part in the creation of EA's survival-horror blockbuster. It all culminates in a live simulcast of the number one movie, which we hope to enjoy right along side you.

So sit back, enjoy the countdown, chat along side us, and try not to get too freaked out.

Dom's back after a few days off, and we chat ever so nicely about ice skating, hockey, and what it means to be a monkey on skates. The possibilities of franchising come to fruition as Nick and Paul face their deepest fears down the memory hole. It's a whirlwind episode of zany, madcap adventures. Don't miss out.

If Portal 2 were to include only the pre-made levels that Valve is including, I’d still be in line on launch day to pick it up.  As an awesome bonus, though, the PC version will include a set of mod tools that will allow players to make their own levels, turning the game into a LittleBigPlanet-esque experience with nearly limitless content.  Sadly, the console versions will not include the mod tools.  That’s okay, though, because levels created on the PC will be playable by players of both consoles.

We all knew that Rockstar’s next epic, LA Noire, would be a cinematic experience, but this trailer, made entirely from in-game footage, shows just how film-like the experience will be.  Sadly, there’s no gameplay on display, but that’s okay; this game looks so good I don’t just want to play it; I want to watch it.

A couple of days ago, we showed you the Japanese trailer for Final Fantasy XIII-2, the direct sequel to 2009’s blockbuster hit Final Fantasy XIII.  Today an English version has appeared, offering a bit more insight into the game. 

 

The most recent major update to Xbox Live’s Dashboard, which happened in November, disabled a feature that some gamers immediately missed; the ability to boot directly to a game disc instead of bringing up the Xbox Live Dashboard.  That functionality will return in a new update, but it will come at a price; our “precious” Gamerzone information.

Warm up your chainsaws; a new trademark has been spotted on the US Patent and Trademark office website for Gears of War: Exile.  Siliconera found the listing, which links the name to “video game software” among other related products.

At a company event in Japan today, Square Enix producer Yoshinori Kitase revealed that like Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy XIII will be getting a direct sequel, entitled Final Fantasy XIII-2.  The game is set for a 2011 release, with an American release on the Xbox 360 and PS3 coming “next Winter.”  A Japanese trailer has also been released, showing main character Lightning and a new character she fights alongside…or against…or something. 

It's a big Monday show today. We've got the latest on Steve Jobs. Big talk about what the implications of Green Hornet's box-office success also appears, but the kicker, my dear viewers, is the huge debate about just how relevant and important the Golden Globes and Academy Awards are.

MONSTER ABSOLUTELY ZERO IS THE BEST DRINK ON THE PLANET!

Also, we troll the shit out of Dom. Oops, spoilers.

With less than a month to go until the release of Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, Capcom has revealed trailers for the newest fighters to join the fray.  Marvel’s Taskmaster and Capcom’s Akuma will bring their villainy to the fight when the game launches on February 15.

Writer's Note:  This article will contain spoilers in some fashion.  You have been warned.

It was just the other day as I was downloading a discounted version of Read Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare, that the now age old argument of DLC for video games really hit home for me.  I've downloaded both full games and add-on content for existing games before, but I'd never really given thought to it.  But I've decided that DLC can be both a blessing and a curse.

On the one hand, if developers are in a rush, they can cut some of the content and release a shortened game to the masses.  The developer can then release the excised content at a later date and charge money for rabbid gamers to access said content.  Companies like Bungie and Infinity Ward release a few extra maps and expect us to shell out fifteen dollars for them.

This is wrong, in my humble opinion.  If a developer is feeling the crunch, has already delayed the game a number of times, and has no wish to delay the game further for fear of it falling off of gamer's radars, then I feel they are justified in eliminating content if it won't hamper or break the game.  If they then release the content for free at a later date, given that it was supposed to be part of the main game in the first place, great.  Just don't charge gamers for it.

On the other hand, DLC can increase the longevity of a game and keep gamers coming back to their favorite titles.  Undead Nightmare for Red Dead Redemption and Lair of the Shadow Broker for Mass Effect 2 are both prime examples of well executed DLC content.

Undead Nightmare provides an already rich game with an entirely new story to play through, as John Marston and others fight off zombie hordes.  It is clear Rockstar pulled out all the stops, not skimping in any aspect of development.  And this isn't the first time Rockstar has done this, either.  Rockstar did the same thing with their expansions of Grand Theft Auto IV with the Lost and the Damned and the Ballad of Gay Tony.  Rockstar gets it: premium content for the same fifteen dollars as the aforementioned multiplayer map packs.

The Lair of the Shadow Broker sets events up for the start of Mass Effect 3, reuniting Shepard with Liara T'Soni, his Asari ally from the first Mass Effect.  Liara shows up in Mass Effect 2 originally as an information broker, but you never get the opportunity to make her part of your squad.  Lair adds on a good 1 - 3 hours of gameplay onto a game that already takes around thirty plus hours to  complete.  It even gives you the opportunity to either rekindle the relationship with Liara if you romanced her in the first Mass Effect, or gives you the opportunity to start up a romantic relationship if you hadn't before.  It also introduces a brand new race to the Mass Effect universe: the cunning, ruthless and frightening-to-behold Yahg.  Even Krogan are dwarfed by the Yahg's stature.

On the other end of the spectrum, you have companies like Bethesda and Capcom, releasing entirely cosmetic DLC that in no way adds to the way a game plays or its story.  I am referring here to the ability to give your horse armor in Oblivion and the ability to give fighters in Street Fighter IV new attire.  Bioware did this with Mass Effect 2, as well, but at least they also released non-vapid content for their game.

Then there was that whole situation with Resident Evil 5, where a game mode that should have been in the retail release was released later, and for a price at that.  The very idea is ludicrous and smacks strongly of greed and laziness.  We as gamers can be a very vocal lot, and we should be even more vocal when it comes to our favorite past time.  We need to let companies know with our wallets what is acceptable for DLC and what isn't.  More companies should be taking after the likes of Rockstar and Bioware, and releasing more content for the same amount of money and lowering the cost on overpriced map packs.

DLC is here to stay, whether we like it or not.  What we need to do is to show companies what we think the right and wrong ways to release and market DLC should be.  Be smart about your purchases, folks.

UPDATE: We're no longer live, but you can catch the replay right here.

Welcome back for another live edition of the Epic Boobs podcast. Today's topics: X-Files, Green Hornet, the 3DS and PSP2, and DC Comics' upcoming event "Flashpoint."

Did you know there was a sequel to the arcade hit Smash TV?  Well there was!  It's called Total Carnage and today we're playing the Super Nintendo port.  Are you ready to face all the carnage that this game has to offer?  We're not sure if we are either.

Every week on Continue?, we sit people down to play a random old school game for 45 minutes. We're talking NES, SNES, Genesis old here. There is one question we are trying to answer - do we want to stop playing or continue?

Like us on Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/ContinueShow
Follow us on Twitter!  http://www.twitter.com/Continue_Show

Shot by: Paul Ritchey
Edited by: Dominic Moschitti
Starring: Dominic Moschitti
Nick Murphy
Paul Ritchey

We all enjoy comics. We also all enjoy adult videos. None of us can believe it took the two worlds to meet. Join us for a very special episode of Epic Boobs, where we discuss the changes pornography has gone through over the years, and how this new trend of superheroic sexual situations could potentially impact the medium going forward. It's probably the most intellectual discussion about porn you'll hear this week.

2010 was a damn good year to be a gamer.  Not only did we see the launch of two new HD motion control systems, we were also treated to some of the best and most eagerly anticipated titles in recent memory.  Xbox 360 owners got to experience the galaxy-spanning adventures of Commander Shepard in Mass Effect 2, and Noble Six in Halo: Reach; while the PS3 crowd saw the third and final chapter in one of gaming’s greatest franchises, God of War.  Wii players reveled in the nostalgia of Donkey Kong Country Returns and the sheer joy of Kirby’s Epic Yarn, while players of all consoles experienced some of the best downloadable titles ever produced, like Pac-Man Championship Edition DX, Limbo, Super Meat Boy, and Costume Quest.  Multiplatform games like Red Dead Redemption and Call of Duty: Black Ops lit up consoles on both sides of the console wars, and PC gamers finally saw their wishes fulfilled with the release of Starcraft II, and new reasons to not eat, bathe, or speak to other actual humans with World of Warcraft: Cataclysm and Civilization V.  Even the handheld set was well served, with games like Valkyria Chronicles 2, and Dragon Quest VIII.

But then, there was the suck.

EPISODE 23: EVERYONE YOU'VE EVER KNOWN OR LOVED IS GOING TO DIE IF THEY'RE NOT ALREADY DEAD

And so closes another chapter of your life, although we'll understand if you count the end of The MMO Show among the less significant moments you've ever gone through. We know it's kind of sudden and unexpected, and you may be upset, so allow us to offer this solice: blame Josh. But you can't get rid of us that easily. Oh no, not by a long shot. World of Warcraft isn't going anywhere anytime soon and neither are we. So stay tuned, becasue in the coming weeks we'll be back with an expansion of our own. And trust us when we tell you that this patch will do more for your gaming experience than just remove soul shards. What exactly does this all mean? Who knows? But to tide you over until our reformat goes gold, here's Mike and that other guy talking about stuff.

When Nintendo launched the DSi back in 2009, it always felt like a temporary stopgap that would fill the space between the DSi and whatever the next handheld might be.  According to Kotaku, we’re now seeing just how temporary it was, as they report that a Japanese retailer has told them that Nintendo has taken the DSi out of production.

It’s been a while since we’ve heard anything about this year’s upcoming Mortal Kombat reboot, but the latest issue of Game Informer apparently contains some new info.  According to the magazine, Goro and Jade will be joining the cast of over-the-top fighters.

THE AUTHORITY, VOL. 1: RELENTLESS
Written by WARREN ELLIS
Art by BRYAN HITCH

Jenny Sparks is probably the best heroine you’ve never heard of. She’s the embodiment of the spirit of the 20th century. That makes her ultra-powerful, and the perfect person to lead a world-wide team of super-humans called The Authority. Complete with analogues of Superman, Batman, Dr. Strange, Iron Man, and more, Ellis’ unique take on the cape and tights comic set a new bar for what readers could expect from their books. Influential on dozens of today’s current titles, The Authority really did pave the way for a new era of heroes.

Dragon Age II isn’t even out yet, but BioWare is already talking about DLC packs for the hotly anticipated sequel.  The Exiled Prince will add a new playable character, Sebastian Vael.  Players who pre-order the game in the next four days, however, will receive the content for free as part of the BioWare Signature Edition.

I’ll admit it; I tried to decipher that Game Informer back cover from yesterday.  The prospect of learning more about the upcoming fifth Elder Scrolls was enticing, and I set about the task of decoding the Nordic runes.  I didn’t get far.  Clearly, I’m not a cryptographer of any kind.  Luckily, the inside of the magazine (and the website) included a translation key, allowing us to read the cryptic message.

2010 was another in a long line of great years for gaming. Picking a Game of the Year was difficult, but somehow we managed to find one game that stood out above all others. Here for you approval is our ten best games from 2010, and it all culminates in the appointment of our Game of the Year. Enjoy.

You know what's scary? Witches. You know what's even scarier? Witches who want to curse the Romanian government by gathering together at the Danube, and unleashing their own version of privatized warfare. Note to self: Don't deny old ladies bank loans, hit a woman with your car then run away, or get into a tractor trailer with a woman named Large Marge.

So far here’s everything we know about the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim:

- It will take place in the Nordic land of Skyrim

- It will be a first-person RPG

- It will run on an entirely new game engine (thank Akatosh)

- it will eventually exist, possibly in 2012

That’s about it.  The announcement trailer showed pretty much nothing, other than some creepy chanting and a logo, but the cover of February’s Game Informer may hold some more info.  We just need to figure out how to read it.

Every year, CES attempts to give us a glimpse into the potential future of gaming.  This year, PC accessory manufacturer, Razer, is revealing a new device which could change the way many of us play PC games; The Switchblade.

Capcom still hasn’t given us a definitive answer on just how many playable characters will appear in Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, so we’re not sure if these are the last two fighters to be announced, but Mike Haggar and Phoenix will appear in this year’s most eagerly anticipated fighter.

PS3 players who jump into the Mass Effect universe this month will have an interactive comic to catch them (and their character) up to speed on the events of the first game.  But what about those awesome pre-order bonuses that Xbox 360 players got for ponying up $5 early?  PS3 fans won’t need to worry about them, as they will be offered for free on the PlayStation Network.

If you’re anything like me (I know I am), you’ve spent the last few weeks tooling around virtual recreations of Gotham City and Metropolis, fighting the forces of evil and trying to impress Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman.  The DC Universe Online Beta has been a lot of fun, and while the game has no shortage of bugs and glitches, I still plan on buying it on release day.  Sadly, I’ll have to wait until January 11 to get back into the greatest cities that never existed, because the Beta is coming to an end today.  At least they’re doing it in style.

The new trend of remaking classic titles in HD is one I’m firmly behind.  The God of War Collection is the best way to experience two of the best games of the PS2 era, and the Sly Cooper Collection introduced a largely forgotten series to a whole new generation of gamers.  2011 will see plenty more classic titles get the HD treatment, including three Splinter Cell games, Ico, and Shadow of the Colossus.  One of the most anticipated remakes of the year is Beyond Good & Evil HD, and a new trailer for the game has just been released.