Gaming Today |
- Goldeneye Launch Trailer Features Violence
- Rumor: You Can Walk And Aim At the Same Time in Next Resident Evil
- DirecTV Dropping G4
- Score Kinect from Burger King
- New Xbox 360 Holiday Bundle is Pretty Sweet
- Dance Central Achievements
- Best Halloween Costume Ever (PIC)
- Red Shirt Guy Now a Fictional World of Warcraft Character
- 20 Scary Cosplays (PICS) (SPOOOOOOOKY)
- Rock Band 3 Review
- City of Heroes: Going Rogue Review – Part 1
| Goldeneye Launch Trailer Features Violence Posted: 01 Nov 2010 09:09 PM PDT If you’re on the East Coast, congrats! Goldeneye Wii is available right now. The rest of you get to sit here and not play it. And you can watch this launch trailer in which Bond destroys some folks and you can be reminded of the joys of splitscreen multiplayer on small television sets. Here you go.
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| Rumor: You Can Walk And Aim At the Same Time in Next Resident Evil Posted: 01 Nov 2010 07:43 PM PDT According to “a document forwarded to Kotaku,” Canadian developer Slant Six (logo above) is working on a new team-based Resident Evil game. Slant Six is the company behind SOCOM Tactical Strike and Fire Team Bravo 3 on the PSP and SOCOM: US Navy SEALs Confrontation on the PS3. You can movie while aiming in those games. The documents call the new game Resident Evil: Raccoon City. And that’s the extent of the news, unless you think it’s news that the Slant Six website says they’re working on a game. As usual, we’ll have to wait and see on this, because Capcom ain’t talkin about it. I would guess this is not Resident Evil 6, though, because (no disrespect to Slant Six), I’d have a hard time imagining Capcom handing a main entry in this franchise over to a developer most folks aren’t familiar with. This would be far more surprising, I would say, than Capcom handing Devil May Cry over to Ninja Theory.
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| Posted: 01 Nov 2010 06:25 PM PDT
Translation: “F**k G4.” G4 had a response:
Translation: “DirecTV doesn’t care about the consumers!” I guess DirecTV subscribers are gonna have one fewer channel on which they can watch Cheaters. Sad day. But, hey, to be fair, G4, SpikeTV has a pretty solid amount of game-related programming too. And they show E3 pressers, so BOO.
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| Posted: 01 Nov 2010 05:05 PM PDT Starting today and ending on November 28, Burger King is giving away a Kinect bundle every 15 minutes. That means 448 people are going to get a free Kinect sensor, a 4gb Xbox 360, Kinect Adventures and Kinect Sports from Burger King. To get in on this you’ll need to go to Burger King and buy a drink, a Whopper or some fries, and each of those items will come with a code that you can redeem online for a chance to win. Or you can go to the website for the promotion and get six free codes and try that. I mean, I think it’s easy to see what needs to be done here, eh, and it’s not “go eat some fatty s**t from Burger King.” Do you like giveaways like this? Well, there’s still time to get in on our Enslaved giveaway, which ends tomorrow.
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| New Xbox 360 Holiday Bundle is Pretty Sweet Posted: 01 Nov 2010 04:21 PM PDT
So they’re throwing out the bundle shown above for your consideration. For $299, which is the regular cost of the console by itself, you get a 250gb Xbox 360, a retail copy of Forza 3 and a download code for the full game Alan Wake. I’d say that’s pretty killer, because the more people who play Alan Wake, the better, because it’s certainly one of the best games of the year. And Forza 3 is pretty enjoyable too.
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| Posted: 01 Nov 2010 02:21 PM PDT Though overshadowed by the high-profile release of Rock Band 3, Harmonix’s rhythm-driven, Kinect-powered dance game Dance Central could well be a sleeper hit. Dancing games have been in need of a boost since the DDR paradigm went moribund sometime in the early aughts, and this title might be the one to provide it. Below, you’ll find a full list of achievements, which will reward popping-and-locking and other such frivolities. Hint: doing the electric slide with this game turned on will actually decrease your gamerscore. Regular AchievementsEpic Battle! – Play 10 Dance Battles in a single session – 15G Smile for the Camera – Have 1000 Freestyle photos taken – 25G Sweat It Out – Have a 20-minute workout session in Workout Mode – 20G Burn, Baby, Burn! – Burn 1000 calories in Workout Mode – 30G Flawless Streak – String together 10 “Flawless” moves in Perform It! or Dance Battle mode – 20G Meet the Crew – Play a song with every human dancer character in Perform It! or Dance Battle mode – 15G Pure Perfection – Get a Flawless rating on every move in a song in Perform It! or Dance Battle mode – 25G Booth Buddies – Have a Freestyle photo taken while two people are dancing – 10G Off the Wall – Progress past the “Wallflower” rank – 10G Got This on Unlock – Unlock all bonus content – 50G Got a New Look – Unlock a new look for every human dancer character – 25G Consummate Performer – Give your first 5-Star performance in Perform It! mode – 15G The Battle Has Begun – Give your first 5-Star performance in Dance Battle mode – 15G What a Jerk! – Earn 5 Stars on Hard on a jerkin’ song – 15G Warm Up Challenge Complete – Earn 5 Stars on the Warm Up Challenge at any Skill Level – 15G Simple Challenge Complete – Earn 5 Stars on the Simple Challenge at any Skill Level – 15G Moderate Challenge Complete – Earn 5 Stars on the Moderate Challenge at any Skill Level – 15G Tough Challenge Complete – Earn 5 Stars on the Tough Challenge at any Skill Level – 15G Legit Challenge Complete – Earn 5 Stars on the Legit Challenge at any Skill Level – 20G Hardcore Challenge Complete – Earn 5 Stars on the Hardcore Challenge at any Skill Level – 20G Off the Hook Challenge Complete – Earn 5 Stars on the Off the Hook Challenge at any Skill Level – 25G True Superstar – Earn 5 Stars on every song in the game on either Easy or Medium, or 5 Stars on any 20 songs on Hard – 25G Grand Final Complete – Earn 5 stars on the Grand Finale Challenge at any Skill Level – 30G Dance Instructor – Earn 5 Stars on every song in the game on Hard – 50G The Dance is Legendary – Earn Gold Stars on any song, at any Skill Level – 25G Look Ma, No Flashcards! – Perform a song with Flashcards turned off and earn 5 Stars – 15G Flying Blind – Earn 5 Stars on any 10 songs with Flashcards turned off – 30G Practice Made Perfect – Get a 100% rating on a single song in Break It Down mode – 25G Something to Prove – Get a 100% rating on every song in the game in Break It Down mode – 50G Broke It Down – Play a single song in Break It Down mode and get a rating of at least 80% Again, From the Top! – Play 10 songs in Break It Down mode and get a rating above 80% Total Poser – Get a “Flawless” rating on a finishing move – 10G Cross, Back, Step, Front – Successfully pass EVERY Jazz Square in the game – 20G Get Busy, Dizzy – Get a “Flawless” result on a spin move – 15G Bring It Back – Pass these moves: Cabbage Patch, Disco, Fever, Funky Chameleon, Raise the Roof, Scuff and Stomp – 15G Lock It In – Pass these moves: Arm Twist, Boogalooo, Electric, Pop Down, and Robo Locking – 15G Work It, H0ney – Pass these moves: Feelabout, Club Monster, Pose, Ride, and Wind It Up – 15G Get Hood – Pass these moves: Brooklyn, Cool Kid, Hoodie, Lean & Rock, and Slam out – 15G Child’s Play – Pass these moves: Bug Juice, Patty Cake, Puppet Drop, and Tantrum – 15G Nerd is Bond – Pass these moves: Cabbage Patch, Double Rainbow, Glitch, Keyboard Cat, and Nerd It Out – 15G From the Makers of Rock Band – Pass these moves: Guitar, Rockout, Sing Out, and Snare – 15G AN-I-MAL – Pass these moves: The Bird, Chicken Wing, Elephant, Pony, Predator, Prey, and Snake – 15G Central Combat – Pass these moves: Boardbreaker, Boxer, Elbow Throw, Knockout, Punch Out, and Tiger Palm – 15G Going Global – Pass these moves: Booty Bank, Booty Bump, Booty Down, Moonrise, Moonshine, and Rump Roast – 15G Bring It to the Club – Pass these moves: Snake, Snap Glove, Step Center, Step Side, and Tap Front – 15G Jock – Pass these moves: Barbell, Boxer, Defense, Goal, Jock, Quarterback, and Run – 15G A Lover and a Dancer – Pass these moves: Boy Band, Earache, Love Warrior, and Palpitation – 15G Secret AchievementsSecret Achievement – Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement – 30G Secret Achievement – Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement – 15G
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| Best Halloween Costume Ever (PIC) Posted: 01 Nov 2010 12:37 PM PDT See? It’s the best Halloween costume ever, and it’s not even a full costume. Please do a full-body version of this, somebody.
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| Red Shirt Guy Now a Fictional World of Warcraft Character Posted: 01 Nov 2010 12:28 PM PDT There’s something to be said for fact-checking, am I right? Back in the day, I was responsible for the content provided by my underlings, and they got things wrong all the damn time, and it was a pain in the ass to find all those errors and correct them before the whole world could see what they did. Nobody appreciated what I did though sad face. But the folks at Blizzard aren’t like those people. When the Red Shirt Guy (Seriously, could we come up with a more interesting name for this bro?) called them out on their screwup in regards to Falstad Wildhammer (video here) not being present in World of Warcraft Cataclysm, they corrected their mistake and paid homage to the man himself by inserting him, sorta, into the game. That’s what you can see above. Red Shirt guy is the Fact Checker. This is no hoax. Blizzard’s Alex Afrasiabi confirmed on the MBs that the image above is legit. Very amusing, Blizzard.
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| 20 Scary Cosplays (PICS) (SPOOOOOOOKY) Posted: 01 Nov 2010 10:47 AM PDT I had an existential crisis this weekend (what else is new?).The gallery for this week was to be video game-related Halloween costumes, and then I was like, “HOW THE F**K DO I TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A HALLOWEEN COSTUME AND REGULAR COSPLAY?” It turns out that you can’t, because cosplayer nerds don’t go to parties. So instead we have the scariest cosplays that exist. Enjoy.
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| Posted: 01 Nov 2010 08:06 AM PDT Ever since we saw Rock Band 3 at E3, I’ve been stoked to actually get my hands on the game. It looked really cool in presentations and demos, but would the experience hold up once it was in my living room? On the surface, Rock Band 3 is another iteration in the quickly growing stale music game genre. However, below the surface, there is a whole lot going on here. First off, there’s an 83 song track list that at first glance doesn’t impress all that much. For every “Crazy Train,” there’s an equally obscure song, such as “This Bastard's Life” by the Swingin' Utters. Once you get into the game, you’ll find to your surprise that the track list works pretty darn well. Also, the track library is now over the 2,000 song mark, so there are plenty of other options if your favorites didn’t show up in Rock Band 3. Still, the core of music games is the gameplay, and outside of adding new instruments and two backing vocal harmonies (straight from The Beatles Rock Band), not much has changed on that front. You’re playing colored notes on a five-note runway, just like you always have. Unless you decide to play Pro Mode, which is a whole different animal. Pro Mode actually teaches you to play the instruments, not just match some colored notes. By the time you get up to playing Expert Pro Mode, you’ll pretty much be playing songs note for note on whichever instrument you choose. This sounds simple, but the effect is profound: you can plug in a real guitar, place your hands the same way, and actually play the song. However, Pro Mode isn’t for everyone, and Harmonix knows it. So, is Rock Band 3 worth it for the casual music gamer who will never even touch Pro Mode? What’s changed? There are a few core changes to Rock Band 3, and almost all of them are good. First off, the addition of a player-specific pop-up bar that allows true jump-in, drop-out gameplay, access to game options and more is a major improvement over previous Rock Band titles. It sounds minor, but anyone who’s hosted a party and had to keep returning to the band select screen to change out band members knows exactly what I am talking about. Career mode has been completely revamped. You’re still wandering the world, playing fixed or random setlists for fans and stars, but the way you go about it is very different than it has been in the past. Rock Band is now about completing challenges. Each of these is a sort of mini-career that consists of a few sets, each in a different venue. You even get the chance to pick what sort of setlist you’ll be playing. At one venue, we had the option of a Random 80′s setlist, a Custom Metal setlist, or a Random Rush setlist. Each song also has bonus goals tied to it, such as playing streaks when you’re in the spotlight, or keeping a streak going while overdrive is active. Successfully completing these results in extra points and new unlocks. No matter what mode you’re playing in (even training), your band will be earning points and fans that make these unlocks come that much faster. Speaking of unlocks, there are a bunch of new outfits, instruments and more to customize your character. They’re all handled through a new interface that even allows you to tweak your character’s appearance more than ever before. As usual, that appearance carries over onto the stage, but now you’ll also see your character doing things in the menu background, appearing in cutscenes, and generally living that rock-and-roll lifestyle (like when you wake up on top of a hotel with a wicked hangover). In the end, Rock Band 3 is all about investment, and I’m not just talking money (although you can spend plenty of that too). Jumping into all the new instruments will run you $250 minimum, so you need to make a decision about how hardcore you want to be with this game. If you’re looking to learn to play your favorite songs on guitar, or you just want an awesome new challenge, this could definitely be the game you’ve been looking for. The one thing missing from Pro Mode at this point is a huge song selection. For example, there are currently only 63 songs that feature keyboards. There are a ton of songs that are already in the Rock Band library that would be great for keyboard charts. We know that Harmonix has plans to refit some existing DLC for Pro Mode, we just don’t know when that will be. If you’re not making the jump to Pro Mode, what you’re getting is 83 new tracks, a stylish interface and career mode overhaul, and a bunch of new outfits for your characters. You won’t be getting as much out of the game as if you play Pro Mode, but it’s still worth picking up. All in all, Rock Band 3 represents the pinnacle of the music game genre to this point. It’s a tight, polished experience that showcases everything Harmonix has learned since they started with Guitar Hero. It’s so good that Harmonix could likely just spend the next few years releasing DLC for it, and no one would have any complaints. Pros:
Cons:
Score: 95/100
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| City of Heroes: Going Rogue Review – Part 1 Posted: 01 Nov 2010 07:07 AM PDT
Along with a considerable graphics upgrade this new expansion titled City of Heroes: Going Rogue also offers players a new gameplay option – switching sides. You see before Going Rogue players had to be good guys or bad guys. Any fan of comics can tell you that approach is a little dated since popular heroes and villains in comics have been flipping back and forth since the beginning. Whether you’re a renegade hero or you want to redeem your villain the game now lets you tell your own tale. This review will be delivered in two parts. This first section focuses on the new player, someone who has played MMORPGs but never found the urge to strap on the spandex and fly around the world, someone looking for something non-fantasy to flirt with or someone coming in from Champions Online to its progenitor in search of content and options that game has yet to deliver. That New Spandex Smell but a Broken in Cape
Making a new character is one of the most enjoyable parts of playing any game. While many MMOs are satisfied with offering players a handful of customization features, City of Heroes really goes all out. The game is built around the 4-color worlds of comics and even iconic heroes change their costume over time and the game offers plenty of costume options, basic shapes and forms and even grants players the ability to customize the look and sound of their power effects. Really there is no other game out there that offers this much character customization. I still go in and spend free time making new characters just to play with the game’s costume creator features. The Play’s the Thing
What City of Heroes does is translate the old “go kill 20 rabid chickens” assignments to “subdue 20 gang members” or “defeat 10 bank robbers”. Going Rogue adds another level to this by introducing the ability to pick sides. During the opening missions you are offered the ability to join the underground superhuman resistance as a mole in the authoritarian superhero-led establishment or as a spy for the man. The difference between the two options effectively changes the main quest line of your character arc. Regardless of the side you choose you’ll do many of the same missions and make the same contacts. Being a super-hero game, City of Heroes adds another level of flexibility most MMOs do not address – after a few levels, players can learn to fly or teleport. Transport powers are even one of the choices you can make when creating your character. These new variables mean the game world is by nature a bit more open while the missions tend to be more claustrophobic than many similar games. Players can freely move between mission points but the missions themselves tend to be inside buildings or underground in sewers a lot of the time. A lot of these buildings feel incredibly similar which might lead to early visual fatigue as players earn the levels needed to venture into more varied environments. Missions in the game are also a bit different. Since this is a modern setting, your super character can actually call up the quest givers on their super communicator and turn in without having to run, jump or fly back to the originator. I wish more games had a feature like this. There is nothing I find more boring than running back through a zone to cash in a quest and City of Heroes does a good job at keeping the action of the game moving forward. From Sidekick to Solo
Players collect temporary boosts to powers called enhancements. Upon gaining experience and new levels you choose new powers and augment existing abilities. Eventually though the game opens up and takes off the training wheels. Once you leave the tutorial starter zone players would do well to find friends. While you can easily solo the game, many of the more impressive instance battles or story missions are built around the concept of super groups of heroes. Players are encouraged to team up and work together to tackle major foes. While the teamwork aspects of the game seem a natural fit with its subject matter you can also adventure with characters of a higher level and gain the benefits of being a sidekick. The sidekick system allows less experienced players to jaunt around with more powerful players, gaining experience and a slight power boost while aligned. Players can also create pacts that allow allies to gain experience for you while you’re logged off. This mechanic might sound like cheating but it really is aimed to keep peers and friends at an equal power level even if one or more is drawn away by real life. Coming Next Issue
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