As March Madn… er, the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship (lawsuit averted) winds down with the Final Four (Oops, lawsuit resumed) this weekend, some brackets documenting the battle for video game supremacy are just starting to heat up.
Archive for March 2009
So I’ve been logging some serious online multiplayer hours with Street Fighter 4. This is kind of new for me as my only other online exploits tend to be the co-op based functionality of Halo 3 or Gears of War 2. I tend not to be an antogonisitic multiplayer guy.
Street Fighter 4 and my undying love affair with hitting opponents with Zangief’s Ultimate Atomic Buster changed all that. I’m hooked on multiplayer versus, but with this new addiction has come the rage-inducing cheapness of the early disconnect.
The Charge:
Search for honour, riches, and revenge in the most dangerous city in the world.
Opening Statement:
The Grand Theft Auto franchise has been synonymous with two things since 2001’s blockbuster Grand Theft Auto III; controversy, and pardon my French, great freaking’ games. We’ve seen three titles during the last console generation, an explosive debut on the PS3 and Xbox 360 (including a popular downloadable expansion pack for the 360 version), and two smash hits for the Sony PSP. GTA has been a gravy train with a rocket booster for Rockstar Games, and despite barrow loads of negative attention from the media and overzealous ambulance chasers (sorry Jack); it has shown no sign of slowing down. However, this newest instalment has provided a larger roadblock than even the Vice City sheriff’s department could muster up. Can a game concept as large as Grand Theft Auto, be made to fit on the Nintendo DS without losing everything that made it fun?
I have long enjoyed the zany antics of the certifiable lunatics over at MEGA64.COM, but here, thanks to a VERY SPECIAL guest star, they have triumphed like never before.This is a MUST SEE for any and all Metal Gear Solid fans!
The Charge:
Trained Assassin. Born Killer
Opening Statement:
Picking up where the “hit” film left off, and using the popular comic book for inspiration, Wanted: Weapons of Fate promises visceral action and considerable carnage! The developer, Grin (Bionic Commando, Terminator: Salvation), has hoped to dodge the negative stigma typically associated with previous games-from-films, and the pedigree is there, but is Wanted truly something you’ll want in your collection?
Video game characters are infamous for their outlandish designs and physics defying architecture (ahem). But any programmer worth his or her salt knows that if you really want to set your virtual creation apart from the poseurs you need one important thing: a killer ‘do.
Call it Sinnoh Synergy. Released to coincide with Pokemon Platinum for the DS (which combines 2007 Pokemon games Diamond and Pearl), Giratina & The Sky Warrior is the series’ 11th feature film. It focuses on new legendary Pokemon “Giratina”—aka. the thing on the Platinum‘s cover—and the “Reverse World” alternate dimension it calls home (called “Distortion World” in the game). Great for fans, impenetrable to the uninitiated, Giratina nonetheless impresses on the audiovisual front.
Click here to read my full review, up today, on DVD Verdict.
What’s this? A licensed game that might actually be worth playing?
Disney Interactive Studios is bringing a popular theme park attraction from the Midway to the living room this fall with Toy Story Mania!, exclusively for the Wii—a collection of interactive shooting gallery and mini games for up to four players, hosted by characters from the Pixar classic (which just happens to be getting a Disney Digital 3D™ re-release in October). The good news: for less than the price of four day passes to Disneyland you can buy a Wii and a copy of Toy Story Mania! The bad news: there’s no way the Wii will be able to replicate the high-tech 3D experience of the actual attraction. Plus, no photo-op with Goofy. Still, considering the kind of licensed junk Wii owners have become accustomed to, there’s plenty of room for the very capable Disney to impress.
Read the full press release (courtesy of disneylandnewstoday.com) after the break.