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 At long last, we have got a glimpse of the future of Microsoft consoles. In a feature which will be likely expanded in the upcoming E3, the confusingly named Xbox 'One' is now on display for all to see, but has it won the current battle against Sony, who presented their own PS4 earlier this year? Add Comment
We’re here to celebrate the original 1996 Resident Evil, and I’m sure you’re asking, is its reputation deserved? Surely such an old game can’t really contend for the best in its field, even if it did popularise the style?  As long ago as 1997 Interplay treated us to this adventure. Interplay has a vast unfortunate history: financial Armageddon, unhelpful takeover (by Titus, known for developing Superman 64!!), unhelpful SCREW-over (Bethesda), and despite Interplay itself creating what seemed to be a lot of okay games which never really caught on, it still brings me to tears that the creators of Fallout - freakin' FALLOUT - were, themselves, nuked into oblivion by the industry... ...sad, but kind of funny when you think about it. Regarding the game at hand, any person would be justified to assume that the grandaddy of Fallout 3 - one of the most critically acclaimed behemoths of the past decade - is likely to be a decrepit and unapproachable product by today's standards. I mean, 1997? May as well be a 50's antique. On PC, no less, known for being a fairly primitive gaming machine during it's baby steps in the 90s. And...made by Interplay? Not Bethesda? Who's 'Interplay'?
We're all familiar with Bethesda's wildly acclaimed reboot of Interplay's modest little post-nuclear adventure series. And if you aren't, then it seems you've been missing out. The gorgeously vacant apocalyptic landscapes, the unique and in-depth character customisation, and of course, the possibilities; the choice to go where you wish, play how you wish, and at the cost of minimal game-breaking bugs - provided you got the day-one patch... 
War. War never changes.
Very recently at the Spike Video Game Awards we witnessed the world premiere of 'The Phantom Pain' - a puzzling game trailer which would have the internet community of expert analysts digging into it from the get go. A coma patient painfully crawls across a hospital hallway which is being ripped apart by a strike team of soldiers. Intense fire surrounds him and he begins having trippy hallucinations of dolphins and ominous figures. Accompanied with a dream-like sound design, this trailer is surrounded by enough mystery already to stump most viewers. So imagine the popular idea going round that...this is a trailer for Metal Gear Solid 5, or at least the next Metal Gear Solid installment? You're probably thinking - who pulled that of their arse? But there is in fact a lot of proof to back this up... The anticipated trailer to the next Silent Hill movie, 'Revelation', has finally been revealed. Expected to be released for Halloween on October 26th this year, the film is based on the third game in the series, with Heather Mason taking the role of protagonist. Despite this, like the first Silent Hill film adaptation, the movie is expected to take liberties on the plot itself.  Right now we're well into the third generation of predominantly 3D gaming platforms. Most recently, Ubisoft’s 2D sidescroller 'Rayman Origins' for the PS3 and Xbox 360 was given a surprising release on store shelves, neatly wrapped up in a box next to the more suitably dimensionally-unchallenged titles more associated with today’s booming games industry. It goes to show how side-lined the genre has become. By the Nintendo GameCube and PlayStation 2 era, that would be last generation at the time of this article, the 2D sidescroller is a dying breed for high-end development, and would find more comfort on the 'indie' game roster of Steam, or more modest services including XBLA and PSN. That said, before such established online services, any 2D sidescroller on the NGC or PS2 had an awful lot to prove to justify its existence. Viewtiful Joe is such a game, which is so stylish, and full of interesting game mechanics, it appears more than welcome on home consoles as late as 2005, and remains a gem in Capcom’s library. 
Since its explosion onto the market with the revolutionary Metal Gear Solid in 1998, the series has done nothing but grow to achieve stardom for its gameplay, characters, and let’s not forget the story. I mean, if you haven’t paid much attention to that, chances are you skipped about 40 hours worth of cutscenes.  Since its ground-breaking approach to the stealth genre around 14 years ago, the chronicles of Snake and Big Boss are still being told to this day. And with the success of Metal Gear Solid 4 (MGS4), and the belief that Metal Gear Solid 5 (MGS5) is going to rock, what better time, as the previous incarnations of Metal Gear have been slowly gathering dust for some players, that they were re-released in all their glory, with a new chance to reach out to a new generation. Well, did Konami do them justice?
 Part 2 of Alex's new highly anticipated Capcom Series review!  Haunting ghosts from the killer7’s past… Graphically, the game also doesn’t fail to be unique. The cell shading and blocky textures suit the game’s peculiar aesthetic while some of the cutscenes are typical Japanese manga cartoons. Speaking of cutscenes, holy shit, they are awesome, and the voice acting is extraordinary too. Fans of the game will unanimously agree the plot is overwhelmingly mind-bending. On one side it tries to take itself seriously as a satire on Japanese and American politics, while also blending it with complete, yet poignant, nonsense. A lot of the time, you’ll be left simply with one thought: what the hell just happened?
 Alex makes his eagerly awaited return with The Capcom Series: Killer7 ‘The Capcom Five’ were a set of five games announced by Capcom in 2002 to increase the Nintendo Gamecube’s popularity and postpone its impending doom, because let’s face it; the far superior PlayStation 2 was kicking its ass. These games have nothing in common besides this intriguing marketing campaign, but it’s sure an interesting mix.
Resident Evil 4 is the best known and best selling of the five, shipping over 3 million copies worldwide by the following year. Viewtiful Joe, a unique 2D platformer set in the mysterious world of ‘Movieland’ with astonishing cartoon art style P.N.03, a bland third-person shooter which never became commercially successful Dead Phoenix, which was never released. …and killer7. | Authors and CategoriesAll ArchivesApril 2013 |
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