Most Recent: Articles

The Last of Us wins five Best of E3 2012 awards

Posted on June 27, 2012 by John Scalzo

It’s hard to argue with those who believe The Last of Us reigned supreme at this year’s E3 Expo. That claim has been given some further validation by the Game Critics Awards, which handed five “Best of E3 2012” statues to Naughty Dog for The Last of Us.

The game, which stars two survivors of a post-apocalyptic America, won “Best of Show,” “Best Original Game,” “Best Console Game,” and “Best Action/Adventure Game.” It also took home a “Special Commendation for Sound.”

No other game came close, though Dance Central 3, Halo 4, and XCOM: Enemy Unknown all won two awards and Watch Dogs collected two Commendations.

The Wii U was mostly shut out of the awards show, though the system itself won “Best Hardware” and the multiplatform Injustice: Gods Among Us won for “Best Fighting Game.”

A complete list of winners can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in News, PC, PS3, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Daily Scoop: June 27, 2012 – No deals

Posted on June 27, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Today is one of those days that I want to curl up in bed with a controller and play Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One while eating ice cream and having my cats circle me like vicious sharks, waiting to pounce and eat my precious dessert breakfast. Wow. Was that really specific? Like it’s something I think about on the regular? Well, maybe that’s because I do.

Anyway, what’s up with deals today? That’s a really good question. The answer to that question is that there are really no good deals out there. I have looked into the Internet, and I have found it wanting. Unless your ideal dream is to save $30 when you buy a Linksys router and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, that is. Because that is a thing.

The good news is that there are two game-related t-shirts today. Woohoo! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop |

Square Enix: No Final Fantasy VII remake because we have yet to top it

Posted on June 27, 2012 by John Scalzo

Ask any gamer why Square Enix hasn’t remade Final Fantasy VII yet and you’ll get the same joke answer, “They must not like money.” But, as it turns out, the publisher has a very specific reason for why they haven’t remade the defining RPG of the PSone era.

Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada revealed the real reason for the company’s reluctance at a Q&A session during the company’s annual shareholder’s meeting. According to Wada, Square Enix can’t remake Final Fantasy VII until they create a new Final Fantasy game that “exceeds the quality” of the 1997 game. He continued, “If we were to release a Final Fantasy VII remake right now, the Final Fantasy franchise would be done with.”

Considering the fact that the next game in the series, Final Fantasy Versus XIII, hasn’t been publicly shown in years, we’re likely in for a long wait.

[Source: Andriasang]

Posted in News | Tagged

Camilla Luddington is the voice and body of Lara Croft in Tomb Raider

Posted on June 27, 2012 by John Scalzo

The new Lara Croft made a major splash at the last two E3 Expos, but until now we never knew who provided her trademark English accent. Yesterday, Square Enix announced that Camilla Luddington, who has appeared on Californication and True Blood using an American accent, will be playng Ms. Croft in next year’s Tomb Raider. As well as lending her voice to the role, Square Enix confirmed that Luddington performed motion capture for developer Crystal Dynamics, so she’s also the body behind this version of Lara Croft.

“This has been one of the most important jobs for us to get right,” said Darrell Gallagher, the Studio Head at Crystal Dynamics. “This Tomb Raider game is very different to any other and we are demanding far more from the voice and performance acting than ever before as we take the franchise in a new direction.”

Tomb Raider will be available for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on March 5, 2013.

Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Lollipop Chainsaw Review: Parting a Zombie’s Head From Its Body is Such Sweet Sorrow

Posted on June 26, 2012 by John Scalzo

Lollipop Chainsaw has been surrounded by a whirring tornado of hype ever since it was announced last year. The combination of Suda51’s twisted sensibilities and a minimally dressed cheerleader beheading zombies with a chainsaw destroyed the Internet’s collective mind. Now that it’s finally here, there’s no way the adventures of Juliet Starling and her bodyless boyfriend Nick could ever live up to all that hype. But what we got instead is an entertaining new entry in the “hack and slash” canon that is actually a sweet story of love and family.

I swear I’m not making that up. (more…)

Posted in PS3, Reviews, Top Story, Xbox 360 | Tagged

PSN Today: Uncharted 1 & 2, Resident Evil Chronicles HD, Amazing Spider-Man, more

Posted on June 26, 2012 by John Scalzo

If, for some insane reason, you own a PS3 and have yet to play Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune or Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Sony is giving you another chance by adding both titles to the PlayStation Store today. Hmm, I’m a PS3 owner who’s never played either, maybe this was meant for me.

Another new release that was clearly meant for me is Resident Evil Chronicles: HD Collection. The compilation bundles together The Umbrella Chronicles and The Darkside Chronicles, two light gun games that were previously exclusive to the Wii.

Sony’s not done as they’ve also added movie tie-in game The Amazing Spider-Man, food preparation sim Order Up!!, offroad racer Jeremy Mcgrath’s Offroad and PSone Classic The Little Mermaid II.

Finally, the PSP RPG Unchained Blades, which was developed by the makers of Grandia and Lunar, has been added to the PlayStation Store today.

For more information on all of this week’s releases, hit the jump. And for a complete rundown of this week’s new game add-ons, please visit the PlayStation Blog. (more…)

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Iwata: Wii U launch price will be “reasonable”

Posted on June 26, 2012 by John Scalzo

Nintendo’s President, Satoru Iwata, was quoted in today’s edition of Yomiuri Shimbun (a major Japanese newspaper) that the Wii U’s launch price would be “reasonable.”

According to Iwata, the company has learned its lesson from the lukewarm 3DS launch: “We won’t make the same mistake that we did with the 3DS [launch price], which was considered relatively high by consumers.”

An unnamed financial analyst was quoted in the Yomiuri Shimbun article that the Wii U’s break-even price is 30,000 yen ($377), making it hard to reconcile the idea of a “reasonable” launch price and Nintendo’s desire not to sell their systems at a loss.

Hopefully, Nintendo will release the official launch price soon.

[Source: Andriasang]

Posted in News, Wii U |

Daily Scoop: June 26, 2012 – Gold Box Event!

Posted on June 26, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Woo! Today is a Gold Box video game event over at Amazon! That means there might be some good deals… well, might be, but let’s just say I’ll believe it when I see it.

First of all, the Deal of the Day is Max Payne 3 on sale for $39.99 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The rest of the deals are as follows:

  • 6:00 AM PST/9:00 AM EST: Spider-Man: Edge of Time for $9.99
  • 8:00 AM PST/11:00 AM EST: “If you’re serious about gaming, then get serious about the sound. Step up and experience game audio like never before.” This is the Turtle Beach Ear Force X32 Digital Headset for $64.99!
  • 10:00 AM PST/1:00 PM EST: “The “Enhanced” version of this RPG hit game for Xbox 360″
  • 1:00 PM PST/4:00 PM EST: “Remember: this item is essential for your PS Vita.”
  • 3:00 PM PST/6:00 PM EST: “Become a part of the Game of Thrones saga on Xbox 360 and PS3 with this limited edition bundle of the game!”
  • 6:00 PM PST: 9:00 PM EST: “This PS3 Headset is Officially Licensed by Sony”
  • 8:00 PM PST: 11:00 PM EST: “Optimize your viewing experience while protecting your PS Vita.”

Just one t-shirt today, but it’s a good one: (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop |