Sleeping Dogs Review: Where There’s a Will, There’s a Wei

Posted on August 29, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Some people like to refer to Sleeping Dogs as “Grand Theft Auto: Hong Kong.” While that’s close to being true – you do steal and drive a lot of cars, and there’s a huge amount of missions you can take on – there’s far more to the game than just a reskinned GTA in a new location. There’s the undercover cop trope, giving it a detective feel. There’s the constant and very robust melee system, bringing in a lot of fun combat. And, of course, there’s fantastic character development, from Uncle Po to Broken Nose Jang to Wei Shen himself. No, this isn’t just GTA in Hong Kong. This is Sleeping Dogs, and it’s an animal all its own.

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

XBLA Today: Rock Band Blitz, Walking Dead Episode 3

Posted on August 29, 2012 by John Scalzo

Microsoft has updated the Xbox Live Arcade with this week’s new additions and they include The Walking Dead: Episode 3 – Long Road Ahead:

Episode three of a five-part game series set in Robert Kirkman’s award-winning universe. Treachery within the group leads to a devastating series of events in the most emotionally turbulent episode to date! Will the tough choices you made in episodes one and two come back to haunt you or prove to be worthwhile decisions?

…And Harmonix’s controller-based rhythm game Rock Band Blitz:

Rock Band Blitz brings the excitement of a full band into your hands, transforming classic Rock Band gameplay into an addictive single player controller-based experience – no instruments needed! Compete with your friends on over 20 amazing new tracks, which are also instantly playable in Rock Band 3. Or add your own favorite music: Rock Band Blitz is compatible with the 3,500+ songs in the Rock Band library. With an endless combination of power-ups, instrument multipliers and more, Rock Band Blitz makes every song a replayable rock explosion!

The Walking Dead: Episode 3 has been priced at 400 Microsoft Points ($5) while Rock Band Blitz can be yours for 1200 Microsoft Points ($15).

Posted in News, Xbox 360 | Tagged ,

Animal Crossing 3DS will be out in Japan this November

Posted on August 29, 2012 by John Scalzo

Animal Crossing 3DS has been a big secret for so long that I can hardly believe it’ll be out in Japan this year. But believe it I do after Nintendo announced a November 8 release date for the game during their most recent Nintendo Direct presentation. A North American release date has yet to be announced, but presumably the game will cross the Pacific sometime next year.

In the meantime, you can check out the new gameplay trailer above. Also feel free to think of creative ways to use the new “share clothing designs with QR Codes” feature. A forehead tattoo would probably be going too far.

[Source: Kotaku]

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Nintendo announces final Professor Layton game for Japan

Posted on August 29, 2012 by John Scalzo

Nintendo streamed another one of their Nintendo Direct presentations this morning and the big news out of Japan is that the company will publish the “final” Layton game next year. The game will be known as Professor Layton and the Legacy of Super Civilization A in Japan and likely something else when it makes its way to America (no North American date was announced).

Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino introduced the teaser trailer above and (if you can understand Japanese) I’m sure it’s a hoot.

Don’t fret Layton fans, an American release date will surely be announced soon and while this is the final game starring Layton, it may not be the last game in the series.

[Source: Joystiq, Kotaku]

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Madden NFL 13, Walking Dead Episode 3, Rock Band Blitz, more added to PS Store

Posted on August 29, 2012 by John Scalzo

As has been their custom all Summer long, Sony dumped another massive amount of games onto the PlayStation Store yesterday.

This week, PS3 gamers can download digital versions of Madden NFL 13 and Record of Agarest War Zero. Several previously bundled HD remakes can also now be had separately from the store including Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker HD, Ratchet & Clank, Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando, and Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal.

Wait, we’re not done yet! Also available this week is Harmonix’s controller-based rhythm game Rock Band Blitz, The Walking Dead: Episode 3 – “Long Road Ahead” from Telltale Games, Activision’s Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater HD, and the PlayStation Move party game Lights, Camera, Party.

Sony also added a lone PS2 Classic to the store yesterday, Double Fine’s psychotic platformer, Psychonauts.

Finally, Vita owners will also get a chance to download Madden NFL 13 and the PSone Classics on Vita patch is now live, but it’s not exactly perfect. Vita support has officially been added to just thirteen PSone games.

A complete list of this week’s new game add-ons can be found at the PlayStation Blog and more information on all of these new games can be found after the break.

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Posted in News, PS3, Vita | Tagged , , ,

Techland goes from Dead Island straight to Project Hell

Posted on August 29, 2012 by Andrew Rainnie

Polish developer Techland is following up its zombie hit Dead Island with a dark fantasy hack ‘n’ slash game, codenamed Project Hell. Rather than following the isometric view of the similarly dark fantasy-styled Diablo series, Techland has opted for a first person perspective. The game will be set in the time period when Europeans practiced pagan rituals at the same time they allegedly converted to Christianity.

Project Hell originated after some of Dead Island’s development team began experimenting with the weapon mechanics of their zombiefest. Beginning life as a Dead Island mod, one hopes it plays better than that title, given that it’s more famous for its trailer by Axis Animation than the game itself. It does appear that Techland has recognised this, by creating a development blog, Sharpen Your Axes!, which will allow gamers to comment on the progress and direction of the game. It is the developer’s hope that this open collaboration will help improve the quality of the title.

Project Hell is currently only in development for PC, but Techland has stated that it will look to port it to consoles if successful. The company also promised there will be no unicorns. This is “dark” fantasy after all.

Posted in News, PC | Tagged

Wii U will be playable at PAX Prime 2012

Posted on August 28, 2012 by John Scalzo

Nintendo has announced that if you’ve got a ticket to this weekend’s PAX Prime expo, you’ll be able to demo eight different Wii U games during the big show.

The lines are sure to be long, but expo attendees who brave them will be able to play…

  • New Super Mario Bros. U, the latest 2D Mario game
  • The long-awaited Pikmin 3
  • The minigame collection Nintendo Land
  • The superhero squad sim from Platinum Games, Project P-100
  • The Wii U-enhanced Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge
  • Scribblenauts Unlimited, the hi-def sequel to the popular DS series
  • The Wii U-enhanced Trine 2: Director’s Cut
  • …and ZombiU, Ubisoft’s zombie epic

PAX Prime will take place this weekend (August 31 – September 2) at Seattle’s Washington State Convention Center.

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Daily Scoop: August 28, 2012 – Gold Box Event!

Posted on August 28, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Whoops! I’m a little late to the Gold Box party happening over at Amazon. The Deal of the Day is Grand Theft Auto IV and Max Payne 3 in a PC download bundle for $24.99. If only I had a better computer, I’d buy that in a heartbeat!

The rest of the Gold Box deals to come are:

  • Right now: Ghost Recon: Future Soldier Pro Gamepad Controller for $19.99
  • 12 PM PST/3 PM EST: The ultimate Dark Knight experience! – I’m guessing Batman: Arkham City
  • 2 PM PST/5 PM EST: Get your PS3 moving with this deal! – Something with the PlayStation Move controller
  • 4PM PST/7PM EST: Become a part of the Game of Thrones saga! – Could it be Game of Thrones
  • 6PM PST/9PM EST: Business is war. – I’m going to guess Spec Ops: The Line
  • 8 PM PST/11PM EST: Get back on the court as some of the greatest NBA players of all time! – NBA 2K12

Whew! That’s a lot of excitement.

Sadly, no t-shirts today. I guess you’ll just have to spend money tomorrow!

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |