New Dark Horse Comics… a CoD Black Ops III prequel, Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare, and the return of “classic” Lara Croft

darkhorsecomics-header

Dark Horse Comics just announced a trio of new game-related projects ahead of next weekend’s San Diego Comic-Con.

The one that will surely get a lot of people talking is a prequel series to Call of Duty: Black Ops III. Set for release on November 4, the series will be written by Larry Hama, with art by Marcelo Ferreira. An exclusive minicomic promoting the series will be available Dark Horse’s booth during Comic-Con.

The Call of Duty: Black Ops III comic book series follows an elite group of cybernetically enhanced soldiers as they wage a secret war across a futuristic, war-torn world transformed by technology. In the first issue, the elite squad infiltrates Tashkent, Uzbekistan, to take down a double agent… but as they close in, the operatives uncover something much more sinister at hand.

Not so surprising is the expansion of the company’s line of Plants vs Zombies comics, which will continue to bloom with the launch of a Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare series on October 28. Serving as a prequel to this Fall’s Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare 2, it’ll feature a story by Paul Tobin and art from Jacob Chabot:

In the recently announced Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare 2, zombies have taken over, and now, for the first time in franchise history, the plants are on the attack. Delivering a story taking place between Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare and Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare 2, the Garden Warfare comic has the exclusive reveal of how Dr. Zomboss conquered Suburbia. The evil-genius leader is up to a whole new set of tricks—and this time, he’s succeeding, thanks to his mighty Imp and Z-Mech! But hope remains, as our zombie-battling champs Nate and Patrice discover horticultural help from the future and the past, and Crazy Dave misses out on an ice-cream cruise!

Finally, Dark Horse will bring back the “classic” Lara Croft from 1996’s Tomb Raider in Lara Croft and the Frozen Omen. Written by Corinna Beckho, with art by Randy Green, the first issue will go on sale on October 7:

In this all-new adventure, Lara must stop a group of cultists from causing world-wide cataclysmic devastation, and ancient ivory artifacts hold the key to both salvation and destruction! It’s a race against time in Lara’s new quest, filled with incredible action, dual pistols, and non-stop adventure.

You can take a look at the cover art of each #1 after the break.

Press Start to Continue

Posted in Etcetera, News | Tagged , , , ,

Keiji Inafune teases Red Ash, a spiritual successor to Mega Man Legends

Comcept has released a new trailer to tease the company’s next project after the completion of Mighty No. 9. As you watch the video embedded above, pay special attention to the number of times the word “Legends” appears in the introductory text.

But in case you missed it, this is Keiji Inafune’s not-so-subtle way of confirming that he’s creating a spiritual successor to the Mega Man Legends series.

Comcept is working in conjunction with Studio 4°C to create Red Ash: The Indelible Legend, and more information about the game will be revealed at this weekend’s Anime Expo in Los Angeles. More specifically, on July 4 at 2:30 PM (Eastern Time) during the “Keiji Inafune and Eiko Tanaka Guest Panel.”

Posted in News, PC | Tagged

You can watch the Uncharted 4 chase scene from E3 2015 right here

It’s no secret that Sony doesn’t have a lot of PS4 titles scheduled for release this year. But their 2016 is absolutely packed with original characters and new entries in several long-running franchises. The biggest game in the latter list, by far, is definitely Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End.

During this year’s E3 Expo, Sony showcased a playable portion of the game that they referred to as “the ultimate chase experience.” Now, the general public can get a closer look at the demo in this 16-minute gameplay trailer:

The ultimate chase sequence as Drake and Sully race to help Drake’s brother, Sam, evade Shoreline mercenaries. Several years after his last adventure, retired fortune hunter, Nathan Drake, is forced back into the world of thieves. With the stakes much more personal, Drake embarks on a globe-trotting journey in pursuit of a historical conspiracy behind a fabled pirate treasure. His greatest adventure will test his physical limits, his resolve, and ultimately what he’s willing to sacrifice to save the ones he loves.

Sony had previously said that Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End would be available in “Spring 2016,” but this new trailer ends with a much more vague “2016” release date, so we might be waiting a bit longer for Nathan Drake’s next adventure.

Posted in News, PS4 | Tagged ,

Nintendo Download: Zelda Ocarina of Time, Samurai Warriors Chronicles 3, more

legendofzeldaOne of the greatest games of all time, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, is now available to download for the Wii U through Nintendo’s Virtual Console program. The Nintendo 64 game was Link’s first foray into a 3D world and has influenced nearly every Zelda game to follow in its footsteps.

Also available for the Wii U this week is Roving Rogue, a side-scrolling platformer that takes place in a giant castle. Sitting next to Ocarina of Time, it’s amazing how far gaming has come while still looking back at the classic setups of the 70s and 80s.

Finally this week, Koei Tecmo has released Samurai Warriors Chronicles 3 for the 3DS. The handheld game “incorporates the best features from previous Samurai Warriors games” and features the big battles that the franchise is known for.

More information on all of these titles (and a few others) can be found after the break.

Press Start to Continue

Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U | Tagged

The Changing Face of Bethesda’s Heroes Led the Way at E3 2015

bethesdalogo

Bethesda’s first-ever E3 Press Conference was chock-full of goodies, from Dishonored: Definitive Edition for next generation consoles to a new Doom and its intuitive SnapMap creator. But there was also something else to celebrate during the presentation, as the company’s two biggest announcements, Fallout 4 and Dishonored 2, both offered the choice to play as a female character. And believe it or not, every game showcased by Bethesda will give players that same choice.

Press Start to Continue

Posted in Opinions | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

Daily Scoop: July 1, 2015 – Video game comic bundle

Over at Humble, there’s a brand new Gamer Comics bundle! Pay what you want for digital versions of Fallout: New Vegas – All Roads, Plants vs. Zombies: Lawnmaggedon, EVE: True Stories, Tomb Raider: The Beginning, and The Art of Remember Me. Beat the average to get The Guild Volume 1, Halo: Initiation, The Art of BioShock Infinite, and Valve Presents Vol. 1: The Sacrifice and Other Steam-Powered Stories. Beat the average plus $5 and get Mass Effect: Foundation Volume 1 and Dragon Age Volume 1: The Silent Grove.

Over at Steam, the latest Daily Deal is Mafia II. Pay $5.99 for the game or pay $7.99 for the digital deluxe version.

There are some really amazing t-shirts today!

Press Start to Continue

Posted in Daily Scoop |

Xbox Store Today: BlazBlue: Chronophantasma Extend, Quiplash, Scrabble

xboxgamesstore-logoA trio of new Xbox One games have been added to the Xbox Games Store today:

  • BlazBlue: Chronophantasma Extend is an update to Arc System Works’s latest one-on-one fighting game. It’s also the first time the colorful franchise will be available on the Xbox One.
  • Quiplash is a Jack Productions game that asks players to answer simple prompts like “Something you’d be surprised to see a donkey do” or “The worst soup flavor: Cream of (blank).” Clever answers are the only way to win over the crowd, so remember to be funny.
  • Scrabble is… it’s Scrabble and it’s on the Xbox One. Enough said.

More information on all of these games can be found after the break.

Press Start to Continue

Posted in News, Xbox One | Tagged

Indiana Jones, Darkwing Duck, and others could be added to Disney Infinity in the future

disneyinfinity-header

Disney Infinity was released to fairly universal acclaim in 2013, but gamers everywhere hoped the Mouse House would add Marvel characters to the mix in a sequel. Disney listened to their requests, and released Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes a year later. This same cycle of fan feedback eventually led Disney Interactive to begin production on Disney Infinity: Star Wars, which will be released sometime in the Fall.

But what other characters from the Disney Vault will eventually make their way into a future Disney Infinity game? How about… all of them?

Disney Interactive’s John Blackburn and John Vignocchi recently spoke to Polygon about the franchise, revealing that every character from Disney’s vast empire has the chance to be added to a future Disney Infinity project. They couldn’t make any promises on which characters might make a future appearance, but Lucasfilm’s Ada Duan said that Howard the Duck has been asked for by a lot of fans. Other characters name-dropped by the trio include Indiana Jones, Darkwing Duck, and LucasArts’s stable of adventure games (especially Secret of Monkey Island and Day of the Tentacle).

Though it might be a while before any of these characters make it into Disney Infinity, as Duan said the company is “looking forward” towards new content. That’s disappointing, but the full interview at Polygon is still a riot, so be sure to read the whole thing.

Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged , ,