Most Recent: Articles

Nintendo Download: Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2, Bayonetta 2 demo, more

Posted on October 9, 2014 by John Scalzo

bayonettaThere’s more Castlevania coming to the Wii U Virtual Console today as Nintendo has added Castlevania: Circle of the Moon to their online storefront. The Game Boy Advance classic, one of the best available during the handheld’s launch period, sidesteps the Belmont clan to tell the story of vampire hunter Nathan Graves.

Another demon hunter takes up residence on the Wii U eShop today ahead of her full debut on October 24. That’s when Platinum Games will unleash Bayonetta 2 on unsuspecting Wii U owners. But they can give the game an early look today thanks to a new downloadable demo.

Most of this week’s eShop releases will be available to download on Tuesday, including Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2. The latest game based on the Saturday morning cartoon will be released for the 3DS and Wii U on October 14.

More details on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U | Tagged ,

Hatsune Miku appears on Letterman to awkward applause

Posted on October 9, 2014 by John Scalzo

Sega’s “virtual idol,” Hatsune Miku, appeared on The Late Show With David Letterman last night to promote an art show featuring the character and the upcoming release of Hatsune Miku: Project Diva F 2nd. After her performance concluded, Letterman engaged in a short conversation with the computer-generated character and he… wasn’t happy. Letterman looks ready to start screaming about how stupid the whole thing is and clearly just wants it to be over. See it for yourself in the video above.

“Hatsune Miku Expo 2014” will be held at the Wallplay art gallery in New York City beginning today and running through October 19. The exhibit will culminate in a two-night live concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom on October 17 and October 18. Hatsune Miku: Project Diva F 2nd will be released for the PS3 and Vita on November 18.

Posted in News, PS3, Vita |

Insert Quarter: 1-Up Mushrooms (Might) Be Producing Mario Clones

Posted on October 9, 2014 by John Scalzo

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Insert Quarter is our showcase for some of the best and most interesting writing about video games on the Internet.

In this installment, Game Rant’s Brad Jones examines the possible cloning properties of the 1-Up Mushroom on Mario, as outlined in the item’s Trophy description in Super Smash Bros. For 3DS.

1-Up Mushrooms have been a staple of the Mario series since Super Mario Bros. back in 1985. Since then, the power-up has become ingrained into pop culture — you’d be hard pressed to find anyone who doesn’t know that the green fungi grants an extra life. But just how does this process occur? According to Smash Bros., it’s a matter of cloning.

Nintendo has always slipped bizarre explanations in their games to explain the goings-on in the Mushroom Kingdom. Who could forget the Birdo flap? But it is an interesting theory nonetheless. You can read the rest of the article at Game Rant.

Posted in 3DS, Insert Quarter | Tagged

Daily Scoop: October 8, 2014 – Gaming weather

Posted on October 8, 2014 by Nicole Kline

It’s fall all right, and it’s the perfect weather to cuddle up under a blanket and start a brand-new game. I’ve been trying to figure out which game to start next, but it’s really a hard decision with Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel coming in less than a week. I don’t want to ditch another game as soon as I’ve started it. So many hard choices…

Speaking of hard choices, there are lots of great deals happening today! The first is the Steam Daily Deal, which is 40% off early access to Carmageddon: Reincarnation. It’s on sale today for just $17.99.

There are some new bundles as well. There’s the Humble Mobile Bundle 9, in which you can pay what you want for Siberia, Neuroshima Hex, and Bardbarian: Golden Axe Edition. If you beat the average, you can unlock Leo’s Fortune, Out There, and First Strike.

Then there’s the new Indie Royale spread, the Debut 19 Bundle. Beat the average to get Bionite: Origins, Cafe 0: ~The Drowned, Towers of Altrac – Epic Defense, Castle, Hard Lander, Barter Empire, and Realm of Perpetual Guilds.

Three shirts are on the menu today!

(more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop |

Nintendo is bringing 13 playable “Nindies” to IndieCade 2014; Beatbuddy Wii U announced

Posted on October 8, 2014 by John Scalzo

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Nintendo has announced that indie games on Nintendo platforms will be known as “Nindies” in the future. Nindies… I love it.

In other news, the company confirmed that they’re bringing 13 playable demos to this weekend’s IndieCade expo in Culver City, California. The list includes Shovel Knight, Yacht Club’s beloved platformer that was released this Summer; WayForward’s next Shanate sequel, Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse; and Costume Quest 2, the eagerly awaited RPG from Double Fine. The first two will be playable on both the Wii U and the 3DS, technically bringing the total up to 15.

Nintendo also announced that Beatbuddy, a musical side-scroller from German developer Threaks, will be released for the Wii U. And finally, they’ve confirmed that Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse will be released for the 3DS on October 23 with a Wii U release scheduled for later this Winter.

A complete list of the Nindies available to play at IndieCade can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U | Tagged

Watch This! Every Game Boy title screen in alphabetical order

Posted on October 8, 2014 by John Scalzo

He did the NES… Then he moved on to the Super NES… Now, YouTube user “NicksplosionFX” has created a video that depicts the Start Screen of possibly every Game Boy game in existence. A few may be missing as NicksplosionFX admits, “It was really difficult to find a complete list of original Game Boy games.”

The video runs nearly three hours (starting with the infamous 4-In-1 Funpak), so I’d recommend starting with a bathroom break first.

Posted in News, Retro |

Xbox Store Today: Project Spark, Alien: Isolation, NBA 2K15, more

Posted on October 8, 2014 by John Scalzo

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Are you ready to make your own games? Microsoft hopes so because Project Spark is now available to download through the Xbox One Games Store. The Project Spark “Starter Pack” includes a pre-built adventure as well as a variety of characters and game-creation pieces. Happy building!

Alien: Isolation is also new to the Xbox One Games Store today. Sega and Creative Assembly took a different tack with the game than the usual Aliens adventure and attempted to bring the quieter, but still frightening, “haunted house in space” atmosphere of 1979’s Alien to the video game realm. It’s joined by NBA 2K15 (Xbox One, Xbox 360), the latest game in 2K’s long-running sports simulation series, and Divekick (Xbox One), Iron Galaxy’s two-button fighting game. Finally this week, Styx: Master of Shadows, an RPG from Focus Interactive, is available to download for the Xbox One.

More information on all four games can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in News, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged , , ,

PS Store Today: Alien: Isolation, NBA 2K15, DriveClub, Vib-Ribbon, more

Posted on October 7, 2014 by John Scalzo

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The Fall gaming avalanche comes to the PlayStation Store this week. Some of the biggest games of the season are now available to download on the PS3, PS4, and Vita as well as a bona-fide classic, and a handful of smaller titles as well.

A trio of AAA release are now available as of today. Alien: Isolation (PS3, PS4) is Sega and Creative Assembly’s attempt to bring the “haunted house in space” atmosphere of 1979’s Alien to the video game realm. It’s joined by DriveClub, Evolution’s ambitious PS4 racer, and NBA 2K15 (PS3, PS4), the latest game in 2K’s long-running sports simulation series.

Even though all these new titles are now available to download, today’s real surprise if the release of Vib-Ribbon, a PSone Classic that was originally only available in Japan and Europe. Vib-Ribbon is a rhythm game from the creator of PaRappa the Rapper that uses a unique line-drawing art style. It has appeared on multiple “Best of” lists and is considered by many to be one of the best games never to come to America. Thankfully, that changes today.

Finally this week, a few indie games that are definitely worth a look have popped up on the PlayStation Store. Dust: An Elysian Tail, a side-scrolling action-RPG that was originally released for the Xbox 360 in 2012, is now available on the PS4. Dust’s hand-drawn artwork would serve as a nice complement to Spelunky, which has also been released for the PS4 today. Divekick, a rather unique fighting game (“First You Dive, Then You Kick!”), rounds out this week’s batch of indie PS4 ports.

A complete look at all of this week’s new releases (including a few additional titles) can be found after the break. And a full rundown of this week’s new game add-ons can be found at the PlayStation Blog. (more…)

Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Vita | Tagged , , , ,