Blake is in Rage!

One of the strangest promotional ads I've seen for any video game was the one where rising NBA star Blake Griffin attempts to woo the folks at id Software to put him into Rage. It was a strange coupling that made me scratch my head as I attempted to discern why Blake cares for this title so. It was an entertaining ad though, probably because I love basketball so much. 

Anyway, after getting a chuckle from the promo the first time I saw it, I completely forgot about the Former Rookie of the Year's campaign, until I bumped into him in-game.. In bobblehead form. Hey, it's a start. Keep hope alive, Blake. Rage may warrant a sequel, and if that occurs, maybe you'll be an actual NPC. And hopefully id will mo-cap you on a Knicks game night so you don't set all your career highs against my team. Ahem, sorry.

Look for my Rage review in the next couple of days. Until then, bobble Blake will keep you company.

Batman Zips and Glides around Arkham City, Punches Dudes

I am a Gotham City criminal, on Batman's long list of perpetrators to be brought to justice. The reason? Batman: Arkham City has gone criminally misrepresented here on OBG, with a grand total of one article written throughout the title's development cycle. It's not that I don't care, I do. I was about a year late to the Batman: Arkham Asylum wagon, but when I finally got on I was absolutely captivated. Perhaps I've limited my reporting of Arkham City because subconsciously, I want to tackle it the same way. 

Anyway, here's a short video of how Batman will eventually track me down and punch me in the face. I love what Rocksteady has done with the open world elements and Bats quickly covering ground (or air) without the Batwing. And of course, the free flow combat looks as good as ever. Batman: Arkham City will descend from the Gotham night sky on October 18. Though this probably won't be a week one purchase for me due to time and money constraints, it looks like a worthy get. If you're a fan of the world's most gangsta detective and are not enamored by the other games of Fall, look no further for your fix.

via Destructoid

Weekend Update: Play Uncharted 3 Right Now!

If you own a PlayStation 3, your ass should be walking down to Subway right this instant if you haven't already. All you have to do is purchase a medium drink ($1.90 in New York monies) and you will have access to Uncharted 3's multiplayer mode, no questions asked. 

Subway has recently overtaken McDonalds as the most popular fast food chain in North America, so most of you should have no problem finding a Subway restaurant to take advantage of this promotion. Each medium drink cup's code can be redeemed on a selection of Uncharted 3 multiplayer items, so stock up, just don't forget to get the damned game itself. The entire month of October to hone your Uncharted 3 fragging skills, level up, and unlock instruments of destructions. Need I say more? 

Renegade Ops: Micro Machine Guns

Avalanche Studios have a certain inclination for over-the-top action and destruction. The very first time I played Just Cause, though unrefined, I knew the Swedish developers were very capable. Their idea of ludicrous action, massive explosions, and stunt driving came to fruition in the Godlike comedic action of Just Cause 2. So here is Renegade Ops, a vehicular combat title that tries to capture the beautiful destruction of the Just Cause games while scaling down to the size of Micro Machines. John Moschitta Jr. not included.

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Shank 2: Revenge Returns

Shank was one of my favorite downloadable games released last year. The art, animation, music, and gory, stylized action was too much for me to turn down. I knew the game sold well, much deserved too, but I honestly didn't expect this: Shank 2. Fuck, yes. 

Apparently, developers Klei have reworked just about everything from the ground up without sacrificing that certain je ne sais quois (see: viscera) that made the original a blast to play. Aside from added weapons and control tweaks which make the game better to play (full 360-degree shooting) there are also some logical advancements in gameplay such as the inclusion of counter-attacks and better thought out platforming. Neither of these inclusions are critical, but it's nice to know Klei is dedicated to mastering their little Southwestern gold mine of revenge. Also, co-op survival mode, because why the hell not? My only dislike thus far is that the initial trailer for Shank 2 seems very uninspired, especially considering this trailer for the original that gave me chills, yo.

Destructoid was lucky enough to spend some hands on time with Shank 2, and come away from the splatterfest with good vibes. However I need no preview, I've been sold on this sequel since August of last year. If you've yet to play the original, it be on sale for 600MSP (marked down from 1200MSP) on Xbox LIVE Arcade, so I suggest you buy the hell out of it. 

Shank 2 is set for early next year on XBLA, PSN, and PC. So Klei, are we going to see a Brock Samson skin this time around?

New Dante, Old Tricks

Ninja Theory Visual Art Director Alessandro Taini's take on DmC Dante is totally badass. Check more of his skillz here.

via Kotaku

The Tommy Wi-show is Kicking!

Side kicks. It's what Tommy does second best. Sex scenes is the obvious number one.

In the first installment of Machinima's The Tommy Wi-show, watch the sexy Frenchman (or is he Canadian? South African? Chilean?) put his mangled digits to good work in the ultimate test: the battle of Mortal Kombat. It is not easy for Tommy, even as the best player on the Planet Earth. However, up to any challenge, an exciteable T.W. exclaims, "yah you haf to do hard way for sure!"

You're my favorite customer, Tommy. Can't wait to see what he'll play next.

Bonus! Tommy vs. Freddy. Monster! Baster.

No Kidding, Stranger! Bastion is Almost Flawless

I was raised in an age where games didn't need hyper-realistic graphics, bathtubs full of blood, or the London Philharmonic Orchestra to make an impact. Gameplay trumps all. Bastion is a neat little digitally distributed title that is rooted deep in this old-school-of-thought, providing classic 32-bit action, with a helping of beautiful hand drawn art and a quite literal take on the narrative.

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I Gots an Itch for Diabolical Pitch

My love for the craziness that comes out of Grasshopper Manufacture is no secret. God-among-developers Suda51 has a knack for pushing creative envelopes, taking risks and creating games that other studios couldn't even concoct during the high of a peyote trip. 

Suda and Grasshopper have spoken about the super-secret Codename D for a while now, but only recently have they shed more light on the Kinect driven project named Diabolical Pitch. It's a basebrawler: a mashup of baseball and, well, brawling. A marriage so ridiculously insane, only the very lofty Ninja Baseball Batman has made a go at the genre. As I enjoy both baseball and beating the living hell out of things, I am very excited for this game, within reason. As much of a hoot as it looks, I'm not sure whether it's been planned as retail or arcade release, but I'm 90% sure I wouldn't want to shell out fiddy bucks for it, fusion dance or not.

The Kinect platform has tons of silly exercise and dance games to entertain casuals, it's titles like Diabolical Pitch and The Gunstringer are  the meat and potatoes for gamers like you and I. Stay tuned for more info.

Watch Two Ninjas Destroy a Building in Dead or Alive 5

Allow me to expose myself as a gamer for a moment (pause). Back when the Xbox released in 2001, I played some Halo: Combat Evolved at a buddy's house and had my mind blown. He had a few other games for Microsoft's green monster, but I wasn't impressed enough to drop the coin for Master Chief alone. A few weeks later, we went in on his newly purchased Dead or Alive 3, also known as the game which helped sell me on Xbox, and consequently ruined my adult social life.

I enjoyed the original Dead or Alive games, though what Team Ninja was able to do with Dead or Alive 3 was a revelation. Incredible interactive environments, beautifully rendered characters, tricky yet rewarding combos (Hayabusa's Izuna Drop still eludes me), and explosive tag battle action. The series' fourth entry was more of the same, but better looking. Dead or Alive 5 seems to be adding to that formula, by showcasing series heavyweights Hayabusa and Hayate literally bringing down the house with hard-hitting ninjutsu. Oh yeah, want. While the post-Itagaki Ninja Gaiden III has slightly shaken my faith, the new Team Ninja's Dead or Alive is looking fine as a muhfucka, even in it's pre-alpha infancy.

So get this, two ninjas walk into a construction site, right.. What? Have you heard this one before?