There is a distinct lack of urban underground culture games. The idea is rarely thought up, and even more rarely successful. The last game in this vein I remember is Marc Ecko's Getting Up, which was a flawed yet enjoyable bit of the city underground. Before that was the benchmark, Jet Grind Radio, which has yet to come close to being touched by anything similar. Are these the only two games that have implemented some sort of hip hop and graffiti as gameplay staples? Note: the God awful Def Jam games DO NOT count.
Well watch out underground heads, because here comes Sideway. In clear contrast to the movie of similar nomenclature which centered around wine tasting or some shit, Sideway revolves around the big city and the lovely wall art that lives within. It looks like your classic platformer with the fresh twist of controlling a 2D character stuck in a 3D world. The protagonist - who writes Nox - has happened upon a bit of a misfortune, and now has become graffiti himself.
Apparently, Sideway was playable at Comic Con, and I missed it. Fail. Oh well, looks like I'll have to wait until release! Rumor says it'll sell at $9.99 on PSN this Summer. For more, check out the PlayStation blog.
The Gundam series of anime was not one of the first stepping stones down my path of otaku, but it was one of the largest. It was a boon for housing many of the things I love: giant robots, high technology, futuristic weapons, outer space, and in some scenarios, powerful characters and a strong story. It's only logical that I would be drawn to a title that plays out the Gundam universe, be it skinned over Dynasty Warriors or otherwise. After enjoying the first entry in the series and skipping the second, does Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3 have enough Minovsky particles to keep my interest bolstered?
Bonus: Win a copy of Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3 for PlayStation 3! Details below!
Every once in a while a console exclusive comes along that makes me want to drop a hot wad of cash on the console in question. This year it may be Shinobi for Nintendo 3DS, a nifty little ninja side-scrolling action title that really impressed me when I got to katana-swinging and kunai-tossing. It's just as I remember Shinobi; fast, stylish, versatile, and difficult as fuck! The first stage was your typical Shinobi fare, classic ninja treading through the burning pagoda and fighting off scores of other ninja. You only have around 10 or so kunai, so you have to be conservative with your throws. Either that, or blow them all on the double-jumping, screen-clearing spread-kunai shot, a staple from the days of Shinobi III, one of my favorite games ever.
After clearing that first stage, I was treated to a section on horseback, where you have to avoid incoming obstacles as well as fend off ninja assailants. There's no sugar coating it, I died a lot during this segment. Maybe it was a weird mixture of the three-quarter behind view coupled with my lack of 3D viewing experience. Or maybe it was because I suck. The point is, no matter how many times I died, I wanted to keep going at it, and pass the damned challenge. When you continually die and persevere as opposed to slamming the control down in frustration, you most likely have a decent game on your hands.
The mix of nostalgia, slick brush-stroke inspired art, and the healthy challenge has me thinking that Shinobi will end up being a bit better than decent. Now I must ask, does anyone have a 3DS they'd like to let me borrow?
What happens when you take a bucket full of Micro Machines and strap them full of high-powered armaments? Renegade Ops, the action-packed vehicle shooter that isn't nearly as mundane as its name. Created by Avalanche Studios, the boys behind the Just Cause series who know quite a bit about wanton destruction, this game knows exactly what we want: explosion porn!
Renegade Ops is not what anyone was expecting as the follow-up to the open-world antics of Just Cause 2. This title is very much inspired by the Strike series of vehicle shooters: isometric military shooting action. Every moment of the game is dripping with bullets and explosions; pewpewbangboomaction, yeah! The sights and sounds of exploding buildings and splattered soldiers in a jungle setting was very pleasing to the eyes and ears.
Controlling the little bugger took some getting used to, as the off-road jeep I was at the helm of must have been in a slippery mood. There wasn't much traction on the jungle dirt, as I imagine would be the case in real life, so battles with the more fortified enemies consisted of a lot of donuts and a lot of machine gun rounds. At the moments when I was able to sacrifice mobility for firepower, the alternate firing function planted some tripod legs into the jungle floor and let blast a thunderous single-shot cannon. Things that make you go boom!
Unfortunately, I didn't get to take any of the co-op modes for a spin, but the short single player session I had was a blast. The final product looks to span across a multitude of locations and vehicles, to keep everyone happy. As downloadable games go, Renegade Ops has as much promise as the best of them, and twice as many explosions. What else would you expect from the Just Cause devs?
Dragon's Dogma is a game I've written off as a Demon's/Dark Souls clone, and hence have had little interest in, despite the healthy buzz it has created for itself. Though after playing the demo, I'm singing a bit of a different tune, as the game played surprisingly well.
The demo was playable as two distinctly different characters, a fighter (warrior) class and a strider (ranger) class. I observed my associate trek through a dimly lit cavern to tackle a chimera bookended by a mess of goblins and harpies. The battle was rough and tumble, but enthralling to watch. The chimera's physical appearance slowly whittle away with his health as the fighter and his crew of computer-controlled compatriots punctured the beast in all possible ways, except for that one, pervert. The assistant AI was surprisingly efficient, doing everything from healing the party to imbuing elemental weapon enchantments, and at appropriate times to boot. This is good, as the inability to issue direct commands to your party was a spot of worry for me. Between the intelligent AI and the very very very loose command system, there will be a minimal amount of worry when it comes to your teammates actions.
The strider segment was, in stark contrast to the fighter's, bright and open, transpiring in a grassy field under the blue sky. The strider and squad were tasked to taking down what I believe was a Griffon. There are a lot of buttons to figure out and not much time to do it, so I jumped into the fray and got busy. It seemed the strider's scenario was much more complex than that of the fighter's. Bow shots and dagger swipes are your meat and potatoes, with enchanted special attacks to help distribute damage. I don't know if there is an enemy lock-on function, but I had a hell of a time trying to track the griffon as he soared above my party from all directions. When it landed, I would pump him full of arrows, and when he took off, it was back to trying to locate him quickly enough to fire a bolt or two. At some points, my tank would call for me to use her as a catapult and launch myself onto the griffon. When successful, the experience became a Shadow of the Colossus style climb and stab affair, which was quite fun until I misstepped and fell back to the ground with the rest of my party. I died shortly after.
The moral of the story is that I suck as a strider, but Dragon's Dogma has some promise. Playing the demo really opened my eyes to this bad boy.
Street Fighter x Tekken has had playable builds floating around, which I've never been able to get my hands on. I finally changed that, and I have to say I am pleasantly surprised with the game thus far. The art style, while reminiscent of Street Fighter 4, is done differently enough to look fresh. The character models are beautiful, as are their every last animation.
Tagging mid-combo and juggling are a very strong focus of the gameplay, akin to Mortal Kombat's tag system more than Marvel vs. Capcom's. From what I was able to deduce, pressing one of the right shoulder buttons (I played on a PS3 build) during a combo would immediately launch your enemy into the air and switch out to your second character, where you're able to put a nice bit of punishment on your airborne adversary. In the vein of the numbered Street Fighter games, Street Fighter x Tekken felt to be more about controlling pace, timing, and execution, especially in comparison to it's Versus series brethren.
The Tekken characters felt a little awkward in the Street Fighter universe, as it takes some time to readjust to universal hadokens and shoryukens as opposed to long strings of attacks. My Tekken tactic of mashing the kicks did little to give an advantage as Hwoarang. Regardless, it was great fun latching on and distributing flawlessly rendered ass-whoopings with my favorite characters from both worlds.
Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. The mere mention of this game can split a room in half and have a bunch of rabid geeks at each other's throats. First off, as you must all know by now, Mega Man does not make an appearance in any form, leading many to speculate that the Mega Man franchise is officially dead. But that is a different discussion for a different time. I just wanted to throw that in there because no discussion of this game can take place without a Mega Man mention. Anyway, let me tell you how some of the new characters play!
The build at SDCC featured Strider, Firebrand, Ghost Rider, and Hawkeye. Of the bunch, I enjoyed Firebrand for his balanced move set and unorthodox style and Hawkeye for his quiver of tricks and the zoning he's capable of. Firebrand was a good balance between quick and powerful, and had many things to keep his enemy off-kilter. Multi-directional fireballs, the ability to fly, a strong beam super, and a super which increases his strength and speed. Firebrand has the makes of a natural born killer.
Hawkeye is just my type of character, full of tricks and unexpected surprises. His arrow shots garner different effects; a shot of three bolts, a binding shot of chains, a freeze shot, a poison shot, you name it. In addition, he also has a move which springs him in a different direction, ending in a particular type of shot. Hawkeye's moves are all ranged, but he has enough variation to keep his opponents guessing. Also, Ant Man. No brainer!
Strider is more of the same if you're familiar with him from Marvel vs. Capcom 2. I'm sure his inclusion has silenced many a fanboy, however he was never my favorite character so I'm indifferent. Ghost Rider is a nice addition, slashing away at opponents from range with assortment of chain whip moves. And of course, it's nice that he works the bike into his super move.
I had a grand old time playing Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, but then reality set in. I hated this announcement when it was a rumor, I hated it when it was revealed, and I still kind of hate it after playing the damn game. Will the additional characters be worth an extra $40? Probably, but that doesn't change the fact that my Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds disc becomes utterly useless.
I've covered Asura's Wrath quite a bit, but really couldn't back up all the noise I've been making because I haven't played it. I finally got to work with the demo that has been in-and-out of game journalist's hands, and I enjoyed what I played.
Though there were plenty of quick-time events, there was never any period where I wished the game would pick up in pace or wondered when it would stop being a bore. Asura's Wrath is a flurry of punches, fireballs, over-the-top cut scenes, and non-stop action. In other words, exactly what one would expect from this title. Galactic Buddha Finger was in full effect, leading to my unadulterated happiness upon execution. It seems that, when fully controlled fighting occurs, there's a lack of a deep and sexy combo system. Maybe I just didn't have enough of a chance to tackle the grunts and flex the multi-hit muscle, as the demo was mostly one gigantic boss battle. The above gameplay video shows a few unique combos, but not enough to satiate my craving from a stylish action game. We'll know what to expect very soon, I'm sure.
After completing the demo, I stepped off into a rage booth, where you scream at the top of your lungs for a chance to win things. I scored 94.1, high enough to win a funky wig. 100 was the goal, which I failed to reach.
I don't expect Asura's Wrath to get 10 Blasters, but it was enough fun that my desire hasn't cooled. Before you get overly excited though, know what you're going to get: a cross between God Hand and Ninja Blade, two games I really enjoyed.
Street Fighter III: Third Strike Online Edition is pegged for an August 23 release, and as such the build on display seemed almost final. Of course, much of the retail release's allure lies in some of it's secondary attributes such as GGPO-enabled (see: no lag) online battles, replay sharing, and countless adjustable options, which I wasn't able to play with. I just got to fight, and it was good.
It was just like the old days where I sucked at parrying and couldn't remember any non-Shoto moves. Aw yeah, memories! I got to play a few matches in full HD and a few with the original sprites, complete in 4:3 display mode. Of note was the Trial Mode side bars which took up some of the unused screen real estate, and tallied numbers for both myself and my opponent. Things like particular attacks used, parries, combos completed and so on. Not sure what all these numbers will net at the end - probably points to spend in the game's shop - but I can confirm their existence!
Do you foresee yourself dropping the required $15 entry fee for a throwback to yesteryear?
Two years after the release of 2009s red-hot 'Splosion Man comes a slender female with all of the 'splosive ability of her predecessor. Aptly titled Ms. 'Splosion Man, this bundle of erratic pink kinetic energy has most of 'Splosion Man's old tricks, but brings some new ones to the table as well. Is a coat of feminine paint and a pair of new shoes enough to make Ms. 'Splosion Man feel like a brand new experience? Your move, Unreal.
Overview Let me get this out of the way immediately: Ms. 'Splosion Man is not a game targeted toward females. Don't be fooled by the overwhelming amount of hot pink hearts and pastel colored stars. This game will kick your ass across its +60 stages if you don't bring your A-game, be you a miss or a mister.
Gameplay Not much has changed since 2009. You move with the analog or directional pad, and 'splode with pretty much any other button on your controller. You're still allotted three 'splodes before you gas out and are forced to recharge, so there is a bit of thinking in play as you ration your 'splodes to get you past any given obstacle. Explosive barrels litter the Big Science facilities, a 'splode on one of these will not only help you to reach your destination, but also refresh your 'splosive abilitites so the little lady can continue to burst her heart out.
This game is hard, folks. I'd like to consider myself an able-minded gamer, as I tend to get through any challenge that's thrown at me with relative ease, and make it look good in the process. There were some stages in Ms. 'Splosion Man that the designers deemed as 5-6 minute par times, where I took close to 18 minutes to complete. That's a lot of dying! In comparison to a platformer like Super Meat Boy that requires lightning fast twitch reflexes, Ms. 'Splosion Man requires some of that, along with memorization. Coupled with the rarity of checkpoints, you really don't want to die. But you will, and often. After several attempts, I'd finally luck my way through a tricky section of platforming, only to make a stupid mistake shortly after, and have to do the whole thing all over again. Frustrating.
If you happen to get through the stages quickly and safely, Ms. 'Splosion Man is rewarding, and looks good in the process. There are a variety of ways to get around aside from plain old 'sploding: conveyor belts, light bridges, ziplines, flying Jetsons cars, exploding barrels, and rotund women. Options galore! Much of the game is quite linear as you would expect, however there are branching paths in many of the levels which will either net you collectables (SHOES!) or a level exit off the beaten path.
After you've spent the required time polishing off the single player portion of the game, get your multiplayer on. You can play with up to three other lady 'sploders, either online, off, or bring your offline friends with you to create a full party on Xbox LIVE. Multiplayer offers a wealth of new stages with tricky challenges crafted specifically for three or four players. If you're picking up players online, it may be difficult to find a good team of focused ladies, but if you do, things get poppin'. You can also purchase "2 Girls 1 Controller" from the game's store using credits accumulated during gameplay. This allows you to control two misses, one with each analog stick. A healthy challenge for even the most seasoned 'sploder. This mode would probably be much fun for two people as well, each with a half-controller, 'sploding a whole lot and probably dying even more. The crafty gamer will work their girlfriend and a bottle of vodka into 2 Girls 1 Controller somehow.
Art Design The bounty of Ms. 'Splosion Man's animations are as enthralling as the lady herself. Her movements range from a 'twinkletoes' move to a flat-footed ice skate. Come to a halt at any time and be entertained by the variety of dances the gal busts out, everything from the Macarena to the Dougie. This chick would definitely serve me on the dance floor.
The stages are very well designed. They're a good balance between length and variety; you wont often see the same challenges more than once. On more than a few occassions, I did manage to lose the bright pink firecracker, as tough as that sounds. Sometimes the camera pans out, the depth of field effect is at max, and Big Science buffoons come crashing into your fourth wall, all at the same time! I'm sure it's all part of the plan, to give the player fits while attempting to breeze through each stage, but it's expletive inciting to die due to distraction as opposed to death from your own mistakes.
Sound Design The missus is absolutely hilarious during the course of the game. She's a cache of pop culture references, singing the hits from TLC, Madonna, Beyonce and more. And when she's not 'sploding into karaoke, she could be quoting one of many Schwarzenegger films. It's a riot just listening to her babble references with no rhyme or reason, however these highly specific jokes may be wasted on younger or less pop-centric gamers. Hearing her ramble about shoe sales to her imaginary girlfriends, however, is something we can all appreciate.
Best.
The music of Ms. 'Splosion Man is a pleasure to listen to. Each world has its own stage music, which is just catchy enough to not have you wanting to shoot yourself in the face after listening to it 20+ times per world. Then there's the ukelele driven Donuts Song you're greeted with upon pausing the game, held over from the original 'Splosion Man. This is easily the best track in the game, again. It just doesn't get old. After playing (and frequently pausing) for a few hours, I spent my night on the town torturing friends with the highly addictive lyrics of "everybody loves donuts, I know I do". Solid gold, man.
Conclusion For the most part, Ms. 'Splosion Man is more or less 'Splosion Man with a few added bells and whistles. There ain't nothing wrong with that, as it's still a blast to play, and a bitch to complete. At 800MSP, Ms. 'Splosion Man is money well spent for platforming fans.
Buy it: If you like platforming, have a pop-culture fueled sense of humor, enjoy a challenge Don't buy it: If you're easily frustrated, are too manly for the color pink The Score: 7 outta 10 Blasters!
Friday, July 29, 2011 at 8:33PM 
