All posts by Brendan Griffiths

PC, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Previews, Regular previews, Xbox 360

The Testament of Sherlock Holmes (Preview)

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Frogwares have been providing Sherlock Holmes titles for years now on the PC with only Sherlock Holmes Vs. Jack the Ripper making its way to a console. But keyboard-loathing point and click adventure fans will be pleased to hear that the latest case to crack will be tri-platform, coming to PS3, Xbox 360 and PC. The developers and publishers are keen to expand the Sherlock Holmes brand and bringing their games out on all three platforms, specifically the consoles, is key to that goal.

Influenced by the movies from the 60s rather than the ridiculous Guy Ritchie eyesores, the experience will be a traditional one, instead of something that’ll have Arthur Conan Doyle spinning in his grave. For the first time in the series, we’ll be seeing a very dark side of Sherlock Holmes. The trailer even goes as far as to make him look like a murderer so we’re intrigued to see how events will play out. During the course of the game, we’ll be playing as both Holmes and Watson. Our money’s on Holmes being a bit murdery on the side. Look at his evil face! He totally did it.

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Action, PC, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Xbox 360

Darksiders II (Review)

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After the first game where War -one of the Four Horseman- jumped the gun a little and brought on the apocalypse and wiped out humanity, we get to step into another rider’s shoes. Running parallel to the events of the original game, we’re now playing as Death.

Death is eager to clear his brother’s name and if possible, restore humanity to Earth. For the most part of the game though, we won’t be going back to Earth. Instead we’re exploring several large open maps of typical fantasy fare – forests, canyons, ice worlds, hell and any other staple you could care to remember.

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Hands-on previews, PC, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Previews, Xbox 360

Far Cry 3 (Hands-on Preview)

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After sitting through so many presentations at Gamescom, it was a relief to see that I’d actually get to play Far Cry 3. The recent E3 singleplayer stage was available as was a round of multiplayer. I’m eager for something a little different than another military shooter and Far Cry 3’s tropical paradise setting is one hell of a place to start. Console gamers missed out on the first game and the dull African setting of the last game left a lot to be desired for many, so expectations are high for Ubisoft’s title.

The start of the single-player stage began on a cliff-top across from an island. Using the bow, I took out the guard far in the distance. The arrows realistically drop over longer distances, so it took a few attempts as my first shots landed in the water just in front of him.

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Hands-on previews, Platforms, Previews, Wii U

ZombiU (Hands-On Preview)

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If ever a console needed a title to appeal to regular gamers rather than small children and fitness-obsessed parents it’s the Wii U. After the relentless shovelware from the original Wii, Nintendo have a lot to prove to get us onboard.

It’s not a great start for Ninty at Gamescom 2012, as they couldn’t even be bothered turning up in first-party form. Thankfully Ubisoft have stepped up -hot off the heels of a hella-strong E3 showing- to get gamers onboard, with Rayman Legends and the much bloodier ZombiU.

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Hands-on previews, PC, Platforms, Previews

Marvel Heroes (Hands-on Preview)

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The tagline that the Gazillion Studios team, would like us to take on board for Marvel Heroes is: “Marvel meets Diablo on Steroids.” Considered the President of the company is one David Brevik, co-founder of Blizzard North and creator of Diablo and Diablo II, we’re inclined to take notice.

This upcoming action MMORPG would be a tempting enough prospect for fans of the genre and the world’s most iconic name in comics. Consider this though: the game will be free-to-play. Sure there will be optional micro-transactions, but you’ll be able to play all the way through the game without spending a dime. “We’re aiming to create the highest quality free-to-play game ever made,” ambitious, but there’s no denying the potential.

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Hands-on previews, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Previews, PS Vita

PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale (Hands-on Preview)

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Four player brawlers are something of a rarity these days, especially if your dusty Nintendo consoles have been boxed up for a while. Skirting around the much-mentioned copycat nature of the game, what we have here is an impressive collection of PlayStation’s most iconic first-party characters (and Fat Princess) plus a select few third-party heroes kicking the pixelated hell out of each other.

As well as brawling, the game is also something of a platformer as the game is set in 2D levels with players able to leap around platforms and sometimes even bounce off the walls or fall into traps below.

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Hands-on previews, PC, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Previews, Xbox 360

Dishonored (Hands-on Preview)

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Chances are, you’ve probably heard about Dishonored being a game keen to emphasise the vast amount of choice when approaching an assassination mission. Rather than trying to muscle in on Assassin’s Creed’s turf, the game is a first person title.

The game world is a strange mix of Victorian architecture and steampunk mechanics. Narrow foggy streets are patrolled by police on mechanical stilts. There are regular policeman too, although they’ve got something of a WWI German feel about them thanks to single-spike helmets and over-enthusiastic moustaches.

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Hands-on previews, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Previews, PS Vita, PSN (PlayStation Store)

Ratchet & Clank: Q-Force (Hands-on Preview)

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You might be wondering where Insomniac Games have been since announcing their multi-platform title,Overstrike. Well, since then this is their second Ratchet & Clank title, it would seem they’re not quite ready to move out of mama Sony’s house quite yet.

In recent years we’ve had the awesome Crack in Time and last year saw the enjoyable inclusion of multiplayer to the series with All 4 One. Today’s demo was single player but there will be online and splitscreen co-op options for two players. This could work very well as the action was a little dumbed down for All 4 One to allow four players to share a single screen. It was fun, but not quite the full co-op experience long-time fans craved.

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Hands-on previews, PC, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Previews, Wii U, Xbox 360

Darksiders II (Hands-On Preview)

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Death is coming. August 21st specifically. So make sure you’ve made all the arrangements, because Vigil’s eagerly-awaited sequel is going to demand your presence, no questions asked. As protagonists go, brother number two of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is certainly someone you don’t want to piss off.

My hands-on session starts at the opening of the now-finished game. A noisy Manchester Comic Con environment made taking note of any cutscenes a redundant luxury. So, eager to savour the full experience come review day, I skipped ahead, keen to let Death to do his thing.

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News

Play Darksiders II, 3DS XL And More At Manchester MCM Comic-Con Expo Tomorrow

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Fancy getting your hands on this summer’s hottest titles before release? Of course you do. Northern gamers should get to Manchester Central (formerly the G-Mex arena) for the MCM Comic Con event taking place all day tomorrow for the only way to spend a Saturday.

While mainly focused on comics and anime products, there’s a solid line-up of games to try out too. THQ’s killer sequel, Darksiders 2 will be there in playable form and as an added bonus, a live panel will be hosted by lead designer Haydn Dalton and art director Han Randhawa around 1:30pm.

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News

Play Darksiders II, 3DS XL And More At Manchester MCM Comic Con Expo Tomorrow

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Fancy getting your hands on this summer’s hottest titles before release? Of course you do. Northern gamers should get to Manchester Central (formerly the G-Mex arena) for the MCM Comic Con event taking place all day tomorrow for the only way to spend a Saturday.

While mainly focused on comics and anime products, there’s a solid line-up of games to try out too. THQ’s killer sequel, Darksiders 2 will be there in playable form and as an added bonus, a live panel will be hosted by lead designer Haydn Dalton and art director Han Randhawa around 1:30pm.

Still not sure about picking up a 3DS? Well why not try out the new and improved 3DS XL at the expo? You’ll be able to play unreleased games like Super Mario Bros 2 and Pokémon Conquest. Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance was released today, but why not try before you buy?

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Platforms, PlayStation 3, Reviews, RPG

Rainbow Moon Review – Grinding to the moon and back

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With PS3 RPG numbers being on the worryingly low side, I certainly wasn’t expecting one to appear on the digital PSN platform, but that’s exactly what developers SideQuest Studios have given us. Their ambitions are clearly high and I couldn’t wait to see if they could pull it off. Continue reading Rainbow Moon Review – Grinding to the moon and back →

Platforms, PlayStation 3, PS Vita, Wii, Xbox 360

Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes (Review)

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Even Batman needs a little help from his friends, despite hating them all.

If going on a mad collecting splurge in Lego Harry Potter Years 5-7 was too much of a guilty pleasure to indulge in, you might be more comfortable with Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes. Even in Lego form, comic/movie icons don’t come much cooler than the Dark Knight. Even if he is stubby and spends most of the time sulking.

As long as you’re not expecting any dark plot elements like Nolan’s films, the 90s animated series or Rocksteady’s recent games, you’ll be fine. This is for fans who don’t mind a bit of fun poked at Batman. If the Joker was going to make a Batman game it might be like this. Everyone is so happy and cheerful, except for Batman of course.

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Action, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Xbox 360

Lollipop Chainsaw (Review)

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Bored of zombies? Here’s an under-dressed cheerleader with a chainsaw. Oh look you’re back.

Hmmm, a Zombie-hunting Cheerleader armed with pom-poms and a chainsaw you say? Throw in one of gaming’s quirkiest developers in Suda51 and you know the game will be a memorable experience. Although, it will probably be remembered for boob-filled screenshots rather than gameplay.

Like most zombie games, there isn’t a lot of explanation. There are zombies, zombies are pests, let’s re-kill them all. You play as Juliet Starling, head-cheerleader slash pro-zombie chopper, and must clear up the undead mess. All on her eighteenth birthday too, yes Suda-san, we get it – she’s barely legal.

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Action, Platforms, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Move, Reviews

Sorcery (Review)

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The magic the PS Move has been waiting for

Delayed for years and almost forgotten, Sorcery makes a late bid for attention on the criminally under-supported PlayStation Move. Considering most Move titles are based on sports, minigames and dancing, there’s no denying the potential excitement offered by a full-on adventure title that takes advantage of the motion controller and the often forgotten navigation controller. 

Unlike the on-rails action of Medieval Moves, Sorcery allows complete control over your character’s movement. This can be done by holding a PS3 pad with just your left hand for the analogue stick. Or better yet, use the navigation controller (like a Wii nunchuk without the annoying cable) for the first time since Killzone 3.

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Action, PC, Platforms, PlayStation 3, PSN (PlayStation Store), Reviews, XBLA, Xbox 360

Harley Quinn’s Revenge (Batman: Arkham City DLC Review)

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Take me down to Arkham City, where the grass is dead and the girls show no pity.

It’s encouraging to see some premium downloadable content that attempts to expand on the single-player experience of a game. Like many games, Batman: Arkham City has seen more than its fair share of extra costumes and challenges for characters like Robin, Catwoman and Nightwing. But after the huge events at the end of Arkham City, fans will be excited to jump over the prison wall again to ruff up the inmates. As a warning, this DLC review contains spoilers for the end of the main game, so consider yourselves warned.

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Features, News, Video

Sony E3 2012 Press Conference Highlights

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To kick things off, Jack Tretton (President and CEO of SCEA) welcomes David Cage to the stage. The creative mind behind Heavy Rain finally announces the next game from Quantic Dream, Beyond: Two Souls. Here’s what he had to say:

“Death is the biggest mystery of mankind. What will happen after we die is something no-one knows. We all have our hopes, our fears, our doubts. But what’s on the other side remains unknown. Jodie Holmes knows a little bit more about all this than you and I. As far as she remembers, she has always felt a link with an invisible entity. Some presence around her, a spirit or ghost; she doesn’t really know. Something living between our world and the other side. Beyond tells Jodie’s story over fifteen years of her life. We will see her growing, evolving, learning to live with a difference. And discovering more about what’s beyond. For the first time in a videogame we will live the life of a character, go with her through happy and difficult times and help her to become who she is.”

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PC, PlayStation 3, Racers, Reviews, Xbox 360

Dirt Showdown (Review)

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This is not a traditional rally game. It’s an important point to remember for fans of Codemaster’s epic Dirt series. What it is though, is fun. Car smashing, exhilaratingly arcadey fun.

While Dirt 3 seemed caught in two minds as to whether to carry on with the impeccable rallying from the near-perfect Dirt 2 or try and turn your car into a demented pole-dancing skateboard, Showdown feels much more focused, admittedly more towards a Mad Max meets X-games mashup.

Gone are A-B timed stages in favour of a full on festival of car on car violence and general, well, pissing about. Think back to games like Destruction Derby and Twisted Metal, but pretend they were never crap.

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Platforms, PlayStation 3, Reviews, RPG, Xbox 360

Final Fantasy XIII-2 (Review)

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The beautiful and the damned

If you didn’t finish Final Fantasy XIII, you’ll have saved hours of your life from a torturous grind. However, the story was one of the best the series has ever done. The brooding star, Lightning, was a fantastic character that proved you can have a female lead that eschews the tiresome ‘big boobs, brassy attitude’ design and we were gifted an understated portrayal of conflicted charisma. A real boot up the backside of the series’ recent rosters if ever there was one.

After the closing scenes of the last game, Lightning disappeared almost as soon as she was reunited with her younger sister, Serah. This leaves the sequel without its leading lady. I wasn’t convinced that Serah had what it takes to take over the lead, but Square-Enix have done a great job at building her into a solid character. They must have been really confident in her as the old cast only really appear as cameos, admittedly perfectly timed ones.

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