Demand Real Pre-order Bonuses Again!

January 27, 2012 in Posts

In the long forgotten years of 1997-2007, one of the joys of buying a new game were the free bonuses retailers offered as purchasing incentives. Even though the game itself is what mattered, the anticipation for it was enhanced when you had a little trinket inspired by the game.

Pre-order bonuses could be pretty awesome too; the most common being soundtracks, figurines, t-shirts, cases and DVDs. Sometimes publishers went above and beyond and offered something truly amazing. Remember that awesome Lunar Puppet you got when you pre-ordered Silver Star Story?

Yeah, badass.

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Everything you need to know about SSX in 2.5 minutes

January 26, 2012 in Posts

Ok, maybe not technically everything, but this is the video that finally sold me on the new SSX.  From its humble beginnings in the overwhelmingly grey VGA trailer, more and more info has come out on SSX in the intervening year until it finally metamorphosed into this wonderfully insane-looking blast of candy-colored adrenaline.  Yes, there’s plenty that can be said about the number of mountains, classic and new characters, shiny new toys like the wingsuit, and all the other bits and goodies that go with giving SSX its much-deserved revival.  Or you can watch two and a half minutes of footage and hopefully come away with the same impression I did of “Oh yes, this.  This is what I want!”

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Hands-on with Quarrel

January 26, 2012 in Posts

One of the hidden gems of 2011′s E3 was Quarrel, the XBLA game tucked off in a corner of Ignition’s booth, and after much waiting (and eventually forgetting that it exists) it finally made its was to the marketplace today.  So put on your explorer hat and dive into the unforgiving wilds of the current iteration of the 360′s dashboard, because there’s some great gaming a mere few dozen menus down.

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Resident Evil Revelations Title Misspelled?

January 26, 2012 in Posts

With a title like that, you know you're getting good quality control!

Dan Hsu, Editor of Bit Mob, posted on his twitter the above image of a review copy of Resident Evil Revelations.

See anything a bit off? Ouch. Read the rest of this entry →

The Return of the Neo Geo Pocket

January 24, 2012 in Posts

Behold, Neo Geo Pocket Color the 2nd!

Anyone who has talked to me for more than a minute knows of my undying love for the Neo Geo Pocket Color. Released in 1999, the NGPC boasted near-perfect ports of many MVS arcade classics as well as impressive new IPs such as Biomotor Unitron and Cardfighters Clash. Unfortunately, SNK went bankrupt within months and production of consoles and games were halted. SNK was resurrected some years later as SNK Playmore, but the Neo Geo brand never really resurfaced.

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Sonic Gets Progressive

January 24, 2012 in Posts

If you watch fine daytime television such as Judge Alex, Judge Mathis, Judge Joe Brown or Swift Justice with Nancy Grace, you may have noticed that our favorite chili dog addicted hedgehog has made an appearance in a Flo-world Progressive advert. If not, check it out:

I’m usually against movie or game characters shilling products, but this is actually pretty cute. Plus it proves Sonic is culturally relevant again, which is a nice feeling. The only thing that bugs me is that uncharateristic cheer he lets out near the end.

Recommended Reading

January 24, 2012 in Posts

While it’s great to be back, and we’ve got a lot of things to say, it’d be silly to think we’re the only ones being interesting.  It’s a giant interweb with all sorts of goodies lurking in its dark and secret corners, so here’s a handful of links to while away your afternoon-

First up, a nice little almost-pictorial from Castle Story developer Sauropod Studios on why square voxels aren’t suitable for their castle building game.  And as long as you’re there, check out the video on the front page for a nice overview of the game basics from an early development build.

Second, an article from Llamsoft developer Jeff Minter on the origin of Goat Up, the iOS game (with a PC version in the wings eventually) that started off as a relaxing little hobby project for the Atari 2600.  Yes, it’s true, some people find programming for 128 bytes of memory a fun way to spend the weekend.

Third and finally (for now), a giant article on the Buddhist origins of Asura’s Wrath.  The level of detailing in the art design the article points out makes me desperately wish that the demo had shown a game worth playing.

More later, when and as interesting and strange things come into view.

 

Sol Exodus- Shiny Shooty Space Madness

January 23, 2012 in Posts

Well this came out of nowhere.  Sol Exodus is a lovely looking throwback to the Wing Commander/Freespace days, when capitol ships were packed full of single-pilot fighters and everyone wanted to be a non-copyright-infringing version of Star Wars.  Releasing on Steam in a very few days, Sol Exodus’s Unreal Engine 3-powered first person space shooter pyrotechnics are set in our home solar system, where one can assume bad things are happening.  Further, these terrible events can most likely only be averted by a plucky/determined space pilot at the helm of an advanced fighter loaded down with zappy guns, missiles, and who knows what other destructive toys.

In all honesty, all I know about Sol Exodus is what’s on the linked web site and in the video below, but my, does it look like a lovely combination of pretty and awesome. See for yourself-

See? Lovely!