Here’s a good list of games coming out this Fall as compiled by PCWorld.com:
Halo 3: ODST–ETA: September 22
For: Xbox 360
Finally, a Bungie Studios shooter without ol’ tall, chrome, and incognito as the protagonist. ODST stands for “Orbital Drop Shock Trooper,” and that’s what you’ll play as in this Halo 3 prequel.
You’ll trade jibes with the likes of Firefly’s Nathan Fillion, Adam Baldwin, and Alan Tudyk while scouring the ruins of New Mombasa (an African city ravaged in Halo 2) for intel on your missing squad mates. You’ll sniff out items they’ve left behind (such as weapons) and experience their stories through flashbacks.
Also, while the gunplay and AI battles won’t deviate from the experience in prior Halos, you will have the option to shuffle the campaign missions instead of slogging through the story, A to Z.
Price: $60
Dead Space: Extraction–ETA: September 28
For: Wii
This game is the prequel to Dead Space, the most unexpectedly riveting horror shooter in years. (I think it’s even better than Capcom’s Resident Evil 5.)
Dead Space: Extraction, from Visceral Games, is an exclusive gift to Wii owners. You play as another unfortunate space colonist fending off slobbering hordes of Necromorphs–violent aliens that assimilate human body parts (think “Tinker Toys: Picasso Edition”). As you’d expect, the game makes ample use of the Wii Remote for aiming at aliens, scuffling with them, and slashing them to bits.
The one potential downer? It’s a first-person “rail shooter,” meaning your movement is limited while the game drags you along a predetermined route.
Price: $50
Gran Turismo PSP–ETA: October 1
For: PSP
The PSP already has loads of racing games, but nothing quite like developer Polyphony Digital’s plans for Gran Turismo PSP. Subscribing to the notion that “more is definitely more,” this game follows its console counterpart’s lead in packing some 800 cars (including exotic-brand firsts such as Lamborghini and Bugatti), 4500 paint variations, over 30 race tracks, and 60-plus layouts spread across famous world circuits, city courses, and dirt roads.
Sure, it has no damage model, so you’ll pinball off walls and other vehicles–but then again, destruction was never the point of a series that prioritizes physics-fueled raceway tactics executed at cheek-flapping speeds.
Price: $40
Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising–ETA: October 6
For: PS3, Windows, Xbox 360
Operation Flashpoint could well be the game that Crytek’s Crysis wasn’t in terms of promise versus delivery.
Codemasters’ Operation Flashpoint promises ballistically authentic weapons (more than 70 in all), naturalistic physics, a giant island modeled after the real thing with breathtaking 35-kilometer draw distances, and enemy artificial intelligence capable of acting overconfidently as well as overcautiously.
No wonder the design team is hyping the game by saying stuff like “…it will give people a small appreciation for what our troops have to face in real combat.”
Price: $60 ($50 for Windows version)
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves–ETA: October 13
For: PS3
If you haven’t played Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune and you own a PS3, get thee to a retailer, and then buckle up for the console’s best action-adventure to date–better than Lara Croft when she rocked, or Indiana Jones in any of his last three films.
In developer Naughty Dog’s sequel, you play once more as the modern swashbuckler Nathan Drake, leaping, dodging, swimming, and shooting your way through verdant jungles and snow-shrouded vistas, but this time you also slink around targets, scale towering vertical surfaces, and tip things over to use as cover.
The object of your acrobatic travails? Marco Polo’s lost fleet, a wish-fulfilling jewel, and the mythical Himalayan valley of Shangri-La.
Price: $60
Brutal Legend–ETA: October 13
For: PS3, Xbox 360
The words “Brutal Legend” may not ring any bells for you, but I’ll bet the words “Full Throttle” do. The common denominator: game designer Tim Schafer.
Recognize him? Keep an eye on this game. Don’t know who he is? Keep an eye on this game. And check out this premise: A head-banging roadie (that’s you) voiced by actor Jack Black warps to a fantasy world inspired by the glam-goth artwork lavished on too many 1980s heavy-metal album covers. (If you saw the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, Black showed up dressed in Brutal Legend gear.)
Once there, you’ll do battle wielding a gigantic twin-blade axe and a magic-spitting Flying V guitar, rubbing elbows with characters voiced by Tim Curry, Lita Ford, Rob Halford, and Ozzy Osbourne. Spinal Tap meets “Lord of the Rings”? Promises, promises from Double Fine Productions.
Price: $60
Borderlands–ETA October 20
For: PS3, Windows, Xbox 360
Whether it actually “challenges all the conventions of modern shooters” or simply disguises them better than most, Gearbox Software’s Borderlands is angling to upend your expectations. If Diablo and Mad Max were to have a baby, it would probably look like this game.
Imagine random levels, random creatures, random creature tactics, and a massive arsenal of recombining weaponry, from revolvers that fire shotgun shells to rifles that spit rockets. Everything is tuned for speed, with online cooperative play that’ll let up to four players drop in or out of missions and scour a post-apocalyptic alien planet for a legendary tech trove.
Along the way, you’ll sign up for quests and upgrade character skills. All that’s missing? Tina Turner and the Thunderdome.
Price: $60 ($50 for Windows version)
Alpha Protocol–ETA: October 27
For: PS3, Windows, Xbox 360
Alpha Protocol–a third-person, modern-day action RPG about a rogue CIA agent–doesn’t really leap out at you on paper, but it’s a product of Obsidian Entertainment, the folks responsible for Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II and Neverwinter Nights 2.
I’m famously on record for pillorying the latter, but Alpha Protocol’s lead designer is Chris “Planescape: Torment” Avellone, the brains behind one of the best role-playing games ever made.
If that’s not enough to light your fire, try this: Sega’s Alpha Protocol is the world’s first modern-day espionage-oriented role-playing game.
Price: $60 ($50 for Windows version)
Forza Motorsport 3–ETA: October 27
For: Xbox 360
They ought to call this genre “Beautiful Cars.” Forza Motorsport 3 is after top honors in the category with detail modeling that has supposedly increased tenfold from the last go-round. The series, from Turn 10 Studios, is also more than happy to venture where the Gran Turismo games won’t: Forza Motorsport 3 promises the most advanced damage modeling yet seen in a racer game.
Factor in the 400 customizable cars from 50 manufacturers that you can hurtle around 100 tracks, the 200 personalized racing events, the vehicle rollovers, and the long-overdue in-car driving view, too.
Gran Turismo 5 looks incredible, to be sure, but if you’re after ultimate physical automotive fidelity, Forza Motorsport 3 will probably get the trophy.
Price: $60
Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time–ETA: October 27
For: PS3
If you’ve been following the Ratchet & Clank Future series from Insomniac Games, this installment wraps up plot points initiated in the earlier Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction.
Not that the plot about kidnapped robots and interstellar archvillains really matters, since this action-adventure series has always been about clever puzzles and even smarter team-based acrobatics.
This time around, you’ll be fiddling with time itself to solve all sorts of head-scratchers. Of all the games that stand in the shadow of Nintendo’s Super Mario 64, the Ratchet & Clank series takes top honors. Frankly, I’d rather play these than any of Nintendo’s recent Mario titles.
Price: $60
Dragon Age: Origins–ETA: November 3
For: PS3, Windows, Xbox 360
Before everyone swoons over Mass Effect 2 early next year, folks will want to check out Dragon Age: Origins this November. This game marks developer Bioware’s return to fantasy form, eight years after sewing up the Baldur’s Gate series. This title isn’t D&D (probably a perk at this point); instead it showcases Bioware’s own “dark heroic fantasy” universe.
What’s different? Moral complexity, ostensibly. The design team claims inspiration from fantasy novelist George R.R. Martin. Personally, I’d have preferred Steven Erikson. Even so…a game that forces you to weigh murder, genocide, betrayal, and the possession or sacrifice of children without a simplistic good/bad slider to steer by? Sign me up.
Price: $60 ($50 for Windows version)
Modern Warfare 2–ETA: November 10
For: PS3, Windows, Xbox 360
If I had to choose between Infinity Ward’s Modern Warfare and competitor Retro Studios’ Metroid Prime, I’d go with Metroid Prime. But Activision’s more-realistic-than-usual (but not very realistic) modern-era first-person shooter would still be up there.
The first Modern Warfare certainly sold like gangbusters, perhaps proving that we’re finally burned out on games themed to World War II.
Modern Warfare 2 brings more of the same but tacks on dual-wield weapons, snowmobile races, Russian vistas, tons of new multiplayer features, and the option to superheroically take on over 50 enemies at once.
Silly or no, I predict that the sun won’t go down before this game goes platinum. One warning: Don’t fall for the “Prestige Edition,” which is priced over the moon at $150. I mean, an included pair of night-vision goggles? For real, Activision?
Price: $60
Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines–ETA: November 10
For: PSP
Assassin’s Creed on a handheld that actually plays like the free-roaming action-stealth original? What’s not to like?
Bloodlines steps in just before Assassin’s Creed 2 (see the last slide), chronologically speaking. Bloodlines allows players to pad, perch, and prowl around the Greek island of Cyprus as Altair, the enigmatic protagonist from the original game.
The backstory for this series from Ubisoft Montreal has more twists than a contortionist (or the Cliff’s Notes version of a Thomas Pynchon novel), which means you’ll probably have to play Bloodlines if you want the skinny on the link between the last game’s mysterious protagonist and the upcoming sequel’s. (That, or wait for the Wikipedia summary.)
Price: $40
Left 4 Dead 2–ETA: November 17
For: Windows, Xbox 360
Heads exploding, bodies ripping open, swarms of bloody revenants scrambling over fences–just another day in the office for developer Valve.
This sequel to last November’s first-person multiplayer zombie-masher adds five new supersized campaigns and tweaks the rules just enough to justify its existence–that is, if you’re not one of the radicalized few who think that Valve is releasing this game too soon, or that the company owes players features that fall well outside the original’s parameters.
Entitlement complex? People can grouse, but you’ll want to judge this sequel on its own merits.
Price: $60 ($50 for Windows version)
Assassin’s Creed 2–ETA: November 17
For: PS3, Windows, Xbox 360
The Assassin’s Creed series, developed by Ubisoft Montreal, exits the Middle Ages and time-warps to Venice during the Renaissance, continuing the saga of Desmond Miles and his wildly talented, ne’er-do-well ancestors.
As before, you’ll play an assassin capable of bounding along wooden beams and scrambling up walls like a spider. You’ll also befriend historical celebs like Leonardo da Vinci and take the celebrated inventor’s famous bat-winged ornithopter for a spin.
The most frightening new feature? Enemies can now track you right to your hidey-holes.
Price: $60 ($50 for Windows version)
Just in time for the WatchMen DVD? Check out the trailer for Watchmen: The End Is Nigh Part 2:
check it out:
This is pretty slick… from E3 2009:
Webcarzz, Inc. today announced a planned corporate name change to Vector Entertainment and product name change to Vector City Racers. The new product name, Vector City Racers, is intended to better represent the Company’s casual MMO/virtual world. Vector Entertainment and MCS Games are developing an upcoming virtual world targeted to boys and their affinity for racing. In celebration of the new name, Vector Entertainment also announced the Fastest Road to Fun Contest.
“As we develop the game, we have been conducting deep consumer research to ensure we deliver a product that meets the needs of our target audience. As a direct result of our findings, Vector City Racers more accurately reflects the game’s visual style and unique gameplay experience that is geometrically structured,” said Chris Bergstresser, CEO, Vector Entertainment.
Since the CarStructor tool for building vehicles to race in the game was first launched in January, kids have been creating the usual cars, trucks and planes, as well as original vehicles depicting such items as a “pogo stick”, “pirate hat”, and “cheese sandwich”. Continued Bergstresser, “The game’s design has evolved to encompass so much more of what a child’s imagination can hold. By offering kids tools and an environment to unlock their creativity, we are giving them a sense of freedom and empowerment not seen in online games before. There is no limit to what children can create with this game, as evidenced by the examples above.”
Contest
The Fastest Road to Fun Contest invites all players to design their own vehicle using CarStructor, an easy-to-use online creation workshop, and submit it to Vector City Racers. A panel of five judges from the company will select the grand prize, second place and third place winners. The Fastest Road to Fun Contest begins on April 22, 2009 and ends on June 24, 2009. Winners will be announced on July 1, 2009.
The grand prize winner’s original vehicle will be featured in the game as one of several default starter vehicles. The grand prize also includes tickets and air travel for up to a family of five to one of the following of the winners choosing: Red Bull Grand Prix, NHRA Autolite Nationals, MonsterJam Truck Show, or NASCAR Allstate 400. Second place winner will receive a lifetime membership to the Vector City Racers game. The third place winner will receive a signed copy of the Vector City Racers comic book from world renowned comic illustrator and writer Kyle Baker.
To enter The Fastest Road to Fun Contest, players need to visit www.vectorcityracers.com and build their own customized 3D vehicles with CarStructor. Starting with a basic canvas consisting of two cubes and a set of wheels, children can create original 3D vehicles with simple drag and click motions. CarStructor empowers kids to stretch and pull the cubes’ corners in three dimensions, as well as widen, narrow, shorten or lengthen the wheels. A wide palette of colors is provided to further customize each vehicle. Branded and original decals that add an extra touch of personalization are also available. CarStructor features an easy-to-use camera that allows kids to see their creation from every angle. For full contest rules and regulations visit: www.vectorcityracers.com during the month of April.
Vector City Racers is an integrated game experience that combines the depth of a massively multiplayer online game (MMO) and the competition of circuit track racing in a casual environment where all roads lead to fun. Vector City Racers’ environment is comprised of shapes and structures that are constructed in real-time 3D as the players explore and interact through the game’s cities. Vector City Racers is currently in closed beta. For more information on the closed beta test, visit www.vectorcityracers.com.
from Reuters:
TOKYO, April 9 (Reuters) - Japan’s Nintendo Co, which competes with Microsoft Corp and Sony Corp in the global video game market, said on Thursday it would launch its “Wii Sports Resort” software in June in Japan.
Wii Sports Resort follows its popular “Wii Sports” game, which helped drive sales of its Wii game console as users can play baseball, tennis and other sports using its motion-sensing controller.
Wii Sports Resort, which lets users throw a frisbee to a virtual dog or duel one another with swords, will hit overseas markets in July, Nintendo said.
Nintendo’s Wii game console far outsells Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3, and its DS, which competes with Sony’s PlayStation Portable, dominates the handheld video game market.
Nintendo shares were down 2.8 percent at 27,940 yen, little moved by the news. The benchmark Nikkei average gained 2.9 percent.
Today CD Projekt RED, the world’s leading developer of games with “The Witcher” in their title, announced its first internally-developed foray into handheld gaming, The Witcher: Mysterious Secrets. The game is in development for all current-gen, next-gen and gen-after-next-gen handheld systems and is scheduled for release between Tuesday and Friday 2010.
A jaw-dropping revolution in handheld gaming, The Witcher: Mysterious Secrets features a massive list of revolutionary features that will completely revolutionize, then de-evolutionize, then evolutionize and then once more revolutionize the industry. Among the revolutionary features are two cooperative multiplayer modes never before seen on handheld systems: play together with your friend on one system as you harness Geralt’s awesome Powers of Movement on the D-pad while your friend uses the awesome Powers of Doing on the A and B buttons; or connect with a limitless number of players as you play for a bit, then pass the handheld to your friend and watch them play for a while, and then finally take it back to play some more yourself!
The awe-inspiring graphics created using half of the game engine’s available 32 colours help to immerse players in the awe-inspiring story of Geralt of Rivia as he fights to save the world from an unknown evil. Set in a completely open world that allows for movement in both left and right directions for an infinite amount of time, The Witcher: Mysterious Secrets also includes some features usually found in today’s best console games, like the Decisions and Inconsequence system that ensures that no decision you make will have an impact on the outcome of the game. That’s right – no more worrying about making bad decisions. We’ll also have DLC at astronomical prices, including the upcoming “The Witcher: Go Up and Down” pack. Yeah, DLC on a handheld. You wanna fight about it?
“The Witcher: Mysterious Secrets is really awesome,” said Adam Kicinski, the guy who runs CD Projekt RED. “Like… really awesome. It has better graphics, better combat, a better story and more boobs than the PC version. Awesome, right?”
I would love to know the number of quarters I used as a kid playing this game at the arcade… Outrun will now be available on XBOX Live Arcade, check it out:
from Electronista.com:
Zeebo this morning unveiled a self-titled console which it says could bring video gaming and other Internet features to countries that previously haven’t had widespread access to the technology. The system combines a 528MHz Qualcomm MSM processor with a free, 3G link over HSPA that lets the console perpetually remain connected to the Internet without requiring a hardwired connection. Users can buy and download games anywhere the console gets coverage; the cellular link will also allow frequent system updates and, eventually, the ability to share the Zeebo’s connection with computers or other devices that might be relegated to dial-up in developing areas.
The hardware will primarily focus on mobile-class 3D games and already has the support of Capcom, EA, Gameloft and other significant developers. About 1GB of flash memory provides the permanent storage, while an SD card slot lets owners add more. Control is more like a traditional TV-attached console with three full-size USB ports and one mini allowing multiple dual-analog gamepads and other peripherals.
Reflecting its attention on the developing world, Zeebo the company says its system will first be available in Brazil when it ships next month. Although early pricing in the South American country is set at the equivalent of $199, other countries should get the system for $179. Zeebo hopes that economies of scale will let it push the system price down to $149 by 2010.
From PCWorld.com:
Sony’s redesigned PSP is rumored to be getting a new look. But all changes to this portable gaming device, expected to be released later this year, are largely cosmetic.
The biggest change to the PSP’s design is a sliding screen; as shown in a mock-up from VG247, it slides up to reveal various controls that are hidden beneath it when closed. new PSP, dubbed the PSP 4000, may be “significantly smaller in width,” because of the new design, Eurogamer says.
According to reports, the PSP 4000 will have to be in the open position to play full-featured games, but there’s no word on whether the rumored design includes game controllers or a keyboard underneath the screen. The 4000 may also allow you to play basic games, like LocoRoco, using the shoulder buttons (the L and R buttons at the top of the device) when the screen is closed.
This latest rumor comes after last week’s news that the PSP may let go of its UMD drive to offload more bulk from the game system. Instead of the disc drive, Sony may look to sell games through the online PlayStation Store or perhaps even on Sony Memory Sticks. If the rumors are true, then the 4000 is a significant step forward for the PSP; however, the new PSP will still be based on current PSP tech with no improved graphics or gaming features. That being said, with the PSP 3000 and these new rumors, it’s refreshing to hear about PSP updates that go beyond new colors, various entertainment bundles and incremental firmware updates.
The rumored release date for the 4000 is late 2009, and may be followed by a PSP2 in 2011 or 2012.
PLAY
