GameSpasm

The chance to play Fallout: New Vegas has been hard to come by -- we've seen it in action before, but it wasn't until a little while back at a pre-E3 event that I was able to finally grab a controller and explore Obsidian's take on the streets and surroundings of a post-apocalyptic Sin City.

But it turns out, as I wandered into the dingy casinos and off into the desert for a few quests, that I had already played the game anyway, back when it was called Fallout 3.

Continue reading Preview: Fallout: New Vegas

Preview: Fallout: New Vegas originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 15 Jun 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: bethesda-softworks, e3-2010, fallout-new-vegas, hands-on, microsoft, Namco Bandai, obsidian entertainment, PC, Playstation, pre-e3, PS3, Xbox

Related posts

• VATS what Fallout: New Vegas looks like! (0)
• Preview: Rage (0)
• Watch this Portal 2 trailer, you monsters (0)
• Video Interview: Portal 2’s Erik Wolpaw (0)
• Trine 2 conjures online co-op for XBLA, PSN and PC (0)

Vanquish was introduced to us at Sega's pre-E3 event as Shinji Mikami's take on Gears of War, and though I only got to play through one brief battle, that's an apt description. The game combines the frantic over-the-top action that Platinum Games is known for thanks to titles like Bayonetta and MadWorld, and brings it into the setting of a high-tech, cover-based third person shooter. The result, as you can imagine, is pretty satisfying.

The basic scenario is a future with the world's last two superpowers, Russia and the US, fighting on an American space station designed to harness the energy of the sun (after all of the Earth's resources have already been depleted). Sam Gideon is the game's hero, and it's his job to go into the station with US troops and save the day. Fortunately, he's outfitted with a power suit that allows for all sorts of technological and acrobatic wizardry.

Continue reading Preview: Vanquish

Preview: Vanquish originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 15 Jun 2010 19:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: e3-2010, hands-on, microsoft, platinum-games, Playstation, pre-e3-2010, PS3, sega, shinji-mikami, Vanquish, Xbox

Related posts

• Interview: Shinji Mikami on Vanquish, evolving game dev locales and … punching fools (0)
• Woohoo! Vanquish has ‘Casual Auto’ and ‘God Hard’ modes (0)
• Sega defeats confusion over Vanquish release date: Oct. 19 in North America (0)
• Increased ‘visual density’ led to a more linear Vanquish (0)
• Sonic Adventure on PSN and XBLA won’t venture outside of 4:3 aspect ratio (0)

Kung-Fu Live sounds almost exactly like a Project Natal game. With the aid of a camera, your image is placed directly into the game, and real movements are translated into in-game actions. As the concept trailer above shows, you'll be able to kick and punch wildly into the air to take down virtual baddies. But Kung-Fu Live isn't destined for Project Natal. Instead, it's coming exclusively to the PlayStation Network. You won't need a fancy PlayStation Move controller, either. This is one of the few games designed exclusively for the PlayStation Eye camera.

Powering the gameplay experience is Virtual Air Guitar Company's FreeMotion technology, which promises "real-time tracking of the entire human body as well as background removal using regular webcams." Certainly, the promise of Natal-esque gameplay using a standard camera has us intrigued, but is it better than your typical PS2 EyeToy game?

It's clear that the technology powering Kung-Fu Live is far more powerful than what we've seen in the PS2 generation. The system is able to accurately remove the background in real-time -- and is intelligent enough to know when new players jump in or out. Another aspect that benefits Kung-Fu Live: personality. The game is story-driven, told through comic panels in which you can feature. At the start of each level the game will suggest a pose for you to attempt, after which the camera will take a picture and inject you into a comic book scene. Seeing myself roundhouse kick three goons in a generated comic book strip was definitely amusing. (Being able to share these photos online seems like an ideal way to use the game's built-in Facebook functionality, as well.)

Continue reading Hands-on: PlayStation Eye's Kung-Fu Live

Hands-on: PlayStation Eye's Kung-Fu Live originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 17 May 2010 11:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: freemotion, hands-on, kung-fu-live, playstation-eye, psn, virtual-air-guitar

Related posts

• New Kung-Fu Live trailer fights for your attention (0)
• Hands-on: Shank (0)
• Hands-on: PixelJunk Racers 2nd Lap (PSN) (0)
• Hands-on: Dante’s Inferno: The Trials of St. Lucia (DLC) (0)
• Eye of Judgment online servers closing in September (0)

The real key to Blur, though, is the much-discussed social features. Bizarre has more or less perfected console racing over all of its past iterations, and so when we were invited to Activision HQ last week to check out Blur's single-player components, the focus wasn't so much on the how of racing, but the why.

Continue reading Hands-on: Blur (single player)

Hands-on: Blur (single player) originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 10 May 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: activision, Bizarre-Creations, blur, community-events, hands-on, legend, Modern warfare 2, multiplayer, racing, share, single-player, Social Networking, twitter, Xbox Live

Related posts

• Blur issues Twitter challenges between friends, across platforms (0)
• USK: Multiplayer Blur demo for Xbox 360 in the works (0)
• Review: Blur (0)
• New Blur trailer meant to be watched with friends (0)
• Blur trailer takes a lap around the world, pulls into the virtual garage (0)

For some, Sin & Punishment 2 is of known quality. Released last year in Japan for the Wii, hardcore gamers have already experienced Treasure's latest. Thankfully, for the rest of us, we don't have to rely on imports -- Nintendo of America is finally (and slowly) bringing the franchise Stateside.

Although its N64 predecessor found release on the Virtual Console, it's likely that the Wii audience is completely unfamiliar to the franchise. Certainly, the Wii doesn't feel like it should be home to such a niche game from a "hardcore" developer like Treasure. Featuring an onslaught of endless enemies, and a relentless torrent of bullets filling the screen, Star Successor doesn't even attempt to console casual gamers. In fact, moving to the Wii has allowed Treasure to expand the gameplay to the point where Star Successor feels like the game Sin & Punishment was always meant to be.

Continue reading Hands-on: Sin and Punishment: Star Successor (co-op)

Hands-on: Sin and Punishment: Star Successor (co-op) originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 28 Apr 2010 17:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: Co-op, hands-on, Nintendo, Sin and punishment 2, sin-and-punishment, sin-and-punishment-star-successor, treasure

Related posts

• Hands-on: Sin and Punishment: Star Successor (co-op) (0)
• Review: Sin & Punishment: Star Successor (0)
• Review: Sin & Punishment: Star Successor (0)
• Metroid: Other M, Sin & Punishment: Star Successor delayed (0)
• Iwata Asks Treasure about Sin & Punishment: Star Successor (0)

For some, Sin & Punishment 2 is of known quality. Released last year in Japan for the Wii, hardcore gamers have already experienced Treasure's latest. Thankfully, for the rest of us, we don't have to rely on imports -- Nintendo of America is finally (and slowly) bringing the franchise Stateside.

Although its N64 predecessor found release on the Virtual Console, it's likely that the Wii audience is completely unfamiliar to the franchise. Certainly, the Wii doesn't feel like it should be home to such a niche game from a "hardcore" developer like Treasure. Featuring an onslaught of endless enemies, and a relentless torrent of bullets filling the screen, Star Successor doesn't even attempt to console casual gamers. In fact, moving to the Wii has allowed Treasure to expand the gameplay to the point where Star Successor feels like the game Sin & Punishment was always meant to be.

Continue reading Hands-on: Sin and Punishment: Star Successor (co-op)

Hands-on: Sin and Punishment: Star Successor (co-op) originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 28 Apr 2010 17:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: Co-op, hands-on, Nintendo, Sin and punishment 2, sin-and-punishment, sin-and-punishment-star-successor, treasure

Related posts

• Hands-on: Sin and Punishment: Star Successor (co-op) (0)
• Review: Sin & Punishment: Star Successor (0)
• Review: Sin & Punishment: Star Successor (0)
• Metroid: Other M, Sin & Punishment: Star Successor delayed (0)
• Iwata Asks Treasure about Sin & Punishment: Star Successor (0)

There were a number of interesting features -- complex characters, a dark, mature story that explored the seedy lives of criminals -- in IO Interactive's original Kane & Lynch, provided you could look past the broken gameplay and the subsequent review scandal. While the franchise's name may be forever tarnished, that hasn't stopped IO from developing a sequel, one that expands upon the best aspects of the original. But, most importantly, does Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days fix the gameplay inherited from its predecessor? Sort of.

As our previous impressions indicated, there's much to like about the game's presentation. Like Dead Men before it, Kane & Lynch is certainly not short on style. The "digital camera" effect makes this shooter look unlike any other game I've seen, offering the illusion of reality. Upon closer inspection, you can see the graphics tech is far from cutting-edge, but the clever filters and camera techniques make Dog Days feel far more authentic than the photo-realistic approach most other games attempt.

Continue reading Hands-on: Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days (single-player)

Hands-on: Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days (single-player) originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 23 Apr 2010 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: hands-on, IO interactive, kane-and-lynch, kane-and-lynch-2, kane-and-lynch-2-dog-days, square-enix, square-enix-europe

Related posts

• Kane & Lynch comics to terrorize newsstands this August (0)
• Extended Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days trailer welcomes you to Shanghai (again) (0)
• Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days trailer welcomes you to Shanghai (0)
• Kane & Lynch 2 multiplayer pits cops against robbers (0)
• Impressions: Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days (0)

Blizzard has been handing out Starcraft 2 beta keys like free lunch, but it's not just for the benefit of starved-craft fans. "Oh, we don't think of this as a demo," Blizzard's Dustin Browder told me during a recent studio visit, "It's a beta test." So-called testers are contributing piles of feedback data, which has led to nine game patches so far, with more surely in the works. "The Archon has been on my chopping block for months," Browder muttered, referring to the powerful Protoss ground unit.

The focus of my recent visit to Blizzard HQ was not to talk beta, however. It was to preview three new single-player missions from StarCraft 2: Wings of Liberty. In doing so, I learned more about how the developer is incorporating at least one other race into the Terran-centric game and tried out some new game-altering mechanics and the new tech upgrade process.

Continue reading Hands-on: New StarCraft 2 single-player missions

Hands-on: New StarCraft 2 single-player missions originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 23 Apr 2010 16:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: blizzard, hands-on, StarCraft, starcraft 2, starcraft 2: wings of liberty, Strategy

Related posts

• StarCraft II site updated with new screens, feature content (0)
• Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty Zerg rushing retail July 27 (0)
• StarCraft 2 TV spot wants you to know ‘war is coming’ (0)
• StarCraft 2 release still targeted for first half of 2010 (0)
• StarCraft 2 beta keys being auctioned for around $300 (0)

Our protagonist awakens, covered in debris from a train wreck he managed to narrowly escape from. How did he get there? The game rewinds to earlier in the adventure, as our hero makes his way on a sordid journey towards the disastrous ride. Along the way, he'll have to dispatch enemies, taking cover, mixing gun play and melee combat.

No, this isn't Uncharted 2. It's Namco Bandai's Dead to Rights Retribution. And unfortunately, it too easily welcomes comparison to Joystiq's Game of the Year 2009 ... and comes up short.

Continue reading Hands-on: Dead to Rights Retribution

Hands-on: Dead to Rights Retribution originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 12 Apr 2010 17:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: dead-to-rights, dead-to-rights-retribution, hands-on, namco, Namco Bandai

Related posts

• New Dead to Rights: Retribution dev diary heads to Abbey Road (0)
• Namco Bandai predicts sales for Dead to Rights, Splatterhouse (0)
• Dead to Rights: Retribution trailer enforces slow-mo justice (0)
• Dead to Rights: Retribution dev diary is loaded with dog fighting (0)
• Dead to Rights: Retribution ‘GAC Pack’ DLC coming May 26 [update: June 1 in North America] (0)

We are, and I don't think I'm being premature about this, in the thrall of a full-on 2D renaissance courtesy of digital distribution platforms like XBLA and PSN. Developers are realizing that modern technology plus a less technically demanding perspective can lead to a really beautiful end product.

That's the case with Shank, a fluid, violent brawler that artfully combines a sort of 2D Devil May Cry blend of sword- and gunplay with a Saturday morning animation style to create the coolest cartoon your mom would have never let you watch.

Continue reading Hands-on: Shank

Hands-on: Shank originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 29 Mar 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments Tags: hands-on, klei entertainment, PAX East, PAX East 2010, psn, shank, Xbox 360

Related posts

• Let’s Shank Again, Like I Did Last Summer [PAX East] (0)
• The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile Preview: The Machine Girl Cometh [PAX East] (0)
• Skate 3 demo on Xbox Live and PSN April 15 (0)
• Shank dated for late August, priced $15; adds co-op mission (0)
• See a cut of Shank gameplay (0)