Dead Rising 2 Trailer

Well, the long wait is over for actual video footage from Dead Rising 2 with this brand new trailer. It features the new character as well as a variety of new weapons. I for one am particularly excited for the paddle with the chainsaws attached, or the motorcycle with the same previously mentioned chainsaws. Kind of awesome.

Kotaku also has a write-up of some demo footage that they saw, including the mention of up to 7,000 zombies at a time. Pretty crazy. Who else is pumped?

Assassin’s Creed 2 Trailer Revisited

The teaser for Assassin’s Creed 2 appeared earlier this week, leaving people with a clue about more information to come. While it didn’t show any actual gameplay, it did give a few hints towards some of the elements that could be involved in the next game, as well as its setting. Check out the Assassin’s Creed 2 pop-up style video below that points out some of the tidbits left in there by Ubisoft. Specifically, it seems that the next game might take place in Italy. Also, there could be some kind of flying contraption. Awesome.

Halo 3 Mythic Map Pack Trailer

Just when I thought I had curbed the Halo 3 addiction, Bungie goes and releases this Mythic Map Pack trailer. The map pack will be hitting tomorrow April 9, and sports 3 brand new maps. I think the most intriguing thing about it is Sandbox, which has 3 different spaces for tons of Forge-ness to take place, which will no doubt lead to lots of community created custom games. And those always rule. So, are any of you guys planning on picking this up?

A Tale of Two Liberty Cities

liberty-cityIf you’re unaware, GTA: Chinatown Wars was just released recently on the Nintendo DS, and from what I hear, the game is actually pretty good. It returns to the top down view of the old school GTA games, but brings the thieving and action to the small dual screens of the Nintendo handheld.

The game takes place in the same Liberty City that GTA IV takes place in, and I have to say, it seems that Rockstar has done a great job re-creating the living breathing world that we saw in the next gen version. Even though I’m not crazy about GTA IV, the city is probably my favorite piece of the game. GamesRadar has put some side-by-side comparisons of Chinatown Wars and GTA IV up for gamers to check out, and it’s pretty breathtaking.

So what about you guys? Anybody interested in Chinatown Wars? I might actually pick it up now.

Source- GamesRadar

GTA IV DLC Goes Full Frontal?

gta4dlcSo, it’s a day of opinions from you guys. In case you weren’t aware, the new GTA IV DLC pack, “The Lost and Damned” has male full frontal nudity in it. Yes, you read that correctly. An old man dong, to be more specific.

While the mainstream media hasn’t yet seemed to have found the dong in question, Common Sense Media, a website for parental advice when it comes to things like games and movies, has. And you know what? They still liked the game, giving it 4 out of 5 stars. However, they did caution parents to keep it away from their children, which is the correct thing to do, seeing as how the game is rated M.

However, gaming sites have already jumped down their throats for this, much to my disappointment. Here you have a site giving a responsible review of this game, and we’re still crucifying them, just because they rightly say that young children shouldn’t be playing a game with full frontal nudity?

What do you guys think about this issue? Is nudity out of place in video games? Personally, while I’m not offended if I see some pixel knockers or whatever, as we approach the uncanny valley, I get a little weirded out by sexual anatomy of almost any kind in video games. This goes for animated features as well. Tell us your thoughts!

GTA IV: Lost and Damned DLC Trailer

I knew that the GTA IV DLC, “Lost and Damned”, was coming out soon, but I guess it kind of snuck in under the radar for me. Apparently, it’s out on Tuesday, February 17, on XBox Live for all you 360 owners. It comes in at $20, and supposedly supports quite a few hours of new story missions. While this trailer is pretty cool, I’m not sure I’m ready to spend any more money on GTA IV just yet.

What do you guys think? Does anyone plan on buying it?

Tornado Chasing Comes to GMod

tornadochaseI’m sure that many of you are familiar with the Facepunch forums, especially those of you that are HL2 fanatics of different shapes and sizes. Like most forums, it’s full of its own amount of useless drivel, but occasionally, you’ll find a truly precious gem in its hallowed annals.

This particular gem is gm_tornadochase, a new GMod map being built by user monkeyjoe_, who has had real life experience chasing tornadoes. Yes, the premise is exactly what it sounds like. There is a big freaking tornado on the map, complete with realistic physics and swirling debris, and your job is survive by building structures. Also, you can release research probes up into the vortex to gather data for the stormchaser team.

To me, this is one of the most creative things I’ve ever seen out of a gaming community, and I wanted to share it here. It’s not quite finished, but apparently it’s getting there. There are lots of pictures and even some video demonstrations available in the thread. What do you guys think? Is this bad ass or what?

Source- Facepunch

GTA IV Machinima: Dirty Brake

Zachariah Scott of LitFuseFilms is at it again with some more GTA IV machinima tests, the newest of which is called Dirty Brake. This one involves some good old fashioned driving and destruction, something we can all relate to in terms of the GTA series. A particularly epic shot has to do with a light pole. You’ll know it when you see it. Also, make sure to check it out in HD.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVP4cVLPzV4[/youtube]

Where Should GTA V Be Located?

gta4pcApparently, there are rumors that GTA V might drop as soon as this freaking year. While I’m not putting too much stock in these things just yet, it does bring up an interesting discussion. Will we return to Liberty City? GTA III moved to both Vice City and San Andreas, so what are the likely candidates for the next free-roaming installment?

The XBoxist has put together a list of their top 5 candidates for GTA V. They’ve got a pretty interesting breakdown as to why some of these settings would be ideal, namely Moscow, Paris, Tokyo, Hawaii and the future.

As some of you know, I’m a big fan of that last one. Also, I could see Tokyo make for a great GTA world. What do you guys think? What should the next Grand Theft Auto city be?

Source- Xboxist

LittleBig Michael Jackson Planet

LittleBigPlanet has been used to make lots of things. Calculators, music composers, wedding proposals and even side scrolling shooters. Apparently, you can also make music videos to Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” and “Thriller”. Yes, there is even some moonwalking. One of the coolest parts of all? The dude that made this actually made it for a machinima class at USC. Good way to make the grade, I guess.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMjwAsThY00[/youtube]

MGS, Meet LBP

So the next update to LittleBigPlanet is going to make the darn sackboys even cuter and way more awesome. A new MGS4 pack is being added, complete with exclamation points, Meryl, and all kinds of other MGS content. There were will even be new story levels, and a paintball gun with which to shoot things. Guess we’ll see lots of sidescrolling shooter levels next. And that’s not a bad thing.

LBP Sales are Not so Hot

Little Big Planet, we hardly knew ye. I always wondered if it was such a good idea for Sony to hitch its wagon onto Little Big Planet for the second half of this year. I mean, it was such a unique, different kind of game that it didn’t seem to me that all that many people would really be into it. They kept touting the thing as a console pusher, but I never saw it that way.

I guess other people agreed. Unfortunately, November NPD reports show that LBP has only sold around 400,000 copies since it came out in October. Compare that to Gears of War 2’s 3 million copies sold, and you’ll start to see what the big deal is. Considering that this game was THE game for PS3 for the holidays, those numbers are pretty dismal.

So what do you guys think? Just another sign of Sony dropping the ball this gen, or are they going to bounce back and be ok?

Source- Kotaku

GTA IV PC Review, Minus the Hype

God bless us everyone, and especially 1UP, for what I consider to be a fantastic look at GTA IV several months later, in light of some of the other great games that have hit this year. I’ve been saying since about 5-10 hours into this title that it is one smoldering heap of an overrated game (though still incredibly well made). I can recognize the game’s quality, but that doesn’t mean it’s not still overrated.

What I find particularly interesting is the brief analysis of the characters and the story, but also how other games have given us virtual playgrounds such as Stillwater in Saint’s Row 2 and the Wasteland in Fallout 3 without short-changing us when it comes to our characters. It’s an interesting look at the game that everyone is saying “OMG BEST EVAR” about, and a sobering one at that.

What do you guys think? Is this reviewer and idiot, as some of the commenters have already suggested?

Source- 1UP

Microsoft Wants Crackdown Part Deux

I find Crackdown to be one of the most underrated games of this generation, and a testament to pure platforming bliss. While the open world could have had a few more options and the story was lacking, the gameplay was addictive and the agility orbs could weaken even the strongest man’s resolve.

That’s why it’s exciting to hear several dudes including XBox Live’s Major Nelson talking up the possibility of a Crackdown sequel. Unfortunately, Realtime Worlds immediately began work on the MMO titled APB, which is essentially an MMO version of GTA, in a sense. I guess nobody knew that Crackdown would take hold like it did, despite the packaging of the Halo 3 beta. Go figure.

I can’t wait for a Crackdown 2. What do you guys think? Did any of you play the first one? Am I on the crazy bus?

Source- VG247

Review: Saint’s Row 2

This year, tons of buzz was made about a few open world games. With great games like Fallout 3, GTA IV, Fable II and the like, it was hard to ignore the pull that these titles had, sucking gamers in and sinking their teeth in for the kill. However, there was one title that got ignored amidst all of the to-do about these other good games: Saint’s Row 2.

The THQ sequel puts you back in the shoes of Stillwater’s most wanted, the leader of the Saints, the city’s most notorious criminals. As the curtain opens, you are in a coma, having survived a horrific explosion that changed your appearance and left you comatose. And then the fun starts.

Continue reading Review: Saint’s Row 2

Legend of Zelda Meets Little Big Planet

Since we’re on the subject of Zelda, it only seemed appropriate to post this LittleBigPlanet map, which features recreated gameplay from the first Legend of Zelda game on the NES. Pretty incredible. I mean, sure, it’s slow and isn’t quite the same, but I’m impressed yet again by the seemingly limitless possibilities in this engine. The thing is, we’ve probably barely even scratched the surface.

Funny fact about the original Legend of Zelda: I could never play it because the dungeons always scared me when I was a kid.

GTA IV: Get Sprunk

Here’s an example of what you can do with the new GTA IV PC video editor, out in the wild. This video is good for a quick chuckle, and I’m liking some of the camera moves you can do as well. Can’t wait to see what it’s capable of, first person. Guess we’ll be seeing lots of machinima from the GTA IV community, perhaps. Anyone else plan on getting this for the PC?

Street Fighter II in LBP

Ah, the obligatory “someone put x in LBP” video, but even still, I never get tired of them. This LittleBigPlanet level features Street Fighter II’s Ken, Ryu, Zangief and even Blanca, engaging in battles. Pretty creative stuff, and yet another reminder that I’d never be able to do something as cool as this.

GTA IV PC’s Machinima Tools

GTA IV releases on the PC in December, bringing its destructive gameplay to desktop gaming around the world. One of the cool new features that will be coming to the PC version of the game, however, is the in-game video editor that allows you to piece together several 30-45 second clips that you can capture while you play.

With those clips, you have access to a video editor that allows you to place camera movements, text and more, all for upload to Rockstar Social, or you can even output them at 720p or 1080p for your own use. While I wasn’t too excited about the tools at first, Eurogamer has posted some quick clips showing little demos of what is available to you, option-wise, and I must say I’m pleased with the results…

Great, another game I might be picking up on Steam next month… What do you guys think? You can view some videos made with the editor at the link below.

Source- Eurogamer