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Batman: The Telltale Series- Episode 4: Guardian of Gotham | REVIEW


Posted on December 11, 2016 by Meghan Kass

Batman continues its adventure with episode 4, titled Guardian of Gotham. Telltale has made some impressive and creative choices with their interpretation of Batman and its iconic characters and while this episode may not have the twists and turns of previous episodes, it still continues to intrigue and engage despite some technical setbacks. With a new game mechanic, new character added to the mix and the story being brought closer to its conclusion, can this episode lead up to a promising end for this story? Can this episode deliver another chilling chapter for the Batman? Let’s take a closer look.

After a startling conclusion, we begin this episode with Bruce in the infamous Arkham Asylum and he is proving to be the worse for wear. As it turns out, the facility is not exactly Disneyland and its orderlies and employees are not the most caring, understanding people.After some abuse from the employees and then being beaten two colorful patients, who comes to Bruce’s rescue but the clown prince himself, the Joker. While he is not “The Joker” in this episode, and simply John Doe, he still has his iconic green hair, white skin and wide grin. You have to chose to trust The Joker or not as he attempts to help you get out of your predicament and you can choose to take his help or get out on your own terms. This could mean causing a scene and making yourself look worse than you already do or putting others in danger to help yourself. Luckily Alfred is there to get you out of the hell you got yourself into and you can be on your way into getting your life back together. Unfortunately, there are a few hiccups.

An interesting addition to the game this episode were the effects Lady Arkham’s drugs have on you. During moments where the drugs are acting up, you may be given the choice to make a reasonable reply to a character during a dialogue, but what actually comes out of your mouth is uncharacteristically violent or angry. You have no control over what you say during these moments and it adds an element of tension in the game. I found myself verbally shouting  “That’s not what I meant at all!” when trying to talk to someone while the drugs were controlling me. Hopefully these responses won’t cause any long term effects on Bruce’s relationship with any of the characters. During all of this, you still need to investigate and figure out how Lady Arkham is transporting her drugs, what she plans on doing with them and how to stop her. You also need to try and control Harvey who is not on the best of terms with you and make sure the police are informed and make the best decisions. There is a lot on Batman’s plate and your choices could help or hinder him in his goal to get his life back from Cobblepot and Lady Arkham.

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The only problem I had with this episode in particular were some technical issues. It was frustrating to see things like lag issues during certain points and even more frustrating when I experienced sound issues during a fight scene where there were no sound effects as tables were being hit and people were being thrown. If Telltale could have polished out these few issues, this episode would have been far more immersive. I will add, an element of the gameplay they added that I particularly enjoyed was a new small puzzle game where you had to match a chemical to your DNA to figure out a potential antidote for the drug,

Overall, this is a strong episode and has the potential to lead into a brilliant conclusion. If Telltale works on some of their technical setbacks, this could easily be one of their best stories to date. Only time will tell if this will end strong or end with a whimper.

 


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Shantae Half Genie Hero Coming To Vita, PS4 and Wii U Next Week


Posted on December 11, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

WayForward’s long running Shantae series gets a brand new entry with Shantae: Half-Genie Hero is coming to the PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita and Nintendo Wii U on December 20th in both digital and physical flavors.

Shantae: Half-Genie Hero is WayForward’s fourth entry featuring their purple haired protagonist. For the first time in the series history Half-Genie Hero features HD graphics while maintaining the color art-style that helped previous games stand out. If you’ve come to love Shantae’s particular flavor of transformation enhanced action combat this latest title looks like it will be worth the wait.

Gameplay wise Half-Genie Hero retains the transformation enhanced combat seen in other titles with eight different forms available at our heroine’s disposal. Her basic attack, the hair-whip, is also still in-tact but this time with an HD coat of paint. WayForward gives the completionist in all of us a reason to explore levels that have already been completed – thanks to the 8 different forms that Shantae can use, levels hold a number of unlockable items, secrets and easter-eggs that can’t be found on the first play through. Levels finish off with large boss encounters that will hopefully test the reflexes and pattern recognition ability of players of all skill levels.

Want to see the game in action? Check out four PlayStation 4 launch screenshots below, an image of the physical Wii U version and launch trailer for Shantae: Half-Genie Hero.

Launch Trailer

Wii U Pack Shot

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New PlayStation 4 Screenshots


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WipeOut Omega Collection Is A Love Letter To The Series’ Past


Posted on December 5, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Sony’s futuristic racing series WipeOut is making the jump to the PlayStation 4 despite the demise of founding studio Psygnosis over five years ago. WipeOut The Omega Collection isn’t a brand new entry in the series but sort of a “best of” from the decade or so.

Content from the PlayStation Vita launch title WipeOut 2048, ships & tracks from the PS3 collection WipeOut HD and finally stuff from WipeOut Fury will be included in the Omega Collection. In total this means that players will have access to 26 unique tracks (with some supporting mirrored versions), 46 unique ships and 9 discrete modes.

Here are the 9 modes according to the PlayStation Blog:

  • Zone, Tournament, Speed Lap, Time Trial, and Single Race from HD
  • Zone Battle, Eliminator, and Detonator from Fury
  • Career Mode from 2048

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Returning players will be able to relive their memories of split-screen local multiplayer as this 90s racing stable retains its local multiplayer modes from previous iterations. Graphics in The Omega Collection are being re-tooled for 4K display and the title will have support for 4K displays as well. I loved 2048’s soundtrack and here’s hoping some of my favourite tunes are included with The Omega Collection’s brand new soundtrack. Sony is promising that we will hear some returning classics as well as new tracks from “today’s up & coming artists”.

WipeOut The Omega Collection will be released at some-point in 2017. More information is available on the PlayStation Blog, here’s hoping that this collection might signal Sony’s intention to continue to support the WipeOut franchise with a new entry in the future.


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A Pair of Marvel Vs Capcom Games Coming To PlayStation 4


Posted on December 3, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Capcom announced at the PlayStation Experience today that a pair of Marvel Vs Capcom titles will be making their way to the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro. First up is Marvel Vs Capcom: Infinite, a new title slated for release in 2017. Capcom’s classic Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3 will be getting a PS4 upgrade / re-release digitally on the PlayStation Store, available today.

Marvel Vs Capcom: Infinite appears to take hints from the Marvel Cinematic Universe – featuring Avengers characters proximately in the brief 1:30 teaser trailer that Capcom unveiled during the Sony keynote.  The first new character that we get a look at in the footage is Captain Marvel, who is slated to get her own MCU film due out in 2019 staring Brie Larson.  Representing the Capcom side in this debut trailer are both Megaman and Ryu, from the Street Fighter series.

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On the gameplay side of things Marvel Vs Capcom: Infinite will feature 2 Vs 2 battles, as opposed to the traditional 3 on brawls that the series has been known for. Infinity Stones are in-game items that grant a player a temporary boost in a number of different areas – power, space, time, reality, soul and mind – allowing them to hopefully turn the tide of battle. It was also promised that MVC: Infinite would feature “accessible single-player content” including a full cinematic story mode, training, arcade and mission modes.

If you’re looking for a current-gen MVC fix and can’t wait for 2017, Capcom and Marvel have also teamed up to re-release the now half-decade old Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3 on PS4. It will be available sometime later today when the store is updated, as of press time no official price or listing is available.

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As Polygon originally reported, the YouTube trailer for the UMVC3 re-release confirms that Windows PC and Xbox One versions of the game will be made available in 2017 as well.

““Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is being re-released for current generation systems; with the PlayStation 4 digital download version available today and the Xbox One and Windows PC versions coming in March 2017!”]”

Ultimate Marvel Vs Cpacom 3 was originally released in 2011 for PS3, PS Vita and Xbox 360 and features 36 different characters from both company’s stable of heroes.

More information about Marvel Vs Capcom: Infinite is available on the official PlayStation Blog.


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New Death Stranding Trailer Paints a Grim Picture


Posted on December 3, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Hideo Kojima surprised the entire internet with a 5 minute trailer for his yet-undated third person action titled Death Stranding last night. In usual Kojima style the trailer contains absolutely no plot or character information, yet this cinematic trailer contains enough interesting moments that we will speculating for months until the release of the next cryptic morsel.

In the opening of the trailer we see a European city under-siege from an army of zombie skeleton soldiers and planes as the camera establishes it self on an unnamed character presumably played by project collaborator Guillermo Del Toro. We see a pair of neon handcuffs around Del Toro’s wrists and in his opposite hand a mechanical womb-like device that contains a fetus. As the the skeleton troops march across the bridge above Del Toro he affixes a tube from the mechanical womb to himself. The camera then zooms down a large drain pipe to reveal more zombie soldiers and a character played by Hannibal actor Mads Mikkelsen.

Alongside the trailer Kojima Productions also released two cinematic style posters:

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The world of Death Stranding seems to be an intriguing mixture of World War II era military technology, dystonia undertones, science fiction devices, characters played by well known Hollywood actors and several mysterious babies.

Any other details regarding the game-play, plot or other Death Stranding related topics are merely conjecture. Some folks have speculated that the babies are used as healing items in a future society where the aged literally siphon the essence of youth from the next generation. Others have drawn parallels to the 2006 post-apocalyptic sci-fi film where humans have lost the ability to naturally conceive.

Death Stranding has no release date but more information might be released during Kojima’s panel at the PlayStation Experience today at 1pm PST.


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The Dwarves Settle On Xbox One / PS4 and Windows PC


Posted on December 1, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

THQ Nordic has launched their cross-platform RPG title centered around the fantasy staple race The Dwarves on Xbox One, Windows PC and PlayStation 4 alongside a brand new music video by long-running German metal band Blind Guardian to celebrate the launch of the game.

Players take on the role of Dwarvan smith & scholar,  the heroic Tungdill, as he builds a group of companions as he tries to save the land of Gridlegard and save the races of Men, Elves and Dwarves.

Players and their group of chosen companions are able to take on hundreds of foes with 15 playable heroes across a multi hour campaign. During these tactical challenges The Dwarves will fight against armies of other fantasy races like orcs, zombies, dark wizards, elves and hordes of the undead. Developer KING ART promises that these battles will rattle player’s brains – they’ll have to plan out their next moves in real-time in order to overcome their foes.

Here are the recommended specs for the Windows PC version:

Recommended Specs

OS: Windows 7, 8, 8.1, 10

Processor: Intel Core i7 3770 3,9 Ghz / AMD FX-8350 4 GHz

Memory: 8 GB RAM

Graphics: GTX770 / R9 290 / 4GB

DirectX: Version 11

Storage: 25 GB available

Currently The Dwarves is available for 10% off on Steam for $44.99 CDN. The console editions retail for oddly specific price of $53.49 on the PlayStation Network and $33.99 CDN on Xbox One. For some reason the price of this title isn’t consistent at all across platforms.


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Titanfall 2 Trial Coming For PC, Xbox One and PS4


Posted on November 30, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Respawn Entertainment’s absolutely excellent first person mecha shooter Titanfall 2 will be getting a limited time multiplayer trial for PS4, Xbox One and Windows PC via the Origin Client. Players who subscribe to the Origin Access (PC) or EA Access (Xbox One) can start the multiplayer trial – which is the full multiplayer suite – on November 30th, with everyone else getting access to the trial on December 1st. This time limited multiplayer trial will run until the end of next weekend, December 4th.

A brand new map, Angel City, will also be available for Titanfall 2 on November 30th for pilots who pre-ordered the game, everyone else will get access to the new map before the end of the trial on December 3rd.The remainder of the December 3rd DLC drop will include the Wingman Elite Pistol, six new Titan kits and a new unlockable pilot execution. All of Titanfall 2’s DLC will be provided for free on all platforms.

It turns out that Respawn Entertainment posted an official blog post describing the multiplayer trial thusly:

“Titanfall 2 will host a free trial of the game’s full multiplayer offering. The trial* will begin for EA Access and Origin Access members on November 30th, and become available for all players starting December 2nd on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Origin for PC. This will feature a full offering including all maps, modes, weapons and more including brand new content from Angel City’s Most Wanted DLC on December 3rd. “

Also as the blog post points out, any progress made by trial users make will carry over to the full version should they choose to buy it:

“Progress from the trial carries over to the full game when you upgrade, so you can keep going right where you left off.”


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Hand of Fate 2 Heading To PlayStation 4


Posted on November 29, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Defiant Development will be bringing its’ hybrid Action RPG / rogue-like dungeon exploration / CCG sequel Hand of Fate 2 to PlayStation 4 in Q1 2017 the developer announced today via press-release. Today’s reveal brought with it a collection of brand new screenshots, confirmation that the game will be playable for attendees of next week’s PlayStation Experience and a look at one of the game’s brand new companion characters.

Estella Fiore is a ranged pistol wielding companion whose aim seems as deadly as her attitude. She’ll join the player character in her quest against The Empire as she also locks her sight on taking out a brand new factions like the Greed and Frost. Estella will also have a role to play in the newly unveiled Pendulum mini-game which the developer says will test players precision and timing.

Hand of Fate 2 sees the player character team up with NPCs to take down the protagonist from the first title. Combining elements taken from Collectible Card Games, Table Top Role-playing Games, Action RPGS and Dungeon & Dragons a number of discrete genres have influenced the unique formula used in the Hand of Fate series. Hand of Fate 2 will be playable at PlayStation Experience next week at booth B10008, where attendees can check out the newly unveiled Estella.

Hand of Fate 2 will be released simultaneously on Xbox One, Windows PC via Steam and PlayStation 4.

PS4 Reveal Screenshots

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September 2016 Trailer


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No Man’s Sky Devs Call Discussion Of Game ‘Dramatic’ And ‘Intense’


Posted on November 26, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Hello Games, the developers behind the past summer’s highly anticipated space exploration title No Man’s Sky, have broken their nearly two month long silence since the game’s last major update. After shipping seven patches across PC & PlayStation developers at the company took the past two months to look at the feedback both the community & critics had about the game to look at some of the fundamental systems that make up No Man’s Sky.

This latest update – titled the ‘foundation update’ – will address some of the in-game systems, add the foundation for a ‘base building’ system that has been awaited since the game’s launch and will add additional ground work for future updates. Previously, in August, Hello Game’s delayed the roll out of base building and large space freighters as the company worked on the number of issues that early adopters brought to their attention.

In the somewhat vague but lengthy post on the game’s official steam page Hello Games called some of discussions that they observed from both critics and the community ‘dramatic and intense’. Some of the feedback from the community included lengthy reddit posts that ‘documented’ features mentioned by or asked of game director Sean Murray. It should be noted that some of these features were never announced and were simply the speculation or idea of fans and interviewers. Other critical feedback included criticism of sections they didn’t even play – most notably Joe Vargas’ review of No Man’s Skies which included criticism of the centre of the galaxy, a place he never reached.

Here is the full statement from Hello Games:

This week Hello Games will be releasing an update to No Man’s Sky. We’re calling it The Foundation Update, because we have added the foundations of base building, and also because this is putting in place a foundation for things to come.

Detailed patch notes will follow, and release will be soon.

Coming from five years of intense development, immediately after No Man’s Sky released the team spent six weeks updating the game with 7 patches across both platforms. The last of these was 1.09 on Sept 24th which you can read about here http://www.no-mans-sky.com/log/. These fixed many of the most common or critical bugs and issues post-release.

In the nine weeks since then our small team has been hard at work on development, testing and certification for the Foundation Update. It won’t be our biggest update, but it is the start of something.

The discussion around No Man’s Sky since release has been intense and dramatic. We have been quiet, but we are listening and focusing on improving the game that our team loves and feels so passionately about.

Positive or negative feedback, you have been heard and that will truly help to make this a better game for everyone.

This update will be the first small step in a longer journey. We hope you can join us.


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Killing Floor 2 Has Gone Gold On All Platforms


Posted on November 13, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Tripwire Interactive and publisher Deep Silver have jointly announced that Killing Floor 2 has gone gold on PS4 and Windows PC. This means that the zombie slaughtering team shooter will be leaving Steam Early Access after being in development for the past 18 months, originally going live in March 2015 on Windows.

Killing Floor was partially developed with the help of Sony Computer Interactive – as the motion capture for the game’s animations were captured at Sony’s Santa Monica California motion capture studios. Other technological innovations in KF2 include the evisceration system which allows individual limbs to separated with each enemies having five distinct separation points. The graphics team at Tripwire interactive also focused heavily on how blood was rendered in the game – spending considerable time on how blood was generate from wounds and how it split onto surfaces.

An open beta was available on PlayStation 4 for all the check out earlier this month. The physical release of Killing Floor 2 will be priced at $49.99 CDN on PS4.

Here’s a picture of the development team that Tripwire released in celebration of the game being complete:

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IFI Announces A Trio of RPGs For PlayStation Systems


Posted on November 11, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Last night in San Francisco California Idea Factory International announced three brand new games coming to PlayStation 4 or PlayStation Vita in Spring / Summer 2017. The three brand new games will be released in North America, Europe and Japan next year and surprisingly none of them are entries in the long running Hyperdimension Neptunia franchise. Say hello to Mary Skelter: Nightmares, Idea Factory International Announces A Trio of RPGs For PlayStation Systems, Hauoki: Kyoto Winds, and Dark Rose Valkyrie.

Dark Rose Valkyrie

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In this brand new action RPG players take the role of Asahi the leader of Japan’s covert military organization ACID as they try to defend 1929 Japan from the outbreak of the horrifying Chimera virus. This deadly infection has the potential to wipe-out 3% of the world’s total population, in response to its emergence Japan has closed off its borders and formed the ACID agency to take care of the Chimera infection within its territory.

Featuring veteran “Tales of” character designer Kosuke Fujishima and “Tales of” scenario writer Takumi Miyajima this action RPG / Visual Novel hybrid is certainly one to keep an eye on. Check out the debut trailer below.

Mary Skelter: Nightmares

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Mysterious dungeons and vicious monsters await players in the dungeon crawler Mary Skelter: Nightmares for the PlayStation Vita and PlayStation TV. Featuring the ability for players to lay down traps and fight monsters in turn based combat using special blood transformations Mary Skelter: Nightmares looks to offer players a lot of tactical options.

Here are some of the key features courtesy of IFI:

  • Walking Nightmares The dungeon-crawling RPG genre gets a twist when special enemies can chase you through the dungeons! Lay traps to make your escape, or try to face them down!
  • Blood-drenched Transformations! Characters can transform with stronger stats and extra skills, but if they fight too much they may enter Blood Skelter Mode, where they go completely berserk!
  • Everyone’s got a Job Strategize your dungeon battles by assigning different classes to your characters, unlocking new skills, stats, and character portraits!

Hakuoki: Kyoto Wind

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Lastly bringing up the rear is Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds for the PlayStation Vita & PlayStation TV. This remastered version of the 2008 visual novel weaves the tale of Chizuru, a girl who is determined to find her father. Along the way she’ll have the option to romance the samurai Shinsengumi through a plot that twists and turns with unexpected events. Set at the end of the Japanese Bakumatsu period , this visual novel looks very compelling for both Japanese history fanatics and VN fans alike.

Here are some of the key features as provided in IFI’s press release:

  • 12 Handsome Bachelors Fall in love as these 12 bachelors battle for your heart in this historical fantasy!
  • Over 80 Hours of Romance With over 30 different endings, immerse yourself in the world of Hakuoki through its compelling tale of romance, friendship, and betrayal!
  • Beauty at Your Fingertips Fluid animation and vibrant art breathes life into this climatic era in Japan’s history! Then, view all of the art in a gorgeous photo gallery.


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Batman: The Telltale Series- Episode 3- New World Order | REVIEW


Posted on October 28, 2016 by Meghan Kass

Previously, on Batman: A Telltale Series: we have seen the beginning of the fall of the Wayne empire and the rise of the Children of Arkham; we have seen Bruce love and lose (depending on your choices that is) and we have seen Batman kick around some criminals and investigate the mystery surrounding his and his family’s past. As this exciting story continues, what does Telltale have in store this episode? Will it continue to excite and intrigue? Let’s find out!


batman-telltale-new-world-order-available Picking up where the last episode left off, Harvey is in the hospital, and his physical and mental state are taking a toll. Telltale addresses Harvey’s mental illness competently to explain his duality and compulsion to flip coins in search of a true fair result that is left up to fate. The game addresses how mental illness can affect friends and loved ones by seeing Bruce and Selina’s reactions to Harvey’s episodes, which include pleas for him to see his therapist and continue his medication. The game also allows you to chose how to interact with Harvey and help him cope with his illness. While the accuracy of his disorder may be questionable, the emotions captured by those involved were well done and add complexity to the story and make your choices harder to make, Should you take sympathy on your friend who is ill, but has hurt you? Do you chose love over friendship? These are all addressed in the game.

This episode is full of intense decisions that need to be made and more twists and turns than ever. There is a definite feeling of helplessness as the story progresses and it appears Bruce’s world is crumbling beneath him. Thankfully, there are still some major players on his side that assist him in continuing his work as Batman. You must choose how much you reveal to the public about Cobblepot, how you react in the face of adversity of Wayne Industries asking for a new CEO and who you hurt or help along the way to restoring your reputation.fbmhudb

The gameplay has some improvements; there are more fast fights and investigations to be had and Lucius Fox makes an entrance and adds some new tech, which include sticky bombs that leave explosive results in a particular fight. He also brings some levity to a disastrous  situation with witty Banter while also giving us a touching moment with Bruce, showing us more insight into Bruce’s life that we don’t always get from a Batman story.

While the PS4 version of the game has some hiccups, such as slight issues with lips syncing with the voices and minor frame-rate drops, it is easy to look past due to its stylized, comic book design and strong plot. The fights are exciting, quick and reflexive and can get the blood pumping and the adrenaline rushing which is definitely a positive for an exciting comic book based game like this. While the action has had its improvements, it is still the story, dialogue and choices you will be coming back for more of than the fights and punches.

Overall, Telltale has done it again, with this episode being the best so far. The stakes are at it’s highest, the fights are exciting, the characters intriguing and it ends with a bang. If you have played the first two episodes, there is no reason not to continue. If you have not picked up the game and are looking to see if it would interest you, it is a strong addition to the Batman mythos for any fan. I am excited to see where Telltale leads the player next and what they have in store.


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Kingdom Hearts 1.5 + 2.5 Remix Coming To PlayStation 4


Posted on October 27, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Square Enix will be bringing the previously PlayStation 3 exclusive Kingdom Hearts 1.5 Remix and Kingdom Hearts 2.5 Remix as a single disc collection to the PlayStation 4 next Spring.  These upscaled versions of KH will run at a higher consistent frame-rate at full HD 1080p – so if you missed out on the PS3 versions than this would be the definitive version of the Kingdom Hearts experience.

Here is everything that will be included in the new collection that will release on March 28th 2017:

KINGDOM HEARTS HD 1.5 ReMIX

  • KINGDOM HEARTS FINAL MIX
  • KINGDOM HEARTS Re:Chain of Memories
  • KINGDOM HEARTS 358/2 Days (HD remastered cinematics)

KINGDOM HEARTS HD 2.5 ReMIX

  • KINGDOM HEARTS II FINAL MIX
  • KINGDOM HEARTS Birth by Sleep FINAL MIX
  • KINGDOM HEARTS Re:coded

Square Enix also released a series of screenshots showcasing what Kingdom Hearts 1.5 + 2.5 HD looks like on PlayStation 4:

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This post contains materials provided by Square Enix USA PR.

 


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Rez Infinite | REVIEW


Posted on October 26, 2016 by Ellen McGrody

Rez Infinite logo banner

Rez Infinite is immensely difficult to review. It’s a daunting task, really. That’s not because the game’s bad, it’s not because I don’t have anything to say about it, to the contrary. It’s because I could talk about Rez for a lifetime and still not have said enough.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Tetsuya Mizuguchi is responsible for what may be the defining VR title of our time. In addition to Rez, he’s responsible for landmark games like Lumines and Space Channel 5, in addition to producing classics like Meteos and Every Extend Extra. Rez Infinite will define the best of PlayStation VR the way Child of Eden did for the Kinect.

Rez’s history is rich with talent on Mizuguchi’s level. After the development of Panzer Dragoon Saga in 1998, SEGA broke up the super talented Team Andromeda, whose members splintered off to Smilebit (Jet Set Radio), Polyphony Digital (Gran Turismo 2, 3, 4, Sport, etc), Artoon (Blue Dragon), and United Game Artists, the team ultimately responsible for the first Rez. Rez picked up where Panzer Dragoon left off – a gorgeous on-rails shooter with brilliant mechanics and sometimes blistering gameplay. What Rez did different was melding that style with pulsing EDM, seeking to inspire synesthesia within its players.

Activating a Network Gate in Rez Infinite

The pursuit of pure synesthesia is what’s driven Mizuguchi’s return to the series. Rez always pulled some fantastic tricks to make that feeling stick – packing a USB vibrator in the box, allowing users to connect multiple controllers to simulate a vibration experience – and Infinite pulls all the stops with fully redone models, 3D audio support, and crucially, virtual reality integration. Because of these changes, Rez has always been a uniquely engrossing experience, and the changes in the PS4 remake only amplify that immersion.

Fighting dragons in Rez Infinite Area 3

Rez’s original campaign, the story of a hacker diving into a super-advanced AI named Eden to save it from a viral invasion, returns with the same remastered music which accompanied it in Rez HD, along with gorgeous new graphics and VR support for the whole beast. VR support totally changes the way Rez plays. For the first time, players can aim quickly by looking at a virus, or even turn around to see what’s coming from behind.

Hacking in Rez Infinite

These new mechanics means bosses like Area 4’s Uranus feel totally different – it’s suddenly possible to turn around and see the gargantuan running body of Uranus behind you and take it down before it can get an advantage. Being surrounded by the digital machinations of Rez is at once overwhelming and a totally natural extension of the game’s original vision.

Uranus runs away in an iconic moment in Rez Infinite

 

The original campaign isn’t alone, however. Mizuguchi has planted the seeds for a future with Infinite’s new Area X. Designed to take advantage of the PS4’s hardware, Area X is glittering, gorgeous, and designed first and foremost for VR. Area X is a beautifully rendered free-roaming journey through a world of cyber dragons, giant robots, floating cubes, and digital women.

Giant robots in Rez Infinite's Area X

Combining the scope of the level’s design with the immersion of virtual reality and an array of buzzing controllers pulsing with the music (or an entire suit) is an experience unlike any other. There’s a sense of scale inside the headset that video simply can’t portray. The necessity of looking around to examine every corner of your surroundings pulls you into the experience. It left me emotional, breathless, and ready for more.

Massive creatures surround you in Rez Infinite's Area X

The experience offered by Rez Infinite is nearly indescribable. Mizuguchi has said that the promise of VR is what pulled him back into games. Rez in virtual reality is a masterpiece. It rips you out of your reality and places you firmly inside a screaming machine, overwhelming your senses with thumping music and gorgeous visuals. It’s one of a handful of PSVR launch titles that will likely shape the medium of virtual reality for years to come. It’s stunning how different a 15-year-old game can feel in virtual reality, and if Area X is a taste of what the future of Rez – indeed, the future of all VR – might look like, I’m all in.


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Tales of Berseria Gets a Western Release Date & Collector’s Edition


Posted on October 11, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Bandai Namco has announced the North American and European ship dates for their upcoming action RPG Tales of Berseria along with new details about the game’s limited collector’s edition. Tales of Berseria will ship on both Steam and PlayStation 4 on January 27th 2017 in Europe and January 24th 2017 in North America.

Fans looking for will have to act fast because it will be limited to a production run of 1500 copies according to a press release issued by the publisher. It is not known if this allotment will be divided between the North American & European regions or if each has their own 1500 Collector’s Editions up for grabs.

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As for what $199.99 CDN will get you, here is the complete list according to the official Tales Of blog:

  • Tales of Berseria game
  • The Collector’s Edition box
  • 2 Chibi Kyun characters figures (Laphicet and Velvet)
  • 3 Metal Coins
  • Exclusive Bienfu metal case (to complete your Mascots metal case collection)
  • Game soundtrack
  • Artbook
  • Starter strategy guide

Everyone who pre-orders the game will be given a limit edition set of collectible pins featuring characters from the game. Also available (depending on region) will be a limited edition keychain for those who pre-order.

Here is a look at both pre-order bonuses:

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Tales of Berseria was originally this past August for both PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. Odd that the PS3 version has been omitted for the western release but perhaps it has something to do with absolutely massive adoption the PS4 was seen in recent years.


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