STREET FIGHTER X TEKKEN ег "MUSIC GAMES" NEXT Сі "ENERATION" — = а | L E j к NB > g; =] E he AND GET A FREE Т" -SHIRT! p T um ша аме” po prd dl Ban е ы ЖШ SEV аш d X: \ xoxd SEN L3 ж eost ANDY McNAMARA EOITOR-N.CHER andy@gameinformercom тооп аб Andy How Motivated Are You To Move and Kinect? have discussed before how | thought it odd that Playstation Move and Microsoft's Kinect seem tobe trying to recreate the magic that Nintendo has already captured on the Wi, but since returning from ЕЗ and secing the two systems in action, it brings up a slew of new questions, especialy now that the peripherals finally have price points and packcins. 1 do believe each device offers up s own evolu- tion of the Nintendo Wi formula, whether its the more precise control of the PlayStation Move or tho controlerJoss adventures of the Kinect, but two classic clichés come to mind and equally apply: ioo itle, too late” and ^f it not broke don't ft." Both are in reference to Nintendo's vice grip control оп motion-based games, be it party, dance, sports, or otherwise. These two systems are most defritely early in thes Ме spans (Move his this September and. Kinect in November) but I think thatt ай the more reason that these respective platforms need to show consumers not only why they ae different and better, but how they can offer new gameplay. experiences — not just better bals and whistles. "Which is al the more reason Iam stil completely stumped by Sony's choice to pack in Sports Champions. I can't be the only person to realize Nintendo has been packing in Wi Sports since 2006, right? I get the sense Sony is more or less putting Move out there and offering as many soft- ware choices as possible, be it casual or hardcore, and hoping that gamers pick up the pieces and that the pack-in game isn't the motivator. But either way it feels unimaginative, and | think that's unfortunate. їп Microsoft's case, | was floored to discover that they chose Kinect Adventures as the раскат when it has perhaps the best motion-based casual дате around in MTV Games/Harmonbes Dance Central. t would have shown that Microsoft ( can't believe l'm saying this) is hip and diferent, and not predicable and boring, but instead it opted to choose - you guessed it - the predictable and boring pack-in game that feels ika a Wi wannabe. Shocker |knaw, For both platforms ther is plenty of software that looks exciting, including the games I knocked for being included with the peripherals, but | think for these systems to ry be successful they need to, break new ground and not read on tho. Batman: Arkham City Batman: Arkham Asylum rocked the gaming world two years ago. Giving Batman a whole district of the city teeming with criminal Чо explore is one of the few plans we'll accept for trying to top one of the best superhero games in years by Bryan Vore contemplate the rela- tive worth of playing games on easy mode, and one visionary. tells us what hort d, dishonest р ас 12 Connect Want to know about Kinects pricing and what it means? What about the story behind. how a former NHL player helped revolutionize EA ‘Sports? Connect has you covered 12 Previews Arm your creatures for battle in Darkspore. Disarm your ene- mies in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 1. Defend your farm in Two Worlds I 88 Reviews Lara Croft is back to being her (ld self again, even though we're seeing her from an unfa- mitar angle by Meagan VanBurkleo 100 Game Over What you didn't know about Mortal Kombat creator Ed Boon in this month's Game Over by Dan Ryckert. contents 3 games index жем. Bo re ara et and he Gan gt Manel Сокот гава vo oN Monay alt Cons. € Viera Omas n muscle? got milk? Contact Us feedback @gamenfomercom We 89 Art Regarding your ist of video games that can be considered art in your July 2010 issue: While | enthusiasticaly agree with most of the games оп your it | feel you might have left out a game that has moved many gamers (well or at least туей) to tears: Mother 3. The story, the. characters, the whole world of the game was careful created with much attention to datai, andit realy shows. The story is touching and tels a very strong message; that is what | think art is supposed to do, I's the frst video game to make me су. Vincent Chang Simi Valley, CA | wanted to write to express my appreciation for your recent arie, "The Great Debate.” Fims and photography were once derided as less than fine art too, but you can now find critics and students aike studying and extoling the artistic virtues of those media. The same wil almost cer- tainly happen with video games, and the classic games ofthe current and past generations (ike those mentioned in your article) ма be in text- books written and read by the next generation of artists and gamers. Sarah Sinclair Santa Barbara, CA wart school we had a very simple definition Y what art is: you have to ask itis ап, then it is art. There, everyone can relax. If Duchamp and his Fountain piece, or any other Dada artist for that matter, can be considered art, why on earth would a video game not be? Doug Andrews Manchester, CT we discu: from Liont sional we We don't need to say much here, because. A] we'd just be preaching to the choir, and В) gamers are probably getting a little sick of this topic by now. Stil, we love that so ‘many of you took the time to write in and articulate your passion and enthusiasm for video games as a form of entertainment, a hobby, and an art form. Good job! Perfect Timing Ty understand Ino whole business side ofthe equation when comes o console excuse games ike Metal Gear Scd or Halo - console manufactures want good games you can oriy Bay on er system. But why do companies take deals for imed DLC exces? The other Consoles users gan acces to the content later on = are (hey realy gong to sel that many more. games because of a bret ead start on DLC? I Seems ke game publshers are doing more harm than good by alenatng a socton of potential customers Greg L. Eden Prairie, MN The weeks immediately following a game's release are typically when it sells the most. copies. Exclusive DLC near the launch window allows console manufacturers to capitalize on those early sales in an attempt to become the profile game. For instance, Modern Warfare. 2's Stimulus Package maps were available а month earlier on Xbox 360 than PS3 and PC. Eventually, everyone gets the same content, so no one is alienated. But if you have the option, why make yourself wait? With Modern Warfare 2, the timed exclusive. L ll nis month in Feedback s timed exclusives for DLC, examine the merits of playing on easy mode, mourn a lost title ad, and listen to a rant about how biased and unprofes- are strategy definitely worked in Microsoft's. favor; early sales numbers showed that the game sold twice as much on Xbox 360 than the other platforms. Destination Download Today | bought the Onslaught mode for. Batlefeld: Bad Company 2. then reazed that downloadable content is rarely reviewed by the Game Informer зай, This perplexed me. Why mot review DLC? | understand that DLC is used to enhance the game and keep that disc in the tray longer, but is it realy worth i Julian Canto Guilford, CT Gig in йыз = Rotes ain Салу Hearts 3 cam Меме been reviewing downloadable games for a while now, and they continue to rise in. quality and prominence. In fact, with Lara 1g "cool," at le 1 ards. 1 subscri Croft and the Guardian of Light, this issue marks the third consecutive month that a downloadable game has won Game of the id es not топо Month honors (Joe Danger and Limbo won in issues 207 and 208, respectively). While full downloadable games are getting more reviews, add-on content like maps and ‘modes are difficult to score because they only enhance an existing game - they aren't complete experiences. That doesn't mean ymore. we're hanging you out to dry; we've been nopolize playing the add-ons and giving our recom- ‘mendations online, including Bad Company рег 2's Onslaught mode. АП you need to do is ratching R ШІ С | head to gameinformer.com/impulse for the It’s tough being so av | latest news and impressions from the world Î of downloadable content. to spend REIR BERE EFE EEEEEEREREREEEREEEREEFEEREEEREEEREEREEEREEEEEEEFEEREFEREEEREEFEFEREREREEEREEEEEEFEREREEEEEEEFEEFEREREEEEREE feedback 7 Long Live Easy Mod тезу appreciated Ни: s opinon ticle "Casual Encounters" in issue 207. | am a longtime hardcore gamer, but in my late wen. "ies with a ful ime job, it is hard to find as many hours to play games as | used started to play some games оп ting because | just want о experience the game want to be challenged. As a ge o to бе during the frst half of the game, Some may think that this is lame, but playing at a k Maer Can chanics and enjoy the visuals more than | à nie, 1d НН lempt ЕН ЕН s НЕН Every о ofen an ride comes along that à HT demands contemplation and leads 1o a reve Chris Raye ton that fosters expermentaton resuting in Landis, Ní jublaton. Lam refering to Russ Frushicks раса "Casual Encounters” | had been play по Bayonetta and got red of having my a The short and sad answer to your q handed to me on a regular bass, so | grudgingly III and the Milo project (whatever that ac T chad о easy mode and had the time of my to be moving forward instead of loo Perhaps in this age of troph ments, we gamers have become too focused on earning awards in our frst playthrough — forget- too disappointed; remem 3 how lo just have a good tine and apprec generation to the next doesn urn out e games for what they are. Too e Nuken o Karl Woods oi the gam ve b Tukwila, wa ЖЮ g е EE d hay LEP EPP LEP ELAS ITLL EEEIEEREFEREEEREREREEFEREREFEREREREEREEFEFEREEEREEFEEEREFER EFE EEE 8 feedback FIRSTIS FAST. FIRST IS GENEROUS, SHARING INTERNET WITH UP TO EIGHT WI-FI ENABLED DEVICES AT ONCE. FIRST ALWAYS BRINGS SOMETHING NEW TO THE PARTY, LIKE FRONT AND REAR-FACING CAMERAS. FIRST STREAMS LIVE VIDEO TO THE WEB. FIRST IS 4G, BUT PLAYS NICE WITH 3G AS WELL. FIRST ISN’T LATER, IT’S NOW. WHAT WILL YOU DO FIRST WITH EVO,THE FIRST 4G PHONE? Sprint /> The Now Network" HTC EVO`4G sprint.com/firsts 1-800-SPRINT-1 (1-800-777-4681) (BERT. ® RadioShack EX E 1 WINNER] 1 Quinci Quartararo Kroy пау bean easy targetin a doe Dat just тү geting a lasso золі him. 2 Berol Landskroner No longer subdued by a Teen rating, Baraka goes айе a man who recently dá Mature right З ЭШ Clawson Dort ее | by te appearance ot Siniy E Î Dog nee. He's not real Te ues Jar swng Nino This is ctor Gees cf War ator wrat Met Gibson ses when he closes hiseyes. ree и ne Hm (Left) iter Evan 2 anda 10 feedback Dfenzp ү souarcenx DESTINY IS NEVER LEFT TO CHANCE. Play as Terra, Ventus, and Aqua - three friends with a common dream who find themselves in the middle of a crisis affecting worlds far beyond their own. Their destinies wil unfold across memorable Disney worlds in three intertwining stories. Secrets will be unraveled and friendships will be tested. The KINGDOM HEARTS saga starts here. Eg — : «Ф» http://na.square-enix.com/khbbs 5 Paste one SQUARE ENIX. LLL. NOTABLES A Triple-A la le ab 1 and Nami m up for the jest fighting cr hen the first Tekken was near release on. the PlayStation, print ads for the game. featured the slogan “That burning in your chest is from your broken ribs..not some fireball” Over a decade later, that statement no longer holds. true for the combatants in the King of the Iron Fist tournament. Officially announced at Comic-Con, the rosters from two fight- ing juggernauts are joining forces for two ambitious crossover tiles ~ Street Fighter X Tekken and Tekken X Street Fighter. Rumors initially swirled about the possibility of a Capcom vs, Namco title, with many believing we'd see the likes of Mega Man and the Soul Calibur crew making appearances. However, the final product is much more tightly focused, exclusively fea- turing characters from each company's flagship fighter, With each game featuring a distinct gameplay style, it only makes sense for this mash-up to be two separate games. Street Fighter X Tekken will take place within the former's universe, with its trademark 2D plane and ink-based art style. Tekken X Street Fighter will instead utilize Namco's 3D plane, making us ‘curious as to how Capcom's trademark button inputs will work. Tekken (and Soul Calibur) has always featured a style that was difficult to master, but could still be enjoyed by button mashers. With SF's more intricate special move system, itll be interesting to see if the controls are modified to fit more smoothly in the ‘Tekken universe, As of this writing, only four characters have been revealed - Kazuya Mishima and Nina Wiliams representing Tekken, and Ryu and Chun-Li representing. Street Fighter. Gameplay details are scarce, but a demo shown at Comic- Con clearly showed off a tag battle mode in Street Fighter X Tekken. In what appeared to be a team Ultra Combo, Nina subdued Ryu while her partner Kazuya came charging in with a devastating spinning uppercut. This Capcon/Namco tag team is just one of the several recent announce- met ба паю бй tars bezog Аналы ТАП eXciting future almost everyone that saw it at E3, and Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is looking stellar ^ А from what we've seen so far. The recent resurgence of the fighting genre can t а ee т OL поп fans nership with Namco. Street Fighter X Tekken is expected to release sometime. after МУС 3 hits next spring. xung kay} uey} Juawdojarap ашеб ш ajos габбід в aeu suadejd ‘вад uado ui Bunedianued 48 вавы de ‘ssaoaid ә әд ynon об ец рлгод ац 55092 үр san jefeu 9) nq "132202845 20у an 15111,61 0UEye ац 1591 'asunoo Jo pue дев aeos. ‘wap e aq op peau fea) OU Sl, ишп. пок у uang Bunuereg ‘ssayppe pue вацэціб 10 заў а) зорлар Aq раузед st seseud eyaq Buunp шәр), ей pue мавоцэ dn замоў 'pafonsap apio “ра ous "разм days Kiang anoqy pip ABusudins г aseen шарор ssaooid e — ватразакі бида) забоі цбподд 'aum jo peau peneutuue 100 и рэгішіиіш aq ue? збпд asayı jo шеш пш е vaya uade eanas pue ‘owuue а у eBxoed ases лбу 2 әлем шаро ш suossos aka ху freunuojur uy sews е SEM Z алена шарор ing го [ео ціошацед заќеідош SUOSIANIY 142.657.966 127.822409 4834380 зїї 360,265, Number of screenshots and dens uploaded Amount of. upload data ай soreenshots and dens Number of кв during pubic beta The most time spent byasnge рук тте bela Aoproimate hous a day said payer spent playing the game Number of Kis vith magam Number of Kiis vith DMA m] kils vith Neede Rife Number of Kis wit he L7] Total tonm posts created inthe Halo Reach beta tomon Bungie.net MODNATION RACERS 122.000 78.000 p 128.000.000 таа number of players Таа unter of сай, Таа number of games рака Total number of transac ше ring ght According to MAG producer Alan Van Syke, there aro two essential elements in preparing for a bela release. On the development side, coders must make sure the game is stable enough for proper pubic testing. Then there is the technical Process, which must ensure the beta is ready for ‘download, the patching is functional, the servers aro avalabe, and escalation procedures are in place in case of a maior crash. To prepare for the onslaught of everyday gamers when the beta opens, multiplayer tiles undergo internal testing during alpha phases where developers bring in teams from other departments to play the games and provide feedback, In the case of Halo: Reach, Microsoft and Bungie employees tested the game through internal alpha and beta phases to check for maior balance issues and address server stabäty prior to releasing a build to the publc. "The preparations began months in advance,” explains Bungie's community irector Brian Jarrard. "As much as this is a work-in-progress snapshot of the game, we recognize we're put ting this game out there and Its going to be cri- tiqued. People, to some degree, can Бо forgiving in acknowedging its a beta, but they also have expectations and they re going to voice opinions about the game based on ther experience.” Even with the amount of testing prior to ther release, public betas are far from perfec. I you ve been part of a beta test before, you've probably seen your fair share of gitches and Server crashes, “Releasing a beta is ike another release of the game except our standards aro a lo bit lower: Blizzard's Browder says. “We wil know. ingly go into a beta with things that are a ito bit broken, but not much. Stil, we want to hold our standards pretty high because its this trial Tun that helps us get the real release correct." However, these precautionary measures aren't always bulletproof The st test By simply jumping into a multiplayer beta, you've instantly become part of the stress test- ing that can contribute to a smooth, crash-tree launch when the game releases at retail На ‘game becomes a hit, the servers need to be able to hance milions of gamers jumping into the mutiplayer lobbies at once. The only way to test if you're up to snuff is to subject your System to a real-world deluge of players. “There is no other way of working out how your game is going to react when millons of users are making decisions you can't quite anticipate," observes Ged Talbot, lead designer for Blur. "The larger the group of people, the. more chance, you'll find problems wherever ‘they may іе.” ‘When the Halo: Reach beta opened to the » KILLMAP [MAGE inp images show the nations of players "when кде and baton o e lera noted Бу a леса Ше. Rod dots represent ded playere. lao dots represen kilers. These imagos doni ‘spat camping svo and deadlines o certain ошер. ceci area, bunkers өс Ts ла эво suggest sighting problemes on maps pubic last May, Bungie expected several mi- Топ users, The team worked to prepare server Clusters for this volume using the infrastructure already established with Halo 3. Despite prepa- rations, the servers were unable to handie the jump from zero to one milion users in a short period of time, which caused the beta to crash, "That was exactly the kind of test we could опу accomplish in a real beta of this scale: Do as much as we can to emulate what would happen during a real real release and get a huge number of data and simultaneous connec: tions that realy stress al Ihe servers," Jarrard explains, Bungie figured out the snalu and got the Reach bela up and running again у quickly, eventual reaching 2.7 milion unique beta players in just over two weeks. For MAG, the frst person shooter centered оп 256-piayer onine battles, stress testing was invaluable to the beta process. During the alpha phase, the team at Zipper interactive bull a System that simulated real players to ensure server stablity, and confrmed enough Al bots were able to log in to reach the desired size and scale at the beta's launch. However, Van Syke says this is merely an engineering solution. "We can't predict how players are going to play" he remarks. “That's where the open beta comes into play" You're being watch During өзіне belas, servers collec tons of informaton for each unique user. This intl heips developers assess and address gameplay imbalances "Is not so much ike Uncle Sam watching everthing you do? says Kye Zundel, producer on MocNaton Racers. "Its more observing бара rom errors, nd a ot of these ears can олу be caused under real wor conditions wih hundreds of people dong erent things at he same tina.” During the heavy тай: periods, developers watch a wide range of player behaviors to detect balance issues. nthe case of shooters, the weapons chosen, number ot shots fred, and kils per weapon are often racked о check or imbalances in weapon power If one weapon ‘aes as the predominant choice for most users and е producing an overwhelming number of e, this suggests that the weapon may be over powered and might require tweaking. in racing tiles, dev teams track player loca: ons and car pathing to produce colon maps that show whore players crash most often. A clump ofred data points in a given section on a map may be indicative of a Ван п track design In competitive mutiplayer tite across the board, developers also track total matches played, win-loss percentages, anci the per- formance of matchmaking systems Iemet connection types are examined o coe the Systems aro paring smi connectons together dor an optmal experience. Bungie even tacks how often players use in-game muting to help. users fnd Ike. minded teammates. AI 1014, developers colect terabytes ol data These collision images represent where player vehicles ht оа нез n Bur Ts в used by "snas to End out more turn makers or ges eed to be ada to produce stats, graphs, and heat maps. With such a high volume of data fowing to the serv- rs, each developer has its own unique way of funneling the data to the design teams, Some developers bud servers that place al the gath- ered information into a database that designers ‘can search for specific scenarios. If a designer needs a heat map for a specific location where players de the most, they're only a query away from receiving one, Data is constant colected to provide up-to-date reports that can be used by teams to fuo the baseine discussion on "Which bugs need to be addressed. This data is further complemented by direct user feedback. Your ve During mutiplayer betas, development teams ‘alco scan forums and message boards for user feedback on perceived bugs and other ‘gameplay grievances. Community coordinators comb through and aggregate the information to ensure these suggestions go through the proper. ‘channels and reach tha right people. “Те beta process] is realy the frst time we ‘can get a heartbeat on our potential consumer base," explains Ramone Russel, community manager for ModNation Racers. "Consumers: рау the game diferent than we do, Is invalu- able from a developers standpoint because that’s the only way wo can get tons of raw data and make changes based on the things our beta testers find.” "When working on ModNation Racers, Russel took each users bug report and colaborated withthe quality assurance team to check the. game logs and see i the complaints were valid. Bungie does the same with Halo. users are ma ters causing a ruckus in the forum about headshots not registering, Bungie works with qualty assur ‘ance to confirm that these user claims are more than just complaints fled about intentional ‘design decisions. “There's tons of it things Же that that started out as anecdotal feedback, and we were Ike, ‘let's just give them a few days to get used toi After there was more noise about and it became more consistent, we would ‘eventually discover there's actualy а real issue." Jarrard explains. “At the end of the day its [the players] gama," Russell says. “This is a time where your voice can be heard and changes that we make can be based on the feedback that you give us.” Change you can believe in Changes made to a game during a beta are primarily based on your feedback and behaviors, зо next time you have access to a beta key, get chosen out of a poo! of potential testers, ог unlock a beta with another game you already ‘own, you can do your part fo help make a better ‘gameplay experience, "We want to know what you think about the ‘game. We want to know the good, the bad, and the ugly. Most importantly we want fo know What you didn't ike, what bugs you found so we сап make those changes, and make the product Бейес” Russell says. "Everybody wants a better game. When we Tun our betas propery and are able to gather the correct information and make those changes: that improve the product, everybody wins.” 6. wt ve cto VP fo е М » (TOP) wALLRIDING "erst rom Bar toed that players wonodebberatly twain 10 get ош tomes Tre деши eam hed ths by ‘Sgueanyslewang down cr speed upon wall inpact » (BOTTOM) ‘Toe ee tom Bur was way faster tha the oh n o ot nd na won a considerable amount ol races has been ved к ше па game These are betore and ater hos ofthe Barge power-up in Өш Uer noted he power-up was towing other aces й, "he ak has Don rue. Ina to valance wt the ines ober power-ups Pikachu. Cartoons fct oul 1e crt- ter cuddy ye соларо. persoralty, but games ike Pokdmon Уі эла. Pokémon Srap pushed the lorcalng electric rat гі» the ро. Its challenging enough o decide whether its he rosy cheeks or his ina to say anything but his name that make him so reste, bu irs even harder when you're busy dy heaving fom an overdose of adorable. Sackboy Od Mesia Mono contract wih de when desanimo Sackey? Becas tis gwy For something that devours and leeches power from its foes, is unholy oute. Fiting in with Kirby is unbelievably adorable, His stumpy appendages and ванілін puffed-out cheeks kept him in our hearts for years. If you کو ر‎ think that Pikachu deserves to be number one, remember fe sea ві that in Super Smash Bros. Kirby can don the Pokémon's pue he zipper on se trademark ears; brewing up a perfect storm of cuteness, The | aus man yaa otan real nail in the coffin, though, is his recent arts-and-cratts Sands ol udines o makeover in Kirby's Epic Yarn. e lace Yoshi Moogles Rabbids Mario's famous montis a ооз may oo le cud- Being pummeled by. a ‘geen ro win a saddle on y overgrow baby hicks, plunger wouk пау upset ia back and booties on his ЭА Моде and heir wobbly s but fit were a rascaly Test tat’ not enough, pom-pom steal th win 1t Rabbid we'd probably be Yoshi's handsome mug holds your realy tom up about too busy swooning to care. асаре de grace ot gr it just ponder the Chocobo For bug-eyed tous charm -a tongue he Knights from the Tactics uses to slurp up everything series — Moogles dressed а "rom tropical fut о суто in chocobo-femed armor problems. tese mischievous Г babies. Hs infectious yu "ho ide th large, вает bunnies sure are squeezabie. sounds and but-stomps are beasts. Its tough to find an We would embrace them enough to make us overlock ugly Moogle, except hat одо love, but we're feri the tact that he his his thing that Сай Sth rode. Trat "he hug might slp into unborn young at foes. thing was stupid, kupo. an accidental chokehoid СЕТТІ беліміз Nintendogs А Boy and His Blob Tails Thesemechanzsd,booheadedsenantsmsybe Before Nintendogs most hardcore gamers woud | How many games have a hug bution? While bath Tis gave the airgady endearing Sonic a true я tor tasked wih coking, cleaning, and fighting Mega have soled ае йел of becoming attached оа | the Boy and his Bo are undeniably adorabie, nis money, Не fled hair and imocent, naive nature Man, but hey te bestat raking us coo Ike idiots. virtual dog. Then these cuddlesome canines came | temofhigjeybeacatngBcbonnstands | made him warm hearts, but it was his saure tals The тет fact hat their visage makes the grotesque | along and meted he cold, cynical hearts of nay- | apart wih his ably to trans into а squzezable | hal made their arteries melt Sure, a fying, wo- zombies of Dead Rising look huggable is testament ayes. II you ever catch someone saying "good | version of a ladder, amplie, or spaceship. No | taled foris handy in a platforming game, ut Ta tothe Serbots' іу. bof oa DSin pubic, you know you've found a | intergalactic creature with a det based solely on Іле worth is found when he peters out and oats to fallow gamer Or a crazy perso. candy codd possibly be dsousting. the ground huffing and puting е ated ru. 20 Happy Days Are Here Again Coming September Wii. ""TE"PBDS. „ A glimpse into the not-so-distant future | of the downloadable game scene » mar: Miler = fyou missed 20095 Tine, then you overlooked one of the best download- able titles of last year. Make it up to yourself by checking out Trine 2, which -L is headed to XBLA, PSN, and PC next Spring. Like its predecessor, Tine 2 is set in alush fantasy world filed with puzzles and ‘monsters. The original developer, Frozenbyte, is prepping the sequel, which answers fan demand by delivering both local and online. cooperative multiplayer. Solo players can jump back and forth between the three main characters to use their varied skill sets, or up to three players can join in to bring everybody onto the screen at once. Each of the three returning characters have some new tricks up their sleeves, The wizard gains some offensive capability through the abil- ity to manipulate enemies in the same way he does objects, pushing and flinging them. about like rag dolls. The melee-focused knight can now parry and counter. attacks. The thief is able to slow down time, further accentuating her stealth and agility. The game boasts some huge boss fights that help high- light the gorgeous background visuals and ‘smooth animations that made the first title Such a treat to play. Keep an eye on this one, Slam Bolt Scrappers defies easy clas- sification, combining black dropping, brawl- ing, building, and a іше bit of tower defense. The indie team at Fire Hose Games is crafting this PSN exclusive for launch in early 2011. The game telis the story of the scrappers of Siam Bolt City, who accidentally set off an explosion that damages nearby Volcano City and Sky City. Chaos ensues. І played the game for several frenzied sessions, and was surprised how well the different elements fit together into а frantic but fun experience. | was constantly sending my scrapper zooming around the screen, destroying enemies to turn into blocks while trying to rattle my opponent. with occasional rapid strikes. By combining same-colored blocks into larger structures, ‘they transform into weapons that proceed to auto-attack enemy forces. The game sup- ports one to four players in either of its primary modes - campaign and battle mode, Battle ‘mode's constant action and breakneck pace is reminiscent of Smash Bros. The cooperative campaign mode has side-scrolling elements, giant bosses, and shifting environments. Im intrigued by the possibilities. n get a head start on checking cut Dead Space urs lead- up as an interactive comic paths accompanied by While this gameplay тте away, ign Johnston is scripting the story, ‘expect a high-quality, integ adventure storyine, E fers uni achers creators are hard at work on BattleBlock. Theater, which s one of my most anticipated upcoming The Behemath's third game tels the story of ‘an unusual island populated by For ther felne players are forced to in deadly theater atures tremendous Mario games пері mpaign, but the mor ‘The best nere the last game left with the intrepid subterranean rescue ship Xi by a massive beast at the: Q-Games title to date layers must once ag 'omplex dynamics and interplay is getting a Таша types. Tho taking out enemies thal ur тте sequel alo introduces a compe tive опе mutilayer mode Ts oun designated stage new чама co sequel on PlayStation Network." project is rooted in 8- but alows players to beco of any number o about al ther back for mar ite дале з 24 connect Singularity Though it launched under the radar, Singularity del prom producer Jeff Рой 1d writer Bob Love to BioShock When most developers incorpo- rate ime manipulation into their games, we hear horror stories about the powers breaking the framework of the game. Were there any powers that didn't make Ж то the game for this reason? ion Hawking admitted that time travel is a tricky con- cept to wrap your head around. Is it difficult crafting a flowing story with time travel as its key з. but t was al worth it Singularity draws obvious inspi- ration from BioShock. Were. {here any fears during develop- ment that it would be a common fritique/complaint that gamers Throughout the game we see ‘would have? various prototype weapons lying around Katorga-12. Were these ‘concepts that didn't make the At the end of the game, was Why can't you walk and listen tothe enhanced impulse attack. the audio recordings? your way of saying, “Thanks for sticking around until the end. Go crazy"? Many of the puzzle solutions are repeated throughout the game, Such as “expand the box.” Were there more puzzle concepts that didn't make it into the game? ‘Of the game's three possible outcomes, which ono would you predict most gamers chose the first time around? Was the “tough decision" ending in place from the beginning of development? And did you origi- nally plan for the player to have the option to bow out of it? dio ten an ple endings fom Given how your time powers work, would co-op gameplay be Possible in a future installment? JP: Co-op play woul be a deft Activision didn't seem to support Singularity since its announce- ment. It wasn't at ES, and it hasn't received much marketing support despite mostly positive reviews. Is this frustrating for the team after working on it for adding creat You wiLL POSSESS A TOWERING SENSE OF HONOR. You WILL DEVELOP A RELENTLESS WILL TO SUCCEED. You WILL BECOME A PART 5 IMPENETRABLE SHIELD. Ir vou HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO MAKE IT. MARINES THE FEW. THE PROUD. ATACLYSMIC EASONS To Come Back To WoW Two new races and all the content that Blizzard can shove into its shattered world are the primary REN RN draws of Word of Warerofts upcoming third Kiling goblins expansion, Cataclusm. TI ht re lapsed [recovered?] WoW players to come back to Azeroth dive beyond the obvious bullet points to the real meat of why you might consider renewing your si Level without pain As any old-school player (or anyone pursuing the brutal Loremaster Ше) can. tell you, pre-Burning Crusade zane design made for some tough ties. Even with the many improvements tothe 1-60 zones over the last fve years ~ remember when there was no Horde fighipath to Un'Goro? = making It to (Outland at level 58 feels Ike throwing off the chains of oppression and tast- ing freedom for the frst ime. We don't know exactly how much of the 1-60 quesing path wi be brand new but you can safely assume hat nV vea between coniinni four times in the same quest chain. QUESTERS: SD jousting ıt Hyjal jus to experience this bance, LOREMASTERS: Meeting mythical figures Cataclysm's quastines have deep tes to the War ofthe Ancients, and helping everyone from Malfuron Stormrage to the demigod Cenarius with ther problems is as cool of a lore tie-in as anything currently in the game. Do you know what godike furo the harpies worship, or what role the ur tute played in the battle against ‘Sargeras’ hordes? In Cataclysm, you ind out nce day on im isn't having it. U intimidating EXPLORERS: Undersea a: Whether I's а gang of Murlocs beating you down because radi are broken or having to айдар and fame ‘on your realm forum to save your sanity -ause swimming anywhere takes forever, nobody has inthe history of WoW enjoyed a water quest. Against al probably, the new Vashjir zone makes it awesome. "ove al near mounted speed al the time, there's sath mer, and the three-dimensional aspect works the heroic fantasy underwater adventure you've always wanted. RAIDER: Who are you kidding, you're already here up group right and primary al Getting while the getting (s good It you've never jumped int fore keting you. ight figure out ın rather than watching nine. Blue ith abiti and its fun aded too Thor & Green Lantern Face Off In 2011 9 ал Diego Comic-Con маз full of superheroes in tight spandex, but two in particular used the convention to announce their upcoming video game plans. Sega revealed a Thor game for PlayStation З, Xbox 360, Wil, Nintendo DS, and PSP. while Warner Bros. announced Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters on the same systems minus the PSP. This isn't just two games going head to head; the two superhero's fims wil square с in theaters next summer as well Silent Hil Homecoming developer Double Helix is handling Green Lantern, but tie else is known about the game at this point. On the other hand, Sega is touting tfe consulting пер of Thor writer Matt Fraction as Thor battles to save Asgard from foes lie Ulik, Ymir, and Surtur, The PS3 and 360 versions of the game are third-person action. titles filed with melee combos, elemental powers, and an upgrade system. The Wil and PSP editions feature a diferent story from their larger console counterparts, along with comic book-style graphics, Finally, the Nintendo DS Thor game is a 2D sidescrole. concept ты Mission: Impossible Warner Bros. is also working on a "hardcore vio- lent” adaptation of DC Comics Suicide Squad, ав described by DC Entertainment chief creative officer and writer Geoff Johns during a Comic-Con panel, Nothing else в know about the game project The Suicide Squad comic has been in and out of ‘circulation since the іше 805. The group consists of varying supervilains - including Deadshot, Bronze Tiger and Nightshade - working for the government {and later as a freelance organization) to perform extremely dangerous missions in exchange for their freedom, like The Dirty Dozen. Warner Bros. aso picked up the rights to a Suicide ‘Squad movie. Sherlock Holmes producer Dan Lin is attached to the fim, but there is no further word about casting or a screenplay at the moment Hydro has » water-activated ы а reservoir that hydrates your skin as you shave a It lasts up to twice as. long as ordinary strips, and conditions with aloe and vitamin E. / Only Hydro has skin guards that double the. points of contact to smooth skin and reduce irritation. ve than the Mach 3. HYDRO 3 FREE YOUR SKIN’ ModNation Racers Game Informer s cours the leaderboards in search of the best of the best to uncover the person behind the handle and learn his or her strategies. If you get a pesky over Xbox Live or PlayStation Network, please don't dele! our next featured gamer. interv Accomplishments ators, Myles Gordon stands from mountain vistas to ModNation Racers Creation ban cityscapes, Gordon Staton is the creative hub Posted screenshots of his where hundreds of designer но in the ModNation hopefuls aspire to have her forums and ited эши were ult manly ing work of art featured in he community members to test games ModSpot. Avid the е creations in multiplayer high volume of track cre- matches. out fom the pack wih 16 Origin of Skills innovative tracks under his “There was this old PC belt. To help advertise his cng game caled Stunts race courses, which range (1990) that had a track editor buit into it~ it was it. You could be view by Annette Gonzalez realy advanced for the time - which I spent los ‘of time playing around with,” Gordon explains. in addition to track editing ‘experience early on, his ‘computer science degree and years of programming, ‘experience futher ай his creativity when working with ModNation’s content cre- ation system. Practice Time Gordon says each of he 16 tracks took roughly 10 hours to buid, with equal amounts ‘of time spent testing and revising for playabiiy. Even wih the amount of practica. he's had with the creation tools, it hasn't cut down, ‘on creation time, Gordons latest track (unpublished at press time) has taken 30 hours to complete. “To make something realy spe- са, be prepared to invest some time and patience into it" he says, Design Tips Gordon suggests buding track creators plan the design ahead o me. He eal creates an ouiire ideas ют по baseine of the track, then sketches out the tul map on paper alor ding nto he ва, Once the rock has been compe ей, Gordon suggests tesing the custom racks by час са ends pay and ang mela ol any sue Myles Gordon Age 21 Hometown "Waterloo, Ontario. Favorite Design О Tour 4:Sky Fleet Hardest Skill To Learn ‘Track design Life Outside ModNation Racers Gordon's job as a software test specialist is where he spends most of his time; However, you can also find him keeping active by play ing squash, swimming, and running, He especialy erioys spending tmo with fiends and family, iting pubs, and taking random road tips. Other Favorite Games Mario Galaxy 2, 30 Dot Game Heroes, Heroes of. Мемет, and World of Warcraft - shout out to his guid, Trismegistus: Improving ModNation Racers Gordon has a number of suggestions on how United Front Games could improve Is track creation formua. Part of his wishist includes rotating props vertically, анод for more props 10 be overlapped, making all terrain surfaces available on al themes, removing fences from bridges giving players ‘mare road to work with, DLC for new themes and props, and adding lava as a surface type. Ferro on Maar cam и> Ms Gron ani a sere alr tis ват ads cock ол gamontome The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly NEWS WITH A RC TIC SPIN M The Technology of Rock Band 3 by Matt Miller Rock Band 3 aims to close the gap between simulated video game music and actual instruments through the introduction of Pro mode. New instruments highlight this shift, allowing players to gradually learn the actual musical parts of Rock Band 3 songs. We asked Todd Baker, director of hardware at Harmonix, to fill us in on these new peripherals. We paid special attention to the Squier Stratocaster — an instrument that doubles as both a controller and a functioning electric guitar. томіме @ Due to technology in the neck the Squier does пої need to be re-tuned to alternate tunings," Baker assures us. "No capos are needed to play the дате" For guitar songs with alternate tun- ings or the required capos, players need to make those adjustments themselves to play the actual song outside of the дате As for the challenge of normally tuning the guiar, Baker says you don’t need to be in tune to play within tho game. Neck Ф) "Tho Rock Band 3 Squier Stratocaster uses tech- nology buit into the neck and fingerboard of the guitar to track finger positions in real imo," er- plains Baker. As a player holds down a particular "ret and string the onscreen display wil show that mote and string, giving players feedback on correct finger placement even before tho note is picked. TRICKS OF THE TRADE @ The Squier controller can detect hammer-ons and pull-offs, but the game won't include any func- tionality for playing harmonics or pick slides. The controller does recognize string bends, but the game won't do anything with that info for the ini tial release of Rock Band 3. STRINGS “The guitar transmits strum data for the si individual strings, allowing the game to give feedback to players as they make the leap from rhythm game rocking to real word sil; Baker says. These are actual guitar strings, and Pro mode demands that players play individual Strings independently. The quien This soft pad can be raised and depressed to mute the strings = ideal when playing Rock Band 350 you only hear the game audio. GAME CONTROLS @ The Squier has some visual cues that give away 45 dual functionality as а game controller. The ‘guitar includes а standard Squier volume control, but no tone knob. There's no whammy bar, and "here's only one pickup = with no switch. The вераб and face buttons are present for standard ‘game navigation. PRICE Harmonix has yet to announce final pricing for the Squier controller. Standard Squier guitars range from $150 to $350, minus any fancy sen sor tech, so take that for what you wil. As for other included features, there's no word yet on whether the controller will include extra strings, a stand, case, picks, or other goodies. PICKUP AND MIDI @ “itis a fully functional MIDI-enabled guitar” Baker. telis us. "Players сап unplug from the fun of Rock Band З and plug directly into ап amp to rock for Teal" Atermately, while playing in the game, a сөлі wil plug from the MIDI-Out (on the side of the guitar not shown) to the MIDI converter box to communicate vith Rock Band 3. a ж THE STANDARD The Wireless Keyboard Controller also functions as a MIDI keyboard, boasting а two-octave (03 to C5) range and non-weighted, velocity-sensitive key bedi” Baker describes. The 25-key instrument comes with а strap, and can be used to play tho keyboard, guiar, or bass parts in Rock Band 3. It can also be used as a fully functional МО! device outside of the game. THE CUSTOM Players who use the new Rock Band MIDI controller can play Rock Band 3 with апу MiDl-enabled keyboard already in their home. “The game looks for MIDI moles C3 thru C5 (two octaves plus one note) in Pro Mode. Standard keyboard mode uses C4, D4, E4, F4, and G4 аз inputs to the five lanes,” Baker says. TOUCH STRIP @ “Atouch stripis included = during sustained notes the player can move their finger along the touch strip and affect the sound of th performance,” Baker explains. виттонѕ @ The Mustang has the same in-game functionality as the Squier, but with 102 buttons instead of actual strings and frets. "The spacings between the buttons (frets) are tho Same as on an actual guitar” Baker says. "The Mustang also uses six strings for right hand plucking and strumming” When asked about how the buttons hold up over the long term, Baker told us that the “underlying button technology is very reliable and has been extensively tested for long-term reliably ACCESSIBILITY “Beginners with no previous guitar experience may find the Mustang more approach able, but both the Squier and the Mustang are very fun to play in the game," Baker suggests to players unsure of which guitar controler is right for them. « Dims THE KIT Gamers can purchase either the Wireless Pro-Cymbals Expansion Kit to supplement an existing wireless drum Kit (note that excludes wired Rock Band 1 kits or purchase a full Wireless Drum and Cymbal Kit The new cymbals represent he hi-hat, crash, and ride. PEDALS “We added a modifier to allow the second pedal port to be used for either а hi-hat pedal in the drum trainer and drum fils, ora second kick drum pedal Baker explains. "Its up to the player to decide what they prefer” A second pedal won't be included in tho set. [E “The new Pro-Cymbals boast quieter sound with noise-dampening rubber covering the ful surface area of the cymbal” Baker says. “The Pro-Oymbals also feature enhanced responsiveness - es- ‘ental when playing in Pro mode, In addition, he redesigned cymbals now permanent rest at a pre-defined 10-degree angle, better positioned for accurate play Microphone > “In addition to three-part harmony detection, we have improved the way we detect and ‘core nonpitched vocal parts, we have improved the overall gain tage, and we've add- ‘ed a pitch-correction option," Baker explains. The microphone design has not changed. Я Back to Wonderland etur léderecive ewido ^ SQUAREENIX. = ЯШ А im. EE IN STORES AUGUST 17, 2010 МЕ; m Para Р DOGDAYS E к PIB * Фуеосво ÉE KANEANDYNCHCOM Kinect 097 NET @ xBox 360 Priced at $150 Software Selling for $50 icrosoft unveiled the newly named \ / | Kinect at E3 in June, but at the time the ‘company didn't reveal tha price of the peripheral. Industry analysts and insiders soon speculated about a $150 price point, which Microsoft has just made official The basic Kinect package gives you a Kinect Sensor, the Kinect Adventures game, and cables that alow you to hook up Kinect with either Ihe new sim Xbox 360 or the older original and Elte models. А bundle that includes al of the above along with a new AGB Xbox 360 can be yours on November 4 for $300, Microsoft says 15 games wil be avalable at launch. The software - including third-party offerings Tke MTV Games/Harmonirs Dance Central - wil be priced at S50. In comparison, Sony is pricing frst- party Move tiles at $40, KINECT ADVENTURES Packed-in game Kinect Adventures features Price Comparisons How does the Kinect pricing stand up to the competition? 20 games such as a raft-riding co-op chal- $2999 PlayStation Move navigation lenge and the dodge ball controller minigame. Microsoft skin Бе сна says gamers who E GS pre-order either Kinect bundle will get a token at launch for three exclusive adventures. 540% PlayStation Move motion controller 380% PlayStation Move mation con- troller, PlayStation Eye camera, Sports Champions game, and demo disk bundle. (Adding a 52999 navigation controller brings you to $130 fr all the Move peripherals) 514999 Kinect Sensor and Kinect Adventures game 519999 Nintendo Wi system, Wi MotionPlus remote, Wi nunchuk controller, Wi Sports & Wi Sports Resort games 329999 Кес Sensor, 468 Xbox 360 sim system, and Kinect Aven: tures game. 339999 PlayStation Move bundle (detailed above) and PlayStation 3 system Paws Screens We live in interesting tim EyePet (PlayStation 3) EjePet was released in Europe last year, but clunky conto kept he game in tho critical doghouse. Sony wisely decided to give it a Move makeover before releasing the game worldwide, and so far it ‘seems thats exactly what the game needed, Players use the Move controler along with the PlayStation Eye camera to play with а funy Critter of questionable provenance. Wih the camera focused on your foor, tne EyePet pushes the sion that the creature is right there with you. Wave your hand on the foor and hell jump over t Dangle keys in the ar and he'l leap for them. The Move controler сап be “transformed into a variety of diferent toys and gadgets, such as a һаг dryer, rampoine, or bubble blower. EyePet is ideal for amies who Ike playing together. Several people can compete for the attention of the EyePet, which is fun in ts own right, and its easy to pass the controller around for specific tasks. Some actives work better with several people, such as bathing the creature. As one person whips up a lather by rubbing ther hands together, the other rinses the suds away with a showerhead. The tickest part about EyePet is that it may take some time to get accustomed to playing with a creature that doesn't exist. The creature scampers around the players’ foor on the TV, but 1% obviously just superimposing the character onto a backdrop that the camera captures. Younger players and people unfamilar with ‘games could have a tough time reconciing the dea of petting thin ai. Compared to having to constantly clean up after an animal tat sheds, however, s а trade-off worth taking. Kinectimals (Xbox 360) Weren't we just talking about petting thin air? Microsofts Knectimals is a launch tile for the company’s upcoming Kinect peripheral. Unike EyePet, which augments camera funcionalty witha controller, Кпесітпак s experienced entirely trough your body = no controller is necessary This tile puts an emphasis on jungle cats, giing players access to a menagerie that includes baby leopards, tigers, and panthers. Each has its own personal ity and disposition, and they can learn ther name and a variety онно. "n addon to bonding with pets, players can also take direct control of the cats in а variety of minigames. We checked out ап agiity course recently, which had us balancing across narrow beams, leaning to avoid obstacles, and ducking to make our way rough low pipes. Knectimals is presented through the frst person, meaning that the screen shows the action as though your television was the ass in a гоо exhibit. You don't see your hands when you reach Up and pet your cat, but instead are shown a pair of computerized hands that are superimposed over the creature, fs odd at rst, but its more intuitive than EyePet. Ultimately, its a matter of personal preference. Nintendogs + Cats (Nintendo 305) Nintendo is expanding its blockbuster pet sim to include feines. ‘The game retains much of what made the frst one so popular While taking advantage of the new handhelds addtional features. ‘The 3D presentation is an obvious upgrade, but the subtle tweaks, such as using the system's camera to recog: nize masters! faces, are cool oo. S. As the three major console manufacturers work —— "if youhaven'tplayed Nintendogs, the prem- to carve out their own slice of the marketplace, they're taking obvious cues ss simple. Players adopt canines based on popular real-world breeds, train them, and from their competitors, too. While motion controls and 3D have been grabbing аке them on walks, Items can be unlocked headlines, there's considerable overlap in another area: virtual pets. through the pet store, alowing players to por sonalz tner dogs Nintendogs тау have brought the concept to а new generation of players, Were өй wating to see how the cat angle but the idea has been around for a long time - remember those Tamagotchi fe kaners werk ter mage win ler cats iains, or the old PC gai ie Dogz? The latest litter of games in the genre ог have the animals maintain the indepen- dent streak that owners know and love. more sophisticated than ever, but the concepts are the same: Let players raise ^ One tung’ or sure: The bathing ma and interact with cuddly creatures. Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony are all offer- | 8 bound to be less dangerous than its real ing competing products in the near future. Let's take a quick look at all three. world counterpart. connect 37 E] APB is DOA Realtime Worlds' first MMO fumbles its core concepts The oficial forums in the month surrounding АРВ release mirrored my own complaints with the game. The guns are imbalanced, especially for new players. The busted mission design often favors camping and cheap tactics, Missions have no real variety, and the world design is boring. AN ofthese issues add up to one inescapable truth: АРВ is a frustrating moss of a game that's not likely to pullin many long-term players. АРВ successful executed its mission of focusing on being a great action game over а, great MMO, but its one concession to the MMO genre - upgrading weaponry - s а huge negative when it comes to action games. As you grind through missions, your reputation with various contacts around the сіу of San Paro increases lowing you to buy more powerful weapons. Unike Call of Duty, you're not just unlocking a new weapon that may have a faster rate of fre but is balanced with other weaknesses, You're егу getting upgraded versions of the same guns that are better in vitualy every мау Within days of launch, having a character with the stat ing gun puts players at a huge, noticeable, and not-very-hun disadvantage. "The dedicated hardcore community buiding around APB defends Ihe game by saying the problems are more due to player sk than bal- ance issues, They als argue that nobody should be playing solo. That last bit, at least, s undeni- able, APB is а multiplayer game trough and through, and terc nothing to be gained fom going it alone. Even if you're in a group of relatively good players, though, you're bound to hit a булалі Caly generated PvP encounter where the other team knows the perfect rooftop to hide onin Order to cheese ће system and win without much fort Some mission types are fat-out broken, such as defend-the-area objectives Where you can lose after holding the locaton in Question for fve minutes because the opposition grabs п the last 20 seconds before the timer runs down. Ifyou want evidence of APES problems, you need ok no further than the response fom no developer. Two weeks ater release, Realime Worlds represen- tative Nel Caste made a series of posts on the APB website about planned updates tothe game. Included nthe Ist of things beng “overhauled” (Castes words, wel. most eveything. Changes 10 combat, dino, repetitive mis Sons, and matchmaking are al in the works. Caste even admits to the overabundance of camping in the game and says that Realtime Worlds is "addressing a number of the worst camping spots in the game. Its always heartening to see a developer ‘addressing the problems that people who paid for ts game are having, but t's hard not to ook at the huge fst of things being changed and wonder why they weren't thought about more. before the game was released. Maybe these planned updates wil turn the game into some- thing a lot more enjoyable, but as 1 stands, APB is far from the groundbreaking mix of СТА зуе. action and MMO that was promised, Ф CHANGE IN ACTION: GLOBAL AGENDA GOES SUBSCRIPTION-FREE is ot iba terra ss mi gameplay within an MMO struc da һай some promise, but the сорти iy after its Рыга, lino monthly or З layers сай рус desited, Te fist ex King of the Ring nt Dit Н Retums EA Readies A New Fight Night for 2011 ‘As good as the Fight Night series andy в, EA Canada knows here is room for improvement. The newest game п the seres Рон Night Champion = (Sot oniy re-working the franchises previous namie carer mode, its аво changing tho sweat Science of is renowned dal analog boxing system Scheduled for release on Xbox 260 and Pay Staton зї 2011, Ном Nght Champion explores the вова Sarker” side otn sport and we hope hi re-imagining f the carer mode pays on terms of depth and drama. Looking at tis mage Гот the game, expect more blood to pou down te ready detated character modes "The right analog punch controls are аво geting à makeover. Although deals are ‘scarce on what's different, EA is promis- Ў ай ing to make them even more redete, Putting the pieces in place for the perfect sports gam 40 NPL 254 Ct feature ісінде ts own minigames You always hear about how important teamwork is in sports, and nowhere is this cliché truer than when building the perfect sports game. It takes a lot of different parts to come together and work in harmony to achieve greatness, and in video game sports as in real life, all the action doesn't just happen on the field of play. Take a look at some of the games we think capture all the drama, intrigue, and even heartbreak of sports as we mash them up and piece together a team for the ages. The Online Arena Online play in sports games has been around for a while, but only recently has a sports Ше delved deeply into the space ‘and broken out of the standard head-to- head mold. NCAA Football 11 delivers Onine Dynasty play and also adds social features Ike the abilty to create and share печрараг-зуе stores about teams, and an extensive browser-based create-a-team/ player application. NHL 10's EA Sports Hockey League (EASHL) takes competitive оліге play to а пен level by incorporating ful team play, monthly playoffs, and a sense of team. work and camaraderie among your virtual teammates that attempts to miror the real-life sport Intangibles Good players are often described as having intangibles, and 15 the same with video games. Some of ther features aren't huge, but they add that extra something special. NFL 253 Crio, where you could buy furniture and memorabila for your sports mansion, was awesome. FFAS Utimate "Team card concept is a great fantasy sports mode, and we're even partial to NFL 25 first-person football. Old school sports. gamers wil certainly remember fte touches ike the Madden ambulance that would pick up injured players and NBA Jam's infamous ‘use of Ві inton, NFL COUNTDO "4 Joe Montana rs commentary was he standard or many year ‘The Players Association Players determine how far a team wil go, and video games’ handing of ts sports stars in offseason franchise features repre- sent an important part of the sports exper ‘ence, МВА 2K6 has you tak to players about their roles on the team, imbuing the ‘game with a player chemistry element. In terms of stats, MLB 2K9 draws on real-ile baseball stats with Inside Edge and the Pro Evolution soccer series documents the peaks and valleys of your players form via mid-season attribute adjustments. Finaly, ‘although its not realistic, being able to upgrade your players via points in Baseball Stars is a cool RPG-Iko qualty that more ‘sports games should explore. In terms of front office matters, the struc ture and HUD of EAS NFL Head Coach (00 do a great job of replicating the NFL ‘offseason, even if the implementation is a ito uneven. While the free agency bidding doesn't work, the scouting and draft day ‘experiences would be welcome additions to Madden, When it comes to trades, NHL 105 trade matrix is a great tool, letting you setup a wants/needs board that guides ‘hat kind of players other teams send your мау for consideration Recent games ike NHL 10 and Sony's MLB The Show series have done a great job of putting you in the shoes of a single Player and chroricing his career in ther respective Be a Pro-type modes. Similar kinds of feature Ike create-a-team and create-a- player tools have been п sports for years. NCAA 11's browser-based TeamBuilder tops our st, and we'd сі Ike to see the create-a-play feature from the 2000-era Maddens make its way back into the franchise, Sonys MBA Te! le series tempted to capture те зае bet drama ol spars Presenting Primetime This category encompasses a wide range ‘of game elements, each of which adds а special sheen to the experience. Madden NFL 10 and NFL 2K5 sport some of the best cutscenes around, and 2К5 in par- ticular does a good job with weekly recap shows complete with highights and a draft special featuring ESPN's Chris Berman. People often don't think of the audo por- tion ofa sports game, but thankfuly Visual Concepts did when it let you import tracks for diferent situations in NFL 2K5, бітігі, Cologe Hoops NCAA 2К7 has a custom Chant creator and MLB 09 The Show lets you record your own crowd hecklos, In the commentary department, NHL 10% Gary Thome and Bil Clement repre- sent the best announcing crew in sports - with much respect to the originator, Joe Montana I Sports Tak Footbal, NBA 2K 10's Kevin Harlan and Clark Kellogg also ‘deserve mention, The duo's contextual commentary about events outside the indvidual game at hand detailing player streaks, stumps, trades, and team per- formance is a necessary step forward for ‘sports games. What Is the Best Spin-Off Game? It's got to be Mutant League Football, a ‘game buit of the Madden 98 engine that takes some great bert with the sport, including toxic waste, landmines, jet packs, ref bribes, trols, player deaths, ‘and more. The game is stil missed after all these years, and fans demand is return every year. What We'd Like to See Sports video games have covered many Of the вае aspects of the sports they represent, but few have gotten the drama inherent in story-based narratives right. ‘Games in Sony's NBA series have a three- year story arc called The Life that chronicle the rise of The Kid and his surrounding cast of players. The Life tels йв story thro. extensive voice work, cutscenes, and gameplay scenario. Iti a Ше heavy- handed for some, but е as close as ‘we've gotten to expanding sports games horizons from the yearly game schedule and font office moves. A sports role-playing game could be the next leap forward in the genre. 6 connect 41 From Goalie To Game Designer Жел Sports йй took a unique path into the world of game design. After a successful college hockey car he played goalie professionally for a decade before joining the team at EA Sports. After helping revive the NHL series, he's now guiding EA's new hoops franchise, NBA Elite. You have a background as a professional athlete. When you were getting towards the ‘end of your career, how did you hit on try- ing the game industry? Thats the question every professional trito: has. [When you're playing] you don't think about much else, because sports is your whole йе. My last year | was in Orlando, playing for the Orlando Solar Bears, which is a team in the International Hockey League. After | stopped playing 1 took about a year off to think about what | wanted to do with my не, | thought of my biggest passion outside of hockey, and there was no doubt that it was video games, Turon, where they make Madden, was fue. minutes from where | ved in Orlando. I caled up John Shappert [now COO of EA] who was the general manager of Tiburon then. I told him who | was. He recognized my name from the hockey team. He said, “The опу thing | have for you is game tester” So my fest ob in the game industry was a game tester on Madden 2002. ifs the entry level, but | was just lad to get my foot in the door... It was funny, because after playing hockey for 10 years | was 33 at the time sting next to 19-year-old. They were Ike, “Who is this old guy?" But thats just something you have to do. ‘You spent a long time working on the NHL. series. When you came in, it was strug- gling. How did the team go about righting the ship? When I [moved over to hockey) the frst game 1 was put on was NHL 2003. ГЇ be the frst to ‘say that EA Sports games al that time were not trying to be authentic. We were not simulating realite sports the way we do now. We were putting gimmicks in our games. They were fun games to play, but they really weren't capturing the true essence of the sport. | learned so much "hose frst few years with some great guys and great teams, But when the generations changed and we moved to the 360 and the PSS, we sat down and asked, "What do we want NHL to be known for?” Was the skill stick your idea or a collabora- tive idea? Were there disagreements about the direction for the series? We brainstormed about 1. The guy who was the head of NHL when this started was Dean Richards. We talked a lot about what we want- ed to do. What realy came out was the ques- tion "How do we give the tools to people?" We need to mimic real йе. 1% so fun to skate on the се and shoot the puck. We wanted to bring that fun into the video game and not base it on ‘buttons and gimmicks. As soon as we figured ‘out the direction, it actualy came pretty easy. We figured out that the ight stick could be your hockey stick How does your background as a pro ath- lete influence you as a game producer? How does that make you different from other producers? | beleve that every team thats making a sports ‘game needs at least one former professional athlete or, at the very least, one division one colege athlete. You don't tray know the sport unless you've played tor a Iving, Thats not to say that fans don't give incredible input into the making of our games, but every team needs an expert in that sport. But, to be honest, what I've learned more than anything is that, unless you Put the right people in place building that game, you're not going to get anywhere. Are there disadvantages to your back- ground? Do you need an outside perspec- tive to check your viewpoint? КІ Өй have my gaming background, I'd be in trouble. Just knowing hockey is not enough to make a great game. It helps — if you have the right team and you have gaming knowledge. А good example of that is our NBA basketball franchise. We've had NBA experts on that game for years. What | felt was missing from that fran- chise was the gaming experience. My role has. switched this year to creativo director of hockey and basketball. Im not a basketball expert - not by a long shot. What fm bringing is my gaming knowledge. Im a hardcore sports gamer. | learn a lot just пот playing against consumers. How did you end up transitioning over to NBA? As you said, it's certainly not your background. NBA, as everyone knows, was lagging behind a bit in Metacriic and in sales. The basketball category is down over the last fve years in terms of overall sales з not just one franchise; its the whole category Internally, hockey and. basketball were already working closely together ‘on some features. | approached the executive producer, Brent Nielson, and said, "I have an idea that I really think can turn МВА around.” So had this idea for а new control system that is based on NHL's control system. {shared it with Brent and the guys and they thought i] ‘could work really wel. In hockey, the left stick is your skates and the right stick is your stick. In basketbal, the left stick coud be your fest and the right stick could be your hands. We had а guy do up a prototype - a brillant software ‘engineer here - and people were having a lot of fun playing it. t actual felt іка real е. That's "when my role switched a bit. But what's been amazing 8 how, since being involved with that team, I've seen what amazing engineers and leadership is there. For a long time now, it seems like NBA Live. has been rebooting every year. Are you committed to this new direction that Elite is taking over the long term? ‘One huncred percent committed. We have а three-year plan in place, just ke we did with NHL back in '07. It is cur goal to be the most authentic basketball smuation ever made. Pater Moore, who just mentioned this, said that we are во committed to this franchise becoming what FIFA is in soccer and what NHL is in hockey. ша 2K has been the market leader in basket- ball. What have you learned from how they ‘approach things? | play al sports games. 1 doesn't matter fits EA Sports ог the competion. In many cases, the compettion’ games have been bette, play the best games and eam from every one ‘of them. | don't lok at [2K] as who we're up ‘agains, We're up against a video games [com- реге] for a person's hard-earned dolar. n this ‘economy, people are buying fewer games, and they might only buy one or two sports games a year. II take inspiration from anywhere. | take inspiration fom my favorite designers of all time - Sid Meier and Wil Wight. Those are my idols. What can you bring into your work in sports. from games you love in other genres? ‘The biggest hing Ive taken from Sid Meiers games and Wil Wright games [nas become] ‘one of the biggest pilars for NBA and NHL - emergent gameplay. We want to get away from. scripted gameplay where you only have a Em- "ted amount of control. We want people to do. things we never thought possible. The Sims is a great example. When people had a Sm and boxed him in a room with glass walls and kept him prisoner = | don't think Wil Wright ever ‘thought that would happen. But it emerged "n the gameplay. Those are the moments we want. | learned that from all those incredible games made by the masters, Elite is going away from the traditional, TV-style horizontal viewing angle thats been traditional in basketball. Talk about. that decision. You're playing the game; you're not watching the game. You get to express yourself and do things on the basketball court, I's not about watching a basketball game play out. Thats not опу the camera angie, 15 also the new con- тов. We don't want to see these frame arima- tions play out just because you press a button, ‘Sure, that looks good, but that's not gaming. “The greatest thing about the medium we're inis that їз interactive. In EA Sports Hockey League every player оп the ice is а real person online. Do you want to bring that to other sports? There's no doubt about 1. А lot of people buy ‘ur games to play as Kobe or Sidney Crosby. But we want people to become а celebrty for being the best vitual hockey player or virtual ‘basketball paye in tha world. Having your тәте on tha back of your jersey and being the best team in the word with your fiends, that Could be a more power experience than win- ring а game with the Lakers. Most kids dream ^f being a professional athlete. But 989 percent Othe population doesn't get to do that, and you сап through our games. I hope over the пек fve to ten years we coo in sports what you эое in Korea, with people becoming stars by playing Stara © 1980 ATARI MANIA lana begin hie ons aiai ith а gatos ‘ii hie a 2600 1885 DORM DAZE liia tende Beaton, Cales, paning thv school's reine Меў pogam за à goal. 1987 DRAFTED titan ie ct Бу the Ви} Sabts organizar 1989 THE DOTTED LINE alor gradusning fi BC: tion шу ont ‘oh o Büro Satie 1889 GOING PRO lira spend ibo 89 20 sr babe bor dig toon {ло Roc Annot е pay э spl oF aros voi Sabres ever the nes I ушш. lins i ade 10 the ‘arpa Ваў Lat He aieo plays и Tear USA ot the Weil Championships” 1999 LEAVING THE RINK Ann раз ie іва уви ас leen Hockey layer lor he Ola Sole "ose ch te I,m ie 98. 2001 BACK IN THE Laman gete a) RA "uten а я ди an Madden Fi, 20 2001 UP NORTH ЖҮ uti tcc далу neuen ot Hi Отти апо па бале Фе boot ves i th pue 2007 MOVING UP ana epson to Ain prodeat @ te NH. Franchise NHL O9 gdes o. зр game d 2009 HOOP DREAMS tan bore өзө etr lor ba hooky and askorbat пак a1 EA Canada connect 43 Samsung зенай by Nick Ahrens With this past year's CES dominated by 3D TVs and active shutter glasses, the rebirth of 3D is the hottest topic in the tech industry. Along with every other TV manufacturer, Samsung just released a bevy of new sets that support 3D. This Series 8 set is the flagship model, and for good reason. At just 1.3 inches thick, this ultra-thin plasma television looks good from every angle. Unlike LCD, plasma televisions deliver true black colors because no light is being emitted from the screen when black images appear. With its 7,000,000:1 contrast ratio and vibrant color replication, this display is gorgeous. Forza 3 on Xbox 360 looked brilliant in 1080p, and so did the rest of the HD content we viewed. "While the jury is still out on 3D's ability to stay relevant, Samsung Series 8 does a fantastic job of recreating the 3D the- ater experience at home when partnered with the company's 3D Blu-ray player (more info on your right). The 3D version of Monsters vs Aliens makes a good argument that 3D. in the home is not just via- ble, but cool. The TV also. has the ability to (kind of) turn 2D content into 3D if о ray player. The only downside is the ‘The Series 8 is expensive, but the in the pants is the price of active shu 1| Samsung BD-C6900 Blu-ray Player Tre 08900 has al the tels and whistles you could wert ата 30 Blu-ray paye Along wit he бес Фе hs entrent machine can ap і Pe Ting Бе! and вазу Blu-rays loa паіў and ok star. Wit support for DVO up-comersion and uncompressed audio from bof Dolby and DTS, even абоза home theater enthusiasts wi veik away impressed. youre locking for a eter Blu-ray ege ence han the PS3, check out бе 06900, 2| Apple iPhone 4 Boot up бе Phone 4 and ihe visual upgrade oer As predecessors is пабегаў nocet. The mew retra берау presents photos, games, and everthing ése weh cry unmatched by ober. phones. The пен fori-facng camera s a rice. aon, hough it would бе rice the Face Time video caling was't WEF олу. Tho new es эозин not олу kooks great, but alo reduces the Эше of te phone, making t even thinner than last year's 365 model Sipping with he new OS 4, the IPhone 4 can finaly mutta, one of a number of ‘sotare improvements. We ме havent run into. талу o те dreaded antenna issues, з ey a ratem for some uses Тау Адзе recerily announced fc cases tor eariy adopters and lure ers that supposed f he problem | you're ot айак ol he bad press he company has received lat te Phone 4 i аі te best eran of he Gen yet 5199 1668, 5299 3208 (with 2 year АТАТ a| Olympus PEN E-PL1 hie e PEN e а cameras в about as od as your dd, he concept of а mic four-thirds camera © much newer The E-PL1 e byproduct of à mad scenis cross reed a DSLR and а pont and-shoot While Nikon and Canon are fere tul DSLR's in the same prica range, he PENS ste and design make t qute attractive. Performance- эйе, the ЕРИ packs a 12 3-megaguel punch The lta-wde 14-42mm КЇ lens crest dalver о much zoom (налі you can buy addon lenses) but images win Ins range are sharp an lor, йе on-camera post-processing is usualy someting to aod, he PENS built-in effects шеті. af ba. The PEN also delers 720p video fies, sik met sil carrera, captures decent coge. oie defintely spen the PEN is а yh, great айу kt that fas an nesting miae ground in Te word of ga ELI ‘lympusamerica.com 4| Weta Arc Generator The best arto having Peter Jackson's am tached to your fim 5 gaining acces to the eg. па Weta stude. Along міл cy amescme spe Са elects he creative minds trat cal Ve suo Pome aout some of the const sculptures around Distt 9de-harás ий be ected to know tat. the stout Ас Generator epica o te one that тап character Wius Van De Merve uses in the fimi coming back in mnie отп. Ths deadly ‘len laser was designed by Greg Bosdmore ol Dr Grot ате Amos 10 inches ong, each min Ас Generator is hand painted. *rlogametamercarrchnk lo read адап coverage and Mos ig on gear and cro MEDIA SHELF UPER HUMAN BEING HUMAN SEASON ONE $39.98 (Blu-ray) $32.98 (DVD) bcamericashop.com. KICK-ASS $29.98 (Blu-ray) $19.98 (DvD) lickass-fhemovie com. SCOTT PILGRIM'S FINEST HOUR connect 46 ... И you work in the industry and would Ше o share your "opinion. contact senior З Му Gamerscore is 1,650, and I've Never Felt Better by Matt Helgeson А few months адо, my original Xbox 360 bit the dust, finally senior editor B À сары succumbing to the dreaded red ring of death. I decided to upgrade to the supposedly better-engineered Elite model. While I was unboxing the new system, I did something that most 360 gamers would find unthinkable. Instead of importing my old Gamertag and Xbox Live account, 1 got a new 12-month subscription card, booted up the system, and started over from scratch. In a moment, all my gaming history from the last few years was gone, along with my Gamerscore and all of my achievements. My motivation for starting fresh was a growing dissatisfaction with the endless race to collect achievement points. Achievements have never done much for me, other than occasionally spoil a crucial plot point of a game when I've looked into the list of unaccomplished challenges. I've never been a completist. Once I've fin- ished the game's main storyline I rarely, if ever, tackle the remaining challenges to unlock alternate costumes or collectibles. A dizzying number of amazing games are released each year - more than anyone can play. I'd rather move on to the "impressive anyway. The more life online becomes an endless com- petition - how many Facebook. friends do you have? How many Twitter followers? What's your Gamerscore? - the more inclined Tam to withdraw. Га rather just play the games | want to play for аз long as they hold my interest. I'm not against achievements. Milions of gamers love them, and. Үт all for anything that makes people's gaming experience more fun. But for me, the time spent trying to chase them doesn't usually add to my enjoyment of а game. Getting 100 points for completing a boss battle tat | was going to finish regardless. isn't realy an "achievement" so much as a meaningless pat on the head. If the goal is interest- ing or enjoyable, chances are Tm going to want to tackle it. If по, no amount of padding to my Gamerscore is enough to make it worthwhile, next adventure, More importantly, І don't care to measure myself against other gamers. I's а meaningless ‘metric. The leaderboards tout Live users with Gamerscores exceeding 650,000. Compared to that, what does it matter if you have 50,000 ог even 200,000 points? More importantly, І expect that many gamers garner those mega- scores by cheating or farming terrible games that are overly generous with achievements, Зо, congratulations? | don't believe someone is а better gamer than someone else just because ‘of some number, Anyone who plays games is a gamer - be that game Oblivion or Farmville. Games are entertainment, and І don't need to have my free time graded against others. I had а great time playing Red Dead Redemption; 1 don't feel bad because | didn't shoot some arbitrary number of rabbits or unlock a fancy зай for John Marston. | got what I needed out of the experience - fun. Once that's over, Im out. Nobody awards me points for watching the DVD extra features or the director's commen- tary track on a movie І rented, so why should ту gaming choices be any diferent? As Ме becomes busier by the day (by the time you read this, І will be the father of a new- bom baby gi), chasing achievements seems like a poor investment of time - especial to Prop up a numerical score that would never be If developers want me to com- plete their extra challenges, make them an interesting, integral part of the experi- ‘ence. | was drawn to the hidden “The Truth" glyphs and the assassin's tomb challenges in Assassin's Creed І. Finding them was a joy, because every bit of enigmatic video footage 1 found drew me deeper into the complex web of intrigue Ubisoft Monteral created between the Templars and Assassins. Each tomb | found delivered fun, fast platforming to Ihe already excellent mix of open-worid exploration and. ‘combat. They were a welcome change of pace, and something | looked forward to finding. | didn't care how many points І got for complet- ing them = ог І got any points at all. То me, gaming is about becoming engrossed in a virtual world and an epic adventure. The itle bubbles that pop up onscreen and inform me I've been awarded points only serve to break that ilusion. A high Gamerscore doesn't make me a gamer. М І want competition, І can go online and test my skills against others, or better et, lay with fiends in any number of amazing co-op games. So go ahead and make fun of my Gamerscore. l'm done with it m vos al pio сег г тарар u па d Te аба at а ова Pe d ore поте une s 01 Another Day, Another Superhero Goes to Hell hene xd tgp ned be hrs sa выю Г ano won creo a say kage at ays Py ft pan) a a Gena где 3 Steven Seagal Gets a Job топоз toto re п Фэн fem em кө зк тону an илтер m. Бов gts oto тет gera а net Sr Tee a tl а ve tn tl үрп Gor ce wont ong ae seen fcn "rd n ty деме the ted 07 New Releases. батат Te FUE an Sate Season By O Spir Man Strat Deere f MUS 20 Y Just Won't Bine ern En Бо ei 14 New Releases Car Mr a Fac Nar 65, ge Sn Би a (МУ бота The Loris are (Sey Pass 2 f^ 380 з О) legna бш ү Te Loni d o Angs лэ) MERZ PROS Lot So йи Pray Sr Par 2 үзу) Peo feb Rub gn D Sey Du nd те Spo Tran or Las баю аа 2010 9) "HON SOS Dosi Tender 9) спее сне pt хона ба Эй, 07 Batman: The Brave & The Bold 17 Like a Visual Av orto юе ere as yf np. пети at Pe nal cote cavata Apta an (Oman o menter d бе бале nome sa ай ит. sto t аз ad aig ty an яка praet Peres v eaa а hd rte pne est rovs srk so es ys, an NS Б I9 PlayStation Move Brings to PS3 iy Foie Tre ort igs Аа Oi КН use Жо Chaps Tie ee PGA Tar 210 оз E Dead Rising 2 24 ORLY? ene mas o nes а mate etwas an под at ов. Тоу a eas n ech cry Te ан ка Hal тон ey Noer Se Stes тю нй prata тил! те тале ar une men у пата бле Ta уш can puer Dad Rem 2 St 30) Denes Sr Pays gs ЖАТ PA ЭЗ) PS) (a ня re о PSS ЭЯ) WO hor iy Sores OS Magn ce More Same PS3 ЭЯ sto ўкр Ів на Sum 2) aa Pies reg 2010 FS Se Steg Be D Sour Whee Sr p 29 Bruce Wayne Breaks Space/Time/Comic Writing ie tas rcs ov dy ra re a So ert ау aret Mosa aman nf ow Же Gre cme a? пе say = mpi ont Sk теа рлеу Pop tre d dolut ore ppm Dro an жа ya voto re eio O жə зя connect 47 Style 1-Player Acton Diatipiajer TBR) » Publisher Warner Bros. interactive y Entertainment WON з Release 2011 ч ince the events of Batman: Arkham Asylum, warden Quincy Sharp has taken credit for Batman’s successful quelling of Jokers uprising and. used that momentum to win Gotham City’s mayoral election. The first of his broad-sweeping plans is to proclaim Arkham Asylum and Blackgate Prison unfit to house criminals. Sharp buys up a large swath of Gotham's slums and walls it off, stocking the perimeter with highly trained armed mercenaries from an outfit named Tyger. All prisoners are transported to this new facility dubbed “Arkham City" approximately a year after the events at the asylum. They are given only one rule under threat of death: do not try to escape. No other policing takes place inside, leaving a mix of two-bit criminals and super villains to eke out an existence in this lawless, ruthless ecosystem Sharp brings in a mysterious psychiatrist named Hugo Strange to head the new Arkham, Hidden from the eyes of the public, Strange is rumored to be up to terrible things, but nothing can be proven. Anyone who investigates his past or Arkham itself seems to disappear, most likely within the walls of the prison city. Batman believes this is a ticking time bomb and has kept a watchful eye on Arkham City for months, looking for any excuse to break into the arded prison. Recently admitted inmate and followers fast or risk being eaten alive by the other super villains on the inside. Both sides of his psyche agree that the best way to accomplish this is with a high-profile show. of power: a public execution of Catwoman. Given their past, Batman has no choice but to enter this hellish domain to save her and uncover what's really going on. With an all-new bag of tricks, he may just survive the night. ү! n DARKNESS Following «ba: ino ami mbat, gad ameplay formula made gamers v ponse) think there's al around, Rocksteady is y foundation to buid up t mean th d toss ina few at we did in the last game." says lan Arkham) A New Direction buiding overtook w fals in the righ she, Ated?” Batman asks, je was last seen in the vicinity of the Solomon Wayne his faithful but “Let's hope she iss Ме Dent's fascina- tion with the number в ауға ‘every corner. Its not a big, empty, expansive wo хтео with a real ess to it. We're trying to create the mo слу that has ever been realized in a video Crooked Gourt Batman dis to the courthouse rooftop and sneaks through a window. ts immediate nt that Two-F mado this place h ‘own. Half of the interior is an immaculate, cas m whie the other side has in this place me respect,” says Two al that rema y Dent. “Fe ted and dsfgured sid though. This is a p елау know how to keep a git hang ing, Harv” Catwoman says. "Hey, have you had some work done‘ Two-Face strikes her across the face he threatens. "I'm sorry. Ive been a bad kity, and Піта! aris. This court st bue-lnged a single armed. the enemy and, instead of automat rom the ledge іке before, iy fip up ага momentum. He р the rl опока Ike Gears of War's players can now hit the attack just the ight tme ire, jumps off, and goes nt ks the quy across gel on his bac the process (all gadgets now play а ke at im in qu jh iman sum sorient and 3t back. One left. Batman simpy to nd him with a swift kick ha back that sends him fying into а wal sa, this frisher is presented in glorous that the system for (Arkham ‘deconstruct that and pul арап and make a completely diferent combat to build on it” Hil say ke mi tile simultaneous counters, gadget incorpo tion, and projectie counters are allin se jt ak at me; На explains. "Th th guns at the back manage the whole crowd rather than funneing in front of me just waiting hit hem” continued on page 56 PE ` IMPOSSIBLE the courthos е And Punishment е v shot back to ts source, Ват x. He looks up trace the shot ti ind complicated, id around the forensics а in and hears a ruckus round the ront door entre T game d are not going to be as өш last time. There are going I ‘them. ons Batman as he get 1 he backs off, t at Claw and fres it st toward him. glowing green quest p, but a arical гар encas Batman pulls out the па nearby roof alo at the trophy, which other helpful a simple examp насе КЕ f ihe Bat Claw's new fetchin atman hears a pay ‚below with a group of pri dded The gend that has 15 up ¢ ring each other et oposedy є unti het had епох те ай going down, "Its Ваітагі Get out of here!” a prisoner shouts. ut a fight Hep Everyone scrame a brief apg tening to electrocute um guar g form side-ms rea number hich are inked to key chara Айат Cet,” Hil says. "You obv but you val bu This ime. ‘have a that pla and f they're W armored enemies block the atman has frst. Thi them up to a new beat down. Bascal Я paintuHlooking punche агу enemy whether he After dispatching the church and hears a familar: гп бошу, B-m: as she charges toward handspring gil tied i attack an et iho k buletin t shi tr um, Batman sidesteps М and fip: ko Joke Arkham tosses her aside ady go, batfreak ors ай geta of several machi rch ha vaga center that humanitari ced Strange to alow with do what he says. It his ness. Harley appar help him out, but robiem. Flock ^ debate they all decide t on the count of three, but by that point Batman The fnal target has take ‘side a confessional booth. Batman im by bursting 4 Man and subduing the crim Batman ascends Bombs Over Gotham Batman puls himself up highest chamb па transmitter ol down-th long іт bang. Нам al person, Batman pul Jet caled the bro Я Jok mete ihooett да diferent b out a new different are climb b ке the Platform bax 360 » Style 1-4 Payer Shooter (18-Player Online) э Publisher Microsoft Game Studios э Developer Bungie э Поема September 14th FIGHTING THE INEVITABLE: REACH'S FINAL STAND AND BUNGIE'S FAREWELL TO HALO With the Halo franchise out of Bungie's hands after Reach launches in 1 до? 4 September, the studio intends on going out with a bang. While you'll assuredly see more Spartans and Covenant gracing the Xbox for years to come, the developer that turned the series P. " into a phenomenon will no longer be at the helm. Microsoft already has 343 Studios managing the intel- lectual property, and it's just a matter of time before they announce the developer behind the next game. For those faithful to its original developer, Reach is the last hurrah for Halo as we've known it. by Dan nere feature 61 62 WITH THE LAST DAYS OF REACH As a member of Noble Team, my objec- tive is to determine the combat capabilities of a Covenant strike force on the planet of Reach. Alongside the sniper Jun, | navigate a treacherous cifside in the rain and under the cover of night. | take out an unsuspecting, Elite from behind, only to discover numerous. dropships transporting more enemies into. the area by the dozens. Jun attacks from afar with high-velocity rounds that can drop an. Eite from 200 yards, while | dispatch various Grunts and Jackals with my DMR and any 'enemy weaponry | come across. After several тоге encounters (including one with a mas- sive, tusked indigenous creature that attacks. Spartans and Covenant indiscriminately), | make my way to a vantage point overlooking the enemy operation. Jun doesn't know how right he is when he states: "That's no strike. force, That's an invading army" Longtime fans of the Halo franchise are likely familiar with the events that occurred оп Reach, but this is the first time we've been able to experience them firsthand. As the ‘deeper Halo fiction revealed, the first game began with Master Chief escaping the dying planet. This upcoming Ше is the first to place. ‘gamers on the ground and in the trenches аз the alien Covenant force lays waste to the home of the Spartans. Halo has always featured plenty of chaos and carnage onscreen, but nothing on the scale of Halo: Reach. Fans are accustomed to small skirmishes with clusters of foes; Reach features Spartans defending against a massive alien army. For example, the fourth mission in Reach's campaign, entitled "Tip of the Spear" begins with dozens of fully manned Warthogs driving in formation towards the enemy threat. Covenant Banshees swoop down en masse, dropping your fellow Spartans like the unfortunate soldiers storming the beaches of Normandy. These situations aren't the pockets. of activity seen in previous titles. They're cru- cial scenes from an all-out нас My first mission required me to meet up with Noble Team in a massive battle to take out enemy anti-air installations, ut the scale gets even bigger during the next mission, "Long Night Of Solace." find myself fighting along- side felow Spartans as we take out waves of Covenant on the path to the spaceship Sabre's launch station. Once | arrive and strap into the Sabre, | am treated to a fantastic scene of Noble 6 blasting off solo into space. When the thrusters detach, | assume full control of the ship in a space batte While these sections aren't huge parts of the overall campaign, the controls feel natu- ral and the action provides a fun change of pace. Things start out simply enough; enemy Banshees are easily dispatched with some well-aimed blasts from the Sabre's machine guns. Strategy comes into play later once waves of Seraphs and Phantoms approach Noble 6's airspace. For these shielded foes, | ‘must take down their protective shields with the machine guns before | can destroy their hull with a volley of missiles. The Sabre's defenses operate in a manner similar to the method used while onfoot - it has a regen- erating shield, but damage to the ship itself sticks around. "With the new scale presented in Halo: Reach, it proves to be more than a mere col- lection of incremental updates to an estab- lished franchise. Massive battles, space. ‘combat, significant cosmetic upgrades, a new ‘cast, and plenty of additions to the gameplay mechanics ensure that we're іп store for a fan- tastic take on this often-discussed but rarely ‘seen period of Halo history this fall. $ “Tp ol tho Spear в one of tne mos action= packed Halo tages we've sen As you play through the numerous modes of Halo: ach, you eam credis and ll rank These redis to ater your various cosmetic customiza- tions, and even әді some goofy Eam enough credits, and you can surround yourself with sink clouds ілі, bolts, or even have hearts and contet emanate ram your character You eam Frefght and competi and Bungie wil challenge can feature. tives across the board, you may be earning redis for beating a particular iev by yourself on Legenda “ you could get score п Freight with a specific selection а skul tumed on. These c redits dy but у challenges wil kein between 2.000 and 5.000 crei CUSTOMIZING YOUR BATTLE EXPERIENCE Evade Toss a grenade an Eite's way in Reach's ‘campaign and you may see them perform а lunging evasive dive. This ability isn't restricted to the Al; you'll have access to itas an armor ability. Featuring diferent animations for Spartans and Eltes, the evade is great for quickly escaping the blast radius of a grenade or rocket blast. This particular ablity should be invalu able during rounds of the multiplayer Rocketfight mode. Active Camo With a press of the left bumper, you become practically transparent Observant players will stil be able to spot you, but not nearly as easily as they would without it. Give ita chance to cool down after using it, and you'l sink right back into the shadows, Drop Shield Halo 3 introduced the bubble shield. In Reach, players will have access to a sim iar-looking abilty that serves a different function, Like the bubble shield, the drop shield forms a barrier around you. Алу friendly character that enters its perimeter. willbe healed quickly, including the player that dropped it in the first place. However, while the bubble shield was invincible, t drop shield is not. Enemies can destroy it if they concentrate enough firepower on it. Halo 3 introduced now equipment to tho mul- iplayer fray, but it was never immediately clear what their functions were. Many gamers simply picked them. up and deployed them without realizing th носі. Reach discards this system in favor of. an always-prosent armor ability. Seven are avail- able in total, and they сап be switched out between deaths thanks to the new loadout selec- tion option. Each suits a different playstyle, and players may find themselves switching between them based on what game mode they're playing. Take a look at these options and decide what's right for you, Sprint With this ability equipped, you'll be able to sprint across the battlefield in a manner similar to tiles like Call of Duty ог Battlefield. This is useful for modes = like Capture the Flag or Headhunter that require the gamer to reach a goal quickly. | before being taken out. یا ا Armor Lock Gamers partial to this abilty should be prepared to receive a generous helping of insults thrown their way by opponents. If you see an enemy rocket heading your way, just hold the LB button to activate temporary invulnerability. No matter how dead-on your enemy's aim is, you won't take the slightest hint of damage While its active. Just in case someone attempts to melee you the second it becomes inactive, the ability sets off а close-proximity. EMP that wil severely damage your would-be attacker. Extremely Useful as a sort of “instant cover," allowing your shields time to recharge without danger of being killed. Jurple-hued symmetrical area is ren from Halo 2, and features five man cann Each entry in tho Halo serios features a diverse sot of maps, mixing brand-new areas with reworked versions of previous battlegrounds. Reach will be no different, and Bungie recently showed. off three of the new maps where players can look for- ward to creating carnage. зэкаў چ‎ Е [Jetpack Gamers who parti ta are familiar with this abit. Hel maps wi the jetpack allows you to take long enough to deliver an objective or get the drop on an unsuspecting enemy. For а rid multiplayer experience, try turning on шпі ited jetpacks in a mode that features infinite sniper ammo or roc Hologram fate the hologram, it sends py of you running straight in the dire tion you're currently looking. If your enemies watch closely, they'll become the clone's beeline mov gamers pull the trigger on sk series’ multiplayer know the frustration of getting stuck with plas 5 or killed by a melee blow to the back of the head, but sting several sniper rounds on a Spartan that doesn't really exist may be the new king of aggravating moments. with a in favor of a Zen garden-ike atmo founta annons as they tra ions of Invasion function Ike Territories attempting to gain ground. Once м end the tower, steal the er areas are taken o ту power ‘and koi ponds. Play is wooded environment. feature 65 І САЎ ШО 1 «ч sores] З» rj | by aff Marchinfava hen Nintendo first announced the Wii and declared a new age in motion-based gaming, it was met with healthy skepticism from journalists and the public alike. But once consumers got their hands on the new hardware and began buying the |... console in massive quantities, it proved (for better or worse) that motion controls апа casual gamers have a significant role to play in our industry. Today, Sony's Move is met with equal, if not greater, skepticism. With Nintendo Wis dominating install base and Microsoft's ambitious Kinect peripheral launching on a similar timeline as Move, how ‘does Sony plan to carve out а name for itself? The answer is simple: By combining the strengths of its competitors, while trying to avoid all of their flaws. After spending a full day with a final version ofthe new hardware and some of Move's launch titles, we walked away with a good understanding of what makes Sony's motion controller intriguing, and what potential pitfalls lie ahead. feature 67 THE MOST IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTIC OF A CONTROLLER I$ WHETHER ITS COMFORTABLE TO USE OVER EXTENDED PERIODS OF TIME. Wo ibe design ot Nintendo's Wi remote is appeal ing б thé буе, ts straight Ines and square face dont сопот to your hand the way a controller should. The Move might it be a sexy piece of hardware, but from the moment we picked tho controller up, it fet natural o hol and point at the screen. The Move controller is also lighter than a Wi remote and feels more durable - though you'll want to wear the wrist strap to avoid throwing across the room. Another problem often cited against the Wi remote ists button layout, ага і appears Sony learned trom the competition. Your thumb rests naturally on the Gêrtroler's Move button (aka. the big button in the middle); The other four face buttons are within easy feach and don't require looking at the controller to press. The pressure-sensiive tigger is a step up from the DualShock stubby triggers, and performs wel in games with shooting mechanics, Only the start and select buttons, which have been placed on the sides cof ine controller, require алу sort of contortion to press {Starts on the right, making it especially dificult to hit for, Southpaw), The upside, however, is that there's lits is of accidentally pressing them during gesture- based games. Paying Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 feels Much more natûral with Move, even though it shares be Same mechanics as the Wi version. “The most Important feature of Move is the brightly Ж ба! on top of the controller. It might look ike а children’s toy, but this ball gives Move its impressive accuracy. The PlayStation Eye camera tracks the ball in much the Same way as the Wi's infrared sensor (does, only it's omni-directional, meaning you don't have to point Ihe controller at the screen in order for the software to recognize its position. For example, in ‘Sports Champions’ archery event, the player reaches ‘ver his or her shoulder to pull out an arrow from the character's quiver. The game accurately aligns the arrow based on your movements, because the glow- ing ball remains visible regardless of the position ог angle of your hand. Such a feat would be impossible with the Wis directional IR sensor — it would have to rely on data from tho six-axis sensors to emulate the movement, and MotionPlus couldn't be sure about your exact position The bulb ilumination makes і far more reliable than the Wi remote as wel the Eye camera can detect the background color of your room and assign a contrast- ing color, ensuring solid recognition. The initial feeling of foolishness we had while playing games with glowing controllers subsided when we realized that Sony chose function over form when designing Move — something any avid gamer should appreciate, THE PLAY TEST ‘You may have guessed from Sony's track record with controllers that Move is a solid piece of hardware. What you can't tell is how it performs. It was only when we got extensive hands-on time with several of Move's launch titles that we began to see the abilities of the new tech. We were particularly impressed by Move's ability to recognize and accurately emulate our actions. Initial setup is important - make sure the edge of your table ог television isn't obstructing the Eye camera's view. Many games also require an initial controller calibra- tion. After folowing these simple onscreen directions, most games performed lawiesely. | spent a few mi utes before Sports Champions’ disc golf event just Swinging the disc around, and my character's hand always held it at the correct orientation no matter how. quickly | moved. In the ping pong event, the game. never confused whether | was holding my padde to the left or the right — you can even hold the paddle upside down like a pro, This is possible because the. дате isn't just tracking motion; it has а constant fix on. your position and orientation as well Thanks to the pre-existing abilities of the Eye camera, titles can even incorporate basic head tracking into gameplay. The Fight: Lights Out uses this ability (which was turned off during our demo), allowing the game to not only emulate the position of your hands, but your entire upper body. Unlike. Wii Sports’ boxing event, The Fight determines the ‘amount of damage your punches inflict based on the Wot a Wii Clone ‘wen Sony debuted а prototype of Move at last year's ЕЗ, many gamers dismissed it as an attempt to cash in on Nin- endo's success in motion-based gaming. However, the development o Move goes back much further than people realize. Sony began experimenting with tracking colored spheres as сай) as 200, before th release of the original Eye Toy for ‘the PS2 The artist prototype was simpl a ball on stick, but Sony couldn't solve color recognition problems crated by inconsistent lighting. Around 2004/2005 the company began experimenting with glowing spheres, but were limited a one ‘color = f a player's lights or walls used а similar shade, the camera stil couldn't detect it. Three years ago, the LEDS used in Move became cheaper allowing fora device hat сап change colors on hey and accommodate all different lighting ‘situations. though Nove features many similar abite to the Wi remote, many of the parts — such as he сав sen- “sors and rumble components — were taken directiy from the DualShock. actual speed of your punches - swing harder and your ‘enemy will hit the ground quicker. My first apathetic attempts at fighting resulted in my onscreen character drunkenly swinging his arms as if he had already gone twelve rounds against a heavyweight, It was only after ‘some playful goading by the PR rep that | put some effort into my swings and transformed my fighter into а semirespectable opponent. Games like ТІ ‘would be difficult to play if Move's response time, sluggish, but we saw lite to no lag in the games we Played, eliminating the painful delay between swiping a ‘sword or throwing a punch with a controller and waiting for your virtual avatar to follow through. Move's impressive recognition and quick response time result in a greater level of precision than мел previously seen from motion-based gaming. In Tumble, players manipulate stacks of blocks similar to Wi's Boom Blox. The key difference (besides the lack of cute animal characters), is that Tumble works in all three dimensions simultaneously: Stacking up blocks is simply a matter of reaching out and placing them jike you would in real Ме. It's an overly simple concept, but the novelty of having your movements eated on screen makes it entertaining - for a while, at least Not all games us in such a fluid, non-choreo- ‘graphed way. Others use Movers six-axis sensors to translate simple gestures into gameplay. Its a tect nique we've all seen before, and launch tiles like TV ‘Superstars wil do little to convince gamers to shell ош more money on new peripherals. However, the Move-enabled version of Heavy Rain proves the val Я such gaming experiences. It translates the controller ‘movements of the original version into natural gestures that correspond to the onscreen action, such as rais- ing your hand and reaching out to knock on a door, ог shaking your hand to prime an inh: everyday tasks may sound mundane, a fight between Scott Shelby and a man harassing a prostitute is transformed into an intense, chaotic, and more immersive experience than before. In addition to motion-based controls, many Wii The World's First Chameleon Simulator (ne of the more amusing demos Sony engineer Anton Mikhailov showed us was a frs person simulation ofa day in the Ме of chameleon, Using two Move controllers, the player takes control o the chameleon’ ont feet to ra and pul himself along the tranches of a tree. The controls were amazing responsive, and he pressure sensitive riggers gave Mikal ful articulation of the chameleons claws. Mikhailov admit the demo didn't have a ot ot practical use, but was inspred by his ime working in а pet store. "Hopefully someday а developer wil bave the courage to тайа а chameleon simulator” he joked: Whether or not the word is ready to step into the skin of a cold-blooded reptile, the demo was a god example ot how Move can accurately translate Your hands into a vital space. games use the console's remote as a pointer. Sony made sure this was possible with Move as well, but ‘once again the addition of the Eye camera creates а more robust and reliable experience. Because the Move's ball is always brightly illuminated, lightgun games like Time Crisis: Razing Storm don't suffer ‘rom jittery cursors like many Wii games. Additionally, Move's aiming mechanic uses a combination of posi- tion (determined by the Eye camera tracking the ball) and angle (determined by the sixcaxis sensors inside ‘the controller) to ascertain where the player is point- ing, and can therefore accommodate a greater variety. of movement. For example; The Shoot incorporates dodging incoming missiles Бу moving the entire con- troller to the left or the right of the screen. However, you can simultaneously aim at the opposite side of the Screen by angling your controller in that direction. This type of functionality is not possible on the WI. Ultimately, Move's hardware performed better than we expected. The only potential stumbling block is the navigation controller. The tech is solid — the controller feels good and the buttons and analog stick func- tion admirably - but we only saw two games that use the extra controller, and its not included in any of the Move bundles, further dividing what may already be а small install base. The smaller the install base, the riskier itis for developers to require the navigation con- troller for their game, Although the DualShock can be used as an alternative to the navigation controller, the button layout doesn't translate perfectly between the two peripherals (especially for left-handed players). Move's tech is above board, but a peripheral is only as strong as the software that utilizes й. Youll have to wait unti next issue to read our reviews for Move's launch titles. After trying out several tiles early, we can say that they dutifully provide a glimpse at the possiblities and variety offered by Move, but probably won't offer the depth veteran gamers want to see. BEATING THE Wil AT ITs OWN GAME In an attempt to one-up the standard Wii pricing, all first party Move games will retail for $40, However, despite the bargain pricing, most of the games we played offered more entertainment than similar tiles for the Wil. Sports Champions features six events (archery, disc golf, ping pong, bocce ball, volley ball and gladiator fighting), each with its own courses and variations on Gameplay. The Fight: Lights Out features a full career mode, a cinema mode to save and edit replays of your fights, and detailed stats for how many calories you've burned while playing. It also doesn't hurt that these games feature better graphics than tho. ‘best Wii game thanks to the extra processing power of the PS3 and its HD capabilites - possibly the biggest reason Nintendo fans have to be jealous. Another entertaining addition to Move's launch lineup are games that feature augmented reality. Start The Party contains over 20 minigames that display live video of you via the Eye camera and insert digital ‘objects into the action. For example, a painting game requires you to fil in random shapes with different colored paints. When the game begins, your Move controller automatically morphs into a paintbrush on the screen; you can rotate it or hold й at any angle and the digital paintbrush will stay in alignment with your hand without any lag. Drips of paint wil fall oft periodically as you make broad brush strokes, color- ing in the highlighted area. It's a cool effect that could hopefully lead to more immersive gaming mechanics in the future, WHAT ABOUT THE HARDCORE? Although we had fun with some of Move's launch titles, we couldn't help but notice the lack of more traditional games at the event. While Sony debuted а Move-enabled demo of SOCOM 4 at ЕЗ that fea- tured contextual, gesture-based stealth melee kills and three different aiming configurations, the demo was pulled from the Move event at the last minute as Zipper Interactive continues to tweak the game's for- mula, Ubisoft's RTS R.U.SE. was also a no-show, and ме didn't see any titles that suggested the depth of an RPG or the production values of a triple-A action title. The only games to point at the potential of Move were the aforementioned Heavy Rain demo and an updated version of Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition. RE 5 gave us our first chance to see how the naviga- tion controller performed, and although it took awhile 10 get used to, the control scheme worked well. You use the analog stick to walk and to move the camera when stationary. The Move controller is then used for aiming, allowing you to quickly line up headshots with your reticle. | prefer this method to games that employ dead zone for aiming and turning, but RE 5 is a spe- cial case because you don't walk and shoot at the same time. How other shooters wil incorporate Move remains to be seen, While traditional games remain a question mark, the. most entertaining Move titles use the controller in new ways. One shining example (no pun intended) was ‘Echochrome Il, which uses the Move controller like а flashight to distort shadows for an adventurous sil- houette to traverse. The game didn't appear to have а lot of depth, but it was refreshing to wrap my head around a new game mechanic І had never seen before. ‘Surprisingly, Sorcery - which many gamers considered the most impressive Move title debuted so far - was not shown, and Sony isn't isting it as one of the games being released this holiday season. MOVING FORWARD: After playing and seeing Move tiles for a fll day, the most promising examples we saw of the Move's capa- bilities won't be available at launch. These were tech demos created specifically to show off whats possible with the new hardware. The majority were created by Anton Mikhailov, a software engineer in Sony's R&D department, who demoed them to us as he explained what differentiates Move from the competition. Аз he spoke, it became clear that Mikhailov's main interest in the Move в its abilty о realistically recreate the players hands in ЗО space by using two Move con- rollers in tandem. Using the analog triggers to adjust the amount of grip he was applying, Mikhailov effort- Jescly buit structures out of Lego blocks, manipulated зма fre balls with his hands and launched them into space, and penned his own football plays Ike an NFL coach. Many of his demos suggested possible uses outside of gaming, such as puling ош the fea- {ures of a sculpted head to create a custom character {or an RPG (as those cumbersome sliders goodbye), or crafting his own sword as he tvirled it around and took a few practice swings to see how it looked, We walked away with a greater understanding of the vari- ety of ways Move can be used, but the demos weren't made for us; they were all created for developers, Sony has been criticized in the past for creating hardware that's difficult to program for, but for Move the company is creating new tech demos based on: requests from interested developers. A studio may not want to spend a month doing R&D to see if incorporat- ing Move is worth it for their tile, Instead, Mikhailov creates a demo for them based on their requirements in a fraction of the time, Zipper Interactive reportedly had SOCOM 4 up and running with Move controls in just two weeks thanks to this partnership. As an added bonus, Mikhailov believes Move wil lead to more devel- 'opers utilizing the Eye camera in their games - with ог without motion controls - thanks to the inevitable increase in the peripherals instal base, How consumers will react to Move is something we'll have to wait to see, but Sony appears to have a leg up on the competition. Move outperforms the Wil remote (even with MotionPlus) thanks to the additional input received from the Eye camera and the control- ler's omni-directional glowing ball. Move also seems to stack up well against Kinect. Although Move can't do full skeletal tracking like Microsofts camera, by using two Move controllers and head tracking, Move сап faithfully recreate most upper body movements. the player performs. More importantly, Move can offer a far greater amount of precision than Kinect thanks to the controllers sensors. It can also provide tactile feedback а camera-only system cannot. These facts Point to an advantage for Move, but for non-casual gamers it's а Ие disconcerting that we haven't seen more robust gaming experiences. The real test wil be what second-generation games developers can create when they become more acquainted with the hard- ware, and whether the casual market is wiling to рау more money for better technology. In the meantime, check back next issue for reviews of Move's first round of titles. Ф. Formar hands-on invests of upcoming Move tes, head o са Г feature 71 т » Platform PlayStation 3 Yoox 360 » Style 1 or 2-Player Racing 18-Player Online) э Publisher Codemasters Codemasters’ racer hits the big time it 2s omen mode was bi rund ê ГЕЯ Ror бае паа ата adl аган боору. D conus are tole gene bh of ai Paises io were doter Codemasters vcn onc ance ied On гіна Те cas oe ran. ni iom arido nee ee Wido тала natare codd ro Urt Saoka 1o tu oft monente and you решш тити ove sor de SER wenr io Kanes ry ei возо а іва e p you cra teeta reme, cil uno age lei heo emos mo ton Zeon sport ate Vio spoke ао cedi een sa те аид п талат, E E hae маб erae nis os cons poss n D you жогол fina танға талада a toe ree Тара opes rome fob es non ا‎ кетр соны and sponsor-based challenges, These include the amazing gymkhana events that have helped make drivers Ike Ken Block а sensation (see sidebar for more), as well as other one-off fan- tastic feats Ike Travis Pastrana's record-setting 2694001 rally car jump. Horsman says these replayable events wil “give the player а chance to let their hair down and do something other than just compote for frst place.” Because you're already at the top of your game, Dit 3's car progression isn't about buying and upgrading equipment to make you competi- te, but rather about taking your pick of the rides made avalable through signing with specific racing teams. Although the game drops Dit 25 (Conversion kts, you drive the same types of cars in varying disciplines via the use of different chas- sis. The game features the biggest roster of cars n the series to date, including selections from 50 years of raly racing. Dirt З packs in more events, races, and tracks than Dir 2, plus it brings back a ful Raly World Tour schedule complete with fve stages of racing at each locaton. Places Ike Norway make use of the game's dynamic weather system, which pro- duces diferent weather conditions as you race. The accumulating snow wil change how your car handles as you drive, The game also features a day 4o-night cycle, adding further variety to the experience ‘The oníne features also continue to evoe. In Dit 3, you can record and share race videos of your proudest moments and embarrass- ing crashes Уа a YouTube upload. Multiplayer expands courtesy of split-screen offine play over multiple racing disciplines (ncluding gymkhana. events) and pass-tho-controlr ралу play. With al kinds of new tracks and racing deci pines, sponsor obligations, and the return of ful- On rally racing, Dirt 3 looks to spare no expense in putting the word of offroad racing at your feet. » Matthew Kato What is Gymkhana? ; ЛЕ 1 2 » Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 PC » Style. 1-Player Action (Multiplayer TBD) э Publisher Tass » Developer. cass э Release October 26 ba Star Wars: The Force Unleashed | Starkiller has new tricks up his sleeve for the sequel to Starkiler, Darth Vader's secret appren- tice, who inthe end sacrificed himself to preserve the Rebel Alfance and protect its lead өг. In looking at ideas for the sequel, the team at LucasArts realized they were in а tough spot ‘Though he may have died at the hands of the Emperor, writer and executive producer Haden Blackman tels us, "Starkiller stil has a lot of іе. lettin him.” "The Force Unleashed | kicks off with the Star Wars signature text crawl explaining the fledging Rebel Aliance is (as always) on the run from Darth Vader. The game then transitions to а clon- ing fact hidden on the planet Kamino. Неге Vader reveals the new Staridler is а clone (or so he says) created with the DNA of the original The Starkiler clone is plagued by memories ot his predecessors past, including images of is beloved Juno Ecipse, Aware of this, Vader declares this clone to be defective. The outraged Stall lashes out at Vader and leaves the ‘scene, becoming a fugitive in the process, As we jump info the game demo, a fleeing Starr makes his way across the dark, rainy T he original Force Unleashed introduced us Kamino, taking down imperials along the way in one of the game's many "run for your ite moments” where the outcast Jedi best hope is to retreat in the face of overwhelming odds. The fugitive is dual-welding ightsabers, which alows him to attack more quickly and gives the combat amore styized visual fr Ripping Stormtroopers Хо shreds never looked so good. As in the frst game, colectble lightsaber crystals, including the popular black crystal, can augment your lightsabers to make them more formidable, "n addition to his melee prowess, Starker has a number of impressive new Force abies, including a Jedi mind tick that causes enemies to attempt suicide. Weak- minded Stormtroopers wil ump off the nearest bridge, вар out of win- dows, stand in front of шты, or wak into dan- gerous force eds. Another devastating power, Force Fury в a timed abiiy that enhances al о! Starkiler's Force abilies. How enhanced are these powers? Think about crushing an AFST with your mind. If you make quick work of your. opponents, you can cut the fury short to pre Serve some of the Force energy for later use. Though the Force Unleashed proved popu- lar with gamers, it wasn't without ts бан. To ‘address one chief concern amongst gamers, LucasArts is improving Ihe Al to give each enemy type a distinct set of behaviors. Spamming Force powers isn't enough this time around; players must think strategicaly to make the best use of their resources and find enemy weak spots. упа Jumptroopers, for instance, are more susceptible to Force Lightning. Shoot a few bolts their way and watch as their jetpacks hilariously maffunction. We also saw a formidable walker equipped with a shield and Carbonite weapon that requies the use of Force powers о remove the shield before the mechanical monster wil take damage, Environments also play a bigger role in fights, as you can use your Force powers Чо pick up enemies and throw them in to а ine of ‘cannon fre or use an object you have electrified vith Force Lightning and фор it onto your foes. ‘Alongside the improved combat, Blackman ‘says the sequel includes more story elements and puzzles to help break up the action. From. what we've soon of tho game thus far, Star Wars ans may have plenty to be excited about when the game releases this fal. » Annette Gonzalez » Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 » Style 1-Player Action » Publisher ‘Activision 5 Developer "Beenox » Release September 7 в کے —À Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions Ultimate Spider-Man is be маіз понов нивоа дате Дата прва across Tour Cerat come universes, bui you won't nood a masters degree comic history to esp the continu- T Sig. Developer enar working wih comic autho Dan Son o make sure Sete Denen ram sse to tech stone end neter i ore about ing inthe comis manes Tet goal ito slew fans cl any өнө at dedicaton о рек up and ero hated Dimensions, At this year's San Diego Comic-Con we played as he Aran Spider Manin a newest Бий. This ge Kok ct win stro sean an ck in black artitact called the Tablet of Order and Chaos from a museum exhibition hal. Spider-Man interrupts the vilain's heist, and during the pars struggle they inadvertently shatter the tablet, cre- ating а universe-fracturing crisis. Madame Web appears and explains to Spider-Man that the tablet pieces have been scattered across other dimensions, and that i's up to Spider-Man and his alternate personas to reassemble the tablet and prevent ай of reality from collapsing. We've known fora while that two of the other universes would be the Noir and 2099 settings, but Comic-Con was our first chance to check ut the Utimate universe. In a unique twist, Ultimate Spider-Man is wearing his symbiotic black sul, This is an interesting choice since the hero only wore that suit for a few issues in the Ultimate Spider-Man series. The black suit's ten- dris allow Utimate Spider-Man to perform more flamboyant attacks, This wild action resembles ‘games like Devil May Cry and Bayonetta. Ultimate Spider-Man has а longer reach than any ofthe other Spider-Man character inthe ‘game, allowing him to perform sweeping circu- lar attacks that hit multiple enemies and juggle characters in the air. Utimate Spider-Man also has a rage meter, which builds up as he strings, combos together. Once this rage meter is ful, he can go into a rage mode where his attacks become stronger and he has access to more elaborate combos that hit more targets at once, In the Utimate universe, Spider-Man faces off against vilains ike Deadpool and Carnage. We played through a level set on the Triskelion — SHIELD. headquarters and home base to the Superhero team The Ultimates. Captain America, and Iron Man must have been away saving the world, however, because Carnage had taken ‘over the facili, covering the complex in organic webbing and tendrils. In possession of a ресе ‘ofthe Tablet of Order and Chaos, Camage's Powers have been amplified, allowing him to control S.H.LE.LD. agents throughout the base and tum them against Spider-Man. After making ош way through a legion of min-Carnage crea- res, we took on the psychotic symbiote himself in а fight that had us throwing him through jet engines and pinning him down for some first- person ground and pound. All four versions of Spider-Man feature unique gameplay and special combat techniques, but players can upgrade all their abilities via a system called Ihe Web of Destiny. Unlike most games where you spend experience points to unlock new abilities, the Web of Destiny offers players a varity of in-game meta challenges to (Complete. When players complete these chal- lenges - such as stringing together a certain number of combo attacks - they will unlock new abilities and web attacks. Players can also earn a variety of alternate costumes for Spider- Man, such as the famous Spidey armor and the Mangavecse version of the character. Beenox isn't saying much about these costumes yet, but the team hinted that some of the extra suits may give Spider-Man unique abiities. Packing multiple gameplay experiences into. опе package is often a recipe for disaster. We wonder И Beenox has bitten off more than it can. chew with a game that features four different worlds, each with its own unique game types. and ап styles. However, from what we've played. о far, each world in Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions features some entertaining sequences. Well find out in September if all four worlds add up to one game that is worth playing. » Bon Reeves Shattered Rogues: Gallery Marvel gave Boenox а gat amount of leverage to takê Spider-Man's classic cat ot vilains and bring them Into universes in which thoy haven't appeared before. At San Diego Comic-Con, Activision announced game. Utimate Spider-Man wil fight Carnage and Deadpool. while Juggernaut appears i the Amazing universe. The Vulture is Dying through the ol universe, and Scorpion appears in the We also got a steak peek at Sandman, who appears in the Amazing universe. previews 77 Darkspore Spore's creature Platform РО. Mac » Style 1 t04-Player Action cally develo RPG (Multiplayer TRA) used as Publisher Power, the Electronic Arts and highly unstable - exponential DNA that unfortunately ended up inthe: A DNA to spawn a new Ho farm a g oup of soldiers that » Release February 2011 One thousand years later, Ihe survivors of the Darkspore onslaught discover the exponential has fall stablzed, To exact revenge against the Da my of heroes and upgrade th tens oft ction RF Darkspore is the lat ment team at t project from the tamed laxis, a studi originally eate the game, 78 previews sbily. Play ve or with tre ore, you can add visual thout sacr and accessories can ind orientation, and can here you wish, For instance, be used as knee p ifc tems your character for visual fair, you can drop them nto a spect fers can choose from fve character typ are referred cro (zombie), Quantum (iene, spac and Cyber robotic). These types fall into thre iclke Sentinels, fragile and speedy. issos including the ta төбені With sc pick-ups and rewards: character tweaking, At the end of each let ds based. ‘opens up a rish ха element to gameplay, Once а le presented, y тізі, plenty of il be around to aid in one in оа diferen enemies wil appear in a given area during every gh ore stil has а way: yawer fans alke. » Annette Gonzale Super Scribblenauts Maxwell expands his vocabulary "ry to. go a day without using them. In addi- tion to being unable to complete Mad Libs, youll find yourself unable to describe just about anything, We have those things for a reason, afer al. If Scibblenauts wowed players with its astounding varity of nouns, Super Scribblenauts is bound to delight with the addition of adjec- tives. Gameplay is largely the same, but let- ting players hone their summoned objects by describing them adds some hetty new gameplay layers. A bike is perfectly nice, but how about а hairy bike? What does an angry bike do? It fun to tweak objects in sy ways, but adjectives are useful in Super Scriblenauts, 100. Scribblenauts veterans know that jetpacks are useful for grabbing out-of-reach Startes ог escaping deep pits, but in Super Scrbblenauts new additions Ike fying bikes work just as wol, Developer Sth Сей says that аге 10,000 total adjectives in the game. There's definitely a solch Пау of modifiers in Super Scribblenauts, though its not as vast as the object roster. In. | f you don't appreciate the power of adjectives, the preview build we played, we could strum on. happy guitars, but loud guitars were a no-go. Its ‘always a bummer when a suggested word gets. ‘crossed out upon entry, but there's stil plenty of тоот to experiment (see sidebar). In addition to adjectives, Super Scribblenauts has 120 all-new puzzles. They're as clever as ‘ever, and many of them playoff the game's larger vocabulary. In one, several objects - including а vampire, leech, robin, and toy heli- ‘copter “ are in boxes, and players have to come up with something that shares some level of. ‘commonalty with the others. We typed in "vam- рге bat" and picked up te Starte for our tou- ble. Another puzzle works ike a math problem, with players fling in the blanks with appropriate ‘creations. A ghost minus a blanket is an invisible ‘ghost, but what is a man without a watch? How about "ato man"? Add п some tweaks such as much needed d-pad controls and a puzzle creator, and you've got a game that’s shaping up to deserve the "super" descriptor. » Jett Cork » Developer Sth cal » Release October 12 Unpack Your Adjectives Part of te fun of Supor Scübtlenauis е, thinking up adjectives and seeing how they. modify the objects within the gamê. Here's a taste of what I was abe o do with an ape. Naked ape Our primate al looks great in pink, Don't ‘worry: bo naughty bits are visio Zombie ape ox only sho pale green, but zombie apo also walks with a distinctive lope Dead ape ‘True о his arie dead ape collapses onto "e ground immediately atr being called {nto the game Stinky ape Poar stinky ape, Marios clouds emanare from теш Apparent, ll that separates ӘП rom be- ang pretty is a Gars m * Care for something spool? Ghost apo i translucent and Пез around, Strong ape Rigger than your normal ape, strong apo abo boasts а pair of huge forearms. Но defoated Бай apo wit one mighty punch Grape ape ‘Aas, copyright restrictions prevent our ani= ‘mated ра from appearing in tho game previews 79 Playstation 3 bax 360 » Style 1 to 4-Player Sports (00-Player Online} 80 previews isher EA Sports ә Developer EA Canada » Release ‘october S Ч CHI |^10 MIN 114 NBA SATURDAY NBA Elite 11 Hab for tho NBA Live kan dy EA Canada NL FA and Font ne improvements start with the new Be a Pro mode, which EA has re Become Legendary. Your career begin ith determining your deat postion during the Jordan Brand draft showease game which в also the Elte demo). Once you're chosen by an NEA team, pla shape the and eam new levels of orship from Jordan via а loosened ession system that awards skil points based on your game grades, statistical performances, and how you bounce back after bad games, Since stars run the NBA (ask Wade, Bosh, and LeBenedict Arnold James), at the end of each season agent wil ask you if you would Ike to explore taking your talent МВА Elte 11 also introduces th а fve-on-fve online league that features a separate player progression, team pro gressions, and monthly champions. AS 9 ebuilding the franchise mode by mode m to a hug rt advantage. re interested in turing inue will improve. stadium that offers a big home For those of youm your foror franchise around, EA is touting big changes to Dynasty mode. Uke NHL, the mode now features a GM tracker that awards you points based on good decisions. Manage your team smartly ke Danny Ainge and youl unlock new bonuses to help your squad. Go crazy Eke David Kahn and don't expect to get ur ob back (unless the owner is Gi ). EA is also addressing other n improvements to this formerly broken mod ludng revamped rookie classes that are more tune with realty (no more overfow of albino point guards), а rebuilt sm engine, and ESPN ation into the menu system. With al the proposed changes to Ihe gameplay and game modes, the NBA Elte team has a lot ‘on their plates. But you don't win championships without puting in a lot of effort. » Matt Bertz NBA 2K11 Air Jordan returns to display his dominance ow that Lon james has akon the КЕСЕЛЕР n Many мш cons at make os Catwoman, tre chatter hes focused on how Kobe Gan sow he «паза best mayer in We league. When o o ges py ©з decide 1o fon foros to абат unseating fim as league champion tura a ases ment Eu Goes any mer payer сата cose тоте guy ol Н mess) o NBA Ж tros a ons ana win sea есу The sorcar Orange Younger hope tans who nover had he erence to wal Мота soraan toch tro f or lan scorn ls sre an е lage MVPS wl gea crash couse Chicago Buls пау белен mode, ich tor payers lore the 10 ding orani Ai The Arrival Jordan bursts onto he scene with a 63-point piayott performance against he legendary Cis squad featur- ng Br сне and Part ‘oats: Score 63 points while shooting 50% rom [o 69 Points Cleland to deappointment as he гу destroys Ве Сага scr 69 pits. Goals: Score 69 poit while shooting 50% rom the eld ina Bus wn. Shootout oa and flow дігі champ Dominique Wikis show "fiber tant in a fih scri a ‘oats: Outscore Dominique and hol him to under 25 ports while winning ne game Bad Boys Ar osing to straight in Detroit during те East ortrence Finais, oran breaks dorm te ity ton delen in legendary fashion. (Goats: Score 47 points and win the game 1991 NBA Finals orn cars eet ng by beating Magie Johnson's talented Lakers squad. Goals: Average 31 points, shoot 55% om the feld, and win he series Jordan's career. Visual Concepts has puled out all the stops in recreating the Jordan era, secur- ing the censo rights for every player involved in the 10 games, creating signature style anima- tions for every player (мій special attention paid to Jordan himsel, recreating ‘80s and 905 ora. broadcasts with special commentary for the games at hand, and even making sure the paint on the court is historically accurate for each arena, If you stil need a Jordan fx ater playing through the 10 moments, take a historical Buls team (or one of the other classic teams) into ‘Association mode and бо your way tough the. inferior moder competition. (On the court, developer Visual Concepts has. many gameplay tweaks in store for enhanc ing offensive and defensive controls. With new player models and completely retooled player. animations, the on-court movement already ‘The Shrug oan sets the tone for а second fats run by break- ing the spit fhe Oye Der. Blazers in tha fist game ol he fest round Goals: Score 35 points in ef point shots in те first hal, ad its, and win the game 4 make six tee ТЕЛ) Double Nickel пашта om s ated basebal experiment Jordan ив ав the est nthe business by son Square Garden Goals: Score 55 роі, shoot 55% fom the fed and win he game Father's Day Victory Armes wins his Our tlle against he Sette Supersonics to cement a Cinderela comeback. Goals: Score 22 points, grab nine rebounds, and win тезле The Flu Game Not even a vrus can ap ha sco machte; ordan put up big numbers and паз the game-winning shot gas пе Stocken Malone era Utah Jaz Goals: Score 38 points, grab seven rebounds, and win ine game Michael's Last Dance Wt under a minute left and the Bul dam by one to the Uta Jazz, Jordan naits а clutch shal o eam his shat and inal championship Goals: Sore 45 points, get our steals and win! te gn » Platon. PlayStation з Xbox 360 » style 1 to 4-Playor Sports (10-Player Online) Publisher 2K Sports » Developer Visual Concepts я Release October looks much smoother than it did in NBA 2K10, Players are no longer locked into their агіта tions and rendered helpless unti the move runs its course, A retooled control scheme does away with the complicated drbbing controis of is predecessors, and Visual Concepts is also adng a jumper separation mechanic to give Players more fiexbilty to get of shots, impie- menting josting to bring more ріузісайу to the post game, and tweaking passing to better di ferentiate great point guards from backups, Major refinements are also in store for The Association wich is receiving an Al overhaul Му Player, and the online modes. Look for more info about these modes as we move closer to the October 5 release date. » Matt Bertz » Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360+ РС. > style | -PlayerAction/RPG (@-Player Online) э Publisher SouthPoak Games » Developer Reality Pump э Release September 14 Two Worlds A whole new Two Worlds ike my hazy memory of its disastrous pre- decessor, Two Worlds II begins in a dark place. Events pick up with your hero from the first game imprisoned and a big bad guy named Gandohar ruling the world. Orcs were ‘one of the primary enemies in the first game, ‘but Two Worlds I starts with a dramatic jail- break aided by these one-time opponents. In. addition to your struggles against the evil ruler, a large part of the plot involves figuring out what has changed over the five years that you were in jail to make the ores into your alles, The first thing that leaps out to me during the ‘getaway is the impressive level of detail in the environment. The stones on the walls are ren- деге in three dimensions, so what кеу would have been a flat, bland texture in the last release ‘now locks great. Light streams into the dank hallway through a single window, and 15 fitered ‘through the prison bars realistically. As the char- acter moves past some chains hanging on the (ling, they wrap around his body, curving and ‘quivering in the way I expect them to from being jostled by the character's bulky frame. 1 skip ahead a few hours to explore a portion ‘ofthe game's main quest. Im in а small vilage where the mayor refuses to help me unless |help him recover ther water supply. Ready to take part in the time-honored RPG tradition of solving ‘other people's problems, І explore the outskirts о! the vilage and discover a large dit structure. I talk to a man nearby who turns out to be doing ‘some research; the structure is actually a huge termite mound. After more investigation, find a huge collection of termite mounds to the north. The missing water is likely stored within. hop on a horse and head to my new objec- tive. Horse riding was a clumsy and l-conceived рал of the fist game. Some issues persist in Two Worlds І, ike having to spend a moment ining пу horse up correctly so | can open a gate, but 1 never feel frustrated or like I'm losing control of the creature's movement. One point of conten- tion that carries over trom the first game (at least in this preview ішік) is the occasional loading in the middle of riding through the huge open. ‘world. It never lasts longer than a few seconds, but it's stil an annoyance. Arriving at the termite mounds, | encounter a violent pack of Vans, jackal-esque creatures that stand on two legs. The combat has received ‘substantial improvements. Every sword, axe, ог staff automaticaly sets its own special abili- ties, which are mapped to open buttons on tho. Controller. The sword | use has a special abiity that performs a powerful downward swipe and another that lets me leap dramatically toward an enemy. These skills have short cooldowns, but {it's possible (f по! necessary) to use them mul- tiple times throughout a fight “Two Worlds I also includes the ability to swap between different sets of armor and weapons using the directional pad. You can change what you're wearing on the fy, even in the middle ©! combat. You could start out in your caster ‘gear, shoot off a few fireballs at the enemy от range, switch to а melee setup to knock a nearby enemy down, then switch to your ranged. equipment as you back up to start filing him with arrows. The tactical possiblities this quick- Switch аму opens up are interesting. ‘This preview only scratches the surface ofthe number of huge improvements in Two Words. Il. The magic system allows you to create brutal and insane spell combos. The voice acting wasn't finished, but also wasn't totally laugh- able. Even the standalone co-op campaign and adversarial multiplayer have potential, though we haven't seen them in action yet. In March, we put up a feature on ‘gameinformer.com with our reader's picks for gully pleasure games, and Two Worlds made the lit ай of the great stuff we've seen from the ‘sequel pans out, Two Worlds тау pull off being ıa pleasure without any of the guilt. » Phil Kollar Enslaved: Odyssey fo the Wests” » Platform PlayStation «Xbox 360 » Style. 1-Player Action » Publisher Namco Bandai » Developer Minja Theory жш Antoniades says the oppressive urban setting ир about 25 percent of the total father founded as a further wes named P. to the West. This old tend of Trip's father has loach n Heaven! xomplex and tries to be а ladies’ man, dds more nt do him any "han a just hol." lens What he lacks in suave realy rust Monkey and has a thing for Trip. The Titan Graveyard is home t s he makes up for on the battlefield as a snip Expect freworks when he tums up. The group dynam and soul oft "You cannot over ragonty. "M in gameplay and makes this game special” Antoniades remarks. “H we do our job right on this game, you won't ant to ever be without her” » Jeff Cork э» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 » Style 1 or 2-Player Fighting 12-Player Online] » Publisher Capcom » Developer Capcom » Release Spring 2011 84 previews Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds Capcom rolls out its new fighters he Marvel vs. Capcom series draws in play- ers from both the comic and video game realms, but this 2D fihter's popularity isn't just built upon fanboy allegiances. These fight- ing games pack a serious punch, and the third entry in the series looks better than over. For Marvel vs. Capcom З, Capcom has streamlined the controls, paring back to three attack buttons and adding a new exchange ‘button. This revolutionary mechanic makes. ‘swapping between fighters easier than ever. This hot-swap abilty brings a strategic element not found in other fighting games. Being successful in the battle arena is less about learning the intri- сасез of one individual fighter and more about finding a team of fighters that balance each oth- er's weaknesses. Queuing up exchange attacks during mid-air combos is а big part of mastering this game's hyperactive battles, and can tum the tide of your brawls. At San Diego Comic-Con we got a glimpse of two new environments. With a massive i Fantast floating heli-canier in the background, one Marvel-themed level seemed to take place on a SH.LEL.D, base. The second new level Capcom. revealed is a secret Umbrella laboratory tied to the Resident Evi universe. In the background, "he mutant Tyrant can be seen floating in a giant glass breeding tube. Capcom also unveiled six пен combatants who all make great additions to your fighting roster. » Ben Reeves Meet The New Challengers Doctor Doom James Bond 007: Blood Stone James Bond races into action ord Бу any means necessary. Sneaking into restricted areas through vents, div ing a boat trough an office complex, calmly stroling through a secret bunker while dual wiekding semi-automatic weapons - nothing is above Britain's best spy. It only seems fair to let gamers have the same icense to kil in video. games. This November, the Bizarre Creations team that brought us The Club is hoping to deliver a game that Ives up to the super еру. legendary status. "Blood Stone isn't based on any upcoming fims, but that didt stop Activision fom tapping АЧ Holywood talent, Curent Bond star Danial Craig and Jud Dench, who plays Bond superior in the fims, are ending ther voces and likenesses to the game. Ben Cook, Craig's stunt double for the fims, is providing motion capture. Engish soul and RBB singer/songwiter Joss Stone stars as the newest Bond gil, and е also performing the song for Blood Stone's opening montage. The talent doesn't ond thoro. Bruce Feirstein, the wrter for many of the Pierce Brosnan-era Bond fims, is wrting a script that involves а secret U.K. biochemical weapons project. When these WMDs go missing, Мб fears that they've falen into the hands of а mysterious terrorist sect. The SIS sets Bond loose to hunt down an ams dar by the name of Greco, who is rumored to be involved in the conspiracy. This journey even: ‘ually takes Bond to exotic locales Ike Athens, Istanbul, Monaco, Siberia, and Bangkok. Bizarre Creations wants Blood Stone о feel Ike one of the recent, more action-heavy Bond fims, which means the sly jtpacks and wrist- watch lasers that were popular in the '6Os, 706, and "80s probably won't be in the game. Craig's Bond в a physical brute, so the team is comple- menting the inevitable gunfights with hand-to- hand action. Cover is an important part of Blood Stone, аз it lows Bond to sneak up on his enemies and perform dozens of cose-quartors takedowns, Every tme Bond knocks out ал 'enomy with his hands he earns a Focus Aim token, These work Ike Spinter Cel: Convictions mark and execute system, alowing Bond to walk J ‘ames Bond has a reputation for saving the into a room and immediately take out up to three of his nearest targets with the touch of a button Уа slow-motion headshots. Unike Convictions system, however, players can use these tokens to take out one enemy at а time or sting them together to clear out a room. ‘While Bizarre Creations has experience developing shooters, tis probably best known for йз racing games Blur and Project Gotham Racing. This makes them an ideal developer to take Bond's high-octane gunplay and integrate it with his penchant for destroying expensive ‘automobiles. After shooting up а уйа in Greece in the demo we watched, Bond's targets take off in a truck. The suave super agent conveniently finds himsel standing next to an Aston Marin, Altera short cinematic transition, Bond is racing through the streets of Greece, plowing through streat vendors, and ramming enemy vehicles off the road. Al of tho gameplay elements are seam lessly stung together In another race sequence Bond is in a frantic boat chase, While controling the speedboat, players can uso Focus Aim to shoot over the glass at Bond's rivals. Similar to Disney's recent Spit/Second racer, Blood Stone's гаспа environ- ments morph as Bond speeds through them. When a lighthouse up ahead explodes, Bond uses the debris аз a ramp to avoid the catastro- phe and catch up to his targets. With the new Bond fim going through some troubled development, the only opportunity for fans to get their 007 fix in the near future is with Activision's upcoming games. In the past, Bond games have run the gamut from revolutionary to repulsive. Judging from what we've seen so. far, however, Bizarre Creations is crating an experience that could land a іше higher on that spectrum. » Ben Reeves » Platform PlayStation 3 КУЕЛ » Style. 1-Player Action (6-Player Online) » Publisher Activision » Developer Bizane Creations » Release November » Platform PlayStation З э эуе 1 to 4-Player Action (Online TEA) э Publisher Twisted Metal New entry in legendary series looks to past for franchise's future he second Sweet Toolh's ice cream truck rolled out on stage during Sony's E3 press ‘conference this year, we knew we were in {fora treat. The beloved car combat franchise. Twisted Metal is making its next-gen comeback with an emphasis on online play next year. Series creator David Jaffe spilled some details оп the upcoming reboot to а crowd of rabid fans at this year's San Diego Comic-Con. With Twisted Metal's current focus on online multiplayer, we caught a glimpse of a playable map that is stil валу in development. Jaffe pre- sented a rooftop that takes inspiration from the best features of those seen in Twisted Metal 1, 2, and Black. The industrial map has a center hub. housing a large globe and figure eight circuit, and each surrounding rooftop is connected by a jump ramp for ultimate battle stunts. An atrium. on the roof can be crashed through, dropping players into a swimming pool below. The team is stil making tweaks to this layout that is only roughly 50 percent complete, but the Comic- Con crowd seemed pleased with its current state. Multiplayer wil also see a host of new ‘weapons. А non-playable gunner wil be added to each vehicle, and snipers wil introduce the series! frst one-hit kil. As far as Twisted Metal's single-player mode, we're told Sweet Tooth, Dolface, and Mr. Grimm willbe playable. Each character wil have three different endings. These cinematics mark the return of live-action cutscenes that the orginal ‘Twisted Metal was once criticized for. The team at Eat Sleep Play explored other options ike "moving comic” sequences and CG popular- ized by other titles, but decided to return to the game's live-action roots instead. At the panel Jaffe had some of the live-action props on hand including several versions of Sweet Tooth's rusted machete and variants of the masks worn by the homicidal clown and Dolface. However, don't expect any sort of ‘gruesome scenes filed with blood, guts, and dismemberment; Unlike Twisted Metal: Black, which was rated М and was also the worst- “Seling titie in the series! history, the new Twisted Metal will be rated T to ensure more players of ай ages in multiplayer lobbies. Jaffe does ‘admit, however, that he would love to see а low- budget slasher fim staring Sweet Tooth make its way onto PlayStation Network, Јане also эое rumors that the game would feature 3D and Move compatibility, despite the fact that ‘many of Sony's first-party games are pushing those technologies. While the game is pretty early in develop- ment, we're eager to find cut more on the latest ‘Twisted Metal in the coming months. {you've followed our NHL 11 coverage, you're already familiar with the gameplay changes EA Canada is implementing in its award-winning hockey franchise - a real-time, physics based animation engine, broken sticks, and revamped face-off system standing out as the most notable new additions. Now it's time to dig into the game modes. To create a more authentic start to your NHL career in the Be A Pro mode, EA added the 60 CHL teams, the amateur league that outputs the most NHL talent Your daft position is deter mined at the Memorial Cup, and with seven rounds being integrated into the draft for the first time, if you stink ир you could find yourself being passed by several times over. EA has also tweaked how much it costs to buy skil points, ‘added new equipment to the hockey shop, and refined the Al behavior to make your teammates skate better and take more shots. FIFA 11 Who's got the golden boot he recent World Cup just showcased the best soccer players from across the globe, and while some of them Ike Ingerland's darling Wayne Rooney or the entire French and talan sides crapped the bed, it was indeed a spectacle of soccer skil. FIFA 11 is also trying to highlight what some of the best players in the world are capable of by making star players standout on the pitch, This isn't just represented in their overall rating ог numberof skil move stars; a variety of diferent factors combine to make good players what they are. For instance, attributes Ike shot placement, passing, and dribbing proficiency wil be more oliceabie in the better players, not only in terms ofthe number assigned to that attribute but in their animations on the feld. Gamers should be “The centerpiece innovation of last year's NHL game, Be А GM mode, improves with the add tion of restricted and unrestricted tree agency. Like the real NHL, you can sign younger players to slotted offer sheets or у to poach young. Superstars at Ihe cost of losing draft picks, EA Canada has worked to improve the trade logic to imit the movement of star players and added e-player per-team trades. The devs also implemented fixes to make sure good players "don't unrealistically sitin free agency too long. Expect а lot more player movement at the minor league evel, and, Ike the real NHL, don't expect сар conscious teams to move alt of frst-iners unless they are pending unrestricted free agents. МНЦ popular six-on-six online league adds the of-requested practice mode for the frst time, and to create more intensity for the monthly sea- sons, this year's EASHL wil feature playoffs the last four days of each month. Н your team wins able to visualy identity good players from bad, whether its trying to replicate a star players gait {rom real Ме, ог seeing how better players simply handle and address the bal, Players’ different proficiencies on the feid match nicely with FIFA 11% attempts to vary the passing game to avoid gamers! ability in previous years to make it all the way down the feld with just a few laser-quided passes. Now players with lower passing abies might produce passes that require those receiving the bal to take more time to gather it up or have to chase down passes off the mark Although the game's real-ife players are a focus this year, gamers also have a wealth о! creation ‘options to form their own clubs and fi them out with created players, This can be done with a the Cup, your games wil feature a unique pre: ‘sentation package including raising your champi- опур banner to the rafters before each game, The new action the dev team is most excited about is the new EA Ulfmale Hockey League. This hybrid of online franchise and FIFAs Ultimate Team mode gives gamers a starter pack that includes 24 players, jerseys, a home arena, and traning cards. Like the EASHL, each month is its ‘wn self-contained season that features playotis and a championship game, and players can. ‘weak their rosters by buying card packs or pur chasing players in the auctions, Gamers wil get ther frst taste of the league when the NHL 11 demo is released in mid-August. » Matt Bertz Rian meant Hacky Ui оәтепотесоолутау browser-based onine application that includes. ‘designing he team’s crest and kit and choosing a home stadium. These can be taken into өліге, Play tournaments, and exhibition matches. You сап also tweak players attributes and make tactical changes Ма the web, Finaly, the game's customization options also extend to the audo, where you can import the chants of your favorite team and even set up their entrance or goal- scoring music, for example. EA has had the абса FIFA license for years, and by trying to bring the players to the forefront, its not only leveraging a particular asset, its trying to represent the sport to йв fullest, Matthew Kato » Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 » Style ішб- зз, 1t (Жок 360) (12-Player Online) » Publisher EA Spons » Developer. EA Canada я Release September 7 » Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 260 я Style 1 to 4-Player Sports (20-Player Online) » Publisher EA Sports » Developer EA Canada. » Release September 28 previews 87 gamenformer GATAME®MoNTH 89 Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light Crystal Dynamics turned the long-running Tomb Raider franchise on its head, creating an exciting new downloadable game for Xbox Live Arcade. Combat and puzzle solving mix in this isometric action title, which also boasts the ability to play cooperatively with a friend. To get the full details on this starting departure for one of gaming's longest-running seris, check out our review on page 89. Ft rapto cinta aa an O ral tance spa EI caste, төзе 5 2те мысы ам па, Wa some igs ой a ond к arty of FEET TESTI 3 [rite т LIII =! BMC ман == [р] C аб тана Ra has | шс Lite Ape Ato ts a be ast датах == esee te кот, manywihelhyeummgramen | f (мыс АСАУ vom р Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light Crystal Dynamics takes a risk and reaps the reward Ж 22772) Bevon 505 ча disclosure: ove Lara Gof Ino oce, but worth puting out here a the Some. My alegro o te industry kon, however is just tha to Io character here. Te payed dl бе Tomb Rar games ovr the past decade, and Lady Lara always helped пе nudge trough the franchise folles, even Won comi пага and questione gameplay decisions dieconnecied the game fromthe oot | found endearing Му waning enthusiasm for the property halted when Crystal Dynamics reinvigorated the series with Tomb Raider: Legend, which promised а ara for ihe завала irse Те Surio commitment the and wiingnes to "ko йиз в apoarent In Guardian of gi the Frat domioadabe il ie anche sable Wan a new sortie viewpoint. amplfed combat and co-op рау Guardan of gts many departures Nam action! Ton Por датасы же абі, Deep change, fhe dowroadablo game od mor ke a Tomb Faierexprence han anything ve layed flat Buratino with expbraton puzzles, and Раното t pace вл encumbered wi unnecessary narative, dialogue, or even charac- ter development. We know who Lara Cot Б. We Iron val she dom bas Th shoud forests Gf Central America ае һе playground, and were ‘ky enough o go along o 1e паг, yore world about Uis being a doriced- ati game, don't fret This sn the caseo franchise being reduced ta skeleton in the Tera of rales un L's Bray of eves: ‘Style 1 аг 2-Player Action (2-Player Online] Publishes Square Enix Developer Crystal isn't truncated; the addition of artifacts and. relics that augment Lara and her sidekick Totec's Stats encourages careful exploration. Some are rewards for completing challenges, while others must be located in dangerous environments. ‘This allows Lara to evolve in a measurable way, nike past Tomb Raider games. The level design is аз epic аз ever, with puzzles ‘spanning entre vistas ittered with tunnels, tombs, torturous traps, and more, Challenge rooms are a new addition that make the game much more accessible, The more taxing ехре- riences in the game are reserved for these optional tombs, but Lara will be rewarded with a bigger payout for besting them. Some challenge rooms require logic to solve puzzles, while others est your reflexes and shooting skils with deathly ‘obstacle courses and waves of powerul foes. ‘Nothing surprised me more than how much. | enjoyed co-op play. The mode opens up new gameplay avenues with tools such as remote bombs and cooperativo grapple moves. Many puzzles require cooperation, but Ihe competi- tive element makes the adventure memorable ‘Though you and your partner share the same goals, a prominent score counter Keeps both of you scrambling to get your hands on more gems and other objects of value than your partner. Speed runs, challenge tombs, and level-specific achievements each encourage replayabilty. Despite the well-deserved accolades, a few problems remain. One would think the higher ‘vantage point provided by the isometric camera would by default give you а better lay of the land, Dynamics Жебеге August 18 [Xbox 260), Fall (PS3, PO) ESRB T but the legacy camera problems occasionally return. І met my demise several times by falling ой a hidden cif atter getting ambitious in my exploration. Sometimes I had a hard time making a jump because of an object obscuring my view. These issues are few and far between, though, and the punishment for death is Ие more than a reduced score. In taking a chance with Guardian of Light, Crystal Dynamics rediscovered Lara's latent potential. For those of you concerned with the direction this ancilary tto has taken, rest easy. We now know that Lara Croft is as versatile as. 39/777 PS3 « 360 « PC » Concept Dropping the Tomb Raider. moniker, Crystal Dynamics changes the equation with а now camera and co-op play neatly wrapped in a downloadable package э Graphics Employing the Tomb Raider ‘Underworld engine, the environments, lighting elects, And character renders are ае polished as their big- budget counterparts » Sound Populated with both iconic and original music, he former grounds he game in familiarity while the ater plays up the new, action- centric direction. Some of the voice acting could use another once over. though » Playaitity Despite the arcade influences, Lara's movese ist reducod in the slightest. Co-op play Allows for more diversity in puzzle solving, and tho analog Shooting lends isl nicely to frenzied combat » Entertainment Balancing the franchise pillars ~ exploration, puzzles, and platforming - with the new combat-centric focus is boh engaging and entertaining. Even when solving puzzles, downtime » Replay Value Moderate Madden NFL 11 Moving in new directior Madden NFL 11 takes some reat strides forward at ће expense of other areas ® Graphies "Tho players look sharp. with great lighting work, helmet elictons, and personal equipment touches New play-by-play announcer Gus Johnson brings emotion, but irs often Behind the action and can be disjointed. "The licensed stadium songs) ‘chants are cool, however » Playability Running with the ball (without turbo) feels great and Gamellow improves offensive playaling, but you'll spot plenty of legacy issues in ‘the gameplay » Entertainment Controlling the ball camer never felt this good. This years Madden isn't proc, [eV but it has its improvements — [VER » Replay Value заверу me ооа fans often debate about the rela- tive importance of the positions on a team, Can a great QB make the receivers around him better? Can marquee receivers make а ‘mediocre QB look good? Does an ineffective pass rush doom even the most skiled corners? Madden NFL 11 spurs a similar kind of discus- sion based on the features it has chosen to ‘address for this latest iteration versus those that have remained unchanged, Does the inclusion Cf online co-op play trump a bare-bones online. franchise mode? Is making a stud running back ke Chris Johnson feel іка a world-beater more important than not cleaning up past А issues? Second Opinion 8.78 Ше NCAA, Madden 11's biggest improvement o tion engine and running controls, The new animat announcers are talking about when they say Adrian Peterson "uns angry" The dillerence between average and great backs і now evident in Ihe way they make cuts, burst through open holes, and attack defensive backs. Tho ой highly touted change, the truncated Gamerlow play-calling system. is a great tool for varying your offensive attack but lacks the sophistication to deliver a sound delenive scheme. Putting а linebacker on Percy Наги in the slot would get most coordinators ited, but | was caught in a base defense too many times When teams lined up in three receiver sez On the presentation front, new mentator Gus Johnson talks circles around the robotic hack Tom Hammond, and Tiburon finally gives the Super Bowl he unique treatment it deserves. As a lament that EA neglected to improve my favorite game mode; the sod on strengthening the game's online offerings with the three-on-ihree Online Team Play mode. OTP adds teamwork and coordi tion to tho equation. which makes playing with friends more enjoyable, bt with то custom teams, carcer stat tracking, or scouting info about your opposition, missed an opportunity to leah out Ше experience and make а destin tion mode. » Ман Bartz 90 reviews The answers to these kinds of questions are up to you as a Madden player, | Ike a lot of the new additions to this year's game, but the lack Of progress in some areas is unfortunate. Madden NFL 11 features a new motion engine that makes running with the Бәй а dream. Subtle cuts, bursts of speed (without the turbo button) sheer physical power, and other characteristics are layered on and make NFL players come alive and showcase the abies that make some ‘of them stand out from the crowd, The game makes you feel ike you've got unprecedented ‘contro over the runner, and every run (ө а tle different - particularly in tha tackles or the lack thereof. Because of ай the different factors that оо into a players running and tacking, you've got to watch that your defenders wrap up the Баі carier, otherwise its common for a quy Io. ое! loose after a couple of soppy tackles love tha varied outcomes in tacking and animations, but inconsistency elsewhere in the gameplay is maddening (no pun intended) Running withthe ball is one of the highights of the game, but the passing game shows some laws. Players can be shockingly unaware of the bal as it вайв by within heir grasp. You also see players standing around without a cue of who to block or tackle. This is conspicuous when such reat work has been done to highlight receivers! Tracking of he ball for sideline catches and grabs in the back of the endzone. For every cool catch you see, youll also see the ball suction into a receivers hands or vice versa (where it looks io a player shoots forward suddenly to catch a bal otherwise out of ther reach, as мей as old staples Ike dropped gimme interceptions and auto-NT. 0 August 10 ESRB E ‘Similar to last year, not every area of the game- has been improved. What we gain in the new locomotion the game loses in yet another stalled year for Franchise mode, The worst part is that ‘some of the mistakes remain, Ike the broken logic behind staff contracts. Onine Team Рау (ОТР), the new three-vs.three co-op feature that lets each of your team members control a ресс unt Ike Inebackers or wide receivers, is fun, but the fact that this new feature lacks any ‘overall structure Ike persistent teams means that the games you play in this mode are more or less one-offs. OTP doesn't Я the vod of the gimped Onine Franchise mode, which stil tacks free agency. Finally, | love the concept of the ıcard-based Utimate Team mode, even if your starting team is so bad - and no, І don't feel | should have to spend real money to get good card packs, enjoy alot of the new features in Madden NFL 11. Things Ike game planning in conjunc- tion with the automated GameFlow play-caling feature (which works a lot better for offense than defense) have changed the way that play the game. І don't want to sound greedy or ungrate- ful, but I fel ike adding new features isn't the опу job of the development team when there are other arcas that need to be addressed. Madden NFL 11 is a car step forward forthe franchise, but as fun as the additions are, the fact that some of # glaring mistakes remain is Ike getting a new stud quarterback even though the offensive ine stil needs an upgrade. You're going to score, but you're stil а team with weaknesses, » Ма GAMER'S CORNER PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: GokuVegeta Virgin Gaming is proud to host console gamers. | E Clash of the Titans ете This month we spotlight | B j slopp i the Netherland's i GokuVegeta, who Style 1 or 2-Player Action Publisher Namco Bandai has racked up FIFA™ GokuVegeta Developer Gamo Republic Release July 27 ESRR T winning streaks on both we major consoles. ‘sno secret that games based on licensed prod- РЗ“ 360 cts are generaly bad, but when a game gets » Concept D Gdayediongpasitscorespondngmoverekese Make a Cd ol War done ШЦ SUMMER LEADERBOARD i gives you hope. After al, the publisher must think to coincide with the movie, Virgin Gaming's $100,000 Red Hot Summer challenge — | ‘game is good enough to stand on its own fitis miss the movie's marketing is wrapping up, and here's the most recent list of gamers wing to forgo pigybacking ne movie's hype righ? Campaign by months and ee of our leaderboards. GoldenEye 007 did this, and its regarded as one ofthe most important console shooters of ай time. И Namco Bandai was hoping for similar results with | > Graphics BAYERNALIFE ‚Alienware Clash of the Titans, t's in for a Мапс disappointment tenures are so с Players take control of the demigod Perseus, pe Ecol eie eR Elan LEBER а of he gods and аа а iWIN25 Marco. Polo save no war You ih ces uan quicktime Fa ede te Smicer89 Glmbrad | ton presses, level up your weapons wilh souls apressvenezs of dead hah «бас иш отым. deren а BuschBeast nawfjohn of enemies torn tom a mythical Grecian bestany NS Tye logis delivered with reminiscent of one of Sony's premiere franchises, but e ашыды enthusiasm ofa Cash of the Titans doesn't have the chops to stand Ралі user. and the characters slong keatos, й ) sound so similar bat suspect MADDEN™ NFL™ 11 TOURNAMENTS THIS FALL wih over a 100 ki orbo iod missions tough very use for everyone Redefine the way you experience the game of football ıinear levels fled with underuhdning ervronments. » Рауаышу when Madden NFL 11 comes to Virgin Gaming this. Picking up missions is the only way the game brea 1 Cash of the Titans could ‘September. Study your playbook and get ready for a up its monotonous combat, but these are empty ed cate аер Д jam-packed calendar of gridiron tournaments for players moments because you don't actualy converse with soppy animations result in a of all skill levels. тен оку frustrating action game with Perseus isn't fighting through legions of centaurs апа шд harpies alone, but the game's lazy companion Al is one Y the worst ve ever fought beside. Though | wasn’t technicaly alone on the batlefed i telt Ike it because ту walflower alles always shied away from the action. You're better off having a Ive companion watch your back (ater you've unlocked co-op by playing through several single-player missions frst), but good luck in ing human recruits wing to put up wih the game's Е ‘stop-motion pace. Clash of the Titans’ action has more ЖЬ = Я 7 м wre ” Pon пала пагас ara Dionysian party ane 1o To play your favorite games like Madden, FIFA and Halo’ а мінаў поп existent. Bosses ан ust Digger Hi Dove from home for cash, points and prizes, and compete health, and journeys in and out of he game's against players of all skill levels, join Virgin Gaming for Everything here has been done better in a dozen ober gam » Replay Value. low with mor labyrinthine menu system feel Ike one of Homer free today. lost epics. The game's coolest features fall due to poor design. Ву the end you amass an arsenal of over 80 weapons. gn up before However, many of these tools can't be leveled up unt you've collected soul power from specific enemies, so sharpening your swords rducus process that ensures you stick to two or three of the frst weapons you find. The recent Clash ofthe Titans fim was a mildly enter: taining display of special effects. The game contains i alo the firm's camp but lacks the spectacie of milion- dolar СО krakens to help save i. Ts tan of deriva- tive gameplay doesn't deserve our reverence; 1 hardly deserves our attention at al, » Ben Reeves » Concept A fast-paced six-player tek though Dracula's castle with elements from many ‘Castlevania ttes » Graphics Fantastic enemy design, ‘environments, and death animations оок as great as they ever have » Sound Tho soundtracks ‘unmistakably Castlevania, filed with йз signature gothic guiar nts » Playability you've played а Castlevania "ite before, you know exactly ‘how the controls feel Entertainment "The ability to bring several friends along is a great addition to the series” tried- and-tro gameplay » Replay Value Moderately High Second Opinion 8.25 Тва latest incarnation of Dracula's caste summons the Previous heroes who fought ‘within ts haunted halls, and төлі need all of them to push nota fan of some of the other design choices. Why can't we pause the game? And why can уоп oniy equip new items at discrete locations around the board? Gathering equipment and exploring levels is un, ‘ough the game lacks the Intrigue and secrets that аге Castlevania: Harmony of Despair Anew format doesn't hold back classic gameplay fter the success of 1997's Castlevania: ‚Symphony of the Night, Konami could have stuck with the formula that made that tile an all-time classic. Instead, the exploration- heavy 2D gameplay didn't last long on home ‘consoles, and migrated to Nintendo's handheld Systems. After a decade of experimentation (and disappointment) with 3D titles on consoles, {the familar sprites of Alucard and company retum to grace our television screens. Harmony (of Despair looks familar to series fans, and many of its classic elements are in place, but it's a Castlevania experience unlike anything you've played before. When Konami announced that Harmony fea- tures six-player cooperative play, it was a god- ‘send for longtime fans. However, further reveals ed to some understandable skepticism, The new time limit raised the most eyebrows. Since ‘Symphony ofthe Night, Castlevania games have always centered on exploring massive environments at your own pace. Like Metroid, the fun is in exploring dozens of doors, paths, ог ledges that you couldn't access until later points in the game. With a time limit in place, the ‘gameplay changes. Except it doesn't. Yes, each standalone stage has a 30 minute time Ити. However, you're. ЗШ navigating the castle, slaying countless demons, and acquiring new weapons and armor Surprisingly, the time mitis almost never a hindrance. Rather than hitting select or glancing at the top. Screen map to get your bearings, you can zoom out to see the entire stage on one screen. Ifyou have a small (or non-HD) television, this probably won't help very much. But if your screen is large enough, you can see every single enemy, co-op partner, and boss in the level moving in real time. [9T two closer zooms for combat and explora- tion, but the impressive wide shot also serves а purpose. Many areas are inaccessible without Teamwork, so it helps to track your buddies’ locations as they stand on switches or pull map. Others freely ficat around the stage at wil, so keeping tabs on their locations is Key. Unlike previous tiles, Harmony of Despair ditches a standard leveling system. Rather, your character becomes more powerful by acquiring ‘new weaponry and armor scattered throughout the levels. It eliminates the need for grinding, but as a longtime fan of the series І missed wander- ing the castle kiling everything in a quest to level up. Relying on random treasure chest contents to improve your character makes it more of a luck of the draw system. Equipping tese items is also a hassle. Rather than determining your best assortment of acces- sories by pausing the game, you must travel To one of the rare book stations in the level. It's frustrating to pick up an impressive-sounding пен sword, only to have i sit in an inacces- sible menu for an extended period of time. The System for equipping healing items also adds to "he frustration, Plenty of potions and food are. ‘scattered throughout the quest, but you can only equip one ata time. As you progress through the game, this makes the lesser items virtual use- less because savvy gamers opt to bring along high potions or super potions. While these frustrations keep Harmony of Despair from reaching the level of its predeces- sors, the co-op multiplayer is a fantastic new feature. Early levels aro frustrating when going ob, but bringing a few fiends along makes it a significantly more manageable and fun experi- ence. Is the only way to go after Dracula if you want the full experience, з Dan Ryckert Ninety-Nine Nights || Hacking and slashing through tt mindless hordes Style 1-Player Action (2-Player Online) iy Nine Nght was а strange beast On Nee Tu ба ds and ооу той. Ang паўс and ale characters ent long vay players wh патта avoid he hack dash Serro, bu ho gameplay never expanded буола mg ou mer і ne batted and berating trovan of goons. The sequel s mor naris and moro сия лоп, bet sonenow manages to d mor slow than te predecessor. Гез shame, o, ence ety Nro Norte ne fve new char and rng se бап, an imposa amd fue vto wets hug eoi e amos Vale ol re buren, Vii ho um, euch as a дой axes Law or daca leader anl ook compita deren, ey uat пау Ve ата, Lows win adeo za Darkstar One: Broken Alliance Ther Style 1-Player Action Publisher Kalypso Media Developer Gaming Minds Release Jul) Developer Q Entertainment Release June 29 ESRB М 5 not that much to do in space, apparently Publisher Konami effective ranges, but successful players wil only rely on those attacks we thay wait for magic to recharge. Therein fes tho uate problem. with NS Il. As sloggod my way through various levels, painfuly replaying some to eam XP to boost Skils and item stats, | eventually settled on an effective loadout. Early battles required me то dve into battle and hammer on my melee attacks, but once | acquired the proper skills | could decimate armies without even trying. My lightning spell shot rcocheting bots through а mass of enemies, feling dozens at tho press of a bution. Once powered up, | could plant a magic. ой at the feet of mid-bosses and bosses alke, withering their health down in seconds. Its an undeniably great feeling - particularly when you сап blow through previously dificult sections without pausing = but with a few overpowered options, the dozens of other skiis and abies ‘seem unnecessary, Each character is geared toward being good at specife types of magic or another talent. When 1089887 {ma big space sim dork, and | wanted to love Darkstar One so badly. 175 too bad that this attempt at simulating the Ifestyie of a Han Solo type consists о tle more than the same three missions repeated ad nauseum. As the plot of the titular spacecraft, players spend most of their time in the cockpit. The nuts and bolts of spacefight while as scent сауу inaccurate as the iconic sound of Twin lon Engines howling through the vacuum, work well enough in the arcadey dogfights that break out al the drop of a hat. The battles can't hold a сәлде to the glorious selpiece engagements found in Starancer or TIE Fighter, but blowing enemy ships into particles is fun on a basic level. Darkstar One gives players a lot of leeway along the path to avenging the protagonists father. A steady drip of дозі keeps you moving forward, Fading artifacts alows you to increase your alien tech-equipped ships Copabites, while Collecting cash allows you to kit your craft out with the lates in miltary hardware. How you eam money. is up to you: clear out prate nests, run ‘goods or contraband, hunt bounties, or escort merchants. The unfortunate 30 э Concept Save a kingdom ~ and the "universe as we know it = by shredding entire armies » Graphics Loads of similar-looking enemies are packed into the everyone can equip the same items, however, there's Ийе reason or incentive to experiment This is especially rue when its easy о level up the wrong items and fnd yourself stuck, losing lackluster levels an hour's worth of progress. agni It's. a shame that зо much of the game feels ^ The generic fantasy Ike a grind, because there's a lot of real potental soundtrack is largely in this series, AS with the frst game, Niels forgettable ıa nuanced, mature story about racism and the py futilty of revenge. Characters have their own versions of ће campaigns central confit, and playing through each individuals story reveals addtional layers, As good as that narative framework may be, its ulimately sandwiched between repetitive, mindess combat, Some people ike grinding in games, mysalf included. At some point, though, even the most patient of us yearn for mare. A millon enemies might make for a great bulet point, but when they're as dumb and inconse- quenlil as the foes in N3 Il, it al ings too hollow to matter, Jeff Cork While а handful of combos are available, you can just as easily tear through the game jamming on the X and Y buttons at random. Entertainment H you love the grind and are looking for something mindless to play asa. background пату, this is a contender. Otherwise, I's tedious even lor tne genre » Replay Value Moderate 6% 360 » Concept Track down your father's killer through multiple space empires making money and leveling up your ship along the way. Graphics Is an older engin, but it checks ош. Ships and stations don't have enough variety, but space itsel is а prety place. "The blazing framerate helps. э Sound Sometimes І marvel at the lees that accomplished voice actors charge. Then [spend dozens of hours in а game like this where the voiceover budget was in the tens of dollars и Pisyability There are too many controls in the PC original to comfortably fiton a gamepad, which makes the work done to create "is useable interface ай the more impressive ? Entertainment ‘This could have been something special with more interesting ‘content Ав itis, the endless я realty is that nearly all of the hundreds of side missions in the game fll into one of a bare hand: f of types, Ninety percent of the time, its "y here, shoot these guys." Nine of the remaining 10 percent consists of fy here, isten to intermi- nable dialogue.” That final percentage is where many of the story missions fal, and contains genuinely interesting scenarios Ike picking off waves of drones trying to land on a research sta- tion or taking out bomber wings trying to fish offa disabled cruiser, Side missions containing Itle variety wouldn't Бе a huge problem except that you аго required to spend the vast majority of your time doing. them in order to progress. You can skip hunting arifacts and making money to burn through the story to some extent - and get obitrated by the stronger foes in the next sector. If the dozens of hours of boring fuf were stripped out, | could recommend this as a rea- sonably amusing budget priced shoot-em-up in space. That's not the case, and Darkstar One is the worse for It Avoid this unless your space dogfighting itch is keeping you up at night. » Adam Bisessner reviews 93 8 wii Spice up bland Wi minigame collection by mixing it wh a ‘Cuo-ayle board game » Graphics Great character design and detailed settings make for a sharp-looking SD game » Sound rong voice acting and clever writing make up for an annoying theme song and repetitive catchphrases » Playabiity Three difficulty settings ensure that anyone can play. though minigames vary wildly in challenge Not worth it for the five-hour Story mode alone, but if you've got friends or family "who dig the concept, irs Hon э Replay Value Moderate ү Style 110441 | E Far dos joa ft ard Qus Uo. ro Co you See di Бер y Nr ato pyaar Tt on wage You on tave apr The ра, ato aay авесто agency бола тта утасдсан acm And caeci aro levy eri O мр ry ооа agos rane opes fom ha superhero wan st Kid Riddle to the Sam & Мах зма comedic пог detective coincidentally named Max. A Your fie detector wil tell you if а clue is true or not. 94 reviews De. Morgen Harvest kung-fu-wiekîng granny named Charlotte is thrown in for good measure, The other female family members play й straight to the point that they re boring, but everyone е ева few chuckles during the team’s absurd exploits. Му personal favorite Ine: "Oh, Hugh the mana- screamed while а zeppelin explodes in the background, Party mode exchanges the storyline for ran- domiy generated mysteries and more ways to mess up your opponents, Though Party mode. сап be played cooperatively, the real fun is in playing competit, where you get to d ‘cards to choose what traps Mr. Valentine sets for other players after your tur. The only downside is that in the chaos of lock: ng olher detectives in rooms, stealing their move tokens, and knocking them out, 15 pretty easy Чо miss out on clues and leave your crew unable to solve the mystery before time runs out and the bad guy escapes. Get ready to be annoyed by your character screaming Ihe same two or thee Ines every time you play a card or win a ‘minigame as wel, "Kid Riddle strikes again!” And again, And again. Dr. Morgan Harvest| rer Party Publisher Disney Interactive Studios Developer Wideload Gamos Rel, лы eeeezet be ө August 31 ESRB E While the mystery met Guty Party's minigames are passable at best Many are extremely easy, such as fanning away the dust ina crime scene to uncover cues or ticking a suspect to get them to reveal informa: tion (both accomplished with the same frantic Ning of the Wi remote). f you solve these од trouble (as players of almost any skil юю ting. When this happens, going to bump into one of the rare overly dificult minigames, such as a awkwardly fast-paced rhythm game ог а thumb- ling match thats far too hard. Though they're hardly compeling, the minig- ames are at least numerous and easy to learn. 1 never repeated tho same tasks often enoug to get bored with them, but | also never foun myself confused when new introduced. They bas and inoffensive distracton and friends, If you're а fan of board games or enjoy gathering people around the ТУ to play together, Guty Party wil have you scouring for evidence Phil Kollar a higher diffculty and unmasking crooks for weeks Disciples Ill: Renaissance Nothing original in this fantasy empire 5.5 » Concept Puse RPG-atyle adventure ‘with ight empire-bulding in ‘and high fantasy tradition ж Graphics. The best parts of this strategy gm are the graphics and art ‘Style 1 to 4-Player Sratogy Publisher Kalypso Media Developer Akella Release Juno 18 ESRE Е 10+ 2 Басава IL Tis Russian -developed strategy Ше mashes up concepts fm a hand ol games tat aro dear omy hear, and yet fale to soup lam intoa Sonnerie who Uke Heroes of Mgh а Маде, Master of Magie, Ago of Wonders, or апос any tarasy strategy game, Берыя ia players commanding amies on a erge иин Amen wi never get t тарага ig nto let bts when hose ress wio al nenn again ach ийһ enemy oops. ang conto зинад pen Pot gants demon over resouce-geeraing nodes ‘Tamia as son as poesie. End oiher мді map laturos, на provarg nba ar othe war va vars experince points юраса and oops org а Wh oquipment and consumables Discpeshäs таю з ылау FPG is ашу han most of Wis пеле айхыты Map ring pany wihheresadcngaongfFanasylketpgade aaa no gad reso, and Boards and genre oops progresin trough several баю реу бы yati navo od sad None of this is compelling in the sightest, Із as f all Online to find out how a lot of the necessary components of a fantasy strategy tile were things work md oper vith no vn for wrat he frai product `» Entonainmont ‘should be. Upgrading your Squire to a Knight, which ‘Reinstalling any well-received пане a брае пабіта na now buing Staley tie fron he last уол Пот cas, gies passe boosts поо ей! ER woul m texipping a паў piece of annor Hero sil ponts grant such exciting powers as +2 strength or +3 movement, |» Replay Value Most units have no special powers, and the ones that do 10% are so good that you want to usa them every oun The Tactical A at, so ats are gid do ough {round oft points with te varaton. Ta ata ayer holds no interest ether wih a bare few mobie amies on any gen map and more awu А ofer itto скер to your gars. Осорев is pety enough, butt doer take iong to tote out trat helet no sou behind io ente. то facade Win how wel casi m based state games holdup over he years, heus no teason to buy aire зле stor ho sake of ning someting made 112010. Adam Biossener T гу as I might, I can't think of a reason to play Valkyria Chronicles || Another strategic victory, despite the small battlefield Sit i-e Stay [ler 224 ШЕПТІ шы rumor Sopa Developar Saga АЕ lanes August 31 ESAE T 8.5 PSP » Concept Givi war has broken out im. байа! Can your ragtag class of military cadets keep the nation whole? » Graphics. Even without the сод effects ofthe original, the sequel suli has a distinc visual syle з Sound А superb soundtrack sts те ‘mood, and the sparse voice disappointed to leam the series was moving from PS3 to PSP. Then | played this sequel, and all was forgiven. Saga makes some sacrifices to make the ‘experience more portable, but it also made improve- ments and added depth, resulting in a follow-up that stands right alongside its predecessor. The strategic combat system remains remarkably similar to tho frst game. After surveying the situation fom the command map, you take contro of individual units to move and attack in real time. Putting players in the middle ol the action avoids the mecharicalropollion associated fi send tt eg rn Gastar кеткен with grid-based strategy Мес while stil delivering the Work is petty good {hr ofa wel-execuad tactical maneuver The mapeand цу mission objectives lack variety, but new enemies and unit det generally types ensure that you aren't constantly reaching into the same bag of tricks. If you stil need a change of pace. you can check out the now versus and co-op challenges, though the multiplayer з local-only. The PSP can't reproduce al of the things that made Valkyria Chronicles a cult hit on PS3. The cel-shaded sketchbook aesthetic of the orginal has been replaced with a more conventional anime vibe, and the scale ofthe conficts has been drastically reduced. Where you could ‘once bring a veritable army into battle, you are now Im- ited to sx soldiers on the feld at once. This is especialy restricting when you need to wage war on multiple fronts. This limitation is the most glaring faw, since it also pre- vents battles from achieving the scope of the original, Unit deployment could use а few tweaks, but Valkyria Chronicles І compensates by making your time ой the battlfeld better than ever. The story doesn't just focus оп a few teammates; your entre squad is ront and center. The characters each have unique cutscenes and missions that flesh out ther personalities, and | became attached to many of them, They also feel more ike indi- viduals thanks to the new XP and advancement system, which rewards a units performance and allows them to take on specialized roles beyond the base classes. From the new weapon upgrades to the improved tank cus- tomization, almost everything outside of combat is a step above the last entry. Valkyria Chronicles Il is Ihe best PSP game I've played in years. It could have been even better if not for tho. limitations of the hardware, but hopeful Sega wises up. and puts Valkyria Chronicles П back on home consoles, In the meantime, this entry wil delight fans of the origi nal and inspire the uninitiated to pledge their alegiance 10 Galia, * Joe Juba домет than the fist game, but а handful o story missions wili punish you ruthlessly for wrong move » Entertainment dust as good аз һе first gamo, but fun in different ways э Replay Value Moderately High To mad те extends rave, ead to дәлиле conving reviews 95 9 | NCAA Football 11 Platform PS3 + 360 Release July 13 ESRB E Issue Aug 10 NCAA h flaws, but with improved on-the-field action, recruiting, and presentation [including the option to generate nasty], o first time in years I feel like Im getting the college experience. Matthew Kato 8 | Hyrdo Thunder Hurricane тышт 360 Release uly 28 ESRB E Hydro Thunder Hurricane is cl work of n а апу new ideas here, just а fervent 'e to return video game racing to a time when speed and fun meant more than complex career modes and customizable liveries. It's all the е charming for the fact that, in ieclining days of the racing many pure arcade ps Services like Live Arcade can be a new style of game that deserves a second chance. — Matt Helgeson пола root m medie 18 Ep аа тазза эмеш ^ m MB Io лю asmo ome Ж. 0 6 | ly the Kiwi? Paten DS Release August 24 ESRB E Cute graphics and a famous name aren't always enough. Sonic creator Yuji Naka returns to game development in a snoozelest that lacks depth for far too long. What may have seemed like a good idea for a platformer on paper ended up being a uncontrollable game with rating mechanics. While the game eventually wakes up bit in the later levels, I never / did. — Nick Ahrens 1.5 | Ace Combat: Joint Assault —— 31 ESRA T Joint Assault offers up two changes to the long-running dogfighting series al-world locations and co-op play on a portabl tem. Outside you 's understandable considering that there's only so much you can do with a is ghter game, but etting а Dan Ryckert 5.5 | Blacklight: Tango Down рыта PS3- 360+ PC Release Му? ES Though the $ attractive for a shooter, BlackLight: Tango Down obust multiplayer ultimately loses the war to poor level design and questionable game balance. There aren't enough bullets in this gun's chamber to make the kill count. 1.15 | Monday Night Combat Pisten 360 Melone August П ESRB T Monday Night Combat's mix of tower defense strategy and third-person shooter action is an addictive new approach to multiplayer gaming. However, with only two basic modes nd a handful of simitar-looking maps, it's only a matter of time unti the player is left wanting more variety — Jeff Marchiafava 4.15 | Sniper: Ghost Warrior Platform 300 Release June 29 ESRD М biggest flaw is that it iping right. Whenever you look з (o line up an enemy soldier braining, you can activate a mutant-like power to slow time, during which the enemy moves slower than a sloth. This enables even the least skilled gamer to line a shot that will bore a hole right between s. This power sted Sniper. Warrior being taken seriously. — Andrew Reiner Sniper: Ghost Warrior's doesn't ge down th Visit gameinformercon/mag for the full reviews 9 | Limbi ml a75 мало Platform 360 Release July 21 ESRB T Issue Aug ‘IO caer) As played, fellow editors would occasionally С tap my shoulder and drav away, and I would catch т, be е I was scared, but Беса! engrossed i experience that it fel be pulled ош so suddenly. - Matt М y attention nes pem €! j—X p nommen t еле. ай en pee (нгі conectan cm ren haar ete Sanaa — Ee Matt ges паласатае com pe ti ae ado pn ADVERTISNG SAL [xcd [UTD DET poker ee EpL ELS Eq s Ecke een S E Game Development Game Design Game Design Bachelor's бер Campus Degrees Online Degrees Master's Master's Entertainment Business Creative Writing + Game Design Education Media Design & Technology. Entertainment Business Entertainment Business Bachelor Computer Animation. Digital Arts & Design. Wi a Sports Management Entanaloment Businass pcd нт intarnet Marketing. > Game Art Media Design, Game Development Music Business Recording Arts Show Production Bachelor's Computer Animation Entertainment Business. > Game An Web Design & Development ¢ Game Design Associate's Graphie Design Graphic Design Internet Marketing Recording Engineering Music Business Music Production Web Design & Development © FULL SAIL UNIVERSITY. fullsail.edu Winter Park, FL 19002287825 + 3300 University Boulevard classic arriors The ups and downs of David Jaffe's car combat innovator Twisted Metal by Dan Ryckert thin two months ofthe PlayStalion's launch, ‘SingjoTrac established set эв а hot new developer by releasing Twisted Metal and Warhawk, While the latter is а fondly remem- bered air combat ttle, 1 was the chaos and car- naga caused by Sweet Tooth and company that made gamers take notice. We're now 15 years removed from the debut of the longest-running PlayStation exclusive series, but ЕЗ 2010 made i perfectly clear that we aren't anywhere near the end. At its core, Twisted Metal's concept shouldn't bo a hard sel ~a bunch of cars driven by psychopaths and decked out with а ludicrous amount of weaponry. Make everyone else explode, and you win, As easy as the concept isto understand, SingleTrac and David Jaffe provided gamers with the perfect dose of wicked humor and clever game design to make it special Games ike Destruction Derby brought vehicu: lor mayhem to the PlayStation, but they didn't lot you run over mimes in a monster truck. Twisted Metal tumed the action up to a cartoonist level, featuring cars ramping from Skyscraper to skyscraper whie shooting homing missles and napalm bombs. You could detonate the Eifel Tower, burn the Mona Lisa with napalm, murder fat kids in swimming trunks, and even (confusingly tum the Statue of Liberty into an ‘obese, bikni-clad woman via the use of a few fre missles. The creative stages took the game's signature carnage from wide-open comfieids in Holand populated by two lone windmils to rapidly-sinking glaciers п Antarctica, Spinning off track Tho frst two ties in the cores offered these insano moments with reckless abandon, and in playing them you could sense SnglTrac had а blast making them. However, the next two ‘entries in tho series were oddly souless thanks тоа switch in developers, A contractual берше led to SingleTrac being pulled from tho series in favor of Sony's in-house 989 Studios. While not ‘unplayable games, Twisted Metal З and 4 fl ike ‘empty experiences by comparison, Al of the ole- ments were n place - wacky drivers, exploding landmarks, ridiculous weapons, сіс, However, the games lacked the creativity and humor that was such a crucial part сі tho originals. In the early ‘90s, each console had a clearly defined and family-friendly face attached to it. Nintendo's SNES had the always-reliable Mario, and Sega's Genesis and Saturn had the speedy Sonic in their corner. Sony didn't have anyone quite on their level of fame, but they launched a fairly successful marketing campaign with their own cuddly platform star Crash Bandicoot. Amongst all of these cartoon-eyed platformers, there was a very different title that separated itself from the pack back in 1995. It too came with its own dis- tinctive face, and it was the flaming head of a murderous clown. The series returned with a bang in 2001 Many former SinglaTrac employees, including Jaffe himself, formed incognito Entertainment Their frst tle was a new take on the Twisted Metal franchise, tiled Twisted Metal: Black Many series favorites returned, but gone were the bright colors and cartoon-Iike ending vignettes featured in the past, Black became the first tile in the series to earn an M rating from the ESRB thanks to ts incredibly gory ‘cutscenes and grim story, Most characters haled from the game's Blackfield mental asylum, and none of them were in the ight hearted vein of previous contestants. Black's change of tone didn't hurt the gameplay in the least. The seres! PlayStation. 2 debut featured massive, sprawing areas with countless destructibles and secrets. А ferris ‘wheel coud be taken off its hinges, causing it to run roughshod through the suburban town below. One stage italy appeared to be set піў on a large ship unti it docks, which opened up the carnage to giant island area. Another allowed players to shoot down a 747, granting entry to previously inaccessible areas. New opportunities Multiplayer was always a huge рал of Twisted Metal's appeal, but t never had much of a ‘chance to feature robust online play. Players could hunt enemies Уа co-op play or duke it Ой їп areas populated with bots, but the PS2 dust launched ts network adaptor when Black launched, so Incognito never offered a true ‘online experience. Twisted Metal: Onine came ‘out shortly hereafter, but many PS2 users stil didt have their consoles connected to the Internet With al the fun the series has provided with- out the hop of опіпе play, one can imagine the сатаде this upcoming PS3 instalment wil bring. Wih Jaffe and many SingieTrac/incognito staffers forming development studio Eat Seep Play, Twisted Metal fans should take comfort in knowing that the series is in the hands of those who know it best. Twisted Metal 2 Sana) Twisted Meta Head-On (SP) ‘Bonom Twisted Metal: Back Рд THINGS YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT. + On the controversy ‘surrounding Mortal Kombat's viol + Non-fighting games that he enjoys: + Are there any fatality ideas deemed too gory for Mortal Kombat? ality п and ED BOON One of the biggest talking points coming out of E3 is the new (well, old) direction for the. Mortal Kombat franchise. By taking it back to the 2D plane and gory fatalities that made the series notorious, Ed Boon is reminding gamers why we love it in the first place. Read on for some tidbits from the innovator behind Mortal Kombat's violence. + On tho fake Mortal Kombat morie trailor: + On whether motion control сап ever rival a controller for 100 game over Remember the fateful moments that started a legend, Remember courage and sacrifice in the face of overwhelming odds. Remember the ones who gave us a chance, Remember Reach. Halo® Reach. The game that will start it all. Humanity's desperate final fight begins here. Play as a member of Noble Team, an elite group of Spartan super soldiers trusted to defend Planet Reach at any cost, and protect humanity's greatest remaining secret from the Covenant...Earth. Get ready for massive new environments, and new characters, weapons, and vehicles, all experienced through a new, more powerful game engine. Pre-order now, and as a special bonus, get an exclusive code to unlock the legendary in-game Spartan Recon Helmet: xbox.com/haloreach "Spartan Recon Helmet мазь — = ох е BUNGIE MESE CVE May corin content appropriate clin [n DARKNESS DESCENDS ON THE S S OF GOTHAM ІШІ www.gameinformer.com Made with) love’ Бу, Our goal is to preserve elassie video game magazines So that they аге not lostipermanentiy. People Interested in helping ош п any capacity; please visit us at retromags.com. No profit is made from) these scans nor do we offer anything available from the publishers themselves: Ifyou come across anyone selling releases from this Site please do not support them апа do let Us know: Thank you!