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ANDY McNAMARA EDITOR-IN-CHIEF andy@gameinformer.com
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The Highest Court
or all intents and purposes | was born a F gamer, and | decided early on to “boldly
go where no man had gone before.” The first games | played were in ASCII. In particular, one simply called Star Trek that used the letter E to represent the Starship Enterprise, and K to convey the vile Klingon warships. If those stars made of asterisks were any hotter, | think my screen would have melted.
I moved on to better things with more advanced graphics like the Atari 2600, but my love of gaming was born in those early ASCII days connected to what was, at the time, a super computer.
When | met other gamers as | grew up, | was astounded they were as fascinated by games as | was - gaming was a glue that held my early friendships together. My father even made games for me to play, so | learned to love and respect the effort and care that goes into making a game.
If this sounds like some love letter to gaming, it's because | want to drive home a perspective of respect for gaming and those that dare to call themselves gamers.
| think you can understand why | never thought there would come a day when I would find myself appalled by another gamer, as | always thought that gamers were better, smarter, and faster than normal humans who didn't share my passion.
The sin | speak of is the way gamers interact and behave from the anonymity of the Internet (Epic design director and outspoken gamer Cliff Bleszinski once called it "the Beavis effect" which has stuck with me as a great descriptor). Now don't get me wrong, | am all for trash talk. In fact, I think I’m quite good at it. Giving my friends grief for poor play or making smartass comments is just part of the camaraderie and fun of gaming. However, far too often gamers use online gaming as a way to insult people on a personal level regarding their race, their sexual orientation, or even something as simple as how they speak.
It doesn’t just happen occasionally in passing. It is a relentless assault on good taste in game after game.
| often refuse to play games online without friends due to the fact that the gamer community is so cruel and heartless. This truly makes me sad, as | expected more of gamers.
Gamers and the gaming industry just won a major victory in the Supreme Court, but | feel our biggest challenge is in the court of public opinion where we have to show the world that we aren’t childish idiots who spew slurs anonymously while mowing down virtual avatars. We need to show the world that gamers are just regular everyday Joes who like to blow off a little steam іп a match online and can do it with respect for ourselves and others. When we win that battle, ГИ feel the same level of respect for games and gamers | had when my E attacked a K. Otherwise, this childish behavior will always be the black eye that keeps the rest of the world from respecting the medium.
WM MY
Dishonored 5 There's no reason to rely on your impressive; melee skills when you can combine stealth, mobil- ity, and supernatural powers into stylish, creative approaches to the infinite situations found in this
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Trophies
PlayStation
UNCHARTED
Uncharted
Messages ' E
regulars
9 8 Feedback
Readers glaze on the praise for our Assassin's Creed Revelations cover story, we learn that our experience with video game trash is your treasure, and gamers sound off on what TV shows would make great video games.
э 14 Connect
Learn which console manu- facturer had the best E3 2014 press conference, check out Nintendo’s int ing new system, and dis: cover why we’re impressed with the Vita.
3} 52 Previews
We checked out a ton of great games at E3 2011, but condensed our coverage to the best 50 titles. BioShock Infinite wowed the entire Game Informer staff, and a few new surprises crept into the Hot 50.
START
в
Interview: Mike Fischer of Square Enix
» 105 Reviews Resident Evil 4's influence infects two of this month's reviewed games, Shadows of the Damned and Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D.
Aliens: Colonial Marines
У 116 Game Over Gamers aren't the only folks excited about all the great stuff shown off at this year’s ЕЗ. Learn what game mak- ers like Tomonobu Itagaki and Yoshinori Kitase are most enthusiastic about from the show.
contents 5
6 contents
Trailers of E3
Battlefield 3
games index
Adventures of Shuggy, The . Adventures of Tint е бате
Aliens: Colonial Marines. .
Assassin's Creed Revelation:
Asura's Wrath
Bastion .
Batman: Arkham City. .
Battlefield 3.
BioShock Infinite .
Brothers in Arms: Furious 4. .
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Cars 2: The Video Game.
Catherine.
Crimson Alliance .
Crusader Kings 2.
Dance Central
Duke Nukem Forever.
Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon. Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, The . . . .
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron. . . Far Cry 3
FEAR. 3.
FIFA 12 .
Final Fantasy ХИ-2 .
Forza Motorsport 4 .
From Dust .
Gears of War 3. ТОТИ Ghost Recon: Future Soldier. ...... Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters Hitman: Absolution. . . .
Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet . Journey .
Kid Icarus Uprising.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
Kirby Wii eda Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, The.
LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 Lord of the Rings: The War in the North Luigi's Mansion 2 Madden NFL 12..... р Magic: The Gathering — Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 Mario Kart 305 .... Mass Effect 3 . Metro: Last Light Ms. Splosion Man NCAA Football 12. . . . . Need for Speed: The Run. Ninja Gaiden 3. Payday: The Heist Rage .. Rayman Origins........ Resident Evil: Revelations .... Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D. Resistance 3... Saints Row: The Third . Shadows of the Damned . . . . Skylanders: Spyro's Adventures . Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time. ‘Sound Shapes . ‘Spider-Man: Edge of Time . . SSX... Star Fox 64 3D . Star Trek . Street Fighter X Tekken Super Mario 3DS. ‘Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition. Tera... Tomb Raider . . Top Gun: Hard Lock . Torchlight II Transformers: Dark of the Moon . Trenched . Twisted Metal . . Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. . . . . Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine. . .
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feedback@gameinformer.com
"ASSASSINS
@ REE D
Destinies Converge In Ezio é
You guys did a fantastic job giving us the run- down of Assassin's Creed Revelations in issue 218. I've always loved world history, and the AC series delivers great gameplay along with one heck of a history fix. | am sad to learn that this will be the last we hear from Altair and Ezio, but the story can’t continue if they linger, so in a way it’s a good thing. I’m eager to hear about what happens to Desmond and the other assassins as well!
Isabel Porras-Best
via email
| have been a fan of Assassin's Creed ever since the first game, and am psyched to hear about the release of Revelations. But | can't help thinking that this could be the last Assassin's Creed game. It would suck a lot to see this franchise go. | am super excited for the release of Revelations and hope to see future AC games in my collection. Vince Donohue Farmington, MN
Don't worry, Vince. While Assassin's Creed Revelations aims to close the chapter on Altair and Ezio's adventures, Ubisoft isn't about to walk away from such a success- ful franchise. Expect to be doing plenty of assassinating in the future.
$
"inal Chapter
This letter is coming from a previously avid Call of Duty online player. Recently, I've begun to actually think about what I’m wasting all these hours of my life on. | decided to pop back in my copy of CoD: WaW, and after getting shot up quite a bit, | quit in frustration. Then | moved back into my comfort zone with my usual gaming selection: Black Ops. | played for a little while and suffered more than my share of frustrating deaths. Then | rage quit and walked outside, thinking about what | had just endured. | asked myself, "Aren't video games supposed to be fun? Why am | wasting hours upon hours of my life on such a meaningless and even disturbing experience? Why does my kill/death ratio even matter?" | then stepped back and realized that Call of Duty is just a massive waste of time. | went into the barracks option and looked at the amount of time played. It read 10 days, 18 hours, and 34 minutes. Call of Duty, you were like a leech, sucking away at me and my time. I’m glad to be rid of you.
Matt Bernsdorf
via email
So we're guessing you don't plan on sub- Scribing to Activision's new monthly Call of Duty: Elite service?
А Grown-up Gamer | just wanted to say that | am pretty embar- rassed by my fellow adolescent gamers. I'm 15 and gaming is one of my major hobbies. While | admit that | do not have many restrictions on the games | play, | do agree that, ultimately, the games | play are under my parents’ jurisdiction. | just wish that my age group wasn't viewed as whiny, arrogant pain in the sides, but | know that is something that | will have to live with. | wear my headphones not to scream at other play- ers, but to enjoy the surround sound and talk to friends. | just hope you guys at my favorite magazine don't despise us all. Ben Witt via email
While plenty of young gamers deserve the bad rap placed upon them, behavior is ulti- mately what defines how annoying a player is, not age. As long as you're polite on the digital battlefield, Ben, we won't hold your birth date against you...until you kill us,
at least.
900026710 Gano
Not Just Mario's Party? After seeing Nintendo's stuff at ЕЗ, like the Wii U and 30$, | have to wonder whether the company will finally break its traditional and narcissistic relationship with third-party publish- ers. Outside of the Mario, Zelda, Metroid, and Donkey Kong franchises, Nintendo titles have been ridiculous. Potential third-party successes like No More Heroes and Mad World have fallen through the cracks. Personally, | would love to see the Castlevania and Mega Man Legends franchises on Nintendo's new systems.
Renato Monsalve
Florida
CANDID PHOTOS FROM Т
Nintendo's previous systems haven't always seen a lot of third-party support for a variety of reasons, so we were pleasantly surprised to see the company putting third-party Wii
U titles at the forefront during its E3 pre- sentation. In fact, we saw more third-party announcements for the Wii U than official Nintendo games. Let's hope that Nintendo's goodwill towards its new partners isn't voided by consumers refusing to buy any- thing that doesn't have a Nintendo mascot in the title.
Too Soon?
Is it strange that | feel a sense of dread every
time somebody speculates about the next
generation of consoles? It seems like it's too
early to be thinking about them; I’ve only had
my PS3 for four years. | spent so much time
of the last generation dreaming about this one
that it seems weird not wanting to hear about
what's next. | guess after this generation's hefty
price tag, I’m just not ready to spend that much
again. Does anyone else feel the same way? Stan Gruber
via email
Plenty of gamers aren’t ready to drop another several hundred bucks on a new console. Don’t forget that even if early speculation turns out to be true, you still have a lot of time before those rumored consoles are released, and even longer before the current systems are phased out. Feel free to partake in the gossip while knowing that your current platforms still have plenty of great games on the way.
D) GAME INDUSTRY
Rayman's Roots Seeing the news that Rayman is returning to his 2D days made me feel like the young child | was when I played through his first game. Rayman was my favorite game as a kid and still holds up as a great experience. When the second game came out, | never found it very fun. When Rayman Raving Rabbids came out, | simply denied it was a Rayman game. Ubisoft is finally making the right decision in returning to the style | actually consider to be Rayman.
Mark Wasson
via email
We're also excited to see an HD installment of Rayman featuring 2D art and classic platforming. Maybe someone at Nintendo will take notice of Ubisoft's efforts and start working on another side-scrolling Metroid. Please?
"Hey is dan rycert married ;)
"Do you feel the expansion of the humans into Citadel space is а metaphor for video games grow- ing as a form of media? Think about it."
We will.
How do | get a question published in the July issue of the magazine?
First of all, you're going to need a time machine.
Two readers actually picked Two And A Half Men as a show they think should be made into a game. We hope they were joking.
“In madden 12 you should make the fottball gear get dirty when the palyers get tackled or thrown down to the ground”
(Left) Dan “Buck Cherry” Ryckert wasted no time getting bounced off the mechanical bull during Bethesda's E3 party at Saddle Ranch Chop House. (Center) Bethesda's Erin Losi and Tracey Thompson were pleased with the result. (Right) Annette finds out that BioShock Infinite's Song- bird isn't big on high fives.
continued on page 10
feedback 9
In issue 218, we asked gamers what tele- vision series they think would make a gaming experience. The results were sur- prising to say the least: Doctor Who was the most popular choice, followed by Burn Notice and Supernatural. Here are some less popular - but still great — choices.
One TV series instantly popped into my mind: Firefly. During its short run on air, the show cre- ated a unique universe with an interesting back story that would be perfect for a game similar in style to Mass Effect. Just imagine zipping around the galaxy in Serenity while battling Reavers and various criminal and government organizations. Ed Sorrentino
My choice is Battlestar Galactica. If you have ever played the board game, you will see ele- ments of why it would make a great multiplayer game. Fighting to keep humanity alive while trying to figure out who is a Cylon and who isn't could provide great entertainment and high replayability.
Dana Moffett
| believe a Magnum, РІ. game would be awe-
some. An open world game in '80s Hawaii?
Wi Assassin's Creed Revelations 34% How could you resist? The success of L.A. Noire
ETV Shows That Deserve Games 26% will pave the way for more detective games.
Wi Screw This Game! Praise 23% Why not have Tom Selleck return as our favorite
О private investigator? Island hopping, taking down goons, scoping the babes, and cruising in Robin
18 Green Gaming 6% Masters' Ferrari would be a great way to veg out
with our gaming consoles. Long live the 'stache!
Jason Brentner
Twin Peaks would make an amazing video game. Sure, we've already got Alan Wake and Deadly Premonition, but those are only inspired
by Twin Peaks. How about an old-school point- S "iens 2 and-click adventure game where you play as аеруда Я Special Agent Dale Cooper while trying to find ciam Е T ant
What was your favorite announce- out who killed Laura Palmer? That would be a ment from E3, and why? day-one purchase for me! Lilikka Philandros
Fee aaa continued from page 9
eft) Bertz and Andy start
ЕЗ right by partying with Access Communications’ ex- traordinary Kimmie Kaspar. Center) Also in atten- dance at ЕЗ: Nike's Hayden Walling, Universal's Peter Wanat, and THQ's newest catch, Patrice Désilets, whose non-compete clause with Ubisoft just ended. Snoop Dogg drops it like it's hot at the Yoostar 2 booth, while Dan drops it like it's not.
continued on page 12
10 feedback
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Screen images are simulated. May require up to a $36 activation fee/line, credit approval and deposit. Up to a $200 early termination fee/line applies. Phone Offer: Offer ends 9/10/11 or while supplies last. Taxes and service charges are excluded. No cash back. Requires activation at the time of purchase. Upgrade: Existing customers in good standing with service on the same device for more than 22 consecutive months currently activated on a service plan of $39.99 or higher may be eligible. See in-store rebate form or sprint.com/upgrade for details. 3D Content: Capture and record in 3D, available with a rear-facing camera only. 3D features are compatible only with 3D content. America's Favorite 4G Network Claim: Based on the number of Sprint 4G subscribers vs. those on other wireless 4G (WiMAX and LTE) networks in the U.S. Other Terms: Coverage is not available everywhere. The Nationwide Sprint Network reaches over 278 million people. The Sprint 4G Network
reaches over 70 markets and counting, on select devices. The Sprint 3G Network reaches over 274 million people. Offers are not available in all markets/retail locations or for all phones/networks. = Q Pricing, offer terms, fees and features may vary for existing customers not eligible for upgrade. Other restrictions apply. See store or sprint.com for details. ©2011 Sprint. All rights reserved. Sprint Q) RadioShack. р апо the logo are trademarks of Sprint. The HTC logo and HTC EVO are trademarks of HTC Corporation. Android is a trademark of Google Inc. Other marks аге the properly of their respective owners. Focus on driving.
Enter the Game Informer Reader Art Contest. All you need to do is draw, paint, scratch, spit, or carve the best darn art you can think of and send it to us. Please include your name, phone number, and return address. If you're the monthly winner,
we'll feature your work in (RE 1 Ben Howard Mario Gl and you'll receive a video might have been doing Shy Guy a favor
par prta fen te Game by throwing all those veggies at his face. Informer vault Al entries О а ОЕ VEDIER GNIS (dee: ME DO WHAT
become the property of Dude looks malnourished. 2 Carissa : (e \ : 4 WE MUST Game Informer and can't. McDonald Considering the system in Р д) P be returned. this drawing is not a 3DS, we'd suggest the owner contact Nintendo technical support ASAP. 3 Katelan Yap This drawing portrays the moment before Kirby let go of Prince Fluff's hand and informed him he wouldn't be in the new
BECAUSE WE САП.
Game Informer
Reader Art Contest Wii game. 4 Brett Reinke We'll give 724 1st St. N., you three guess: to what the Space 3rd Floor Core is thinking about in this picture.
Mpls, MN 55401
APERTURE ey LABORATORIES
Continued from page 10
(Left) Tim and Ben Hanson are all smiles when they meet Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto.
Miyamoto must have missed
the memo about plaid shirts.
(Middle) Dan and Ben laugh at Mike “The Miz” Mizanin's crazy shenanigans after checking out WWE '12. (Right) Game Informer brings down yet another karaoke party with our rendition of Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now," accompanied by Harmonix's
Eric Pope and a really happy
blonde woman.
12 feedback
Blood and боге
Intense Violence Strong Language
BROTHERS: TO THE LAST: FIGHT.
BROTH
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>) X oO GN EN
LE PRE-ORDER NOW AND JOIN THE FIGHT O9.20.II
GIEEARt&o-NATFe 23
© 2011 Epic Games, Inc. All rights reserved. Epic, Epic Games, the Epic Games logo, Gears of War, Gears of War 3, Marcus Fenix, and the Crimson Omen logo are trademarks or registered " k trademarks of Epic Games, Inc., in the United States of America and elsewhere. Available in gearsofwar.com Microsoft Studios Standard, Limited, and Epic Editions. Pre-order at participating retailers to secure availability. facebook.com/gearsofwar
NOTABLES
16
22
43 47
e3 2011: microsoft pushes kinect, teases new halo
е3 2011: sony introduces playstation vita, touts move and 3d
ез 2011: wii u's coming out party
killer looks: the trailers of e3 impulse massive
pixel perfect: a roundup of upcoming hd remakes
all ages interview: mike fisher
opinion: better with kinect?
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ince Kinect's release last year, Microsoft has heard the complaints from both the press and gamers regarding the poor software support. At this year's ЕЗ, the company responded to those criticisms by putting the spotlight on Kinect with a bevy of new apps, games, and announcements of Kinect support for high profile third-party titles.
The conference started off predictably with a huge third-party game: Activision's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. Infinity Ward's Ryan Bowling and Sledgehammer's Glen Schofield showed
For Halo, А Trip To The Past And А New Beginning
With Bungie allied with Activision to develop a new game universe, Halo is now in the hands of Microsoft's 343 Industries division. At Microsoft's E3 press conference, we learned that the series is going both forward and backward at once.
On the eve of the 10-year anniversary of Halo: Combat Evolved, Microsoft announced it plans to release an HD remake of the game that started the pop culture phenomenon. This was welcome news, especially in light of Sony's success with next-gen revamps of series like God of War. The game features new high-definition textures, a "remastered" campaign, Xbox Live co-op play, and seven | classic multiplayer maps.
Microsoft saved its biggest news for the end of the show: the public's first introduction to Halo 4. A brief video of the next proper install- ment of the Halo series showed Master Chief escaping from cryosleep right after the end of Halo 3, picking up Cortana, and almost being
| sucked into deep space before securing himself. | А Halo 4 logo appeared onscreen afterwards
| with the words "the dawn of a new trilogy." This was definitely the most exciting moment of Microsoft's conference, and ended an other- wise dull presentation on a high note.
off a dramatic gameplay sequence that featured GERBER
an aquatic battle in the harbor of New York. It was classic Call of Duty, full of high production
values and Hollywood blockbuster action. It was
also announced that all Modern Warfare 3 DLC content would be exclusive to Xbox Live for a short window of time, just as it was for Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops.
This was followed by an impressive demo for the Tomb Raider reboot, which continues to impress. Both of these game demos served to hammer home the point that the Xbox 360
has been the premier console for third parties in terms of both content and sales this generation.
Microsoft also continued to build on the strength of Xbox Live. Since the addition of partners like Netflix and ESPN, the service has
become an all-in-one entertainment hub. At this
year's conference Xbox Live general manager Marc Whitten announced some major new Service and improvements that will be coming to the service [see sidebar].
After this, Kinect overtook the vast majority of the conference. Microsoft clearly wants to convince hardcore gamers that Kinect is more than just a few funny minigames. To this end, some of the industry's biggest developers and
publishers took the stage to affirm their support
for the peripheral. Perhaps the most intriguing announcement came from BioWare CEO Ray Muzyka, who revealed that Mass Effect 3 features Kinect voice support for dialogue choices and sending out squad commands in battle.
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot also pledged Kinect support for upcoming Ubisoft games, including Ghost Recon: Future Solider. This
was followed by a quick demonstration of how
voice and gesture commands can be used to customize weapons in the upcoming Tom Clancy shooter. Echoing these sentiments was
EA Sports president Peter Moore, who said titles
like Madden NFL, Tiger Woods PGA Tour, and FIFA would support Kinect in the future as well. For its part, Microsoft attempted to demonstrate a greater core game presence on Kinect with a couple of exclusive titles. Crytek's
Ryse (formerly Codename Kingdoms), a Roman-
era hack п’ slasher that uses gesture control,
was shown first. Later, an oddly subdued Peter
Molyneux announced Fable: The Journey, a Side-story in the Fable universe that exclusively
uses Kinect controls. Finally, Turn 10 shared new
details about Forza 4's incorporation of Kinect voice control and head tracking.
Despite these overtures to the core 360 audience, the most promising Kinect software was aimed at the casual adopters. The high-
lights were the always personable Tim Schafer's
demonstration of Double Fine's charming Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster, and Harmonix's Dance Central 2. The second title in the series showed particularly well later in the week, with show goers enjoying the new two-player simultaneous co-op play. Publishers
showed off several family friendly Kinect products as well, including Kinect Disneyland Adventures,
Kinect Star Wars (which was extremely unpolished when we got a chance to play it), and Kinect Sports: Season Two.
|
|
Xbox Live Adds New Services
YouTube, UFC Matches, and Bing Support Highlight the Next Dashboard Update
Xbox Live 15 the best online service in the industry, and Microsoft showed no signs of letting up at E3. Once again, Microsoft used its press conference to announce some high- profile partnerships with content providers, new Kinect navigation functionality, and yet another dashboard update that should make it even easier to find game and entertainment content. Here are the highlights:
* New Content Partnerships: With Netflix and ESPN finding success on Xbox Live, Microsoft naturally wanted to expand its partnerships. At the conference, the company announced that YouTube and UFC are coming to the ser- vice. Finally, Keyboard Cat on your flatscreen! UFC plans to broadcast live events, which will have interactive functions for viewers much like ESPN.
Bing Search: While most still prefer Google, Microsoft's Bing search engine is coming to Xbox Live. Though it's not a general web. search, Bing brings universal search to all of Live's content, be it games, DLC, television, movies, music, or video. Most importantly,
it works across all the content provided
by partners like Netflix. With Kinect voice support, Bing should make it much easier to learn if a movie is on Netflix instant streaming. ог whether you can rent it from the Zune Marketplace.
* New Dashboard: Microsoft plans to launch а new Live dashboard this fall intended to make it easier to navigate all the service's content. The look is heavily influenced by the streamlined box design of Windows Mobile 7. The update removes the Kinect hub, but it better integrates Kinect gesture and voice navigation.
Live TV: He didn't provide concrete details, but Xbox Live general manager Mark Whitten confirmed that live television is coming to Xbox Live in the U.S. this fall. It's worth noting that the company has been talking about this since 2007, and AT&T already allows Xbox 360 owners to use the console as a set-top box with its U-Verse service.
Microsoft creative director Kudo Tsunoda
я)
demoed Kinect Fun Labs, a new section of Xbox
Live meant to showcase experimental "apps"
like Kinect Me (which scans the player to create an amazingly accurate avatar), Object Scan (an app that lets you scan any object to create a full
SD model), and a finger painting app that lets you create 3D pictures.
All the Kinect talk had some hardcore fans in the audience feeling a bit left out, with the only highlight being Epic's Cliff Bleszinski and Ice-T stopping by to deliver a Gears of War 3 demo. Perhaps anticipating the discontent, Microsoft wrapped its press conference with зоте big
news regarding the Halo franchise [see sidebar].
E3 is ruled by excitement, so Microsoft — which had no new hardware to promote — was at a ‘natural disadvantage compared to Sony and Nintendo. It also found itself in a bind in regards to Kinect, needing to address the scarcity of compelling soft- ware support and to convince the skeptical hardcore base that Kinect is for them as well. Frankly, there was too much motion control at the confer- ence for our tastes, especially since only a few of the imple- mentations seemed compelling. It's interesting technology, but does it add up to a better game experience? That remains to
be seen.
We're also concerned with
how far Microsoft has fallen
off as a first-party publisher of core games. The company is down to a handful of first-party franchises — Halo, Gears, Forza, and Fable. Compared to the way Sony continues to bring out new franchises and revitalize old ones, Microsoft is lagging behind.
That being said, a tremendous number of amazing third-party games will be available for 360 owners this fall. While nothing atthis year's show changed the game for Microsoft, that's not necessarily a bad thing when you're winning.
connect 17
Coming Up For Kinect
ven though Sony and Nintendo's press conferences took the focus E
off motion control initiatives to put the spotlight on newfangled VE tech and touchscreens, Microsoft came out swinging with a
slew of announcements for upcoming Kinect titles and integration
of the sensor into some major franchises. Here's a glimpse of Kinect
games on the horizon.
Fruit Ninja Kinect
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios Developer: Halfbrick Release: Summer
Halfbrick's popular iOS title Fruit Ninja is making the jump from Apple's mobile devices to Kinect. With full motion tracking, players will swipe their arms through the air to slice fruit that appears onscreen while avoiding dangerous bombs. For the Kinect version, Halfbrick is adding new fruit such as pomegranates that players will have to swing at multiple times for an additional challenge. In addi- tion, two players can cooperatively slice fruit for a high score or compete in head-to-head matches. Leaderboards will also be included to encourage friends to compete for the top spot.
The Gunstringer
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios Developer: Twisted Pixel Release: Holiday
‘Splosion Man developer Twisted Pixel introduces a shooter set in the Wild West that stars a marion- ette on a quest for revenge. You can manipulate the character with hand gestures that mimic string control as you explore the humorous world the team has created. The fluid, responsive motion controls can be enjoyed whether you're sitting or standing. You'll be able to find The Gunstringer on retail shelves later this year.
18
Rise of Nightmares
Publisher: Sega Developer: Sega Release: September
Rise of Nightmares has no shortage of dismemberment, mutilation, beheading, and blood, making this "M" rated title a huge departure from some of Kinect's more family friendly offerings. This first-person horror title tells the grisly tale of an American tourist trying to save his wife from a crazed scientist. Players can choose from 40 weapons such as a pipe, brass knuckles, or a chainsaw to beat hordes of zombie-like creatures to a bloody pulp.
Just Dance 3
Publisher: Ubisoft Developer: Ubisoft Paris Release: October
The Wii's best-selling dance game is making its way to all motion platforms, including Kinect. With full body tracking you can move and groove to 40 tracks from the likes of Black Eyed Peas, Katy Perry, Gwen Stefani, and more. The Kinect version will also feature a “Shout Out” mode that will allow players to also sing along to their favorite tunes.
MotionSports Adrenaline
Publisher: Ubisoft Developer: Ubisoft Vancouver Release: October
Even though the original MotionSports was far from a critical success, Ubisoft is creating a sequel with an extreme sports focus that promises to bring a few changes to the franchise. Players can engage in wingsuit, mountain biking, rock climbing, kayaking, kitesurfing, and parkour activities alone or in split-screen multiplayer modes. Adrenaline also includes asynchronous online play features that will populate courses with ghosts of your online friends so that you can try and beat their best times.
Better With Kinect
А : P Hen Developers are stepping up Raving Rabbids Alive & Kicking to the plate to support the Kinect platform by integrating the technology into titles that primarily use a standard controller. How the sensor will play into these experiences has yet to be determined for most titles at press time.
Publisher: Ubisoft Developer: Ubisoft Paris/Ubisoft Milan Release: November
Rabbids have finally made their way onto Kinect with a full- body motion-controlled minigame collection for up to four players that features diversions such as a whack-a-Rabbid- style augmented reality game and other activities that involve
Es : + FIFA filing a shape on Screen by assuming awkward positions with + Ghost Recon: Future Soldier your closest friends. * Halo: Combat Evolved
Anniversary * Madden NFL * Mass Effect 3
Your Shape Fitness Evolved 2012
085 ? |. * Minecraft ^ ad ^ B Publisher: Ubisoft Developer: Ubisoft Montreal ЕО PEA Tout Release: November x For more information on up-
The latest Your Shape will offer 90 hours of gameplay with full coming Kinect titles, check out workout programs, moves for specific target areas, and minig- our previews of Dance Central 2 ames. One new addition will be the ability to “run around the {раде 93) and Forza Motorsport 4 world" across locations such as Paris, New York, and London. (page 83), and visit our All Ages
section for details on Kinect Disneyland Adventures and Sesame Street Once Upon А Monster (page 43).
Other features include dance workouts from genres including African dance, Bollywood, hip-hop, pop, and Latin to mix up your routine. If dancing isn't your thing, other training modes like boot camp, cardio boxing, yoga, sports training, and mar- tial arts will be sure to get your blood pumping.
connect 19
NOS°:and:2010 MLG; National: Champion
Justin:“FearltSelf” Kats
Power ОНУ Е ЕЗ 2011
p^ Kinect Sports: Season 2
Publisher:
Microsoft Game Studios Developer: Rare/
Big Park Games Release: Holiday
Rare and Big Park Games are bringing new sports and features to the Kinect Sports follow-up. Along with improved motion tracking and the inclusion of voice commands, Season 2 now includes tennis, golf, football, darts, skiing, and baseball with multiple difficulty levels that can be played alone or with friends. You can also send challenges to friends on Xbox Live, plus share in-game photos and videos on KinectShare.com or post your victories directly to your Facebook wall.
Kinect Star Wars
NOS sponsors and helps E. setthe new Guinness World 43 VA
‘i un MON STOPNae 1 Publisher: LucasArts/ Record for "Most Consecu- H. ыы : Microsoft Game Studios tive Hours Played of a Fighting : и] Developer: LucasArts Video G ^ EE 7 198 Release: Holiday ideo Game. ae a) ў ј ao — Star Wars fans can finally live out their childhood fantasy of swinging a lightsaber,
using the Force, and becoming a Jedi master this holiday. In combat scenarios, Kinect Star Wars automatically targets enemies for the player, leaving it up to you
to use Force Powers or the trusty lightsaber to dispatch enemies. The Kinect title promises pod racing and X-wing dogfights to break up the action as well. A second player can join the fray with drop-in/drop-out co-op, competitive, and duel modes.
Ds
Fable: The Journey
Demoing as many games (and Publisher: weapons) as possible, Justin Microsoft Game Studios
А Developer: explores the future of gaming. ИИ
Release: 2012
Я Set within the Fable universe, players will have the opportunity to cover more than We help Tim and Ben from 300 miles of land by horse-drawn carriage as they make their way to the kingdom Game Informer power through of Albion. That's a lot of traveling, so thankfully — unlike most Kinect titles — the game the reporting-marath on of E3 will be played from the seated position. The Journey, as Peter Molyneux has made 3 Clear several times, is not on rails, giving players full control over the direction their the horse goes. You'll have the ability to use voice commands to guide the horse on your journey and can use hand gestures to perform a variety of magic spells.
Publisher:
Microsoft Game Studios Developer: Crytek Release: TBA
MAJOR LEAGUE GAMING
From the team that brought you Crysis comes an action title for Kinect that gives players the chance to take on the role of warrior in ancient Rome as they stab, kick, punch, block, and headbutt their way through legions of enemies for a bloody melee brawl.
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HIGH PERFORMANCE ENERGY DRINK
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| Жага Sony Introduces PlayStation Vita,
Touts Move an
ony's ЕЗ felt similar to last year,
and the press conference had
that strong-but-not-dominant
feel. Adopting that same vibe
this year might indicate the
company's confidence, but it also
^ represents a missed opportunity
when cep had definite criticisms of Sony's competition.
Addressing the “elephant in the room,” Sony America president and CEO Jack Tretton started out the press conference by both apologizing to and thanking customers, third-party partners, and retailers for their support during the recent PSN outage. He noted that network levels are back to over 90 percent of what they were before the April attack.
From Resistance 3 to BioShock Ir touted Move support for just about ev game it showed at the press conference. И claimed that 200 titles will use the motion peripheral (which has sold 8.8 million units worldwide to date) by year's
Despite Sony place among the motion-con demonstrations like Kobe Bryant intuitive grasp of using Move in NB ran out of bounds and barely 5 reticle) didn't necessarily signal a bright new era for the Move.
Perhaps the most interesting vote of confidence (sort of) for the Move came from Ken Levine, Irrational Games' creative director, who came out to stump for the peripheral after a trailer for BioShock Infinite. Levine his extreme reluctance to adopting the ("We make core games... DualShock stuf explained), but then announced his heart and declared that Infinite would use the Move in some undisclosed way. If anything, the lengths at which Levine had to go to justify his use of the Move overshadowed an otherwise impressive trailer for the game. It shouldn't have to be that hard
Rumor has it that Sony told third-party developers that if they wanted to be
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The press conference showed off titles like Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, Resistance 3, and the PS3 exclusive Dust 514 (тот Eve Online's CCP Games), and many of the games shown featured Move and 3D support [see sidebars]. If last year's press conference was the debut of these initiatives, this year showed that they were still very much in Sony's plans.
Although the majority of the press conference was devoted to Sony's first-party efforts, the company took some time to highlight a clutch of third-party exclusives like BioShock Infinite's inclusion of the original BioShock, SSX's Mt. Fuji stage, content for Saints Row: The Third, and the Battlefield 8 pack-in of Battlefield 1943. None of the announcements are game-changers, but they at least show Sony is trying to differenti- ate itself in an era of few blockbuster exclusives.
Sony saved the PlayStation Vita for last, and used demos of Ruin and ModNation Racers to show off the handheld's features. Highlights included its connectivity to the PS3 for things like access of PS3 content, the ability to continue your save on both systems, and even cross-platform competitive play (flip the page for more on Vita). Sony says that 80 titles are in development for the console from the likes of EA, Activision, Ubisoft, and more, and that the Vita will be out this holiday for $249 (Wi-Fi model) and $299 (8G). The handheld's price was a pleasant sur- prise in a press conference that was otherwise just pleasant.
America
CEO, ар
g anguard that will convert s to home 3D, and the company made an aggressive move to promote its plans by announcii $499 3D bundle
that contains a 24-inch hi-def 3D monitor, and a 6-foot this fall, and
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also announced that a separa’ ‘would cost $69.99.
Classic HD anthologies God of War Origins and the ICO/Shadow of the Colossus Collection will both support 3D when they come out this fall, and Sony says over 100 games utilize the feature for the system. Though 3D has yet to break through as a defining characteris video games (even with №
pair of gla
The PlayStation 3 has hit its stride, but that's good and bad for Sony. The console is turning a profit, but Sony is rightully trying to use its brand exclu- sives — first-party software, Move, and 3D support — hopes of improving its last place position.
But the declarations of a press conference can be at odds with the more mundane realities. For example, the Move was but a small part of Sony's own E3 booth, and the fact is, third- party publisher's multi-platform strategies have created a detente where it's harder to stand out even with attempts at differentiation like Move.
The biggest buzz coming out of the show for Sony was that the Vita's price wasn't as bad as it could have been. Could Sony have wowed gamers further if it had put software even more on display or announced God of War 4 or the return of Syphon Filter like was rumored before ЕЗ? Sony has a better first- party stable than rival Microsoft, but in deference to the Vita, perhaps Sony felt it couldn't overshadow the handheld. If so, it’s not a bad choice, just one that quiets some of Sony's bigger guns.
connect 23
PlayStation Vita:
24
ony has been talk-
ing about its next-
gen
ration portabl
months, so when the
company staged the device's
st appearance at ЕЗ, many заду we ran
of our questions were г
on feature
detailing the system specs and d as an opportunity to addre
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ne of the remaining m
Now dubbed the PlaySta the handheld formerly called the NGP made an impact on the showfloor with a lineup of cool titles, impressive technology, and a surprising.price tag that puts
it all within reach
PlayStation
Fi Only | 3G/WiFi 9.99 $299.99
9 €299 Y24,980 Y29,980
The Vita has a lot of flashy technology, including two cameras, two multi-touch surfaces, and an OLED Screen. Many gamers thought that these features would lead to prohibitive cost, similar to the fiasco Sony faced when it announced the PlayStation 3's original $599 price point. That didn't happen. Instead, the company announced that the basic package will cost $250 – the same price as Nintendo's 3DS. The SG-enabled version will strain your wallet a little more, releasing at $300.
Considering that LittleBigPlanet has two PS3 entries and one on PSP, no one should be surprised to see Sackboy popping up on another Sony platform. The Vita version of LBP won't have any cross-compatibility with previous iterations in the series, but it does have a few tricks that | wouldn’t be possible on other systems. We saw pegs | that you drive into the foreground or background by tap- | ping them on the front and rear touch screens, platforms that you move by tilting the device, and paths that you create by dragging your finger across the screen (like Kirby: Canvas Curse on DS). These mechanics point to LBP on Vita returning to platforming-heavy action rather than leaning on the possibilities of content creation, which | is probably a better fit for a handheld title. However, after | everything that LittleBigPlanet 2 allowed users to do, some people may find it difficult to look back.
At first, Ruin appears to be a traditional isometric hack n' slash in the vein of Diablo. While the meat of the gameplay is focused on plowing through enemies and advancing through skill trees, this title showcases some of Vita's unique features like Facebook and Twitter integration. It also uses cloud storage for saves, so progress is shared between the PS3 and Vita versions. This means you can play on your console at home, then pick up your handheld and continue your quest. Multiplayer in Ruin is a social affair, involving trading items with friends, attacking their hero's lair, and protecting your own lair against inevitable assaults. Bolstering your lair's defenses to protect your loot while you're not playing may be the creative edge Ruin needs to stand out.
One of the best ways to get consumers on board with the Vita is to make sure that the gaming industry's top developers are supporting the device. Two big names — Ken Levine and Hideo Kojima — have announced that they are currently developing games for the Vita. Kojima made his announcement in a prerecorded Konami press confer- ence the week before ЕЗ, while Levine shared the news of Irrational Games’ title (set in the BioShock universe) while onstage at Sony's press event. We would have liked more info on these projects beyond the admission that they exist, but it looks like the details will have to wait for another time.
Though E allowed the Vita to put its best foot forward in most respects, one announcement caused
an entire auditorium full of industry press and pro- fessionals to openly jeer. When talking about the Vita's 3G capabilities at the press confer- ence, Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kaz Hirai revealed that the company is partnering exclusively with AT&T to pro- vide the data service. Response from the audience began with groans, then trans- formed into boos and laughter — with only scattered, barely audible (and possibly sarcastic) applause. Hirai seemed to take the negative reaction in stride; if anyone at Sony owned an iPhone during AT&T's exclusivity deal, they must have seen that one coming.
games like Uncharted: Golden Abyss since the NGP was first unveiled (read our full preview on page 82 for more), but
| Like all new consoles, the success of the Vita will ultimately depend on having quality software. We've been hearing about | | |
the system still has some surprises in store. Several announcements of upcoming Vita projects flew under the radar in the chaos surrounding ЕЗ, but this list covers some of the most exciting newly revealed games for Sony's new handheld. Keep
in mind that these aren't all necessarily Vita-exclusive titles; some are also on PS3 as well as 360 and 30$.
| | * Dragon's Crown (Ignition) | * Dust 514 (CCP Games) j * LEGO Harry Potter Years 5-7 (Warner Bros.) | * Michael Jackson: The Experience (Ubisoft) | * Mortal Kombat (Warner Bros.) | * Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee (Just Add Water) | * Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath (Just Add Water) * Rayman Origins (Ubisoft)
* Silent Hill: Book of Memories (Konami)
* Street Fighter X Tekken (Capcom)
* Virtua Tennis 4 (Sega)
connect 25
*
D
, Wi y's Coming Out Party
=
| | | 200 | Nintendo showta put where are the first-part ames? nintenoo dad
ses an ambitious neW console controller,
rom the fanboys that openly wept
. at the unveiling of the Twilight Princess to the collective “huh?” we all experienced when Nintendo had Shigeru Miyamoto conduct- ing a haphazard virtual orchestra, Nintendo's press conferences have СЕЕ provided us with memorable ЕЗ moments.
This year felt a bit different, as the story that would have been the big surprise from Nintendo - the existence of an HD console with a touch screen controller — had leaked to the press prior to the show. As it turned out, а majority of the rumors were pretty accurate, but more on that later.
For a press conference focused on the future of Nintendo, the company oddly led with a tribute to its past. The show kicked off with a small orchestra performing music from The Legend of Zelda series, accompanied by footage from various Zelda games. Following this, Zelda creator Shigeru Miyamoto took the stage to
speak about the franchise's 25th anniversary.
Miyamoto showcased a flurry of products to celebrate Zelda's 25th: The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening for the 3DS Virtual Console eShop, the new 3DS remake of Ocarina of Time, a new, free download of The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords planned for release in September, and The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword coming this holiday season for Wii.
He also revealed that Nintendo has planned several 25th Anniversary The Legend of Zelda orchestral concerts around the world for later this year. Finally, he welcomed to the stage Takashi Tezuka, Yoshiaki Koizumi, and Zelda director Eiji Aonuma, three veteran Nintendo developers whose contributions to Nintendo's success over the years is often overlooked.
Next up was Nintendo head Satoru Iwata, who elaborated on the thinking behind the new Nintendo console. Iwata said he hoped the console could bridge the gap between hardcore and casual players with gameplay that was both
"deeper and wider" in appeal.
While the anticipation was high regarding the new console, Nintendo did not overlook the 30$, which has gotten off to a slower-than- expected start at retail. Reggie Fils-Aime came onstage to introduce five new high-profile 3DS titles: Mario Kart (holiday 2011), Super Mario 3D (holiday 2011), the previously announced Star Fox 64 remake, Kid Icarus Uprising (which showed multiplayer and AR card functionality), and the surprise announcement of Luigi's Mansion 2.
After a brief roundup of third-party 3DS games and the announcement of a new 3D Pokédex (which Nintendo seemed to think was very excit- ing), it was time for the main event: the new home console. Many wondered what the new system would be called, and Reggie answered it emphatically: Wii U. The name was met with polite, perhaps perplexed applause, and many were left wondering just what Nintendo was thinking.
The system's functionality and specs were close to what we'd expected (for more see page 28), but many gamers were confused about whether it was a new console – which is an indication that your press conference did not go as planned. Because the actual console was barely shown, and so much was made of the new touch screen controller's compatibility with original Wii peripherals like the Balance Board, many got the impression that it was merely a new controller for the existing Wii.
Nintendo emphasized that third-party support would be better this time around. A video presentation featuring such gaming luminaries as Irrational Games' Ken Levine, EA Sports" Peter Moore, Junction Point's Warren Spector, and Ubisoft's Yves Guillemot waxing enthusiastic about the Wii U was shown. THQ has already committed Darksiders 2 as a Wii U launch title. Other notable games headed to Wii U include Batman: Arkham City, Dirt 3, Ghost Recon Online, Tekken, Metro: Last Light, Ninja Gaiden 3, and Aliens: Colonial Marines. One new IP, an open-world LEGO game entitled LEGO City Stories, was also announced.
Strangely, Nintendo did not show or announce any first-party games for the Wii U. While Iwata did say a new cross-platform Super Smash Bros. game would be coming to both 3DS and Wii U, no footage was shown. All the playable Wii U “games” on the show floor were little more than glorified tech demos. Some were admittedly impressive, particularly a bucolic Japanese nature scene intended to show the hardware's graphical power, and Chase Mii, a Pac-Man style game that uses both Wii remotes and the Wii U touch controller. However, none of these had the impact of an actual game announcement on the order of Mario, Zelda, or Metroid.
EA's John Riccitiello ended the show, asking viewers to "imagine" what EA games like Madden and Battlefield 3 would play like with Nintendo's new system and controller — while Stopping short of actually confirming any titles. He also said the Wii U would have an "open" online service that would allow for downloading DLC, community functions, web access, and social media.
While some of Nintendo's thun- der was stolen before the show even started, the official unveil- ing of the Wii U was certainly the buzz of E3 — although at least some of the chatter was in regards to the less-than-stellar console name. On the whole, the perception of Wii U seemed to be one of cautious optimism. While it's great to finally see a Nintendo console capable of high-definition graphics on par with 360 and PS3, that move should have happened years ago. Once again, it looks like the latest Nintendo console
will rise or fall based on its key innovation — in this case, the touch controller.
Nintendo made a couple of blunders in the unveiling. One, by focusing so much on the controller and not showing a clear shot of the actual Wii U console during the conference, there was confusion about whether it was a new system or just a new controller for Wii. That's just poor communication. Two, not showing any Wii U- exclusive games seems like
a tactical error. Outside of announcements of planned Pikmin and Super Smash Bros. games for Wii U — neither of which where actually shown — gamers didn’t get much to hold on to outside of the (admittedly cool) possibilities represented by the new touch screen controller.
connect 27
28
3 8 Е E
ЕЕЕ ninrEnna
em and its c ot to big sc
year's ЕЗ. Beyond those confirmed details was only а swirl of rumors regarding what shape the console and its controller would take. Many gamers were surprised when Nintendo revealed little about the console itself at the Show, focusing instead on the possibilities surrounding the new controller. I went hands-on with the Wii U and its strange new interface at E3 2011, and these are my impressions along with the firm details that Nintendo shared.
A S we revealed in our June issue, we knew that Nintendo was planning to introduce a new HD console at this
TES
BATTERY
The controller of the future Like with the Wii, Nintendo's major innovation for the Wii U comes in the form of its imaginative controller. While the company has taken important steps toward making it easier to support every type of game, plenty of elements set this gamepad apart from
anything else we've seen.
@ Traditional Controls Gone are the days of developers struggling to translate an Xbox 360 or PS3 game’s control scheme to the unwieldy motion controllers of the original Wii. The new controller features a more traditional setup, including a d-pad, four face buttons, two shoulder buttons, and two triggers. The analog controls are in the form of two circle pads, like those found on the 3DS and PSP, rather than actual analog sticks. The circle pads are placed above the d-pad and face buttons, a choice that may take get- ting used to for hands that are accustomed to the stick placement on 360 and PS3 controllers. The Wii U will also support regular Wii remote controllers and accesso- ries including the Classic Controller and Balance Board. When speaking to Nintendo representatives, | stumbled upon a touchy subject: whether or not the Wii U can
POWER
handle multiple touchscreen controllers at once. No demo on the show floor had more than one of the new controllers active at once; every multiplayer experience had one player using the touchscreen while others used standard Wii remotes. Early reports suggest that the
Wii U may be able to support multiple controllers, but Nintendo seems hesitant to discuss it for the moment.
© Touch Pad
Nintendo rarely settles for being the same as the competition. What sets Wii U apart is the 6.2-inch, 16:9 touchscreen in the middle of the controller. It is single- touch only, which limits the possibilities somewhat. Nintendo also showed off the ability to take the gameplay happening on the TV screen and move it to the control- ler's screen, allowing other people to use the TV for something else while you remain gaming — though how far you can stray from your console is not currently clear.
© Camera
Nintendo has not revealed how powerful the camera
on the front of the Wii U’s controller is, but it will likely match or exceed the 0.3 megapixel camera on the 3DS, allowing easy transfer of pictures between the handheld and the console.
© Stereo Speakers
The new controller features built-in stereo speakers as well as a headphone jack. In addition to providing the tinny noises that Wii games would sometimes pump through the controller speakers, this addition should make playing games on the controller a much more comfortable aural experience. A built-in microphone allows for voice communication, and the reveal of the system showed two people video chatting via the con- troller, similar to the iPhone’s Face Time feature.
© Battery Powered
Given its wide range of functionality, one major concern about the Wii U is how quickly it will drain battery power. Nintendo isn’t speaking about battery life yet, but the controller has a built-in rechargeable battery, so at least we won't need to be swapping out double-A's constantly. Note that it looks like the controller will be charged via an AC adapter that can be plugged in on the back.
© Other Perks
The Wii U controller also includes rumble functionality, an accelerometer, and a gyroscope. The latter were show- cased in several demos, allowing for control of your view in first-person shooters among other possibilities.
е a“ m
a emu T
connect 29
30
Other system details
intendo is seriously embracing the HD N era with Wii U. It supports resolutions up
to 1080p via HDMI or component cables (S-video and composite are also supported). While early tech demos we saw were mostly on the less impressive side graphically, Nintendo was adamant that third parties will have a much easier time port- ing games over from the competitors’ systems, and various publishers and developers who spoke during Nintendo's ES press conference agreed.
As for specifics on the Wii U's power, details are still sketchy. Nintendo has revealed only that the CPU is an IBM multi-core microprocessor and the GPU is based on AMD Radeon technology. According to a report from Engadget, the GPU is "similar to the R770 found in AMD's last-gen cards," which supports DirectX 10. While not the most pow- erful GPU possible, this tech would place the Wii U's power slightly higher than the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
Wii U software will come on proprietary "high-density optical discs," but it can also read Wii optical discs. Neither Blu-ray discs nor DVDs are supported, and Nintendo is dropping GameCube disc backward com- patibility too.
For storage options, game saves and downloadable titles are written to internal flash memory, though Nintendo has not yet announced how much memory is present in the system. If you want more storage, you
can expand your memory via SD card or through an external hard drive connected by one of the Wii U's four USB 2.0 slots.
As for online support, a major point of contention on the Wii, Nintendo remains tight-lipped. Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime told Kotaku that the system's online service will be "flexible," with the ability to connect with social networks and mobile experiences of some sort. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told investors that the company will be taking advantage of voice-over-IP, social networking, and other areas "where our systems have been seen as being weak in the past." A Ubisoft representative speaking to MTV said that the new system will ditch
SYNC
the Wii's frustrating friend codes for the "equivalent to a Gamertag on Xbox Live." A much stronger, more unified online service is sounding likely, so keep your fingers crossed that Nintendo can get it right from the start this time.
Technologically, the Wii U matches what we've come to expect from Nintendo hardware: solid but frugal, with the potential to be surpassed by the inevitable next iterations of the PlayStation and Xbox. The question is how much those big, impressive controllers will drive up the price. We may not know the pricing details for a while, since Nintendo's cur- rent release window for the Wii U is April 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012.
Going hands-on
While Nintendo wasn't ready to reveal any full first-party games for the Wii U, | played several tech demos - Nintendo called them "experi- ences" – that showed off some of the interest- ing functionality of the controller and system.
in flight
This demo existed for one reason: to prove that the Wii U can pump out crisp HD graphics. In it, a bird flies through a Japanese pond as the weather changes around it from sun to rain. While the visual style was far from the most impressive I’ve ever seen in a video game, it did have an incredible amount of detail, especially in elements such as the way that drops of rain splashed into the pond. This demo had no gameplay, but it also showed off how the visu- als from the TV could be streamed onto the controller's screen.
Chase Mii
Looking like something that could be included in one of the Wii's countless minigame com- pilations, Chase Mii is a surprisingly fun party game. Five players are required, with one
on the new touchscreen controller and the other four wielding Wii remotes pointed at the split-screened TV. The solo gamer on the pad controls a Mii dressed as Mario, while the four Wii remote gamers have Miis dressed as Toad. Mario must run and hide for a set amount of time, but he is aided in his stealth by a map showing where all of the Toad Miis are at any moment. If one of the Toads finds and tackles him, he loses. Chase Mii proves how multiple Screens and control methods can provide for a unique local multiplayer experience, though it also highlights the question of whether the Wii U will support multiple touchscreen controllers.
Battle Mii
While this demo only requires three players,
it has a similar vibe to Chase Mii, splitting the TV screen for two Wii remotes while a third player views the action on the controller's touchscreen. In this Metroid-themed session, the television-using gamers have Miis dressed in Samus’ iconic armor (sans helmet), and the ` touchscreen gamer is in control of the bounty hunter's gunship. The Samus Miis must work together to destroy the gunship before it takes them out.
Battle Mii features a multiplayer arena full of great hiding spots and perfectly-placed risk- reward power-ups. It shined when playing the polished, third-person shooting of the Samus characters. Unfortunately, the gunship didn't fare so well. This unwieldy bit of machinery is primarily controlled by use of the new control- ler's gyroscope – so physically moving the Screen around changes your aim and direc- tion in-game. | got demolished when playing as the ship because I couldn't aim as quickly
and easily as if | were pointing a remote at the screen or using analog sticks.
Shield Pose
Shield Pose is a minigame that looks and plays like something Ра expect to see in a Rhythm Heaven title. The player is on a ship floating
in the ocean surrounded by pirate ships. A goofy undead pirate captain screams orders to his minions, revealing which direction incom- ing arrows will be fired from. The player must raise his or her shield (by physically raising
the controller in the direction shouted) in time with the beat, at which point correctly blocked arrows appear on the touchscreen and must be shaken off by thrusting the controller down- ward. Of all the "experiences" shown, this is the one that seems most likely to make its way into a game in some form.
360-degree camera '
In one purely non-gaming (but very cool) tech demo, the TV played simple SD footage of
a car moving down a street in Japan in first- person. The screen on the controller also had a first-person view, but | was able to manipulate it and look in any direction as | was driven down the street — even down at the street itself or up at the sky. Nintendo representatives told me to consider how this type of technology could be utilized in games, but I’m almost more inter- ested to see it used in non-gaming apps. Think of a Google Maps app on the Wii U that allows you to do this!
Zelda HD
Much more of a teaser than an actual game, Nintendo described this brief Zelda demo as "an example of what Zelda might look at on this system if it were designed with the Twilight Princess art style." In the non-interactive tech demo, Link walks into a temple and is attacked by a huge spider. The level of detail on every- thing — Link, the environment, and the mon- ster – is beautiful and definitely beyond what any previous Zelda game has pulled off. | was also able to switch the lighting effects between daytime and nighttime, showing off even more attention to detail.
The most promising element of the Zelda demo was the use of the controller. The in- game map, inventory, and Link's health meter all appear on the controller rather than the TV Screen, leaving your view into the game world clean and open. With a single button, the screens can be swapped, allowing you to play the game on the touchscreen. If this hypotheti- cal Zelda project is really in development (as. it should be), then | hope Nintendo runs with this idea of emptying the screen of all clutter by relegating it to the touchscreen.
So what games are coming?
While Nintendo wasn't willing to announce anything, one of its big pushes with the Wii U is for better third-party publisher support. A number of third parties were on hand and ready to announce games for the Wii U.
By the time the Wii U is released, Arkham City will have already been out on 360, PS3, and PC for some time. Hopefully Warner Bros. will have time to throw in some bonuses for this promised late port.
Since Ubisoft participated in a devel- oper roundtable with Nintendo, this is one of the Wii U releases we know the most about. Ghost Recon Online will debut as a free-to-play game
on the PC, but its transition to Wii U hints at what will hopefully be a much more robust online service than the Wii. Ubisoft showed off the touch- screen being used to give orders and place waypoints that are then visible in-game for allies.
This new Wii U-exclusive title from longtime LEGO developer TT Games moves away from the franchise norm of riffing on a popular film franchise. While not much has been shown, the screens at the press conference paint LEGO City Stories as an open-world Grand Theft Auto-style title that the whole family should be able to enjoy.
Also coming for Wii U
» Darksiders II
» Aliens: Colonial Marines » Metro: Last Light
» Dirt
» Unannounced Sega Titles » Unannounced БА Titles
This unnamed Tekken project will be the first Tekken game to appear оп a Nintendo While Ubisoft hasn't yet specified if Assassin's Creed for Wii U will be one of the games system. Early video footage shows familiar Tekken fighting mixed with the ability to appearing on the other consoles or an exclusive entry, a representative gave some customize your characters by drawing on them via the touchscreen. hints about how it could work on the new system. The touchscreen may be used for an " always-on map or interactive database, quick weapon select, or solving puzzles. It also could provide an eagle vision view of the game world.
Although technically based off the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 version of Ninja Gaiden 3, Razor's Edge will offer a unique experience on the Wii U. Ninja Gaiden 3 lead Fumihiko Yasuda told Joystiq that the developer is "thinking of different modes and different combat action — something different" for this version of the game.
This offbeat alien shooter from Ubisoft was showcased in two different modes at ЕЗ. Single- player is a fairly stand: un-and-gun shooter, but it was entirely controlled using the touch- screen controller's gyroscope for aiming. Yes, this looked as awkward as it sounds. For the multiplayer demo, one player was on the TV screen using a classic controller while his oppo- nent used the touchscreen to choose where enemies would spawn in. This unique idea for competitive multiplayer seemed fun. Let's hope Killer Freaks has more of those.
01400$
01850$
connect 33
The Trailers of E3
1
Platform: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 • Release: TBA
Insomniac's long-awaited multiplatform title with Electronic Arts is a stylized action shooter that brings together four different agents of an organization called Overstrike Nine. Different members have unique skills, whether that's being a thief, scientist, mercenary muscle, or a detective. The game naturally features four-player co-op and Insomniac's usual bevy of cre- ative weapons, including invisibility cloaks, electric crossbows, and guns with shield attachments.
2
Platform: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 * Release: TBA
Heavenly Sword's Ninja Theory takes the reins of this iconic series for this prequel reboot. Naturally there has been lots of debate over Dante's looks, but seeing the trailer in action shows that Ninja Theory is very capable of bringing to life the series' signature stylistic action. Perhaps as even a nod to the franchise's earlier games, in the trailer Dante's hair tums white when
he enters what may be a form of the original games' Devil Trigger.
3
Platform: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, PC
Release: 2012
Death rides to avenge the apocalyptic setup of his brother War in the first Darksiders game, and he also traverses the Abyss on a journey to restore Humanity. The game features more dungeons, larger enemies,
a Diablo-style loot system, and an open world full of quest-giving NPCs and other secrets to uncover. Read more about it in our issue 219 cover story.
ЕЗ is all about showing off upcoming games, but a few 4 а " Н Platform: Xbox 360 * Release: ТВА
of the convention's big-name games only appeared Microsoft showed off a lot of games that integrate
E б ГЕ Kinect into their regular gameplay, but Crytek's Вузе as trailers. These titles may not have been eligible ses the tachnelogy full oh. The game is set during for inclusion in our Top 50 list (on page 62), but that pomes dar days ООО alter cry from the city’s
civilized zenith. You won't be eating grapes from a
doesn't mean there's not plenty to get excited about. reclined couch; you're going to be slashing and head-
butting everyone in your path. It's not known if the game moves on rails, but judging on looks alone, Ryse is going after hardcore gamers with its brutal action.
5
Platform: Xbox 360 • Release: 2012
The brief teaser trailer for Halo 4 starts off with Master Chief in stasis for an undisclosed amount of time, pre- sumably aboard the ship from the end of Halo 3. After a brief reunion with Cortana, he floats through the ship as it's being destroyed by some unseen force. At the end of the trailer he emerges to confront what looks to be some sort of giant alien craft or entity.
With 343 Industries taking over from original Halo developer Bungie, the studio used the trailer to announce that Halo 4 is just the start of a new trilogy. Master Chief is far away from Earth in deep space con- fronting new enemies, so the setting is ripe for a host of new vehicles, characters, and gameplay.
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games
by Matt Miler Some exciting and impressive sequels dominated E3, but the retail channel
left something desired in terms of new,
original franchises. Not so in the down-
f № loadable space, where incredible games A like Bastion, Crimson Alliance, From
Dust, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet, Journey, and Payday: The Heist all made our top 50 games of the show (р. 62). It was a hard choice, as there were a number of other great-looking titles that got crowded out. For this month's column, I highlight some of our other favorites from the show, especially focusing on games you may not have heard of yet. One thing is for sure; it's going to be a good year for
downloadable games.
36
you may have missed at
apo & Yo has the biggest potential of any debut at the show, but a lot remains to be seen about how it plays. The concept is certainly intriguing. The game stars a young boy named Quico, who lives in the favela towns of South America, and his best friend, a tower- ing beast named Monster. Sadly, Monster is addicted to poison frogs, and when he eats them, he turns on Quico and attacks. With the help of a robot named Lula, Quico must find a cure for Monster. The platforming/puzzle mechanics look promising, like the ability to move a small box around a playground that subsequently moves a nearby building in the same way, creating a path to move forward. Quico travels through some beautiful landscapes during his quest, but the most compelling aspect of Papo & Yo is its inspiration. Vander Caballero, creative director at Minority, says the game is based upon his relationship with his father, who struggled with drug and alcohol addiction. | have very high hopes for the game, which is set to release in 2012.
Combining multiplayer online battle arena play with platforming, and injecting a well-deserved dose of old-school Saturday morning cartoons, Awesomenauts is a creature all its own. The game features characters like space frogs (with mohawks) fighting Russian monkeys on jet- packs in furious online throwdowns. ЕЗ footage revealed fast-paced and crazy action as oppo- nents wildly tried to bring one another down. Players maneuver their team member through platforming sequences, firing all the way as they aim to topple other team's base shields. These barriers are protected by turrets, which in turn blast out minions to add cannon fodder to the mix. The game is easy to pick up and play, but my instincts say there may be a deeper experi- ence underneath all the explosions.
One of the winners of the 2010 IGF Student Showcase, Puddle is blossoming from student project to full-fledged release thanks to Konami. The innovative game tasks players with navigat- ing a puddle of liquid through various environ- ments by manipulating the entire surrounding stage left and right. The levels are surprisingly distinct, like an X-ray of a human body or a grimy industrial foundry. You control the speed and precision of the liquid by the degree of tilt. Complexity arrives via the many obstacles that show up along the way, like fires that can evapo- rate the liquid and rifts that can swallow it up. Friction and momentum factor into the complex physics emulation, which does an excellent job of imitating true liquid movement. Both PSN and XBLA versions include normal controller support, but the PS3 version adds Move controls. Neko Entertainment should have the game ready for release later this summer.
PixeUunk Sidescroller PPAR tion Network
I'm a big fan of the PixelJunk Shooter games, so | was stoked to learn about Q-Games' next project, PixelJunk Sidescroller. Based on
‘an unlockable mode from Shooter, Sidescroller
borrows many familiar ideas from the original game; you pilot a ship through a dangerous series of tunnels, using water, lava, and other materials in concert to progress. Unlike the origi- nal, Sidescroller plays like an old-school space shooter, where you're constantly moving in one direction across the screen, shooting enemies as you go. Machine guns, lasers, and guided missiles put a bigger focus on the action than
the puzzles, and challenging level design evokes the difficulty of classic horizontal shooters. The PSN exclusive is targeted for release in the next couple of months.
Okabu PlayStation Network.
I'm thoroughly charmed by another upcoming PSN exclusive called Okabu. The adorable visu- als of the game depict two cooperating cloud whales (Kumulo and Nimbe) who descend to Earth to deal with a growing threat of pollution ravaging the world. This light-hearted environ- mental message is backed up by exploration and puzzle solving. A number of specially powered heroes they meet in the world below ride on
their backs along the way. Each of these tribal heroes has his or her own abilities, like the abil- ity to play music that drives tribesmen on the ground to follow behind you in a trail. The game is played with the two clouds always present (à la llomilo) and you can switch back and forth, but the better way to play will likely be with a friend
in co-op. The gameplay mixes action and puzzle solving, and the visuals call to mind colorful titles like Katamari Damacy and Loco Roco. Developer Hand Circus has found great success in the mobile space with its game Rolando. Here's hoping Okabu is as fun to play as it is cute to. look at when it releases later this summer.
1 was not a fan of the concept behind Gotham City Impostors when | first heard about it. A bunch of Batman and Joker look- alikes dress up and fight each other? No thanks. | may have to change my tune; the game looked awfully fun at E3. The team-focused FPS has a familiar array of shotguns and machine guns, but with a significant twist provided by the Batman visuals and, more importantly, gadgets. Tools like the grappling hook and batarang assure both unusual attack options and a highly vertical battlefield. Colors are brighter and more exag- gerated than we're used to with Batman games, but these guys are the impostors, not the real thing. Gotham City Impostors is expected to release by the end of the year.
Looking for more details on these and other downloadable and independent games? Head to gameinformer.com/impulse for extended E3 previews of all the best games from this year's show, and keep up with weekly reviews and previews on other upcoming games. For more in this issue, make sure and check out all the downloadable games in our ЕЗ Hot 50, and read our reviews.
of Trenched (p. 112) and Ms. Splosion Man (p. 111) as well as our scores for The Adventures of Shuggy on p. 114.
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38
Star Wars: The Old Republic
РС! 2011
How it's like WoW: Parties are made up of the traditional tank/ healer/damage per second struc- ture, and combat consists of activating familiar-sounding skills by clicking on buttons on a hotbar. Even the slightly cartoony visual style seems like a nod to Blizzard's massive success.
How it's not: Old Republic fea- tures full voice acting and Mass Effect-style dialogue choices that affect how your story progresses as well as where your character falls in the battle between light and dark side.
Why you should care: The origi- nal Knights of the Old Republic and the Mass Effect games prove that BioWare can craft an intricate, interesting space drama where player choice genuinely affects the outcome. If they can bring that feel- ing of immersion and control to the MMO space, Old Republic could be ground-breaking.
Why you shouldn't: The tank/ healer/DPS dynamic is an awk- ward fit when you're cramming it onto Jedi, but that's the path BioWare chose.
See more: New cinematic and gameplay trailers as well as an expanded preview are online at gameinformer.com.
Tera РС ! 2011
How it's like WoW: This fan- tasy MMORPG retains the genre's traditional classes, levels, character progression, and hotbar-activated skills.
How it's not: Action-oriented combat removes targeting in favor of positional gameplay — whether or not your attack lands is based on where your sword swing is in the world, not a die roll. The politics system has potential for an interest- ing player-driven metagame.
Why you should care: Tera is shaping up to be an intriguing compromise between the theme- park ride of WoW and the Wild West of Eve Online's free-for-all galactic intrigue. Hands-on time with the game revealed excep- tional combat that engages
the player more actively than target-and-autoattack systems.
Why you shouldn’t: Tera was GI's MMO of the show, but it’s still anew concept from an unproven Korean developer.
See more: Read more details both online at gameinformer.com and on page 84.
If there's one message to take away from ЕЗ 2011 on the ММО front, it's that the genre is starting to spread
its wings in a big way. More MMOs than this were at the show — Perfect World and Nexon both had a few
mildly intriguing free-to-play products from Asia — but the days of every company under the sun having to
publish their own WoW clone are over. We couldn't be happier.
You've seen many of these MMOs before, but how do they compare to Blizzard's eleven-ton gorilla? Check
out what we thought of these four noteworthy upcoming MMOs' showings at this year's E3 convention.
Defiance PS3, 360, PC | TBA
How it’s like WoW: Levels, loot, and progression are all part of this sci-fi shooter. Players undertake co-op missions to rid the world of bad guys.
How it’s not: Combat is 98 per- cent shooter in Defiance, and the content shown at E3 is more like Rift's, with multi-stage outdoor boss battles.
Why you should care: How long have we been waiting for a decent post-Planetside shooter/ MMO? Trion did well with Rift, and the console tie-in likely means more resources.
Why you shouldn’t: The SyFy Network tie-in is scary. Remember the Stargate MMO?
See more: An extensive play-by- play of the ЕЗ demo and a trailer can be seen at gameinformer.com.
End of Nations РС | TBA
How it's like WoW: It's...online? And...has some persistence? That's about it.
How it's not: A session-based real-time strategy MMO is about as far as you can get from a traditional entry in the genre and still fit into this article, but we're on board with anything that has 50-plus player co-op.
| Not WoW
Why you should care: End of Nations already plays great, and
it's wonderful to see such a unique idea being made. If anyone can pull off this wacky concept, it's Trion and the Command & Conquer vets at Petroglyph.
Why you shouldn't: MMORTS
is beyond unproven, and End of Nation's lack of base building may turn some people off.
See more: Dig into the nuts and bolts of how an End of Nations mis- Sion works at gameinformer.com.
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А Roundup of Upcoming HD Remakes
Perfect
Gameplay often outlasts graphics, but that doesn't mean that
every game released before 2005 has to be kept far away from your HDTV. Recognizing the value of their pat hits, many publishers are bringing their beloved classics back from the dead with a fresh coat of paint. Here are some of the biggest
HD re-releases to keep on your radar.
by Ben Reeves
40 connect
Platform: PlayStation 3 » Release: September 13 WHY YOU WANT IT: God of War: Ghost of Sparta and God of War: Chains of Olympus are two of the PSP's standout titles, but if you never owned Sony's handheld you missed out on some of Kratos’ earliest adventures.
WHAT'S NEW: Fully remastered in 1080p and stereoscopic 3D, God of War: Origins Collection brings these two handheld titles to consoles for the first time.
» Platform: Xbox 360
Release: November 15 WHY YOU WANT IT; Exactly 10 years after the original Halo revolutionized the console FPS, Microsoft plans to release an updated version of the game.
WHAT'S NEW: In addition to the remastered single-player campaign, players can play co-op over Xbox Live. Using a modified ver- sion of Halo: Reach’s engine, 343 Industries has reworked the art and tweaked the layouts for some of Halo’s most beloved mul- tiplayer maps. We may never LAN again.
» Platform: PlayStation 3
» Release: October 25
WHY YOU WANT IT: House of the Dead Overkill was one of the funniest B-movie horror parodies we've ever played, and yet few people tried this on-rails shooter when it released on Wii. Hopefully the Move-enabled PS3 version will garner more interest.
WHAT'S NEW: With seven remastered levels and two brand new scenarios, House of the Dead Overkill: Extended Cut looks like the kind of gruesome bloodbath that would make Robert Rodriguez take note.
Platform: PlayStation 3
Release: September 27 WHY YOU WANT IT: Team Ico’s titles com- mand our emotions like a half-remembered childhood fantasy. This might be the only package that can tide us over until the mys- terious The Last Guardian finally materializes.
WHAT'S NEW: These breathtaking epics have been optimized for PlayStation 3 consoles, boasting HD graphics, a smoother framerate, and 7.1 surround sound.
» Platform: PlayStation 3 * Xbox 360
» Release: November
WHY YOU WANT IT: Metal Gear fans look- ing for a refresher should pick up this collection, which features three standout entries in the saga. Sadly, the exclusion of the original Metal Gear Solid and the PSP's Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops make this an incomplete collection.
WHAT'S NEW: HD versions of the PSP game Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and two PS2 titles, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater.
» Platform: PlayStation 3
Release: Fall WHY YOU WANT IT: Few series give your pulse a workout like the Silent Hill franchise. Konami's Silent Hill HD Collection brings two of the best entries in the series together for the first time: Silent Hill 2 and 3. While this Collection doesn't feel complete without the first game, we can't wait to wander through the foggy streets of Silent Hill again.
WHAT'S NEW: In addition to high-definition graphics and trophy support, the Silent Hill HD Collection features re-recorded voice work for both games.
Platform: PlayStation 3
Release: September WHY YOU WANT IT: As international ten- Sions tip the world towards war, Sam Fisher sneaks onto the scene and quells each uprising with a few quiet assassinations. This trilogy collects the original Splinter Cell, Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow, and Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory.
WHAT'S NEW: Nothing fancy here. Sam Fisher creeps onto the PlayStation 3, but now every shadow looks sharper and blacker than ever. Like Ubisoft's The Prince of Persia Collection, this entire set will be available via retail or download.
Platform: PlayStation 3 * Xbox 360
Release: 2012 WHY YOU WANT IT: Created by Metal Gear mastermind Hideo Kojima, the Zone of the Enders series features a lot of high-flying aerial warfare. Set during the late 22nd century, human colonies stretched across the solar system begin to revolt against Earth using aerial-based mechs called Orbital Frames.
WHAT'S NEW: The PS2 originals featured some of the most stunning lighting effects of their time; hopefully this remastered bundle can put some shine back on these games.
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Copyright © 2011 Voyetra Turtle Beach, Inc. (VTB, Inc.) AI rights reserved. Turtle Beach, the Turtle Beach Logo, Ear Force, the Digital RF logo, the DSP logo, and Engineered For Gaming а! registered trademark and PS3 is а trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. XBOX, XBOX 360 and XBOX LIVE are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. All other trademar
news with а sarcastic spin
"Sony's presenta- tion was solid, and the pricing
on the PlayStation
Vita — the second- dumbest name
for a device after
Wii U — was quite
a surprise."
— Wedbush Morgan industry analyst Michael Pachter captures the feelings of many quite succinctly
42
Original Left 4 Dead creators and former Valve developers Turtle Rock Everyone's anxiously waiting to see what former Infinity Ward/Call of Duty heads Studio has signed a deal with THQ. Turtle Rock's next project with its Vince Zampella and Jason West are planning with Respawn Entertainment, and new publisher will be a new IP first-person shooter set to come outin according to a recent comment by EA president Frank Gibeau, Respawn's game for 2013, and similar to Left 4 Dead (shown), it'll have a multiplayerfocus. the publisher will be a sci-fi shooter.
Bad
Here's a quick list of just some of the games that were either rumored to be at ЕЗ or we hoped would be there but didn't show up: God of War 4, Syphon Filter 4, Max Payne 3, Bungie's title, Starbreeze/EA's Syndicate reboot entitled Project RedLime, Respawn ws ee Entertainment's title, Metal Gear Solid: Rising, Rockstar's Agent, the ie á d Ва Kingdom Hearts franchise, Beyond Good & Evil 2, Final Fantasy Versus Bethesda Softworks and developer id Software have delayed Rage from XIII, and anything from Half-Life. September 13 to October 4.
а By, 2
The industry's security problems continue as numerous companies’ Add Ubisoft E3 press conference presenter Aaron "Mr. Caffeine" Priceman to the Sites, forums, and more are hacked, resulting in the theft of a range company's ever-growing list of embarrassing press conference moments. He kept of personal user info (thankfully no credit card information, however). making annoying time travel sound effects, and he couldn't even pronounce *Tom Nintendo, Sega, Bethesda, Epic, BioWare, EVE Online, Minecraft, and Clancy" right, saying several times, "Tom Culancy." You don't even have to be a
Codemasters are some of the victims as of this writing. Worldwide police gamer to know how to pronounce Tom Clancy's name. To top it off, later in the have arrested suspected Anonymous and LulzSec members, but so far show during his Assassin's Creed: Revelations demonstration Mr. Caffeine started nobody has been found guilty of any one, specific industry attack in $--- talking Harmonix, whose booth was across from Ubisoft's. Somewhere Jeff particular, and the PSN hacker(s) remain at large. Bell is laughing.
Ihe Other E3
Core games grabbed most of the headlines, but plenty of
great games for kids and families are on the horizon
In addition to Military Shooter 3 and its sci-fi variants, a fair number of
by Jeff Cork
family-friendly games made appearances at E3 2011. Because I'm a self- ish parent, I'm not talking about the ones that the kids can play while I'm off doing dad things. No, these are the games that I wouldn't mind playing even once the little ones are sleeping.
This year, Disney Interactive renewed its
focus on games for families and younger
players. While | was a little bummed about not seeing anything along the lines of Split/Second, the games on hand were still impressive. The company debuted Disney Universe at the show, which is set inside a make-believe Disney game. The “game” has been hacked, and it's up to you and up to three со-ор buddies to make things right again. You'll find dozens of costumes for your avatars to wear from a variety of Disney and Pixar clas- Sics, including the Mad Hatter, Captain Hook, and Sully from Monsters, Inc. In addition to looking downright adorable, each outfit comes with its own special abilities, like Stitch's array of stringed instruments. Don't let the game's superficial resemblance to LittleBigPlanet fool you; it is about pure madcap action, not construction. Look for it later this year on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, and PC.
If you missed out on the EyePet band-
wagon last year, don't worry. Sony's
EyePet & Friends expands on the pet Sim, adding another creature to the mix. Two players can interact with their own virtual pets simultaneously using their Move controllers. Personally, I'm most excited about the game's retooled progression. Rather than proceed along a linear path, you earn points when your pet does things, and you determine how to spend them in the game's store. My sons and | had a lot of fun with the original, and it should be interesting to see how it works with two new pets at home. At least we won't have to clean up after them; that lesson will have to wait.
Returning once again to the world
of Disney, Microsoft's Kinect game
Disneyland Adventures is thankfully better in practice than its embarrassing on- stage presentation may have led you to believe. In addition to offering a faithful representation of the park — complete with autograph-signing cast members who you can hug – you'll find а variety of minigames based on familiar attrac- tions. For instance, the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad level has players zooming through
canyons and pumping their arms to maintain the train's speed. My surprise favorite level was Alice in Wonderland's croquet match; playing alongside another player, we're knocked around a fantastical garden by Alice and the Queen of Hearts. If you can't afford a trip to the park this year, this could be the next best thing for the younger members of your household.
I've always had а soft spot for Sesame
Street (Bert forever!), and it's great to
see that the public television mainstay is getting the game that it deserves. Double Fine's Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster is a Kinect game with an emphasis on co-op play. Unlike other educational games (which typically focus on colors, shapes, numbers, and the alphabet), Once Upon a Monster aims to teach kids about something that's often overlooked but that is just as important: social and emo- tional development. During the game, Cookie Monster and Elmo help their friends with vari- ous problems. In one chapter, a fairly menacing creature named Grrhoof wants to befriend the bunny-like Puffalopes. In an attempt to win them over, Grrhoof has tried to camouflage himself to look like them. Unfortunately, his leafy covering and fake ears only frighten the flighty critters more. Elmo and Cookie help Grrhoof learn to be himself through a series of minigames (col- lecting fireflies, tossing treats to the Puffalopes), and he eventually wins his little buddies over. It's a charming game that nails the look and feel of the show. | don't think I’m overstating things by saying this is the direction that educational gaming needs to be heading.
Finally, Microsoft and Rare debuted the
follow up to last year’s Kinect Sports.
Kinect Sports 2 isn't likely to revo- lutionize gaming, but | can certainly see my family gathering together and having a lot of fun with some of the events. This time around, the sports have more of an American flair, with football, baseball, darts, and skiing entering the arena. The golf game is the breakout star though, since it accurately translates your swing into the game. Make sure you have enough headroom before playing this one. Ф
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by Jeff Marchiafava
Link vs. Ganon
The Legend of Zelda series) Don't let Ganon fool you. He may refer to himself as the Prince of Darkness and King of Evil, but every time the iconic antagonist sets out to reunite the pieces of the Triforce and use its power to control Hyrule, he's bested by a teenage boy in a green tunic. Time and time again Link has proven that no dungeon is too complex to stop him from defeating the boar-faced boss, freeing Hyrule and saving Princess Zelda in the process.
(Super Mario Bros. series) Every gamer knows the drill: Bowser kidnaps Mario's girlfriend,
(Assassin's Creed series) Who ever thought that a brotherhood of assassins would turn out to
Princess Peach, and the Italian plumber foils the King Koopa's plan and gets her back. At this point Mario and Bowser have spent more time battling each other than they have with the Mushroom Kingdom's ruling lady, but let's face it: Without their eternal grudge match they'd
be the good guys? The Templars seek to bring peace and order to the world by controlling mankind. The Assassins prefer chaos, as long as it means that humans retain their free will. This fundamental ideological rift serves as the source of a conflict that has spanned thousands of
(Portal series) The conversations may be one-sided, but that doesn’t stop Chell and GLaDOS from making our list. Аз Chell dutifully solves an endless series of test chambers, Aperture Science's devious Al mocks the protagonist for her performance, appearance, and even her lack of parents. Despite GLaDOS' soft and emotionless tone, we're pretty sure she enjoys torturing her personal lab rat almost as much as we enjoy listening to her monologues.
(Castlevania series)
The Belmont family
is full of jerks. Their bloodline's sole pur- pose is to kill Dracula, but even when Simon slays the Prince of Darkness in the first game, he's not content. Instead, he returns seven years later, gathers Dracula’s dismembered body parts, and resurrects him — only to kill him again. Now every 100 years something brings Dracula back from the dead, causing another Belmont to take up the family's Vampire Killer whip. If Dracula just decided to stay dead, the Belmonts would be out of a job.
(God of War series) Here’s an important life lesson: If you're going to kill the god of war, make sure he's actually dead. As Zeus began fearing the fury of his illegitimate son-turned-god, the king of Olympus hatched a plan to drain Kratos of his power and kill him. When Kratos recovered, he set out to fulfill the Oracle's prophecy of killing all of the Olympian Gods, including
both be as lame as Luigi.
(Mortal Kombat series)
Scorpion and Sub-Zero might look like simple palette swaps, but their backstories are epic. After Sub-Zero killed Scorpion and was responsible for the slaughter of his family, Scorpion was resurrected and killed his nemesis during the first Mortal Kom- bat tournament. Their stories became even more ludicrous in subsequent games, but that hasn't lessened the enjoyment players get from beating the crap out of each other with the iconic pair.
44
years and generations of devoted (and deadly) followers.
(Red Dead Redemption)
Not every rivalry is black and white. When John Marston is confronted with his shameful past, the outlaw-turned-family-man is forced to hunt down his former gang leader Dutch Van Der Linde. But as the two men meet for the final time, their showdown defies action genre conventions, leaving Marston with mixed emotions and players pondering the consequences of their actions.
(Fight Night Champion)
If there was ever a guy who deserved getting punched in the face, it's Isaac Frost. Andre Bishop's rivalry with the cocky heavyweight champion be- comes personal when Frost's manager frames him for a crime he didn't commit, and Frost hospitalizes Bishop's younger brother in a particularly brutal title bout. А wicked difficulty spike makes Bishop's fight with Frost especially frustrating, but landing that final, slow-motion blow is profoundly gratifying.
his father — a role Zeus himself played when he overthrew Cronos.
Out of all the rivalries on the list, this one is the most frustrating. With all of the great open-world comic book games from the past few years,
how has someone not made a decent Super-
man game?! Rocksteady's vindication of Batman has us hopeful for the Man of Steel's future, but until a developer delivers an Arkham Asylum-like breakthrough, we're just going to say it: Superman and video games do not mix.
n October 7, 2005, then-California governor Arnold
Schwarzenegger signed into law a bill from state
senator Leland Yee that restricted the sale or rental of
“violent video games" to minors. The law also required that such titles display an “18” sticker on the front of their boxes. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) and Entertainment Merchants Association (EMA) won an injunction against the law by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which the state success- fully appealed. In April of 2010, almost five years after being signed into law, the Supreme Court decided to hear the case, officially known as Schwarzenegger v. EMA. Recently, on June 27, 2011 — at the very end of the current session – the court struck down the law 7-2 on the grounds that it was unconstitutional, ending a long legal debate that is just one part of a continuing conversation about violence and video games.
Justice Scalia delivered the majority opinion, which justices Kennedy, Ginsburg, Sotomayor, and Kagan joined. Justice Alito concurred with the majority, but filed an opinion that detailed his own thoughts on the matter — which Chief Justice Roberts Signed as well. Justices Thomas and Breyer wrote in dissent.
Speaking for the majority in the case, now known as Brown v. EMA due to Jerry Brown being the current governor of California, Scalia upheld the Ninth Circuit's original ruling that the law was unconstitutional because it restricted content that is pro- tected as free speech (video games, in this case) and didn't satisfy strict scrutiny. Ultimately, the court decided that there wasn't a compelling enough public interest for the government to step in - and in the process restrict free speech.
Even though it seems against common sense to let retailers sell or rent violent video games to kids, that's not what the court was deliberating. The majority's ruling upheld previous court decisions that only speech classified as obscene may be
lawfully restricted, and that video games – even if violent — aren't obscene in the eyes of the court. The modern court definition of obscenity comes from Miller v. California, which established that something is obscene if it violates community standards, contains offensive sexual material specifi- cally defined by state law, and that the material as a whole has no artistic, literary, scientific, or political value.
Scalia is clear in his opinion that the law unfairly singles out video games as opposed to other media, and the violence therein shouldn't be added as а new category of unprotected speech “by a legislature that concludes certain speech is too harmful to be tolerated.” He isn’t entirely unsympathetic to the sentiment of the law, but in this case he doesn’t think the govern- ment has a legitimate role. “While some of the legislation’s effect may indeed be in support of what some parents of the restricted children actually want, its entire effect is only in support of what the State thinks parents ought to want.”
Going beyond a straightfor- ward First Amendment ruling,
The Verdict On Violent Video Games
The Supreme Court declares
video game law unconstitutional
by Matthew Kato
Scalia disputes that the interac- tive nature of video games makes it more dangerous than other media. He also calls into question the state's use of various studies claiming that violent video games are detrimental to kids.
These two arguments are cited in Justice Breyer's dissent, who asks: If video games didn't affect people, then why would the ESRB have a ratings system in the first place? Why does the armed forces use them for teach- ing tools? He also takes on the First Amendment argument by citing that the law doesn't dis- suade adults from buying the material or it being made in the first place. "This case is ultimately less about censorship than it is about education. In my view, the First Amendment does not disable government from help- ing parents make such a choice here." In his own dissent, Justice Thomas goes a step further and claims that minors have no free speech rights whatsoever without a parent's prior consent.
Although Breyer states that laws in the future should be more nar- rowly tailored to survive scrutiny, the ESA and EMA believe that the court's decision closes the door on any subsequent laws. "The court didn't just close the door," stated Sean Bersell, vice president of public affairs for EMA in an interview with Game Informer, "it seemed to pretty much nail it shut on these types of laws.... This wasn't some sort of narrow ruling."
Ed Cavazos, a partner at Bracewell & Giuliani who teaches a class about video games and the law at the University of Texas School of Law, told us the decision is a "really important, strong opinion from the court that violence in video games is not the kind of thing that warrants government regulation."
Despite the setback and hun- dreds of thousands of dollars spent by the state in the process, Adam Keigwin, chief of staff to state senator Leland Yee, who introduced that struck-down law, doesn't believe it was all in vain. "We need to continue to do what we've been doing in terms of educating parents and pushing the industry to be better corporate citizens." Keigwin told us "it's possible" that Yee's office will introduce another bill for law, but at the moment they are sifting through the dissenting opinions (and the concurring, but different majority opinions of Justice Alito and Chief Justice Roberts) and weighing all the options.
Keigwin admits that the ESA and its ESRB ratings board has improved, but hopes it can be better. He suggests that the ESRB separate from the ESA so there's no possible conflict of interest, and he also wants the board to judge games in more detail. Instead of judging publisher-submitted video foot- age and info, Keigwin wants the ESRB to "dig into these games and see the total content like the movie industry ratings board does."
In the eyes of the ESRB, how- ever, the court's ruling only serves to affirm what it has already been doing – Justice Scalia even praised the ratings board in his opinion. “The ESRB is in fact, as we've been saying for years, the right approach," declared ESA president and CEO, Mike Gallagher. Whether you agree or disagree that the ESRB rat- ings are sufficient for minors, the Supreme Court has now declared that it's up to parents to decide.
"Any state that
tries to pass a bill that regu- lates video games based on content is just asking to be paying my
legal fees..."
— ESA counsel Paul Smith
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46
square Enix Around the World
In the world of gaming, the name "Square" once meant great RPGs and little else. After merging with Enix in 2003 and absorbing Eidos in 2009, the company now has a global presence and a library of games that spans practically every genre. Mike Fischer is the president and CEO of Square Enix North America, and we talked with him about the company's expanding portfolio, navigating multiple markets, and listening to input from diehard
Final Fantasy fans.
What is Square Enix North America's role in the larger organization?
Yeah, that's the right way to frame it, because you can't really look at our organization out of the context of the larger company. Of course, now that Square Enix also includes not only Taito but also Eidos, in a lot of respects, | think we're the most well-balanced global publisher in the world.... It gives me a lot of freedom to go and pursue local, Square Enix North America- sourced projects that are smaller, more agile, and allow me to take more creative risks. I'm focusing more on things like mobile, social, online, browser-based — but also projects like Dungeon Siege III.
How would you describe the communica- tion channels between Square Enix North America and Japan? Does Japan run the show and hand down orders, or is it more collaborative?
It is a very collaborative environment. Sometimes | start my day with a call to [Square Enix Europe CEO] Phil Rogers and | end my day in a call with the Japanese executives. | do speak fluent Japanese, so that definitely helps smooth over the communication, but it’s really not a micro-managed organization. | feel very fortunate to have the charter that | do – to run this business in the way that’s judged by its suc- cess. That being said, just like if you’re working on a George Lucas or Steven Spielberg movie, we're dealing with very strong-willed creators, and not just on the Japan side. To be a suc- cessful publisher, you really have to tap into the creative vision that those creators have. It's their creative product we're bringing to market; it's not a shampoo with no natural qualities of its own that you need to imbue with fake brand attributes. These are creative products, and our Success is really built on effectively communicat- ing that to the world. For me, it's more about creative collaboration than working with a parent company in Japan.
The Square Enix brand was long associ- ated almost exclusively with JRPGs. Now, how do you handle the challenge of essen- tially juggling dual identities?
For me, it's a no-lose situation. If people think of Square Enix products as great JRPGs, then that's a win for me, because there are very few brands where people see the publisher name and go "Wow, Рт gonna get that product." Maybe Disney. I can't really think of anyone else right off the bat. On the other hand, in a lot of
the other genres, people tend to judge them on their own merits. So, if we're to look at pre- acquisition, | wouldn't necessarily say people go, "Oh, that's an Eidos title. They made Tomb Raider, so | want that," any more than people see a movie studio and say, "That's Universal pictures, | want to see that." So the good news is the Square Enix brand does give me equity on a really good part of my business, and then the other part of the business – brands like Hitman, Tomb Raider, and Deus Ex — are so strong that they kind of speak for themselves.
Final Fantasy has a devoted and vocal group of fans, and | imagine that you get a lot of contradictory feedback about what works and what doesn’t. How do you absorb that kind of criticism?
With any property that has a hardcore following, whether it's Final Fantasy or Star Wars, your most vocal critics can also be your most devot- ed fans. To some degree, | subscribe to the old Oscar Wilde quote: “The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about.” We do seriously listen to our fans...in the case of Xill-2, you're seeing а game that's a lot more interactive, a lot less linear, a lot of components added based on what we've heard people
say. So we do hear them. We're not letting our games be designed by committee or focus group...but we're very fortunate to have a fan- base that genuinely loves our products, sticks with us — and | believe in the long term — helps us make our games better.
In May, Square Enix announced significant losses for the fiscal year. From your per- spective, do you see the company shifting priorities to address the situation?
Well, a lot of this was based on a one-time accounting issue. Another big part of it was Deus Ex and Dungeon Siege both moved
into the next fiscal year — decisions we made
to give the games more time to be great. We could have shipped those and really missed the opportunity to make great franchises that will continue to deliver sales as well as help build up. the Square Enix brand.
In previous generations, Square tended to lean heavily on one platform, like the SNES or PlayStation 2. Would that even be pos- sible in the industry today?
We've been very explicit and open with our strong belief in a multiplatform environment and a multiplatform strategy for our company. Certainly, if you look back, in years past that wasn't the case. But | think you're also look- ing at a different environment. By that | mean, there's a more even share of success among
platforms. It used to be that there was a very dominant platform, and we're in an era now where three big companies share the success. They all, to some degree, choose different areas to focus on, and we may still make our platform decisions based on that affinity. But it isn't about picking winners or playing kingmaker. It's about getting our franchises out to as wide an audience as possible. And it's not just the 30 consoles anymore, right? iPhone, Android, browser-based — and multiple browsers – that Sort of proliferation suits a company like ours that has 25 years of rich IP to develop.
How do you see the company's position in terms of new IP?
Every publisher has to keep developing new IP, not only to keep the market fresh, but to contin- ue challenging their own creative teams. | think it is important to keep in mind that while we've kept the Final Fantasy title on a number of differ- ent titles, they're all different characters, different stories, and different worlds. So | think that it is a bit misleading to look at something like Final Fantasy as just the same IP; it's 14 different worlds and characters. We have iterated on those — we have X-2 and XIll-2 — and we have taken other stories and developed our content across different media as we did with Advent Children. As we look here at Square Enix North America, l'm particularly interested in pursuing new IP because iPhone games, Xbox Live and PSN games, browser-based games can allow us, almost like a TV series pilot, to keep trying new ideas.
At the mention of mobile gaming or casual gaming, a lot of hardcore gamers flinch... It's kind of like the first time you saw your mom wearing Nike. (Laughs) It can take away a bit of the edge, but it doesn't mean that Nike doesn't sell the best athletic wear to the hardest core audiences. The fact of the matter is that the gaming audience is growing organically. Gamers who used to be teenagers are now in their 30s and 40s. I'm one of them! | started playing Pong and Space Invaders and, all the way through, I'm still a gamer. For one thing, gamers are naturally becoming older. They're having families of their own, and they want games they can play with their kids. Obviously, there are whole new groups of people that are playing through Zynga - | don't see why anyone should feel threatened by that. The interesting thing is that I think that this growing audience, some of them are going to become hardcore gamers as well. So there's no downside for me...even though it may seem strange sometimes to see folks who don't fit the stereotypical "gamer." I think that's a good thing. ^
1990
A GOOD START
Fischer begins his career at Sega's Tokyo headquarters as international product manager. He works
on the Master System, Genesis/Mega Drive, and Game Gear platforms. His projects include Genesis classics like Mickey
Mouse and the Castle
of Illusion and Michael Jackson's Moonwalker
1995
COMING TO AMERICA Fischer transfers to Sega of America and becomes product manager for
the Pico platform, an educational learning
aid built on the Genesis architecture. The system was more successful in Japan than it was in the West
1997
CHANGING LANES Fischer becomes head
of marketing at Namco, whose star franchises.at the time include Ace Combat, Tekken, Soul Calibur, and Ridge Racer.
2001
BACK AGAIN
Fischer Returns to Sega
of America as VP of entertainment marketing, leading the.company's transition from a platform manufacturer to а third- party publisher. In this position, Fischer helps bring Virtua Fighter to PS2, Super Monkey Ball to GameCube, and Panzer Dragoon Orta
to Xbox
2003
MICROSOFT'S MAN Fischer joins Microsoft and manages the Japanese and U.S. marketing teams for the launch of the Xbox 360. Fischer also runs the company’s U.K. marketing for Windows, mobile, and online business
2010
HEAD HONCHO
Fischer becomes president and CEO of the U.S.- based Square Enix, Inc. The company continues efforts to diversify its offerings beyond the Japan- developed role-playing game that defined the company in previous years
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48
Хрепа Р
Sony Ericsson
34 ail NIE
While devices like the PlayStation Vita and Nintendo 3DS will answer that question, Sony Ericsson is trying to narrow the gap between mobile phones and mobile gaming with a smart phone that features a dedicated gaming interface. In some ways it succeeds, but in others the Xperia Play's attempt to serve two masters results in a phone that excels at nothing.
The unit ships with Android 2.3 Gingerbread, giving users instant access to the web, email, and Android’s growing list of apps. However, the system’s big draw is its game-centric design. The unit's slide-out gamepad is helpful for those who spend a lot of time playing games on their phone. Sony's Xperia Play service offers a mix of classic PlayStation One games such as Crash Bandicoot and Wipeout, as well as newer titles like The Sims 3 and Guitar Hero:
gs Li
Dialer
Warriors of Rock. Android's market is also constantly updated with new Xperia titles such as the upcoming Minecraft adaptation.
The Xperia's analog touchpads come close to replicating real analog sticks; they're not as nimble as а true controller, but ГИ take them over the featureless touchpads on most modern phones. Unfortunately, the device is too small, causing hand cramps if held between your palms for more than a couple hours — which is about all the playtime you get out of its battery anyway.
The Xperia Play tries to be a jack-of-all-trades, but its versatility might make it hard to find a market. As a gaming device it's nice, but it pales in comparison to what Nintendo's 305 and Sony's upcoming PlayStation Vita can do. As a multimedia device it lacks an HDMI port and captures subpar images and video. Those look- ing for a future-proof smartphone will be disappointed by the lack of 4G LTE support. The Xperia Play probably doesn't represent the future of mobile technology, but it's a nice experiment and its ideas could be refined to deliver a worthwhile experience.
$199.99 (with two-year contract)
verizonwireless.com by Ben Reeves
Festarin =
Orb's Internet TV streaming software uses a
networked PC to funnel content from Hulu, Netflix, Amazon, ABC, CBS, Comedy Central and other Sites onto your PlayStation 3. Smartphone and tablet users.can download a remote app that allows them to browse thousands of on-demand programs as well as music and video located on their home computer. Navigating this wealth of programming is a clumsy endeavor, but thankfully the search feature makes finding the most recent episode of Archer, for example, a breeze. Many newer TVs come with built-in software that lets you stream all this content off the web for free, but if you're a year or so from upgrading your set, Orb's software is a cheap and easy way to move the wide world of Internet-based content over to your television.
1 Orb BR for PlayStation 3
orb.com
Buff Monster's Destroyer
Figures
Sometimes you want a figure from your favorite game or comic, and sometimes you just want a figure that looks awesome. These designer toys from the cre- ative folks at The Loyal Subjects stand 14 inches high, have four points of articulation, and look like something that Godzilla would cuddle up with at night.
$85.00 (starting at) theloyalsubjects.com
Zombie Attack Hoodie
The best way to survive the zombie apocalypse
is to blend in. This charcoal grey full-zip hoodie is 100-percent cotton, features two front pockets, ribbed cuffs and bottom, and a biohazard zipper pull. When the apocalypse happens, don’t get caught in a suit like a chump.
$59.99 thinkgeek.com
Media Shelf
говор Ecke
BONE: 20TH ANNIVERSARY FULL COLOR COLLECTOR'S BOX SET
For the first time, one of the most cherished indie comics gets collected in a full 1,344-page hardcover. Like Lord of the Rings with a Disney slant, Bone is an epic that stands the test of time. $350.00
boneville.com/store
OKAMI OFFICIAL COMPLETE WORKS
Five years later, Okami still has some of the most gorgeous concept art in the industry. Udon Entertainment collects all of Clover Studio's character and location designs, concept sketches, and production notes in 288 full color pages. $39.99
udonentertainment.com
ROBOT CHICKEN: STAR WARS III
The Emmy Award-winning Robot Chicken returns for a third roasting of the Lucasverse, featuring hilarious stop motion skits that weave through all six Star Wars films.
$14.98
adultswimshop.com
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE MOTION PICTURE TRILOGY EXTENDED EDITION
Featuring 15 discs worth of movies, commentaries, and extra features, this Blu-ray extended cut collection of the Peter Jackson epic contains enough content to test an Ent's patience. $119.99
lordoftherings.net
connect 49
ини If you work in the industry
and would like to share your
50
opinion, contact senior editor Matt Helgeson at matt@gameinformer.com
Better With Kinect?
by Annette Gonzalez Associate Editor, Game Informer
the fastest-selling consumer electronics device of all time. However, past the initial software support for casual players, the flow of releases slowed to a drip. Kinect owners cried foul over the lack of games, so it’s no surprise that Microsoft used E3 as an opportunity to demonstrate its continuing commitment to the device. That sounds like good news for Kinect owners on the surface, but does Kinect support really
enhance your games?
Even though big-name developers such as BioWare and Turn 10 are showing support for the peripheral by making their games “Better With Kinect,” the added features have yet to prove that a Kinect owner will have an improved experience with these titles over someone who doesn’t own the sensor. Using Kinect to deliver dialogue in Mass Effect 3 or inspect cars in Forza Motorsport 4 may seem like good ideas on paper, but come off more like shoehorned gimmicks when a controller can perform those types of functions with greater ease. While
the motion control faithful might be thrilled at the prospect of using hand gestures or voice commands to complete tasks in their favorite franchises, l'Il need some more convincing that the peripheral will actually enhance my gam- ing experience before I'm willing to hand in
my controller.
Kinect support isn't always about improving an existing experience; it can make the difference between someone being able to play or not. For instance, with Kinect Disneyland Adventures, my three-year-old niece can have the opportunity to explore a virtual Disneyland and give Mickey Mouse a hug. If you handed her an Xbox 360 controller and asked her to execute the inputs for the embrace, it wouldn't have the same effect. She'd probably be more confused than
Microsoft had a hit on its hands almost immediately after it launched Kinect. In a matter of weeks, the peripheral became
enthralled. In this instance, the interactive experi- ence has proven to be better (and more acces- sible for people with little gaming experience) with Kinect.
Kinect may struggle to find its footing in the core games space, but it doesn't mean the peripheral is incapable of delivering solid con- troller-free experiences. The most entertaining Kinect offerings are ones that fully embrace the technology, such as Harmonix's Dance Central or Good Science's Kinect Adventures, where precise body tracking offers an experience a standard controller simply can't. Playing Dance Central with a controller in hand while sitting the couch wouldn't only be less enjoyable - it would be a fundamentally different game. This high- quality implementation is currently reserved for Kinect-exclusive titles (usually aimed at a casual audience), but that doesn't need to be the case. Now it's just a matter of developers using this knowledge of where controller-free gameplay succeeds to augment traditional games in more innovative ways.
While | may not want to tire out my arms customizing weapons in Ghost Recon: Future Soldier when a controller can do the job, tools such as the ones shown off in Kinect Fun Labs could offer some more interesting uses of the controller-free technology in high-profile games
going forward. These tools were designed to teach developers the types of features they can utilize in their own titles. For instance, instead of working through menus to cus- tomize Commander Shepard to your likeness in Mass Effect, perhaps a quick face scan with Kinect could someday do the trick. Consider a game like The Sims that allows for tons of personalization; perhaps Kinect could take a snapshot of my living room for a faithful recreation
in my Sim's home in no time flat.
Or take a game such as the beloved Jet Grind Radio (1 will forever hope for another entry in
the series) where you could create graffiti by scanning images of your art work via Kinect
and editing your piece using the sensor's finger tracking capabilities that offer a precision analog Sticks usually don't. Or, you could even begin your hand-drawn masterpiece from scratch using Kinect. You could then tag all over enemy territory with.a few quick hand gestures following the classic arrow prompts before continuing your sprint on skates with a controller.
Kinect is a great piece of technology that is just now rolling out the types of experiences promised when it was announced (with the exception of Milo, may he rest in peace). With the bevy of new features announced in upcom- ing sequels such as Dance Central 2 and Kinect Sports: Season 2, developers appear to be catching up to the peripheral's learning curve. Even though the "Better With Kinect" suite of game features leave something to be desired right now, I'm not ready to write off the possibili- ties of Kinect motion control just yet. Ааа 222 The views and opinions expressed on this page are strictly those of the author and not necessarily those of Game Informer or its staff.
2 b^
400
02 New Releases
» Bleach: Soul Resurrection (PS3)
» Phineas and Ferb: Across the Second Dimension (PS3. Wii, DS)
» White Knight Chronicles Il (PS3)
04 В Good Time
To Be Judged
The latest Play Arts Kai series features Judge Gabranth from Final Fantasy Dissidia. This amazingly detailed nine-inch figure comes packaged with interchangeable swords and hands. These figures usually fly off of toy shelves, so make a beeline to your store today!
05 Ape Escape At the end of the original Planet of the Apes
Charlton Heston discovered he was still on Earth.
The apes had destroyed it! Didn't you always. wonder how that happened? Of course not, but you're going to find out in today's theatrical release Rise of the Planet of the Apes. James Franco stars, but don't worry. His performance can't be worse than it was at the Oscars.
07 The Coolest Pony Of Them All
If My Little Pony was too frilly for your tastes,
yet you always wanted a tiny horse of your very ‘own, SOTA Toys’ Darksiders statue is for you.
This monstrous sculpture of War and his steed Ruin lights up, and retails for the reasonable price of $249.99. With this prized collectible on your game shelf, you can stop eBaying Pinkie Ре.
16 New Releases > Nicktoons MLB (360, Wii, DS)
17 Zombies in Space!
DC Comics’ Resident Evil comic book series
is available today in graphic novel form. This 144-раде book tells the tale of the awesomely named Holiday Sugarman, a mercenary tasked with cleaning up the G-virus outbreak in Grezbekistan. A portion of this story also takes place on the Joint Nations’ space station, which, surprise surprise, is overrun with undead astronauts! And you thought zombie stories ‘were played out!
19 Sex, Violence, and Slow-Motion Conan is best known for killing and humping.
In today's theatrical release Conan the Barbarian, Robert E. Howard's legendary character returns to the screen. Thanks to all of the recent mind- blowing advances in killing and humping technol- оду, the original movies are bound to look like crap compared to this necessary remake.
23 New Releases
> Angler's Club: Ultimate Bass Fishing (305)
› Deus Ex: Human Revolution (PS3, 360, PC)
» Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Overclocked (305)
› The Lord of the Rings: War in the North (PS3, 360)
24 Bwengers...Er... Ultimates Assemble!
Marvel's The Ultimates comic book is nothing like the upcoming Avengers movie. In the Avengers movie, Thor has a different shade of blonde hair. Captain America has a larger nose, and Iron Man
is less of a drunk. We think. Even though they're. totally different, you should still check out the newest Ultimates comic series. It's penned by Jonathan Hickman, drawn by Esad Ribic, and probably directed by Joss Whedon. The cover art makes it look like a prequel to the Avengers film.
26 Next Stop: Love
Final Destination 5 opens today. What, you've never heard of it? It's à poignant French drama about two strangers who meet on a train, form а brief (but significant) bond, and then return to their everyday lives. Naw, just kidding! It's about a bunch of teenagers getting eaten by escalators and stuff.
30 New Releases
› Driver: Renegade (305)
» Driver: San Francisco (PS3, 360, Wii, PC)
» James Noir's Hollywood Crimes (3DS)
› Madden NFL 12 (PS3, 360)
› Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad (PC)
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) н | ]
Sail
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 • PC
» Style 1-Player Action
» Publisher Bethesda Softworks
» Developer Arkane Studios
» Release Spring
Assassin. Killer. Thug. SQvior. Terrorist.
ARVING THROUGH C.
The hero’s name is immaterial next to the labels players earn for themselves. However you approach your desperate quest to topple the fascists who have wrongfully imprisoned you and wrung your dying city dry, you’ll have to break a few eggs to make this omelet. Or will you?
cover story 53
THI OUTSIDE
This supernatural being is the source of all magic in Dishonored's world, includ- ing the many powers at the player's disposal. Its nature and intentions are shrouded in mystery; the Outsider is part devil, part angel, and entirely ambiguous. It walks among us — as ubiquitous graffiti madly gibbers from Dunwall's architecture — but why? How has Corvo touched it? Arkane teases that players will meet the Outsider during the game, but that's all the Studio would reveal. Smith and Colantonio spoke at great length of their love of Lovecraft, though, which could be a clue...
Exi: Er]
54
ishonored is a first-person action game, but it couldn't be more different from Call of Duty or Halo. Developer Arkane
Studios' mission i
S to create an immersive, vi
Sceral expe-
rience that lets players experiment and be creative in
affecting the world around them. This philosophy revolves around what co-creative directors Harvey Smith (Deus Ex, Thief: Deadly Shadows) and Raf Colantonio (Arx Fatalis,
Dark Messiah of Might & Magic) lovingly refer to as “the simulati the backdrop of a revenge tale that pits the | against the regime that convicted him for her murder, the simul complex machine that the player can
The word "simulation" in this context is the difference between Minecraft and Animal Crossing. Smith and Colantonio live and breathe games that create experiences through the rich tapestry woven by layers of interacting systems, not guided tours through series of scripted events. Dishonored's stealthy assassination gameplay will be different for everyone; simply using a different combination of powers and tactics along a single path yields dramatically different results. Creating a playground that reacts to the
player is a multifaceted challenge. The Al has
to be robust, so that it responds to changes
in the world believably and not because the player stepped on an invisible trigger placed by а designer. The environment must be stuffed full of interactive elements: ledges to mantle onto, vases to knock off of tables, fires to light or douse, tables to hide under, carpets
to muffle your footsteps. The final piece of the puzzle — likely the most important one — is to ensure that players have a satisfying toolbox at their disposal.
The player assumes the role of Corvo, a lethal assassin with unparalleled mobility, skill- ful fighting techniques, supernatural powers, and improvised-yet-powerful gadgets at his disposal. "The last thing we wanted to do was come up with a model where you're weak, and that's why you had to sneak," Smith says. "You're like a ninja, but you can only last so long and there are many, many, many guards." Players have both a timing-based parry and a dedicated block button for defense, and lightning-fast dagger strikes complemented by crossbows and other weapons on offense. As in many stealth games, though, a stand-up fight is your last resort.
Corvo's quest for revenge is a bare skeleton
on." Against Empress' former bodyguard ation is a affect in dozens of interesting ways.
that players flesh out with their own play styles and choices. Dishonored lets you own your actions and their consequences and take an active hand in crafting your own experience to an impres- Sive degree. Arkane didn't quite confirm, but the team
is trying hard to include non- lethal ways to remove every target from the equation. How's that for player freedom in a game starring an assassin?
Though the protagonist has been touched by the supernatural Outsider (see sidebar) and has uncanny powers from that enigmatic encoun- ter, you won't find a healing spell or a magical Sword in his arsenal. "We would never put a fireball in Dishonored. We have powers that affect the simulation, and we allow you to layer them," explains Smith. You have abilities like. the power to bring forth a swarm of Al-driven rats that react naturally to their surroundings. They'll attack people (including you!) in sufficient numbers. They'll seek food, cleaning the bones of dead enemies for easier disposal. Another power allows yoü to possess one, giving you an easy escape through tunnels far too small for any human.
This layering of effects lies at the heart of Dishonored. Arkane could have easily made the rat swarm a simple visual effect that distracted
You can probably win а three-on-one stand-up fight, but expect to spend some resources doing so
or killed a single enemy for a mana cost. That's what magic spells in most games do. Creating a group of Al-controlled beings that interact with other powers, the environment, and other entities in the world is vastly harder — but com- mensurately more interesting.
All of this has to be recognized and reacted to by the Al for hostile guards, neutral NPCs, animals, and any other ambulatory entity. Colantonio and Smith refer to their solution as an “analog Al” that has a number of char- acteristics which can be modified on the fly,
rather than a simple "alert" or "passive" toggle
based on whether an alarm has been set off.
Two guards in conversation with each other,
for instance, have narrower cones of vision
and duller hearing than a single enemy on patrol. The effects of light, mental state, ambi- ent noise, and more dynamically affect the perceptiveness and reactions of every active Al in the game.
For this simulation-based design to work, players must not feel like the game cheats. What use is it to plan an infiltration if you're just going to be spotted by a guard walking into the room after magically spawning next door? Arkane's solution is to only rarely spawn in new enemies, and only in conjunction with alarms.
Even then, they always enter the level from a believable location, like a reinforcing squad
coming in through the back door of a mansion.
Viktor Antonov, Half-Life 2's art director and the man who designed the seminal City 17, is
responsible for much of Dishonored's look and feel
qs
WHERE THE WORLD WENT WRONG
To understand Dishonored's unusual fantasy world, where a handful of cities cling to life on a small set of islands, Arkane walked us through how it devised the setting.
START WITH 17TH CEN- TURY LONDON. Burgeoning populations ensure the
rise of a great city on the water's edge. Poverty and wealth rub shoulders in the cramped streets.
ISOLATE IT FROM THE REST OF THE WORLD. Some minor civilization exists on other is- lands in the same archipelago, but a deadly monster-infested ocean separates Dunwall from the Pandyssian continent. Only the bravest adventurers risk that distant land’s infinite dangers — and few of them return.
ADD A VOLATILE, CHEAP ENERGY SOURCE. The real world had to wait for widespread exploitation of coal to start the Industrial Revolution. Dunwall's inhabitants built theirs on power- ful oil harvested from monstrous whales of the deeps.
MIX IN POWERFUL BUT DANGER- OUS MAGIC. The Outsider is neither god nor devil, but it inargu- ably walks in the world. A few lucky (cursed?) people have been touched by this unearthly being, and can affect the world for good or ill in fantastic ways.
BLOW IT ALL UP WITH A WORSE PLAGUE THAN WE'VE EVER SEEN. Half of Dunwall is dead, and yet more are still terminally infected, courtesy of a rat-born plague that has brought civilization to the edge of collapse.
KILL THE EMPRESS. The protagonist Corvo didn't do it, but everyone thinks he did. Either way, she's dead. Greedy, powerful men have stepped into the void her passing has left. Loudspeakers blare propaganda and the people live in as much fear of the Lord Regent's government as of the plague.
JOIN THE RESISTANCE. An under- ground opposition group opposes the evil regime. After wrongfully serving five years for the Empress' death, the move- ment has decided to seek your aid and offer you much in return.
cover story 55
THREE PATHS TO POWER
Dishonored is an action game first, but it has a significant amount of RPG depth under the hood. These three vectors allow you to customize your hero:
POWERS The supernatural powers at your disposal — Bend Time, Windblast, etc. — can be unlocked and upgraded by spending runes found in the world. Many pow- ers have multiple upgrades to choose from, and you won't find nearly enough runes on a single playthrough to get everything. Even if you scour every inch of every level, you'll have to make hard choices.
GADGETS Players have access to a number of fancy gadgets, such as spring razor traps, sticky grenades, and several types of ammunition like sleep darts. Appropriating wealth for your own use on your travels, from cutting a valuable painting out of its frame to stuffing your pockets with the nobility's jewelry, allows you to improve your loadout with upgraded tools or passive buffs like increased carrying capacity.
CHARMS Many people in the world believe whalebone charms have mystical properties. In the player's case, the popular superstition is correct. Players can only find 12 or so out of the 40 total charms in a single playthrough, and each one is randomly selected from the master list. These minor buffs give you unusual powers like a mana refill when drink- ing from a fountain, or a health boost from eating certain colored rats.
LAYERS UPON LAYERS Aside from its effects on the environment and other characters, the complexity of a power like the rat swarm brings dangers with it for the player. You can make things worse by causing an NPC to freak out at being swarmed by rats and calling more guards to your location. You could even kill yourself with it by not ensuring the rats have a more appealing target than your wounded self. But that’s okay with Arkane. “We like the opposite of protecting the player,” Colantonio says. This means giving players enough rope to hang themselves with, but also giving exceptional freedom and agency.
The simplest approach to disabling a watch- tower in the middle of an open square you need to cross is avoiding its rotating beam by creeping from cover to cover and avoid- ing patrolling guards. That's the base level of gameplay that anyone would expect out of a stealth/action game, and there's nothing tacti-
cally wrong with it. In Dishonored, however, you could alternatively climb a building and use a
combination of celerity (supernatural speed), your natural double-jump, and blink (a short- range teleport) to cover a surprising distance in the air and land on the top of the tower itself. Allowing players to combine their tools in whatever ways they can think of has hazards within development. Smith chuckles as he remembers the first time the celerity-double
A whaling ship parades its grim cargo through Dunwall's harbor. It's not a cheery sight
Arkane's strong history with first-person melee combat should dispel any fears over Dishonored's extensive use of it
jump-blink combo came up. “When we first started seeing people do that, our lead level designer said, ‘Please, turn this off! People are going to get out of the map!’ And we said, ‘No, it's improvisational and that's the whole f---ing goal,” he relates. "That's the point. People want to maxi- mize the efficiency of those combinations," Colantonio adds. Despite the challenge they have set for their team, Colantonio and Smith are happy with the results so far. "| don't think there was at any point something cool that we had to back out of because it breaks the game," Colantonio proudly states. This mobility package is as crucial to Dishonored as the supernatural powers. Players can accomplish marvelous feats with- out touching their magical arsenal. In addition to a double-jump, players can sprint, slide, lean, and sneak. The levels are designed to encourage vertical experimentation; any sur- face at a 30-degree or shallower incline can be mantled onto, and chains and ropes can be climbed. By exploring the world, players may stumble upon the goodies and side missions sprinkled across all three dimensions.
"If you told us tomorrow that we'd have to work on a racing game, we'd just die." - Harvey Smith
56
The aristocracy has по compunctions about
enjoying the many fruits of its ill-gotten wealth
"Or we'd add an inventory to t
e car. And you could assassinate other cars.”
TWO HEAD AS ONE
Dishonored's co-creative directors are wildly different on the surface. Harvey Smith is an enthusiastic Texan several studios into his game development career. Smith has an undisputed classic (Deus Ex) and an ambitious and contentious follow-up (Deus Ex: Invisible War) both to his name, and a series of smaller projects that found varying degrees of success since. Raf Colantonio is a soft-spoken Frenchman who founded his own company and then moved to Austin simply because he wanted a bit of adventure beyond his native Lyon, France. Arkane's, and therefore Colantonio's, two big titles are a well-loved RPG that transcended a tiny budget and lack of marketing (Arx Fatalis) and a flawed title with unique, groundbreaking elements that suffered from a publisher that struggled to find a direction for the franchise (Dark Messiah of Might & Magic). When they start to talk about g
ough, the kindred nature of their spirits is obvious.
If you take the successful games and the good bits from the less successful ones, it's easy to see what drives Colantonio and Smith both. The visceral, first-person melee in Dark Messiah was the highlight of that game, but a similarly excellent system is a small piece of Dishonored. The branching paths of Deus Ex are much loved, and Dishonored combines them with a mantling/ sprinting/sliding/double-jumping mobility package that JC Denton could only dream of.
Put all of these elements togeth- er with the simulation elements of early PC games, and you can see the vision that drives Smith and Colantonio to create Dis- honored. “All that stuff is magic to us, and the reason we're still in games,” Smith says. “Both of us loved Dungeon Master
in the late ‘80s, and we both loved Underworld and we both loved System Shock. That's
the magic of those games — the developers went the
extra mile."
cover story 57
ТНЕ
$ t d y Animals are always vulnerable to your possession ability, H EART B j: 1 1 | while humans need to be unaware of your presence One particular item exists beyond the crossbow, pistol, grenades, and traps most reasonably prepared assassins carry. The so-called heart is a mystical object that beats faster as you face your objectives, giving the player some basic guidance to keep them on track in Dishonored's large levels. More disturbingly, it whispers directly into your mind, pulling secrets from the consciousness of others and sensing interesting things within the world that lie beyond mortal senses. You can learn something about every named char- acter in the game with the heart, but allowing a barely-understood ancient artifact psychic access to your mind may not be without consequences.
You can grab the key without bloodshed if you Ь № can get close enough while remaining undetected GOING OFP THE RAILS
2 The one level we saw in action tasks the player
" 2 " 4 with eliminating a corrupt magistrate. This male- “One of our philosophical points that Raf |
and | strongly believe is that modern game
PLAY YOUR WAY
factor is falsely accusing landowners of being developers go way too far out of their way to protect the player from anything being broken
infected with the plague in order to confiscate their property, and making an example of him or low drama. They try really hard to make |. will hopefully demonstrate the resistance move- sure everything is insulated and protected and if Ў ment's worth to the citizenry. This task requires you're only looking in this direction while this getting past dozens of guards on the streets scripted thing happens and you therefore get outside of the target's residence, then infiltrating the maximum roller-coaster ride. Games can ni the mansion before the final bit of grisly busi- either be described as rollercoasters — which ness. Several paths lead to the goal – through is all crafted and very high-drama — or that time when you were 16 and you and your jt
the streets, over the rooftops, etc. – but many friend broke into an abandoned house and you stories play out alongside the main thrust of had the most intense moments waiting for the door to open, and then there were moments
the scenario.
Dishonored's world is largely defined by the where, 'Ah, | expected something grand to hap- interlocking systems of the simulation, but it's pen but nothing happened; it was just an empty also stuffed full of designer-created content
room.’ But it was all your experience, right? So waiting to be discovered. Taking your time and they can either be this crafted roller-coaster listening to the conversations going on in the drama or they can be this ‘explore an abandoned world can clue you into secondary bits along house with your friends [experience].’ The latter . : j ' j » the way. Two thugs might be talking about a is what we're going for. T : bureaucrat they're planning on robbing to get the key to a safe hidden on the second floor of
— Harvey Smith, co-creative director
a nearby building. All of that stuff is in the world; the bureaucrat is following his own Al routine
in another part of the level, the safe is sitting behind a painting, and the building is across the street.
A vignette in our demo had a woman being accosted by a thug in a dark alleyway, crying out for help. Move in to rescue her and you'll find yourself ambushed by the two of them and their three skull-cracking friends hiding out in a nearby alcove. Since everything exists inside the simulation, you can find the ambushers first and deal with them separately. You could set a trap of your own, luring them into a battlefield more to your liking. You could use your power- ful stealth capabilities to lead them toward a guard outpost and vanish into the night when the constabulary spots them and a melee ensues. You could skip dealing with them entirely and focus on your mission.
However you choose to approach the obsta- cles and objectives in front of you, your actions have consequences. Arkane isn't using the
traditional "A follows B" method of branching storytelling seen in, for example, Mass Effect. Instead, the studio is modeling morality along an axis common to assassin and spy fiction: the idea of being a butcher who cares little for collateral damage along the way, or a ghost who nobody knows was there until they realize the secret documents aren't in the safe where they're supposed to be.
Stomping around Dunwall killing anyone in your way is a viable way to play Dishonored. It's also sloppy from the perspective of the insurgent group you're aiding as well as the rest ofthe city's residents. Unnecessary bloodshed and other displays of brutality increase the chaos in the world, destabilizing an already fragile society and breaking down the veneer of Civilization over the increasingly desperate city.
Chaos is a measured, aggregate value in Dishonored, but it's not a meter or score that players track. You'll be notified when your actions have raised or lowered the level of chaos, but it's an under-the-hood story
mechanic rather than an explicit light/dark or
paragon/renegade score with gameplay effects.
"Things just happen. A character betrays you, or not," Smith explains. Arkane didn't go so far as to detail alternate endings (or much of any- thing else about the plot, for that matter), but the studio's goal is clear. "The fate of the world is not just lip service," Smith says.
Though the team was reluctant to fill in the vague sketches they shared about Dishonored's plot, a sense of tragedy perme- ated every discussion on the subject. Not lim- ited to the awful plague, this doom and gloom seemed to suggest that the exploitation of whale oil and general disregard for the natural order of things has brought the civilization to the brink of oblivion. The macabre sight of the rotting corpse of a once-vibrant whale being suspended over a polluted canal as plague victims are unceremoniously dumped into the water is not a subtle image. How the Outsider is tied to the crisis looming on the horizon is a mystery as well, but unimaginably powerful
Ё it’s а very good thing that Dishonored has more looks than "grim, foggy, and grey"
cover story
59
Sure то потеет vour raum y уком THE RAVAGES OF THE RAT PLAGUE!
extra-dimensional beings with no identifiable concept of morality generally don't take corpo- real form to dispense puppies and rainbows. Whatever the specifics may be, the fate of this grim world is determined over a linear series of levels that largely revolve around elimi- nating one target or another within the Lord Regent's corrupt regime. This isn't an Elder Scrolls game that turns you loose to explore the world at your leisure, though everyone's experience will be different as they choose their path and affect the simulation in radically dif- ferent ways based on their gameplay choices. The Hound Pits pub serves as a hub between missions and a base for the resistance orga- nization. Here you can upgrade powers and gadgets (see sidebar) get briefed on the state of the world, and receive your next task. Dishonored has dialogue options, but they're
infrequent and only come up when you have
a real choice to make. The vast majority of
the conversations takes place without stop- ping the action, keeping you in the first-person perspective while delivering the exposition or background you need to put current events into context. Players are never bogged down in gossipy dialogue trees.
SO MUCH MORE TO EXPORE
We've only seen a fraction of Dishonored so far. We don't know how upgrades will improve your powers; the only variation we saw was a basic bend ability that slows time instead of stop- ping it. We know very little of the story or the supporting cast of characters; all Arkane has shared is the basic premise. The developers said the one level we saw may not even make it into the final game.
Killing civilians increases the level of chaos in the world
And yet, Smith and Colantonio's vision for the game is a wonderful change of pace from the rank and file of modern mainstream action games. As Deus Ex and Thief proved, using a powerful set of tools in creative ways to solve problems is a proven approach to compel- ling game design, and Dishonored venerates that ideal beyond all others. Its mix of powers, mobility, environment, and Al goes so far beyond "use this piece of cover or another" and “изе a machine gun or a sniper rifle." With Bethesda's creator-centric, vision-driven pub- lishing model behind them, Arkane has a real chance to make something great.
Many games that share design elements with Dishonored — including even great titles like the first Deus Ex – give the players а discrete set of choices to make when faced with a situ- ation. You can take a stealth approach, or a combat approach, or maybe a third approach if you have the right skill or power to unlock it. If Dishonored's simulation lives up to Colantonio and Smith's dreams, it will do more than give players a choice of three doors to walk through It will put them in a crowded city, with as many paths to the goal as players have ideas.
"We always thought this type of game would eventually be dominant; that an RPG is not physical and not visceral enough for people, and that a shooter is not deep enough," Smith reveals. If Dishonored doesn't live up to its promise, it won't be for lack of enthusiasm. €
Go to gameinformer.com/dishonored throughout the month for in-depth features on Dishonored, including but not limited to video interviews with co-creative directors Harvey Smith and Raf Colantonio, an interactive world map detailing the game's lore, and a look at how the cover image was Created, and much more
CURFEW ENFORCED
DUSK UNTIL DAWN
Guards react differently to Corvo and other people at different times of day
TRICKS OF THE ASSASSIN'S TRADE
Some of the creative combinations you can come up with using Dishonored’s
powers:
BEND TIME + POSSESSION: Save your own ammunition by freezing the flow
of time just as an enemy opens fire, then possessing him and moving him into his own line of fire. All projectiles are fully physics modeled, so have some
fun with it.
RAT SWARM + POSSESSION: Fashion
a quick escape by summoning a rat
swarm and taking control of one of the
little guys to slip out during the ensuing
chaos. Just make sure not to get stepped while possessing something is
a game over.
RAT SWARM + WINDBLAST: Crack а well-guarded, well-lit room by summoning arat swarm and then using windblast to put out the fire illuminating the space. With No light to drive them away, the rats should go on the offensive, giving you the distrac- tion you need.
went
Rats, whether natural or sum- moned, avoid lighted areas
cover story 61
Booker can wield powers in one hand and weapons in the other
Bioshock Infinite
Irrational Games aims high
ith excellent franchises like The Elder
Scrolls, Mass Effect, and Assassin's Creed on the show floor, picking one title as the best of E3 2011 might seem impossible. Even in such impressive company, BioShock Infinite made the process much easier with a jaw-drop- ping performance that earns it our unanimous. vote for the game of the show.
Highlighting interesting characters, spectacular cinematic moments, and high-flying combat, the section of BioShock Infinite on display gives a tantalizing taste of how the final product will weave all of its elements together. A light-hearted exchange in a novelty shop instantly turns into nail-biting tension as the hulking mechani- cal Songbird lands outside and peers into the window, searching for protagonist Booker DeWitt and his companion, Elizabeth. A bizarre scene involving a dying horse is quickly followed by a firefight with one of the warring factions of Columbia. BioShock Infinite seems to effortlessly hop between these various gameplay notes, lingering long enough to make an impact without overstaying its welcome.
For those who have been following BioShock Infinite since it was first revealed last summer, it’s important to note that a few things have changed and become better defined in the intervening months. First of all, the flying beast originally referred to only as “Him” is now named Songbird, and he is terrifying to see in action. Powerful and relentless, Songbird seems to be an impossible foe to fight; all of Booker's attempts in the E3 demo are unsuccessful. If players eventually have to defeat Songbird, we're curious about how Irrational plans to level the playing field.
Another major reveal is the nature of Elizabeth's true power. From the beginning, we know that she was being held captive Бу Songbird because of special abilities she pos- sesses, but the aforementioned incident with a dying horse demonstrates how powerful she really is. Elizabeth can apparently access differ- ent realities and time periods, folding them over her current surroundings. In her efforts to treat
the injured horse, she apparently teleports the animal, Booker, and herself to an alternate future with cars, modern buildings, and a movie theater playing Revenge of the Jedi (the original working title for Return of the Jedi). This mind-boggling development begins to explain some of the anachronistic imagery and music that accompa- nied the first gameplay footage when the game was revealed.
Elizabeth's power also has combat applica- tions; after Booker uses telekinesis to lift some bad guys off the ground, Elizabeth taps into another reality to make a cargo car appear on a nearby Sky Line (the rail system connect- ing the different sections of Columbia). The container crashes into the suspended enemies with the force of a train, taking them out of the fight. Booker can also use the Sky Lines him- self thanks to an apparatus on his arm, soaring between areas, engaging in aerial battles, and jumping from one Sky Line to another. How exactly that last part will work without play- ers missing the mark and plummeting through the sky has not been explained, but creative director Ken Levine has previously told Game Informer, “1 want to make it clear: This is not a game where you stumble off a ledge and fall to
help, but Elizabeth's powers mightbe р
The wounded horse seems beyond | able to twist reality and save the animal E
и ) > =a * Sk57 A
OF SHOW
THE TRUE PATRIOT HAS NOTHING TO FEAR FROM
THE SONGBIRD
your death.” Obviously, more specifics about the game’s mechanics and controls will be revealed before release.
Detractors want to believe that BioShock Infinite is “more BioShock, except in the sky,” but no one who saw Irrational Games’ latest project in action would make such an erroneous statement. BioShock Infinite is not only poised to surpass its predecessors - it is also among the early frontrunners for the best game of 2012. » Joe Juba
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 + PC » Style 1-Player Action » Publisher 2K Games
» Developer Irrational Games
» Release 2012
previews ЕЗ HOT 50 63
64
PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 • PC
» 1-Player Role-Playing Bethesda Softworks
»
Bethesda Game Studios
»
November 11
The Elder Scrolls V
etween our Skyrim cover story and the
ensuing month of online coverage, we’ve written plenty about Bethesda’s upcoming RPG. None of that coverage lessened our excitement for seeing a new demo of the game at E3, nar- rated by designer Todd Howard.
The most readily apparent upgrade in Skyrim is the improved graphical capabilities of Bethesda's new engine. Objects in the world cast realistic shadows, and foliage is detailed and plentiful, which makes the outdoor areas look more authentic than Oblivion. As the player walks down a dirt path alongside a river lead- ing to a small village, he stops to take in the Sights. Howard takes the opportunity to remind us that the towering mountains we see in the distance actually exist in the game; travel long enough and you can make your way to the peak. Developers often use comments like these to demonstrate scale, but given the history of the Elder Scrolls franchise, we have no doubt Bethesda will deliver on the promise.
If you want to see your character and the scenery at the same time, you're in luck. Bethesda has continued refining the third-person view; smoother movement transitions make your character appear more natural when navigating the environment, and melee combat is no longer plagued by stilted animations. We doubt it will replace the default first-person perspective for most players, but for those who prefer it, Skyrim now looks playable from the third-person view.
In addition to the visual upgrades, the E3 demo shows off gameplay changes, including Skyrim's new emphasis on dual wielding. You equip each of your hands with weapons, shields, or magic, and their stats will level up naturally. Finding good combinations appears key to combat; using a freezing spell on a bandit temporarily slows him and turns him a frosty white. Follow that up with a sword strike from the opposite hand and the bandit barely stands a chance. Binding magic spells to both hands and using them simultane- ously creates new effects, something we're look-
ing forward to experimenting with.
The most impressive aspect of Skyrim so far is the ability to encounter dragons. The intimidat- ing size of the massive creatures is matched by their offensive capabilities. The dragons we saw circle their prey from the sky and swoop in for the kill, unleashing deadly fire-breathing attacks and claw swipes. Howard says that dragons serve as Skyrim’s version of boss fights, and that there will be plenty of them in the final game. Unlike most video game boss fights, however, your encounters with dragons will be completely dynamic — don't expect any QTEs to save you from death. Luckily, you'll have Dragon Shouts to help take down your flying adversaries.
When Bethesda first revealed Dragon Shouts, we were unsure of the concept. Using chants in combat sounded awkward, but after seeing them in action, we're excited by the new
: Skyrim
gameplay avenue they bring to gameplay. Dragon Shouts serve as a third form of attack, and each shout you learn can be upgraded by discovering new words.
Toward the end of the demo, a dragon chases the player into a tower, circling up above as the player cowers in the stairway. Traditional weap- ons don't have much effect on the flying beast, so the player invokes a storm-based Dragon Shout. With just a few words, the clouds over- head turn black and rain pours down. Thunder rumbles in the distance, and just as the dragon swoops in for an attack, a bolt of lightning strikes the beast. Back on the ground, the player fin- ishes the wounded dragon off with a combina- tion of magic and melee attacks, but the vocal attack left us pondering the possibilities. If all Dragon Shouts are this impressive, we can't wait to expand our vocabulary.
previews
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 • PC
» Style
1-Player Shooter (24-Player Online: PS3, Xbox 360) (64-Player Online: PC) » Publisher Electronic Arts
» Developer DICE
» Release October 25
Thunder Run
At the BA press conference, DICE showed off a new eight-minute slice of action n from the single-player campaign's Thunder Run mission. This tank-centric battle in the Kavir desert in Iran started in the barren wasteland and eventu-
ally shifted to a PLR forward operations The battle unfolded more deliberately than the typical balls-to- the-wall moments in rival Call of Duty, which hints that ; may be striving for a
ry approach rather
than piece moments
1oving as many set- s the
can
npaign. The most
part of the demo
engine.
The lighting, ronmental and explosions all yectacular. The sense
о impressive, tanks doing leploying troops,
and strafing runs from overhead.
Battlefield 3
DICE deploys Battlefield’s revamped multiplayer
he single-player Battlefield experiences
have gradually improved with each install- ment, but it’s no secret that the vast majority of people play the game for the online competition. While | extracted some basic multiplayer details from the team during our visit to Stockholm for the cover story in issue 215, they saved the big- gest reveals for a hands-on E3 demo.
Before | could jump into combat, DICE gen- eral manager Karl-Magnus Troedsson shared some new details about how the class system has been restructured. The biggest change is the marriage of the assault and medic classes. After analyzing players’ gameplay habits in Bad Company 2 and listening to community feed- back, the team decided that since the assault class is typically the bullet fodder on the front- lines, it makes more sense to endow those sol- diers with healing abilities like medic packs and defibrillators. These soldiers are armed with your standard array of assault rifles like the M4.
Combining those two classes cleared the way for the return of the support class, which now replenishes ammunition for teammates and uses LMGs in the field of battle. These weapons fea- ture bipods that can be deployed on the ground, short walls, or even cars for increased stability when firing. In addition to re-supplying ammo to teammates, support players can rack up points via a new suppression mechanic. When firing at enemies, support players don't need to actually
hit them with bullets to affect their ability to fight. As bullets whiz over their head, the opposing player will lose combat awareness thanks to a gradual screen blur that evokes the sensation of being caught under fire. This forgiving scoring mechanic should make players with less twitchy trigger fingers still feel like they are contributing to the team.
The two other classes received small but interesting tweaks. Engineers still carry the anti-vehicle weapons and repair tools, but their weapons now support undersling attachments. The one DICE showed off was a flashlight that can be used to blind approaching enemies in low-light conditions.
The biggest change to the recon class is a new sniping mechanic that requires shooters to press a button to hold their breath, which momentarily increases accuracy. Once your character exhales, however, the weapon will sway more for a short period of time, so timing your shot is critical. DICE added this mechanic to kill off the quick scoping exploit that plagued Bad Company.
Since snipers can go prone in BF 3, you might think it will be even harder to tell where shots are coming from. To even the playing field, the studio has added lens flare to sniper scopes, which should make it easier to spot aggressors at a distance and discourage snipers from camping in the same position the entire game.
DICE also overhauled the vehicle damage system. In the past, everyone inside a tank would die when a rocket took out the remaining vehicle armor. In Battlefield 3, this damage is location based, so if a rocket hits the back of the tank only the soldier in the rear is killed. Vehicles also become incapacitated now, so soldiers can use the turrets but can’t move before an engi- neer repairs it.
When | spoke with DICE earlier this year about the lack of character customization, Patrick Bach admitted they would like to give players more control, but that it had to be done with respect to the uniforms. At E3 the team finally revealed their solution — customizable dog tags. Now when you knife an enemy to take his or her tags, you'll receive a unique item that highlights that person’s Battlefield triumph of choice. The examples DICE offered included the number of kills with a specific weapon and total hours served.
Though it was nice to see the game in action again, I'm still eagerly waiting to see the epic 64-player PC battles, get my hands on the con- sole version, and dig deeper into the Battlelog feature that promises stat tracking, social fea- tures, and possibly even media sharing. Look for more info on these features as we move closer to Battlefield 3's October 25 release date. » Matt Bertz
With no consoles in sightithi only hands-on multiplayer avail- able at E3 was a 32-player PC match pitting the U.S. Marines against the Russian Spetsnaz. Though 1 was only able to play through one round, the experi- ence was gratifying enough that I'm eagerly anticipating my next multiplayer battle.
The four-stage Rush map, Operation Metro, starts in an open urban garden, transitions into the underground subway, and eventually spills into the financial district directly in front of the Paris stock exchange. From the more open fight in the urban garden to the tighter choke
1 points in the metro, each section 117369 1] ^" of the map plays out differently.
3 It's a refreshing change of pace in the midst of battle, and I'm. betting DICE employs this phi- losophy with other maps in the game as well.
Even once the bullets started flying, it was hard not to stop and admire the impact the Frostbite 2 engine makes on the battlefield. The varied lighting, realistic soldier animations, and impres- sive facade damage to buildings amidst the multiplayer chaos all take the experience to another level. Like Mirror's Edge, soldiers move with more of a sense of weight. When vaulting through the environment you can actu- ally see your character plant his hands and swing his legs over the obstacles.
As a Battlefield vet, it didn't take long to adjust to the gunplay, which is a good thing in my book considering the series' pedigree. The attention to detail in the guns is impressive, the spotting mechanic introduced in Bad Company 2 is back, and helping teammates by reviving them or dropping ammo boxes is the best way to generate tons of experi- ence points in between kills.
Look for more multiplayer im- pressions in the coming months.
previews От 50 67
» Platform PlayStation 3
» Style
1-Player Action (12-Player Online) » Publisher Sony Computer Entertainment
» Developer Naughty Dog
» Release November 1
Stating the С; Multiplayer Though Uncharted 2 h; а compelling multiplayer experience, most people re- member the game for its best- in-class polish, impressive voice acting, and Hollywood- style action. With Drake's Deception, Naughty Dog hopes to boost its online community with several new features. The biggest changes include customizable characters, scripted events that recall the impressive set pieces from the campaign, and a new coop- erative treasure-hunting mode that pits your team against enemy Al in a race to recover ancient artifacts.
68 ЕЗ HOT 50 previews
Naughty Dog keeps firing on all cylinders
hen you release a revolutionary game,
it’s tough to preserve the innovative concepts. Other developers start adopting the influential design elements, and over time what was once a fresh approach becomes common- place. Given the universal acclaim Uncharted 2 received, Naughty Dog should be facing a similar challenge at the moment. But as the impressive Uncharted 3 demos at ЕЗ proved, other developers still have a ways to go before they catch up to the talented studio.
At the Sony press conference, Naughty Dog once again wowed the audience with a thrilling new chapter of Nathan Drake’s latest adventure. The demo joins our favorite adventurer on board a derelict cruise ship. A storm is sweeping over the sea, making it tough for Drake to keep his balance. Working his way to the interior of the ship, he stealthily takes down enemies until he's spotted in a large cargo hold. He puts his hands up, and when one of the antagonists approaches, Drake quickly head butts him, grabs а handgun and grenade, and starts shooting at the targets around the room. Drake tosses a gre- nade, but when it detonates it doesn't have the desired effect; it blasts a hole in the hull of the. ship, and all hell breaks loose.
Water starts pouring into the hold, the cargo lurches across the floor, and suddenly the ship begins to capsize. The subsequent escape sequence showcases the game's impressive physics technology, while Drake navigates the ship's shifting content as water violently pours into every opening it can find. As the demo con- cludes, we see Drake desperately trying to avoid being overtaken by the oncoming flood.
Behind closed doors, Naughty Dog showed off а completely different demo that reunites Drake and his on again/off again love interest Elena atan airport under the moonlit cover of night.
As they climb up to the top of a hangar, their. destination presents itself in the background —а large cargo plane loading up for a journey. They climb down a ladder, only to find a gate standing
between them and the plane.
Drake tells Elena he'll climb to the top of the fence and help her up, but instead of assisting the lady he drops to the other side. Elena gives him that “not again" look, and Drake makes an excuse about this being a million-to-one shot and him not wanting to put her in harm's way again. She acquiesces, and Drake tells her to leave via a nearby jeep.
Before Drake makes it to the plane, a gate comes crashing closed and bullets start flying. They've been expecting him. He dodges the fire, avoids an explosion, and makes his escape up a ladder. Drake always shines in these unpredict- able circumstances, and Naughty Dog is doing its best to make him look more capable than ever. As he works his way to the plane, he leaps into a group of barrels and lands on his feet like an agile street cat, jumps onto an enemy to take him out, and pulls armed foes from cover, neutralizng them with a punishing elbow. He successfully avoids the ambush, but the plane is already heading down the runway.
Living up to her reputation as a lifesaver, Elena screams onto the runway in the jeep and yells at Drake to grab on. His only shot is boarding the
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
plane via the landing gear. Once Elena catches up to the plane, he leaps onto the wheels and works his way up to the belly cf the plane.
Alone in the dark bowels of the plane, Drake climbs his way up to the cargo via a series of vents. He's spotted by a burly guy in a headscarf who doesn't take kindly to Drake's stowaway status. The thug yanks Drake through the grates, puts him in a chokehold with one hand, and uses the other to open the cargo door. Not too enthused about being thrown out of a plane at 30,000 feet, Drake says, "Let's talk about this." The massive man throws him onto the extended cargo door and a fistfight ensues. After landing a few good blows, Drake makes his way back into the plane and breaks loose some of the cargo, which pours out the back of the plane, taking out the tough guy in the process.
The shifting cargo unsettles the rest of the gear, and Drake desperately fights against the tide of boxes and machinery. He tumbles over the gear as it pours out of the back of the plane, clinging at the last second to a loose piece of tarpaulin netting.
Just another day in the life of Nathan Drake. » Matt Bertz
Mass Effect 3
This is how the world ends
C ommander Shepard has set foot on unexplored planets in the far reaches of space - locations containing giant beasts, lost technology, and extinct civilizations. For all of that adventuring, however, Shepard still hasn't visited one of the most important places in the galaxy: Earth. That is changing with Mass Effect 3; the game begins with a Reaper assault on the humans' home planet, and | got my hands on the sequence where Shepard flees the carnage in hopes of mount- ing a counterattack.
As the game begins, Shepard is on Earth to answer for a choice that left thousands of Batarians dead (detailed in Mass Effect 2's
You won't just be seeing Reapers flying around in space. Shepard and his team
will have to fight the enormous machines
Arrival DLC), but more urgent matters quickly surface. The Reapers descend on the planet, strategically striking key cities with overwhelm- ing firepower. When | pick up the controller, my party consists of Shepard (male soldier version) and Captain Anderson surrounded by explo- sions and chaos, with multiple Reapers visible in the background.
Explosions can be heard from all directions, and the sky is filled with bullets and lasers. Suddenly, a wave of husks (humans repurposed into Reaper slaves) attacks, but the two sea- soned warriors take them down with no prob- lem – especially since | use Shepard's adrenaline rush ability to slow down time and line up some
good shots. After the assault, Shepard goes into a nearby building and finds a boy hiding from the Reapers in a ventilation shaft. Shepard kindly tries to coax him out (my other dialogue option was “Get out of there!”), but he slips away while the commander is briefly distracted by Anderson. Time is scarce and they don’t pursue the child, since they need to signal the Normandy for extraction.
Once outside, | see an Alliance ship hovering over the city hopelessly trying to fight back... then it explodes in a nuclear flash. The blast sends Shepard and Anderson reeling, tumbling down an incline. Stepping over debris of fallen buildings, the duo encounters a new type of enemy called cannibals. They are like husks except they appear to be repurposed Batarians, and are capable of devouring their fallen com- rades to regain health. After mowing down the cannibals and activating a beacon for the Normandy to follow, the ship shortly appears overhead, but Anderson refuses to leave. He explains that the survivors on Earth need a leader, charging Shepard with traveling the galaxy and rallying other races. He then orders the Normandy to leave without him — but not before officially restoring Shepard’s Alliance rank of commander.
As the Normandy lifts off, Shepard sees some civilian survivors boarding Alliance shuttles, including the boy from the ventilation shaft. Just when it seems like they may escape, a Reaper laser tears through the shuttles and they both explode, undoubtedly killing everyone on board. The death of the young boy clearly affects Shepard, but thousands more like him will die unless the Reapers can be stopped. The Normandy then leaves Earth, and it won't return until it has an entire fleet behind it. » Joe Juba
i) in close
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 * PC
» Style
1-Player Shooter/RPG » Publisher Electronic Arts
» Developer BioWare
» Release March 6
‘The omni-blade is a melee weapon that allo hepard to perform better at, but you can still use ned rifle butt, too
previews ЕЗ НОТ SO 69
» Platform
PlayStation 3
Xbox 360 * PC
» Style
1-Player Action
» Publisher
Warner Bros. Interactive
» Developer Rocksteady Games
» Release October 18
70 ЕЗ HOT 50 previews
Batman: Arkham City
The Dark Knight meets another classic villain
ast issue we brought you news of
Catwoman being a playable character in Arkham City, and while the hands-on demo at this year's ЕЗ was based largely on the same section of gameplay, we picked up a few bits of new info along the way.
As the demo opens, Batman is perched atop the gargoyle of one of Arkham City's dilapi- dated buildings. The sheer scale of the Caped Crusader’s new environment impressed me immediately; Batman is dwarfed by the size of the buildings in mayor Quincy Sharp’s makeshift prison. After getting a bat’s eye view of the slums via the new flight mechanics, it becomes clear that Arkham City features a lot more vertical gameplay. Gliding down alleyways and dropping on your prey from the rooftops makes you feel appropriately badass, and tempted me off the path to my objective more than once.
The main story mission serves as an introduc- tion to a recently announced villain: the Penguin. Rocksteady is taking a realistic approach to the iconic antagonist, portraying him more like a tough, streetwise character in a Guy Ritchie film than Tim Burton’s Batman Returns. The Penguin wastes no time in goading a dozen henchmen into fighting Batman for a spot on his gang, but new combat options makes it a fruitless exercise. Environmental takedowns, such as slamming a foe’s head into a nearby railing, add even more flair to the Arkham City’s stylish combat, and the ability to use gadgets mid-combo evokes a feel- ing similar to Bulletstorm, encouraging players to finish off foes with a creative flourish.
Despite Batman’s new moves, the biggest treat of the demo was seeing Catwoman in action. Her back-and-forth repartee with Batman will surely entertain fans of the comics, and her purpose for being in Arkham City – to loot the treasures of other iconic villains — sounds like an exciting diversion on par with the new Riddler challenges. Catwoman navigating the city with а speed and grace that puts Altair and Ezio to shame doesn't hurt, either. With moves like that, this femme fatale may just steal the show from the Dark Knight. » Jeff Marchiafava
= #
Catwoman is considerably faster than Batman, especially in combat
Detective mode still comes in handy for assessing dangerous situations
[he Legend of Zelda: okyward Sword
hile getting a Zelda title at the launch of
the Wii was a treat, Twilight Princess was essentially a GameCube game with tacked-on motion controls. Its overall quest was solid and the dungeons were as tricky as ever, but wag- gling the remote to slash Link's sword seemed like a poor replacement for a button press. With Skyward Sword, we're finally getting the first Wii Zelda built from the ground up for motion con- trol. We played three distinctly different demos on the ЕЗ show floor, and they have us excited about the game's direction.
First up is the bird racing minigame. Its place in the game's story isn't clear, but it certainly feels like an optional sidequest or (at most) a brief distraction in the overall quest. Link wears an outfit similar to his farmer's clothing from Twilight Princess as he competes to win a trophy in this flying competition. The race starts with Link and his three opponents diving off a cliff, then mount- ing their birds in mid-air. Shaking the Wii remote causes you to gain altitude, and pressing the A button activates a speed boost similar to Epona's carrots in Ocarina of Time. My objective is to reach a trophy bird before my opponents, and it gets more difficult on my second pass. They start shooting eggs at me in an effort to slow me down, but | eventually snag the trophy and ride off with Princess Zelda atop my giant bird.
The second demo is the most substantial of the three: a look at one of the dungeons. While it stays in line with series tradition by tasking you with finding keys, obtaining items, and making your way to the boss, | am surprised
by how clever some of the enemy encounters are. Most of my fights incorporate some sort
of motion-based mini-puzzle. Most notable are the Skulltulas, who dangle from the ceiling in the dungeon's main hub area. To take them out, the first order of business is to snip their web line with the motion-controlled flying beetle item. Once they're on the ground, standard sword attacks do no damage thanks to their protec- tive shell. You need to hold the Wii remote low to the ground, then flick it up in an effort to flip the spiders over. Once their weak bellies are exposed, all it takes is a few forward stabs of the Wii remote to defeat them. This strategy may not be complex, but it's more engaging than the "wait for them to turn around" strategy against Ocarina's Skulltulas.
Taking on a boss character is my last task. A ghostly, skinny female slowly approaches Link, and | notice her hand follows the location of my sword. When I try to strike, she catches the
CCE GVEA 60
e-
blade between her fingers and knocks me back. After a couple failed attempts, | realize that | need to lure her hand to one location, then quickly alter my blade placement and slash before she can react. | start doing some damage with this method, so she switches tactics. She starts dis- appearing and throwing lines of five projectiles at me. These can be avoided by side-stepping, but it is also possible to send the projectiles back at her by matching their arrangement with a well- aimed swipe of Link’s sword. | keep chipping away at her with various methods before finally taking her down, concluding one of the most unique boss fights in the series to date.
While almost every Zelda game reaches critical and commercial success, gamers have com- plained for years about the rehashed format. Skyward Sword doesn't shake up the pattern as a whole, but the clever inclusion of MotionPlus makes this entry the freshest since Wind Waker. »
Wii
1-Player Action/ Adventure
»
Nintendo
Nintendo
Holiday
previews 71
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 РС
» Style 1-Player Action/Platform » Publisher Square Enix
» Developer Crystal Dynamics » Release
Fall 2012
72 ЕЗ НОТ SD previews
Tomb Raider
Lara's looking better than ever
I I e broke the story on Crystal Dynamics' reboot of 45 the Tomb Raider franchise with our cover story in issue 213, and we've been waiting to see more on the game ever since. Thankfully, at this year's E3 Square Enix had a new behind closed doors live demo.
The first half of the presentation revolved around the familiar sequence where a young Lara escapes death in a waterlogged cavern — a scene first described in our cover Story. However, the second half of the demo showed a new level that takes place in a mountain village. It provided us with more insight into the game's attempt to develop Lara Croft as a character, and also showcased her legendary platforming abilities.
The sequence starts with Lara stumbling upon Conrad Roth, her mentor of sorts, locked in a battle with a wolf. The deadly lupine eventually retreats, but not before. mauling Roth badly. Lara rushes to his aid, helping him walk closer to his base camp and the campfire.
The situation is dire. Roth needs medical attention and a radio transmitter he left in the wolves' den. Lara is forced into action and begins platforming over the build- ing in the village to reach the opening to the abandoned mine that serves as the den. Overall, the platforming seems easy and fast - more akin to Assassin's Creed than the laborious platforming of earlier Tomb Raiders. Weather also factors in, making things more difficult; at one point Lara slips off a rain-slick fuselage of a crashed plane suspended in the mountain.
After Lara makes it to the highly perched mine, she enters the dangerous den. Suddenly, she's attacked by a wolf and is forced to use one of her arrows as a weapon, an encounter that plays out in a brief quick-time event. Finally, she finds the transmitter and the first aid kit. From there, Lara negotiates her way back down to the base camp and ministers to Roth's wounds. At this point, the presenter stopped to tell us that base camps are where Lara can buy skills and upgrades, craft gear from salvage, and fast travel to other campsites.
Here, we get to see a more emotional side of the game. Roth tells Lara she has to be the one to find and climb the radio tower to install the transistor that might bring them help. As opposed to the quippy Lara of past games, this Lara is unsure of herself and scared, but also willing to risk her life to help her mentor. It's a nicely done sequence and helps cast Lara in a more complex light. The demo ended there, and we once again came away impressed by Tomb Raider. In terms of both gameplay and story- telling, Crystal Dynamics seems to have the franchise headed in a promising new direction. » Matt Helgeson
One man vei bad odds у
us an entire fleet doesn't seem like such n there's a flamethrower in the mix
pu nM
ft Montreal is working to make comb: relying less on defensive posturing
at
Ezio rises to the rank of
risk of wearing out the fans, but only if the new entries don't make significant strídes forward. Even though it's the fourth Assassin's Creed game in as many years, Revelations doesn't look like it will be the title to wear out the series’ welcome with gamers. After watching an older, wiser Ezio single-handedly take out an entire fleet of Templar ships, | found myself more excited — not less — for this year's session in the Animus.
The demo begins with Ezio in Constantinople encountering his local counterpart in the Assassin order, Yusef. He explains to Ezio that a Jenassary (Templar allies) blockade, including a gigantic chain stretched across a river, is preventing anyone from leaving the city. Ezio needs to overcome this blockade to reach the Templar city of Cappadocia. Yusef passes along
ssassin’s
arly releases in a single franchise run the
re
anew kind of bomb to Ezio, and then the master assassin goes to work clearing the blockade.
As Ezio approaches one of the anchoring points for the chain, he passes a group of gypsy per- formers. Even though they didn’t have a telltale symbol above them, an Ubisoft representative confirmed that these are the new ally faction in Revelations: the Romani. Taking the place of courtesans (whose delicate profession would not have been tolerated in 1511 Constantinople), the Romani serve a similar purpose. Through singing and dancing, they can provide a distraction and act as a mobile form of cover.
After walking by the Romani, Ezio plants Yusef's bomb on one end of the massive chain, and the ensuing explosion causes the obstruction to fall. The following minutes see Ezio using a flame- thrower to torch enemy ships, killing three guards under the cover of a smoke bomb, employing the
Revelations
» Platform
PlayStation 3
Xbox 360 * PC
» Style
1-Player Action/Adventure {Multiplayer TBA)
» Developer Ubisoft Montreal » Release November 15
After the events of _
hookblade to scale flaming walls, and ultimately jumping across several burning ships to land safely on his vessel bound for Cappadocia. Age certainly hasn't slowed Ezio down.
These sequences give a great sense of improvements to the gameplay, but Revelations" major unanswered question is the extent of Altair's involvement. We know he has at least five playable sections, but how long they are and how they are spaced is unknown. Also, in the demo I saw, Ezio already had four of the five keys (each one is tied to an Altair segment), but that was only halfway through the game. Does that mean Altair will be largely absent in the second half of Revelations? Sadly, we'll probably have to wait until the game's release before everything starts. making sense.» Joe Juba.
previews.
PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 * PC
1-Player Shooter (Online ТВА)
Activision
Infinity Ward/ Sledgehammer
November 8
74 previews
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Delta squad a:
all of Duty historically hasn’t featured
much variance in its single-player cam- paigns. While they have their own unique setpiece moments, they're all action-packed, bullet-riddled, linear affairs. You might know what to expect year to year when it comes to single-player offerings, but the series has been all over the map in terms of multiplayer modes. Earlier entries featured standard deathmatches, but new options started springing up with Treyarch's zombie mode in World at War. Infinity Ward ditched the zombies for Modern Warfare 2, but added the two-player Spec Ops missions. Now the studio is looking to do more with MW 3’s version of this mode; no longer a strictly mission-based affair, Spec Ops now features survival modes on every multiplayer map.
The survival missions are similar to the clones of Gears of Wars’ horde mode that are in virtually every modern shooter, but they still manage to be a fun challenge. Early waves of enemies are of the standard variety, but dogs and boss fights join the fray later on, with the latter appearing regularly after a set amount of rounds. Bosses include juggernauts and helicopters, and they are often accompanied by standard forces. Things get crazier as you progress, with suicide bomb- ers and even suicide dogs with C4 strapped to their backs. A red light starts flashing on their bombs after they fall, forcing you to get out of the blast radius if you want to escape unscathed.
A currency system is in place, rewarding you with cash for kills, streaks, and assorted per- round criteria. You can purchase various items with this cash, and they come in the form of new guns, ammo refills, autoturrets, equipment, and perks. You can also order air support, which is a great help when it comes to managing the relent- less waves of enemy soldiers. Not only can you drop various air strikes, you can also enlist the help of fellow infantry. Delta squads will rappel down from a helicopter and join the fight if you have the cash.
Treyarch's zombie modes placed you against Slow, plodding waves of the undead. This new Spec Ops mode feels like a completely dif- ferent beast, as you're holding your ground against faster and much smarter enemies. With no wave cap, it's a sure bet that competitive COD players will post some insane scores to the leaderboards.
MW 35 multiplayer presence at the show was confined to Spec Ops, but a new campaign mission was showcased at Microsoft's press conference. "Hunter Killer" starts with the player joining a squad of soldiers in New York Harbor as they plant bombs on a Russian submarine. Once they take down the submerged target, they surface to see a war-torn New York City skyline get barraged by missiles. They board a surfaced sub and toss a grenade into the hatch, followed by an invasion on the craft. Fighting through the interior of the submarine reveals the return of the Slow-mo breaking-and-entering mechanic we've Seen in previous games. Once the good guys make it into the sub's control room, they launch missiles against an unknown target.
After an escape from the sub, the player boards a small seacraft and takes off amid the chaos in the harbor. Fighting off enemy boats, dodging explosions, and following the rest of your squad, your task is to safely make it to the escape helicopter before it takes off. This sequence resembled the driving-and-shooting snowmobile section of MW 2, albeit with far more activity onscreen.
If that sequence is any indication, the cam- paign won't be straying from the jaw-dropping, fast-paced missions from the series' past. Time will tell if gamers are tiring of the same formula being repeated every year, but there’s no doubt Modern Warfare 3 will be near the top of the list of 20115 biggest sellers.
|| hen brainstorming concepts for Gears ind of War 3, Epic had a long list of improve-
ments and features it wanted to integrate: make the biggest single-player campaign in series history, expand the co-op to include four players, fix the party matchmaking in multiplayer, and build a new multiplayer mode where players can become the Locust horde to fight against Marcus and Dom. Though it was undoubtedly the most popular addition to Gears of War 2, Horde mode also received a revamp.
Since Horde mode was introduced in 2008, the cooperative competition that pits a team of players against increasingly more difficult waves of enemies has become ubiquitous in shoot- ers, appearing in a wide range of franchises including blockbusters like Halo (rebranded as. Firefight mode), Call of Duty (Zombie mode), and Uncharted (Siege mode). To stay ahead of the pack, Epic knew it needed to step up its game.
Horde 2.0 preserves the primary mode con- struct - you're still squaring off against 50 waves of baddies – but adds a currency system, boss fights, and elements of tower defense to the
Nar
ie
mix. By killing enemies and helping teammates, Players earn cash to spend on ammo, new weapons, reviving downed comrades, or a new array of defensive deployments.
These new tools, which include barriers, manned turrets, sentry guns, and decoys, each have four tiers of upgrades. For instance, the first-level barrier is a spiked wall. If you upgrade it to the top tier it becomes a devastating laser fence. Mother Theresa types can also gift money if a mate is running low on cash and ammo, and strongly organized teams can pool their resources to acquire the more expensive, desirable toys like the Silverback, a mech armed with dual chainguns and rocket launchers.
If you find yourself short on cash, pay attention to the special challenges, which occur every fourth wave. Completing these team-based secondary objectives earns you a nice cash bonus that can reinvigorate your team, but they won't be easy to accomplish given their criteria. This could range from killing every enemy with. headshots to dispatching a certain amount of Locusts with chainsaws.
The added firepower and defensive armaments available for purchase come in especially handy every tenth wave, when menacing bosses like Brumaks and Beserkers join the normal group of headstrong Locusts. Fighting off the gigantic beasts and a horde of enemies at the same time takes savvy defensive coordination.
Epic knows many gamers spent the bulk of their Gears time in Horde mode, and when you're logging in long hours sometimes a change of pace is appreciated. With the new Mutators, players in private matches can have fun with the experience by adding wacky variables like big head mode or a television audience-style laugh track to the action.
Looking at the breadth of the Gears of War 3 package, no one can claim Epic was resting on its laurels during the game's two-and-a-half-year development cycle. We have all the information about the game you could possibly want. Now all that's left to do is jump into the fray on September 20. » Matt 2
» I n Xbox 360 » Style
1 to 4-Player Shooter (10-Player Online)
»P ег
Microsoft Game Studios
» Di p Epic Games » Release
September 20
previews. £3.HOT 50 75
76
PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 • PC
» 1 to 4-Player Shooter (10-Player Online) Ubisoft
»
Gearbox Software
2012
previews
rothers in Arms: F
he Brothers in Arms series isn't known
for braggadocio, humor, or arcade-like action, but when Ubisoft asked Gearbox Software to breathe new life into the series, the studio unflinchingly abandoned the tacti- cal combat and somber tale of 101st Airborne soldier Matt Baker in favor of four-player co-op with an absurdist bent. Mix the playful action of Bulletstorm, the XP addiction of Borderlands, and the irreverent tone of Inglourious Basterds, and you have a good idea of what to expect from this alternate universe Brothers in Arms.
"Furious 4 is a different kind of war game," said Gearbox creative director Mikey Neumann during an ЕЗ demo. "It's about the stories between soldiers — the legends, the tall tales." Like Quentin Tarantino's award-winning World War II film, the game sets aside the grim reality of war in favor or a far-fetched yarn where an ultra- violent group of soldiers hunt down Adolf Hitler.
Four players can experience the campaign together online or in split screen, and like Borderlands, each of the four soldiers brings something unique to the table. The towering lum- berjack-turned-Nazi-slayer Montana lugs around а chaingun, the wily Texan Crockett brands his victims with a cattle iron, the mentally unstable Irishman Stitch uses a homemade taser, and the Native American Chok prefers to take out his enemies by lodging hatchets in their skulls.
The ЕЗ demo joins the ragtag group as they infiltrate a German town where the Nazis are celebrating Oktoberfest. Rumors point to the Führer's attendance, so the heroes crash the boozefest to introduce themselves. The town is in full party mode, with carnival tents, a carousel, a Ferris wheel, and a large zeppelin stationed above the festivities.
When the band of brothers comes across a bar full of soldiers at the edge of town, they each take a breaching position outside the establish- ment. Once everyone is in position, the game triggers the ambush. The soldiers burst through the door and start emptying their clips into any- thing that moves – no fancy tactics here. As in Bulletstorm, alerts flash across the screen when players score double kills or other small feats, and XP tallies as they rack up a bodycount.
Players can spend this XP on new weapons, perks, and makeshift gadgets. If the weapons | saw during the E3 demo are a good indicator, Furious 4 features a more playful arsenal than your standard WWII shooter. The four Allies bran- dish several entertaining weapons in the ensuing bloodbath, including a flamethrower, chainsaw, and a bear trap armed with a grenade.
As the group moves through the town, they stumble upon an even bigger beer hall. Rather than knock politely, the Furious 4 commandeer a Nazi vehicle and crash through the front door in glorious Hollywood fashion, downing surprised Germans before they have time to put down their beer steins in a stylish slow-motion shoot- ing sequence. The battle eventually spills outside again and increases in magnitude when the Nazis break out the big guns - jetpack-wearing SS soldiers armed with rocket launchers, an attack chopper, and a massive miniboss armed with a chaingun protruding from a giant metal shield. The demo comes to a spectacular finish when the gang takes down the chopper, which crashes violently into the Ferris wheel and brings it tumbling down.
When Ubisoft announced Brothers In Arms: Furious 4 at its E3 press conference, | admit | groaned at the derivative premise, but after
urious 4
| | | | | | | | | |
When Ubisoft announced the bold new direction for Brothers in Arms, many fans wondered why Gearbox abandoned the strat- egy-centric philosophy and dedication to realism that steered the World War II series to this point. Though there is no timetable for the next game, Gearbox assured us that it still plans to return to the story of Staff Sergeant Matt Baker of the 101st Airborne
in the future.
seeing the game in action I’m on board with
the lighthearted shooter. The combat looks pol- ished, the four-player co-op campaign is a major draw, and the deep leveling system should keep people coming back. If the 10-player multiplayer brings some new ideas to the table as well, this bubblegum shooter could be one of the surprise hits in 2012. »
welcom
Rayman Origins
1 and friends continu
ight years after the limbless hero's last tra- ditional console appearance in Hoodlum PlayStation 3
Havoc, Rayman reclaims the spotlight usurped Xbox 360 by the wily Rabbids for an origin story packed » with the franchise's most memorable characters. 1 to 4-Player Under the direction of Rayman creator Michel Platformer Ancel, Origins is a colorful platformer boasting hand-drawn aesthetics that brings concept art Ubisoft to life. »
In a hands-on demo, | take control of Globox Ubisoft Montpellier while my other two companions assume the ó roles of Rayman and Teensy (up to four players Holiday can join in, but you're welcome to go at it alone). Once we give the accessible controls a quick test run, the three of us hop into a portal to kick off our adventure. An athletic level puts our heroes in pursuit of a mobile treasure chest, and we break into a speed run to catch the Swift chest while taking calculated hops across platforms, avoiding spikes and other hazards along the way. We eventually encounter a Tetris- inspired sequence (complete with the classic tune) where blocks of different shapes drop down to create a path across a dangerous pit. We find ourselves in a hellish kitchen as we avoid hot lava and climb past vines lined with chili peppers to inch closer to our target. The next sequence places us underwater where we quickly swim to collect the newly designed Lums while being pursued by a large, prickly enemy. | was constantly surprised with the excellent, unpredictable level design that kept me on my toes.
Whenever our heroes fall into harm's way, they temporarily turn into balloons and float through the stage (under your control), which makes it easier to reach the end of a level if your platform- ing skills need some work. If the rest of your buddies fall into this state, everyone starts over from the last checkpoint. If you're feeling mali cious, you're free to nudge your friends toward their doom — just don't walk right into an enemy projectile as the last man standing or you'll set your entire team back. These multiplayer features will either help strengthen friendships or tear them apart when the gorgeous platformer hits Lp
retail this holiday. à
previews TE
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 * PC
» Style 1-Player Action (2-Player Online) » Publisher THQ
» Developer Volition
» Release November 15
78 ЕЗ HOT SU previews
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V,
This ridiculous vehicle lets you suck up pedestrians and launch them out ofa cannon conie:
Saints Row: The Third
Volition continues to impress with the Saints' latest showing
hen we visited Volition for our Saints
Row: The Third cover story earlier this year, it was evident that the franchise is moving in a direction that distinctly separates it from other games in the open-world genre, thanks in no small part to its wicked sense of humor and disregard for realism or decency. What | saw at ЕЗ further enforced my feeling that Saints Row: The Third will be one of the most entertaining games of this holiday season, even amidst more straight-faced, heavy-hitting franchises.
> | Wi
Disguising yourself as a member of your own gang during a bank robbery probably isn’t the best plan.
s.
The Saints are moving to the city of Steelport in this new game, and the demo mission kicks off the series of events that lead them there. Donning gigantic Johnny Gat bobblehead masks, the gang attempts a risky bank robbery in their old stomping grounds of Stilwater. Bursting in with guns blazing, the gang is confronted by an army of security guards and eventually SWAT teams. While taking human shields and indiscriminately firing grenade launchers at everything that moves, the gang makes its way upstairs to the bank's vault.
Helicopters rain minigun fire into the building as they drop waves and waves of additional police into the bank. After taking out several dozen officers, it becomes apparent their bold plan involves airlifting the bank's vault straight out of the ceiling with their own helicopter. Your character breaks inside the vault and tries to hold onto steady ground as the chopper lifts the structure and all of its valuables into the sky. Stilwater's police haven't given up yet, so you have to blast away while trying to keep your footing. When all is said and done, the odds are stacked against the Saints and your character is taken captive by police. This single mission in Stilwater is what eventually causes the boys in purple to move to Steelport. After an even more ridiculous mission involving a mid-air gun battle (detailed in our April cover story), you land in the new city and call on the rest of your gang. to migrate.
After the bank mission concluded, senior pro- ducer Greg Donovan took the controls and gave me a glimpse of the open-world havoc you can wreak in Steelport. Sure to satisfy anyone with.
a juvenile sense of humor, every single weapon comes equipped with its own specific animation for melee strikes to the groin. In addition, a wide variety of animations can be triggered by sprint- ing at an enemy or pedestrian and hitting the melee button. One features the player character sprinting up to an old woman, jumping in the air, slamming her head into the pavement, and then propping himself up on the sidewalk like he was posing for a photo shoot.
After torturing the groins of dozens of Steelport citizens, Donovan spawned the VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) aircraft. This menacing vehicle resembles a Warhawk, and it can switch from hover mode to jet mode with the press of a button. With its built-in missile launchers and laser beam, players should have no problem get- ting into trouble with this dangerous new aircraft.
Many elements of Saints Row: The Third resemble a less cartoony and more violent version of Looney Tunes. Volition started separating the franchise from the rest of the open-world crime genre with Saints Row 2, but this year's installment looks to be the most unique and hilarious yet. » Dan Ryckert
Far Cry 3
ar Cry 3 was easily Ubisoft's biggest
surprise at E3 — not just the fact that it exists, but that it appears to be such a depar- ture from the last game. Returning to a tropical island setting similar to that from the original Far Cry, players take on the role of Jason Brody, a man whose boat has crashed on a lush locale full of inhabitants who seem to have gone crazy.
As the first demo for the game kicks off, Brody is on a ledge overlooking the island, stealthily taking pictures as some armed baddies ruthlessly beat and murder innocents in the distance. No sooner has Brody snapped a few Shots than he is disrupted and knocked out.
When Brody returns to consciousness, he is staring into the terrifying face of a man named Vaas who recounts the definition of insanity: "Doing the exact same f--king thing over and over again expecting $--- to change." This thug may be foul-mouthed, but he has a creepy eloquence that reminds me of Far Cry 2's antagonist, the Jackal.
He's also dangerous. After another half-minute of talking about what it means to be crazy, he informs Brody, “I don't like the way you are looking at me," and throws his chair. Players can make Brody struggle with the rope binding his hands, but otherwise they are stuck watching and waiting during this tense monologue.
Vaas finally snaps entirely, claiming that he has "already killed you once" and throwing Brody hundreds of feet down into a body of water with а block of concrete attached to his foot. After much struggling, Brody escapes and swims up past a disturbing scene of multiple other bodies left floating in this way. Clearly he's not the only one who has angered Vaas recently.
Brody swims out past a waterfall, using the
sound of the water to mask the noise as he kills a patrolling guard. Here's where the differences between Far Cry 2 and 3 start sticking out. For one, the bottom left corner of the screen features a large map, useful for navigation but a noticeable change from the nearly HUD-less nature of the last game.
If that's not enough to pull you out of the experience somewhat, | also notice a big “+10” flash across the screen when Brody kills the guard, just like you see when killing someone in Call of Duty multiplayer. While Ubisoft won't spill many details, they confirmed that Far Cry 3 has a leveling system that allows players to develop the character and build skills. This new system has potential, but I’m surprised at how big of a change it is from Far Cry 2. Then again, the sequel was a huge departure from the original as well, so maybe that's the calling card of this franchise.
Brody can search the bodies of fallen foes for money and ammo, and any weapons that he can pick up flash yellow on the ground. Ubisoft representatives tell me that the island is fairly wide open for players to explore, but the rest of ihe demo is more or less a straight shot. Brody runs forward until he hears a helicopter and
decides that could be his ticket off the island.
Brody leaps down off a ledge, driving his knife right into the heart of a guard waiting below — plus 15 points. Then he sneaks over to another nearby guard, steals the knife that hangs from that guard's side, and stabs him with it — plus 10 points. As he gets closer to the helicopter, Brody gives up stealth and starts shooting up Vaas" henchmen with a machine gun – plus 15 points each for the first two headshots and plus 10 for a body kill.
As numbers and bullets fly around him, Brody makes it to the helicopter. He puts a gun to the pilot's head, demanding that he fly. They nearly escape...but someone on the ground has a rocket launcher and brings the helicopter down.
Brody passes out once more and once again wakes up to Vaas' crazed expression as the demo ends.
The constant back-and-forth between the tense stealth action and the RPG elements provides а strange juxtaposition. It's possible that they won't feel as immersion-shattering once | get my hands on the game. It's also possible the big floating numbers will be toned down in the end - this E3 demo was a very early look at the game, which isn't due out until 2012. However that portion of the gameplay ends up developing, I'm intrigued by Far Cry 3's mysterious island and crazy enemies, and I'm looking forward to discovering the definition of insanity for myself as | explore the game further. »
» PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 + PC
»
1-Player Shooter (Multiplayer TBA)
Ubisoft
»
Ubisoft Montreal/ Ubisoft Massive/
Ubisoft Shanghai »
2012
Previews 79
Bastion
A chance to create your own story
» Platform Xbox 360 » Style 1-Player Action/Role-Playing » Publisher Warner Bros. Interactive » Developer Supergiant Games » Release Summer
arely do downloadable games
make a big splash at E3, but with the style and charm that Supergiant Games has infused into its quirky RPG, Bastion proved impossible to ignore.
Bastion's dynamic spoken narrative.
fills us in on the backstory as we explore the game's early levels, integrating our actions and on-screen events seamlessly into the story. The gravelly voiced narrator describes enemies as they appear, the weapons we pick, and the objects we smash up along the way. When we accidentally roll off the edge of a nearby
cliff, the disembodied voice says “...and then he falls to his death" without missing a beat. The malleable narrative made us feel like active participants in the story, not just observers. Thanks to tight controls and a fast-paced mix of melee and projectile-based combat, Bastion is a
lot of fun to play, too.
The best news is that unlike most of the games on our Top 50 list, you won't have to wait long to play Bastion. The game will be released in late July/early August. as part of Microsoft's Summer of Arcade promotion. » Jeff Marchiafava
Vehicular combat makes an exciting return to form
» Platform PlayStation 3 » Style 1 to 4-Player Action (16-Player Online) » Publisher Sony Computer Entertainment » Developer Eat Sleep Play » Release October 4
ith its big return set for October,
| couldn't wait to get my hands on Twisted Metal on the ЕЗ show floor. | checked out a massive boss fight and a good old-fashioned challenge match, and walked away more excited than ever about Eat Sleep Play's vehicular combat comeback.
Three boss fights pop up throughout ihe game's campaign, and | took a look at one called Iron Maiden. She's a monstrous robotic doll keen on showering you with explosive projectiles as you careen down
80 E3 HOT 50 previews
amountain path. You have to stay close to her during the chase, which is followed by a fight at a bridge she crashes through. There aren’t many large-scale boss fights in the series outside of Dark Tooth and Warhawk, so it’s nice to see a designed enemy encounter on this scale.
Boss fights aren't the only impressive aspect of this reboot. Everything l've seen — from challenge mode to the easily acces- sible energy attacks ~ points to this entry standing alongside TM 2 and Black as one. of the best in the franchise. » Dan Ryckert
Final Fantasy XIll-2
Five big changes for the sequel
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360
» Style 1-Player Role-Playing » Publisher Square Enix » Developer Square Enix » Release January
=“ Fantasy XIII may be а divisive game in the series, but it still achieved enough success to spark a direct sequel — a distinction previously held only by Final Fantasy X. We had an exclusive blowout of Final Fantasy XIII-2 in our last issue (complete with hands-on impressions), but after spending additional time with the game at ЕЗ, five major changes stand out as the things that FF XIII fans need to know.
Less Linearity
The loudest criticism from FF XIII was the lack of player freedom when it came to exploring the world and advancing the story. The development team is acutely aware of this issue, adding more branching paths to the environments and allowing players to proceed at their own pace.
Unstable Rifts
These puzzle sequences occur in isolated areas that players warp to while exploring dungeons. In the rifts, players collect crystals floating on increasingly complex paths of red tiles. Each tile can only be stepped оп once before disappearing, so you'll have to plan your route carefully.
Button-Press Events
Instead of just watching cutscenes, now you'll have chances to participate by following on-screen prompts and pressing buttons during certain action sequences. Chasing after overused action game mechanics seems like an odd move for Final Fantasy, but we'll see how it all plays out in the finished product.
Monster Allies
Certain enemies now join you permanently, and can
be rotated into battle to act as party members. These monsters are obtained as post-encounter drops after you. beat them, and in combat they use their special abilities to fill roles in your paradigms (like ravager or sentinel).
Multiple Endings
While this sequel is still focused on telling a story, you'll have the opportunity to influence the conclusion. This isn't like the hidden endings of Final Fantasy X-2, where you need to attain a certain completion percentage to see the whole story; choice will determine which ending players receive. » Joe Juba
Ме didn't run into these mutants during our demo, but we're guessing that shooting them in their glowing bubbly areas i
If you're lucky, Rage’s different factions will occasionally fight sc lb dn each other, allowing: yon to sit back and watch the сапада
L year's E3 demo of Rage took players out of the tight corridors id shooters are known for and placed them in the expansive wasteland of the game's post-apocalyptic set- ting. This year | went on a daring rescue mission in the claustrophobic hallways of an Authority prison, proving that the developer is still the king of close-quarter encounters and tight gunplay.
My objective was to break an ally out of the prison for undisclosed reasons, but as the level starts I’m less concerned with the particulars of the mission and more focused on the throngs of Authority soldiers trying to kill me. Unlike the wasteland's melee-focused mutants, members of the Authority pack formidable equipment, including body armor, bulletproof helmets (which thankfully have a penchant for flying off when shot), and electric shields.
As | make my way deeper into the decrepit facility, | see more diverse behavior from my new foes. Some take cover and duck out to fire in controlled bursts, while others form up behind shielded guards and methodically approach my position. | run low on ammo before long, requiring a hasty retreat into an adjacent hallway. Thankfully, | have a multitude of Rage's quick-use items at my disposal. | use my EMP grenades to disable the enemies’ shields and shut down the prison’s laser gates, and place an automated turret in front of a doorway to help fend off trailing soldiers. My favorite technique is using the spider-like sentry bots to draw the attention of guards, allowing me precious opportunities to flank them and attack from the sides. Most of my foes didn’t even know what hit them.
As | approach my jailed ally, | take advantage of an environmental trap to dispatch two patrol- ling guards. A quick flip of a switch releases some bloodthirsty mutants incarcerated nearby, and completing my objective is just a matter of watching the ensuing chaos and finishing off the survivors. The demo ends with a wave of Authority soldiers ambushing me and my newly liberated friend, but my time with the game was nonetheless reassuring. Unlike the sterile corri- dors of id’s old shooters, the interiors | saw were awash in unique details, and as fun to explore as Rage's wide open vistas. » Jeff Marchiafava
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 * PC
» Style
1 or 2-Player Shooter (6-Player Online)
» Publisher Bethesda Softworks
» Developer id Software
» Release September 13
Metro: Last Light
A light at the end of the tunnel
» Platform PlayStation З * Xbox 360+ Wii U + PC » Style 1-Player Shooter (Multiplayer TBA) » Publisher THQ » Developer 4A Games » Release 2012
ast year's Metro 2033 was a solid if
divisive shooter based on a popular Russian novel by Dmitry Glukhovsky. Its. upcoming sequel, Metro: Last Light, was originally pegged to follow the story of the book’s follow-up, Metro 2034. However, the team at 4A Games chose to head down a different path. Where the novel Metro 2033 features plenty of action, world-building, and other stuff that works in games, Metro 2034 is a more offbeat narrative that would be much harder to
translate to gameplay.
Instead of being a slave to its source material, Last Light’s independence should help improve on the areas where 2033 struggled. | witnessed one section
Гат convinced of developer 4A
guide it. » Phil Kollar
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360
» Style 1 to 4-Player Sports (22-Player Online)
» Publisher BA Sports
» Developer EA Canada
» Release Fall
FIFA 12
A new physics engine takes EA footie to the next level
A Sports’ soccer series has enjoyed ап
impressive run over the last couple years, but as with any sports title on the yearly cycle, the rough edges often robbed the experiences of their sense of realism.
For FIFA 11, the roughest edge was the atro- cious clipping that occasionally occurred during tackles. Players were immediately yanked from the fantasy when player arms morphed through bodies as the flesh of two players merged while fighting for possession. FIFA 12’s new player impact engine attempts to eliminate these unsightly problems. As | played a pre-alpha build of the game at E3, | witnessed natural knee-on- knee collisions, forceful tackles with realistic outcomes, and physical on-ball defensive
of the game where protagonist Artyom works his way up a series of train cars, taking out waves of enemies. Though it was hard to tell without going hands-on, gunplay seemed more responsive, and weapons seemed more powerful than last time around. That feeling was aided by the destructive environments that allow Artyom and his opponents to blow up sources of cover around the battlefield.
Games’ commitment to addressing the concerns some gamers had with 2033. Now, | just need to be certain that the studio can maintain the fascinating world that drew me in without a book to
small screen
ith the first two entries of the
on par with its console brethren.
d À m d e dius
encounters determined by a combination of the players' size, strength, and skill. The variation of these animations was impressive, and | wouldn't be surprised to see it become the new bench- mark for sports animation systems when the game releases.
Another area that needed major improvement was the dribbling. In previous FIFA games, the players could dribble in 360 degrees, but they looked foolish when changing directions quickly because they always kicked the ball too far in front of themselves. FIFA 12's new precision dribbling mechanics gives you more control in tight spaces, eliminating this hassle by keeping the ball much closer to your player. With skilled possession players like Lionel Messi, you can toy with lesser defenders by using your player's body to shield the ball from them and stringing
Uncharted:
Nathan Drake makes an impressive jump to the
Uncharted franchise, Naughty Dog delivered gameplay experiences compa- rable to big-budget blockbuster films that showcased the PlayStation 3's power. Sony Bend is taking the reins as Nathan Drake makes the jump to handhelds for Uncharted: Golden Abyss, a prequel to the original Uncharted that already looks like it's delivering a cinematic experience
Sony Bend, the team behind Resistance: Retribution on PSP, is making full use of the Vita's capabilities to deliver a faithful entry in the Uncharted series. One feature of note is the clever use of the handheld's
Golden Abyss
» Platform Vita » Style 1-Player Action » Publisher Sony Computer Entertainment
» Developer Sony Bend » Release 2012
touch screen, which can be used while climbing to tap on your destination, prompting our favorite treasure hunter to automatically traverse the dangerous path. Standard controls that put your platform- ing skills to the test are still an option as. well. Cover-based combat mechanics in Golden Abyss remain largely the same as its predecessors, and even with the. absence of L2 and R2 buttons, Uncharted fans should get acclimated quickly. Golden Abyss has been a great asset for Sony to showcase the Vita's capabili- ties, and it could be a real system-seller. » Annette Gonzalez
D
IA UE dea "M
i ER CREDAM together quick dribbling moves that leave them eating grass.
FIFA is starting to capture the unpredictability of the sport by integrating the new dribbling system in tandem with a revamped defensive system, eliminating the do-it-all defend button that magically magnetized your back to his mark. By forcing defenders to manually tackle instead of relying on the pressure button, suddenly natural odd-man rushes develop and defenses stretch enough to allow the occasional offensive flourish. After playing two games, ! practically: forgot about my normal, predictable strategy of attacking down the wings and swinging a cross into the middle of the goal box.
Taken together, these new gameplay features have FIFA 12 primed for a run for the top of the tables. » Matt Bertz
» Platform Xbox 360 » Si 1 or 2-Player Racing (16-Player Online)
hen the Forza Motorsport series first
debuted on the original Xbox, the goal was to match the sim-based fidelity set by the Gran Turismo franchise. Now that the team over at Turn 10 Studios has met that challenge, it’s looking for other ways to differentiate itself. Perhaps Kinect is the answer.
Forza 4 lets you race via Kinect in the one-off Quick Race mode (using auto gas/brake), but that’s not how Forza 4 best uses the motion peripheral. я Autovista is a new mode that makes use of Kinect FRONT e in a car showroom setting to highlight the features CAN RAISE Т а. of a select number of cars. You can use Kinect to $^ walk around them, get inside the cockpit, and even turn the ignition using hand gestures (although you can also navigate using the d-pad). Detailed infor- mation is available if you look under the hood or point out specific areas of the vehicle, and you can also hear about the car in witty blurbs written and narrated by Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson. Finally, out on the track you can use Kinect to move the car's camera to look around you as you race.
For the game's career mode, the calendar system in Forza 3 is being scrapped in favor of a globetrot- ting World Tour mode with new tracks. Microsoft says that even though the calendar is gone, you'll Still have choices to make during your career (including what car you get when you win a race series), and the mode adds new racing types like drift and multiple-heat races to the normal circuit runs. Along the way you'll run into adaptive oppo- nent Al that will try and match difficulty and car upgrades to test your skills.
It wouldn't be a Forza game without features to excite the online community, and Turn 10 is now offering car clubs in Forza 4 complete with shared garages and rivalry status. Whether you're into online racing and sharing your custom-created livery, the new Kinect features, or traveling the globe to be the best racer in the world, Forza 4 aims to be everything to every sim-racing fan out there. » Matthew Kato
» Publishe Microsoft Game Studios
» Develo Turn 10 Studios
»
October 11
83
previews. E
» Platform Wii
» Style
1 to 4-Player Platforming » Publisher Nintendo
» Developer HAL Laboratory
» Release Fall
Kirby Wii
Nintendo’s most adorable character sucks harder than ever
hough Nintendo bafflingly left it out of
its press conference, the follow-up to last year’s excellent Kirby’s Epic Yarn was on display at E3, and it’s looking just as adorable and fun. The art style and gameplay hark back to a much more traditional Kirby style, but the number of possible co-op players has been upped to four.
This time around, each extra partner controls a unique character rather than a scowling Kirby clone. For reasons that remain unclear, Kirby is teaming up with old foes such as Meta Knight and King Dedede on this adventure, and co-op players stepping into those characters’ shoes will have their own weapons and their own unique feel.
As for Kirby himself, he’s back to his classic,
endlessly voracious, pink puffball form, which means sucking enemies into his absurdly large mouth rather than just untangling them. As in the underrated SNES game Kirby Super Star, he can swallow enemies he's sucked up in order to steal their abilities. | didn't notice any abilities | had never seen in a Kirby game before, but fan favorites such as fire, eye beam, and boomerang are all present.
Extra-large, ultra-powered enemies provide a twist on the recognizable formula. In order to swallow these foes (or anything else larger than usual), Kirby performs a super-sucking move that's accomplished by shaking the Wii remote as he's inhaling.
Devouring an ultra-powered enemy is the equivalent of getting an invincibility star in Mario,
but cooler – Kirby becomes untouchable for a short period of time and gains an exaggerated version of the enemy’s abilities. For example, | swallow a sword-using foe and transform into a giant Kirby swinging an oversized blade that would look at home on a Final Fantasy character. The weapon not only wipes out enemies with ease, it also destroys parts of the environment. Kirby Wii is shaping up to be an excellent late-life Wii release that continues one of the few inarguably positive trends the system had: a return to fantastic 2D platforming titles from the publisher that perfected the style decades ago. Nintendo might be more or less ignor- ing this game, but | won’t when it comes out this fall. » Phil Kollar
» Platform
PC
» Style
1-Player Action/MMO » Publisher
En Masse
» Developer Bluehole Studio
» Release 2011
84 ЕЗ HOT 50 previews.”
Тега
Politics and action-oriented combat differentiate this fantasy ММО
ttakes a lot to sell me on a Korean MMORPG
these days. The hands-on time | had with Tera at ЕЗ this year accomplished it by pitting me and four others against an enormous boss in an action-packed melee - and long-awaited details on the game's player-driven political system sealed the deal.
Tera's combat takes inspiration from classic MMORPGs like EverQuest and World of Warcraft in that you activate skills from a hotbar and chain them together to perform devastating combos, but the addition of true positioning and dodging makes the gameplay much more immediate and involving. You don't select targets; you swing your sword (or launch your fireball) and damage
is done if your attack animation connects with an enemy's hitbox. Manual dodging and positioning is therefore a key component of battle in Tera – and | can assure you that it goes much further than *don't stand in the fire."
We knew that players could be elected to polit- ical office or fight their way through group-based PvP before, but En Masse went into more detail on the political system. The Vanarch (governor) of a province can set taxes, invite specialty NPC merchants to set up shop, and imprison opponents within his or her domain. However, Vanarchs need policy points to not get kicked out of office. These are gained when other play- ers in your province voluntarily give them to
you if they think you're doing a good job, or by completing difficult max-level quests. I’m hopeful that the emergent gameplay around the title of Vanarch (and the yet-to-be-detailed continent- ruling Exarch position) creates a rich setting to adventure in.
Tera looks amazing, but | was impressed by the tight gameplay and intriguing politi- cal system much more than by the pretty: art style. If everything goes right, this could be a great mix between World of Warcraft's rigid content and Eve's cutthroat player- driven world. » Adam Biessener
Luigi's Mansion 2
Bustin' makes me feel green
f you recognize Next Level Games as the
developer that recently revived Nintendo's long-dormant Punch-Out!! franchise on the Wii, then you probably already understand the studio's modus operandi for bringing an unex- pected sequel to this oft-ignored GameCube launch title. Luigi's Mansion 2 remains faithful to the original game while building on that founda- tion to draw in new 3DS owners.
The core gameplay consists of exploring vari- ous haunted mansions — despite the title, there are several locations — and cleansing them of
Lud 109 oF ui
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their spectral inhabitants with а paranormal vacuum cleaner. The top screen features the spooky game world in hair-curling full 3D, while the bottom screen has a map and HUD. The vacuum is controlled with the shoulder buttons, one of which sucks ghosts and other objects in, while the other pushes them away.
In the first mansion, | guide Luigi into the garage, collecting bits of money (in the form of traditional Mario coins as well as paper bills and gold bars) and sucking up cobwebs along the way. | open a treasure chest containing a key to unlock a door further in the mansion. Before | can exit, the door seals shut with some otherworldly force, and a ghost pops up in the seat of the old automobile nearby, causing. Luigi to jump with fright.
Ghost wrangling is handled nearly identically to the first Luigi's Mansion. The ever-less- popular brother must first stun ghosts by flashing them with his light. Then he sucks them in with his vacuum pack. The
ghosts will attempt to escape, dragging Luigi around the room. Pulling the stick in the opposite direction that the supernatural foes pull Luigi will lower the ghosts' health until they are sucked away for good.
Ghosts are color-coded based on their strength and how long it takes to put them away. The earliest ghosts | face are green, with only 10 health points to drain away, while later in the mansion | bump into a red ghost sporting a more threatening 30 health points. Future enemies that I didn’t encounter in the demo will prove even more crafty, attacking Luigi from afar by tossing books and other objects at the hapless plumber. The trailer even briefly shows off a mummy encounter that should prove harrowing (for Luigi, at least).
With each room of the mansion serving as puzzle, complete with enemy encounters and treasure chest rewards, my brief time with Luigi’s Mansion 2 vaguely reminded me of another classic Nintendo franchise: Zelda. Each enemy has a perfect pattern for you to memorize, and each area is full of secrets for true explorers to uncover. From what I’ve seen, this is classic Nintendo game design at its finest. » Phil Kollar
» Platform 3DS
» Style 1-Player Action
» Publisher Nintendo
» Developer Next Level Games
» Release 2012
previews. E3 HOT SO 85
sound Shapes
Vita 1-Player Platformer
ound Shapes is the brainchild of
Jonathan Mak, the mastermind behind PSN classic Everyday Shooter. Even with the number of well-known franchises hitting Sony's Vita, this uncon- ventional musical platformer shouldn't slip under your radar.
Players control an adhesive, circular blob that rolls around the screen and sticks to walls and platforms. Though the mechan- ics are simple, the difficulty ramps up as more enemies and hazards — such as laser beams and rolling spikes — are introduced to each of the game's 30 levels. Even though Sound Shapes doesn't have a tra- ditional soundtrack, every enemy, obstacle, and collectible creates sound effects that
Sony Computer Entertainment Queasy Games ТВА
seamlessly blend together for an auditory experience that will get your foot tapping.
Most impressive are the easy-to-use level creation tools that fit right into Sony's "Play, Create, Share" mantra. Players use the Vita's touch panel to add platforms and collectibles with simple screen taps and drag-and-drop techniques. Hopping between creating and playtesting is seam- less, so you can ensure the final product is polished by the time you share it with friends online. The addition of user-gener- ated content should keep players platform- ing and head-bobbing after finishing the core campaign. »
Crimson Alliance
Torchlight Il
PC
Runic Games
olished indie dungeon crawler Torchlight was a huge hit on PC and later on Xbox Live Arcade. This sequel is only coming to PC - for now — but it has all the expanded content and improved gameplay systems you could ask for. Fans can even stop crow- ing about LAN support, which Runic offi- cially announced at ЕЗ this year.
Instead of being stuck in the linear Ember mine below the town of Torchlight, players wander the world around three hub cities in Torchlight Il. Overworld maps are speckled with dynamically generated quests and events, minor dungeons, mini
1-Player Action/RPG (8-Player Local or Online)
Runic Games 2011
bosses, and more. The critical path con- tains elaborate boss fights and questlines as well. Fans can look forward to fewer but more meaningful stats on items, more diverse effects for skills, and areas of effect on normal attacks depending on the weapon type. The hands-on playtime I had at E3 impressed me a great deal. This isn't an eight-figure budget, triple-A blockbuster like Diablo Ill. It is, however, a game from an experienced team who loves the genre and is making the game they want to make. l'Il take that any day of the week.
Xbox 360
1 to 4-Player Action/ RPG (4-Player Online)
Microsoft Game Studios Certain Affinity
Summer
hile huge titles like The Elder Scrolls V:
Skyrim and BioShock Infinite are practi- cally guaranteed to shine at E3, one of the most exciting parts of the show is discovering virtu- ally unheard-of downloadable titles that stand out. Crimson Alliance filled that spot this year. This action/RPG from Bungie spin-off Certain Affinity takes the loot-filled magic of titles like Diablo and Torchlight and mixes it with lessons learned from Zelda and (surprisingly) first-person shooters.
One of the key phrases for Crimson Alliance is “environmental interaction.” When | see a cluster of red barrels early in my demo, Certain Affinity president Max Hoberman shows me how my
character can run up, grab a barrel, carry it to
a group of enemies, and toss it into the middle, instantly killing half of the foes. Red barrels explode, while other varieties spawn a poison gas cloud that lasts for a set amount of time and injures anyone in its area (including allies). Heroes also have tools such as “monster bait” to help distract enemies and get them into groups.
The Zelda piece of the equation comes with the game's primary upgrade system. In addition to finding bigger and better pieces of armor and weapons, heroes stumble upon heart pieces. Collecting four heart pieces increases the health meter. While the main path through the game focuses solely on hack-and-slash combat,
Hoberman shows me one of the bonus side areas where players can solve simple, Zelda-lite puzzles to get extra gold and loot. In the puzzle I'm shown, one player must stand on a button to stop some spinning blades long enough for the other player to grab the treasure.
By stripping out RPG elements such as stat and ability selection and adding in co-op shooter features like partner revival, Certain Affinity's new game carves out a unique niche despite its famil- iar look. This isn't just yet another Diablo clone, which has me excited to pull together a band of co-op buddies to help me dungeon crawl when Crimson Alliance is released on Xbox Live Arcade later this summer.
Madden NFL 12
Is this the year Madden gets back on track?
44 fter its embarrassing debut on next-gen consoles, you can't deny that each version of Madden has improved this genera- tion. Though EA Tiburon has added gameplay features like gang tackling and a new motion engine, its demanding fan base (and the gamers spurned by the death of the 2K football fran- chise) have criticized the series for ignoring the franchise mode and legacy issues like suction blocking and balls clipping through defenders. +
Instead of focusing on new ideas to bring more non-hardcore gamers into the fold as it has the past few years, with Madden NFL 12 the developers are finally listening to the people who matter most — the hardcore fans who play fan- tasy football, own NFL Sunday Ticket, and even watch grown men run in shorts during the rookie combine. Given the popularity of the sport, that's a considerable pool to draw from. As one of these die-hards, this may be the most excited I've been for a Madden title since 2004.
Of all the new features introduced this year, my favorite is Dynamic Player Performance. One of the major problems EA has faced in previous installments is how to differentiate the play style of two athletes with similar ratings. The answer is this new system designed to bring true player tendencies to the forefront during gameplay. EA created 18 new traits with variable settings that help distinguish the various players in the league. For instance, the shaky gambler Jay Cutler is more likely to throw into double coverage than a seasoned pro like Peyton Manning, and mobile quarterbacks like Michael Vick will take off run- ning much earlier in the progression than a pocket passer.
Dynamic player performance applies to defense as well. Opportunistic defensive backs
like Ed Reed aggressively pursue the ball rather than sitting back in coverage, and defensive line- man are more likely to use the pass rush moves they employ in real life.
Some of these tendencies will fluctuate based on the cir- cumstances. For instance, the normally stoic Ben Roethlisberger, who demonstrates an uncanny level of comfort in the pocket, may start to get rid of the ball earlier if he's been sacked a few times. If an aggressive corner gets burned for a long touchdown, he may start to play more conservatively.
The franchise mode is also receiving a long-overdue revamp. This year's entry introduces oft- requested features like preseason roster cuts, a new draft scouting System, free agent bidding, revamped offsea- son team management Al logic, and the return of player roles. You can also trade future draft picks, practice without exiting to the main menu, and edit players within franchise mode.
On the field, the removal of suction blocking and momentum-based tackling were the two biggest things | noticed during my hands-on time at ЕЗ. In previous years | noticed that superstar defensive ends like Jared Allen rarely put up big numbers unless you played as them. | eventually stopped paying for good ends because | got the same production out of players with average rat- ings. The culprit was the atrocious suction block- ing that dominated the line of scrimmage. With this legacy issue gone in Madden 12, | noticed
the premier pass rushers terrorizing quarterbacks in the backfield as they should.
The defensive player awareness is also drasti- cally better than it was in previous years. The defensive backs and linebackers more consis- tently analyze their zone responsibilities, shading toward receivers who enter their assigned areas of defense. EA wasn't lying when it said that players can't exploit the flats as much as they did last year; in my experience, these areas are patrolled much more aggressively now.
If Tiburon can harmonize all of these long sought-after new features and gameplay mechanics, this could be the best Madden since the PS2 glory days. » Matt Негіз
30
Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360
Style 1 or 2-Player Sports (Multiplayer TBA)
Publisher EA Sports
Developer БА Tiburon
Release August 30
Previews MOT 50 87
Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 • PC Style
1-Player Action/RPG Publisher Electronic Arts Developer
Big Huge Games/ 38 Studios
» Release
2012
88 == HOT ^" previews
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
The Kingdom of Amalur widens its borders
y anticipation for Big Huge Games’ colorful,
open-world action/RPG grows each time I see it. While I've already had an extensive look at the awesome combat, the focus at ЕЗ was on the giant world the studio is building.
Reckoning executive designer Ken Rolston served as lead designer on The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, and like that series, Amalur is populated with various factions, each having a fleshed out storyline told through a series of sidequests. At E3, Big Huge Games showed off the Warsworn, a group of mercenaries that was once a devout religious order. The horrifying evil race that the Warsworn once wiped out has returned, so this faction's storyline takes them on a journey to rediscover their roots.
In order to have enough content to fill out these quests, Big Huge Games has crafted an astounding 120 dungeons. That number may induce fears of repeating environments along the lines of Oblivion (or even worse, Dragon Age Il), but the studio created some amazing tools that allow them to quickly and competently put together unique dungeons. If all goes as promised, even dungeons that share the same tileset should not have a copy-and-paste feel.
The world isn't the only wide-open aspect of Reckoning, though. It also contains an open-ended class system called destinies. Rather than choosing a class at the start of the game, you jump right in and the game molds your class around how you play. Depending on the stat and ability choices you make as you level up, you'll unlock destinies such as the melee-heavy Slayer, the magic-focused Shadowcaster, or the mixed rogue Wayfarer. Once a des- tiny is unlocked, you can switch it out at any time, upgrade it, and play around to your heart's content. The system should please casual players and stat-obsessed min/maxers alike.
If anything, I'm sad that I'll need to wait until Reckoning's planned early 2012 launch to jump into this increasingly intriguing world. If you're looking for the next big RPG worth playing after you rob Skyrim of all its treasures, keep an eye on Amalur. » Phil Kollar
Hitman: Absolution
A new chapter for Agent 47
he stealth kill icon Agent 47 is on the comeback trail and looking better than ever. While it didn't have the pre-E3 hype of games like Mass Effect 3 or BioShock: Infinite, Hitman: Absolution is quickly moving up my list of most anticipated games based on what | saw.
The demo opened with a shot of the Chicago skyline, with rain streaking on a window. Suddenly, Agent 47 crashes through the window with the police hot on his heels. Unarmed, he's going to have a hard time dispatching the hordes of cops searching for him. The setting is an abandoned library, a perfect location for stealth. As the cops spread out through the library, Agent 47 begins to stalk his prey, silently assessing the situation. In many ways, it's reminiscent of a setup in Batman: Arkham Asylum – a compari- son that came to mind a few times during the demo. Moving in and out of cover appeared very smooth — a simple tap of the X button takes you in and out of cover and quickly between gaps in cover.
Thanks to a new ability called "Instinct," 47 can peer through bookshelves and walls to see the position of enemies. They are shown in ghostly, night vision green, and light trails on the ground show you the exact path the enemy is treading. This makes it easier to avoid enemies or time your attacks. Much of the game proceeds like classic Hitman, with 47 using visual distractions to separate enemies from the pack. By pulling a fuse, the flickering lights send a hapless police officer back to fix it – which quickly ends his life.
During this extended stealth sequence, it was clear how the basic character movement has improved from past games in the series. Much like in the new Tomb Raider or the Uncharted series, the new, more agile 47 can easily climb up and down ledges to avoid detection and get the drop on a target. The demo starts with 47
unarmed, using various items in the environment like a power cord and a marble bust to take out foes. At one point, he even jumps up, hangs from a ledge, and pulls an enemy over the bal- cony ledge to his doom like in Assassin's Creed or Splinter Cell. Some of the close quarter kills are violent, like quickly tapping the circle button to choke the life out of a cop.
After picking off the isolated, weaker members of the pack, 47 realizes there are too many police officers to take down individually. At this point, he springs into action, taking a gun purloined from a fallen officer and grabbing another cop as a human shield. As he holds off a horde of police with guns drawn, slowly climbing a staircase,
47 makes his move, knocking out his human shield and bounding off with the police in chase. Climbing and running up a series of balconies, he shoots a chain and sends a chandelier crashing to the floor below. At the top, 47 bursts through a fire door and we see the Chicago skyline.
Once outside, Agent 47 jumps to a nearby building, now with a helicopter equipped with a spotlight and machine guns tracking his prog- ress through the top floor of the building. The extremely cinematic sequence calls to mind a Similar section in Uncharted 2. He survives this onslaught and makes it to the next building. Unfortunately, the helicopter is blocking his path across the roof. Opportunity knocks in the form of another patrolling officer.
Now it was time for a classic Hitman tactic: a disguise. Agent 47 takes the downed officer's coat and hat, and strolls right past the helicopter and its spotlight. The next building he enters is a hippie den, complete with marijuana plants, psychedelic posters, and blaring acid rock. The hippies are alerted that the police have sur- rounded the building and begin to try to flush the pot down the toilet. Two police officers enter the room and question the disguised 47 about
his identity — he responds by grabbing a nearby » Platform glass bong and braining the inquisitive cop. PlayStation 3
Agent 47 starts to play it cool, relying on his Xbox 360 + PC disguise. As he walks through the building, now” Style teeming with police, he slowly strolls by his pur- 1-Player Action suers. Here, we see another use of his Instinct Publisher abilities. Certain police officers he passes take Square Enix notice of him, prompting a brief second of slow Developer motion. In these instances, 47 reacts by pulling 10 Interactive down the brim of his hat or pretending to talk Blu into his clip-on walkie-talkie to avoid detection. 2012
At one point he even blends in by grabbing a quick donut. The demo ends with 47, still in dis- guise, riding the building's elevator down. Cutting between 47 and the police waiting for him downstairs, tension builds. | was half expecting a shootout to happen when the doors opened, but 47 breezed past the remaining police with calm precision. Walking out on a Chicago street scene crawling with hundreds of fully animated NPCs, the camera panned up...Agent 47 was gone, lost in the city.
It was an impressive demo. The controls looked very smooth and – even more impor- tantly – the dodgy enemy Al that has plagued the franchise seemed to be much improved.
The game runs on IO Interactive's new Glacier 2 engine, which performed admirably. Finally, Hitman seems to have state-of-the-art tech that can stand beside the industry standards. I've always liked this franchise, but often it seemed like an amazing concept plagued by spotty execution.
Hopefully, Absolution can establish Hitman as a true triple-A franchise. It's important not to read too much in to a good demo - let's not forget IO's struggles with the Kane & Lynch franchise in recent years — but so far Hitman: Absolution looks like a promising reboot. » Matt Helgeson
previews Тот 50 89
» Рі; m PlayStation 3
» Style 1-Рауег Shooter (16-Player Online) LJ r Sony Computer Entertainment » Developer Insomniac
»R e
September 6
Resistance 3
)uts
ast time we checked in with Resistance 3, Geum we took part in a harrowing journey down the Mississippi and went a few rounds in multiplayer. This time Insomniac showed off а new battle through a ravaged city to recover a valuable power source during Sony's E3 press conference.
Resistance 3 creative director Marcus Smith took control of Joe Capelli during an ambush on a Chimera convoy moving down the war-ravaged streets. Capelli and his fellow survivors work in tandem to gun down a Chimeran dropship. The vessel contains a powercore, the energy source needed in many of the post-apocalyptic world’s jury-rigged vehicles. After the ship crashes to
the ground, Chimeran soldiers jump on top of bombed-out cars and fire down on Capelli and his crew. Bad goes to worse when a pack of scanner drones descend, covering the aliens in a golden light that makes them invulnerable. Capelli reprioritizes, taking out the drones then dispatching the vulnerable Chimera.
The Chimera’s numbers increase, calling for more drastic measures. Capelli produces a grenade launcher and blasts a projectile into the middle of the road. Lightning crackles as a black void emerges and hovers above the street. Cans, newspapers, and other debris swirl around the vortex as it grows stronger — even ‘ап immolated Chimera succumbs to the deadly spiral. Two Chimera emerge from a nearby alleyway as dual rays of light extend from the void to intercept them. The immobilized enemies fall to the ground and evaporate into clouds of red mist. This deadly new tool is evidence that Insomniac’s heritage of insane weaponry is con- tinuing in full force.
Smith then jumps ahead in the game, when Capelli obtains the powercore. Capelli must
escape a series of decrepit buildings with the coveted energy source. To make matters worse, Capelli's arms are occupied by the powercore, leaving him unable to wield weapons. The hero relies on his teammates as they attempt to evade a tremendous Widowmaker sniffing them out. An agile Long Legs Chimera leaps in front of Capelli, prompting an ally to take out the foe with a swift melee attack. The same friend creates a path through the ruined building by firing at explosive orange plant life. Capelli and his partner make their way through dilapidated bathrooms and living rooms, struggling to find sanctuary. The demo ends as the Widowmaker crashes through a wall, stopping Capelli in his tracks.
Resistance 3 is shaping up to be the best entry in Insomniac's visceral FPS series yet. The pol- ished controls, inventive weaponry, larger-than- life moments, and immersive multiplayer make up a winning combination. If the final product boasts the quality we've seen in these previews so far, Joe Capelli's dire adventure should stand out from the hordes of other shooters. » Tim Turi
jowercore
apcom reinvented the Resident Evil
brand with the series' fourth install- ment. Resident Evil 4 implemented a slick new way to shoot undead creatures in the head with over-the-shoulder, third-person gunplay that set a new standard. As the series shifted towards ludicrous boulder-punching action with Resident Evil 5, fans began wondering if they'd ever see another atmospheric, puzzle-filled, sur- vival-focused entry again. Now that I’ve gotten a chance to play Resident Evil: Revelations on the 305, I can confirm that a throwback bridging the gap between RE 4 and RE 5 is on the way.
The ЕЗ 2011 demo І played begins with Jill Valentine waking up on a dusty bed in a lavishly decorated bedroom evocative of the infamous Raccoon City mansion. The door to the room is locked via a control panel, and a secured plate guards the opening mechanism. Jill begins to hunt for a screwdriver. In a nod to the first Resident Evil, she finds the tool by draining a bathtub filled with dirty water. On her way back to the door, something bursts from a wardrobe: a tall, ghastly creature with long, spiked club-like arms. The bizarre beast is reminiscent of the terrifying iron maidens from Resident Evil 4. Аз it shambles toward her, Jill draws her handgun, which zooms the camera into first-person, allow- ing players to line up the laser sight using the SDS' circle pad. Shooting is similar to recent
Resident Evil games: smooth and reliable, but with the ability to strafe. After dispatching the beast, Jill uses the screwdriver to access the door's control panel, rearranges a puzzling series of circuits, and makes her exit. Capcom says Resident Evil: Revelations is filled with classic scenarios like this.
Exiting the bedroom, Jill discovers she’s not in a mansion at all. She’s actually aboard a huge ship infected with a host of bio-organic weapons. During my time with the game | explored a dimly lit storage area, a foggy dining room littered with rotten food, and several other offshoot com- partments (one containing a powerful shotgun) with precious ammo waiting to be discovered. Rooting around for health and ammunition is a more interesting process than the older games’ sparkling object hunts. Jill obtains a supply scanner, allowing her to comb environments in first person, highlighting useful things hiding behind curtains or in piles of rubbish. The scan- ner should be an invaluable tool as Jill makes her way through the ship.
The playable demo concludes with Jill ren- dezvousing with new partner Parker Luciani as they make their way to the bridge. A strange crimson-haired man emerges from the shadows and apprehends Jill, shouting threats in the pro- cess. Jill escapes the creep's grasp and retreats next to her fellow BSAA agent. The attacker and
| Capcom says Revelations will be about | as long as console Resident Evil games
There wasn't a zombie in sight during my time with the game
. Resident Evil: Revelations
Prepare to once again enter the world of survival horror
Parker exchange words, hinting that the two » Platform
share a mysterious past. Jill's surprise at this 305
revelation is cut short as the new enemy draws » Style
his gun and fires. 1-Player Action A trailer for RE: Revelations reveals two other » Publisher
interesting locations | didn't get to see during Capcom
the live demo. One involves Jill swimming » Developer
though a flooded portion of the ship, where she Capcom
encounters deadly underwater enemies that are
best taken down with an expertly thrown sonic shen
grenade. The other new location shows Chris Redfield trekking up a snowy mountain path with his enigmatic ally, Jessica. Learning more about Chris’ formation of the BSAA (Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance) and the path lead- ing up to the Kijuju incident in Africa is an excit- ing prospect. Chris’ exact location is a mystery to us as well as Jill Valentine, whose main goal is to uncover her old partner’s whereabouts.
The fates of the sea-bound BSAA agents are unknown for now, but what we do know is Resident Evil: Revelations could be the game hardcore Resident Evil fans have wanted for years. It merges the solid controls of Resident Evil 4, old-school survival horror, and the 3DS' immersive 3D graphics to deliver a rich, har- rowing romp that may stand toe-to-toe with the console games. » Tim Turi
The supply scanner will become your best friend
92
» PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 • PC
»
1-Player Simulation Ubisoft Ubisoft Montpellier
»
Summer
previews
From Dust
ven before we learned more about From
Dust's intriguing gameplay, we were entranced by its beauty. The brainchild of Eric Chahi (Out Of This World), From Dust impresses with its towering volcanoes, flowing water, and lush island landscapes. But what really makes the game shine is the way those landscapes shift and evolve at your touch.
The game is built around the concept of a tribe of natives seeking to rediscover long-lost power. Instead of controlling the members of this group, players manipulate a spirit that changes the shape of the world around the tribe, either plunging them into chaos or saving them from destruction. A god game in the classic tradition, From Dust encourages experimentation as you discover the ways different elements interact with one another.
Things remain relatively simple early on as you manipulate the earth and water, and see the way they affect each other. An accelerated timeline exhibits the effects of erosion in minutes instead of years, and you'll have to react п real time to the way an environment changes. As natural disasters begin to roll towards your adopted tribe, the process gets even more complicated. It takes quick thinking and intel- ligent environment shaping to ensure that lava drains off into the sea rather than across your defenseless town.
Beyond the ever-changing campaign to save the natives, From Dust is a remarkable play- ground. Just the act of making new landmasses and forming rivers from nothing is exhilarating.
We're apparently not the only ones impressed with the technology and gameplay in From Dust. Microsoft chose the game to be included in this year's Summer of Arcade promotion, which typically contains downloadable releases that deserve a little extra attention. Presumably, the expected PSN and PC releases will only be a short time later. Watch for the game's release in the coming weeks. »
Nail the moves displa gold flash cards for b:
on Dance Central 2 allows two s points — to groove at the same time
Dance Central 2
Share the dance floor with simultaneous multiplayer
hen Dance Central was released as part
of the Kinect launch lineup, it was not only a critical and commercial success, but also revolutionized the dance game genre with accu- rate, full body tracking that made for an authen- tic dance experience. With Dance Central 2, the bright minds at Harmonix are kicking things up with a number of improvements that put this upcoming rhythm title on track to becoming the ultimate party game.
In the original Dance Central, two players took turns shaking their groove thing for the high Score and bragging rights. With Dance Central 2, Harmonix is introducing simultaneous mul- tiplayer that allows two players to bust a move at the same time for the duration of the track
(each player can choose their own difficulty). Even more impressive is the drop-in-drop-out functionality. This allows one player to seam- lessly drop out, leaving his or her partner to finish off the track solo, or another person could jump in to continue the head-to-head dance-off. Even with two players jamming out at the same time and multiple players dropping in and out, Kinect didn’t miss a beat during my hands-on time. To keep things moving, Dance Central 2 also allows you to create playlists for calorie burning dance-a-thons.
Dance Central 2’s menu interface is as smooth
and responsive as ever and boasts a few tweaks.
Players can hover over a track name during song selection for a preview video showcasing what
moves they can expect before jumping in. As for gameplay, the flash card system returns with the addition of gold flash cards that earn you bonus points for nailing the highlighted moves. Other improvements can be found in Break it Down mode, which implements voice commands and allows you to work on specific moves you're having trouble with as opposed to slogging through a routine from beginning to end like in the original.
Finally, players can import songs from the origi- nal Dance Central disc and DLC into the sequel’s music library, which Harmonix says makes for more than 100 tracks to master when Dance Central 2 launches this fall. » Annette Gonzalez
SSX
Boarding across the roof of the world
monstrous landmass sits between
the border of Nepal and China in the Himalayan mountain range. Its name is Makalu, and it is considered one of the world’s most dif- ficult mountains to climb. Snowboarding down it, on the other hand, is as thrilling as it is dan- gerous. At this year's E3, | strapped on my snow boots and toured some of the world's most renowned mountains in the reinvention of EA's classic snowboarding series.
EA Canada has reconstructed more than 18 mountain ranges using real topography data collected by NASA. However, the studio has. done more than photocopy the world's mountain ranges. Several strips of the Great Wall of China have been flown in and scattered along Makalu's Slopes, and elements like this add texture to the
Some races will start out at the top of one of Kilimanjaro's Ё volcanic cones Ё
mountain's surface. The addition of the Great Wall also helps demonstrate SSX's new grind mechanic. Players no longer have to grind on specific rails and logs. Instead the SSX engine continually scans the environment for edges sharp enough to grind. At any time, players can tap a button and start tricking off a nearby grind- able surface, which should help players keep their combo flowing.
Kilimanjaro is the next stop on my world- spanning snowboard tour, but Africa's tallest peak isn't just a mountain; it's a collection of three inactive volcanic cones. Boarders begin each event at the top of one of these cones, and then race through the frozen inner workings of the mountain.
EA Canada says it is still finalizing the controls, but the studio is committed to pro- viding players with two active control schemes at any given time – mean- ing players can perform every trick in the game at least two different ways. Fan's of EA's Skate franchise might gravitate towards using both analog Sticks to perform.
ce Step unce воот.
» Platform
Xbox 360
» Style
1 to 2-Player Rhythm/ Music
» Publisher Harmonix/Microsoft
» Developer Harmonix
» Release Fall
grabs and spins, while SSX traditionalists might be happier to dial in button combos to pull off the same feats. Other players might end up using a hybrid of the two controls, forming their own unique boarding style.
After Kilimanjaro, | zip across the world to Denali (a.k.a. Mount McKinley) in Alaska, where | struggle to outrace an avalanche. Events like this are called Deadly Descents, and they function like the snowboarding equivalent to boss battles, pitting players against the elements as they try to race safely through blizzards, over ice, or through fog and darkness. On Denali, the camera pans around to the front of the boarders as we gun for the foothills. Sequences like this aren't scripted. SSX uses a snow technology system that repli- cates the effects of real-life avalanches, so every time boarders make a hard landing, they send more snow tumbling down the cliff after them.
My time with SSX only left me wanting more. The scope of content available to players is stag- gering, and EA Canada has promised to include a gear system with thousands of different char- acter customization options, some of which will affect how a boarder traverses the mountainside.
That said, the controls clearly need some fine-tuning; SSX's combo system doesn't feel diverse, and the tricks don't seem as thrilling ог exaggerated as | expect from this series. Still, EA Canada has some impressive technology run- ning under the hood, and I'm hopeful that it will play as well as it looks. » Ben Reeves
» Platform PlayStation 3 * Xbox 360
» Style
1-Player Sports (Multiplayer TBA) » Publisher Electronic Arts
» Developer EA Canada
» Release January
37
Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet
» ne of the most exciting downloadable up a continuous flow of ship upgrades and think creatively about how to progress. Hidden Xbox 360 projects on the horizon comes from tools, many of which allow access to new upgrades lend an air of subtlety and the thrill » the folks over at Fuel Cell Games. Insanely areas of the map. Tools for your ship map to of discovery.
One of the most exciting things about the game is the way it has come out of rela- tive obscurity to astound ЕЗ show-goers.
1-Player Action Twisted Shadow Planet mixes the explora- » tion of Metroid with the 2D flight of Pixel Junk
the face buttons, but a radial wheel can be pulled up to remap those abilities on the fly.
Microsoft Shooter, and layers on a strangely alluring From laser blasters to grasping claws, your » art style of shadows juxtaposed against ship gets more and more formidable with each Тһе rest of the world will have its chance to Fuel Cell Games vivid colors. passing hour. be amazed soon enough; Insanely Twisted You control a floating UFO as it winds its Huge enemies fill the screen, towering over Shadow Planet is part of this year's XBLA » Simier way through a living planet of dangerous your ship and helping to reinforce the game's Summer of Arcade. »
threats and puzzles. Along the way, you pick moniker. Challenging puzzles demand that you
Е Shaddai: Ascension
Journey
» PlayStation 3 » » Sony Computer Entertainment »»
ith titles such as Flow and Flower,
thatgamecompany made a name for itself by delivering unique gaming experiences known to strike an emotional chord. With the team's latest undertaking, Journey, players take the role of a small figure in a red cloak and set out to uncover the secrets of a mysterious desert.
Journey offers little gameplay instruc-
tion, so the second your character sets foot on the sand, it's up to your curiosity to run wild. Learning the game's mechanics requires exploration as you discover how collectible pieces of cloth augment your abilities and uncover what the glowing
94 previews
1-Player Adventure (Online TBA) thatgamecompany » 2011
symbols on your character's scarf repre- sent. As you familiarize yourself with these details, you slowly move toward glowing structures in the distance.
This PSN title also offers an online component that allows you to discover other players in the vast desert who can join in on your adventure. According to thatgamecompany, roaming the vast expanse with strangers will “reshape the experience.” While details on the online functionality remain sparse, you can look forward to a number of sur- prises when you hit the desert later this year. »
of the Metatron
» PlayStation 3 * Xbox 360 »
Entertainment »
e've shared our impressions of El Shaddai’s unplayable demo and | detailed my playthrough of several levels of the game a few months ago, so there aren't many new details we can divulge in advance of next month's review. То get the last word on the project, | turned to designer Takeyasu Sawaki, who has previously worked on Devil May Cry and Okami, to explain why gamers in North America should be looking forward to El Shaddai: “The gameplay is simple and straight to
1-Рауег Action » Ignition Entertainment »
Ignition July 26 the point. You don't need a manual; you can just pick up the controller and go. | did this so all people can feel free to come into this world. But for Western gamers, | want to say that El Shaddai isn't just a simple game. It's very deep, and the more you play, the better you get. It's sort of like a fighting дате, like Street Fighter. You can play over and over, and your skill builds
up. | intentionally made it so anyone can play, but hardcore gamers can enjoy it as well. Don't just beat it once. You'll want to play more." »
opider-Man: Edge of Time
Anti-Venom injects Spider-Man with a deadly cure
еепох gave us a rundown of its upcoming Spider-Man: Edge of Time back in issue 217, but one detail that the studio kept close to its chest was the title's antagonist. During the game's newest demo at E3, the developer introduced us to two of Edge of Time's villains. The first is a man named Walker Sloan, who was created specifically for the game. Sloan is the crazed super genius who sets all of the time- warping events into motion. The other is one. of Spider-Man's most infamous rivals, the ex- reporter Eddie Brock, now known in the comics as Anti-Venom.
In the year 2099, Walker Sloan builds a time portal, and then travels back in time to reshape the world in his image. Once in the present, Sloan implants a series of control chips into Anti- Venom’s brain, forcing a conflicted Brock to seek out and kill the Amazing Spider-Man. Fortunately, Amazing Spider-Man has an ally of his own – his future counterpart from the year 2099.
In Edge of Time, both versions of Spider-Man have their own combos and power sets. The game's action bounces between the two heroes as each does battle in their respective times. During the demo, we witnessed a few of the wall crawlers' new moves. Both versions of Spider- Man absorb chronal energy from every enemy they defeat, and they can expend this energy. on powerful attacks. For example, Amazing Spider-Man can enter a Hyper Sense mode, a
speedy state that allows him to zip across envi- ronments and roll out more hyperkinetic combos. Spider-Man 2099 creates chronal duplicates of himself that pull enemies towards him, or he can release chronal blasts that temporarily freeze the enemies around him.
As Amazing Spider-Man makes his way through the game, he will interact with the environment in ways that reshape the world Spider-Man 2099 lives in. While there are no branching narrative paths, there will be side mis- Sions Amazing Spider-Man can complete that affect the future in different ways, changing the number and type of enemies that Spider-Man 2099 fights, or making certain sections of the game easier to navigate.
Near the end of the demo, Amazing Spider- Man encounters Anti-Venom, whose powers ^ allow him to cure
Need For Speed: The Run
Driving narrative in a cross country race
ith developers such as Criterion (Hot Pursuit) and Slightly Mad Studios (Shift series) taking the wheel on the Need For Speed franchise, Black Box has had a few years to come up with new techniques to deliver a racing experience unlike anything the team has done in the past.
In The Run, the mob has developed an interest in the game's protagonist, Jack, who participates in a high stakes race from San Francisco to New York (and marks the first time in the Need For Speed series that players can race in real loca- tions). As part of a partnership with Battlefield developer DICE, Black Box has integrated pure racing into the Frostbite 2 engine (which powers the upcoming Battlefield 3). This not only makes for impressive visuals and environmental
destruction, but also allows the team to seam- lessly weave narrative into gameplay.
For The Run, Black Box studied Hollywood techniques used in James Cameron's Avatar for pure performance capture to deliver a cinematic experience in racing and on-foot sequences. For players concerned that the story-driven, on-foot portions of The Run detract too much from actual racing, Black Box says that getting out of the car is less than ten percent of the game as a whole. Black Box assures that The Run is a racing game first and foremost, and allowing a character to get out of the car gives the developer more opportunities to put players in new scenarios. when switching cars or jumping out of a race and quickly looking for a way back in. Players
people of any anomaly. Unfortunately, this means that Anti-Venom can "cure" Spider- Man of the mutations that give him his spider powers. As the battle with Anti-Venom wears on, Amazing Spider-Man grows weaker. But just as Anti-Venom is about to deal what could be the final blow, the demo ends. Beenox claims that there will be some big revelations after the fight with Anti-Venom, but it isn't ready to reveal any further details until San Diego Comic Con. » Ben Reeves
Spider-Man’s powers and naking him a deadly foe
Anti-Venom can drain Amazin is invisible to his spider
can burn through over 300km of track, which is roughly three times the size of past Need For Speed titles, so it's probably best that you won't be spending a whole lot of time on foot. Beyond its single-player campaign, The Run brings back the Autolog introduced in Hot Pursuit last year. This social competition feature allows players to compare race times against friends for asynchronous competi- tion. With The Run, Autolog is woven into the game's campaign, so not only will players race to New York against the 100-plus racers cre- ated by Black Box to compete against Jack, racers on your friends list will be added to the fray as well when the game launches this November. » Annette Gonzalez
HI
» Platform PlayStation 3 Xbox 360
» Style 1-Player Action » Publisher Activision
» Developer Beenox
» Release Fall
» Platform PlayStation 3
Xbox 360 • Wii + PC » Style
1-Player Racing (Online TBA)
» Publisher Electronic Arts
» Developer Black Box
» Release November 15
previews. E3.HOT 50 95
43
» Platform
3DS
» Style
1-Player Racing (Online TBA)
» Publisher
Nintendo
» Developer Nintendo
» Release Holiday
96 E3 HOT 50 previews
Mario Kart 3DS
Minor tweaks improve upon the classic formula
f there's a sure bet in gaming, it's that every
new Nintendo console will play host to a Mario Kart title. Each installment in the long-running series is a big seller, and fans seem to eat up every one regardless of how few changes are made to the format. | expected to see more of the same when | checked out Mario Kart SDS, but was pleasantly surprised to see more improvements than any game in the series since Double Dash.
As seen at Nintendo's ЕЗ press conference, each vehicle features a certain degree of cus- tomization. Previous titles in the series allowed your character to select different karts, but this is the first that allows for individual components to be customized. Players pick the frame of the vehicle, the wheels (some are tiny and light, some resemble monster truck wheels), and the glider style.
Gliders are new to the series, and Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto joked that he consid- ered calling the game "Mario Kite" because of their inclusion. These airborne sections popped up more than | expected throughout my three- race Grand Prix, but they didn't interfere with
the action at all. You maintain full control of your kart while gliding, steering clear of obstacles or towards weapon pickups before you hit the ground. In addition to the glider, your kart will also sprout a propeller if the race takes you underwater. These sections are similar to the glider areas in that they mix up the action without drastically changing the mechanics of the race. Don't expect full air, land, and sea action like the hovercrafts and airplanes of Diddy Kong Racing, but these sections are still a welcome change of pace.
Coins are an element that we haven't seen in а Mario Kart title in a long time, but they make a return in Mario Kart 3DS. While they made your kart go faster in the series’ SNES debut, it's unclear what function they're serving in this new title. | didn't notice any speed boosts upon pick- ing them up, but | did see several locked parts when | was customizing my vehicle. This might suggest some sort of in-game store that allows you to purchase new kart parts using coins you pick up on the various courses.
Mario Kart's roster has never been lacking in star power, but the unique and entertaining
courses have always been the star of the fran- chise. This holds true for its 3DS debut, as the three courses | saw all played (and looked) great. One resembled Mario Kart Wii's Mushroom Gorge, with giant flowers high in the sky that karts can bounce off of. Another featured under- water sections, complete with oysters that guard coins and other goodies. My final track featured elements from Donkey Kong Country Returns, such as the falling stone towers.
Nintendo likes to utilize its unique hardware, so | was somewhat surprised at the lack of motion control for the glider sections. While the gyro- Scope and accelerometer weren't utilized in the ЕЗ demo, the 3D effect is the best I’ve seen on the system thus far. Other 30$ racing games are difficult to play in full 3D, as it's hard to focus on both your vehicle and the road that stretches into the background. This wasn't an issue with Mario Kart, as | had the 3D turned all the way up with no problems whatsoever. Vivid colors and visu- ally interesting courses are a staple of the series, and they really shine on 3DS.
Mario Kart 3DS looks to be doing a great job of retaining all the elements that made the series a massive seller while introducing new features that won't shake up the core experience too much. It's still essentially the same Mario Kart when you boil it down, but | was impressed enough by its improvements to make it one of my most eagerly anticipated 30$ titles. » Dan Ryckert
Crusader Kings II
Grand strategy for mortals
Eee to play one of Paradox Interactive's grand strategy games is like leafing through an organic chemistry textbook. While I’ve always loved the idea
of playing one of these intricate and complex titles, their unbelievable density makes them far from acces- sible. I'm hopeful that the massive amount of work Paradox is putting into Crusader Kings II’s interface may be the beachhead I need to finally conquer this complicated frontier.
Crusader Kings Il is a sandbox strategy game to a far greater extent than even Total War. You can play as anyone from the King of England to a minor lord on the north coast of Africa, and follow your bloodline from the 11th to the 15th century. Your goals are what you make of them. Perhaps you want the challenge of surviving as a small breakaway pagan state in the Balkans, or you want to bring all of Scandinavia at last under Sweden's mighty banner. Maybe you're satisfied with nothing less than conquering the known world in the name of the Holy Roman Empire. The depth is there, should you go looking for it.
Therein lies the difference between Crusader Kings Il and previous Paradox titles. While those other games are happy to overwhelm the player with minutiae about everything from tax rates to mining output and notable personages' opinions of you, Crusader Kings Il allows players to engage the game at the level they choose with its cleverly redesigned interface. It could still end up inaccessible like the others if Paradox doesn't ensure that ће simula- tion ticks along smoothly with little player input under the hood, but I'm hopeful.
All the iteration and polish in the world isn't going to make Crusader Kings Il a simple or inviting game.
It's about as detailed, intense, and hardcore of a war- game as you'll find — but it has a chance to bring play- ers in who don't already have a long history with the studio's titles. » Adam Biessener
» Style
1-Player Strategy » Publisher Paradox Interactive
» Developer Paradox Interactive
» Release January
0349.
Payday: The Heist
Left 4 Ocean's 11
verstating the similarities between Payday: The
Heist and Valve's popular zombie-killing coop- erative shooter Left 4 Dead is difficult. True, Payday is about pulling off movie-style heists instead of surviving the zombie apocalypse, but so much of its design is clearly modeled after L4D that you can't help but define itin those terms. The places where Payday does devi- ate from L4D are in service to its setting, which give the game its own distinctive flavor within the cooperative shooter subgenre.
The majority of Payday's action is tied up in keeping the Cops off your back while you move through a series of objectives. The bank heist | played at ЕЗ required players to retrieve a power drill and cans of thermite to bypass the vault's layers of security, then escape from the bank with money bags stuffed full to bursting. An ingenious pacing mechanic where cops only spawn during on-and- off assault phases keeps things moving along.
Knowing the layout of the map and working as a team are key. The incoming cops and SWAT teams spawn ran- domly outside, but they must physically enter the building to arrest you. Keeping map awareness and covering the entrances to your location will save you from aggressive law enforcement. Regenerating health means that being surprised around a corner isn't a game-ending disaster, but with extremely limited ammo you have to be careful with your shots.
There's a lot more to talk about with Payday – shooting out cameras to keep the cops from knowing where you are, trading hostages for respawns, the five other heists in the game that aren't just different bank layouts — but you can relax with the knowledge that all of the inciden- tal mechanics that | encountered seem well designed. Payday is already a ton of fun. Look for it on PlayStation Network and PC later this year. » Adam Biessener
Shouting at civilians will make them cower in fear or run
» Platform PlayStation 3 * PC » Style 1-Player Shooter (4-Player Online) » Publisher
' Sony Online Entertainment » Developer Overkill
» Release 2011
previews... HOT
98
PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 + PC » 1 or 2-Player Action (2-Player Online) Paramount Entertainment »
Digital Extremes
» 2012
previews
he Enterprise has been ransacked. Most
of its crew is dead. Trapped by a series of mysterious energy streams, surrounded by explosive depth charges, and infiltrated by a band of terrorists, Starfleet's flagship sits dead in space. James Kirk and Spock discover the state of their vessel while returning from an away mission in a shuttle craft. In order to uncover the mystery behind the attack and rescue what remains of their crew, this duo must work together like never before.
Digital Extremes – the studio behind BioShock 2's multiplayer mode and the upcoming Darkness || – has the complicated task of devel- oping a game set within the recently rebooted Star Trek universe. Working closely with J.J. Abrams' production company Bad Robot and God of War writer Marianne Krawczyk, Digital Extremes hopes to deliver more than just a unique co-op experience; it hopes to change the gaming market's expectation toward an entire franchise.
Star Trek is being built from the ground up to be a different kind of co-op experience. While players can to play the entire game with an Al ally, Digital Extremes demoed the game for us on two screens in order to demonstrate how the experience changes depending on whether play- ers control Kirk or Spock. Spock's scientific mind and formal demeanor make him a surgeon on the battlefield, while Kirk's cowboy approach to combat often gets the duo into as much trouble as it gets them out of. While Kirk and Spock remain together for much of the game, their experiences and goals often differ.
In order to reboard the Enterprise, Kirk and
rd the
Spock strap on LSPUs (Life Support Propulsion Units that fans might recognize from the 2009 film) and leave their shuttlecraft for a short
space flight that takes them to the door of the Enterprise. The duo hurtles through the minefield surrounding their ship and barrels into one of the Enterprise's cargo bays. Digital Extremes conveys the two characters’ personalities by showing how each reacts differently to many of the game's events. While Spock comes to a run- ning stop upon entering the ship, Kirk tumbles end over end, eventually colliding with a tower of loose cargo boxes.
Once aboard, Kirk and Spock make their way through sparking corridors, using their tricord- ers to unlock doors and scan fallen red shirts. Hoping to figure out who's responsible for the attack, Spock interfaces with a nearby computer and discovers that someone initiated a ship-wide command lockout. Suddenly, the duo discovers a distress call that leads them to the shuttle bay.
The distress signal was a trap, and Kirk and Spock are ambushed. Both characters dive for nearby cover in an interactive cutscene where players retain control of their phasers and can take out a few enemies before reaching safety. During combat situations like this, players must make use of their tricorder's multiple functions. Tricorders can be used to remotely deploy portable Federation shields or overload a com- puter panel to take out a group of guards. We watched Kirk remotely activate a shuttle bay forklift, raise a cargo bin, and expose a few enemies who were using it for cover. Meanwhile Spock snuck around back and performed a mind meld on one of the enemies, who in
ии
загасіег tricks and get b: ig them
turn became confused and started firing on his friends.
During the firefight, Kirk takes a stray hit from one of the enemies and becomes infected by the same neurotoxin that has killed much of the Enterprise crew. Kirk collapses, and Spock runs over to help. Throwing one of Kirk's arms over his shoulder, Spock navigates both play- ers towards sickbay, while Kirk uses his free hand to provide cover fire. Sequences like this are scattered throughout the game, requir- ing players to accomplish different goals while working together.
Once the duo reaches sickbay, Spock removes the toxin from Kirk's body, but their troubles are far from over. A second wave of enemies is bear- ing down on their position. Kirk leaps up from the bed and grabs a Federation rifle. He activates its secondary fire and a tiny shield shimmers to life in front of the gun. Even though Kirk holds the rifle, Spock can make use of it. Spock fires into Kirk's shield, building up a charge of stored energy. Once enemies begin flooding the sick- bay, Kirk discharges all this energy, knocking out their pursuers. Kirk and Spock are safe, but this peace won't last long.
Developers have been making Star Trek games for nearly 30 years, but few were memorable. Like J.J. Abrams' film reboot, Digital Extremes hopes to craft a Star Trek experience that can be enjoyed by a wider fanbase. The studio has a lot of work cut out for it if it hopes to release the title alongside next summer's film. Hopefully, much like the iconic captain Kirk himself, Digital Extremes can defy all the odds. »
23
ouper Mario 3
A classic power-up floats into a brand new world
ost of Mario's portable outings have been
in 2D, but Nintendo is shooting for the full three dimensions this time around. The new entry is being developed by the Super Mario Galaxy team, and combines elements of the Wii titles, Super Mario Bros. 3, and New Super Mario Bros. to deliver one of the most promising 30$ games yet.
The circle pad allows players to control Mario in a manner similar to Galaxy: you can wall jump, perform long leaps, and explore every nook of the world. The gameplay feels solid, but depth perception becomes tricky when 3D visual effects collide with the fixed camera. A neat trick Super Mario 30$ plays on your eyes involves a series of cardboard Goomba cutouts followed by a real one, lulling you into a sense of familiarity then throwing a curveball. If one franchise is sure to utilize the system's 3D in novel ways, it's Super Mario.
Unlike other 3D Mario games, you won't be collecting red coins or searching for stars to progress. Super Mario 3DS is structured more like New Super Mario Bros., complete with hidden star coins, a checkpoint, and a flagpole marking the end of the stage. Teleportation bricks string sections of the stage together, like Galaxy's star launchers. The more linear flow of the levels suits the game better than | thought it would, and after finishing a level, | was ready to dive back in and root around for any star coins | missed.
Super Mario 30$ marks the return of Mario's classic Tanooki suit. Snagging a leaf transforms Mario into a raccoon, granting him a spinning tail attack and the ability to float. Like the classic 2D Mario games, if Mario takes damage he'll lose his suit. Suffer another hit and he'll shrink, indicating he has one more knock left in him before kicking the bucket. Playing a 3D Mario game with this
traditional health system just feels right.
The demo | played had Mario leaping through a collection of familiar worlds. One bright green stage tasks the plumber with crossing unfold- ing platforms while dodging Goombas. Another takes him underground in a faux-2D stage reminiscent of LittleBigPlanet's layered planes, complete with piranha plants that spit ink at the screen. Finally, the hero battles his way through a series of airships, scored with the ominous music from Super Mario 3. The gauntlet of flying tanks concludes in a boss fight with Boom Boom, who whirls around until he gets dizzy.
Every inch of Super Mario 3DS feels like a genuine Mario experience. Controlling Nintendo's mascot with the circle pad takes some getting used to, especially if you intend on using the 3D effect frequently, but | have no doubts that the end product will please fans. » Tim Turi
up
» Platform
305
» Style
1-Player Platforming » Publisher Nintendo
» Doveloper Nintendo
» Release Winter
previews “= 11 So 99
Asura's Wrath
Who has six.arms and throws giants into space?
» Platform PlayStation 3 * Xbox 360 » Style 1-Player Action в Publisher Capcom » Developer CyberConnect2 » Release 2012
T ight, flashy combat unites with пзапе feats of bravado in this stylish tale of a man seeking vengeance. Asura can pummel foes with his fists, unleash a barrage of energy projectiles, and channel his rage to perform outrageous acts.
The E3 2011 demo played out like the final boss battle of many games, with Asura's enemy growing larger with each phase of the fight. The gameplay also evolved along with the fight; Asura sprints towards the huge missle-firing antagonist, chases him through a field while throwing back heat-seeking warheads, and even-
Ghost Recon:
tually tosses the behemoth into space. Instead of doing something reasonable like dying, the bad guy grows even larger, shoving his finger through the atmosphere towards Asura like a raging comet. Asura grows four extra arms, intercepts the daunting digit, punches the crap out of it, and destroys his enemy in a flash of glory. While still early in development, Asura is emerging as a potential successor to the likes of Dante and Bayonetta. The playable demo may have been heavy with quicktime events and light on true battles, but the brief taste did not disappoint. » Tim Turi
Future Soldier
The Ghosts return from hiatus
» Platform PlayStation 3 * Xbox 360 * PC » Style 1 to 4-Player Shooter (16-Player Online) » Publisher Ubisoft » Developer Ubisoft Paris » Release 2012
t ince we last saw Future Solder a year ago, Ubisoft pushed back the release date into 2012 as the devel- oper honed the gameplay. So how is it coming along?
Future Soldier feels like a departure from the tactics-heavy Advanced Warfare games. Your Al soldiers are largely autono- mous, and the increased battle awareness lets you focus on the task at hand rather than babysitting. Even with the improve- ments, I'm still most interested in playing the campaign in four-player co-op.
The competitive multiplayer pits the Ghosts versus the Bodark, the Russian equivalent to the elite U.S. unit. Both groups have unique weapons and armor that you earn by leveling up. Once you find a weapon you like, you can spend XP and choose from over 50 attachments to cus- tomize it to your liking.
If you're itching to get your hands on Future Soldier, dig in for a long wait. Ubisoft says the multiplayer beta isn’t start- ing until early 2012. » Matt Hertz
100 ЕЗ HOT 50 previews
Even though footage from: Aliens: Colonial Marines was shown during Nintendo's E3 press conference, don't take that to mean that a Wii U version is inevitable. "We're investigating it as a platform and seeing how it could work," says Gearbox со- founder and chief creative officer Brian Martel. "Obvi- ously there are questions about where it's going to come in on specs and those kinds of things. We're just making sure the game can be what it needs to be. If it can, great."
That's not to say that Gear- box is down on the platform, however. Martel says that he does see some exciting ways to implement the system's unique touchscreen, includ- ing as a Marine's motion tracker or for welding and hacking minigames. "And that's just scratching the sur- face. It's a really cool system, no doubt. I think [Nintendo] is finally maybe going to get that hardcore audience it wants."
Si
Colonial
Gearbox's shooter could be dede. more than just another bug hunt — —
e've been tracking Aliens: Colonial
Marines since our March 2008 cover Story, even as the pings from Sega and Gearbox have grown increasingly faint. That changed during E3, when Gearbox CEO and co-founder Randy Pitchford showed off the game in a demo behind closed doors.
In an interview after the presentation, the stu- dio's co-founder and chief creative officer Brian Martel sounded contrite about the gap in infor- mation on the shooter. “Маубе we were talking about it a little earlier than we should have,” he told us. Regardless, the game is certainly looking to be worth the wait.
Colonial Marines is set months after the events of Aliens, and it marks a return to LV-426. The nuke that lit up the planet’s surface at the end of the film didn’t exactly eradicate the xenomorphic threat. If anything, the fact that the creatures are alive and seemingly thriving should point to just how dangerous they really are.
We see some of that threat in action, as a squad of Marines crash lands on the planet’s
surface. Despite the nuclear blast, many key areas from the film remain intact. In addition to providing a familiar setting, Gearbox says it will fill in some of the story’s gaps. “What happened to Hudson when he got pulled down through the floor?” Martel teases. “Did he turn into a xeno?” Martel says that it’s critical that players see the aftermath of what happened to characters like Hudson and Vasquez, as well as tie up a few mysteries. “How did those eggs get on the ship in Alien 3? We don’t remember the queen run- ning off and doing some of that,” he adds.
Gearbox sees Colonial Marines as a sequel to Aliens, and that extends to the gameplay. The feeling of being hunted is there, but this is а game about taking on swarms of xenomorphs rather than tracking a single stowaway. The squad moves with ruthless efficiency, reinforc- ing choke points with automated turrets and moving as a team, but even they prove to be no match for their horrifying enemy. Fortunately, players work together in groups of four to help even the odds.
Е SY
After a standoff inside an operations center, the squad retreats to another area. While outside, we spy a new variation of xenomorph in the rainy gloom. The bull-headed mutation sounds like a particularly nasty foe. “You can’t take him on head on,” Martel says. “Most of the weapons won't work on him, so you have to find a new way. That's really great in co-op, and it makes you think a little bit more in single-player — ог run in single-player.” Gearbox is working closely with Fox to expand the roster of enemies, so you won't be facing the same hunter types we've all seen before.
As Pitchford points out, Aliens has been tre- mendously influential to video games. A faith- ful extension of the film has been a long time coming, and it's looking as though Colonial Marines could be what fans have been wait- ing for. If the team can keep encounters fresh throughout an entire campaign, this could be an infestation worth rooting for. » Jeff Cork
Game over, man
Ў
The hunters look аз though they were torn from the movies
» Platform. Xbox 360 PlayStation 3
» Style
1 or 2-Player Shooter (4-Player online)
» Publisher
Sega
» Developer Gearbox Software
» Release
Spring 2012
previews Ea HOT 50 101
102
photophile
PS3 AMAA
Oper:
Thieves in T
Sanzaru, the development team that gave Sly the HD treatment in The Sly Collection, is taking the reins from Sucker Punch to deliver the stealthy racoon's latest adventure. With a visual flair that harkens back to Sly's glory days and the usual mix of solid platforming and stealth, we expect another memorable journey when Sony releases Thieves in Time next year.
1е
PS3 • 360 + Vita РС ИИ C г: P
Street Fighter X Tekken
The Street Fighter and Tekken universes collide
in another fighting game from Capcom. Players can choose to use the control layouts from either series in this 2D crossover. Similar to Marvel vs. Capcom 3, you will call on your partners to execute tag super combos in the heat of battle. Bob, Kazuya, and Julia joining forces to beat Ryu into the dirt? Yes please.
PS53*360* PC ИИ Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine
Developer Relic Entertainment is giving Games Workshop's popular Warhammer 40,000 universe a summer blockbuster makeover with its third-person action
title being published by THQ. Despite the generic name, Space Marine's stylized gore and expert blending of melee combat and third-person shooting should grab the attention of gamers when it releases on September 6.
PS3*:360 ИИ
Ninja Gaiden 3
A running theme in this sequel is Ryu Hayabasa facing the consequences of his countless murders — a burden that manifests as his cursed arm. Team Ninja hasn't revealed the story details that lead to his arm's unsightly appearance, but we do know it unleashes a gigantic ultimate attack when it's glowing red. You'll surely see a lot more red than that when Ninja Gaiden 3 releases next year through publisher Tecmo Koei.
PS3 • 360 • Wii * PO* DS. ИИ LL The Adventures of Tintin: The Game
Timed to release at the same time as the Tintin movie this winter, Ubisoft's video game adaptation promises to provide a family friendly way to live the Tintin dream. Beating up thugs, flying airplanes, and riding in a motorcycle sidecar appear to be the
highlights of the action, and players can switch characters and use unique abilities to overcome various obstacles.
PS3 * 360 = PC ML
Top Gun: Hard Lock
One of the seminal '80s movies is getting a fresh game adaptation thanks to 505 Games. The typical behind-the-jet action is zoomed in closer, letting you focus your attention on tearing your rivals
to shreds. You won't be flying alongside Iceman and Maverick, but you can interact with those iconic pilots during flashback sequences set during your early days at the Navy's Top Gun Academy. Get ready to enter the danger zone next spring.
photophile 103
ССС
253 + 360 * Wii * PC VALE
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventures
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventures' basic concept is ingenious: You take one of 32 toy figurines based on Spyro characters, set it on a “portal” base that's tied to your console, and the toy instantly appears in your game. Then, during gameplay, you take that character through light action/RPG and puzzle gameplay segments that build up XP that saves to the toy. Later on, you and a friend can duel your toys in PvP combat, a la Pokémon Stadium. It's an interesting concept, and seems perfect for the kids market.
305 А
Kid Icarus Uprising
Kid Icarus: Uprising was one of the biggest surprises at last year's E3, answering the pleas of fans that have been waiting for series hero Pit to return to gaming outside of Super Smash Bros. This year, the game was playable on the show floor, displaying some of the best 3D visuals on the system to date and a control scheme that
could take some getting used to. Also playable at the show was the game's newly announced three-on-three multiplayer. It will be interesting to see if this game can live up to the 3DS crowd's expectations.
104 photophile
PS3 + 360. PC ILLE
Lord of the Rings: The War in the North
Warner Bros. says that the recently revealed giant eagles are essentially members of the fellowship in the War in the North, and we're glad they're оп our side. The creatures can be called in like living airstrikes, tearing apart small and large foes alike. Even when the eagles aren't around, your party does a great job of taking care of themselves, so sharpen your weapons for the game's August release.
PS3 + 360+ Wii • PC* PSP* DS* Vita: 305 УНИИ
LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
You didn't think LEGO Harry Potter would end after years 1-4 now, did you? TT Games and Warner Bros. Interactive are back with the concluding chapters of the brick-filled adventure. The game continues the tradition of keeping the cutscenes whimsical, despite the more mature source material. The game ships later this year, giving you plenty of time to wrangle up a co-op buddy.
SDS ИИ
Star Fox 64 3D
Not everything is exactly how you remember it in the remake of the N64 classic. You can use the gyroscope and accelerometer to pilot your ship by tilting the 30$, and your HUD is displayed on the touchscreen along with the faces of Peppy, Falco, and Slippy. In multiplayer those faces are replaced with pictures of your opponents so you can see their reactions when you knock them out of the sky. Get your wings September 11.
) gamein Fu
SCAME MONTH 106 Shadows of the Damned
We didn't know what to expect when Suda 51 and Shinji Mikami announced a collaborative project, but we had a feeling it would be unique. Shadows of the Damned not only delivers Suda's trademark weirdness, but it features the rock-solid gameplay associated with Mikami's action titles. The result is a delightfully odd trip through Hell.
Outstanding. A truly elite title that is nearly perfect in every way. This score is given out rarely and indicates a game that cannot be missed.
Superb. Just shy of gaming nirvana, this score is a high recommendation because the game reviewed is head- d-shoulders above it
Very Good. Innovative, but perhaps not the right choice for | everyone. This score indicates that there are many good things to be had, but arguably so.
| Average. The game's features may work, but are nothing 7 that even casual players haven't seen before. A decent
| game from beginning to end.
| Limited Appeal. Although there may be fans of games 6 receiving this score, many will be left yearning for a more rewarding game experience.
Flawed, It may be obvious that the game has lots of |
Ej | potential, but its most engaging features could be | [| АН | PAS undeniably flawed or not integrated into the experience. 4 PLATINUM | аа Bad. While some things work as planned, the majority of ра
Д | this title either matfunctions or it is so dull that the дате | р | awarded (6 games
— ti 5 x GOLD | that score between | 9апа95 2 |
this caliber, it's buried beneath agonizing gameplay and uneven execution in its features or theme.
Awarded to games that score between 8.5 and 8.75
asc
Broken. Basically unplayable. This game is so insufficient in execution that any value would be derived in extremely small quantities, if at all.
The award for the
gp тетот | t BÁCAMES MONTH | most outstanding
game in the issue
Пи Eur EE ©
Mr. Caffeine. |
reviews 105
9.25
Сопсер!
SudaS1‘s wackiness
mixed together with Shinji Mikami's expertly designed monster shooting
Graphics
One of the more colorful Unreal Engine 3 games
Sound
Silent Hill sound designer Akira Yamaoka crafted
an incredibly weird, but endlessly interesting soundtrack that's aided by playful voice acting Playability
Suda51's most approachable game, with a control scheme that fans of third-person shooters should get used
to immediately
» Entertainment As long as you can get behind the juvenile sense of humor, Shadows of the Damned
is a road trip to Hell well worth taking
Replay Value Moderately Low
106 reviews
ohadows of the Damned
fy thrill ride to the c
gamenformer gemenformer САМЕ MONTH GOLD
inspirations. Early in the game protagonist Garcia Hotspur proclaims that he and his
traveling skull companion Johnson are making “our very own road movie.” Like the grindhouse films that it pays homage to, Shadows of the Damned is vulgar, violent, over-the-top, and way more fun than it should be. This is Resident Evil 4 rewritten by a 12-year-old obsessed with d--- jokes. As it turns out, that’s a good thing.
In the opening moments of Shadows of the Damned, Garcia’s apartment is invaded by demonic forces that drag away his girlfriend, Paula. The tattoo-covered hero swears ven- geance and jumps through a portal to Hell. Garcia's journey takes him through multiple col- orful regions of the underworld, from a Mexican marketplace to a racy red light district.
Throughout the eight-hour adventure, Garcia and his buddy trade boneheaded one-liners that would have had me groaning if they weren't
S hadows of the Damned is not shy about its
soths of
presented with such straight-faced glee. Despite being the hero, Garcia is a dimwit who chuck- les at his own horrible jokes and stumbles into enemy traps constantly. Plenty of games with dumb writing use self-awareness as an excuse, but Shadows of the Damned isn’t just aware
of its stupidity, it embraces immaturity with an abandon that | can’t help but respect. It doesn’t seem like Grasshopper considered any situation too outrageous or any line of dialogue too goofy to include.
Grasshopper Manufacture scored a major victory by getting help from Resident Evil mas- termind Shinji Mikami. Unlike previous Suda51- developed games, polished, rarely frustrating gameplay backs up the off-the-wall insanity. Mikami's classic, over-the-shoulder third-person shooter style is present, but now you can move at the same time. Whether you’re fighting a giant Frankenstein creature with a huge spotlight on its head or a tiny demon wearing spike-covered armor that rolls toward you as a ball, Garcia has
enough grace and speed to survive any situation.
Despite his bravado, this demon hunter doesn't spend all his time shooting up the legions of Hell. Each level contains a handful of interesting puzzles, most of which involve manipulating light and dark. If a room is envel- oped in shadow, Garcia's health will slowly drain until he leaves that region or fills the room with light by shooting a goat head. Other brain- teasers involve moving platforms around a room to form paths and hunting down keys in the form of brains that you feed to demon babies. It only takes a couple of minutes to solve these prob- lems, but enough of them are spread throughout the game to provide a change of pace when you tire of shooting.
like heaven
Style 1-Player Action Publisher Electronic Arts Developer Grasshopper Manufacture Release June 21 ESRB М
Both the puzzles and the combat are aided by an ever-growing arsenal of new weapons and tools. For example, halfway through the game, Garcia receives the ability to place light mines with his pistol. In combat, he can stick mines on ап enemy and then shoot them for an explo- Sion that damages both the unlucky demon and any surrounding baddies. In exploration, the mines can be detonated on certain walls and rocks to discover hidden areas. Each upgrade provides similarly inventive new approaches to combat and tactics for dealing with the oversized boss encounters.
The only major flaws in Shadows of the Damned come in a few frustrating late-game scenarios where you're put in arena fights against an absurd number of opponents, and a handful of chase sequences where Garcia is instantly killed if caught by a pursuer. | was also saddened to discover that there's no new game- plus option. Given the huge number of upgrades, | wanted to restart the game as a powered-up badass on a higher difficulty.
Shadows of the Damned is unapologetically adolescent, but instead of trying to be cutely ironic and wink at players, the humor comes off as genuine, playful, and fun. Even if you don't find the idea of a sniper rifle called "the Big Boner” funny, you should still enjoy the solidly designed shooting and bit of thought required to play the game. Grasshopper has finally come into its own, and | hope it carries this momen- tum (and Mikami) forward to whatever project is next. » Phil Kollar
Check out Reiner and Phil's commentary on the first 20 minutes of Shadows of the Damned at gameinformer.com/mag
FEAR. 3
РЕВ
John Carpenter's on board, but where are the scares?
т я
1.15 Y
PS3 ® 360 • PC
» Concept Continue the twisted story of Alma and her offspring
» Graphics
No one will mistake this
for the Frostbite 2 engine, but the graphics conjure an appropriate level of grimness
» Sound
Day 1 uses spooky sound. effects to amplify the eerie mood, but the voice acting is Still over the top
» Playability
The controls and combat are the strength of the experience
» Entertainment
If you're looking for frights or a lengthy single-player campaign, look elsewhere. If you're looking for a unique multiplayer experience, FE.AR. 3 delivers
» Replay Value Moderately High
re ee
hen big names like film director John W Carpenter (The Thing, Halloween) and
comic book writer Steve Niles (30 Days of Night) attach themselves to a project, it's not unreasonable to expect a certain degree of terror. After Warner Bros. announced the two were collaborating with Day 1 Studios to develop F.E.A.R. 3, | anticipated a game that would re-embrace the dedication to scaring the bejesus out of players that many, including myself, felt was lost in the action-heavy sequel.
FE.A.R. 3 features many of the integral pieces necessary to deliver frights - haunting sound effects, an arresting atmosphere, and foreboding environments - yet too often the game recycles old techniques that proved scary in 2005 but do little to raise my blood pressure now. Alma's apparition has strolled across my path so many times at this point she’s more of an annoying pest than a fearsome poltergeist.
The uninspired story does even less to make the hairs stand up on the back of your neck. At the end of Project Origin, protagonist Michael Becket somehow impregnated the demented psychic. Now estranged brothers Point Man and Paxton Fettel have reunited, and Fettel wants the family to attend the birth of their new sibling. Before they start buying Hallmark cards, how- ever, the brothers have some issues to work out. The primary gripe? Point Man murdered his bro in the first game.
This uneasy alliance sets the stage for the campaign, a five-hour experience best played in co-op. One user plays as Point Man, a weap- ons expert who can momentarily slow down
time during battle. The other controls Fettel,
the infinitely more interesting apparition who can suspend enemies in the air, shock them to death from afar, and inhabit enemy bodies for a short time to use their weapons. It's a shame the abilities aren't more balanced, because Fettel's unique skills make him the clear-cut preference.
FE.A.R. 3's campaign is short on terror, but the satisfying action keeps it from being a complete loss. The enemies are more aggressive than typi- cal shooters; opposing soldiers constantly try to flank you in open spaces, the dog-like scaven- gers attack in packs, and cultists rush at you like hordes of brain-dead zombies. The few mech encounters are particularly menacing. These hulking machines proved surprisingly agile, making their way into areas | thought were safe.
Some levels are so poorly designed it's hard to tell where you're supposed to go next, but many have a memorable atmosphere. As you move through the quarantined city's abandoned pris- ons, desolate suburbs, and ruined commercial districts, the bleakness of the circumstance is palpable. My favorite locations were an aban- doned bulk retail outlet, where a crazed group of freaks spring from behind walls of glowing HDTVs, and the creepy suburban neighbor- hood, which featured candlelit homes defaced with demonic ramblings scribbled in blood on white walls.
While playing through the campaign, each player racks up points for completing specific challenges. Though the game never tells you outright, these scores determine which ending you see. If Point Man has a higher score, he
becomes the dominant character in the conclu- Sion. If Fettel wins, his decisions drive the finale. It would have been nice to know beforehand, because it may have encouraged more back- stabbing and point hoarding during my playth- rough, during which Reiner and | often shared the wealth.
The campaign may lack suspense, but the multiplayer delivers it in bulk. Day 1 Studios deserves credit for forgoing the deathmatch/ team deathmatch/capture the flag multiplayer mode holy trinity in favor of more colorful choices. The star mode is F---ing Run, a speed trial that tasks four players with pressing through enemies at a breakneck speed while avoiding the Wall of Death chasing them from behind. Contractions is another winner – a frantic spin- off of Call of Duty's Zombie mode where you must scavenge for supplies in between waves of enemies. The last two modes, which revolve around possessing enemy bodies, are also a welcome change of pace. A universal ranking accrues points for your campaign and multi- player exploits, but without a system of unlocks or rewards | wonder how long players will Stick around.
In many ways, the F.E.A.R. story feels like it has run its course. Like most long-running horror series, the scares that thrilled us years ago no longer do the trick, and as | learn more about Alma's family, the less interested | become in trudging forward. However, if you hardly pay attention to narratives and are looking for a fun multiplayer experience, F.E.A.R. 3 is worth. checking out. » Matt Bertz
reviews 107
» Concept
An interactive anime meets Q*bert-inspired block puzzles in an exploration of one tortured man's psychology
» Graphics The Atlus style translates beautifully to HD,
especially in the gorgeous animated sequences
» Sound
An off-the-wall soundtrack and solid voice acting
help sell the game's
creepy narrative
» Playability
As the puzzles become increasingly abstract, prepare for controller-crushing rage and boredom
» Entertainment
The fascinating story that's unlike any other video game ever released can't make up for the gameplay frustrations
» Replay Value Moderate
108 reviews
Catherine
This temptress broke my heart
the other night. Just stunning, totally gor- geous, you know? And unique. She does things I've never seen another girl do. She's deep, too. She makes me think about relation- ships and commitment and all these topics I don't normally tackle in my line of work. Sounds like a girl worth falling in love with, right? But despite all of these assets, Catherine is а killer. She'll wreck you if you let her. Catherine (the game) has more in common iE with main character Vincent than | its namesake. It's divided from j within, torn between two loves. On one hand, Catherine immerses players in drawn-out anime cutscenes that reveal a middle- aged man stuck in a dramatic
b et me tell you about this girl | met at the bar
Style 1 or 2-Player Puzzle Publisher Atlus Developer Atlus Release July 26 ЕЅЕВ М
love triangle. Heady subject matter and tough questions abound, shaping players' experience around a scale that measures their personality between law (living what society considers a regular life) and chaos (living based on personal whims and desires).
These lengthy narrative sequences are broken up by "Nightmare" levels where Vincent has to push blocks around in order to climb up an end- less tower. As you first learn the strange rules of this fast-paced, arcade gameplay, these por- tions seem inoffensive, though not particularly engaging. But with each new night that passes, Vincent is forced to confront more difficult and lengthier puzzles.
Frustration and frequent deaths await as you desperately claw your way toward the next group of cutscenes and non-dream gameplay. Finally figuring out how to survive a horrific boss encounter after 20-some deaths never grants you a sense of accomplish- ment, only relief at the temporary reprieve. The dialogue and character development are less fun when tinged with the dreadful knowledge that more block puzzles are in your future.
My fleeting happy memories of Catherine will always be poi- soned by soul-crushing thoughts of what could
have been. In its first in-house-developed HD release, Atlus has crafted something rare and wonderful, a video game that is about so much more than killing people. But the potential impact of this experience is weakened considerably by the block puzzles, segments so shamelessly gamey and out-of-place in the narrative that they include a score tally and reward medals based оп your performance.
Sadly, even the story of Catherine doesn’t pay off entirely. While | was fully wrapped up in the trials of Vincent and his handful of friends, the game's “morality scale” is mostly affected via simple two-choice questions that are asked at the end of every puzzle area — thoughtful queries such as, “Does life begin or end at mar- riage?” These inquiries provide plenty of food for thought, but it's strange that the plot (which features eight different endings) is determined by these questions rather than by in-game decisions Vincent makes.
The result of answering Catherine's queries truthfully – my reward for conquering every one of the game's devious puzzles — was one of the worst possible endings. Maybe Vincent's choices corresponded accurately to my personality, but it was a bummer receiving a bad ending and knowing that I'd have to replay the 12-15 hour game to see something better. Like a relation- ship that's going nowhere, Catherine has a few bright spots that will make you want to hold on, but it never quite gives back as much as you put into it. » Phil Kollar
Watch Reiner and Phil conquer some of Catherine's early chal- lenges at www.gameinformer.com/mag
s in the making
n Duke Nukem Forever's introductory sequence, | drained my weasel, grabbed poop out of a toilet and threw it into the face of an EDF sol- dier, drew a giant p---s on a dry erase board, and engaged in sexual relations with twins. These actions are juvenile and unnecessary but, in the eyes of someone who loves South Park and is easily amused by crude humor, exactly what I was hoping to get from a new Duke Nukem game.
With development stretch- ing back over 12 years to a time when PC gamers were first introduced to Half-Life and Unreal and console players were realizing that first-person shooters had a bright future on their favorite machines, Duke Nukem Forever doesn't look dated. Sure, the texture work on Duke's middle finger could look sharper, and the strip- pers’ robotic animations make me wonder if these women have ever danced before, but the game occasionally spits out a lumbering boss worth marveling over or an environmental explosion that dazzles the eyes with large-scale physics-based carnage.
The game's design also appears to be based exclusively off of modern FPS blueprints. Duke has regenerating health (yet at one point he mocks Master Chief), and surprise surprise, he can only wield two weapons at a time (just like Chief). Moreover, many enemy encounters are scripted events, timely checkpoints are scat- tered liberally throughout stages, and gameplay variety is offered through vehicle and rail gun sequences.
The most dated part of this experience is Duke himself. He still looks exactly like Dolph Lundgren, and although he makes it apparent that he follows today's celebrity news and has seen Team America, his dialogue mostly harks back to classic ‘80s and ‘90s films like Robocop and Army of Darkness. He's equally amused by pop culture references and his private parts, which | learned far too much about.
Duke's selection of weapons mostly consists of his bag of tricks from the mid '90s. He can freeze or shrink enemies and crush them with his boot (which is worth a chuckle every time). When he gets into a bind he can eat steroids (complete with crazed Jose Canseco vision) or summon a holographic version of himself to confuse his dim-witted pig cop foes. Most of his other weapons fall into the standard FPS mold (shot- guns, rocket launchers, machine guns, etc.). The gunplay feels decent, and the weapons are tailored nicely to most enemy encounters, creat- ing unique, balanced fights that are occasionally transformed into laughably bad circus acts due to Al pathing issues and unintelligent tactics.
| uke Nukem Forever
Duke starts with a bang (I'll never forget my time with the toilets), but quickly ditches its immature antics and descends into a tailspin of questionable puzzle design, uninspired vehicle sections, and mundane level architecture. The three to four hours following the introductory sequence are a rough ride. The game’s unbear- able load times (roughly 30 seconds to a minute every time you die or load a new area) seem so much longer during this stretch.
The game picks up again at the The Mighty Foot level, a sprawling wild west setting that Duke navigates in a monster truck. From this stage on, it stays largely entertaining — not solely because of Duke's sophomoric attitude, but respectable level designs that offer variety and a few killer set piece moments. | could have done without the swimming, and some of the puzzles along the way seemed to be inserted just to slow me down. Duke even goes as far to say, "I hate valve puzzles” during a minute-long valve-turning sequence. Always trust the words of your game character, developers.
If you've been following Duke's development all these years, the campaign is worth a look. | found it to be an interesting game to analyze and dissect, questioning what may have been cre- ated 12 years ago by 3D Realms and what was created today by Gearbox Software and Triptych Studios. Nothing about it is truly remarkable or to the scale of other genre heavyweights, but it is а fun run when it fires on all cylinders.
Duke's multiplayer didn't get much buzz lead- ing up to release, but it isn't a small, tacked on "we have multiplayer" offering. Experience points earned in battle are tied to a deep level- ing system that rewards the player with new cosmetic gear, as well as items that can be dis- played in a posh apartment. At level 30, a bronze babe is added. At level 12, pixelated paintings line the walls. At level 42, a working air hockey table can be played. Although a handy Game
Style 1-Player Shooter Publisher 2K Games Developer Gearbox Software/Triptych Studios/3D Realms Release June 14 ESRB M
Finder option is available (complete with ping rates), the long load times found in single player are just as bad when trying to join matches or enter the apartment.
With tiny maps, every match offers fast-paced action, even if you are in an objective-based bout (like babe stealing). | got a big kick out of using the shrink ray on other players, but the hit detec- tion for any firearm is incredibly hard to read. I found myself spraying bullets in a panic just to hit a foe. As much as I'd like to see Duke's apart- ment fully furnished, the questionable gunplay is a deal breaker for me. | won't be spending any more time with it.
And with that said, | probably won't spend any more time with the game period. I'm glad Gearbox stepped up and finished this game, but after hearing about it for 12 years, | have no desire to relive any of it again. I'm now satisfied in my knowledge of what Duke Nukem Forever is and ready to never talk about it again. Welcome back, Duke. | hope your next game (which is teased after the credits) goes off without a hitch. » Andrew Reiner
6.15
» Concept
A walking, talking embodiment of '80s and '90s action movie clichés that spent over a decade in development hell
» Graphics Despite spending 12 years in development, the visuals are competent in 2011
» Sound
Duke spits out a steady stream of politically incorrect one-liners and movie quotes, usually set against squealing guitars
» Playability
The action hits a major lull after the opening sequence, but rights itself and makes good use of the solid, yet unremarkable gunplay
» Entertainment
Duke made me laugh, and though the campaign suffers from lulls, the action was engaging enough to keep me going
» Replay Value
Moderate
reviews 109
NCAA bolsters its game by giving Dynasty and Road to Glory modes a backbone by making coaches more prominent in both
The new lighting system
is noticeable while you're playing as well as in replays. The 3D grass, however, is largely irrelevant
It sounds weird, but I miss third booth man Lee Corso. The booth sounds dull with just Kirk Herbstreit and Brad Nessler, and there are still comments that seem out
of place
The improved tackling and catches fix those legacy issues, but the game doesn't feel dramatically different
Despite the variety of improvements, the most exciting new feature is the ability to create custom. conferences and mess around with the BCS bowl tie-ins
High
110 reviews
NCAA Football 12
| gamenformer
COLD
he year after a championship can be tricky.
You may be the team to beat, but you still
have a long road ahead of you as you try to recapture that magic. Last year, EA came out with a great college football product that cap- tured the feeling of the sport. NCAA 12 builds upon NCAA 11 with a list of improvements, but how much better is it?
Going into this review, | was most interested
in NCAA 12's promise to fix the magnet tackles and catches from years past. For the most part, developer EA Tiburon succeeded, yet the game feels much like it always has. The new tackling button doesn't create unrealistic whiffs, nor does the catch button facilitate unbelievable grabs. You won't see wide receivers slide across the field towards the ball or tackle animations engage too soon. True multi-defender gang tack- les don't occur, either, although they look better than they did last year because multiple defend- ers can throw their weight around to change the trajectory of the runner.
1 to 4-Player Sports (2-Player Online)
The franchise's improvements, however, are balanced by an ongoing problem - the Al's lack of ball awareness. While I’m glad that receivers don't magically shoot forward to make catches, there are times when the opposite happens - the ball sails by them and they don’t even put their hands up to catch it. The Al's ball awareness improves as you move away from the default difficulty, but even then you'll see the occasional defender letting the ball carrier run by without attempting a tackle or an Al QB make some glaringly bad throwing choices. At least defend- ers are more aggressive, moving fluidly in their zones, jumping passes, and providing tighter coverage in general.
NCAA's gameplay wrestles with the con- stant process of improving the past, and | think Dynasty Mode's new Coaching Carousel reveals a need to update the series' recruiting component. The Coaching Carousel lists goal- based expectations that influence your coaching prestige and keep you gainfully employed. This
HEAD COACH CONTRACT DETAIL (0;
EA Sports
Ages Qiu
EA Tiburon July 12 E
provides more structure to Dynasty mode, but it didn't change how | went about my business. Recruiting was renovated just last year, but | wish the points you get for talking to recruits were more spread out and distinct (right now you can get a similar amount of points for seemingly disparate answers) and that recruiting encom- passed the physical and mental traits of players instead of just discovering whether they like the campus weight room. Improving recruiting could take the coaching experience to the next level. Road to Glory's additions are more numer- ous than the Dynasty changes, but stop short of being a full overhaul. Earning coach's trust through your play and working your way up the depth chart isn't hard, and | have mixed feelings about the mode. It's fun to upgrade your player and unlock the ability to call audibles, but that's all stuff that | wish | had from the beginning. NCAA 12 is better than NCAA 11, and yet I feel like we've come to the point in the series’ lifecycle where the changes — while all worth- while — are getting harder to notice. Perhaps that's because of all the hard work has already been done. Consider the game's online dynas- ties, which are already full-featured enough that one of its main new additions — being able to sim ahead a week from your computer – is an optional pay-to-play feature. When things are going this good, it seems insane to ask for an over- haul of some core features like recruiting. But as they always say in football, you've got to fight for every yard.
Ms. Splosion Man
Platforming excellence not for the easily frustrated
gemenfomer Style 1 to 4-Player Platforming (4-Player SILVER online) Publisher Microsoft Game Studios Developer Twisted Pixel Release July 13 ESRB Т
and makes it better. Splosion Man was entertaining,
but limited in scope. Its sequel draws inspiration from the platforming greats and emerges as a bigger, fun- nier, more ambitious title. The developer has also crafted aunique and hilarious new protagonist. Like a Looney Tunes character come to life, Ms. Splosion Man is a bril- liant parody of teenage girl stereotypes. Like those great classic cartoon characters. Your willingness to play along with the joke will determine whether the game works for you as it did for me.
| wouldn't worry too much about story in Ms. Splosion Man — another science experiment gone wrong creates a feminine version of the exploding protagonist, and she runs amok, blowing herself up again and again to navigate the dangerous world before her. As she runs, she'll tiptoe like a ballerina and prance like a pony, spouting her favorite lines from Britney Spears, Madonna, and Dirty Dancing.
Though the control mechanics are as simple as one button press (Splodel), the platforming challenges are any- thing but easy. In a lengthy 50-level single-player campaign, the game continually throws new devices and environmen- tal hazards your way. Exploding barrels that fling you into the background of a level, saddles that rocket you across the sky, giant tentacled bosses — plenty of diversity keeps you on your toes, even if the background environments could use more variation.
With one or more buddies along for the ride, you can enjoy the equally excellent but wholly different multiplayer campaign, which demands careful timing and smart coop- erative play to progress. In either campaign, you'll move between levels in a convenient overworld map. There, you'll head to special levels unlocked through secret stage exits, and even visit a mall of unlockable content filled with movies, art, and extra game options.
Ms. Splosion Man is at its best when the pace is frantic and unstoppable, just like its manic heroine. Large chunks of the game do just that, keeping the action fast and just challenging enough. At other times, the game stalls out due to tedious and overly precise platforming sequences and infuriating checkpoint placement. Doing the same 30-second sequence 12 times over just to get to the sec- tion you keep missing halts the relentless pacing. The normally amusing voiceover turns grating, and the fun level design becomes stale. The frustration is made worse by the character's small size on the screen and the way she's often obscured by the crazy action. Luckily, a handy in-game cheat lets you skip past checkpoints when you've had enough.
Even when | was annoyed by Twisted Pixel's latest game, | remained impressed with the grand scope and well- realized vision the team manages to convey, from the small- est motion of the characters to the breadth of design ideas and levels. Though the silly humor and high challenge curve could scare some players off, everyone should try one of the best downloadable games this year. Matt Miller
Т wisted Pixel's best game to date takes a fun concept
8.15
Explode your way through 100 challenging platforming levels using a hyper-manic parody of femininity
Graj Fantastic animation brings the characters to life
Sound This girl's constant prattling voiceover will either have you laughing out loud or muting the dialogue
» Playability Building on only one core mechanic (sploding), the basics of control are easy to master, but controlling that explosive movement is another thing entirely Entertainment Outstanding design in both single and multiplayer, but things get difficult fast Replay Value Moderately High
aden Eat I
Earth Defense Force:
Insect Armageddon The EDF emerges victorious again
Style 1 or 2-Player Action (6-Player Online) Publisher D3 Publisher Developer Vicious Cycle Release July 5 ESRB T
bizarre physics, and chintzy-looking 2D power- ups...but it didn't become a cult hit because of its technical execution. It became a cult hit because it provided absurd b-movie popcorn action that you could enjoy with your friends. Though Insect Armageddon faces a different set of shortcomings, it nails the impor- tant stuff.
The team at Vicious Cycle successfully taps into the core of the EDF experience without simply imitating its predecessor. Taking control of the three-man Lightning squad (your two teammates can either be co-op part- ners or bots), you kill an invading army of bugs, robots, and spaceships. The simple, point-and-shoot approach doesn't leave much room for tactical depth, but it creates а consistently fun and frantic battlefield. Whether you're using impractical weapons like the Air Tortoise or tearing things up in the (much improved) vehicles, the emphasis on trigger-happy chaos is a blast.
Adding variety to the experience are four classes with unique special abilities and access to different weapon categories. The basic gameplay remains the same, but each class has a slightly different angle, like the jet armor's mobility and the tactical armor's turrets. Gaining levels in each class opens up more powerful weapons, and adds a sense of progression and reward that was missing the last time around. Being able to advance alongside your buddies in three-player online co-op (two- player split screen locally) just adds to the fun, though | wish the six-player survival mode also contributed to advancing your classes.
Unfortunately, your ability to reach the highest levels and see the best gear is based solely on replaying old stages. Grinding through the same missions to eke out some extra XP is expected, and when you're done,
F arth Defense Force 2017 had clumsy animation,
you're supposed to crank the difficulty up a notch and do
it all over again to reach higher levels. | can't imagine why Insect Armageddon made improvements in other areas only to leave this repetitive structure intact, especially since there are only 15 missions comprised of a limited handful of objectives (expect to activate a lot of self- destruct devices on EDF landers). Other frustrations, like the lack of checkpoints and no experience gain unless you finish a level, mean that Lightning squad's attempts to save Earth occasionally do more damage to your patience than the invading aliens.
Insect Armageddon lacks the clueless earnestness of the last entry and carries over some dated concepts, but it fully captures the same breed of unapologetic run-and- gun action. Ultimately, that's what kept me playing EDF 2017 for dozens of hours, and that's why l've got dozens more in front of me with Insect Armageddon. » Joe Juba
8
Concept Earth is being invaded by giant bugs and robots, and you need to shoot ‘ет
1 only ran into slowdown
à couple of times, which is impressive considering all of the explosions, lasers, and spider guts on the screen
» Sound The best line of dialogue is still “EDF! EDF!”
Playability Additions like an active reload and a run button help this entry clear the lowest bar of expectation for modern shooters
Entertainment If you want subtlety and depth, look someplace else. If you want to mindlessly kill a bunch of aliens, welcome to the EDF
Replay Value Moderately High
reviews 111
» Concept Put more than 20 characters from Pixar's popular series through their paces in a variety of racing missions
» Graphics The characters look great, and Avalanche captured everything from the way they look to how they zip around the tracks. The environments are varied, but aren't quite up to that level
» Sound
А nice selection of tunes, and Characters have a decent reservoir of sound bites to draw from
» Playability
It's accessible enough for young players, while offering a few advanced moves for the pros
» Entertainment Avalanche proves that its Toy Story 3 game was no fluke; Cars 2 is a solid companion piece to the movie and a must-play for Lightning McQueen superfans
» Replay Value
Moderate
112 reviews
Cars 2
Avalanches5 latest is a license worth driving
Style 1 to 4-Player Racing Publisher Disney Interactive Studios Developer Avalanche Software Release June 21 ESRB E10+
efforts, but that hasn’t stopped tykes from enjoy-
ing it with a fandom approaching fanatical levels. It’s also a merchandiser's dream, as demonstrated by the aisles of cars, playsets, and clothing available in stores. As a parent of a couple of young boys, | know the appeal all too well. I’ve also seen the quality of Cars- based games slowly decline over the years. If you, too, have felt as if the license is running on an empty tank, take heart. Cars 2 restores that wonderful new-car smell to the franchise.
Rather than emulate the spy-caper events of the sequel, new developer Avalanche wisely chose to use it as a springboard instead. This kart racer provides the series’ characters with a variety of C.H.R.O.M.E. training missions as they build up their spy resumes. It's the эйт- mest of possible storylines, but it beats being constrained by a screenplay that doesn't support hours of gameplay.
The on-track action is appropriately fast-paced. After all, Lightning McQueen didn’t garner his reputation by snoozing at his wheel. The game also gives minor players like Luigi and Guido a chance to show off their skills on the track. It’s a training exercise after all, so what does it matter if a forklift leads a pack of professional racecars?
The game follows a standard progression format. You earn spy points for placing well in the events, and from there you unlock more challenges and tiers of increasing difficulty. The events thankfully include more than simple races. | enjoyed the survivor mode in particular, where you have to pick up batteries scattered across a track to maintain a constantly depleting shield. When it’s gone, Professor Z's raygun zaps you and it's game over. Some other high points include a hunter mode, where you battle drones in an arena, and attack mode, where you earn time by blasting rival cars into scrap.
You should recognize many of the game's weapons from other kart racers, since Cars 2 liberally pilfers from the genre. The game includes missiles, oil slicks, a super weapon that shrinks enemies, and a little radio-controlled car that may as well turn into a red turtle shell and call it a day. I’m not complaining too loudly about the arsenal, though; there's a reason why certain attack types have persevered in the genre. The same goes for the boost mechanic, in which players earn nitro by snaking along the track or picking up cans of fuel.
The levels take you through a variety of iconic areas, but they ultimately lack the wow factor that other games in the genre offer. At the end of the day, however, Cars 2 is a satisfying kart racing game with a reserve tank of charm. If multiplayer is your thing, the entire game can be played via a four-way split screen. If you have younger gamers in your household, chances are you'll have a few eager challengers in no time flat. » Jeff Cork
M any consider Cars to be one of Pixar's weakest
77 15
360 360
» Concept
The world is under attack from monstrous TV tubes. Only your mobile trench can save the day
» Graphics
Steeped in a WWII propaganda style, the presentation is fun even if the gameplay environments are a little generic
» Sound
Some excellent voice acting as you get sick of the repetitive gun noises
» Playability
The basic controls are well mapped, but it's hard to get used to the ever-changing array of weapons
» Entertainment
Weird and action-packed, even if things never feel balanced enough to match the best tower defense games
» Replay Value Moderate
Trenched
Tower defense meets shooter in another strange Double Fine production
Style 1-Player Action (4-Player Online) Publisher Microsoft Game Studios Developer Double Fine Productions Release June 22 ESRB T
trying on various hats. Each of its recent games
has branched in a new direction. Trenched is no exception. Mixing a standard tower defense formula with an unusual and imaginative twist on the mecha- nized shooter, Trenched manages to eke out a lot of charm and humor. The gameplay is pretty solid as well, with constant action and a lengthy campaign. It's that same length that starts to reveal the title's repetitive nature, and later levels expose some questionable bal- ance decisions.
The game's name comes from a twist on the familiar mech idea. You pilot a mobile trench — a walking tank crowned by a sandbag trench that manages (somehow) to keep your pilot protected from all damage. Your trench can be equipped with unreasonable weaponry in order to fight the growing threat of robotic TV machines out to enslave mankind. As you hammer these dastardly foes with your machine guns and flak, you can designate points on the battlefield to drop turret emplacements to aid in the fight.
The battles come fast and heavy — almost to a fault. With so little time to set up your emplacements and col- lect scrap (money), you always feel like you're behind before the waves even start crashing in. There are a huge variety of weapons, emplacements, and trench loadouts to choose between - a growing list of customization awaits after every mission. It's a very cool feature, but it's easy to get lost in all the weapons. Even with rec- ommended weapon types for each battle, | still found myself out of my depth more than once because of poor choices during loadout.
Nearly every fight comes down to the need to defend a particular location from destruction. It can get old, even if the intensity never lets up. Unless you grind through bat- tles repeatedly, expect more than a few mission failures. Many battles are balanced to be very challenging, which adds to the frustration.
While single player can be a slog through some mis- sions, the game is helped tremendously by a fun four- player online cooperative mode. The addition of other trenches on the battlefield helps to even the odds, and the added flexibility of weapons makes a big difference.
A lack of variety notwithstand- ing, Trenched is an action- packed and amusing variation on the tower defense paradigm. If you're open to some mission replays and a little grinding, Double Fine's latest effort could be worth a look. » Matt Miller
D ouble Fine Productions has spent the last year
Style 1-Player Action (2-Player Local or Online) Publisher Capcom
history of rewarding players with
awesome unlockables like infinite rocket launchers and new costumes. Arguably, the best of these bonuses is Resident Evil 4's The Mercenaries mode. Players took on the role of favorites like Wesker and Hunk, mowing down enemies in succession with preset artil- lery while racing the clock. Resident Evil 5 enhanced the addictive formula with two- player co-op and even more levels and characters. Like one of the series' mutant abominations, the swollen append- age that is The Mercenaries has finally detached and morphed into a standalone experience for the 30$, and it's retained almost every ounce of fun.
Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D plays like a greatest hits of the RE 4 and 5's modes, with new features like objective- based missions and a cool perks system. The cast is packed with familiar faces like Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, each with well-balanced weapon loadouts. It's easy to fall in love with Hunk's devastat- ing melee attacks or Krauser's infinite. arrows, but the fun comes from trying all the characters. Unlocking upgradable skills like handgun proficiency, increased heath recovery, and combo meter extenders makes outfitting each character a deeper, more rewarding experience.
Unfortunately, the meat of The Mercenaries' score-based, kill-count- focused gameplay is buried beneath about an hour of tutorials disguised as missions. These elementary tasks are okay for new- comers, but everyone else will want to cut to the chase. These tepid stages are eradi- cated from your memory when the annoy- ing disembodied guide takes a backseat to the wild action. Familiar levels like RE 4's Spanish village and RE 55 African market are packed with droves of infected resi- dents, crazy chainsaw guys, and hulking executioners. Taking on these bloodthirsty bad guys is still a blast, whether you
T he Resident Evil series has a long
Developer Capcom Release June 28 ESRB M
prefer to wildly spray bullets or blow out kneecaps and deliver melee finishers. Playing with a partner via the 3DS’ wireless or internet connectivity doubles the fun. Watching Barry Burton boot an enemy to the ground followed by Hunk's surgical three bullet finisher is a treat.
Playing Mercenaries on the 3DS is a smooth experience. You can switch weap- ons and reload with a quick tap on the touchscreen — a more fluid mechanic than а console controller's d-pad. Traditionalists can still aim in third-person, but the default setting pulls the camera into a first-person view when you ready your weapon. Gunning down Umbrella's mutants in first-person makes the smaller screen a non-issue. Moving while shooting has been added, but | wouldn't call the slowly strafing with your gun locked in one direc- tion a huge advancement - | hardly used it and experienced no added trouble beating the game.
One annoying recurring visual hiccup holds back The Mercenaries 3D from being a true representation of its console counterparts. The game appears to conserve the 3DS's processing power by deprioritizing the animations of distant enemies, allowing bad guys in the player's face to move naturally. This results in persistently jilted, claymation-esque move- ments that would make the director of The Ring cringe. Considering that most of the action in The Mercenaries is close quarters, this doesn’t end up impacting gameplay too dramatically, but it's less than ideal.
Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D delivers a fleshed out, faithful, yet slightly flawed version of the gripping bonus mode. Imperfections aside, playing The Mercenaries 3D with a friend is the most thrilling handheld co-op experience I've ever had. Fans and 3DS-owners looking for a shot of pure portable action with a rewarding progression system should defi- nitely check it out. » Tim Turi
Taking on this beast is'a. nightmare without a partner
Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D
> guns for hire are wor
8
» Concept
А handheld, fleshed-out version of Resident Evil 4's addicting bonus game
» Graphics At a glance this could be confused for the console version of Resident Evil 5, but some jerky animations mar the beauty
Sound
Heart-pumping music, trash- talking bad guys, and gun Shots will fill your ears
» Playability
Using the touchscreen to quickly select items is a dream come true
» Entertainment
Like RE 5 this one is better with a friend, but besting your own scores is still a riot
» Replay Value
Moderate
The 3D Effect
M
yed the game with 3D on Ш blast for a healthy chunk of my play time. Gunning down Majinis is intense busi- ness, however, and moving around the 3DS while playing becomes an ocular issue in the heat of battle.
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fF DE AR Tas ^, Callof Duty: Black Ops 9 10ес10 Маме! Pinball 85 Јап-11 Alice: Madness Returns 675 Jut | 8 75 L А М | | Carnival Games: Marvel Super Hero Squad: ‘Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood 9.25 Dec-10 | ш ‚А. Noire | Monkey See, Monkey Do 5 Jun-11 The Infinity Gauntlet 6.75 Feb-11 НО HD: Mis " | А Child of Eden 8 Jul-t1 Мамам. Capcom 3: Ре E Я ce Eh | Platform PS3 + 360 Release May 17 ESRB M Issue July ‘11 | create T Falo ot To Worlds iar vey 4 | * " А Ue. is | Michael Jackson Boos he 55 a At its best, LA. Noire is one of the most vivid, tex cena P END The Ears 275 dnt Buletstorm 925 Appi | gripping game experiences I've had. At its |. DanceMasters 4: dai Маама. PANE Call of Duty: Black Oy 9 бело | i i i i ir | de Blob2 8 Apri р à — Pen -—Q | Worst, it can be plain boring. As in much noir ee а raus Mida 5 Marti pigs s a | fiction, the truth lies in the gray area between —_beaa space 2 о Feb11 Mortal Kombat 95 Junt Crysis 2 9 Mak | those two extremes. — Matt Helgeson | bits 876 шыт Mor A Ale D Ben de Blob 2 8 Apr-tt Td P ete oe 4 Dishwasher: Vampire Smile, The 8.5 Мау-11 А 1 a . DJ Hero 2 925 Dec-10 Operation Flashpoint: Red River 6 Јип-11 Dead Space 2 9 Feb-11 Major League Baseball 2K11 6 Мау-11 Splatterhouse 5 Feb-11 Outland gidin Dita 875 311 — Marvel Pinball 85 Jan-11 Stacking 85 Marti Dragon Age I 825 АТ ааны DJ Hero 2 9.25 Dec-10 Маге! Super Hero Squad: ‘Swarm 725 Apri Dungeon Defenders REEL Edition DX 9 ши Dragon Age II 8.25 Apri The Infinity Gauntlet 6.75 Feb-11 Tales From Space: Dungeon Siege Il 8 МИ inball FK2 9 Јап-11 Dungeon Defenders 778 Juti Marvel vs, Capcom 3: About A Blob 875 Apri Dungeons & Dragons: Portal 2 95 Juno Dungeon Siege I 8 ди Fate of Two Worlds 925 Mari! Test Drive Unimited 2 85 Mari; DeGgerdole РЕАЛЕ = TS Uc Dungeons & Dragons: Mass Effect 2 95 Feb- тһог: God of Thunder 4s dej Бунезіу Мапа? G.M МАНЕ E rut 6 Mail Daggerdale 6 Jui мома Magic: Tiger Woods PGA сарам 85 08010 Section в: Prejudce 8 duni Dynasty Warriors 7 6 Junt Clash of Heroes HD 775 Jun-ii Tour 12: The Masters. 9 May-11 Fable ll РИН ар о я ИЕ EA Sports ММА 85 Dec-10 Маск 5 Marii Time Crisis: Razing Storm 6.75 Jan-11 Faery: Legends of Avalon S Feb! вне DDR Echochrome II 7.25 Feb-11 МІВ 11: The Show 9.25 Apr-11 ^ TopSpin4 85 May-11 Fallout: New Vegas BA DEU. тала e iii Fallout: New Vegas 85 Dec-10 Mortal Kombat 95 Jun-i Trinity: Souls of Zil O'I 6 Mmary Fancy Pants Adventure, The 75 Juti PT 5 Feb-11 Fancy Pants Adventure, he — 7.5 41 MX vs. ATV Alive 7 ми топ: Evolution 45 Jan-11 Fight Night Champion. рери Е ар 85 Marit Fight Night Champion 9 Apri? Майа 8 Jan-11 — Two Worlds II 775 Маглі Gatling Gears LN om Буу Зани Fight: Lights Out, The. 6.5 Jan-11 Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 8.75 Dec-10 — WWE All Stars 7.5 Мау-11 Ната Corps: Uprising 9: Feb-t1 dais 725 Aprii Gran Turismo & 9 Feb-11 Operation Flashpoint: Red River 6 Јип-11 үаг5 Revenge 75 Apri; Нату Potter and the Test Drive Unlkmited 2 85. Marii Hard Corps: Uprising 9 Feb4i Outland 9 Jun You Don't Know Jack 8 (wj. РЕН м т io ed ET oer ace te PES NGA CRE cna Homefront 7 May-11 Thor: God of Thunder 45 Ju-fi Deathly Hallows: Part 1 55 Jani Edition DX 9 ши lomio as ami EE PENADA Homefront 7 May-11 PlayStation Move Heroes 6.5 May-11 A World Of Keflings 8.25 Јап-11 18795 of Wakfu T e dk 85 MET Infamous 2 875 м — Portal2 ЕЛЕН). Ао: Madness Retuma 675 Jui YoY Ride 7 Jii D Еч dm deal Kilzone 3 9 Ар ^ Red Dead Redemption: Assassins Creed: Brotherhood 9.25 Dec-10 11001 Adventures TS Sem ro Gd JTE Mah Knights Contract v АЕ", y Undead Nohimers 8 Dec-10 Bangai-O HD: Missle Fury 7.75 Ju.ii Kinect Spons GRAMI елаве. 55 Marii Kung-Fu Live. 6.5 Feb-11 Red Faction: Armageddon 725 JUM1 ^ Beyond Good & Evil HD 925 Apri Кпеситав 8 Јал EE Stars x pii LA. Noire 8.75 Jut Rush'N Attack: Ex-Patriot 6 Маг-11 Biggest Loser: Knights Contract 7 Apri NU E Heure T5 Аре11 LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean 7 Ји-11 Shift 2 Unleashed 8.5 May-11 Ultimate Workout, The 8 Decio Kung Fu Panda 2 ee i е e AM LEGO Star Wars Ill: Shoot, The 6 Jan-11 Bionic Commando Rearmed 2 7.25 Apr-11 ҺА Noire 875 Jul-11 ан ВА The Clone Wars 85 May-11 Sims, The SADAO Blood Dive 45 Janti LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean 7 Ҹит YOU Don't Know Jack Са LittleBigPlanet 2 9,5 Feb-11 ^ Slam Bolt Scrappers 7 May-11 Body and Brain Connection 5 Marii LEGO Star Wars Il: em Majin and the. SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy Seals 7.75 Jun-11 Brink 675 Јш-11 The Clone Wars 85 Мау-11 Babysitting Mema. MERE Forsaken Kingdom 8 Dec-10 Spare Parts 6 Mari! — Bulletstorm Бирки: MajorLeague Besebel 211 6 Мәу-11 BitTrip E 825 May-11
8 | Magic: The Gathering — Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012
Platform PS3 * 360 * PC Release June 15 ESRB T
If there were more decks and cards, and an online league structure to compete in, this could have been а gem. As it is, it’s a solid but limited digital adaptation of the dominant tabletop game of our generation. — Adam Biessener
1.15 | Super Street Fighter IV; Arcade Edition
Platform PS3 • 360 Release June 28 ESRB T
Capcom repeats its Street Fighter II strategy of wringing every last cent it can out of SFIV. Arcade Edition only offers two very Akuma-like new fighters (Evil Ryu and Oni] and the similar Yun and Yang brothers. New replay options are also available for online play, enforcing the feeling that this update is strictly for hardcore players. — Dan Ryckert
the score
114
8.25 | The Adventures
of Shuggy
Platform 360 Release June 15 ESRB E
This solid entry in the ‘difficult platformer” genre (Super Meat Boy, N+) stands out from the crowd thanks to its out-of- season Halloween theme. A constant flow of new challenges is the game's greatest strength, but not every mode is as good as the last. — Bryan Vore
the score
6.5 | Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters
Platform PS3 + 360 Release June 14 ESRB T
Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters makes good use of the Green Lantern license, yet Struggles to deliver an intense combat experience. It ends up feeling like an excruciatingly long game, despite it offering only six to seven hours of gameplay. — Andrew Reiner
7.5 | Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Platform PS3 • 360 Release June 14 ESRB T
Transformers: Dark of the Moon is one of the better movie games of recent years. For fans, it tells a prequel tale to the new film, setting the stage for many of the characters and plot points that will show up. Sadly, being great compared to some recent abysmal licensed projects does not necessarily make it excellent compared to everything else. — Matt Miller
Visit gameinformer.com for the full réviews
8.15
Platform PS3 Release June 7 ESRB T Issue July '11
The more I played Infamous 2, the more I found myself disengaged with the story, and enjoying the experience solely for its amazing open-world superhero fights. – Andrew Reiner
Conduit 2 6 ми Create 5 Јап-11 de Blob 2 8 Apri DJ Hero 2 9.25 Dec-10 Donkey Kong Country Retums 915. Dec-10 Epic Mickey 7.75 Јап-11 Flip’s Twisted World 35 Jan-11 Ghost Recon 45 Jan-11 Kirby's Epio Yarn 95 0ес-10 LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean 7 Ји-11 Lost In Shadow 75 Feb-11 Mario Sports Mix 45 Marii Marvel Super Hero Squad:
The infinity Gauntlet 6.75 Feb-11 Michael Jackson
The Experience 65 Јап-11 Sonic Colors 7 Jan-11 Tiger Woods PGA
Tour 12: The Masters 9 Мауи Tron: Evolution Battle Grids 6 Jan-11 You Don't Know Jack 8 Feb-11 Alice: Madness Returns 675 Jut ‘Anomaly: Warzone Earth 8 ми Bejeweled 9 Jan-11 Brink 675 Јш-11 Bülletstorm 925 Apri Call of Duty: Black Ops 9. Dec-t0 Create 5 Јап-11 Crysis 2 9 May-11 Darkspore 85 Jun-11 Dead Space 2 9 Feb-11
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Dungeon Siege lll 8 ми Dungeons. 7 Арг-11 Fallout: New Vegas 8.5 Dec-10 Homefront 7 Мау-11 Magicka 75 April Operation Flashpoint: Red River 6 — Jun-11 Portal 2 95 Jun-11 Section 8: Prejudice 8 ми Shift 2 Unleashed 85 May-11 Sims Medieval, The 7 ми Total War: Shogun 2 95 Apri Two Worlds Il 7.75 Mari Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of
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Mini-Land Mayhem 8.25 Dec-10 Monster Tale 8 Арг1ї Окатійеп 875 Маг-11 Plants vs. Zombies 825 Feb-11 Pokémon Black/White 8.75 Маг-11 Radiant Historia 875 Маг-11
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We've spent most of the issue discussing our favorite sights at this year's ЕЗ, but what's
it like for the men and women showing off their games? Here are the impressions of some
of the talented devel- opers attending this year's conference.
"L had a chance to watch a Modem Warfare 3 demo, which was really exciting. It appears to be so realistic, and it has been produced in such
а short turnaround that it's really amazing. It looks really good.”
+ Yoshinori Kitase, producer, Square Enix
“This isn't lip service, OK? But I really liked Saints Row by THQ. It really looks cool. The silliness of it all looks crazy, and I love it. I loved the trailer, too. There's a guy in the elevator who's smoking a cigarette. He's walking with two girls, and he hands off his cigarette and kills the guy. Then he gets his cigarette back. I love that guy. I love the way he is. I think I'm gonna try to be like him someday.”
+ Tomonobu Itagaki, chief technical officer, Valhalla
Game Studios
"My best of E3 would have to start with Rayman Origins, which is slap-your-mother gorgeous (though, at the time of printing, I have not yet slapped your mother). Other notables: BioShock Infinite for its sheer insanity, the announcement of anew Smash Bros. game for Wii U, and any game that did not mention the word ‘trilogy.”
+ Mike Neumann, creative director, Gearbox Software
“Honestly, the thing I was most excited about from the show was
a tiny part of the Microsoft media briefing that was only on screen for a split second. It was during the segment about the new 360 dash- board where they showed the new
games page with XBLA featured prominently on the front. It's easy for amazing downloadable games like Clash of Heroes, Spelunky, and Bastion to get lost in the current setup. Hopefully this will give indies à bit more exposure."
+ Greg Rice, producer,
Double Fine
“I was pleasantly surprised by the Wii U. The potential of this console is awesome, and I can't wait to develop future titles for it. In terms of games, I've always been a big fan of the Assassin's Creed series, and I was very impressed by the CG sequence showing an older Ezio fighting a desperate battle, as well as the in-game demo with him jumping from boat to boat through the fire — can't wait to play it!”
+ Dee Brown, studio
head, Beenox
The Developer's Perspective
by Jeff Marchiafava
"The lineup of games for this fall and holiday season is just sick. It's crazy; I don't think I've seen such an impressive lineup, ever. Looks like very little sleep for me this fall and winter. I also love how Nintendo continues to do its own thing. I sus- pect they quite enjoy all the head scratching they cause.”
+ Greg Donovan, senior producer, Volition, Inc.
“Aside from being insanely busy, this was the best E3 we've ever had...It's not every day that you can demo your games to Steven Spielberg or Casper Van Dien. 1 didn’t get to see much on the floor, but I saw the Wii U and it looks to be every bit the stroke of genius that I thought it would be, as long as they follow through with a strong first-party launch title. I also think Microsoft continues to play
their cards right with Xbox Live and Kinect.”
+ Mike Wilford, chief executive officer, Twisted Pixel
"A real highlight for me at the show was during the Microsoft media briefing. We had just finished our stage demo, which seemed to go over well, and we were hanging out in the green room backstage with Ice-T. Being the social media freaks we all are, we saw that the Body Count reunion and Gears of War 3 song announcement caused ‘Body Count’ to trend worldwide on Twitter! While it felt like we were just addressing the press [during the presentation], it was pretty clear with all the TV and web coverage that it had reached a lot of people.” + Rod Fergusson, executive producer, Epic Games
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116 game over
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