Batman: Arkham Origins Release Date October 25 2013 Announced (WiiU, PC, Xbox 360, PS3). 3rd Game In Series Starring Young Batman. Rocksteady Not Developing (Warner Bros. Montreal Is)

Batman returns in a younger state with Batman: Arkham Origins.

Batman: Arkham Origins has been announced for WiiU, Xbox 360, PS3, and PC, outted by Game Informer magazine which will go in-depth into this 3rd game in the highly acclaimed series as it’s cover-story and World Exclusive reveal for their May 2013 issue of the American magazine.

Batman: Arkham Origins is a prequel tale telling the Origin-story not young Bruce Wayne, the that everyone knows and loves of how he turns into the menacing Caped Crusader and dons the cowl & cape to hunt criminals in the night as Batman (although I wouldn’t be surprised to see a lot of that pop up in the game), but rather the origin of Batman’s relationship with a lot of various characters and villains in the series. This game will also mark the first time that Batman gets to explore the streets of the iconic Gotham City.

Game Informer broke the worldwide exclusive on their cover.

The biggest change this time is the fact that Batman: Arkham Origins is being developed by Warner Bros. Montreal, an in-house WB Games studio, instead of Rocksteady; who was made famous by developing the first two games to incredible critical acclaim (highly regarded as the greatest superhero games ever made) and super sales that put the studio on-the-map. Thankfully, the team will be utilizing existing assets from Rocksteady’s portfolio in order to ensure that this game maintains the look that fans expect.

Hopefully we’ll get to see what Rocksteady is working on for WB Games (who bought them out after the wild success of Batman: Arkham Asylum) at E3 2013 in a couple months.

One of the lead designers on Batman: Arkham Origins is Eric Holmes who previously worked on the critically acclaimed Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction for last-gen systems as well as the Prototype series, so he knows a thing or two about creating successful superhero games. Thus Batman: Arkham Origins is in capable hands.

Looks very similar to the previous Rocksteady games.

Players will encounter new villains that haven’t yet been seen in the franchise (although that’s pretty much a given), including a number of assassin’s who converge on Christmas Eve to kill The Bat as a team.

Batman: Arkham Origins will be released on October 25th 2013, just in time for the holiday season. And may very well be one of a group of “swan song” triple-A titles released for current-generation consoles as we transition to the next-generation. Although a PS4/Xbox 720 release wasn’t announced, I wouldn’t be surprised if the game hits those systems at some point in the future.

Press Release:
“Batman: Arkham Origins features an expanded Gotham City and introduces an original prequel storyline occurring several years before the events of Batman: Arkham Asylum and Batman: Arkham City.

Taking place before the rise of Gotham City’s most dangerous villains and assassins, the game showcases a young, raw, unrefined Batman as he faces a defining moment in his early career as a crime fighter that sets his path to becoming the Dark Knight.

As the story unfolds, witness identities being formed and key relationships being forged.”

“WB Games Montréal is honored to have the opportunity to create Batman: Arkham Origins, a new chapter in this amazing franchise,” Reid Schneider, Vice President of WB Games Montréal said. “We are huge fans of the franchise and are committed to creating an experience that offers players more of what they love, as well as the chance to play as a younger Batman within a fresh storyline and expanded world.”

 

Resident Evil: Revelations Remake Coming Next Month. Hits May 21st 2013 (WiiU, PC, Xbox 360, PS3)

Can’t wait to play this game on consoles and PC!

Resident Evil: Revelations remake will be released on WiiU, PS3, Xbox 360 and PC May 21st 2013 in America and May 24th in Europe. Preivously the game was a 3DS-exclusive. Tons of new features will be added including a new enemy called the Wall Blaster, an extremely tough “Infernal” difficulty setting, additional playable characters for the multiplayer Raid Mode and more.

The fear that was originally brought to players in Resident Evil Revelations on the Nintendo 3DS system returns redefined for home consoles and PC complete with high quality HD visuals, enhanced lighting effects and an immersive sound experience. This latest version of Resident Evil Revelations will also deliver additional content including a terrifying new enemy, extra difficulty mode, integration with ResidentEvil.net and improvements to Raid Mode.

Raid Mode, which was first introduced to the series in the original version of Resident Evil Revelations, sees gamers play online in co-op mode or alone in single player taking on the hordes of enemies across a variety of missions whilst leveling up characters and earning weapon upgrades. New weapons, skill sets, and playable characters including Hunk, take the Raid Mode experience to new depths.

The critically acclaimed survival horror title takes players back to the events that took place between Resident Evil 4 and Resident Evil 5, revealing the truth about the T-Abyss virus. Resident Evil Revelations features series favorites Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield, plus their respective BSAA partners – Parker Luciani and Jessica Sherawat. The action begins on board a supposedly abandoned cruise ship, the Queen Zenobia’, where horrors lurk around every corner, before players head for the mainland and the devastated city of Terragrigia. With limited ammo and weapons available, the race is on to survive the horror of Resident Evil Revelations.

The WiiU version will feature specific enhancements including: Transfer the horror to the GamePad with Off-TV Play or play with the pro controller and TV alone. Utilizing the Miiverse functionality, leave dying messages on the Game Over screen for other players around the world, or add a personal message to fellow Raid Mode players with the Creatures Voice feature. Use your equipment – Analyze enemies and investigate areas with the Genesis scanner on the GamePad to reveal hidden items.

Key Features of Resident Evil: Revelations (console) include:

* Enhanced for Consoles: The fear that was brought to players in Resident Evil Revelations on the Nintendo 3DS system returns redefined complete with high quality HD visuals, enhanced lighting effects and an immersive sound experience.
* Classic Survival Horror Gameplay Returns: The campaign mode’s single player experience sees gamers investigating a range of different locations including the dark confined spaces of a cruise ship and the treacherous snow covered mountains. With limited ammo and weapons, fight off infected enemies that lurk around every corner.
* Hell Just Got Hotter: Infernal Mode, a new difficulty mode for console versions, is not just more challenging than Easy and Normal modes but also remixes enemy and item placement, so even those familiar with the game will discover new terrors.
* Meet the Wall Blister: A brand new enemy , the Wall Blister is a mutated creature borne from the T-Abyss virus that spreads through water, adding to the horrors that lurk around every corner
* Residentevil.net Support: Resident Evil Revelations will take full advantage of Residentevil.net with content available to users once the game launches. Earn weapons and custom parts and use them in-game, collect figures that can be used in dioramas and check your stats through the online web service.
* Improved Raid Mode: New weapons, skill sets, playable characters including Rachel and Hunk and enemies exclusive to this mode are added for the this latest version.

Fans who pre-order at GameStop will net themselves the exclusive “Signature Weapons Pack” that contains the following:

* Samurai Edge – Jill Valentine S.T.A.R.S. model was originally based on the custom M92F “Samurai Edge” that Jill used during her time in S.T.A.R.S., but it has since been changed to the M9A1 and refined to match modern tastes. This handgun greatly increases your firepower
* Government – Parker Luciani B.S.A.A. model is based on the powerful Government handgun, but given a stylish design made especially for Parker. Its ammo capacity has been sacrificed in order to add more power, due to Parker’s reputation for high precision.
* PC 356 – Jessica Sherawat F.B.C. model has increased ammo capacity. A tan frame with the FBC seal carved into the polymer slide hides a weapon built for efficiency

 

Lost Planet 3 Delayed To August 27 2013 Release Date (Xbox 360, PS3, PC). Two Month Push Back

More bugs in the winter wild action.

Lost Planet 3’s release date is now August 27, 2013, a delay of two months for Capcom’s major third installment in the mildly popular Lost Planet third-person shooter series for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. It will hit on August 30th in Europe.

The latest chapter in the Lost Planet series/ The extreme and unpredictable conditions that characterized the Lost Planet series return, harsher than ever before. Lost Planet 3 reveals new truths about the foreboding planet and the colonial history of E.D.N. III. Lost Planet 3 introduces Jim, a rig pilot who leaves Earth to take on a hazardous but lucrative contract on E.D.N. III. Working for Neo-Venus Construction (NEVEC) who are preparing the planet for colonization, Jim joins his fellow pioneers at the Coronis base and begins surveying the uncharted terrain and obtaining samples of the planet’s energy supply – Thermal Energy.

With NEVEC’s existing Thermal Energy reserve running low the fate of the Coronis mission depends on the natural source of the energy supply being located. Realizing that this is a great opportunity for a huge pay-off and early ticket home to his family, Jim braves the risk of the treacherous environment and threat of the indigenous Akrid. Acting as a home away from home and boasting an array of tools that can assist Jim on the field, the utility rig provides Jim’s safety and is essential for not only his contract work but also his protection against the ever-changing climate.

Lost Planet 3 will deliver a diverse range of gameplay including on-foot battles and intense first person action. With a number of multiplayer modes and a compelling single player experience, Lost Planet 3 will delve deeper into the Lost Planet universe, uncovering hidden truths within the unique and dynamic environment of E.D.N. III.

Here is 10 minutes of gameplay footage from Lost Planet 3.

Key Features of Lost Planet 3:

* Return to extreme conditions – Taking the series back to its roots Lost Planet 3 returns to E.D.N. III, delivering a dynamic battle field that’s more dangerous than ever before with an ever changing climate that will affect the way you play.
* Brave the terrifying – Play as blue collar worker Jim, risking assignments in treacherous conditions to earn his hazard pay and return home to his family.
* Home away from home – Protect yourself from hostile Akrid and the unpredictable ice storms on E.D.N. III with your utility rig. Equipped with an assortment of tools you’ll need to learn to use the rig to your advantage in order to survive.
* Gameplay Variety – Offering a mix of first person combat in the rig and third person gunplay on foot.
* Intense, cinematic experience -Developed with the Unreal Engine 3, Lost Planet 3 presents a visually stunning and unique terrain that impacts the gameplay.

I never got around to playing the original Lost Planet: Extreme Condition, except for a short period. I really liked what I played, and I’ve always meant to get back to it one of these days. I did play Part 2 and didn’t care for it too much either, but i’m not much of a multiplayer gamer. Even so, I’m looking forward to Lost Planet 3. It’ll be interesting to see whether the third-time’s-the-charm for this series, and whether or not this will be the game that breaks it into major AAA territory which it hasn’t quite been able to obtain, IMHO, yet.

 

Terminator Salvation Videogame Review For Xbox 360. Also On PS3, PC, iOS

Cool yet standard box art.

You can read the entire Terminator Salvation Videogame review here.

 

2013 Capcom Arcade Cabinet Game Release Schedule (Xbox 360, PS3)

Capcom Arcade Cabinet is a Capcom arcade videogame platform for Xbox Live (Xbox 360) and PlayStation Network (PS3) that allows gamers to purchase multiple retro Capcom arcade games that can then be played on the platform. Initially only arcade titles from the 80s will be available, but Capcom hopes to continue to grow the platform with new arcade releases in the months (and hopefully years) to come.

Not only do you get to play legitimate arcade games from Capcom’s back-catalog via Capcom Arcade Cabinet, but you’ll also be able to unlock bonuses and extras for every arcade game, earn Achievements and Trophies, play certain arcade games online, upload your gameplay video to youtube or take screenshots and share them with friends directly from the platform, access and compete on online Leaderboards, and change dip-switches that allow you to increase or decrease difficulty, or access cheats like infinite lives. Capcom promises that all of these arcade games won’t just be ROM-dumps, but will be updated in certain ways above what you can find via online ROM’s and emulators like MAME.

In fact each and every game will include some mix of: HD graphics and optimization, online multiplayer, leaderboards, unlockable rewards and multimedia extras.

Additionally, Black Tiger will be avaiable for free for those who want to test out the service and download Capcom Arcade Cabinet, and people who purchase every game or pack will be offered a special two-game bonus pack to add to their collection.

Capcom Arcade Cabinet is available to download now, here is the list of upcoming arcade game releases.

I used to freakin’ love this game on NES when I was a kid!

Capcom Arcade Cabinet Game Release Schedule 2013

February 19th (Out Now)
* GAME PACK 1 (Black Tiger, Avengers, 1943: The Battle of Midway) – $4.99

March 5th (Out Today)
* GAME PACK 2 (Ghosts n Goblins, Gun.Smoke, Section Z) – $9.99
— Avengers – $3.99
— 1943: The Battle of Midway – $3.99

March 19th
* GAME PACK 3 (Side Arms, Legendary Wings, Trojan) – $9.99
— Ghosts n Goblins- $3.99
— Gun.Smoke – $3.99
— Section Z – $3.99

April 2nd
* GAME PACK 4 (Commando, The Speed Rumbler, Exed Exes (Savage Bees)) – $9.99
— Side Arms- $3.99
— Legendary Wings – $3.99
— Trojan – $3.99

April 16th
* GAME PACK 5 (1942, SonSon, Pirate Ship Higemaru) – $9.99
— Commando- $3.99
— The Speed Rumbler – $3.99
— Exed Exes (Savage Bees) – $3.99

April 30th
— 1942- $3.99
— SonSon – $3.99
— Pirate Ship Higemaru – $3.99

May 21st
* All-in-one pack – $29.99

This idea is very welcome but long, long overdue. Even so, I am glad that they have announced Capcom Arcade Cabinet, now let’s hope they bring EVERY arcade game (including fighting games like Street Fighter III and Marvel vs Capcom 1) to the platform eventually and announce the platform for more systems like WiiU, 3DS, PS Vita, PS4, Xbox 720, Ouya, Android, iOS and PC via Steam/GOG. It should be available for EVERY gaming platform. Especially considering that people can easily download these games right this very second FOR FREE if they really wanted to via piracy.

 

2008 Alone In the Dark Xbox 360 Review (Also On PC, PS3, Wii and PS2)

Read my entire 2008 Alone in the Dark Xbox 360 review here.

 

Devil May Cry 4 Review For Xbox 360 (Also On: PS3, PC, iOS)

Read my entire Devil May Cry 4 review (Xbox 360) here.

 

Retro Review: Fear Effect For PS1. Why No Fear Effect HD Collection? Come On Square Enix! DO IT!

The awesome cover artwork for a badass PS1 survival horror game.

Read my entire Fear Effect review (PS1) here.

 

Retro Review: Fatal Frame 1 For Xbox1 (Original Xbox. Also On PS2). Why No Fatal Frame HD Trilogy Yet?

I love the creepy Xbox box art for this game!

Read my entire Fatal Frame 1 review (Xbox1) here.

 

Hitman HD Trilogy Launch Trailer. Out Now (Xbox 360, PS3)

Hitman HD Trilogy is out now for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The game packs together every Hitman game but the first (a PC exclusive that you can find on Steam or GOG.com) and the most recent (Absolution) while also giving players upgraded HD grapics and all-new Achievements and Trophies to hunt down! The Hitman HD Trilogy release date in Europe is February 1st.

I’ve never played any of the Hitman games, so this set is definitely on my radar!

Here is the Hitman HD Trilogy launch trailer.

Hitman HD Trilogy contains the following games: Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, Hitman: Contracts and Hitman: Blood Money. A Hitman HD Trilogy Collector’s Edition is also available.