Posts

The Metal Gear series is one of the longest-running in all of gaming and helped popularize stealth gameplay to the gaming industry. The most recent entry to the franchise, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, was released five years ago in 2015. The game was created by series founder and renowned game designer Hideo Kojima, and it had a very interesting development cycle. This cycle includes ARG marketing campaigns, fan backlash, and even the eventual split between a massive publisher and one of its most famous developers....

Nintendo’s GameCube was a gaming console that was sold from 2001, when it was introduced in Japan, through 2007 when it was discontinued worldwide. This console didn’t exactly sell as well as its competitors of the time, but it still had some memorable games that were released for the platform. Super Smash Bros. Melee is a game that is still played by fans all over the world! But what about other games?...

The 80s and 90s are extremely memorable for pop culture. Many hit movies came out in theaters, TV shows and music were all the rage, and video games were picking up in popularity. Video game icons like Mario, Link, Lara Croft, and a handful of others impacted the world outside of their media. At first, Japan would get newly released games first if the development team and publisher are based in Japan, but there were rare instances when North America would get games first....

There are lots of reasons to incorporate gods into a video game. Need a fierce opponent for the player? Need a reason to give the player a quick boost? Trying to build a larger world and culture? Whatever the case, gods have an otherworldly, overwhelming presence that can serve a game world in any number of ways. Love gods and goddesses (though usually goddesses) can be found throughout gaming franchises. Some of them pull gods from established mythology, while others invent entirely new characters....

The PlayStation 2 is regularly cited as one of the greatest home consoles of all time, and one look at the system’s frankly breathtaking library is one needs to see how true these claims ring. There’s truly no shortage of great titles on the PlayStation 2, but there’s one genre that arguably stood out more than others. Like the PlayStation before it, the PS2 was home to some of the best RPGs of its generation– all of which told incredible stories....

Subnautica: Below Zero is finally out of early access and available on both PCs and consoles. The open-world survival game had first made its debut on Steam and the Epic Games Store in early 2019, and its developers had spent the two years since then gathering feedback and making refinements to its core mechanics. Players who played those earlier builds of the game would have no doubt gathered all the skills they need to survive its harsh open world....

When Pokemon Diamond & Pearl launched, director Junichi Masuda visited the United Nations and other areas around New York City. Inspired by the harmonious communities he traveled through, Masuda decided to take the series in a bold new direction. The new Unova region would be the first to not be based on an area of Japan, but rather the most populated city in the United States. The choice came with massive success, especially with North American gamers who could relate to the familiar areas of Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens....

A lot can happen during game development. Certain gameplay features may turn out duller than expected. Story beats may not work as the developers envisioned. New ideas may come about that force devs to completely rethink their games. Whatever the reason for the changes, there are many occasions where games start out as one thing, and by the end of the development are something completely different. Some of the biggest games in history have undergone rather dramatic transformations to the point that they would have been unrecognizable to fans had the devs stuck to their original visions....

Despite the reputation it has built over the years, I hadn’t experienced a title from developer Vanillaware until playing 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. Known primarily for its action-heavy fantasy titles like Dragon’s Crown and Muramasa: The Demon Blade, this new sci-fi laden, mech combat strategy title is a massive departure for the team. Diehard fans weren’t sure what to make of it, what with that genre shift and tonal change....

No Man’s Sky may only have a score of 71 on Metacritic, but it has come a long way since its launch in 2016, with plenty of updates that finally let the game live up to those initial promises, bringing an experience that’s absolutely worth delving into. However, when you boot up the game and enter the vast, endless universe of No Man’s Sky, things can get a little daunting. Still, with a niftier ship to pilot, a fleet at your disposal, a handy fire-arm to keep you safe in the most hostile of environments, and enough cash to nab the resources you need, the tension can be eased....

Although the second Tuesday in January is typically not an important date in video games, today features quite a few intriguing new releases. Several games are launching some new DLC today, among them Alien: Isolation, Far Cry 4, and Assassin’s Creed Unity. For Assassin’s Creed Unity players, today features the launch of the Dead Kings DLC, which is part of Ubisoft’s goodwill gesture for Unity’s poor quality at launch. The new story DLC sees Arno heading deep beneath the city of Saint Denis to uncover the secrets of its catacombs....

Following the annual video game summer lull, players have a lot to look forward to this fall and winter - including the next Batman: Arkham (Insert Subtitle) installment, Batman: Arkham Origins along with the companion handheld spin-off Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate. Developed by Warner Bros. Interactive, not fan-favorite Rocksteady Studios, Origins has been somewhat of a question mark for fans of the series and many gamers remain unconvinced that the title can live-up to the high quality franchise bar (instead of a hollow cash-grab)....

A persistently connected MMO with a wealth of things to do, Activision and developer Bungie have pledged to keep Destiny players occupied with fresh content for the next decade. Exclusive to PlayStation consoles until next year and taking players below the surface of the moon, Destiny’s ‘The Dark Below’ DLC is the first content release in the pipeline. Out at the end of the year, ‘The Dark Below’ brings with it a plethora of new missions to be tackled both solo and alone....

Hot on the heels of EA’s announcement that Battlefield: Hardline had been pushed back to 2015, the publisher has announced that yet another highly anticipated October release is delayed. Dragon Age: Inquisition will now launch a month later than anticipated on November 18th. While not nearly as substantial a delay as Battlefield: Hardline’s, this Dragon Age: Inquisition move should still come as a disappointment to eager fans. At the same time, though, it does move Dragon Age away from the over crowded month of October, which could be a good thing in the long run....

Though the time span between when Epic Mickey 2 was teased and now has led us to believe that the title was going to be sitting on Disney’s back burner for a while, a new event invitation suggests otherwise. According to the invitation, Disney and Warren Spector (Creative Director on the first Epic Mickey) will be showing off a new “epic project.” Not much is known about this Epic Mickey 2 event — or what we presume to be an Epic Mickey 2 event — besides its date (March 27th)....

The series may have initially struck a chord with gamers based on the science fiction plot and emphasis on unique player experience, but Mass Effect 3 is quickly becoming more and more of a showcase for BioWare’s evolved approach to combat. That’s definitely not a complaint in itself, as the newest pair of gameplay trailers show that not only will the combat of Mass Effect 3 be a new height for the series, but may offer players an even more challenging experience than they might be expecting....

Fans who have Minecraft for the Xbox 360 know very well how far it lags behind the PC version. While PC players have had the Starvation Food System in place since September 2011, the Xbox game has yet to include such features. To make amends for the long wait, Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition developer 4J Studios is contemplating an extra update for the game, to be released between its scheduled XBLA update windows....

Despite being viewed as some of the most formulaic and dependable game titles - or perhaps, because of it - annual sports simulations tend to be criticized as charging full-price for little more than a roster update. But to date, the NHL series has escaped those claims, offering both incremental improvements and overhauled mechanics on a yearly basis. But that’s not the whole story. The downside to annual sports titles means the need to ship a game, without fail, in whatever state it happens to be in when launch day arrives....

Puddle is a unique physics puzzle title that will test both a player’s mind and reflexes. The concept seems simple – guide a puddle of liquid though a hazardous environment – but the developers definitely put a ton of effort into creating a challenging and fun game. That said, the game isn’t without its issues - problems that could lead to some frustration with the title. Puddle was originally developed by six French students and won the 2010 GDC Independent Games Festival Student Showcase Division....

Fans of the Star Wars universe and of new MMORPG experience have come together to make Star Wars: The Old Republic the fastest growing subscription-based MMORPG ever. The Old Republic has had a rather warm welcome by the MMORPG community and BioWare is continuing to work to ensure that they will not be disappointed. The Old Republic, which was worthy of the high praise we gave it in our review, has endure its share of problems in the early goings (like most MMOs)....