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July 26th, 2006, 19:31 Posted By: shadowprophet
Ahh summer, What other time of the year holds such power over us, While dreams of sun an sand fill our minds all year long, the true realizations if just how hot that sun is, and just how annoying sand in your fruit of the looms really can be,, we head home and hug up to our air conditioners, and enjoy a form of entertainment that can only be fully appreciated by the gaming elite. Well, it's a good thing Square Enix just revealed its final summer lineup. The company plans to ship four different titles to keep as many people away from sun's deadly rays as possible.
"This summer, Square Enix is releasing titles that will truly appeal to all audiences," said Daishiro Okada, President and COO, Square Enix, Inc. "The line-up brings new titles for some of Square Enix's most beloved series with games for casual and young gamers, as well as gamers 'on the go,' the revival of a cult hit, a new take on a renowned franchise and the ability to play together. We're excited about providing entertainment that will bring in new fans as well as delight our existing ones."
First up, there's Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, a remake of the 2000 title Valkyrie Profile that shipped for the original Playstation. The game promises new features and bonus content, as well as non-linear gameplay. The story, as with most RPG offerings, sees players struggle against supernatural forces that threaten, well, everything. Lenneth shipped July 18 for the PSP.
Next, something for all the Final Fantasy fans out there. Dirge of Cerberus follows the frenetic exploits of Vincent Valentine, who most RPG fans know appeared in the seminal Final Fantasy VII. The North American release features all-new missions, a retooled camera system and faster paced action. Look for it to ship August 15, 2006 for the PS2.
On the Nintendo front, Square will release Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime for the Nintendo DS. The game puts the DS to good use through Multi-Card gameplay for up to four players. Also, the system's Single-Card Download feature lets gamers start a 16-player session. And, of course, the dual-screen/touch-screen format let Square Enix design an experience only the DS can provide. Rocket Slime will ship to stores September 19, 2006.
Finally, Square has moved the release date for Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria to September 26, 2006, up from the previous date of November 2006. In Silmeria, players will get the chance to dive into Norse mythology and control a group of fighters with a unique battle system.
In short, keep clear of the beach. And thanks to Square Enix, not getting skin cancer just got a little easier.
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July 26th, 2006, 15:59 Posted By: Kaiser
The upcoming RTS/space combat combo game from Kerberos Productionshas debuted its demo on Fileplanet today. The demo features two playable factions and a 40-star spherical galaxy.
You can download it here on Fileplanet.
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July 26th, 2006, 15:49 Posted By: Kaiser
In Gamespot's lates designer diary composer Jeremy Soule explains how he found the inspiration to create the musical score for this epic RTS game based on the original Warhammer table-top game.
Combat in real-time strategy games has always been about smashing armies, but Warhammer: Mark of Chaos will attempt to raise the bar to a brutal new level. Based on the iconic Warhammer miniatures game from Games Workshop, Mark of Chaos will bring the fantasy battlefields to life like never before. Hundreds of units, ranging from human infantry to huge demons that will devour that infantry, will fight it out in beautiful battle. Creating music for such games can be a difficult task. After all, you don't have examples from history to fall back on. In the latest update to our designer diaries, noted composer Jeremy Soule explains how he found inspiration in the gruesome grandeur of the Warhammer universe. Mark of Chaos ships later this year, but you can listen to two selections from the soundtrack (the main theme and imperial siege) now.
Check out the full article here.
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July 25th, 2006, 23:36 Posted By: shadowprophet
What's that ? never heard of Magical Vacation you say?, That's understandable it was an RPG that was released on the Game Boy Advance about five years ago. and with it being a Japan-only release, and an original intellectual property at that. it was a game that was enjoyable and quite original for its time. Now, its sequel has arrived on the Nintendo DS, entitled Magical Vacation: 5-tsu No Hoshi Ga Narabu Toki ("When Five Stars Line Up"). Brownie Brown and Shinichi Kameoka, the man behind the first Magical Vacation, both return for the sequel.
The story is set up similarly to the first game: at the heart of the story are a group of apprentice magicians, all of whom harness the power of a specific star. One day, their teacher gets some ominous news and disappears. Obviously, the kids have to go and save the day, using their powers that they've been slowly mastering all this time.
One of the key components of the game has to do with the fact that you'll travel across several planets. Because each character utilizes a different source of power, their abilities will be enhanced or diminished based on several factors. One factor is the planet's alignment in comparison to the magical signs that govern the solar system. If you are using Jasmine -- a character who's affiliated star is the Wind Star -- your power could essentially be doubled if the planet you are on is in the Wind Star's quadrant. If it isn't, then you'll become weaker. Day and night cycles also affect your powers, specifically the lead character. At the beginning of the game you can choose to affiliate yourself with Light or Dark, and obviously, using Light powers during the dead of night will yield significantly weaker results than if you used them in the daytime.
Combat is strictly a turn-based affair, and everything in battle is handled by the stylus. Your primary mode of attack will be your magical spells since physical attacks do diddly squat in this game (they don't focus on magic just to be cool), and because you can recharge your MP meter just by not using any spells for one turn. The night/day cycles and the alignment cycles also play a huge part in battle, because they can change during the heat of combat. You have to be really careful because there's nothing worse than starting a battle at full power only to become handicapped halfway through.
Battles also show off the top-notch graphics of the game. Even though the entire game is sprite-based, the designs of your enemies as well as the starring cast is colorful and quite charming...even with some stereotypes along the way. The enemies have a lot of variety, and even three hours into the game, some of the bosses that you'll encounter actually take up both screens during battle! There is also the occasional cut scene here and there, although they are done in a style that's completely different from the rest of the game. They feature 3D models and a clay/pastel-look to them. Admittedly, they seem a little out of place with the rest of the game, but they're well-directed and don't show up often.
For all the good that Magical Vacation offers, the import version does have a couple of tiny faults, the main one being with the control layout. All of the menus are navigated via touch screen, but you can't use the face buttons or directional pad to navigate them. Oddly enough, you can use both buttons and the stylus to move your character around, which makes things somewhat clumsy; you often have to touch characters once you're beside them to talk to them, and considering the sprites are on the small size, it can be a pain. A better solution would've been to allow full capabilities through either the stylus or buttons, but alas, perhaps that'll happen when the game makes it to America.
You heard that right, the DS game isn't going to be stranded in Japan this time around. Entitled Magical Starsign, the game is going to hit stores across America on October 23. Import-happy gamers can pick up the game now, although a certain degree of Japanese knowledge is required, and those who aren't up to date with their Nihongo will just have to wait until the fall to get their first taste of the game.
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July 25th, 2006, 22:04 Posted By: shadowprophet
Since Castlevania hit the Game Boy Advance just after the system's launch, it's been nothing but pure gold. Even Harmony of Dissonance, which is considered to be the weakest of the series, is still an amazing package that does the series justice. But while the GBA titles were great games, Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow for DS is the only one that, in this reporter's opinion, comes close to the pinnacle side-scrolling adventure game Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. In fact, it's the pursuit of dethroning what is considered by many to be one of the world's greatest games - my personal favorite - that keeps the Castlevania series reaching to such heights, as we see it again in Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin.
Whether or not this is will be your first Castlevania game or not, Portrait of Ruin is destined for greatness. Spring-boarding off the previous DS adventure, Portrait of Ruin again combines the now legendary gameplay that brought the Castlevania series into the next generation. Rather than sticking with level-based gameplay that was (despite the pun), very two-dimensional, Konami gave new life to the series by adding in a very balanced level up structure, free-roaming environments that feature some of the best adventure level design since Super Metroid, and a ton of diversity in gameplay. If a player wanted to go through the whole game bare knuckled, they could. If they wanted to focus on magic rather than steel, it was an option. The Castlevania series has morphed into the definitive "go anywhere, do anything" 2D series, and it's secured its place in history for it. Portrait of Run is no different from its predecessors, though it brings a different kind of variety to the table altogether.
Though they're still apparent in Portrait of Ruin, level ups, new weapons, and intriguing worlds are now commonplace in the series, and it takes more than a new package and storyline to truly innovate. Luckily for us, Konami isn't out to disappoint, including a new two-player swapping mechanic that was tried out in a very minimal way during the bonus completion of Dawn of Sorrow. Players can take control of not one, but two vampire hunters, using a combination of classic whip attacks with Jonathan Morris, as well as witchcraft with Charlotte Orlean. The design is still being worked out, so Konami would only share very basic concepts with us, but the overall design will allow players to command the extra character at any time with the touch screen, or simply allow them to follow behind you (almost like a familiar from Symphony of the Night), attacking as it pleases. In puzzle situations, players will have to use both characters in tandem, which promises to be an awesome addition to the puzzle atmosphere of the Castlevania series.
Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin has no final release date yet, though the Japanese version is espected to hit sometime in late December or early January, with a US version following shortly after.
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July 25th, 2006, 21:44 Posted By: shadowprophet
The next Boktai game For Nintendo DS, The original Boktai was released for the Game Boy Advance three years ago, A Brain Child of Konami's own Hideo Kojima, who placed his bid for innovation Via A GBA title that harnessed the power of the sun while you played. A bold move and a great game, But herein lies the complicated mesh of problems that followed its release, The game relied heavily on its in cart solar sensor, Which had its part to play in why this solidly designed otherwise great game was primarily overlooked by many gamers. While the concept was solid the execution failed.
Sun light and gba screens just don't work well as a team, As the series continued , more and more changes were made to make the game a bit more "darkness-friendly", though each version was still stuck with the stigma of the first attempt. That is, until now.
Lunar knights instantly has the unique Boktai feel to it. While The presentation remains the same, giving depth to the levels while still feeling just like a top-view dungeon crawler.
While the original Boktai focused on more of a stealth style (Solar Boy was always sneaking around to avoid using what little sun power he had), Lunar Knights is a bit more straightforward, at least in this current demo. With two main characters to juggle and a ton of different super attacks, Lunar Knights focuses on battles primarily, though I hope to see some awesome puzzle implementation into the later builds of the game as well. Right now it's a bit shallow for my own liking, and as an avid Boktai fan I'm sure many will share my opinion on that. Boktai was as much about finesse as it was power, and that "Metal Gear" feeling the series seemed to just barely touch on is missed in the demo.
Even still, Lunar Knights is defiantly one of my most anticipated 3rd party games of the year for DS. The battle is already amazingly fun, and the balance between using Lucian and Aaron in tandem is already showing a ton of promise. With Lucian favoring the darkness and Aaron capitalizing during the day, players will constantly be swapping the characters in and out not only based on the individual's attacks, but also due to the ever-changing weather. I do have to say, however, that I miss dragging the vampire coffin out of the castle and into the daylight. Instead, the defeated foe is actually launched into space, which is a bit… odd.
As an added kick to the package, almost to say "Look, it is made for DS, not just GBA", Lunar Knights also includes a 3D shooter level very reminiscent of the original Star Fox series for Super NES. It's a bit odd to go from vampire slaying and then transition into a spaceship shooter, and I personally would rather just have some good 'ole vamp slaying. On the ground, the DS capabilities are used for the character's special attacks, which use a variety of familiars to summon tornados and fire or power-up Lucian and Aaron directly. This is a much better example of how to mix up action for the DS version, and the balance between the characters would be enough variety in itself.
Despite a few odd choices though, Lunar Knights is definitely the next Boktai game in spirit, and it's a far better move than convincing people to play their newly-purchased DS Lite (which doubles as a flashlight) out in direct sunlight. The style has remained, the gameplay has been expanded on, and the sun sensor is nowhere to be found. Konami seems to be launching a rebirth for the Boktai franchise, and aside from the un-needed 3D shooter level which seems a bit too tacked on, I'd say they're bringing it back in style. Stay tuned to RPG-NEWS for more Information as it unfolds!!
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July 25th, 2006, 19:05 Posted By: wraggster
Gamespot has the word that Eidos will be publishing the delayed Massive game Age of Conan, with a release date sometime next year. They've also revealed it's being developed for one or more of the next-gen consoles. From the article:
"The deal marks the first time that Eidos has become involved with either an MMORPG or a game based on the Conan character. The fictional barbarian was created by the late author Robert E. Howard in print during the 1930s and played by Arnold Schwarzenegger on film in the 1980s. (The Conan films also costarred Japanese-American character actor Mako, who succumbed to cancer over the weekend.) The franchise has since spawned novels, comic books, and a short-lived television series starring German bodybuilder Ralf Moeller (Gladiator). "
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July 25th, 2006, 18:55 Posted By: wraggster
If you've spent the entire afternoon sat there thinking, "Woah, man, I really wish EA would hurry up and bring out an expansion for that Lord of the Rings strategy game, Battle for Middle-earth II", then prepare yourself for news so stunning, your eyelids may invert.
Apparently, an EA rep (know as Apoc) has officially confirmed on a forum thread over at GameReplays.org that work on the rumoured add-on is underway and that more details will be revealed in due course. That's not all though - the post also divulges the expansion's moniker, known as "The Rise of the Witch-king".
Tolkien addicts will know that refers to the dark leader of the Nazgul, so we can probably expect ring wraith action a plenty and some interesting backstory on the succession of the Witch-king. Rather hilariously someone apparently mis-heard the title and translated it as 'The Life of the Witch-king'. Now that would be a corker - we're picturing a This Is Your Life-style expose, with a surprised dark lord encountering various friends and foes from his past (...and here's that horrible little hobbit that stabbed ya!).
Ahem, anyway flights of fancy aside, it seems that EA is readying to reveal all at this week's Comic Con, with Apoc confirming that more information will follow soon. Stay tuned and all that. Aye?
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July 24th, 2006, 21:29 Posted By: shadowprophet
While the core FFXI game shows signs of its age, ToAU breathes enough new life into FFXI to add enough variety and quests for long-time players.
by Kudou Yusaku Via IGN
July 21, 2006 - Final Fantasy XI started on the PlayStation 2 in Japan as far back as 2002, which has then seen ports to the PC and recently the Xbox 360 platform and its two expansions Rise of the Zilart and Chains of Promathia. Square Enix maintains a tight hold on its 500,000 subscribers who can't seem to shake the addicting nature of the game. Existing players may want to know what the new expansion offers in terms of quests and notorious monsters (NMs), both very popular aspects of the game. While the core FFXI game shows signs of its age, ToAU adds enough variety and new content to breathe life back into FFXI for the long-time players.
If you haven't dipped your feet into the FFXI pool yet, just make sure you watch out for the steep drop after the first step. This pool doesn't gradually increase its depth, but instead starts deep and levels up at the other end where all of the experienced players lie. So, if you are a new player looking to get into your first MMORPG or looking for something different, you might have a hard time getting over the game's starting difficulty. Also, don't expect to see any of the new expansion content any time soon since it's restricted almost entirely to high-level players of 50 and up. This means you'll be spending a good month or two exploring the original game and parts of Rise of the Zilart building your character and learning the intricacies of party-based gameplay, because after level 15, you'll probably never solo since the monsters that check as "Easy Prey" become too powerful for one person to take on at a time, forcing the party-based combat. The only job that is really meant for soloing is the Beastmaster job that can be unlocked after you reach level 30. So, for new players, there's a lot of work to do before seeing Treasures of Aht Urhgan, but that is good, because...
Seasoned players of FFXI spend a lot of their time in the new ToAU areas and most of them are at the maximum level 75. Since a difference of more than two levels between two players in a party can affect the amount of experience gained, you won't ever see anybody significantly lower than 55 fighting in a party. While Treasures may be impossible for low-level players to conquer, anybody levels 50 to 75 can enjoy not only the new experience points areas outside of the main city Al Zahbi, but also the new modes like Besieged, Assault, exclusive missions, and the upcoming chocobo raising components.
Final Fantasy XI always has maintained the enjoyable storylines one expects from Square Enix and Treasures of Aht Urhgan is no different. Quirky characters and exciting places to explore set the background for the Far Eastern style this time around. The Empire of Aht Urhgan, located on the Aradjiah Continent, governed by the Divine Empress who controls the land, is under constant attack by beastmen in the Al Zahbi district. The Divine Empress has never been seen by anybody but the Immortals--Aht Urhgan's army of Blue Mages who carry out the Divine Empress's will--and are often running into trouble with the Corsairs (Corsairs are people who use luck to favor their odds in winning money and thwarting the Immortals' plans.) The generals are the strongest of the Divine Empress's army, but do not meddle in the affairs of the Immortals, instead choosing to spend their time protecting the empire during besieged attacks from the three dominant beastmen forces of Aht Urhgan: the trolls, undead swarms, and vicious Mamool Ja. Occasionally, the combined forces of these three powers will ally against Al Zhabi, creating particularly dire situations for defending players.
President Naja Saleheem of the mercenary forces "Salaheem's Sentinels" in the city of Al Zahbi has proven herself as the premiere organizer and recruiter of current and new mercenaries. She provides quests and missions that unfold the mysteries of the serpentine-styled Empire of Aht Urhgan.
Treasures introduces three new advanced jobs to unlock for players to use that are different enough from the rest to warrant genuine player interest. Digging into Final Fantasy's past, the Blue Mage returns in FFXI. Blue Mage's unique job learns offensive and defensive abilities from enemies and then uses them in combat to damage and enfeeble mobs or render aid to party members. Blue Mage is a very strong and ideal damage dealing job -- it can do it all. Later on, Blue Mages can tank enemies (basically keep attention of an enemy focused at oneself to avoid damaging other players), they can deal massive amounts of damage, enfeeble, buff, de-buff, and heal. If you see a Blue Mage looking for a party, make sure you grab him or her before somebody else does! This job is fairly simple to unlock after answering a series of questions. It's also the most popular new job.
Also mentioned earlier was the Corsair. This job uses luck on its side to help the Corsair and his or her party members stat boosts to aid them in battle. The Corsair job is particularly wanted for support, fishing monsters (or pulling), and decent damage. Some people confuse this job with the pre-existing Bard job in that they both offer support, but Corsair is more like a fighting support, while Bard is almost exclusively a backline support/healing job. Corsair is the most difficult new job to unlock. It's also dangerous, as it has players venture into areas that can give a level 75 player a serious challenge. Having a guide, another person and Sneak/Invisible is a preferable way for getting through this quest. Corsair is and isn't popular, but people will always invite you to their parties.
Puppetmaster was the job that Square Enix revealed last and was part of a poll that FFXI fans voted on. This job is similar to Dragoon or Beastmaster with its Pet Command use, but instead of wyvern support or charming enemies, your automaton follows you around everywhere and uses attacks and abilities similar to your own and even has its own skill-ups. As you level Puppetmaster, you get more choices to what your automaton can do, similar to how a Signal Pearl NPC works. Your automaton can mimic real player jobs with its own variations on those jobs including some of its own weapon skills. This job is the easiest of all of the new jobs to unlock, but probably the least popular of the three.
Treasures of Aht Urhgan is a fairly large and lengthy expansion to an already existing enormous game. ToAU tops FFXI out with more than 10,000 quests, 1,000 missions, and the content continues to roll out through the monthly updates. After installing Treasures, however, you're not going to simply hop on the boat and ride it over to the new continent. There are several ways to gain passage on the ship that sails from Mhaura to Aht Urhgan. Adventurous players can choose item hunting quests, similar to what was required to gain airship access to the Elshimo islands, or financially secure players may opt to pay the one time 500,000 gil detour fee to avoid pounding the pavement. The boat ride, however, is really long. It can take up to 15 minutes waiting from the boat showing up in Mhuara to the boat stopping at the port in Aht Urhgan Whitegate (provided you didn't just miss the boat, which means several more minutes of waiting). Square Enix obviously wants the game to feel like a really large world, and the boat ride can be exciting the first couple of times, but it's impossible to get back to Aht Urhgan via a chocobo or airship. No airship? That's right, you're not going to get a sweet five-minute ride to the new nation. It's not a big problem if you're a level 55+ looking for EXP parties often in the new areas, since there is a tarutaru that warps you back to Jeuno for free (provided he's not captured during a Besieged). But if you want to level up a low-level job elsewhere, you're probably going to need to set your Home Point close to where you're leveling up. This means you're going to have to ride the boat again to get back to Aht Urhgan if you didn't leave your Home Point there. And no, there is no teleport crystal for White Mages to send you to. The transportation issue knocks down the presentation a bit, and I think it's safe to say everybody is waiting for an update that will include airship passage back and forth from the metropolis Jeuno to Aht Urhgan.
The graphics in FFXI were once the best MMORPG visuals you could find, but time has not been kind to the game. The older areas look archaic and the higher resolutions of the PC and Xbox 360 can only do so much to put a pretty face on a game with low-resolution textures and an often choppy framerate. The new ToAU areas, however, look decidedly better and are much easier on the eyes. The textures on PC and Xbox 360 help the game somewhat, but that doesn't do too much for the PS2 owners who have their visuals downgraded to the lowest possible resolution. As far as framerates go, whether you're playing on PlayStation 2, PC, or Xbox 360, it's not going to matter if you're taking part in a Besieged event, which can hit over 750 players in the same area fighting off hordes of NMs. Players on every platform may sometimes experience Internet disconnects and system lockups. Still, this daily event remains the dominant popular attraction of the expansion's content.
The game's controls and sound match what Square Enix have come to expect. Some of the newly added music choices top the already excellent score. Whether you play with a controller, keyboard, or keyboard and controller, you probably have your preferred set-up and nothing has changed that will make you alter the way you've been accustomed to.
Technically, Square Enix is constantly on the ball with frequent bug fixes and content updates. Unlike some other MMO publishers, Square Enix always gives advance notices of updates and the servers never crash. One of the updates coming in late July is going to include the ability to raise your own chocobo. Not unlike FF7, this update will include a circuit in which players can race them. If you want to raise a chocobo, though, you're going to need Treasures of Aht Urhgan.
Closing Comments
If you haven't already added this hefty expansion to your current Final Fantasy XI set-up, then you should really consider upgrading it and taking advantage of the new content. While many of the problems like overcrowded camp sites and the EXP grind are still there, you're also getting more options like the aforementioned Besieged and Assault modes. While it's still basically the same game with new places, there's enough new content and the new jobs add a lot of variety to the aging MMORPG. If you're new and curious to MMORPGs, be cautious of FFXI since it is a game that requires large chunks of playtime to get anywhere. If you think you’re more casual, then there is always a certain RTS-turned-MMO that would better suit your schedule, but if you’re ready for a challenge and are willing to work hard to get good, then consider giving Final Fantasy XI and Treasures of Aht Urhgan a try.
IGN's Ratings for Final Fantasy XI: Treasures of Aht Urhgan (PS2)
OVERALL: 8.4 Impressive!!
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July 24th, 2006, 19:22 Posted By: shadowprophet
Lets Face it, The japanese import Of Dirge of Cerberus Didn't quite do as well as expected, It was plagued with problems that prevented it from living up the the name of which its predecessors enjoyed such untouchable fame. With both gamers and critics left disappointed, This Didn't exactly help the franchise any.
But Square Enix is hell bent on restoring its good name with the north american release of Cerberus this august 15 th, Addressing many of the issues that so plagued the over seas edition,
In fact, The north american version is already completed and has been tested by many critics. The game has definitely been improved over its original foreign-language counterpart too, but does that mean it's enough To make it a quality game? Honestly, Only time and popular opinion will determine that.
But first things first, what's new? The fixes are many fold this round, most notably with the camera. In the Japanese version, it was a slow, hard-to-control mess and it wasn't uncommon to desperately struggle with the analog sticks in order to shoot something. In the English build, a lot of those shooting issues have been remedied thanks to a reworked control scheme and faster response times. Players don't have to worry about tapping R1 to go into the first-person mode anymore either (which is a view much more conducive to game play), and they can now access the "eyes-through" perspective with a push of R3. Throw in a smarter lock-on feature (semi-automatic is the default setting now), a friendlier slider menu, and faster firing speeds, and things move along at a much better pace.
But the camera isn't the only technical fix. Square Enix has also gone back and done a lot of balancing/ reworking to make Dirge of Cerberus a more competent game. Noticeably, a good portion of these adjustments relate to the Limit Breakers. Whereas before it was a smarter idea to sell them than to use them, there's more of a reason to pay attention to them now. Why? To start, you can no longer sell Limit Breaks for 3000 Gil per use: its resell value has been lowered to a mere 850. Furthermore, the number of Limit stocks you can keep has been downgraded from 5 to 3 and the powers and abilities of your transformations have been increased. The Galian Beast, in particular, is a tougher force to reckon with as not only has his transformation time been increased and his attack radius widened, but his fireball can now penetrate shields as well. Moreover, those fireballs count as "magic" instead of "bullets" as it was before -- altering the end-level stat rankings in your favor if you aren't very accurate.
Other minor improvements include faster running and walking speeds, lightened weapon weights across the board, and an increased range for melee attacks. In addition, Vincent's roll maneuver has been replaced by a quicker-to-recover dash move, there's a double-jump for avoiding heavy fire, and the lowest difficulty setting has been removed in favor of "normal" and "hard."
The single biggest content addition to Dirge of Cerberus, though, would have to be the inclusion of an "extra hard" challenge setting that's unlocked by beating the game. Once this mode has been accessed, players can then blast through 40 different sub-missions that contain new items, weapons, and more. As an added bonus, Square Enix has included even more bonus content than what the Japanese version had. Joining the existing Event Viewer and alternate ending, there are artwork and character model galleries and a jukebox music feature. Given the fact that the U.S. iteration won't include the online multiplayer modes that the import edition had, these extra goodies are certainly a nice gesture.
With all these changes, one has to wonder how much of a difference it makes on the final product. Thus far, it makes a noticeable one -- but as I mentioned earlier, I'm still not sure how much of an impact it will have on the overall game quality when all is said and done. At its core, Dirge of Cerberus is still rather methodical compared to the PlayStation 2's other available shooters and in the first few levels thus far, the enemy count is still on the low end and targeting speedier foes still proves problematic (even with the response improvements). The AI doesn't offer much variety either and there are so many cut scenes between stages and sections of stages that the pacing is definitely off.
Here is a decent video I found of some in game footage.
You can expect updates as soon as they unfold right here on RPG-NEWS!
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July 24th, 2006, 18:19 Posted By: shadowprophet
What can be said about a paper mario game that hasn't echoed thought every page, in every message board thought all of the world wide web?
Super paper mario for the Game Cube is no exception! This is the release everyone has been waiting for since 04's thousand year door!
But super paper mario isn't just your standard fair of 2d on 2d paper thin visuals, This time the adventure quickly takes on a third dimension that really defies expiation ( for a paper mario title anyway lol) Fusing 2-D and 3-D perspectives not to mention RPG and platformer elements, the game slips back and forth between dimensions.
Spanning eight worlds filled with traps, puzzles, bizarre mysteries and items that often draw themselves out of the thin air!
And this time mario isn't the only star in the spot light, Both princess peace and bowser get there fair share of play time as well!!
I Cant wait for this release! Very few rpgs Can top papers Mario's mesh of light hearted comedy and still pull off a decent combat engine! and paper mario does it with style, You can bet ill have this one on release day!!
Also Be sure to Check out these in Game Videos I found, Which Are Here Enjoy!
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July 24th, 2006, 17:29 Posted By: shadowprophet
It's supposed to be the great PSP savior, The one game every rpg fan is betting will save the PSP from its never ending dry run of mediocrity in sub par commercial releases.
But crisis core Final Fantasy VII will end that dry run forever. The only problem is little to nothing is known about this game. So i've went that extra mile and and found any information possible About this messiah of the hand held hope.
Though we have known about the title Crisis core For a while now, Little is know about the game itself. I will Do my best to compile what facts we know Into this humble posting.
Little is known about the story, Other then The Story will Focus around A younger apparently saner Sephiroth, And detail the events that Turned him from hero and savior to a Villainous murderer,
Aries who Final fate has at the hands of Sephiroth Has become Notorious in video game lore,
We see a much happier engaged aries, before her life was forever changed by the death of her fiancé, We also learn more about her mysterious connections to shinra and the turks.
And then there's Zack, The Young Soldier Who's experiences where used By hojo to create Clouds false reality and several psychotic episodes in the original FF VII, More recent appearances of Zack Are to be found in the flash back scenes in the recently released Final Fantasy VII, Advent Children Movie.
And of course Cloud Who's roll in this game will take a back seat for the true star Zack, However Its speculated there will be some light shed on Clouds and Tifas true relationship, ANd of course Much more detail on clouds creation As a defective Sephiroth Clone.
Other notable mentions, The cut scenes will be anime ,not CGI this time around,And finely The battle system, We know that it will Be an action RPG, This has left many to speculate, (Kingdom- heart's??) However no footage or pics have been released of actual in game footage at this time, Some big news has been promised about this game in september, And you can bet ill be keeping us updated!!
Also This game has still not yet been concept approved by Sony Computer Entertainment America- We know how long sony can keep things in there concept of approval stages. But don't sweat it, you know sony isn't going to turn down a final fantasy for the PSP..
I Suppose that's All there is to know until September. I found some E3 video footage of the cut scenes Which are Here Enjoy!
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July 24th, 2006, 15:55 Posted By: Kaiser
Gamespot has recently done a little preview which looks into one of the three playable factions in THQ's new Sci-Fi RTS Supreme Commander.
The future isn't a pretty place according to Supreme Commander's story. This upcoming real-time strategy game from THQ and developer Gas Powered Games is set a couple of thousand years in the future, at the tail end of a conflict that has lasted so long that it's called the Infinite War. Humanity's galactic-wide empire has split into three warring factions, and you'll be able to lead any one of them. What makes Supreme Commander different from most real-time strategy games, though, is its scale. The battlefields in the game are hundreds, and even thousands, of square kilometers in size, which means you'll have to exercise strategic skill to outmaneuver and defeat your enemy.
Dr. Gustaf Brackman, leader of the Cybran Nation.
Supreme Commander's three factions are the United Earth Federation, the successor to the Earth Empire; the Cybran Nation, a race of cybernetically enhanced humans; and the mysterious Aeon Illuminate. We've already covered the history, characters, and units of the UEF, and we're continuing our look at the Cybran Nation with background information on some of the characters and the homeworld that make up the faction. Supreme Commander is scheduled to ship in 2007.
Check out the full article here.
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July 24th, 2006, 15:16 Posted By: wraggster
These new Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars screens are guaranteed to send a chill down the spines of RTS fans, anticipating the massive third instalment in EA's iconic strategy series.
The third C&C looks set to revive the iconic gameplay that made past outings so well-loved, with fan-favourite characters and units also making a nostalgic return. EA are keeping reasonably tight-lipped on the title at the moment, but we do know that Tiberium Wars will include mobile bases, massive ion storms and a mysterious third faction to add the usual Nod vs. GDI mix.
Presuming all goes well, C&C3 will release sometime early next year. We're expecting more tantalising media and gameplay info to land next month, at the Leipzig Games Convention in Germany.
Screens Via Comments
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July 24th, 2006, 15:08 Posted By: wraggster
While the weekend brings burgers, sunshine and mild concussion (thank you, the morbidly obese woman who slammed us between the closing doors on the Norhern line with her huge, angry arse), Monday morning proffers brand new details of the paladin/shaman classes (and their new implementation) in Blizzard's upcoming World of Warcraft expansion, The Burning Crusade.
In a nutshell, the expansion will enable Alliance players to create shaman-class characters while gamers with Horde characters can create paladins, using the two new races - Draenei and Blood Elves. As Blizzard puts it, this development "opens up exciting new gameplay opportunities, with fresh group-play dynamics. Those who have faithfully pledged their allegiance with one faction or the other will finally have the opportunity to try out a class that was once unavailable to them". Blizzard also points out that while shamans and paladins will be similar between factions, each side will have some unique abilities.
In case you're wondering how Blizzard are justifying this latest bunch of changes in the World of Warcraft universe, there's a whole mythology to go alongside the new. You can check that out below, or have a gander at a bunch of new screenshots below that.
One legend involves the noble leader of the Draenei, Velen, and his vision. Velen's vision was given substance in the form of Nobundo, a one-time Draenei priest who had devolved while the orcs decimated his race and tore the planet apart. Like his fellow Broken, Nobundo had lost contact with the Light, and so he ventured far into the deserts of Outland to meditate and pray for guidance.
After decades of silence, an unfamiliar voice finally answered his prayers. It was not the Light that whispered to him, but the wind. The breeze spoke to him of lost truths, of the might of the elements--of the delicate balance of power embraced by the shaman. Nobundo listened eagerly and learned all he could. When he judged the time was right, he departed the desert determined to use this knowledge to help the Draenei race.
Meanwhile, the Blood Elves busied themselves by establishing the fearsome Blood Knights. Their founding was made possible through the capture of a naaru from Tempest Keep by Prince Kael'thas Sunstrider. Kael'thas delivered the naaru to Silvermoon, where Magister Astalor Bloodsworn began months of study and experimentation on the naaru. Eventually, Astalor and his fellow wizards learned how to manipulate and corrupt the naaru's luminous energies. In the end the wizards devised a process by which the powers of the Light could be transferred to recipients who had not earned such abilities. Instead of feeding upon the naaru's magic, the blood elves would wield the naaru's Light-given powers themselves.
Lady Liadrin, formerly a priestess, had recently renounced her vows, for she felt the Light had abandoned her people. She learned of the wizards' achievement and volunteered to be the first to bend the stolen powers to her will. With her decision a new order was born: the Blood Knights. These renegade paladins are able to harness the sacred powers of the Alliance's noblest heroes.
screens here
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July 23rd, 2006, 22:26 Posted By: Kaiser
New C&C 3 scans were found composited from the latest article in the German gaming magazine GameStar.
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July 23rd, 2006, 20:13 Posted By: shadowprophet
Okay here's the deal, you can get full reviews of
games all over the net, but lets face it you know what you really want quick, simple, instant gratification.
So i'm going to run through these reviews and do all the work for you, leaving you with the highlights, the warnings, and ratings.
Yeah I know your welcome!
First up is a PSP title called Astonishia Story. To
sum this game up it's good points were nice 2D graphics and decent music, while it's bad points were stale outdated game play.
Diagnosis: 1994 called it wants its game back.
Score: Out of 3 reviews 3.0, 5.0, 4.0.
Next up is Blade Dancer Lineage of Light for the PSP. Hmm its good points are few and far between. On the plus side group attacks and crafting items is cool. On the bad side slow battles and breakable weapons, not to mention this game will bore you to tears.
Diagnosis: There's no other way to put
it, this game takes a step beyond the bad and lands head first in the shameful category.
Score: Out of 3 reviews 3.0, 4.5, 2.0.
And finally Valkyrie Profile Lenneth also for the PSP. The good
points in this game were exciting battles and a unique and engrossing world. While the bad points are it's not quite as smooth as it's PS1's older brother. An extra tip about this game try beating it on its hardest setting for the real ending.
Diagnosis: it's a great game!
Score: Out of 3 reviews 6.5, 8.0, 8.0.
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July 23rd, 2006, 20:03 Posted By: shadowprophet
XBox 360-September 2007
RPG's the very mention of the genre brings thoughts of some hero starting out on a loners quest to save his land from some dyer evil.
But in Overlord for the XBox 360 in an almost clichéd role reversal you are the evil threat ravaging the land.
You'll be in command of an army of demonic minions, all willing to carry out your evil whims. Anything from pillaging a town, to fighting your battles for you, Or you could just get them drunk and have them annoy the hell out of people!
Sounds like fun, i'll keep us updated on this one!
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July 23rd, 2006, 19:47 Posted By: shadowprophet
It seems some interesting new ideas are already in development for the future of role playing games. The Eye of Judgment (a PS3 card battle RPG due out sometime in 07) ups the ante this round via the eye toy!!.
The camera will sense what cards are being played and will then animate that cards specific powers on screen for battle experiences that previously only existed in a card battlers dreams.
It seems like innovation in next gen technology is now saturating every facet of what we've come to know and love.
But is change always for the better?
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July 23rd, 2006, 07:56 Posted By: Kaiser
Those of you who subscribe to the C&C Newsletter got a little notice in the mail today with a tiny little 6-second video advertising the Leipzig Games Convention at the end of August - and featuring an all-new rotating Brotherhood logo.
Check out the full newsletter here.
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