Continue reading »]]> Solid Snake’s next adventure will sidestep the “Xbox 360 versus PlayStation 3″ debate by appearing on neither platform; instead, Konami’s anthropomorphized Cold War allegory will be sneaking his way onto Apple’s iPhone.

Metal Gear Solid Touch is scheduled for release in Spring 2009, reports Kotaku. The game is a completely original adventure set in the latter-day world of Metal Gear Solid 4 (read: Snake is a geriatric), and consists of 8 stages.

What would a Metal Gear Solid game be without unlockable content? Earning bonus points through gameplay will allow players to download special Metal Gear-themed iPhone wallpapers.

No price has been established for the title, though we expect to hear more details from Konami soon.

Continue reading »]]> Nintendo has enjoyed tremendous success thanks to the forward-thinking innovations of its DS and Wii systems, but the company’s lineup is focused squarely on the past. The publisher revealed today its first-party and third-party lineup of Wii and DS games through March of 2009, with a scattering of revamps and remakes comprising the majority of its own games.

For the Wii, Nintendo has only two releases planned, both remakes of GameCube games designed to support the Wii Remote’s motion-sensing capabilities. The self-explanatory New Play Control Mario Power Tennis and New Play Control Pikmin will both launch in March.

Nintendo’s DS lineup is a little more robust, spearheaded by the March 22 launch of Pokemon Platinum. Platinum reuses characters and settings from Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl in a franchise tradition dating back to Pokemon Yellow for the original Game Boy, a pseudosequel that incorporated elements of the previously released Pokemon Red and Pokemon Blue.

Beyond Diamond, Nintendo has two more DS games planned through March. Up first will be Personal Trainer: Math on January 12, an arithmetic addition to the practical game series that started with Personal Trainer: Cooking. Those looking for something a little more gamey can try Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon on February 16. The latest release in the turn-based strategy series will be a remake of the original NES Fire Emblem (which never made it to North America), with new touch-screen controls.

Wii

• Disney Sing It: High School Musical 3: Senior Year (Disney Interactive Studios)–Winter
• Neighborhood Games (THQ)–January 5
• Paws & Claws Pet Resort (THQ)–January 5
• Fishing Master World Tour (Hudson)–January 6
• Deer Drive (Mastiff)–January 20
• SimAnimals (Electronic Arts)–January 27
• Coraline (D3Publisher)–January
• Escape the Museum (Majesco)–January
• Word Jong Party (Destineer)–January
• NASCAR Kart Racing (Electronic Arts)–February 10
• Brave: A Warrior’s Tale (Southpeak)–February 17
• Little King’s Story (Marvelous)–February 17
• Roogoo Twisted Towers (Southpeak)–February 17
• Battle Rage (Destineer)–February
• Cradle of Rome (Destineer)–February
• House of the Dead: Overkill (Sega)–February
• Onechanbara Bikini Zombie Slayers (D3Publisher)–February
• Puzzle Challenges and More! (Crave)–February
• Solitaire & Mahjong (Crave)–February
• Tenchu: Shadow Assassins (Ubisoft)–February
• Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball (Southpeak)–March 17
• Monsters vs. Aliens (Activision)–March 24
• Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars Director’s Cut (Ubisoft)–March
• Burger Island (Destineer)–March
• Cate West: The Vanishing Files (Destineer)–March
• Crayola Colorful World (Crave)–March
• DanceDanceRevolution Disney Grooves (Konami)–March
• Madworld (Sega)–March
• Major Minor’s Majestic March (Majesco)–March
• Monster Pals (Crave)–March
• New Play Control! Mario Power Tennis (Nintendo)–March
• New Play Control! Pikmin (Nintendo)–March
• Play the World (Dreamcatcher)–March
• Rune Factory Frontier (Marvelous)–March
• Sonic and the Black Knight (Sega)–March
• We Ski & Snowboard (Namco Bandai)–March
• Super Pick Ups (XS Games)–Q1
• Trivial Pursuit (Electronic Arts)–Early spring
• Marble Saga Kororinpa (Hudson)–Spring

Nintendo DS

• Phineas and Ferb (Disney Interactive Studios)–Winter
• Paws & Claws Pampered Pets (THQ)–January 5
• Big Bang Mini (Southpeak)–January 6
• Retro Game Challenge (XSEED)–January 6
• Personal Trainer: Math (Nintendo)–January 12
• Moon (Mastiff)–January 13
• World Championship Games (The Game Factory)–January 19
• SimAnimals (Electronic Arts)–January 27
• Coraline (D3Publisher)–January
• Drivers’ Ed Portable (Dreamcatcher)–January
• Inkheart (Dreamcatcher)–January
• Jake Power Fireman (Ubisoft)–January
• Jake Power Policeman (Ubisoft)–January
• Learn Math (Dreamcatcher)–January
• Monster Band (Dreamcatcher)–January
• Powerbike (Majesco)–January
• USA Today Puzzle Craze (Destineer)–January
• Wonder World Amusement Park (Majesco)–January
• My World, My Way (Atlus)–February 3
• Legacy of Ys: Books I & II (Atlus)–February 10
• Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (Nintendo)–February 16
• Brave: Shaman’s Challenge (Southpeak)–February 17
• Jagged Alliance (Empire Interactive)–February 17
• My Fashion Studio Paris Collection (Ubisoft)–February 17
• Roogoo Attack (Southpeak)–February 17
• Avalon Code (Marvelous)–February
• Imagine Cheerleader (Ubisoft)–February
• Imagine Family Doctor (Ubisoft)–February
• JoJo’s Fashion Show (Ubisoft)–February
• Music Star: Pop Star (Dreamcatcher)–February
• My DoItAll (Tomy)–February
• My Personal Diary (Dreamcatcher)–February
• Petz Horseshoe Ranch (Ubisoft)–February
• Zoo Quest (Dreamcatcher)–February
• American Popstar – Road to Celebrity (Gameloft)–March 9
• Animal Planet (Activision)–March 10
• Chicken Hunter Star Karts (MumboJumbo)–March 10
• Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (Rockstar Games)–March 17
• Trackmania DS (Atlus)–March 17
• Pokemon Platinum (Nintendo)–March 22
• American Popstar – Road to Celebrity (Ubisoft)–March 24
• Monsters vs. Aliens (Activision)–March 24
• Pimp My Ride 2 (Activision)–March 24
• Broken Sword: Shadows of the Templars Director’s Cut (Ubisoft)–March
• DinoPets (Destineer)–March
• Dreamer: Top Model (Dreamcatcher)–March
• Flower, Sun, and Rain (Marvelous)–March
• Hot n’ Cold (Majesco)–March
• Imagine Ice Champions (Ubisoft)–March
• Jake Power Handyman (Ubisoft)–March
• Learn Chess (Dreamcatcher)–March
• Matchstick (Dreamcatcher)–March
• Monster Pals (Crave)–March
• Paint by DS (Dreamcatcher)–March
• Sarah: Keeper of the Unicorn (Dreamcatcher)–March
• Zubo (Electronic Arts)–March
• Elebits: The Adventures of Kai and Zero (Konami)–Q1
• Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure (Electronic Arts)–Q1
• Litlle Magician’s Magic Adventure (Konami)–Q1
• Our House (Majesco)–Q1
• Puzzle Quest: Galactrix (D3Publisher)–Q1
• Suikoden Tierkreis (Konami)–Q1
• Dragon Master (Dreamcatcher)–April
• Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time (Square Enix)–Spring

Continue reading »]]> Capcom’s new survival-horror opus is closer than ever, and the staff of GamePro got unprecedented access to the game.

In GamePro’s exclusive reports, we detail the shocking shifts in gameplay in a new Resident Evil 5 preview, dissect vile new Resident Evil 5 enemies, including giant bats and bloodthirsty crocodiles, and engage in desperate shoot-outs in an oil refinery and a desolate mountain pass. Also check out our new Resident Evil 5 Q&A and new Resident Evil 5 screens.

With Resident Evil 5 a surefire hit, the Japanese company is adding to it a trio of gems in 2009: Bionic Command, Dark Void, and the return of Street Fighter (which we’ll be unveiling next week). In the meantime, hold tight and brush up with Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix.

Continue reading »]]> Nintendo UK has released a massive release date list of Wii and DS titles for Europe today. Eurogamer notes that this list features the first GameCube-to-Wii ports, dubbed “New Play Control!” titles, which include Pikmin and Mario Power Tennis. This new label sees classic GameCube titles revamped to utilize new Wii-specific control schemes. See below for the complete, huge list of upcoming European releases.

Wii Release Dates

DS Release Dates

Incoming search terms:

• Oxygene srl wii

Continue reading »]]> Epic Games has sent out word that its Gears of War 2 Combustible Map Pack is now available for 800 Microsoft Points via Xbox Live. The pack brings three new maps to the proceedings: Flood, Gold Rush and Fuel Station.

• Flood is a very tight map that’s made extra snug when the environmental hazard of Imulsion begins creeping up around the edges. As the playing field closes in, the firefight will intensify as combat is forced to the center of the map. Teams skilled at flanking their opponents will have a powerful edge.

• Gold Rush takes place in an old Imulsion refinery that now serves as a hotly contested battleground. Players must survive heavy crossfire as they infiltrate the factory and navigate multiple tiers. Breakable glass allows for a clean shot at those who make a dash for the Longshot rifle while bolder players make their run for the heavy weapon. In the right hands, the Mortar can be devastating on this map, so keep those smoke grenades armed as the concussive effect comes in very handy.

• Fuel Station is situated in a desolate area marked by an abandoned fossil fuel station. The team that secures and controls the station is likely to be the side that wins the match. An especially strategic location on this map is the rooftop, as there are only two points of entry – the main elevator and a staircase on the back side of the building. Heavy weaponry is situated right in front, which presents a high risk to reward ratio in this level. Lugging the Mulcher around, deploying it and revving it up can keep an entire team at bay, and unleashing hell from the rooftops is always an excellent tactic.

All of the multiplayer maps in the Combustible Map Pack are playable in the highly popular, five player co-op Horde mode.

Incoming search terms:

• gears of war 2
• gears of war 2maps pictures
• gears of war three

Continue reading »]]> Good things come to those who wait, but we’re getting more than a little impatient for any news on the first bits of downloadable content for Grand Theft Auto IV. Long talked about and promised in “autumn” of this year at one point, we’ve been eager to see anything about it this year, let alone play it. Now, at long last, after we’ve finished our sojourn in Liberty City months ago, comes something concrete on the 360 only DLC, with a worldwide release on February 17 next year.

Featuring a whole new set of characters, the new story, subtitled “The Lost and Damned,” seems completely unrelated to Niko and company. The story is based around Johnny Klebitz and his biker gang, the Lost, which existed in the periphery of the main game.

Still taking place in ye olde Liberty City, it looks like you and the guys go around causing mayhem and getting stuff done. On top of that, you get to ride around on bikes. Not a bad deal all around, though we normally preferred driving cars to get places as Niko, which isn’t out of the question, but why dress as a biker if you’re not going to bike?

Rockstar has been tight lipped as usual, so all we really have to go on is guess work, the video, screens and whatever small bits of info we can pry out of them. All the rest is in the haze until we get it right after Valentine’s Day. We leave you with the rest of the images (or head here to view our entire GTA IV gallery) to tide you over while you stare at the calendar.

Continue reading »]]> After years of silence, we finally see a full-on, HD-era re-envisioning of one of the Xbox’s finest games. Seeing that phrase emblazoned in large letters in, well, the courtyard of a space prison officially changed my thinking from “This Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay game seems pretty cool” to “Oh, damn, this Riddick game’s so awesome.”

Let me rewind a bit. Riddick has a fantastic opening, where you (as the titular Riddick, meaning you’re playing Vin Diesel playing Riddick) step off the prison transport and into Butcher Bay prison, and the first thing that happens is you snap someone’s neck and make an escape.

Except, you don’t. It’s all a fantasy, but even for a typical dream-sequence opening, it’s incredibly visceral and sets the harsh, dark sci-fi tone of the game. You proceed into the prison and acclimate to stuff like dialogue with major characters, the layout of the prison, the “do me a favor, and I do you a solid” quest structure, a melee combat system that’s full of space shivs, and so forth. Everything to date is, as mentioned, “pretty cool.”

It’s when you walk around the courtyard that you see a sign in the distance, and it looks like it says, “No talking in the courtyard.” Yet as you approach the sign, whatever fancy graphics technology (mip-mapping? Whatever) that makes things more distinct and detailed the closer you get resolves the text to reveal the true (and literal) writing on the wall above. It clicks that Starbreeze is full of smart, subversive guys who know how to inject the right humor into even the bleakest of environs. From that point on, Starbreeze keeps on showing off great feats of design as Riddick climbs, shanks, shoots, crawls, and pilots his way off of Butcher Bay.

So it’s immensely disappointing that one of my favorite Xbox games does not work on the Xbox 360. But then the rumors of a new remake, dolled up in HD-generation visuals, surfaced. And then the remake was finally announced, with notes on both the new visuals and the tweaks to the game based on community feedback along with some nebulous “new chapter” type of content – new content that, I assumed, would be a tacked-on “you fly around and attack a spaceship or something” chapter that extends the game by another hour or so.

When Starbreeze finally showed off their work, I got the full picture. Yes, this game’s an enhanced remake. But it doesn’t have the token “here’s a random new level as new content” that I expected; the whole “assault on Dark Athena” portion of the game is a separate campaign that’s as long as the original Escape from Butcher Bay. In effect, Riddick fans get a new game that’s as long as its predecessor, while the Riddick newbie gets a nearly 20-hour crazy sci-fi adventure.

Similar to Quantum of Solace taking place within an hour of Casino Royale, the Assault on Dark Athena campaign takes place soon after the conclusion of Escape from Butcher Bay. Riddick puts himself into cryosleep for the long ride away from Butcher Bay, but he wakes up early when the Dark Athena, a slave ship, picks up the escape pod. A bounty’s already on Riddick’s head for his escape, and Revas, the Dark Athena’s captain, orders his crew to flush out Riddick for the reward.

The developers at Starbreeze describe Dark Athena as having the same sort of overall structure and gameplay as Butcher Bay but adapted for a new setting (a massive spaceship as opposed to a massive space prison). For example, while guns are DNA-locked on Butcher Bay (Riddick needed to input his DNA into a database before using any firearms), on the Dark Athena, guns are grafted to the arms of cyborg drone soldiers. So when Riddick needs some firepower, all he has to do is take down a drone and use it as both a shield and a gun (with the tactical disadvantage that you can only move backward when holding a drone in this manner). Another Butcher Bay-to-Dark Athena transition is the quest hub; in Butcher Bay it was a prison hub, but on the Dark Athena, it’s the slave-filled brig.

Dark Athena isn’t just filled with adapted/tweaked Butcher Bay gameplay. A couple of interesting mechanics focus on the drone soldiers. Besides the previously mentioned gun aspect, Dark Athena has an interesting take on their behavior: They essentially alternate between being dumb and smart. In pure robot-drone mode, they have red eyes and patrol in set patterns, only reacting to things in their immediate line of vision – they’re really easy to sneak around in this state. But at any moment, those red eyes could become white, indicating that the drone’s under remote control – meaning with a literal blink of the eye, the drone could switch from dumbly patrolling to intelligently coordinating team tactics with other remotely controlled soldiers. Yikes.

On the flipside, Riddick can also control drones by finding a control pod. You can do this to take out other drones with impunity, since you’re safely ensconced in a pod somewhere else. A minor puzzle that the developers showed off was a fan that restricted access to a corridor that Riddick needed to get to; you solve this predicament by taking control of a drone and jamming its body into the fan, providing room for Riddick to get by.

Most of Starbreeze’s demonstration was a quick tour of some of the new Dark Athena stuff, like the look and layout of the ship, the story context, and the gameplay tweaks that the drone enemies bring to Riddick. I haven’t seen any of the enhancements (described as ranging from tweaking the overall A.I. to redoing some of the environment layouts) myself, but if Starbreeze manages to make the old game look and feel as snazzy as the stuff happening in the new campaign, I look forward to seeing a HD-era version!” sometime next year.

Continue reading »]]> New Free to Play Online Hunting Game Merges Realistic Hunting Action With Social Network Functionality
Emote Games, an online games publisher, and Avalanche Studios, a game developer specializing in state of the art, real-life landscape technology, have formed a best of breed partnership to launch The Hunter, a free to play online hunting game that artfully combines the most realistic hunting action, with the community and functionality of a social networking site.

Entering its beta testing phase next month, The Hunter features an incredibly realistic and visually detailed hunting environment with true to life animal behaviors.  Uniquely, the game gives players the social network tools and web interface to build an online community of hunters, all of whom experience the thrill of the hunt within a connected environment.

Players can track and hunt a huge variety of animals from small varmints to big game and is packed full of challenges, tournaments and competitions, allowing the gamer to work closely with other players to complete objectives while striving for that perfect shot and that record buck.

By using the social interface to post journal entries and images of their latest trophies, players can show their in-game hunts to their friends and the wider online community.  Thanks to its online presence, The Hunter will continually evolve with regular updates and the release of new features, including new missions, hunting gear, animals and varied hunting terrains and habitats.  Most importantly, the development team behind The Hunter is committed to maintaining an ongoing dialogue with its online community to contribute ideas and suggestions for the game to make it the most realistic hunting experience available.

Christofer Sundberg, Avalanche Founder & Creative Director said: “The Hunter offers an amazing real-life hunting experience.  Using our next-generation landscape engine we are able to recreate the ‘out in the field’ hunting experience that includes a wide range of weather, animal behavior and terrain that can be shared within the gaming community as well as across other popular social networks to extend this phenomenally rich game experience.”

As the game continually develops, Emote Games anticipates The Hunter to become a top destination for gamers and fans of hunting games.  Emote is currently in talks with a range of potential partners to gain valuable insight into the world of hunting in order to offer a full and varied hunting experience as close to the real thing as possible.
Adds Morgan O’Rahilly, CEO, Emote Games:  “We are delighted to be working with Avalanche Studios.  Emote is passionate about making this game as true to life as possible, so when it came to choosing a development partner, we wanted to ensure we were working with the best.

We are currently in discussions with hunting communities across the US to develop long-term mutual partnerships with experts and suppliers to make The Hunter the world’s best hunting game.”

The Hunter will be available on PC and web with mobile and console versions to follow.  Visit www.thehunter.com  to register to participate in the open beta program and receive free updates.

Continue reading »]]> Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) announced today that Cabela’s Legendary Adventures is now available for PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system, PSP (PlayStation Portable) system, and Wii.

Cabela’s Legendary Adventures is the latest title in the popular Cabela’s franchise, where for the first time hunting enthusiasts get to relive the greatest hunting stories ever told. Players embark on epic hunting expeditions over the last century in search of legendary trophy animals in the world’s most celebrated hunting locations. Environments like the Yukon Territory and the Rocky Mountains are free-roaming and full of wild game – the hunter must adapt to the terrain, track animal behavior, and master precision firearms. The title focuses on ten big game species including White-Tailed Deer, Alaskan Brown Bear and Roosevelt Elk, but there is also a variety of species of small game, waterfowl, upland birds and turkey to hunt if you possess the expertise.

“The incredible tales that make up hunters’ lore is what inspired the creation of Cabela’s Legendary Adventures,” said Dave Oxford, Activision Publishing. “Focusing on these amazing stories has allowed us to capture what hunting is all about – a quest for a legendary experience.”

Working closely with leading outdoor recreation brand Cabela’s, the firearms and gear in Cabela’s Legendary Adventures are accurate and realistic. The Wii version of the game is compatible with the Wii Zapper accessory for added fun.

For more information on Cabela’s Legendary Adventures visit www.activision.com.

Cabela’s

Cabela’s Incorporated, headquartered in Sidney, Nebraska, is a leading specialty retailer, and the world’s largest direct marketer, of hunting, fishing, camping and related outdoor merchandise. Since the Company’s founding in 1961, Cabela’s� has grown to become one of the most well-known outdoor recreation brands in the world, and has long been recognized as the World’s Foremost Outfitter�. Through Cabela’s growing number of retail stores and its well-established direct business, it offers a wide and distinctive selection of high-quality outdoor products at competitive prices while providing superior customer service. Cabela’s also issues the Cabela’s CLUB� Visa credit card, which serves as its primary customer loyalty rewards program. Cabela’s stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CAB.”

Activision Ships Cabela’s Legendary Adventures in North America for PlayStation 2, PSP and Wii – Video Game News – Yahoo! Video Games