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Dragon's Dogma: The Kotaku Review Halo 3 isn’t the only game that gets a fancy shmancy New York City launch event. Nintendo is kicking off the release of The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass with a party on Sunday the 30th at the Nintendo World Store in Rockefeller Plaza. Fans will be able to get their picture taken with a Link facsimile, participate in costume contests and trivia quizzes, and from 2-4PM they’ll be able to buy the game a day before release! The event runs from 1-4PM, with the costume contest taking place during the last hour, so you have extra time to squeeze into those tights. The only reason I didn’t stay after the Halo event for this launch is that I am pretty damn exhausted. I’ll be there in spirit though, even if I end up sleeping past 4PM.
From the get go, I’ve had my doubts about Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles. This past weekend’s Tokyo Game Show represented my third chance at going hands-on with the survival horror spin-off, with my impression of the game changing very little. Now, with the exception of Wario Ware Smooth Moves and Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure, I’m not a motion control convert. And the Wii Zapper? I’d rather just not discuss it. At TGS, I finally got to experience the game with the third control scheme, using the nunchuk and Wii-mote sans Zapper.
Game Developer Magazine editor Brandon Sheffield was kind enough to be my goth sidekick, braving a long walk through sunlight to act as the Rebecca to my Carlos. We worked our way through the majority of the zombie-infested train level from Resident Evil 0, ultimately losing to the end-of-level boss, a giant scorpion with a sensitive stinger.
Along the way, we unceremoniously shot stuff, often confusing one another’s reticles for the other’s, resulting in loads of wasted effort. The same was true for the last minute evade moves, ones that require rapid button presses or really frantic Wii-mote waving. Eventually, we realised we were standing on the wrong side of the screen in relation to our players and switched spots. It kind of helped.
There’s something about Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles that just makes it difficult to get excited about. I think the most glaring problem is this: it’s not fun. There’s little sense of danger or feedback from the game that you’re unloading hundreds of rounds on hordes of the undead. It’s very sterile.
When we sat down with the game’s producer, Masachika Kawata, Luke and I were pressing him for something that could get us excited to play it of our own accord. Would there be puzzles? No. Series of quick time events? Nope. There will be cut scenes, however! Ten hours of pointing and trigger pulling may be your thing, though.
I suppose the game will really appeal to those who absolutely love Resident Evil unconditionally. It’s going to flesh out the storyline for those who care about the fall of the Umbrella Corporation. But it looks like it will also provide a fresh look at the series for those who are looking for arcade-style shooting using their Wii controllers. And those are both goals of Masachika Kawata, who really wants to bring in new fans.
Unfortunately, I don’t really fall into either of those camps, so Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles feels like a “pass” to me.
From Robert Stoneman and Lit Fuse Films comes the second video in the Rusty Whispers series, Daniel. You may remember the first film, Rusty Whispers – Dennis, which I enjoyed terribly. Something of the Dennis charm is lost in this second video I fear. It features a similar character… a loner who lives in a remote place as the war is going on…but the feel is a bit off. The whole thing has an air of foreboding somehow. Very well crafted and narrated, just not Dennis.
Konami’s psychological horror adventure series Silent Hill may seem like an odd choice for an arcade port. Combat and gunplay in the Silent Hill games generally runs from suck to medium suck. Silent Hill: The Arcade is little more than blowing the heads off of dozens of knife-wielding nurses, bugs, slugs and bandaged demon dogs… and that’s okay. The arcade-only journey to Silent Hill smacks very much of The House of the Dead 2 with it’s rapid fire and reload action, rivaling that game for worst voice acting ever.
The story set up that no one cares about is that our male lead Eric has been having nightmares about a girl falling off of a steam boat, drowning in the rivers of Silent Hill. He wakes up in the hotel that’s made a number of appearances in the series, only to be thoroughly confused by the newly creeping fog. Some of his shitty friends gone missing and the only way to remedy the situation is to shoot stuff. The obligatory little girl who looks just like some dead kid is also present, constantly running away from our heroes.
The shooting? Top notch. Pull the trigger and things die. Headshots make for a satisfying “POOM!” sound and cause things to fall down faster.
The voice acting, though. Oh God. It’s thirty shades of awful. Lines like “Ew. It’s smells moldy!” followed by “Better than the smell of blood!” will either leave you in stitches or slightly pissy. Every single interaction and line of dialog is just abysmal, almost impossible to have been read worse.
One more negative is the transporting of the console games’ worst elements—constant door handle checking. You’re presented with the option of going left, right or straight now and then, something that will inevitably lead to a key finding detour when some random door won’t open. Not fun, since the game moves at a sluggish pace.
Despite the negatives, Silent Hill: The Arcade is a great light gun shooter. Many of the areas are lifted from various games, including Brookhaven Hospital and the Silent Hill Mall, so you’ll feel right at home. You’ll face mid-level bosses and end-of-level bosses that don’t really put up a fight, and the game isn’t much of a challenge, so if you get your hands on it, you’ll most likely get your money’s worth.
It’s not much to look at, nor does it do anything outstanding in terms of bringing real scares to the genre, but it’s fun. The game has been out for some time now, but playing it in an Akihabara arcade this week was my first experience. If you have an arcade that may carry the game, keep your eyes peeled. It’s worth the trip (if just for all the cheesy dialog).
It’s obvious from reading the comments posted after every Halo 3 story that some of us don’t understand the appeal of the series – after all, it’s just an FPS, isn’t it? Over at The Rocky Mountain News, some guy named Brian Crecente discusses the broad appeal of the franchise with Bungie’s Frank O’Connor, breaking the whole thing down into five, easy to understand categories. The article explores how story, character, AI, gadgets, and approachability combine to form Captain Planet make Halo the huge hit it is with fans across the globe. Keep in mind that Crecente is a freelance contributor to The Rocky Mountain News, so the article might not be up to the publication’s high standards. I suggest he stick to his day job.
FIVE WAYS HALO HAS REDEFINED GAMING – [The Rocky Mountain News]
While in Japan this week, we saw four times as many commuters sporting PSPs as we did ones rocking the Nintendo DS. Must be that half million strong group of gamers hooked on Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. Or maybe it was due to a strong debut from Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus, which snuck in just behind Square-Enix’s PSP hit. Plenty of new debuts this week, including Mario Strikers Charged which had a solid, if unspectacular first week. Top ten before the jump, twenty more after.
Here are the weekly sales for September 17th through the 23rd, courtesy of Media Create.
01. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (PSP) Р109,000 / 595,000 02. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus (PSP) Р93,000 / NEW 03. Pok̩mon Fushigi no Dungeon: Toki no Tankentai (DS) Р85,000 / 385,000 04. Pok̩mon Fushigi no Dungeon: Yami no Tankentai (DS) Р75,000 / 344,000 05. Katekyoo Hitman Reborn!! DS Flame Rumble Kaien Ring Soudatsuen! Р(DS) Р31,000 / NEW 06. Mario Strikers Charged (Wii) Р28,000 / NEW 07. Kiniro no Corda 2 Anchor (PS2) Р24,000 / NEW 08. Mario Party 8 (Wii) Р22,000 / 779,000 09. Samurai Warriors Katana (Wii) Р17,000 / NEW 10. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates (DS) Р16,000 / 331,000
I had wondered how RPGs would capitilize on today’s consoles’ ability to provide downloadable content. Microsoft has provided an interesting answer, adding three new difficulty levels to Blue Dragon in the form of free downloadable content. The three new levels are: Game Plus – Allows players to start their game over using a saved game from near the end of “Blue Dragon” Hard game – Allows players to play at a difficulty level that is twice as high as the original Impossible game - The ultimate in difficulty, meant to be played starting at level 50 or higher
Quite a nifty way to extend the life of a game without making the player pay for extra, isn’t it? Almost gives me the will to try struggling through it once more.
Plenty of variety in this week’s edition of the Dojo Dump, but much of it’s seemingly “inside baseball.” No new characters, but the more recent reveals get some fresh new details. Plus, the Mr. Resetti gag makes it a must see. It may turn out to be one of those “you had to be there” kind of things, but it adds an extra layer of laudable weirdness to the game.
On with the Dump!
Monday: Nintendo ups the ante with an even deeper Trophies mode. Hey, it’s Tingle!Tuesday: Diddy Kong’s Final Smash shows he’s a handful with a peanut popgun and some rocket barrels.Wednesday: Mr. Resetti from Animal Crossing is added to the list of Assist Trophies. He lectures apparently.Thursday: The Pokémon Trainer’s Final Smash calls in Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard for a devastating blow. Yup.Friday: The Tourney mode is teased and it looks extra special.The rumours of Rock Band‘s $200 price tag have been greatly… over estimated. While retailers like Amazon and Gamestop were listing the game with a tentative price of two Benjamins plus tax, MTV has now made it official. Rock Band for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 will retail for a more affordable $US 169.99, a price that includes the game, a drum kit, the microphone and a guitar controller. MTV games blogger Stephen Totilo broke the news earlier today of the final price, also tossing us a release date bone of November 23rd, making for an extra painful Black Friday shopping experience.
PlayStation 2 owners get a lick of good news, too, with Rock Band for that last-gen console bumped up to December 10th of 2007 for $US 159.99. Me? I’ll be rocking out with the taste of turkey sandwiches and cranberry sauce the day after Thanksgiving on my PS3. Finally, something to be thankful for.
“Rock Band” PS3/Xbox360 Price Set, PS2 Release Moved Up To 2007 [MTV Multiplayer]
While it’s been talked about for quite some time, industry legend and slightly eccentric rich guy Richard “Lord British” Garriott is heading into space. Through space experiences company Space Adventures, Garriott is scheduled to take off on the world’s first private spaceflight to the International Space Station in October of 2008. “I am dedicating my spaceflight to science,” said Mr. Garriott. “It is my goal to devote a significant amount of my time aboard the space station to science, engineering and educational projects. I understand the necessity for conducting research in extreme environments whether it is collecting microorganisms from deep sea hydrothermal vents to carrying out experiments in the continuous micro-gravity of Earth orbit.”
Whatever dude, you’re going into outer space! Rock! Garriott’s father Owen is a former NASA astronaut himself, and is understandably proud of his offspring. “I am so pleased that he is able to embrace this himself and that he is dedicating his flight to research. I am very proud of him.”
