Hands On
News
Glory Of Heracles Hands-On Handholding
7:20AM Michael McWhertor | Nintendo’s Glory of Heracles feels like the company’s attempt at RPG Training, a My First Role-Playing Game for the crowd fearful of stats-heavy, turn-based conventions. But then the Nintendo DS game quickly becomes that very thing. More »
Hands On
Left 4 Dead 2 Extended Impressions
2:40PM Michael McWhertor | Yes, Left 4 Dead 2’s release is shockingly close to the release of the original Left 4 Dead. And yes, Left 4 Dead 2 plays very similarly to the original Left 4 Dead. But there’s a reason for both of those things. More »
Hands On
The Conduit Channels Hardcore Gaming To the Wii: Hands-On
1:00AM Kotaku US Edition | It’s clear that High Voltage Software are excited about the ability of The Conduit, their upcoming first-person shooter geared for hardcore gamers, to ratchet the Wii’s technology several notches past what it’s previously pulled off. More »
Guitar Rock Tour Blows the iPhone Away
1:00AM Brian Crecente | I spent a chunk of the weekend picking through the 1,500 plus iPhone games out currently, as I started pulling together a gift guide for the iPhone. As you can imagine it’s quite a challenge to try and find a handful of gems among all of those games. Sure a bunch are shovelware, but there are also quite a few excellent titles. More »
Hands on With Jenga Donkey Kong Collector’s Edition
5:00AM Brian Crecente | Among the game related things that found their way to my door step while I was gone was the new Donkey-Kong-themed edition of Jenga. More »
Hands On With Diablo III: Everything Old Is New Again
11:00AM Mike Fahey | Remember that excited feeling you got when you first killed a monster in the original Diablo? How you knew that this was going to be a game that ate a great deal of your life? And then Diablo II came out, and it was pretty much the same feeling as Diablo I, only updated for the computer systesm of the day, somehow maintaining the same level of excitement and fun as the original? Well I’ve just gotten a chance to play through a half hour of Diablo III, and damn if I don’t have that same giddy feeling all over again. More »Hands On: Call of Duty World at War
1:50PM Seamus Byrne | First impressions? Epic. We took on two missions from the latest Call of Duty and the settings alone show how far and wide CoD:WaW takes you. The first was a Pacific Theatre battle between the US and Japan, starting in a jungle and moving through Japanese fortifications to take an airfield. The second is near the end of the war, as you play the Russians on the streets of Berlin.
The level designs are both dense and expansive, with a lot going on and rapid response required as you move from zone to zone. The pacing felt good on these two levels, with fresh weapons to pick up and work with so you don’t have a chance to feel like you’re on cruise control. And I’m pretty sure we pulled some stunts with the very nice flamethrower (that runs on an overheat recharge rather than ammunition) that should not be allowed under the Geneva Convention.
With the level breakdown looking like an exploration of some of the most important campaign efforts across the globe, there is little in the way of a storyline to thread the game together (except the grand sweep of progress in World War II), the file footage introductions to missions and the scale of each mission means this will be a very nice game to play. More » 
Hands On With the iPhone’s First Fantasy Action Game
2:00AM Brian Crecente | Remember that stunning God of War-esque iPhone game shown off at the World Wide Developers Conference in January? The one that looked like a pretty amazing action game featuring a hammer-wielding barbarian? Well it’s out on the App Store. I noticed Kroll last night while doing my semi-regular App Store check on my iPhone and immediately bought it. In the game you play as a barbarian named Delon off to find Kroll, the Lord of Life, last of the seven mage lords, and use his power to return a loved one back to life. I’m sorta guessing here, because the plot is ultra light, though delivered inside the illustrated pages of a digital book. More »Hands On: Gears of War 2
3:22PM Seamus Byrne | Last week I got hands on with Act One of Gears of War 2 at Microsoft HQ. Want to know what I think? Yeah, c’mon!
In general terms, there is a solid intensity from the outset to the gameplay. You get a few minutes worth of breathing space to get your groove back before things ramp up very quickly and skills get tested. Act One runs at a pretty fast pace, with a good mix of locations and scenarios to contend with. There’s even a horror-style tunnel sequence that plays to one Delta Squad weakness — no flashlight! “I’d rather have an extra gun than carry a light” is the response… you know, because gun-mounted light technology got left behind on Earth.
There’s also some more personal storyline in the mix. It may ring a bit melodramatic for some, but it isn’t too obtrusive if you just want to bring the pain. And for those eager to get a little more involved with the life and times of Delta Squad, this certainly adds more emotional weight.
Jump for some more thoughts, plus some mildly spoileriffic images. One features a total fucking bad ass you will meet before the end of Act One. More » 
Hands On: Guitar Hero World Tour
3:40PM Seamus Byrne | Just got back from spending the morning at Activision HQ in Sydney, getting some hands on time across a few upcoming titles. One of these was Guitar Hero: World Tour, which I’ve been very keen to get some time with. Once upon a time I played drums (though I wouldn’t call myself a real ‘drummer’), so I’ve been itching to get some time on the kits from both this and Rock Band for a long time. Consequently my initial impressions are weighted heavily toward the skins. I’ve had time on Rock Band with the Gamespot Australia crew in recent times, and today it was time to see how World Tour stacked up. The short of it? REAL nice. I wasn’t chasing the kit across the room like I was with Rock Band’s drums. Oh, and Purple Haze is an absolute showstopper! Long story after the jump. More » 