Category: Videogames

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

After a fun week at NAMM 2013, it’s good to be home and settled. Unfortunately, I’m way behind on my vaping e-liquid reviews. The juices have been vaped, but I need to film and edit a bunch of reviews. More hardware and juices are on the way, so I need clear out my backlog. So I’ll be spending a large chunk of the weekend doing that. Of course I’ll be gaming, but it’ll mostly be tablet stuff like Civilization Revolution on my iPad and Tai Pan on my Nexus 7.

How about you? What’s on your weekend playlist?

Noobz Available Now

The videogame movie Noobz is now available through iTunes and Google Play. If you want to check out the movie and support this site then kindly pick up the digital or physical version through Amazon (using the links in this sentence). Directed by and starring Blake Freeman, Noobz is a road-trip movie about a group of friends competing in a Gears of War tournament. The movie also stars the excellent Jason Mewes and the sexy Zelda Williams, with cameos by Adam Sessler and the legendary Casper Van Dien.

I’m a fan of Freeman and a total mark for Mewes. From my time on the set and chatting with Freeman, I appreciate that he treated gaming in a respectful and realistic way in Noobz. There are too many movies that have faked gaming and/or looked down on it. For several reasons, I hope this movie does well.

I’ll be watching the movie later this week. For now, check out the Noobz interviews below.

Red Riding Hood Fights Japanese Demons in Akaneiro

From American McGee’s Spicy Horse Studios comes Akaneiro: Demon Hunters, an action-RPG that pits a dark version of Little Red Riding Hood against demons in a Japanese-inspired setting. While the game is free-to-play, the developers are looking for funding through Kickstarter. The target platforms for the game are Windows, Mac OS X, Android/iOS Tablet, and Linux. Check out the pitch video below for more information on the game and its campaign.

Akaneiro looks like it’s totally in my wheelhouse. I love action-RPGs like this and have a special place in my heart reserved for ones made by indie developers (the outstanding Bastion currently occupies that particular space). The art style is slick and the tone is typical American McGee — a twisted version of a popular fairytale. Hopefully the “freemium” features won’t be obnoxious; there are several free-to-play games that are great on paper, but are absolutely killed by money-grab content.

Any of you interested in playing or backing Akaneiro?

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Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII Screens

Here’s a fresh batch of screens and artwork from the upcoming Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII. Set for a Fall 2013 release, this RPG brings the FFXIII heroine back in an all-new adventure. Director Motomu Toriyama claims that the game will be, “the most complete and polished in the Final Fantasy series.” While I can’t comment on that lofty claim (yet), what I do know is that Lightning is back in black…and several other costumes. While she’s the star of the show and the only playable character, FFXIII fans will be pleased to know that Hope Estheim and Snow Villiers will apear in supporting roles.

As a mark for the series and someone that enjoyed XIII/XIII-2 more than most, of course I’m going to play this game. How about you guys and gals? Are you interested in jumping back into the world of Final Fantasy XIII? Or are you done with the series?

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This Week’s Videogame Releases

Anime fans in the U.S. have been anxiously awaiting the release of Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch and the game lands this week! Ni no Kuni comes from developer Level-5 and the legendary Studio Ghibli. I’m curious to see if the millions of people that love Studio Ghibli movies will pick up the game. Although I didn’t write the “new releases” post last week, I wanted to mention the new Devil May Cry. This time around, Capcom has entrusted the franchise to the capable hands of Ninja Theory. The developer has its share of fans, thanks to games like Heavenly Sword and Enslaved. The reviews have been great so far and I’m hoping that Ninja Theory gets to play around with more OPP franchises. Perhaps the company can go into the business of resuscitating stale videogame franchises.

Any of you picking up new games this week?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

I really wasn’t sure what I wanted to play this weekend. I’ve been caught up in oldies like Taipan and The Bard’s Tale, but I was itching for something newer. Then I watched The Dark Knight Returns Part 2. Inspired by the animated adaptation of Frank Miller’s outstanding graphic novel, I’ve decided to look for a copy of LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes. I’m sure I’m going to play some of the game straight up, but I’m also sure that I’m going to play as Batman and have a dummy second player as Superman. Then I’ll reenact the climactic battle betweens Bats and Supes from TDKR. Then I’ll add my own dialogue. After that, I’ll have Batman making lewd jokes about Superman’s mothers — both Mrs. Kent and Mrs. El — in the vein of Celebrity Jeopardy Sean Connery. This is going to be fun.

How about you? What’s on your weekend playlist?

Autodesk Gets Into the (Mobile) Game

Autodesk is a name that’s familiar to architects and 3D artists. Its popular software includes well-known tools like AutoCAD, Maya, and Softimage. While the company has a strong reputation with content creators, there’s a good chance that Joe and Jen Gamer will think that Autodesk is a Transformer that hangs out at schoolhouses. The reality is that the company has been a part of numerous big-budget games and has recently been making a push to become a larger part of the mobile-games market.

There’s a good chance that most of you have played a game that was partially made with Autodesk tech. The company’s Gameware line of development tools has helped bring popular titles like Borderlands 2 and Mass Effect 3 to life. Numerous developers use Autodesk tools for advanced UI, pathfinding, lighting, animation, etc.

More recently, Autodesk has been aggressively pursuing the burgeoning mobile games market. To illustrate the power of its Scaleform Mobile SDK, Autodesk released Starforce Battlement for iOS as a proof-of-concept in Fall 2012. It’s a fun tower-defense style game with impressive graphics and entertaining gameplay. Check out the free game when you have a chance. I’m certain that most of you will agree that it’s a slick title that’s indicative of where mobile games are going.

Zynga’s immensely popular Farmville 2 features graphics powered by Autodesk’s 3ds Max product. The software helped bring Farmville from an isometric perspective to a more captivating 3D look. (At least with the mainstream audience Farmville enjoys. I love isometric-POV games!)

So where am I going with all this? Well, as I was thinking about Autodesk’s mobile game efforts, I was also thinking about hardcore gamers that dismiss mobile games as not being any good. Over the last few years, mobile games have improved immensely, both in terms of graphics and gameplay. While some of you might not dig mobile games, there’s no denying that the market is booming. When a company with as much stroke as Autodesk is paying special attention to the mobile market, you know it’s a big deal.

The thing that’s interesting to me is whether Autodesk will enjoy the reach of its other products. Every architect I’ve met uses AutoCAD. Every 3D graphic designer I know has 3ds Max, Maya, or Softimage in their virtual toolbox. The mobile-game developers I know use a wide variety of tools and I’m curious to see how much headway Autodesk will make with that crowd.

While I’m sure that most of you don’t care what tools games are made with, the good news is that you’ll get to enjoy better products. Large software companies like Autodesk, with its powerful development tools, will help game creators serve up the best mobile games yet.

NPD Group’s Top 10 Games of 2012

After 12 months of heated battle, the results are in! Here are the 10 best-selling videogames according to the NPD Group. This list counts for console games sold at retail in the United States.

  1. Call of Duty: Black Ops II
  2. Madden NFL 13
  3. Halo 4
  4. Assassin’s Creed III
  5. Just Dance 4
  6. NBA 2K13
  7. Borderlands 2
  8. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
  9. LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes
  10. FIFA Soccer 13

There are several fascinating takeaways here. First, it’s awfully impressive that there are two Call of Duty games on the list, which is a testament to the franchise’s immense and enduring popularity. LEGO Batman 2 is one of the few videogames that stars Hawkgirl, proving once again that Hawkgirl equals mad sales. I was happy to see Borderlands 2 on the list. Remember when a prominent videogame analyst said the original was “sent to die”? If videogame series could talk, Borderlands would be saying, “How do you like dem apples, Pachter!!!” (Just kidding, Michael.)

Did America’s most popular videogames pan out the way you thought they would? Please leave a comment with your thoughts on NPD’s top 10 of 2012.

Today’s Poll: Project Shield vs. Razer Edge vs. Steam Box

Although CES 2013 lacked many of technology’s heavy hitters (Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft, etc.), the show’s gaming content was getting lots of buzz. Nvidia’s Project Shield took many gadget geeks by surprise. More details were revealed about Valve’s Steam Box, which many pundits feel has the potential to radically change the gaming landscape. Lastly, Razer’s Edge tablet (which started out as Project Fiona) got a lot of attention from gamers looking for a powerful and versatile Windows 8 solution. (Personally, I can’t think of the product without thinking of Scott Hall’s finishing maneuver.)

Now that you’ve had a week to think about it, which CES 2013 gaming device impressed you the most? Which one has rocketed to the top of your wish list? Kindly vote in today’s poll and discuss in the comments section.

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Vaping Diaries #31: When Gaming and E-Cigs Collide

Brandon from Vapor 4 Life’s tweeted this photo of a dude that made a vaping device from a NES controller. As a lifelong gamer and an avid vaper, that’s one of the coolest mods I’ve ever seen. It got me thinking of different “gaming mods” I’d make (if I had the skills and knowhow). The obvious choices for recent devices are mods made from a Wii Remote Plus or a PlayStation Move controller. A box mod made from a Game Boy Advance SP would be pretty sweet. I’d replace the screen with a mirror, which would add some functionality (for vain people). The possibilities are endless!

What kind of videogame vaping device would you make? Would you go with an old-school console or peripheral? Or would you use a newer device?

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