Tag: Videogames

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

I want to be playing Enslaved and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow this weekend. A bunch of my industry friends are done or nearly done with these games and their reactions are all over the place. I need to see what all the fuss is about.  The bad news is that I’m hitting the road, so no PS3 or Xbox 360 for me. Good thing I’ll have my trusty DS and Pokemon SoulSilver to keep me busy on the airplane. Plus, I want to download a new Mew and start EV training him.

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

New Splatterhouse Screens Feature Blood and Splattering

Namco Bandai has released a batch of new screens for the upcoming Splatterhouse. A modernization of the classic beat-’em-up arcade game (also popular on TurboGrafx-16), I had fun checking out Splatterhouse for Shacknews at E3 2010. The art is super stylish and the gameplay offers ludicrous violent.

Check out the screens and let me know what you think (please)!

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Dance Central Track List Revealed

Harmonix and MTV Games have revealed the complete song list for the upcoming Xbox 360 Kinect game Dance Central. This November you’ll be able to shake your booty to the following:

Harmonix and MTV Games have revealed the complete song list for the upcoming Xbox 360 Kinect game Dance Central. This November you’ll be able to shake your booty to the following:

  • Audio Push – “Teach Me How To Jerk”
  • Basement Jaxx – “Rendez-vu”
  • Beastie Boys – “Body Movin’ (Fatboy Slim Remix)”
  • Beenie Man – “King Of The Dancehall”
  • Bell Biv DeVoe – “Poison”
  • Benny Benassi – “Satisfaction”
  • Cascada – “Evacuate the Dancefloor”
  • Christina Milian – “Dip It Low”
  • The Commodores – “Brick House”
  • Craig Mack – “Flava In Ya Ear (Remix)”
  • Dirty Vegas – “Days Go By”
  • Eric B. & Rakim – “Don’t Sweat the Technique”
  • Fannypack – “Hey Mami”
  • Jay Sean ft. Lil Wayne – “Down”
  • Kool & The Gang – “Jungle Boogie”
  • Kylie Minogue – “Can’t Get You Out of My Head”
  • Lady Gaga – “Just Dance”
  • Lady Gaga – “Poker Face”
  • Lipps Inc – “Funky Town”
  • M.I.A. – “Galang ‘05”
  • Nelly Furtado – “Maneater”
  • Nina Sky – “Move Ya Body”
  • No Doubt – “Hella Good”
  • Pitbull – “I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)”
  • Quad City DJ’s – “C’mon N’ Ride It (The Train)”
  • Rihanna – “Pon de Replay”
  • Salt-N-Pepa – “Push It”
  • Snoop Dogg/Pharrell – “Drop It Like It’s Hot”
  • Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em – “Crank That (Soulja Boy)”
  • Technotronic – “Pump Up the Jam”
  • Wreckx-n-Effect – “Rump Shaker”
  • Young MC – “Bust A Move”

As I mentioned last June, Dance Central was one of the coolest things I saw at E3 2010. It’s one of two Kinect games that actually looks interesting.

Are any of you planning to pick up Dance Central? What songs are you looking forward to playing? “Brick House” is aweome!

Coffee Talk #228: Game Delays That Break Your Heart

Sony has announced that Gran Turismo 5 has been delayed…again. It’s comical at this point, but I’m trying not to laugh because I have the utmost respect for Polyphony Digital. The delay got me thinking about other delays. Have you ever had your heart broken by a game delay? Was there a game that you wanted so badly that its delay crushed your soul?

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the Chilean miner saga, Gilbert Arenas faking an injury so a teammate could play, or your favorite park, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Sony has announced that Gran Turismo 5 has been delayed…again. It’s comical at this point, but I’m trying not to laugh because I have the utmost respect for Polyphony Digital. The delay got me thinking about other delays. Have you ever had your heart broken by a game delay? Was there a game that you wanted so badly that its delay crushed your soul?

Today’s Coffee Talk is another gamer therapy session. Share your sad stories and let’s try to help each other get past some painful game-delay memories.

SmackDown vs. Raw 2011 DLC Announced: Nexus, NXT, and More!

THQ has announced details for the first two batches of DLC for the upcoming SmackDown vs. Raw 2011 (aka the game with the best writing in the world). I’m going to get all Michael Cole on you now. May I have your attention please? I have a press release from the general manager. It says, and I quote:

The first downloadable content package for Fan Axxess, currently scheduled for release this holiday season, will include WWE Legends British Bulldog and Lex Luger; WWE Superstars Wade Barrett, David Otunga and Justin Gabriel; WWE Diva Layla; alternate ring gear for WWE Superstars Shawn Michaels and Shad; and a playable WWE NXT arena. The downloadable content package will be included as part of the Fan Axxess program, as well as sold separately for the anticipated cost of 560 Microsoft Points on Xbox LIVE or $6.99 on PlayStation Network.

The second downloadable content package for Fan Axxess, currently scheduled for release in early 2011, will include alternate ring gear for WWE Superstars John Cena, Undertaker and CM Punk, as well as a playable WCW arena. The downloadable content package will be included as part of the Fan Axxess program, as well as sold separately for the anticipated cost of 240 Microsoft Points on Xbox LIVE or $2.99 on PlayStation Network.

I’m definitely interested in the first DLC batch. Most of you know that I’m a big Shawn Michaels mark. I also love Justin Gabriel’s 450 splash (which is almost as good as Austin Aries‘). The second one…I think I’ll pass.

Any of you interested in either DLC pack? Do you find it weird that DLC pricing and details are announced before the game is even out? Does it give you the “well why isn’t it in the game?” feeling?

Pokemon Trainers Can Catch a Rare Mew in October

From October 15th to 30th, Pokemon HeartGold and Pokemon SoulSilver players will be able to obtain a special Mew. This rare psychic Pokemon is incredibly powerful and its stats are evenly distributed. With proper EV training it can serve pretty much any role you can think of. Furthermore, its move pool is unrestricted, making it even more versatile and tougher to predict. Here are some details from the official press release:

The Mew character you will receive is a Level 5 and comes with one basic Normal-type attack, Pound, giving Pokémon Trainers the ability to raise and train Mew as they see fit. Making this distribution especially exclusive, Mew comes inside a Cherish Ball and has a Premier Ribbon, both indicating that you got it via a special event.

During the limited distribution period, players will need to receive Mew using the Mystery Gift option via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service and their existing wireless broadband Internet access, and will need to acquire the Pokédex in the game. Players must also have fewer than three Wonder Cards in their game.

I have at least a dozen Mews on my Pokemon Pearl cartridge and I don’t like using legendary Pokemon for battles…but I “gotta catch ’em all” so I’ll definitely be downloading a new Mew. I’m sure that there are millions of trainers anxiously awaiting the download period. Are you one of them?

Coffee Talk #227: Why Are You Down on Portable Gaming?

Over the last two years, I’ve learned about your gaming likes and dislikes. For various reasons, a lot of you — probably the majority of regular RPadholics — aren’t down with handheld gaming. This breaks my heart. Some of the best gaming experiences of my life were on handheld systems. From…

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Bobby Cox hanging up the spikes, Courteney Cox dumping David Arquette, or the unimpressive Microsoft Windows Phone 7 presser, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Over the last two years, I’ve learned about your gaming likes and dislikes. For various reasons, a lot of you — probably the majority of regular RPadholics — aren’t down with handheld gaming. This breaks my heart. Some of the best gaming experiences of my life were on handheld systems. From Pokemon to Final Fantasy Tactics Advance to Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII to countless RPGs, I’ve had a blast playing games on portable systems.

Help me understand why you don’t dig handheld gaming as much as I do. In the immortal words of Jerry Maguire, “Help me, help you!” Why are you down on portable gaming?

PlayStation Move Commercial Encourages Family Taunting

The latest Sony commercial for PlayStation Move features the excellent Kevin Butler, but this time around he’s not the funniest thing in the spot. The fictitious Maguire family has fun taunting mom as she plays some PS3 golf. Gramps belts out a hilarious, “You’re adopted!” taunt in mid-swing. The gang bombards mom with the inimitably irritating sound of vuvuzelas. It’s awesome…but surprisingly not because of Kevin Butler.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this Sony spot. Shout it out in the comments section (please)!

Coffee Talk #226: How Many Hours of Games Do You Play?

Today’s Coffee Talk is real simple — I want to know how many hours of games you play each week. Sure, there are times when gaming dominates your life, but there are also times when you have other things to attend to or other forms of entertainment you enjoy. Give it some thought, average it out, vote in the poll, and discuss your answer in the comments section (please!).

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, today’s Windows Phone 7 hardware announcements, the Yankees resting up for the ALDS, or instant replay in MLB, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Today’s Coffee Talk is real simple — I want to know how many hours of games you play each week. Sure, there are times when gaming dominates your life, but there are also times when you have other things to attend to or other forms of entertainment you enjoy. Give it some thought, average it out, vote in the poll, and discuss your answer in the comments section (please!).

[poll id=”78″]

This Week’s Videogame Releases

There so many great games coming out this week, ranging from major releases to several game-of-the-year editions to a follow-up to an incredibly innovative DS title. Leading the way is Medal of Honor (which one of you was kind enough to order through my Amazon links — thanks!). Bundled editions include Dragon Age: Origins Ultimate Edition, Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition, and Uncharted 2: Game of the Year Edition. Just Dance 2 is going to be a wildly popular game for the Wii (it’s already #8 on Amazon’s videogame charts). DS fans have Super Scribblenauts and Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals to gobble up. As a La Parka mark, I’m really looking forward to Lucha Libre AAA: Heroes of the Ring.

*sigh* There are like four games I want to buy this week. How about you? What new games do you plan on picking up?