When it comes to open world games, how big is too big? Some would argue that GTA: San Andreas was already much too large. Certainly Red Dead Redemption had so much to do that it became difficult to focus on doing the story. But can a game really get so large that it loses much of its fun factor? I explored the Capitol Wastes for close to 200 hours and spent even more in New Vegas. The world of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is just as (or possibly more) massive. Yet it seems it could get even bigger. How much bigger? Morrowind bigger. By travelling to Stendarr’s Beacon, at the most south eastern point on the map, you can find a narrow path tucked away in a ravine that ends with Tony Hawk’s favorite video game cop out, the invisible wall. But, looking through the archway, you can see this is clearly where the Skyrim territory meets up with the rest of the Tamriel continent. Not content to let it be, a Finnish PC gamer used some console commands to look beyond the arch. The other side still has leaves, textures, and details that eventually drop out as you proceed further. Knowing Bethesda and their DLC tricks, it certainly seems this could be built into the main game as part of a planned expansion. But what is it? Well, looking northeast from outside the arch you’ll see Red Mountain in Vvardenfell, a part of Morrowind. Beyond Morrowind, he’s also found a version of Imperial City’s landmass. Check out his blog to learn more about how he did it and what he found. So is this part of planned DLC? Or is Bethesda planning the entire continent of Tamriel for Elder Scrolls VI and just built this game onto a specific portion of the larger, incomplete map?
I seem to see at least one story a week about a classic game or franchise getting an HD remake. And, for the most part, I think this is great. Retro games aren’t bad just because they no longer push the technology. I still play my old NES and SNES games. And I have plenty of fond memories of both previous PlayStations. Seeing that gameplay kept alive in a prettier fashion is ideal. The latest HD update, Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc, comes on the heels of Ubisoft’s latest entry to the franchise, Rayman Origins. The upgrade to this 2003 game is scheduled for release on PSN and XBLA this spring. In addition to the 15-20 hours of main campaign, you can also expect nine unlockable minigames, tropies/achievements, and online leaderboards – all at 60 frames per second. Sign me up.
While we’re on the topic of retro HD collections, Konami will be including a new soundtrack, as well as the original in Silent Hill 2 as part of the Silent Hill HD Collection. You’ll be able to switch out the voice cast one the fly. This seems like kind of a strange feature, but it’s definitely a nice treat for long time fans. “Unfortunately, due to factors both technical and logistical, Silent Hill 3 will be presented with new voices only,” according to Konami’s Tom Hulett. The collection is scheduled for release January.
If you’re planning to pre-order the Max Payne 3 Special Edition that was announced last week, GameStop would like to be your source. They’ve got the first pre-order incentive map announcement, the Cemetery. Other incentives at other retailers are expected to be announced soon. All of them will likely be available as paid DLC a few wekks after release. Preorders will get you the bonus for free and ahead of the crowds. But, is that really a good thing? Getting multiplayer maps before everyone else just means they aren’t very populated, doesn’t it? Regardless, the game is scheduled for March 6th. I’ll continue to post the additional incentives as they’re announced.
It may feature small cars, but the announcement of MotorStorm RC is big news. This miniaturized version of one of the top off road racing franchises is scheduled as a launch title for PS Vita this February. But it’s also set as a PSN release. The big news, one payment gets you both games. Playing on your console offers 4 player split screen, while the Vita lets you play anywhere. The game will feature 16 tracks in four locations, as well as full trophy support, leaderboards, and all the other bells and whistles you expect from Evolution Studios.
That’s probably not enough to convince you to spend the cash on a Vita though. I don’t blame you. It’s an expensive piece of equipment, but it does look very awesome. I’m debating whether it’s a launch purchase or not. What really is going to decide its day one sales are the launch games. Nintendo learned that lesson the hard way with the 3DS. So what games can you expect at launch? Well I’m glad you asked. Just being the messenger, I won’t claim this is the full list, and release dates are always subject to change, but here we go:
- Escape Plan
- Everybody’s Golf
- Gravity Rush
- Hustle Kings
- Little Deviants
- ModNation Racers: Road Trip
- MotorStorm RC
- Reality Fighters
- Super StarDust Delta
- Top Darts
- Uncharted: Golden Abyss
- Unit 13
- WipEout 2048
Strong launch lineup? Sure. Maybe I’m convinced. But, have you seen the price of memory for the PS Vita? GameStop has recently listed the propietary cards starting at $30 for the 4gb, up to $120 for the 32gb version. As if using the ProDuo in the PSP wasn’t bad enough, they’ve got to devise a whole new memory card just for the Vita? And they’re charging three times more than the going rate for standard memory cards? I readily admit to being a Sony fanboy, but it’s braindead moves like this that earn them some justifiable hate. Sony themselves have just convinced me to wait on my handheld purchase. First, I’ll wait for that game library. Then, I’ll wait for a third party to release low cost memory. Then I’ll wait for a price drop of the second-gen system to take advantage of those first two hurdles.
It’s sad to say, but way too many people aren’t going to have a clue who or what this next bit of news is about. The lovable egg mascot, Dizzy, is making a comeback. Sort of. This classic icon of gaming has been off the scene for years (decades, really) but is looking to make waves again with a whole new generation of gamers on iOS and Android. Dizzy: Prince of the Yolkfolk, one of the better Dizzy games, will be available on December 9th. Playing this on your phone iPad isn’t quite as cool as it would have been on PSN, PSP, or XBLA, but at least it’s Dizzy. And if this all sounds like gibberish, just buy the game. This is retro-fun at its best.
Amid the threat of a class action lawsuit, EA is actually giving away the free copy of Battlefield 1943 that may or may not have been promised to those who bought Battlefield 3 new on PS3. Whether or not this was a planned move is irrelevant now, as is the argument of whether they had actually “promised” the game, or just discussed its possibility. Ultimately, if you’ve activated your online pass that came with your copy of Battlefield 3 on PS3, simply log on to 1943redemption.battlefield.com after your regions specified date and sign in to your Origin account. After selecting your territory you will receive a voucher code for PSN. Redeem this code from your XMB (account management under Playstation Network) to get your free copy of Battlefield 1943. Availability as follows: EU 11/26/11, North America 12/10/11, and Asia 12/17/11.
It should go without saying that Modern Warfare 3 is suffering from the plague of cheating. The entire franchise has a history of cheaters and hackers. Indeed, the entire online FPS genre is almost synonymous with campers and glitchers. Not to mention this title alone has sold more copies than every other video game ever made, combined. [Please note, that last statement wasn’t entirely true.] Much like DICE and EA have done with Battlefield, Infinity Ward and Activision are not being shy about banning cheaters. Over 1600 players have been given the ban hammer. To report a player, simply click on them in the post game lobby and select “Report Player.” Video evidence will not be needed because of the extensive stat tracking programs in the game. The developers will review the match with great depth to determine if cheating has happened. If so, the offender will be banned based on the severity of the offense – something Rob Bowling, Creative Strategist for Infinity Ward, calls the Douche Scale. I applaud him simply for the incredibly apt name. The higher your score on the Douche Scale, the longer your ban is enforced, with “Perma-Douhce” being a very real possibility.
Can’t get enough Batman: Arkham City? It appears more of the pre-order DLC will become available on December 20th, with some extras. This batch looks to include more Riddler’s Revenge Challenge Rooms with an all new Batcave, Joker’s Carnival, and Iceberg Lounge. It certainly appears all of the pre-order bonuses will be available eventually. Exactly when and at what cost, is not yet clear.
Despite all of the troubles that followed Team Bondi, and Brendan McNamara in particular, after the release of L.A. Noire, it appears the remnants of the group may be working on a new game. McNamara and many of the other Bondi staff have moved on to KMM Studios (makers of the Happy Feet movie) where they are working on Whore of the Orient. Interesting name for a game, but it’s actually a nickname for the city of Shanghai. I can’t say for sure if they’re going for the Shanghai reference, a double entendre, or something else entirely. But McNamara has said the title will be based on “one of the great untold stories of the twentieth century.” Release dates and other details are obviously not available yet. Considering McNamara has shares in Depth Analysis, it’s possible the facial analysis from L.A. Noire may be making a return.
I’m beginning to look at the Assassin’s Creed franchise with equal parts trepidation and excitement. I’ve loved every game in the series so far. I distinctly recall reading an interview in Game Informer after the first game was released where Ubisoft said plainly that the story had been designed as a trilogy in which Ezio was the second part and a third assassin would end the tale. Expanding Ezio’s third of the story into three games didn’t bother me. But expanding it even further beyond the third assassin starts to look like I’ll never see any resolution, just more confusion and losing the plot threads (a la Lost). Yet, a recent market research survey indicates that may be exactly what happens. It’s entirely possible that this survey is complete fiction, but the screen grab looks legit and I’ve seen a fair share of these surveys in my time. Essentially, this question found about 3/4 of the way through the survey is asking which locations and times the taker would like to see future iterations of the franchise. There is a glaring error in the last line that you would expect would not have made it by Ubisoft quality control. That may be an indication of a fake, but I’ve seen many similar problems in surveys I’ve taken – including a misspelling of the founder’s name for the prominent U.S. beer manufacturer who ordered the survey. Sometimes I wonder if they’re red herrings in case of a leak like this one, but mostly I just think the survey builders are kind of stupid. Regardless, for your consideration, which of these settings would you like to experience as an Assassin?
If you follow the media in any way, it’s become quite plain that Hollywood has completely run out of ideas and are now dredging up old properties to rehash for more money. The same thing happens in video games. HD collections of classic titles are a generally positive by-product of this phenomenon. Annual sequels are a little more hit or miss. But what about outright stealing a great idea from a competitor? Franchise kart racers are an obvious one. Nothing like taking that iconic character that’s netted you so much cash and dropping him/her/it into a go-kart alongside friends and enemies for rolling good time, right? Well, Sony has apparently decided that Smash Bros. is just too successful of a model to leave alone. SuperBot entertainment’s latest project has been codenamed Title Fight, and it looks like an all-out mayhem brawl between Sony mascots. Remember that awesome Long Live Play commercial Sony ran about “Michael.” That amy have actually been an early teaser for the game that will apparently feature Sweet Tooth (transforming into a truck mech), Nathan Drake, Sly Cooper, and Fat Princess. It’s a safe bet you’ll also see the likes of Cole McGrath, Jak, Ratchet, Sackboy, and Kratos. While I don’t care for the idea of blatantly ripping off a Nintendo property, I do think Sony has the “cast” to fill out a game like Smash Bros. And it’s to be expected. Once you make something successful, someone’s bound to copy it.
This should probably be held in the rumor category until we get official confirmation, but it seems plausible. It looks like Traveller’s Tales and LEGO are teaming up yet again for another romp in the DC Universe. And this time they’ll be going beyond the Dynamic Duo with LEGO Batman 2: Super Heroes. If this is as promising as it looks, it wouldn’t surprise me if they drop Batman from the title altogether and go with LEGO DC Universe or something similar. If this leaked (possibly faked) poster is any indication you’ll get to play as Batman, Superman, and other heroes against the likes of Joker, Lex Luthor, and the rest of the DC rogues gallery.
Proving yet again just how pervasive Assassin’s Creed has become, Square will be including a downloadable outfit for Noel Kreiss in Final Fantasy XIII-2. Price, release date, and other vitals are not yet announced, but we do have a pic!
That winds up a rather lengthy version of Video Game Quick Hits, the last one for November 2011. The length, of course, comes from my being lazy over the holiday weekend. But, hey, that’s what holiday weekends are for, right? Come back Friday for more news.