Hey everybody. I hope you all had a great St. Patrick’s Day and the excess of Guinness isn’t hurting you too badly. I certainly enjoyed my Shepherd’s Pie, Jameson, and homemade porter. But on to video game news:
If you missed it earlier this week, there’s a new Batman: Arkham City trailer. Check it out. In the last game, Rocksteady really shook things up with new looks for Poison Ivy (homina homina homina) and Harley Quinn. This time around Harley gets another new set of duds again, but what really piquede my interest is Catwoman. I like the bomber style mask and her attitude (for the two seconds she gets to show it) is perfect. The Riddler has also been revealed as having larger presence than the last go-round. These two shots make it pretty clear they’re keeping with the classic look in some ways, but also giving the character an update that matches everyone else:
I mentioned on Tuesday that there have been a few delays, and even cancellations, for practical and empathic reasons involved with the recent tragedy in Japan. Sony has confirmed that Motorstorm Apocalypse (originall yplanned for release yesterday in Japan) will be delayed in Japan, New Zealand, and the UK. The US release date is currently scheduled for April 12, 2011. At this point I think further delays fall into the wait and see category. Depending on what news comes from Japan between now and then you can expect either further delays, or worldwide release on or around the planned US date.
The DLC characters Jill Valentine and Shuma Gorath for Marvel vs. Capcom 3 were also reported to be delayed at the same time. Turns out that delay is only in Japan and shouldn’t be affecting most of the world.
By the way, the events in Japan are a horrible thing for those people. Please, do something to help out through one of the numerous fundraisers available. I don’t even care which one. I know the online nerd community has made arrangements in various ways. If you can’t be bothered to find an avenue to donate, use PSN. They have an exclusive theme available as reward for donating from two to fifty dollars for earthquake and tsunami relief efforts via the the American Red Cross. I did it. Will you?
If you’re waiting for Brink (May 17) but haven’t preordered because you wanted to know where to get the best bonus, Bethesda has your answer. Four different costume packs, tying into other hit franchises, will be available depending on the retailer. Ordering through GameStop gets you the Doom pack, including a Hellspawn tattoo, beanie cap, bandana, two shirtsm and a skin for the Bulpdaun SMG. Ordering your copy from Amazon will net you the Psycho pack for the exclusive Caesar’s gun, tortured soul tattoo, burlap sack combat mask, and two silencer attachments (soda can ArkTactical). If you choose Wal-Mart (you evil bastard) or Steam, you’ll get a Spec Ops pack with a Hockler machine pistol, combat scope, combat mask, and dogtag tattoo. I saved the best for last. Not because Best Buy is any more or less special than the others, but because Fallout is. That package includes a bandana, Vault-Tec beanie, Vault 101 tattoo, two skins (101 and New Vegas) for the Carb 9 SMG, and two shirts.
As I mentioned last week, PlayStation Plus subscribers got access to a Mortal Kombat demo. It’s available this week for everyone else. I played through the single player ladder with all four characters last night. This looks like the klassic kombat longtime fans have been wanting. I had a little trouble with Mileena’s fatality and I couldn’t pull of the tree’s environmental fatality shown in the included video. I also had my x-ray special moves blocked a lot! But don’t let that sway you. I’m actually terrible at fighting games but enjoy them anyway. Please, parents, show a little common sense. This violence is too mature for me and I’ve been over 18 longer than I care to admit.
I really wish the Activision courtroom drama would just end, but that doesn’t seem likely anytime soon. In addition to suing Infinity Ward for every crime imaginable they have now successfully drawn EA into the suit. This does mean the trial will begin in May so it’s possible an end is coming. Most likely, though, it will turn an overly long war with both sides using delay tactics in hopes of wearing down the other’s legal budget.
Crytek has made a bold move in the soundtrack department, hiring composer Hans Zimmler (Dark Knight, Inception, The Last Samurai) to compose part of the score for Crysis 2. I’ve long been a fan of games that put a heavy focus on the soundtrack. The level of immersion it adds gets overlooked far too often. In the meantime, the good news for fans and developers alike, is that the soundtrack becomes a marketable item in itself. It will be available for download from iTunes, Amazon, and others on March 22nd when the game releases in the US. Speaking of Crysis, the PS3 multiplayer demo had some issues with server connections for many users. The demo is now being ended so Crytek can focus on making sure the final product is perfected. If your having server issues this late in the game, pulling the demo is the least of your worries.
Remember when everyone got all caught up in the hullabaloo about Dead Island when the weird rewind trailer was released? It was so artistic and beautiful and this was going to be a whole new thing for zombies and video games alike. You don’t have to admit it, it’s okay. We know you’re lying. Now we see it’s not that different at all. Because if you ahve zombies, you have to have GIANT ZOMBIES!
XBox owners have already been playing Beyond Good & Evil HD and Sony devotees have been jealous. We’ev always known it was coming to PS3 eventually, but now we know when. It will be on PSN this May (presumably $10 like the 360 version) and includes bonus avatars of JAde and Pey’j if you buy in the first two weeks. If you’ve already bought this for your 360, buy it again on PS3. Rumor has it the sales of this remake directly affect the chances of a sequel.
Most people have a strong opinion on 3D in movies, good or bad. When it was anounced Thor and Captain America were being done in 3D for theaters this summer it was with joy for many and sorrow for many others. Now, SEGA has announced their respective games will be getting the 3D treatment as well. At this point I don’t know which 3D it will be. I’m hoping they make it only for those with the fancy 3D TVs (which I don’t have) rather than faking it for just any screen. If you’re going to do it, do it right.
Mass Effect 2 has received tons of praises and honors as last year’s game of the year for a variety of outlers. It’s final DLC chapter, “Arrival” has been teased for weeks, including several new (lackluster) screens being revealed through Bioware’s FaceBook this week. The big news is they have finally set the date for release on XBox, PS3, and PC as March 29th. Obviously Shepard is still in the starring role, but Admiral Hackett is also making a return, still voiced by Lance Henriksen.