Forza 3 is right around the corner and it seems Turn 10 and Microsoft have a surprise for those who will be purchasing the game. On launch day, thelist will grow even larger with the release of a free Game Add-on car and track pack, available exclusively by way of a one-time-use token card included in every new copy of “Forza Motorsport 3.”
The free Motorsports Legends Car Pack includes these 10 cars hand picked by Turn 10:
· ’65 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTA
· ’64 Aston Martin DB5 Vantage
· ’81 BMW M1
· ’60 Chevrolet Corvette
· ’69 Dodge Charger
· ’57 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa
· ’80 Fiat 131 Abarth
· ’67 Lamborghini Miura P400
· ’71 Nissan Skyline 2000 GT-R
· ’65 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe
Not only that but Turn 10 has lifted the curtain on more than 400 cars and 100 tracks to be featured in “Forza Motorsport 3.” The garage roster includes 30 Ferraris, 28 iconic Porsches, as well as cars not previously available in any racing game, such as the new Aston Martin DBS, Dodge Viper SRT-10 ACR, and the 2009 Acura ARX ALMS race car. List here
Rockstar games has released the second official trailer for Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City, titled “There’s Always a Girl”. Episodes From Liberty City will let gamers experience both The Lost and Damned and the all-new episode The Ballad of Gay Tony. Check it out on its release October 29th.
With the anticipation of Forza 3 right around the corner Zune and Turn 10 have partnered up to give owners a free car in their garage when they get the game. In TURN 10 STUDIOS BLOG they want to know your top 10 favorite driving songs of all time. Post your picks and you’ll be automatically entered into a drawing for a mysterious grand prize. The participation alone in the comments section alone is all you need to receive a free Zune-liveried Audi A4 Touring Car for Forza Motorsport 3!, signed into your Xbox live gamertag of course. For all the info click here
If you’ve seen one zombie attack, you’ve seen them all right?. Well this game is no real acceptation to that, what you do get however from this Xbox live arcade/PSN title is a way to maybe pass the time until that .. well know .. zombie game .. releases this november (don’t want to name any names ..).
Zombie Apocalypse is a twin stick shooter much like Geometry Wars but instead of having bombs as your left and right triggers of the controller, you yield a chainsaw incase the action gets to thick for your blood. The game hosts 4 different characters which resemble another zombie shooter, 8 maps and around 50 levels. The game try’s to keep you on your seat by introducing new enemies every couple of stages which seem to last till level 26, but after that it gets repetitive. Not only that but this game can get down right frustrating. Some of the enemies you encounter later, sway side to side, some are hill billy gun happy zombies, some are kamikaze but most of all they are mostly one shot kill for you which becomes alot to deal with. Throwing more and more enemies at you later on, it only becomes a matter of time before you see yourself spawn and then get killed in seconds.
Unlike Geometry Wars the game is not entirely overhead, sort of giving you a 3rd degree angle to show off its graphics. The game runs smooth while lots of enemies try to pummel you into the ground. Visuals are vibrant and stages also sport their own canisters, fireworks and other goodies to destroy to keep the horde off of you. Xbox Live 4 player co-op is defiantly a good, although we have found it to be a bit buggy at times. Shooting with friends or random strangers can heighten the experience, at least screaming at the screen at the same time. Different agendas like mini games, only fighting a certain type of zombie or holding a certain type of gun is fun but for that long.
Overall its a quick fix for zombie lovers out their, not bad and 4 player co-op is always a plus. It can hold you over until the next one.
When the prequel to Dead Space was announced as an On Rail Shooter for the Wii it was no surprise that fans felt slightly disappointed. How can the prequel to one of the scariest games in this console generation be on the kid friendly Wii? However after playing this game fans can take it easy, Dead Space Extraction lives up to the brands name and makes for more than a solid addition to the Wii’s mature library.
The original Dead Space did practically everything right when it came to creating a horror game on a modern console. The controls for the original were tight, the graphics were detailed, and above all it was freaking scary. However the prequel is taking a different approach to the Dead Space universe and although it is very much a different game, the atmosphere of the original is still there and even expands upon it. As a prequel Extraction has a fairly simple mission, tell the story of the events leading up to the original game, and it is here where the Extraction truly delivers on it’s promise. Many of the details left out in Dead Space are brought to light in Extraction, much of the back story is explored which will satisfy the questions that so many had while playing the original. Overall the player fully learns about the origins of the story making this a must play for fans of the original.
The graphics in Dead Space Extraction are at the top of what the Wii can pull off, and although the game might not be incredible to look at when compared to the original, the graphics are still acceptable. However the big thing to point out in Extraction is the dismemberment of enemies, shooting enemies in practically any part of their body will yield in a unique damage animation. From the head to the legs, and arms enemies react to getting shot as they should, something On Rail Shooters surprising tend to skip. In line with the graphics, the audio also does an adequate job. The sounds of the creatures will creep you out, and the music will keep you on edge. The voice acting is also good for the most part although some characters are better than others, several times through out the game you’ll get a cheesy line with an equally cheesy delivery but for the most part the voice acting is done well.
Gameplay is where many felt the game would be too shallow considering its an On Rails Shooter, but fans don’t need to worry here either, the gameplay is involving and ultimately satisfying dispite the nature of the genre. Players are given access to a fairly wide range of weapons each with its own strengths and weaknesses, on top of the expansive arsenal there are also secondary attacks that can be done by tilting the wiimote on its side, a nice touch overall. Reloading also involves an active reload mini-game like Gears of War, its nothing ground breaking but it keeps things active and adds to the thrill of the fight. However the biggest aspect of the gameplay that makes Extraction stand out from other On Rails Shooter is the telekinesis, players have the ability to not only grab things like ammo but they can also push objects such as crates, and other objects that block your path or that might house supplies, again its another feature in Extraction that adds to the involvement of the game making it truely above other shooters.
Overall Dead Space Extraction is a great game, if you’re a fan of the Dead Space franchise then this is almost a requirement to play, much of the back story is explored answering questions that many had while playing the original game. Even if you aren’t a fan Extraction is worth looking into, its easily one of the best shooters on the Wii and is twice as fun in co-op. If you’ve been waiting for a great mature game on the Wii there is no question that you should pick up Dead Space Extraction.
Get ready Crazy Taxi fans as this will be a treat for you. Sega’s blog confirmed that a version of Crazy Taxi is now available for the PSP GO (via download). The game features not only the first but the second Crazy Taxi game and has two multiplayer modes as well. The console and arcade iterations are both in the game along with a slew of mini games. If you were looking for a reason to pick up a PSP GO and are a fan of the series then what are you waiting for?
Electronic Arts Inc. announced today that it has signed a deal with IDW Publishing to expand two of its intellectual properties, Army of Two™ and Dragon Age™, into comics under a new EA Comics imprint with IDW beginning in January. EA and IDW will launch monthly, ongoing series for both Army of Two and Dragon Age. Each issue will be published in print and distributed nationally at comic book outlets, with digital versions released for iPhone and iPod Touch and other emerging digital platforms.
Mike Quigley of EA Games said, “We’ve seen an increasing number of video game tie-ins with comics over the last few years. This marks another step in our strategy for extending EA’s wholly-owned game properties to new media. It is exhilarating to be working with the comic book creators directly,”
The Army of Two comic will be written by veteran comic book writer Peter Milligan (X-Men, Batman, Hellblazer) and will follow the events of the first Army of Two game but takes place before the deadly invasion of Shanghai by The 40th Day initiative in the videogame sequel. In the comic, Salem and Rios get more than they bargained for as they are unexpectedly caught in a brewing war between the Mexican Army, drug cartels, and The Maras – one of the most powerful street gangs in Mexico. We’ll keep you update on this as it comes in.
The Warriors Street Brawl is the latest game from Paramount Digital Entertainment, developed by CTXM. This game is based on the 1979 niche movie, The Warriors. This game took all the violence, street fighting, and street gangs in the movie and put it in an Arcade Brawler for the Xbox live arcade. The question is, was it all woven together in cool package that makes you say “You can dig it”?
Unfortunately, the warrior street brawl does not make you say that nor does it makes you want to. The game feels like a good idea but was poorly executed. The production values in this game seems outdated even on for Xbox arcade. When you first start in you presented with the title screen, with the sound bit of the famous words said in the movie and from there you can start a new game solo, local/Xbox live, check leaderboards, etc… The story begins identical to the movie, and from there you choose one of the “Actors” from Swan and the rest of The Warriors. Once you choose your character, you follow a linear story with Comic “Painting” storytelling which is done pretty well to the story between levels all the way to the end of the game.
The Warriors graphically looks relatively basic, but for an Xbox live arcade game we aren’t expecting something to level of a full fledge game. The good thing is that the game runs at a smooth frame rate and the game has very clean textures, but thats about it. The character models are pretty standard. The environments are equally the same. In all, the graphical prowess of this game just average, plain and simple.
The gameplay in The Warriors is another thing that can be a hit or a miss with some. You have a simple punch, kick, jump, block and special button arrangement. Each character has their own special attack. The enemies come at you at a repetitive fashion, some may run at you but other then that, there is no variety how they approach you. The enemy AI in this game is sometimes overpowering, which makes this game frustrating. They almost always have a priority advantage over you. Your best bet is block all incoming attacks, then fight for like 2 seconds and then go back in turtle mode, which may not be fun especially if playing alone. Where the game really seems to stand a chance is the inclusion of 4 player co-op, also over xbox live. Getting fore people in a room or over live, chatting it up and beating people up is where you will get most your good times going.
To conclude, this game is those type of games that uses something such a good movie, that can be great but doesn’t quite make it. This game was made to celebrate the 30th anniversary of The cult-classic movie,
and it should be taken as so. True die hard fans of the movie, while getting some cheap laughs with some buddies in co-op. There is a lot room for improvement, more thought and creativity in its gameplay department to be deemed a good beat em up. If your not a fan of the movie, The Warriors Street Brawl does not dig it.
The all new Modern Warfare 2 bundle edition is coming to town in a store near you! This exclusive bundle comes with the Call Of Duty: Modern Warefare 2 video game, two sleek looking black controllers, a custom painted gunmetal grey warfare xbox, and most important a 250 gig hard drive!!! The biggest hard drive for the 360 to date. This xbox runs for $399.99 with a $50 deposit to pre-order. There is short supply for these systems. They are only making about 250,000 for the U.S. alone. I just got word also that the prestige edition of the game is running low (The one with the Night Vision Goggles). So if you want that to be locked in, go pre-order it today. That runs for about $149.99 with a $20 deposit for pre-order. The Hardend edition is $79.99 with $10 deposit. The release date for the game and the custom xbox is dated on November 11th, 2009! So mark your calender for this great release coming soon.
For those of you who aren’t aware the Anime Festival was in New York City the weekend of September 25. The Anime Festival is a smaller sized convention when compared to others like Comic-Con however the Anime Festival was still an interesting and fun time and Lvlone was there to report on the sights and the happenings of the convention.
One of the first things we noticed when we walked in was the cosplay, many conventions have a tradition of people dressing up as their favorite characters from games, movies, and of course animes, the Anime Festival was no different. Notably we saw Link, Solid Snake (with box in hand), Naruto, Zack from Final Fantasy 7, the witch from Left 4 Dead, and a slew of others. Admittedly the Lvlone crew isn’t made up of anime fans so there were many costumes we didn’t get especially those of lesser known shows.
An aspect of the festival that really got our attention were the sale of weapons, dozens of different types of weapons were up for purchase and many of them bargains. The Master Sword from Legend of Zelda definitely got our attention and even more so when we realized the sword was made of actual metal. Another weapon that particularly got our interests were the dual blades used by Kratos from God of War, complete with with chains on the blades. There were also swords from many other anime shows that we probably couldn’t identify. Either the sale of these weapons was a definite highlight and yes we walked away with a blade or two purchased.
As far as video games go there was a fair amount to offer. Several kiosks were set up that sold old school games ranging from the NES to the Playstation, and even the Dreamcast. There were also some games on display including most notably Bayonette from Sega, other games were Need for Speed Shift, Resident Evil 5 for some reason, and Gears of War 2. Several tournaments took place as well, including the always popular Counter Strike.
Overall the Anime Fesival was a fun time, being gamers we aren’t exposed too much to the anime culture so the Festival was also a learning experience for us and that always a good thing.
