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Renegade Kid returning to the hospital in Dementium II
Developer Renegade Kid apparently stumbled across some leftover brown paint, and is currently working up a sequel to Dementium: The Ward. The game is set to continue the story of the first game, which had players stumbling through the darkened grimy halls of an abandoned hospital trying to discover a way out. Or at least some morphine to dull the pain.Notes Renegade Kid's Jools Watsham, "We were extremely satisfied with what we accomplished with the original Dementium, but knew we could do even more given the chance to develop a sequel." Little is known about the return trip into portable madness, though publisher SouthPeak promises even more hospital scares when Dementium II ships for the DS in the first part of 2010.
NYCC 09: Velvet Assassin hands-on
click to embiggen When we first got our hands on Velvet Assassin nearly eight months ago at E3 2008, we were impressed. The level of polish exhibited for a game still months from any formal release was a good sign to us that the game was on the right track to becoming one of few stealth/action titles we might really enjoy. We delighted in sneaking up behind a group of unwitting Nazi soldiers, pulling a pin from one of their grenades, and watching the resultant explosion of humanity from a comfortable distance. Not just for the obvious reasons but because little touches like that helped to make VA feel like a living world and brought you into the role of French WWII-era assassin Violette Szabo, the interesting real life person the game's based on. And though we were assured the grenade trick has been left in the game (even if it wasn't in the most recent build we checked out just before the 2009 New York Comic Con), enough has changed since we first met protagonist Violette Summer to be concerned. The polish once exuded by German developer Replay Studios' first game for the Xbox 360 has all but vanished, leaving behind kludgey player animation, poor enemy AI and glitch-prone graphics. With two months to go until the "April launch window" of VA, we're hoping (but not exactly confident) they can bring back the experience we had so many moons ago.%Gallery-17268%
Big Bang Mini lights up the sky with new screens
With a colorful, exciting shoot-em-up like Space Invaders now on the market, would-be shmup developers really need to step their game up to catch our attention. Arkedo Studios (Nervous Brickdown) seems to have done just that with Big Bang Mini!Due this fall, this touchscreen shooter features a fireworks mechanic that is just as vibrant as it is unique -- instead of firing bullets at incoming waves, players draw in fireworks, detonating and chaining the scrawled explosives to clear as many enemies as possible.The enemy designs are just as creative -- marionette skeletons, walruses riding on flying carpets, and monkeys floating above a city skyline. See them all in our gallery of new Big Bang Mini images below!%Gallery-18714%
New shmup from Nervous Brickdown creators: Big Bang Mini
SouthPeak Interactive has announced that they'll be publishing Studio Arkedo's next game, an unconventional shooter called Big Bang Mini this fall. Big Bang Mini is designed around a fireworks theme -- rather than just shooting bullets at enemies, you "create" fireworks with the stylus and detonate them in order to destroy as many as possible, and attempt to chain the explosions together. It's somewhere between a normal shooter and Every Extend.Just by looking at the screens, it seems that there will be multiple visual styles across the game's "over 90 levels." No word on how the game manages to be both "big" and "mini." %Gallery-18714%[Via GamesPress]
How epic is Two Worlds? So epic ...
Two Worlds, the upcoming RPG from Reality Pump and SouthPeak Games, has always had one thing going for it: online multiplayer. With an similar design aesthetic to the 360's crown champion RPG, Oblivion, multiplayer is really the major selling point for Two Worlds. Sure, the game's creators contend that it improves on Oblivion in many ways, but for most gamers, the focus has been the promise of multiplayer. So, we knew about that. What we didn't know was that Two Worlds is the most epic RPG of all time. Yes, according to this latest promotional video, Two Worlds is just that. We certainly don't want to argue with marketing material (it's so shiny!), but we think we'll reserve judgment until the game is actually available.
Two Worlds releases in July, not August
Two Worlds has seen so many release date changes it's getting hard to keep track of them. Back in May, Two Worlds was set for a release in July. Then we heard just last week that the game would be released in August. Now, speaking to GamingTalkHQ, SouthPeak has announced that the game will be coming out in July after all. Specifically, a SouthPeak representative said that the game will release on July 31st (assuming that this time the date is correct anyway). Whenever Two Worlds does come out, we hope it's worth the wait.
Zuxxez: Two Worlds deeper than Oblivion
Of course, that's the kind of thing you'd expect the Two Worlds publisher to say. Dirk Hassinger, head of Zuxxez Entertainment, the European publisher of Two Worlds (to be published by SouthPeak in the States), told Eurogamer that Two Worlds bests The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion in many ways. Specifically, Hassinger notes that the inventory system is "smarter," and the magic system is "more complex." According to Hassinger, "even the way we handle horses has more depth." Furthermore, Two Worlds has more factions, and a darker, supposedly more involving story than Oblivion. The other big difference, of course, is that Two Worlds has multiplayer as well, including co-op and PVP. Thems are fightin' words indeed. We can't wait to find out if they're justified.%Gallery-3889%
New impressions of Two Worlds roll in
Eurogamer recently got their hands on an early build of the Xbox 360 version of Two Worlds, the open world RPG from Reality Pump and Southpeak. Eurogamer notes that the game's constant comparison to Oblivion is not unwarranted, and that the games actually share quite a bit as far as aesthetics and genre are concerned. Like Oblivion, Two Worlds gives players many, many opportunities to avoid the main storyline. Yes, there are sub-quests aplenty, so many in fact that you could probably spend dozens of hours in the game before beginning the main quest at all. The article does note, however, that many of Two Worlds' graphical elements (particularly human faces) don't hold up well compared to Oblivion. Likewise, the combat -- both magical and melee -- looks as though it could get repetitive quickly. Eurogamer remains hopeful that combat will be spruced up in the final version. They also believe that Two Worlds' much vaunted multiplayer mode could become the feature that sets the game apart. All in all, Eurogamer wasn't floored by Two Worlds, but they're looking forward to spending more time with the finished version.Our question to you: is a free online multiplayer mode enough to make you consider Two Worlds?
Two Worlds Achievements revealed
Upcoming Online RPG Two Worlds had its 41 Achievements revealed today, at IGN, of all places. Either way it seems to be the standard fair of objectives. At the very least, one would have to agree that it certainly seems far more obtainable than Final Fantasy XI's current set. Also worth noting is the final Achievement of "Defeated the Grand Enemy" has the second third highest Gamerscore worth of 370 points, next Madden NFL 06's "Complete 30 Years of Franchise", for 400 GS, and 2006 FIFA World Cup's "Complete all Scenarios", a 500-pointer. Are you going to be unlocking away next month in Two Worlds?
Two Worlds officially arrives in July
Eurogamer reports that SouthPeak has announced that Two Worlds will officially make its way to the Xbox 360 in July. Officially delayed earlier this month, Two Worlds will finally be available this summer. Part Oblivion and part Diablo/Guild Wars, Two Worlds offers players a huge world to explore. The game also features and MMO component, which allows up to 8 players to party up inside of hub cities that house thousands of players. The game also features a unique spell naming system, in which players name their own spells. Should you create an original spell, its name will stick and become the official name for the online game world. All in all, it sounds like manna from heaven for RPG players looking for a more social experience. Oh, and did we mention online play is free? Yeah, well, it is.
RPG fans denied: Two Worlds delayed
The official Two Worlds website revealed today that the Xbox 360 version has been delayed. Though a reason has not been given, we know that the game will not be releasing alongside its PC cousin on May 9th. The official website does note, however, that the console development "ran like clockwork" and that the final product "leaves nothing to be desired." In other words, it sounds like the game is being held up by the publishers, not development. Of further interest, according to the Two Worlds site, a German magazine by the name of 360 Live has given Two Worlds a 9.3 out of 10 saying, "A fantastic RP experience, full of life and ideas... who would ever have thought that Oblivion could be dethroned so fast? This Two Worlds is indeed a worthy successor!!"Any Oblivion player will tell you, those are hefty words of praise. It will be some time before 360 owners can judge the veracity of this review, as a new release date has not been set.
New Two Worlds trailer impresses
It's been some time since we've seen or heard anything new about Two Worlds, the upcoming online RPG from Southpeak Interactive and Reality Pump. Lucky for us, a new trailer for the game has been released. The trailer shows off the the game's environments, characters, and some combat as well. Graphically, the game is looking mighty impressive, with visuals comparable to (but not quite as good as) Oblivion. The towns feature some particularly nice textures. There are several different weapon types displayed in the video, including swords, staves, maces, and spears. The video also shows glimpses of dual wielding and magic. All in all, Two Worlds is looking pretty decent. Check out the video and tell us what you think.
Monster Madness: a little too scary
We had planned on posting these impressions yesterday, but we were just swamped in Oblivion paperwork. A Monster Madness demo dropped yesterday, and we were raring to give it a go. Being big fans of dungeon crawlers like Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance and more recent titles like Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, we were excited to give Monster Madness a go. A typical dungeon crawler with a twist of horror movie camp? Sounds great. At least, it did.
Monster Madness demo scares XBLM
Having missed its April 3rd release date, a new demo has arrived for Monster Madness: Battle for Suburbia. The game is a top down hack n' slash in the style of Gauntlet and Raven's recent Marvel games. Players take control of one of four different stereotypical horror movie characters (our favorite is Jennifer, the requisite hottie) and proceed to wreak havoc on hordes of monsters. The enemies, like the playable characters, are pulled from the horror movie lexicon as well. Expect vampires, mummies, and werewolves for example. The game also utilizes a parts system that allows different weapons to be created. Finally up to 16 players will be able to play online in co-op and competitive modes.So, get to downloading already. We'll post our impressions of the demo later today.
