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These new Legendary screens are lycanthropic
Click for high resolution image. A new batch of screenshots for the upcoming Pandora's-Box-em-up, Legendary, show off a few of the supernatural enemies you'll be encountering in the game. We're still so very pleased that they dropped the ridiculous "The Box" subtitle. We can't help but feel that Legendary will be just another FPS that doesn't manage to raise itself above the rest of the genre's noise. Having said that, these screenshots look quite pretty and are very atmospheric. We'll reserve judgment until we've seen a little more of the game. Check out the full gallery below or click the image above.%Gallery-25116%
Pre-order Hail to the Chimp, get $10 in Onion bucks
Our fearless leader and overall cool cat Christ Grant, from the widely popular video game news site Joystiq, recently got a chance to chat with the crew working on Hail to the Chimp and, using his finely tuned negotiation skills, was able to setup a special deal for Joystiq network readers. If you pre-order Hail to the Chimp at Gamestop stores before June 15th, Gamecock will send you a FREE $10 gift card to the Onion Store. And we don't have to tell you how awesome the Onion is. Not too shabby of a deal, so make the jump and read all the fine print pre-order details.[Via Joystiq]
Preorder Hail to the Chimp, get $10 of Onion Store credit
I had the distinct pleasure of spending some time with the folks from Gamecock while they strolled through Philadelphia in the middle of Pennsylvania's Democratic presidential primaries in April, seeing firsthand how the independent publisher was promoting Hail to the Chimp, one of their flagship releases. Oh, did I mention I was wearing a giant, female polar bear suit for part of this? Anywho, more on that later in the month, closer to the game's June 24th release date ...In the interim, the guys and gals at Gamecock have offered Joystiq readers an exclusive offer: preorder HttC at GameStop and get a free $10 gift certificate to the Onion Store, the virtual storefront of the popular fake (and funny!) newspaper. So, to recap: you preorder the $40 PS3 or Xbox 360 politcally-themed party game before June 15th, send the Gamecock people a copy of your receipt (details here), and get ten bucks of free Onion Store credit. No polar bear suit required!
Dementium gets under Japanese skin
Renegade Kid's Dementium: The Ward is something you know we enjoyed. It was a very unique title on the DS, striving to provide a moody atmosphere full of scares. We think it succeeded, overall, and apparently so did Gamecock, as the title was chosen to release in Japan.Now, the game's Japanese site has launched and it's an incredibly effective platform for advertising the title. Just checking out the site makes you think J-horror, in the likes of Silent Hill and Fatal Frame. It's a great way to market the title, we believe, so be sure to hit up the site for the goods.[Via Insert Credit]
Velvet Assassin to cut throats on Xbox 360, PC this fall
German developer Replay Studios and indie publisher Gamecock dropped a friendly reminder that both studios plan to drape us in tufted fabric and slit our throats this fall, when Velvet Assassin ships for both the Xbox 360 and PC. As a stealth-action game, the title will drop players into the boots of real-life World War II allied secret agent Violette Szab as she goes toe to toe with the German war machine. Beyond the biographical backdrop and historically-inspired setting, there isn't much known about the game. However, the publisher notes that Velvet Assassin will include "lush, surreal visuals" and "a ground-breaking stealth combat system," both interesting qualities ... though we hope the devs know how difficult blood is to get out of velvet without sending it to dry cleaning.
Velvet Assassin sneaks onto Xbox 360 this fall
Coming this fall from Replay Studios and the wacky folks at Gamecock is Velvet Assassin. Taking place behind enemy lines in World War II, Velvet Assassin tells the story of Violette Summer who is tasked with facing off against the vicious German war machine.Inspired by real life British secret agent Violette Szabo, the stealth-action game promises a unique combat experience when it hits the Xbox 360 and PC.Clearly stealth games require a unique combat experience. Right?[via Press Release]%Gallery-22780%
Gamecock's Wilson announces candidacy for ESA president
With a number of names skipping out on this summer's E3, not to mention heavyweights Activision and Vivendi Games disavowing themselves of the ESA altogether, Gamecock sent word that its Grand Poobah Mike Wilson plans to step in to "right the ship" by announcing his candidacy for president of the Entertainment Software Association. The news, which was sent our way by Gamecock this weekend, included notice that the former GodGames co-founder plans to run on a platform of "bringing the fun back to the gaming industry."While details remain light, the exec expects to announce more of his plans in the weeks leading up E3 (an event we all donned black to help Gamecock bury last year). The re-imagined conference will take place the week of July 15, during which both Wilson and Gamecock proper will run a campaign headquarters at L.A.'s Hotel Figueroa. According to Gamecock, the location will be open to anyone and everyone in the public to drop in and play games -- no invitation necessary. We're on the fence as to if we're supposed to take this announcement seriously, or if this is just another grab for attention by the indie publisher, though either way Gamecock's track record promises that the end result will be strange.[Via press release]
Behind the scenes with Mushroom Men
We may be limited to sporadic updates from Red Fly Studio's Mushroom Men, but they're usually worth the wait. Today, we've got a little quality time with the developers, who sound just as excited about working on their project as we are about playing it. They also manage to work in a little humor, which we're also big fans of around here. The game footage included looks as great as ever, and Q4 is looking further and further away. Though, honestly, we could just stare at the concept art all day long and probably be satisfied.
Hail to the Chimp delayed to end of June
*Sigh* More delays. This time it's Hail to the Chimp, the arena-fighting, politically-charged, animal-filled cel-shaded game from Wideload studios. Originally set for release at the end of this month, Hail to the Chimp has been delayed a month for "polish." As former QA experience tells us, this is likely a good thing, as there was probably a choice between hitting ship with a certain amount of bugs or delaying the game and getting to fix the bugs. When it does finally hit on June 24th, Hail to the Chimp should hopefully be that much better.[Via Joystiq]
Hail to the Chimp delayed to June 24 [update]
Wideload's Hail to the Chimp party game has been pushed back from a scheduled May 27 release date into "mid-June," a Gamecock representative told us this morning. [Update: Gamecock has clarified that the new release date has been set for June 24.] The publisher attributed the short delay to a need for "polish" (working with animals can get dirty, after all), though we wonder if the extra weeks aren't equally necessary to generate some excitement for a campaign, which to date, has received little coverage. Ape or not, a politician's success relies on the strength of a savvy marketing team.For further analysis of the issues at hand, check out our Hail to the Chimp impressions from GDC and EIEIO. %Gallery-4895%
Prices dropping like flies: Insecticide markdown
Insecticide never seemed like a title destined to set the sales charts on fire, so we're not surprised to see retailers already marking down the noir title. Less than two months after Insecticide's release, Amazon, GameStop, and other shops have chopped the half-adventure, half-platforming game down to $19.99, a two-thirds its original price.And if that's still too much for you, you could buy Nirvana's Incesticide for only $7.97, less than half of Insecticide's price. What's the difference between the two, you ask? Well, it just so happens that we've put together a lovely comparison guide that should help you with that question.[VIa CAG]
Mushroom Men benefits from retooling
According to the latest 1UP preview, Red Fly Studio's Mushroom Men: Rise of the Fungi has gone through some tweaks since the last time it was shown -- and those tweaks have made it a better game. Specifically, the map has been made easier to navigate with the addition of objective markers. In addition, platforms have been made to stand out from the background visually. This is often a problem with prerendered 3D environments: it's hard to tell which areas of those environments are interactive.Unfortunately, the healing system, apparently, could use a bit more time in the oven. You heal automatically for most damage types, but not falling damage, which is frequent. In other words, you basically don't heal automatically.%Gallery-15252%
Joystiq interview: Renegade Kid versus the Moon
When independent developer Renegade Kid first announced its follow up title to last year's Dementium: the Ward, few details were offered as to what it was exactly that the studio was up to. Titled simply Moon, the game was said to again be played from the first-person, but beyond the vantage and supposed setting, we were left wondering. It didn't take us long to tire of the guessing game however, so we arranged to speak with Renegade Kid's owner and creative director Jools Watsham to find out more about the company's latest offspring, how it differs from Dementium, and why the studio opted to go with a different publisher, in this case Mastiff, rather than Dementium publisher Gamecock. Read on to see what he had to say.%Gallery-20326%
Revamped Mushroom Men site cultivated, launched
If, inspired by too many episodes of Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, you've yearned to adventure the world as a miniaturized figure, fighting pygmy creatures with Lilliputian weapons, you really should look into Mushroom Men! To assist interested gamers who refuse to put their memories of 80s cartoons behind them, publisher Gamecock has updated its official site for the platformer, providing previews of Mushroom Men's playable characters, jury-rigged arms, and misshapen enemies.Gamecock has also announced that Primus's Les Claypool is lending his talents to the soundtrack for both the DS and Wii Mushroom Men games. According to the renown bassist, like many parents hoping to win their children's favor, he took on the job at the urging of his fantasy-gaming-obsessed son. You can treat your ears to one of Les's songs for Mushroom Men at the relaunched site right now!See also: EIEIO 08: Brief Mushroom Men impressions%Gallery-15252%[Via press release]
Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball delayed, extra content promised
If you've been looking forward to Blazing Lizard's upcoming XBLA release Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball, you might want to sit down and re-read our hands-on impressions from last month, as publisher Gamecock just sent word that the game has been pushed back until some unspecified time later this Spring. In an effort to paint a silver lining on the news, Blazing Lizard studio director Christopher Stockman notes that the extra time will let the devs "go back and add in additional content to the game," including new rules and modes for the title's cadre of ninjas, pirates, robots, and zombies. When asked as to the reason for the delay, a spokesperson told us that it "was the addition of different game modes, specifically the mode that works more like traditional dodgeball." That's fine, though we suspect the constant flurry of cutlass swipes and hurled shurikens might have had something to do with it as well. [Via press release]
PvN Dodgeball delayed for new traditional modes
Blazing Lizard has announced that the XBLA release of Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball has been delayed. The reason for the delay is that Blazing Lizard is "adding more traditional rules dodgeball modes where teams stay only on their side and multiple dodgeballs are in play." This is purely speculation, but it sounds like not everyone was happy with the free-form dodgeball rules that were originally crafted for the game. Just how long the game will be delayed is unclear, though the press release notes that the game will arrive "later this Spring." Blazing Lizard's Chris Stockman told us earlier this year that Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball began as a traditional dodgeball game. So, hopefully the company already has some working code in place for the new modes and won't keep us waiting too long. Blazing Lizard also released a handful of new screenshots (perhaps to dull the pain). Peruse them in the gallery below. %Gallery-5889%
DS Fanboy Review: Insecticide
As you may or may not know, I'm a big fan of adventure games. That's one of the reasons I jumped at the chance to play Insecticide -- it looked like it would be one of the best in the genre this year. And the action parts? Those would just be gravy.Crackpot, the development team behind the game, is mostly made up of people who used to work for LucasArts, and it shows. Insecticide contains the same kind of humor and adventure goodness of games like Monkey Island and Grim Fandango. Yet, this title is not only an adventure game but also an action platformer, and when mixing genres, you have to be careful to do it right -- in a way that makes sense, and in a way that works. Unfortunately, though, Insecticide fails in those aspects. Gallery: Insecticide
Mushroom Men: The Aspect Ratio Wars
Live Wii conducted a five-question interview with Red Fly Studio, developers of Mushroom Men: The Spore Wars, and got one crucial, and vaguely disappointing, bit of information: as of right now, the game displays in 4:3 only. "Currently it is 480p. BUT we are looking into the capabilities of 16:9, if possible." 480p is, of course, welcome to fancy TV owners.Red Fly couldn't offer any specific answers, really, to Live Wii's other questions -- except to say that there won't be any online play. That's not really a big deal for a platformer. There will be some kind of multiplayer, probably, and Mushroom Men uses the pointer in some way. %Gallery-18243%[Via GoNintendo]
Behind the gooey scenes of Insecticide
The Gamecock guys sure know how to go all out in crazy fashion to promote a game. With Insecticide already out on store shelves, however, we're saved that blitz of feathers and capes. Instead, we're presented with a smaller, more intimate behind-the-scenes look at two of the individuals who helped Insecticide become a game. We're talking about Larry Ahern and Mike Levine of Crackpot Entertainment.Of course, being Gamecock, they had to include some wackiness, though. Hit up the "Read" link below and check out the video.%Gallery-3405%
WRUP: Shooting crystal bugs edition
With three high-profile titles releasing in North America this week, we're having a hard time deciding what game (or games) to pick up for this weekend's promised downtime. Should we go with the tried-and-true formula of shooting everything in sight and get Nanostray 2? Or, should we see about putting on our gumshoes and solving a case or two in Insecticide? Perhaps the more epic quest is in order and we should go with Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates? Maybe we should just go with them all?While we try to decide, tell us what you've got going on in your gaming world this weekend. What will you be playing?
