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Resogun review: Save the last humans, hopefully
We're rolling out PlayStation 4 review coverage all the way through the launch on Nov. 15. Check out more coverage here! The blocky green humans of Resogun, who look like they've been peeled off a men's room door, sometimes forget to thank you for a rescue well done. The thought may cross their little starstruck minds as they cartwheel through the air, catapulted from your spaceship into a column of safe light, but their ability to utter it is lost in a whirlwhind of multicolored missile trails, alien spaceships and arcs of vibrant electricity. Perhaps they are simply speechless, as time slows and their view rotates through a kaleidoscope of pristine destruction en route to – "Human lost." Oh, whoops, guess I threw that one into a lake. The rescue capsule was over there, wasn't it?
Resogun PS4 Video Preview and Interview with Housemarque
Our fearless leader Ludwig Kietzmann managed to corner Resogun developer Housemarque's Mikael Havari, head of self-publishing, to discuss a wide range of topics regarding the PS4 launch game. Resogun, as a free PS4 game for PSN users, is likely something early next-gen adopters will want to give a whirl. Resogun, if you're unaware, is a voxel-based shmup where players move on a closed-loop 2D plane and attempt to save helpless citizens from being murdered or abducted by alien invaders. And if you don't know what a voxel is, you're in luck – all is explained in our video preview above. Enjoy!
Outland developer bringing fuzzy puzzler Furmins to PS Vita
Finnish independent developer Housemarque (Outland, Dead Nation) and mobile publisher Beatshapers announced the upcoming PS Vita release of Furmins, a Lemmings-like physics puzzler in which players fling armies of hapless furry critters to their salvation and/or doom. Similar to puzzle games like The Incredible Machine, Furmins equips players with a set number of puzzle pieces that must be carefully arranged in order to keep the Furmins safe from harm while escorting them to each level's exit. The Vita release follows up on Furmins' debut for iOS platforms last year, and includes more than 100 levels that each offer multiple solutions. Furmins is set to hit the PlayStation Network in October.
Super Stardust 'spiritual successor' coming to PlayStation 4
Finnish developer Housemarque announced today that it's working on a "spiritual successor" to the Super Stardust series for the PlayStation 4. Housemarque's twin-stick shooter Super Stardust HD launched as a downloadable title during the PlayStation 3's first year of release. The company followed up with the PS3-exclusive zombie shooter Dead Nation and the multiplatform Outland, and made its PS Vita debut last year with Super Stardust Delta. "We truly believe that better technology can lead to better gameplay," Housemarque's CEO Ilari Kuittinen explains. "The more tools and resources we have at our disposal, the better." Kuittinen continues: "Think of Super Stardust HD: at the time, PlayStation 3 gave us the opportunity to populate the game with thousands of interactive objects and implement the game's famous 'spherical gameplay'. Today, we can take advantage of the architecture of PlayStation 4 to create incredible visuals with direct impact on the way the new game feels." Housemarque additionally revealed that it is working on "another unannounced PS4 project." The company will announce further details regarding both games later this year.
Finnish composer Pulkkinen working on 'unannounced PS4 game'
Composer Ari Pulkkinen, known for his work with Finnish developers Housemarque, Rovio and Frozenbyte, is providing the soundtrack and sound design for an "unannounced PS4 game," according to his LinkedIn profile. Under his 'Experience' tab, Pulkkinen says he's also providing soundtracks for an iPad game and PSN game, both also unannounced.While Pulkkinen's experience is diverse - he's composed soundtracks for several entries in the Angry Birds and Trine series - the majority of his PlayStation-based work has been for Housemarque. Pulkkinen provided the soundtracks for Super Stardust HD, Outland, Dead Nation, and Super Stardust Delta.Earlier this month, Housemarque responded to a leak of concept art that included Dead Nation 2, as well as tie-ins to Superman and Walking Dead games. In an official statement, the studio said, "As for the artworks on display, they belong to a discarded batch and are not representative of projects we might or might not be working on."
Housemarque's Furmins now has 'free' version
Housemarque's action puzzler Furmins HD now exists as a separate Furmins Free app for iOS devices. The free version includes 108 levels across eight worlds, with the first world open by default.So, where's the microtransactions? Unlocking worlds will cost 100 stars. The exchange rate for stars is 100 for $0.99 (0.79€ / £0.79). Purchasing 700 stars in a bundle, which by our calculation would unlock the whole game, is $3.99 (2.99€, £1.99).This is the part where we point out Furmins HD – the pay version – is $2.99, saving you, at a minimum, one dollar if you wish to pursue the free version to its conclusion. However, the free version supports Chinese, Korean, and Japanese localization, so that may be of importance.%Gallery-131596%
Ring in 5 years of Super Stardust HD with $7.99 bundle on PSN
Five years have gone by since Super Stardust HD was first released on PlayStation Network, and Housemarque is offering a special sale to mark the occasion. Right now, interested star-dusters can pick up Super Stardust HD and all three of its DLC packs for $7.99.Sadly, fans of portable blasting seem to be out of luck, as there don't appear to be any deals for the PSP's Super Stardust Portable or the Vita's Super Stardust Delta. Maybe we'll have to wait for the tenth anniversary for those.
Dead Nation's expansion gets an expansion today with 'Arcade'
Dead Nation's expansion pack, "Road of Devastation," is about to get a bit less devastating with the addition of the "Arcade" game mode. As the "Road of Devastation" was about surviving against impossible, zombie-filled odds, "Arcade" is about modifying those odds in your favor. That plays out in-game via checkpoint-based revival and the ability to choose a difficulty level (other than "devastating," of course).The Arcade modification appears to be a free update to Dead Nation, but we won't be sure until PlayStation Network updates later today and the content goes live. The "Road of Devastation" content, however, costs $3.99.
Play.com lists 'Ubisoft Triple Pack,' containing Beyond Good and Evil HD, Outland, From Dust [update]
It looks like more downloadable titles will be getting the packaged retail treatment, this time courtesy of Ubisoft. Similar to the various other retail packs we've seen in the past, the "Ubisoft Triple Pack" will contain three previously download-only titles for PS3 and Xbox 360: Beyond Good and Evil HD, Outland and From Dust, according to a listing on Play.com.Play.com's pre-order price of £14.99 equates to roughly $23, although no listings currently exist for the Triple Pack on any of the usual US retailers' websites. We've contacted Ubisoft for clarification regarding the collection's availability and pricing, but we feel safe in assuming that it'll cost more than $1 and less than $100 million, and that it'll be available in a country somewhere on this specific planet.Update: Ubisoft has responded in a wholly surprising and remarkably unpredictable fashion: "We have nothing to announce at this time."
Take a stroll down Dead Nation's 'Road of Devastation' today
Housemarque is capitalizing on the audience boost Dead Nation got as a "Welcome Back" game, offering a new DLC package to the recently teeming millions of people who have picked up the top-down zombie shooter. The "Road to Devastation" DLC pack will be out sometime this afternoon (for $3.99) as part of the weekly PSN update. It puts the player in the role of a genetically engineered zombie killing machine at a literal crossroads. "Before long," designer Petteri Putkonen says on the PlayStation Blog, "you'll find your choices have great meaning, you just might find yourself at the crossroads again, but, that time the road you took has been closed, so you'll make a new decision based on the new weapons, items, money and armor (or perhaps score) you'll have by then." With the new environment comes some new environmental hazards you can use against zombies. Industrial saws, pools of water that can be electrified, electric fences, and even automatic turrets can be used to make the undead hordes into un-undead hordes.
Dead Nation welcomes you back with 'Road of Devastation' DLC
Thanks to Sony's post-PSNocalypse "Welcome Back" program, Dead Nation went from being a well-reviewed game (we awarded it a 5/5) to a staple in many PS3 gamer's libraries, with "over 3.8 million" players mowing down "over 11,700,000,000" zombies. So while we're nearly a year past this downloadable shooter's release, there's no better time to announce some DLC. "Road of Devastation" promises "a variety of new tools and equipment" which you'll need to tackle the "new enemies and obstacles you'll encounter in unique new environments." While that all sounds like the usual DLC fare, developer Housemarque teases that Road of Devastation will continue where the original left off ("or, is it actually the other way around ...") -- you wake up in a lab as a product of genetic modification to create the ultimate soldier. Outside the lab you find "a crossroads leading to three different paths, each with their own unique environments, challenges and enemies waiting for you." Only after all that will you "make a startling revelation ..." We'll be honest, all these elipses have us unsettled. What does it all mean? Is this a prequel in which we discover that humanity's been the cause of the zombie outbreak this whole time? Actually, yeah ... we're pretty sure that's what it is.%Gallery-132782%
Furmins coming to iOS in freemium and premium versions
If you want to pay the bare minimum when it comes to fur-related acquisitions, you'll be pleased to hear that Housemarque is planning a "freemium" version of Furmins, its upcoming creature-preservation puzzler for iOS. The Dead Nation developer is making it a universal app -- meaning compatibility with iThings of all sizes -- with 12 levels and support for in-app purchases of DLC. The "freemium" version will sit alongside a premium universal app, which contains 40 levels spread across four worlds, and a cheaper iPhone/iPod version. Your goal in Furmins is to guide the rotund race to every level's exit by placing items and bumpers in their path. Considering their pathetic, momentum-driven nature, it's not a huge surprise to learn that you're saving them from a dehydration-induced extinction. Their enormous ruler has rolled over and accidentally blocked the flow of water in a vital river, it says here.%Gallery-131596%
Housemarque bringing Furmins to iOS this autumn
Having dabbled with space rocks, zombies and tribalistic warriors, Housemarque is now crafting Furmins, a game that features that most popular of portable-game species: the adorable, fuzzy critter that would have gone extinct in about five minutes had it existed on Earth. The Outland developer has released the above teaser video, which depicts Furmins as a physics-oriented puzzle game of sorts, with the titular fur-balls rolling around elaborate courses and bouncing off objects in the environment. Hmm, perhaps even five minutes is optimistic.
Super Stardust Delta preview: Tilt to live
The first portable variant of Housemarque's stellar twin-stick shooter, Super Stardust, had to make do with a fifty percent reduction in analog control when it arrived on PSP. Super Stardust Delta is much better off on the superior PlayStation Vita hardware, though the authenticity of the game's asteroid slaughter feels a little muddled by excess. Like most launch titles, it's adamant about using every available feature, even if they don't necessarily augment the experience.%Gallery-125162%
Outland will be out on PSN June 14
Hey, PS3 owners! Remember Outland? Remember how great that sounded, and how excited you were to buy it -- right up until the PSN disappeared for over a month? Well, now you can relive all the thrill of the leadup to Housemarque's colorful platformer, followed by an actual opportunity to buy it! A post on the PlayStation Blog reveals that Outland, originally due for release right when PSN went down, is now scheduled for release on June 14. You should run, slide, and jump ... to the store to buy some PSN credit.
Outland review: Will and grace
This admission is better read than said: I'm hopelessly addicted to will and grace. A video game provides the ideal arrangement for someone -- like me -- whose extreme athleticism remains dormant in reality, but seeks expression just a few feet away from the couch. It's the basis for the accord I once made with the Prince of Persia. "With my will and your grace, your grace," I said, "we'll get through this elaborate death chicane in under an hour. And if you end up squirming with a spike through your chest, we'll just put that on me. Deal?" In the low fidelity of Jordan Mechner's classic, the prince's form of movement became a mesmerizing, superhuman display of perfect movement ... and when it didn't you reverted to an older save. Outland, a visually arresting 2D platformer from Finland's Housemarque studio, is just as reverent to grace, personified by a tall, inexhaustible silhouette in search of the meaning behind his dreams. He runs and leaps with such intense confidence, some of it starts filtering through the controller and into you.
Outland coming to PSN on April 26, XBLA on April 27
Outland, a vibrant 2D adventure that exudes elements of Ikaruga, N+, Tron, Super Metroid and a bunch of other things that you like, is set to launch on PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade later this month. Developed by Finnish outfit Housemarque, the game will be available on Sony's platform for $10 on Tuesday, April 26, followed by the Xbox version on April 27 for 800 Microsoft Points. Peek past the break to find a new trailer that showcases Outland's arresting imagery, two-player co-operative challenges (online only) and light combat.
Super Stardust HD bracing for 'Impact Mode' DLC
If Super Stardust HD has steadily sunk in your PS3's XMB Game list, we can understand -- it's nearly four years old! You may be inspired to scroll down to it in the coming weeks, however, once the new "Impact Mode" DLC is released. That's right -- new DLC. "We want to thank all the fans around the world for your continued support -- it has made Super Stardust HD a top-selling PSN-exclusive and enabled us to keep creating new content for the game even now over three years after its release," wrote Ilari Kuittinen, CEO of developer Housemarque, in the DLC announcement on the EU PlayStation Blog. Making its debut in Super Stardust Portable for PSP, Impact Mode does away with weapons and outfits your ship with "an experimental new matter-to-energy boost engine technology" -- in other words, "once you activate the boost, you can stay in boost as long as you can hit meteors and enemies with it!" The mode will be available for Super Stardust HD on March 30 (in the EU PlayStation Store) for €1.99/£1.59. The exact release date ("Spring," for now) and price for the North American release are pending. %Gallery-119517%
Outland preview: Grace anatomy
Not to besmirch the pleasures of mowing down aliens with the aid of a lumbering, gun-toting calzone of muscle and gruff one-liners, but I usually gravitate toward avatars that exhibit speed and panache. Games like Prince of Persia and N+ make quite a show of even basic movement, conveying an easily perceptible sense of momentum in their acrobatic lead characters. You can generally tell whether these games work within just a few minutes of motion -- and Outland, like those games, is love at first flight. Housemarque's previous efforts are just as quickly decipherable, with both Super Stardust HD and Dead Nation built on solid twin-stick shooting, but Outland captures attention at mere sight. The graphics are "traditional" in the sense that they elicit a tribal reverence of nature, with gigantic tree silhouettes softly obscuring the vibrant blues, yellows and greens of the background sky. Outland's bold art seems to draw inspiration from Japanese shadow plays (before Nin2-Jump did it) and even Tron, with a dash of Incan history and mystery mixed in. There's an interesting, cyclical element to the story, which sees your warrior-in-training slipping into slumber to experience the life of a previous hero, who counts defeating a pair of evil gods (and climbing the best ladder since Metal Gear Solid 3) among his accomplishments. You're much less powerful when the dream ends, of course, but you wake up with a taste of the abilities you'll unlock in further Metroid-esque exploration of the world. At its most basic level, Outland is about bounding, sliding and falling through the jungle in the quest for coins, switches and the next power-up.%Gallery-103848%
Dead Nation patch coming next week, adds voice chat and checkpoint saves
Dead Nation is terrific, but it has one shortcoming that many have considered a deal breaker: It lacks voice chat for online co-op play. That issue will be addressed in a new patch, to be deployed next Tuesday, March 7. The title update will not only add voice chat, but a few other features, including the abilities to save at checkpoints (which should make those challenging final levels a little easier) and to copy save files to back them up. In its post on PlayStation Blog, Housemarque teases "further surprises" will be included, as well.
