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DS Fanboy Review: Dementium: The Ward
If there's one thing Dementium: The Ward delivers on, it's atmosphere. From the audio -- which is truly something special in the DS library -- to the overall mystery of the story of Redmoor Hospital, Dementium provides exactly what it promises: a survival horror/FPS fusion that you can take with you.What it's not is perfect. Of course, no game is, but Dementium is peppered with a few looming frustrations that bring down the game experience. It is developer Renegade Kid's first effort, and at times it shows, and it's a somewhat clichéd game from a genre built on the power of cliché. The good news is that none of those frustrations are terribly huge. The bad news, however, is that some of those flaws may be just the sort that keep certain types of gamers away. %Gallery-4929%
Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles is looking purdy
We've been showing you a lot of Ghost Squad videos lately, but that's no reason to forget the other rail shooter coming out this season. As you can see from the video above (which is titled "The Opening Video," but it's probably just a trailer), the game looks mighty fine, indeed. Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles is set for release on November 13, which we know will put some more hurt on a lot of wallets. We're definitely interested, at least.
WRUP: Getting Demented edition
There is really only one game that came up on our radar of releases this week and it's none other than Dementium: The Ward. We like the survival-horror genre as it is, not to mention that this looks like the first engaging FPS game on the DS (not to say that Metroid Prime Hunters wasn't engaging, but the single-player was a bit lacking). We haven't a had a chance to pick the game up yet, but you can bet that we will be doing so immediately.What about you all? Are you planning on picking up the game or are you playing something else?
Zombos return for Condemned 2 trailer
There's not a whole lot to see in this new trailer for Condemned 2, but it seems to be hitting on all the "scary game trailer" cylinders. Threatening, disembodied voice? Check. Annoying but creepy alarm-like sound effect? Check. Getting your head smashed in by a brick-wielding zombo? ... Check. The one thing we're still questioning is the point in the clip where the hero appears to be wielding a prosthetic arm. Either that's a weapon (sort of cool) or the damage in the game is so realistically modeled that injuries can result in infection, amputation, filing an insurance claim for a new limb and months of rehab (not as cool). We're pulling for the first one.
Dead Space trailer the result of derelict vessels
Though science fiction is often optimistic about mankind's mastery of technology, it rarely doles out the same assurances when it comes to our intelligence or capability to make decisions. For instance, when faced with exploring a monster-infested set of steel corridors floating in space -- frequently an exploding barrel research facility where something has gone horribly wrong -- the best solution is to stay at home, where there's safety and oxygen. But no, it seems all that clichéd sci-fi dreck we've watched and played has taught us nothing. If EA's recently unveiled horror, Dead Space, is anything to go by, it seems our future is still mired in mysterious distress signals (it's a trap!), poorly lit space stations and snarling tentacle things. See for yourself by watching the trailer embedded after the break. And before you jump to conclusions, note that the protagonist's head sadly does not fire high-velocity slices of atomic toast (it's been done).
Fan-made Dementium trailer creeps us out
There's not much to say about this trailer, except that it's full of understated brilliance. Dementium: The Ward videos have all (successfully) tried to scare the crap out of us, but somehow this one is the most disturbing. At the very least, it's certainly the most comical. Interestingly enough, this video is fan-made. Gamecock fanatic Regie Miller sent his videos to Destructoid and told them, "Whether it was Gamecock's plucky chutzpah or the Je ne sais quoi charm of a man in a rooster mask I'll never know, but one way or another this starry-eyed idea machine found its way into my heart and there it stayed and laid eggs." Oh ... okay, then.It's unclear as to whether Gamecock bought the rights to Miller's trailer, but it certainly looks that way. Since we couldn't find it at the official Dementium and Gamecock websites, however, we can't be sure.
Joystiq interview: Dementium's Renegade Kid
You may not recognize the name Renegade Kid, but chances are you're familiar with some of the more than twenty titles this tiny three-person development team in Austin has jointly had a hand in creating, including games such as XS Games' The Red Star, Aspyr's Stubbs the Zombie, and Namco's Sigma Star Saga. Now working as an independent developer under the Gamecock umbrella, Renegade Kid will soon launch its first title this Halloween with Dementium: The Ward, a first-person survival horror game for the Nintendo DS.We recently had a chance to gab some time with two members of Renegade Kid, co-owner and creative director Jools Watsham and fellow co-owner and art director Gregg Hargrove, and we spoke to them about what it's like to work under their Gamecock overlords (did I say overlords? I meant protectors), as well as as just how crazy they must be to attempt a game as ambitious as Dementium on the DS as their freshman effort. Read on.%Gallery-3636%
Renegade Kid talks challenges with Dementium
After Fountainhead's Anna Kang spoke about the "younger audience" the DS commands this week, it's refreshing to see someone taking the opposite position. Jools Watsham, Creative Director at Renegade Kid, the team behind Dementium, has a lot to say about M-rated games on the DS, a system that commands an audience of, well, pretty much everyone. While some companies may be worried about sales numbers before plotting out a game, the good folks at Renegade Kid were more interested in finding ways around those barriers, and Watsham was happy to tell us all about it."When I think about it now, there I was trying to convince publishers to pick up our game while putting up every red flag there is. They must have all thought we were crazy! Our hope was that publishers would think our game was good. And thankfully they did. Gamecock didn't want changes or anything watered down. They just told us to go for it," Watsham said, and we're glad to hear about Gamecock's faith in the new developer. With no other titles behind them and without an established franchise to lean on, as with some of the system's other mature fare, Watsham knew they were going to face challenges with Dementium: The Ward.%Gallery-4929%
It's Wesker Day
We have two sources of Weskeriffic Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles updates for you, to celebrate this most auspicious of made-up Resident Evil-related holidays (right after the Feast of Tofu and Unlocking Week). First, Famitsu has posted a completely Wesker-focused update, which includes some new screens of the playable Wesker, and not much new information, other than that he's kind of a badass.Second, the official Japanese Resident Evil page has updated with a new trailer (click on the "Movies" button, then the one marked "new", which focuses on-- you guessed it-- Hunk Albert Wesker. A very happy Wesker Day to all! Put on your traditional sunglasses!
Tecmo taps Grasshopper for Fatal Frame Wii
The latest in Tecmo's atmospheric, at times disturbing survival horror series Fatal Frame could have you fighting off ghostly haunts with the Wii remote, with Killer 7 and No More Heroes developer Grasshopper Manufacture tapped to produce the next game in the series for the Wii. According to a report out of last week's TGS, Suda 51's studio will begin work on the as yet untitled Fatal Frame game after development wraps on the ultra-violent No More Heroes, which Ubisoft will publish in the US in February. Like Fatal Frame, No More Heroes is also for the Wii, underscoring Grasshopper's apparent enthusiasm for Nintendo's unconventional console. It will be interesting to see how Fatal Frame's landmark photography-based gameplay will map to the Wii's motion sensitive controls, though if past iterations are any indication, we may just drop the remote altogether and go hide in the closet.
TGS07: Wii captures Fatal Frame
Tecmo is bringing the next Fatal Frame title to the Wii, and they're recruiting Team Awesome-Crazy at Grasshopper Manufacture on board to handle the details. Clearly, this eclipses all the other news that's come out of this year's Tokyo Game Show. That's it. There's no topping it. Okay, maybe we're biased here, but Fatal Frame represents some of the best in horror gaming. While the photography-centric series lacks the action some prefer in survival horror games, Fatal Frame has always offered a gorgeous, spooky, thoughtful experience that blends horror and adventure. Combine that with the twisted sense of surrealism Grasshopper can bring to the table, and Fatal Frame IV is set to be an amazing title. [Thanks, Brandon!]
Obscure franchise being "seriously considered" for DS
In speaking with Obscure II's producer Jesse America, Cubed3 brought up the idea of bringing the game to the DS. Why not, right? Everyone else is doing it and the DS is the mackdaddy of cash cows, so we can definitely understand why they would want to bring the game to that platform.And, they just might. Jesse stating "we are seriously considering this, and I have written down some ideas and designs, but it would be an entirely new game." She further praises the handheld by stating "I think that the DS is an extremely interesting piece of hardware, and I wouldn't mind seeing what we could come up with. I have been very much inspired by Hotel Dusk I must say. So who knows?"We're inspired by Hotel Dusk also! We must be long-lost siblings!
EA Redwood Shores helming sci-fi horror Dead Space
When Game Informer originally broke the story that Electronic Arts had enlisted a "renegade" team to develop the upcoming space faring survival horror game Dead Space, many in the gaming community rolled their collective eyes. Do they go around stealing staplers and making paper clip chains, or what? Now, however, EA has revealed that the game is being handled by EA Redwood Shores, a studio that is currently responsible for a number of titles and franchises, including The Simpsons Game and multiple Sims 2 expansions. Renegade or not, the developer knows how to play ball. Dead Space is described by EA as a "brilliant, bold and often-bloody" sci-fi survival horror game that "promises to deliver the ultimate in psychological thrills and gruesome action." In the game, players take up the role of an engineer named Isaac Clarke as he goes from simply trying to fix the communication systems on a mining ship, to having to fight back an alien infestation that has "ravaged" his ship's crew, after which he must "fight through the dead silence and darkness of deep space to stay alive." Getting anything wholly original out of EA is nice, and it sounds like Redwood Shores isn't so much a renegade studio as they are fans of the Aliens movies. Dead Space is expected to ship next fall for the PS3 and Xbox 360.
New Silent Hill 5 scans to drool over
Every time I see new screens, scans or videos of Silent Hill 5, I fall in love all over again. This game just looks so damn good, and if you want more proof, take a look at these new scans from Playzone magazine. While Playzone doesn't give us any real new information about Konami's popular survival horror title, I'm sure some of you will be pleased just to see more scantily clad nurses.When you're finished drooling over these new screens, be sure to cast your vote for Silent Hill 5 in this week's Poll Police!
EA's Dead Space unveiled by Game Informer
He may look like a Big Daddy reject, but this Lil' Papi is the newest face in EA's reinvention line, a steady stream of fresh IPs aimed to counteract the perception of safe-bet mega-publisher. Dead Space, making its first appearance on the cover of Game Informer, was named a year ago (as a FPS) by analyst P. J. McNealey, who identified the then announced project as an Unreal Engine 3-powered action game. The Game Informer hook upgrades that status to "survival horror game," but does not confirm the first-person perspective or Unreal guts. Instead, GI just begs us to buy the issue teases: "Fans of the cult-classic film Event Horizon and straight-up horror aficionados aren't going to want to miss this one!" Dead Space, being developed by a "renegade" team at EA, sounds a lot like what we'd expect out of the rumored System Shock 3. Is there a connection to be made? And more importantly, can one man cut through the darkness?
Obscure II trailers are dark, violent
CVG recently posted a pair of trailers for the upcoming Obscure II. These trailers are for the PC version of the game, so the graphics could be different on the Wii, but the gameplay should translate over relatively unchanged. And, based on these new trailers, the game is going to be fairly action-packed and dark. Like the last trailer we showcased, it provides a glimpse at some co-op fun in the game.
Condemned 2 has more NPCs, better forensics
Eurogamer has posted a new preview of Condemned 2: Bloodshot from Monolith. The preview details the game's new combat engine and the Fight Club mode as well as some new information about non-player characters and forensics. We've heard about Fight Club (even though we don't talk about it) and the new combat engine before, but the NPC and forensics stuff hasn't been discussed before.
Almost everything you want to know about Condemned 2
Condemned was a launch title for the 360 -- it was mostly overshadowed by other 360 launch titles, but those who played it derived more enjoyment from it than they honestly expected to. It was creepy, violent, and overall a good experience to introduce them to the new off-white console. Condemned 2 is coming and it's not just on the 360 -- it's coming to the PS3 as well. Here's what PSU learned about the upcoming game in an interview with senior producer Dave Hasle: There's more open-endedness when it comes to forensic parts of the game -- your power of observation and tools to use are entirely up to you. If you feel like it, you can skip right past those bits and continue fighting baddies. Whatever you prefer. While that sounds open-ended, the overall experience will be quite linear. We expect one, maybe two endings depending on how involved you get in the story. Weapon count right now is at 60, might hit 90 by the time the game finishes up. Throwing weapons are making a pretty big impact on the dev team: bowling pins, booze bottles, etc. No cross-platform play, but online modes to be announced later. Monolith has already murmured of an online co-op feature, but until super-duper official announcements are made, we'll take that with a grain of salt. No Sixaxis features implemented. Take that as good or bad, whatever your taste. We didn't go into the storyline or other, more particular, features of the game to save the surprises for our readers who like to stay in the dark on some things. If you are curious, though, check out the full interview and become a knowledgeable person ... about Condemned 2. It's slated for a Spring '08 release, so until then, we'll keep looking for more info.
Condemned 2 movie tie-in still underway
The nerds over at Sega ... Nerds unearthed some details on the upcoming tie-in movie to Condemned 2: Bloodshot, The Forgotten. According to scriptwriter Kurt Sutter, a director is now attached to the project, though we have to wait until Warner makes the official announcement. Sutter also mentioned that he is doing another big rewrite of the script. As for the storyline, Kurt couldn't give any new info, but said that their technique for not falling into the "crappy game movie" trap was pretty cool, as they screenwriter and devs were each given a 15 page outline of the character and world, and told to make a great script and game, respectively, on their own. So rather than one being based on the other, they're both inspired by the same core concept. We'll be sure to keep you informed on any new developments for the game or film.
Condemned 2 will feature four combat layers
In an interview with CVG, Condemned 2: Bloodshot senior producer Constantine Hantzopoulos talks specifics about Bloodshot including the new (and improved) combat system. Hantzopoulos says that Criminal Origins' fighting stayed true to the visceral feel they were going for, but was too bland and repetitive. But now with Condemned 2 they've added four layers to their combat system that'll make killing so much more bloody fun. First, you can fight with your fists, something the original didn't let you do. Second, you can use all the same objects you did in the original to knock around your enemies. Third, you can chain attacks together God of War style to create some crazy intense sequences. And fourth, you can use the environment as a weapon by slamming their head into a TV or tossing them into a wood chipper. Gory .. we know. The interview also reveals details about multiplayer combat, how forensics will work, cut scenes and something called Hobo Fight Club. And let's just say Hobo Fight Club sounds crazy fun where a player can get in a ring with a bunch of hobos to unleash their built up anger. But the game in a nutshell is summarized best by Mr. Hantzopoulos when he simply says that Condemned 2 "will f**k with you". You know, in a good way.
