Sunday, December 6, 2009

What Have You Played This Week?

Not a lot this week. I wasn't as far into Batman as I thought so that took up some time. I got some Demo's in and enjoyed both of them.

Football Manager 09 – PC – I'm Still With Bayern Munich but i'm also now the Italy National Manager. I've never been their manager before so this should be interesting. Would love to get the new game, but unfortunately I can't afford it, but what is great about the Football Manager games is that you can play them for a long time, even if a new version has come out (typically as the newest Football Manager needs 1 patch for it to get great.)


Bayonetta – Demo - PS3 – I downloaded this big demo not really knowing what to expect. Its not a bad demo, it shows the battle, gameplay, and some of the story, but it throws it at you very quick. You may also need to change some of the options, like camera sensitivity and axis. The gameplay is very hack and slash but its done well. It was very fluid and very easy to pull together combo's and huge attacks. The graphics looked ok. The detail looks a little flat/washed out, but it doesn't detract from the gameplay.

Batman Arkham Asylum – PS3 – I finished this game and enjoyed all of it. The story was interesting with a few good plot twists. There was a predictable ending but it fitted with the story and doesn't feel cheap. I never felt things got repetitive, I had all the equipment and enjoyed trying it all out on the bad guys, coming up with new ways to defeat them. The thing that disappointed me was the end boss battle. It became very traditional and simple which is a shame. The scarecrow parts of the game were a nice way to break things up and offered a nice change of style, especially a interesting re-cap of the start of the game. I highly recommend this game. It is a great Batman game, and a great game in general. I tried the challenge rooms...and I couldn't get a high score on any of them. But I did enjoy trying them, and the Joker rooms were good enough to get the PS3 version alone.


Little Big Planet – Demo – PSP – This demo was great. The graphics on the PSP looked really good and it felt like Little Big Planet. It only had 2 levels which is a shame, but those levels alone show how the game level design has improved since the PS3 version. They were simple levels but, like the PS3 version, you can see key object markers which will make you come back. The load times were also very good. I recommend if you have played or are interested in Little Big Planet, get the demo. Its a small download and will quickly show how good it is.


What have you been playing this week? feel free to add your weeks gaming selection in the comments, or comment on my selection for this week




Android Game Of The Week – Cosmic Trails


Cosmic Trails
Developed By ActionXL
Free
Version: 1.0
Size: 4.77MB

The Good
Graphics
Gameplay
Music

The Average
Controls
Game Size

The Bad
A bit Buggy
Game Modes

Cosmic Trails is perhaps a game that not many people have come across in the Android Market. I honestly don't know how long it has been on the Market, but I only found it when I searched the entire list of most popular games. The game has one of the biggest file sizes i've seen on the Market and it only comes with one mode. The music in the game and sharp graphics show why the game has such a big file size.

The one mode in the game isn't titled as anything, so for this it'll be referred to as a Endless Mode. Endless Mode lasts as long as you can. The aim in this mode is to move your ship, which looks like the ship from Every Extend Extra, and touch the top of shapes, avoiding their tales, to clear the shapes and tails of the screen. The game starts with no background music. One you have cleared a few shapes, the beat starts to come in. as more shapes are cleared, the background beat increases and so does the speed and amount of shapes. The shapes, themselves, have a note that plays when you clear each of them. You can string together bonuses by clearing the same shape and playing the same note.

Each shape has its own individual tone that fits in with the background. Because of this, each time you play the game, the music created will be different. Behind each shape is a tail that cannot be removed from the screen until you either clear the shape or lose a life and fly into the tail. These tails can be a big hindrance if left unchecked, completely cutting one end of the screen off from the ship. You get 3 lives to start of with more lives coming everytime you break 2000 points. In the beginning this may seem too easy, but as things get a bit more chaotic the points come quick, and so do the enemies, its easy to lose a life.

The game is controlled using the Phones accelerator. There is no button controls beyond pressing menu to pause the game and bring up the main menu, over the paused game. The game controls are generally good. There is a little issue when you tilt the phone away from, more so depending on your phones screen, but you never tilt it away for long periods. The game has a option to adjust the sensitivity of the controls. The other options let you change the sound and music levels.

The game does have a few issues. The lack of any other game modes is a shame. A time attack mode would fit perfectly for the game. Only having one mode means people can tire of the game quickly. The game is also a little buggy. On occasion, the framerate can dip or the music can go silent for a very short, but noticeable, time. The game also uses a lot of the phones resources, so its best to check what you have running in the background before playing the game.

Even if the game has only one mode and can be a little buggy, the Endless gameplay and music is pretty addictive and very accessible. The graphics are simple, but they are done very well. The use of music and tones work great together. This maynot be a must have for everyone, but it will be highly enjoyable for those who enjoy this type of game.


Saturday, December 5, 2009

Nintendo Has Released A launch Trailer For The Legend Of Zelda Spirit Tracks

Nintendo has released a launch trailer for The Legend Of Zelda Spirit Tracks. this trailer shows all in-game footage from various parts of the game. it shows some tricks that can be done with weapons and Zelda, as well as some of the new features in the game like the train mechanic and Pipes.




EA Has Released Madden NFL Aracde Gameplay Videos For The Playstation3 And Xbox 360

EA has released two gameplay videos for Madden NFL Arcade. The First video is footage from the Xbox 360 and the second is from the Playstation 3. Both videos show in-game footage of gameplay and features from the game. the videos also focus on the players, and how they look in the game, and the general arcade style of the game.






Sega Has Announced That Super Monkey Ball 2 Is Now Out On The iPhone/iPod Touch App Store


Sega has announced that Super Monkey Ball 2 is out now on the iPhone/iPod Touch App Store for £5.99/€7.99/$9.99. this is a sequel to the original Super Monkey Ball and it has been built from the ground out to take advantage of the hardware. there are 115 stages in the game that can be played either as a single player game or over Wi-Fi in 4 player multiplayer.

Sega has also released screenshots for Super Monkey Ball 2. all these screenshots are in-game and show a few of the stages in the game. they show some of the hazards to watch out for and how the level designs differ from each stage.

Super Monkey Ball 2


Press Release

LONDON & SAN FRANCISCO (1st December 2009) - SEGA Europe Ltd and SEGA® of America, Inc. today announced that the Super Monkey Ball 2 App is now available on the App Store. Built from the ground up, this sequel for iPhone and iPod® touch takes full advantage of the breakthrough technology in the devices, including the innovative Multi-Touch user interface and accelerometer, to offer fans an irresistible on-the-go gaming experience. The original, highly-addictive Super Monkey Ball set a benchmark with its unique control mechanism, exceptional graphics and phenomenal sales success.

“Super Monkey Ball was a huge success for us in the App Store,” said Mike Hayes, CEO of SEGA of America and SEGA of Europe. “When presented with the opportunity to do a second one, we knew we had to jump on it and strive to make it bigger and better than the first one. Addressing fan requests and making sure iPhone and iPod touch gamers had the ultimate Super Monkey Ball experience they were looking for was the driving force behind this latest iteration of the beloved franchise and we know we have delivered.”

Developed by Other Ocean, Super Monkey Ball 2 allows players to more easily pick-up-and-play stunning 3D stages in both single and multiplayer thanks to the refined control system. Playing as some of their favorite characters, including AiAi, players can take advantage of the accelerometer to steer their monkey towards delicious bananas and a satisfying finish. Adding to the fun, the Super Monkey Ball 2 App also makes all 115 stages of the game available to be played in multiplayer mode using the local Wi-Fi with up to four players.

The Super Monkey Ball 2 App is now available for £5.99/€7.99/$9.99 (USD) from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.

About SEGA® Europe Ltd.
SEGA® Europe Ltd. is the European Publishing arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA® Corporation, and a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. SEGA’s global website site is located at www.sega.com.

About SEGA® of America, Inc.
SEGA® of America, Inc. is the American Publishing arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA® Corporation, a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. SEGA’s global website site is located at www.sega.com.

EA Has Released New Screenshots For Dragons Lair On The iPhone/iPod Touch

EA has released new screenshots for the upcoming iPhone/iPod Touch version of Dragons Lair. these screenshots appear to be in-game and show in-game action. you can see how the controls are on the screen on a couple of the screenshots.

Dragons Lair



Audio Re-Cap of Yesterdays News (oldest to newest)

Here is today's Audio Re-Cap of Yesterdays news.
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