The Living LIVE News Report 07.26.10
Posted by Trace Aber on 07.26.2010
A look at some of the best videos from Comic-Con, including Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions and Street Fighter X Tekken, plus reviews of WordWise, D.O.T.S., CoreDase and much more!
Welcome everyone to another issue of the Living LIVE News Reoprt, and as always, I'm your host for the evening, Trace Aber. During this week the yearly Comic-Con occurred and during it many games were displayed, and since that's the bulk of the news this week I'm going to post some of the best videos from that event and have an extended Indie Games Review section, to even out the workload. Let's get started with the videos…
Street Fighter X Tekken
Cinematic Opening for Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions (09/01/10)
Fable III Footage (farting included)
Dead Rising 2 Gameplay (09/28/10)
The Digital Downloads Destination Arcade was released last week and must be downloaded in the Arcade Games section of LIVE. Pretty nifty but I was expecting better integration with the console. The highly anticipated (and awesome) Limbo was released for 1200MP and is getting great reviews. No demos or big DLC released last week, though this week will see Alan Wake, Skate 3, and Super Street Fighter IV DLC, so be on the lookout for that. New Games on Demand include Stuntman: Ignition, NFL Tour, and FaceBreaker, all for $19.99. Oddly enough, this week will see the release of WWE Smackdown Vs RAW 2008 and 2009, which is something I didn't think they would do. Expect those to be around $19.99 as well.
WordWise (80MP)
It seems as though lately there has been a slight push for more word-based games, most of which have you trying to spell words with letters arranged in random forms. WordWise hops on board with its attempt at a puzzle word game and manages to fit snugly within the genre while still maintaining some uniqueness to it.
This avatar is totally stoked about spelling words!
The basic premise is rather easy to guess – spell words and earn points. WordWise is a bit different in its approach, however, as it gives you a large number of letters (150 to 200 from what I've seen) and it's up to you to spell as many words as you can, with the largest word allowed being 12 letters. This sounds like it should be rather easy, but it's more engaging than you would first think. The letters are laid out in three layers of tiles in various formations, with another lay being discovered after using the top tile. This means you can have any assortment of letters at any given time, and you could be close to coming up with a big word to earn some bonus points when you realize that you're missing that one crucial letter. It doesn't hurt that the background music really makes you feel like you're making some important decisions and every letter counts, almost like a montage of making important decisions. At least that's what I was envisioning while I played it.
If you're into word games, WordWise is highly recommended, even if you're just trying to get into the genre. There are a variety of layouts and each board takes a while to finish, so you're more than getting your money's worth. With delightful music, professional looking presentation, and a strong gameplay mechanic, this is a no brainer. Rating: 9.0
D.O.T.S. (80MP)
Usually, I'm not a fan of games where you simply move one dot to another dot while guiding it through thin lines that are considered walls. Typically, they're poorly made, have little variance between levels and other games, and aren't even all that fun. Unfortunately, there are quite of few of these games on the Indie Games channel, so I have to play quite a few of them for the purpose of this column. Fortunately, D.O.T.S. is a good attempt at making this boring genre fun.
The demo is pretty generous in that it offers you twenty levels to try out and promises 80 more when purchasing the game. For a penny a level, this is already a good deal. The graphics are, as expected, simplistic and not visually stimulating. The designs of the levels, however, are decent. You'll have to contend with moving, disappearing, and electric walls that are combined to create some challenging levels while not having overly sensitive controls, like most other games have. There's also some toast you have to avoid, which makes me think developer Tucker Yates has some horrible childhood scarring from toast. Poor guy.
FUCKING GHOST TOAST!
D.O.T.S. also offers bonuses when you play through its world tour mode. There's a variety of special dots you can choose from that you unlock after accomplishing certain tasks in world tour, such as failing 300 times. So, you know, everyone wins that way. It's a fun, compelling entry to a genre I otherwise detest. Worth checking out. Rating: 7.5
Hive Attack (400MP)
Hive Attack has a ridiculously long backstory to it that really would have taken far too much of the demo up to read. But the gist of it seems to be that you're a human trying to save the human race by attacking the Queen Hive. So, giant bees in spaceships seems to be the big problem around here.
Yeah, that's totally fair.
Hive Attack is nothing more than a subpar shooter, and, unfortunately, could have been fixed with just a few slight alterations. For one, there's no music and thus, no intensity. At no point did I really feel absorbed into the game, or even care what was going on. Secondly, stuff just pops up out of nowhere, and in some cases a single enemy ship appears, shakes a bit, then there's fifty of them. It's annoying and makes no sense. There's also the weird shooting mechanic, which I don't fully understand. There are various types of shots you can do, ranging from single shot, multiple shot, semi-automatic, fully-automatic, and this weird laser beam. None of this is explained, and is just annoying. These two orbs appeared at the bottom corners of my screen and for a couple levels I had no idea what they were supposed to do. Turns out they transport me to the other side of the screen, but I only went down there because I saw that enemies popped out of them and thought it was some sort of hive.
There's no intensity, there's no reason to care, and it's about as generic as it gets. And, somehow, it's confused to boot. When you factor in the fact that this game costs 400MP, there is no reason to even bother with this game. Rating: 4.0
CoreDase (80MP)
I chose to review CoreDase because it seemed like the most interesting game out of the bunch, and thus far I think I was right in that assumption. CoreDase is a distinct platformer that introduces new concepts and modifies just about every other existing concept out there. Combined with an enchanting soundtrack, this game creates a truly one of a kind experience that you have to check out.
Though LSD might provide a similar experience…
Graphically, the game is rather simple in that it's mostly a ball jumping around on colored squares, but this actually enhances the game. Everything looks and appears simple but you're actually challenged in this game. Each level introduces something new to throw at the player and makes it hard to get bored with the game. Some levels are harder than others, and beating those really does feel satisfying. The full game offers 50 single player levels, 20 multiplayer levels, and a full level editor if the included 70 isn't enough for you.
CoreDase won't be for everyone, even people who are normally platformer fans. It plays more like an experiment than a full game, but for a dollar it's worth experimenting with. You might love it or hate, and I'm somewhere inbetween. Check it out if you're looking for something different. Rating: 7.0
PLATFORMANCE: Castle Pain (80MP)
Castle Pain is a one-level quest (at least it seems that way) that has you taking on a variety of challenging obstacles along your path to saving the princess. It doesn't offer much more in story, but it doesn't really need to. If PLATFORMANCE is a series of games, this it could turn out to be one worth keeping your eye on.
Though you're only given one level to play, the level itself is quite large and is broken up into what you can basically call levels. There's the early dungeon, the axe room, outdoors, etc etc, and though the demo is rather short, the level design is top notch. Controls are a little sensitive, but this is made up for with multiple checkpoints, so you never really lose a whole lot of time. The opening title screen also serves as a tutorial in a nice touch that managed to work out quite well.
The entire level
If PLATFORMANCE promises more levels of this quality in 80MP offerings, this might be a great series of games. If it's a one off deal, it's still fun but a lot of potential wasted. Fans of platformers will definitely want to check this out, and even though it won't last you too long, it's worth playing through more than once. Recommended. Rating: 8.0
Question of the Week
Last week we continued our hate of Bobby Kotick (who seems to have replaced Kinect for now) by discussing his likely move into single-game subscriptions for online play. Here's what you had to say;
Rod Oracheski: If they're going to make us pay because we play multiplayer games for so long, we should obviously have to pay at least $100 for lengthy JRPGs like Final Fantasy XIII. Finally Square can make those things profitable!
Don't say that too loud, you'll only give them ideas! Guys like Kotick give the industry a real bad rap though, because even though at the end of the day it's all a business, not everyone is trying to steal every penny possible for gamers. Although if they were ever dumb enough to base the price on average gameplay time, I think the idea of episodic games would become much more feasible.
el_pieablo: So to play a new game online(like MW2, which i hate online) I would have to buy the game for $50, A live subscription for $35 and this online fee, which could be anything from $5 to $15. THats minimum $80, to play one online game(although the live subscription is a one off).
Im not sure bout this latest money grabbing gimmick. I was ok with the DLC/preowned ideas but I think this is taking things too far. We as gamers have already paid for the game so why should we have to pay again to use the full capabilities of the game?? It seems like the likes of Kotick just want line their shareholders pockets and not care bout the main demographic, the gamers. Hopefully this will give Activision a good kick up the backside when it doesnt sell.
Exactly. I would like to think any game that uses this model would have horrible sales, but I do feel a healthy number of people would continue to spend that much money to play their favorite games, especially games out of the Halo and Call of Duty services. But I feel like if you're that desperate for money from the gamers, maybe you shouldn't be making online games and just stick with single player games. Perhaps this would be more feasible if the games themselves were cheaper, but with the average game costing $49.99-$59.99, any extra costs is just a slap in the face.
Slightly off topic, but it's Kinect disappointment, so I'm on board…
Byzdalmyt: Hell yes, Kinect Tour coming here to Canton! Now I can see a half ass/half speed Pro Football scrimmage on the same weekend as I see this half ass Kinect! This will serve as nothing more than to show the wife & kids it sucks, to avoid shelling out $150+ games for it near Christmas. The wife thinks that Yourself Fitness game looks good & the kids are brainwashed by any game that let's you use your stupid ass avatars...
We have a 360 & Wii, so wifey can easily get off her ass & get Wii fit Plus for $99 and kids can gear up for Wii Party!
While I'm sure Microsoft was hoping people would go to convince their family it's worth the money, I think you might be doing the smart thing here. If you do happen to go, be sure to let us know how everything went and send pictures if you can. It would be interesting to see how Microsoft tries to Kinect with its audience (heh, see what I did there?)
For this week's question, let's talk about Comic-Con. You know the drill - post your response and it'll get posted in next week's column.
What was your favorite thing about Comic-Con?
I know mine - Street Fighter X Tekken.
Signing Out
That does it for me this week. Be sure to check back next week as we discuss all of the latest Xbox 360 news, including releases, rumors and reviews! Also, don't forget to bookmark 411Mania! And a note to all of the Indie Game developers out there – if you have an upcoming title that's going to be released soon drop me a line at traceaber@gmail.com and let me know. I'll write a full review of your game to be posted on 411Mania.com, which is a great way to get your game promoted!
I'm a little more interested in seeing Tekken x Street Fighter (which runs on the Tekken engine). Just want to see how all the projectile moves are utilized/recevied, since Tekken barely had anything like that. Unless they get rid of them somehow.
Posted By: Gillan (Guest) on July 26, 2010 at 11:06 AM
The EPICness! of Dragon Age 2. The first game was really enjoyable and a shot in the arm for fantasy RPG's. The scope of Bioware's game was huge with the varied endings and different game styles able to be played. So if its anything like the first game, DA2 will be amazing.
Posted By: el_pieablo (Guest) on July 31, 2010 at 06:35 AM
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