Dead Space 2 Severed Coming March 1st February 23, 2011

The first major single player campaign DLC for Dead Space 2 finally has a release date.

As previously reported, the game stars two of the main characters from the PS3/Wii rail-shooter Dead Space Extraction (Gabe Weller and Lexine) and you’ll be able to play as Gabe in this single player campaign.  You can also expect some familiar enemies from Dead Space that weren’t in Dead Space 2, like the twitch necromorph, to make an appearance..

I’m plenty excited to play this expansion.  The story in Dead Space Extraction was very well fleshed out and because of that the tension was much higher.   The four main characters, as well as the secondary characters, were all well written, and their voice actors’ performances capped this off (and it sounds like they’re returning).  I want to play this just to find out what happened to the old gang.

Dead Space 2 Severed is coming March 1st, 2011 for the Xbox 360 and the PS3 (March 2nd Internationally).  It will cost $6.99 US or 560 MS points.  You will need a copy of Dead Space 2 to play.

Happy 25th Birthday Zelda and Link February 21, 2011

Today is the 25th Anniversary of the release of the classic game The Legend of Zelda for the Famicom in Japan.  It was of course also released in English the US for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).  Created by Game God Myamoto, who’s contributions to gaming are unquestionable.  Twenty-five years later, The Legend of Zelda and its protagonist Link are still a staple of the Nintendo platforms, with releases on all the modern Nintendo platforms and the gurantee that more will be coming in the future.

Given this auspicious event, I decided to post up some of my favorite Legend of Zelda related videos and articles, which I have seen over the years.  First up is a facinating video done by (of all people) James “The Angry Video Game Nerd” Rolfe, where he took a look at the Zelda Timeline, and where each game’s place came in a coherant sequence of events.  He didn’t provide a definite list (Nintendo hasn’t even done that) but he does try the best he can and it’s a really well done and enjoyable video.

1UP is also doing a pretty impressive series of ten articles today.  These articles range everything between the history of the series, the worst in-game items, the best covers of the iconic theme song, even the commericals.

It also turned out that there were a series of Zelda games that people in the US had never heard about.  Between 1995 and 2000, the SNES (Super Famicom) had an optional download service similar to the Sega Channel service in the US, except that this service was provided through satelite.  Roo from Clan of the Gray Wolf did a great video detailing this service and the exclusive Zelda games that were streamed through it and only seen in Japan.

If you missed out on them back in the day, you can get most of the classic games in the Legend of Zelda series on the Wii Virtual Console.  There are still current games for both the Nintendo Wii and DS like Twilight Princess and more are promised both for the Wii and the DS’s successor.

Happy Birthday Link!  You’ve done well.

Jurassic Park The Game Teaser Trailer February 20, 2011

Telltale Games has posted up the initial trailer for the highly anticipated Jurassic Park game.

Finally, I always wondered what the heck happened to that shaving cream can!

This is NOT the style of game that Telltale has made before.  This is not a cartoonish style, this is a high definition realistic look which works much better for Jurassic Park.  According to initial previews and promises the gameplay is, while its going to be an adventure game, looking to be more along the lines of Heavy Rain than Sam and Max.

Jurassic Park The Game is coming in April 2011.  Platforms have not been totally finalized, but its currently expected to come to PC and Mac.

Mirror’s Edge 2 Not So Stalled (Maybe) February 18, 2011

Okay, I’m stumped right now.  A few days ago I posted up information from an article posted that a Mirror’s Edge 2’s demo was rejected by EA and the people who worked on it are working on other projects.  I also noticed quotes from the executives working on the project saying at this point that making a sequel to Mirror’s Edge would equal “charity”.  That to me (and a lot of other press members it seemed) means that your project is dead.

Now people from EA are saying that Mirror’s Edge is an “important” EA franchise and the media so far has been commenting on rumors and speculation about the game’s cancellation.  All I’ve seen up to this point is the media quoting on what the DICE and EA executives had to say about the franchise and EA will not comment further on what they mean by this new statement.

I guess this is what happens when all of the major sources for this event quote a news story that was originally written in a different language, but still when you’re saying things like “Our EA demo was rejected and the people who worked on it are now working on other projects” it doesn’t sound to me like Mirror’s Edge is an “important” franchise to EA.

So right now the project status has shifted back from stalled to unknown.  I’ll try to keep you guys updated on this if any more news takes off.

Back to the Future Episode 2 Released February 18, 2011

This has been a big week for Telltale Games.  On Tuesday, the first episode of Back to the Future The Game was released to the Playstation 3, as well as the iPad.

Today was also the day that anyone who had previously contributed themselves for a free copy of the first episode were given access to it via e-mails.  If you did sign up for a free episode and haven’t recieved your email, just log into your Telltale games account and you should be able to download it there no problem.

But the major reason free users didn’t get access to the first episode until today is that Telltale wanted to make everyone buy the second episode of the game, or at least the rest of the series.  The second episode is out today, and you can see the trailer for it here.

Back to the Future The Game promises to have five episodes and while it is currently only out for PC and Mac, you can expect a full release for PS3 and iPad as well.

For those of you interested more in other game series that Telltale is releasing, worry not.  The first trailer for Jurassic Park The Game has also been released, but it just hasn’t been posted up on their YouTube Channel yet.  I’ll be sure to post it up when it finally does get uploaded, but until then you can check it out on their official site.  It’s expect to launch in April 2011.

Rage – Untethered Trailer February 17, 2011

The boys at id Software are cooking up something rather special.  Rage will be the first major release for them since 2004’s Doom 3, and their first new Intellectual Property (IP) since Quake in 1996.

Take a gander at the latest trailer, you get to see the enviroments and some of the new gameplay.

Rage will release September 13th, 2011 for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.

Playstation Move Support Announced for Portal 2 February 17, 2011

Some news has been announced today for the PS3 version of Portal 2.  Now, it has been confirmed that Portal 2 on the Playstation 3 will fully support the Playstation Move controller system.  This is on top of the Steam Cloud support the Playstation 3 version will have, which includes cloud saving, and a download code for a free copy of Portal 2 for the PC.  PS3 users will be able to play with PC users in multiplayer.

The Playstation Move controller to me seems tailor made for a first person game, and I can’t wait to see how the control scheme works.

Portal 2 will release April 21st, 2011 for PC, Xbox 360, Mac and PS3.

UPDATE:  Valve has retracted the previous claim.  Now they’re saying Portal 2 will NOT support Playstation Move.

Duke Nukem Forever Pre-Order Incentives Announced February 15, 2011

Gearbox Software has announced today that two retails will be offering incentives to anyone who chooses to preorder the highly anticipated Duke Nukem Forever regardless of platform or edition of the game.

If you choose to preorder the game at Walmart, you will get a physical trucker’s cap with the Duke Nukem Forever Logo on it.  If you choose to preorder the game at Gamestop, you will get the downloadable “Duke’s Big Package” which includes an EGO Boost pack for your game, Big Head Mode, and alternate T-Shirts to wear.

So physical incentive or digital, it’s your choice.

Duke Nukem Forever will release May 3rd, 2011 for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.

UPDATE:  Gearbox has announced it will use Steamworks for the PC version of Duke Nukem Forever.  Steam users will be able to register the game’s CD key to their current accounts.  There will be NO limited activations of the game.

UPDATE 2:  Some Gamestop advertisements are saying they are also offering First Access Club Membership to Duke Nukem Forever Preorders, which is exactly the same thing as was offered to people who bought the Borderlands Game of the Year Edition or purchased Borderlands through Steam before a certain date.  The First Access Club membership gurantees you early access to the Duke Nukem Forever demo (whenever that comes out, there is no date for it), special Gearbox forum status, as well as special access on the Gearbox website to DNF wallpapers and concept art.

Mirror’s Edge 2 Stalled February 14, 2011

I’ve got some pretty upsetting news to post up right now.  I have to admit, while I wasn’t an initial buyer of the 2008 EA game Mirror’s Edge, it was only because it launched at a time that was swamped by far too many major releases to keep track of.

A few months after release an a minor price drop later, I did pick up the game after a good friend demoed it for me, and enjoyed it tremendously.  While the game did suffer from the occasional unfair geometry clip, the music, story and art style drew me in immediatly, and the solid gameplay, once you got used to it, was really seamless.   They had developed an interactive platformer from a first person perspective.

I waited in angush for months for the iPhone version of Mirror’s Edge to be posted, while iPad users had it since launch.  But when it did finally see release, it easily became my most played iPhone game, which has since only been eclipsed by Dead Space (iPhone).

Work on Mirror’s Edge 2 was teased a few months ago, when an executive told the press that a small team was working on it.  Unfortunatly today, it was announced that while that initial groundwork was finished and was seen behind closed doors, the team members working on it have been shifted to other projects, and the game’s development has stalled.

Now I know that Mirror’s Edge was a quirky new IP that was released at a time when major IPs like Gears of War and Resistance were seeing new releases, but months after that time had passed and the initial price drop, people like me and my friends started to discover the game and found they enjoyed it tremendously.

UPDATE:  Okay, it’s been posted that the project is in worse shape than stalled, it’s been stopped.  EA apparently declined the previously mentioned tech demo and work has ceased on it, not likely they will resume.

UPDATE 2:  Okay, I’m stumped right now.  Now people from EA are saying that Mirror’s Edge is an “important” EA franchise and the media so far has been commenting on rumors and speculation about the game’s cancellation.  All I’ve seen up to this point is the media quoting on what the DICE and EA executives had to say about the franchise.

I guess this is what happens when all of the major sources for this event quote a news story that was originally written in a different language, but still when you’re saying things like “Our EA demo was rejected and the people who worked on it are now working on other projects” it doesn’t sound to me like Mirror’s Edge is an “important” franchise to EA.

So right now the project status has shifted back from stalled to unknown.  I’ll try to keep you guys updated on this if any more news takes off.