Review: TANK! TANK! TANK!

Platform: Wii U

Developer: Namco

Publisher: Namco Bandai Games

# of Players: 1 - 4

ESRB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10+)

Official Site

Score: B (80%)

As a launch title for the Wii U, Namco Bandai's TANK! TANK! TANK! may not look like a system seller, but look past its colorful arcade visuals and initially simple gameplay and you'll find a fast-paced (and 100% tank focused) party game shooter that owes more than a little credit to Sandlot's always fun Earth Defense Force series of games. In fact, the game manages to play almost exactly like an arcade version of EDF would, streamlining the experience down to timed stages, random weapon pickups that you can use instantly and a mix of assorted enemies from giant robotic spiders and wasps to some pretty wild bosses that need to be taken down as quickly as possible. Granted, blowing monsters into scrap metal over and over is all you do here in the main game whether playing in solo or co-op, so those seeking something deeper should look elsewhere. On the other hand, given that this is a rather enhanced port of an arcade game that offers much more than the original version, you SHOULD expect and respect the repetitive nature of the game to the fullest by diving in and shooting up the scenery as much as possible.

Dark Souls "All Saints' Day" Trailer + Serious Statues To Do Battle For

With its October 4 US release date right around the corner, here's a last at the latest Dark Souls trailer plus some awesome one of a kind statues created by one of the game's biggest fans, sculptor Peter Nordstrom. These five absolutely beautiful artworks are actually being given away over on the Dark Souls community page, so there will be a few lucky gamers who are going to walk away with some incredible showpieces you won't find anywhere else. If you want to give it a shot, it;'s actually not too late. Just head on over to the PREPARE TO DIE Forums and have at their interesting puzzle contest. Good Luck!

TGS 2011: Inversion Teaser Trailer

Saber Interactive's innovative gravity flipping cover-based shooter is one of those games you HAVE to play to fully grasp. This action-packed teaser is a fun clip, but I can see some people mistaking it for yet another Gears of War clone (when it's FAR from it). As I've said previously, this one will surprise a lot of people once they get their hands on it. Hopefully Saber can make the full experience as rewarding and surprising as what I've seen and played so far. A Vita version down the road would be really sweet as well.. but let's not get ahead of ourselves just yet.

TGS 2011: Namco Bandai Trailer Blowout: TOO Many Good Games + Some Surprises

Yikes. I don't have time to write up separate posts for all of these, so I'll let the assortment of trailers above and below (and below the the jump) show you some of what's cooking at TGS from Namco Bandai. Between the nice support for PS Vita and 3DS plus the other key console titles coming, it's clear that the publisher is really intent on bringing it where it counts. There's definitely something for just about every taste in this lineup. I'll try and get some screens up this weekend or next week, as I'm swamped with a few reviews and such to get done. I will say that Katamari looks like it will be an absolute dream on Vita, especially with the double touchscreen deal...

TGS 2011: Dark Souls Full Prologue Trailer (UK)

And here you go: the complete prologue to From Soft's upcoming action/RPG guaranteed to make grown men and women weep, throw controllers and hide under the couch simultaneously. I can't wait for October 7, that's for sure.

TGS 2011: Street Fighter X Tekken Trailer Twofer

Hmmm... If Capcom and Namco somehow ever fail at this whole games thing, they definitely have a future in making some pretty funny comedies starring their Street Fighter and Tekken game characters. Of course, I'm kidding, but that TGS trailer above is pretty darn hilarious. Below is the new Pandora Mode, which looks like a ton of fun. I'm more of a sit down with someone on the same couch kind of player when it comes to these fighters, but then again, I'm no competitive player at all. I just love checking out all the animation and art that goes into the games, win or lose.

Street Fighter X Tekken TGS Teaser Videos

Two more character reveals from the upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 fighter set to launch sometime next year. In case you still haven't figured out who they are, look for the answers at TGS next week. Of course, if you're a REAL fan, you already know who's who, correct?

Studio Profile: From Software (Or: It's About Time These Guys Got More Love!)

Here's a brief look at one of my very favorite game developers since 1994 when I first saw Japanese screenshots of King's Field and later, Armored Core. The company has done a wide assortment of games since then, but it wasn't really until Demon's Souls and now, Dark Souls that they're a household name among more gamers. Of course, the terrifyingly difficult Dark Souls will probably garner them more than a few curses from those that hop in unprepared or expecting the game to have a super-easy mode... but I think From wants those players to learn something about they way games used to be made.

Tales Of The Abyss Trailers Are Another Fine Reason To Snap Up A 3DS

Yes, even if you've played the game previously, Namco Bandai's upcoming remake looks good enough to make me want to go through it all over again. Given that the original can be pricey once you track it down, it's nice to see the 3DS getting more quality titles fans want to see appear on the handheld whether they use the 3D effect to its fullest or not.

Gamescom 2011: Ridge Racer Unbounded Gallery/Gameplay Footage (Bugbear Redeemed, Part Deux)

Bugbear's take on Namco's seminal racing series definitely has a Burnout thing going for it visually, but given that Criterion has changed their popular crash-fest into a top-down retro-looking family-friendly download only arcade affair (say that three times fast!) with Kinect support over XBLA (it's actually a lot of fun), it looks like gamers who want polygons pushed around into assorted scrap metal might be looking at a new contender for the crown. As a HUGE FlatOut fan, I like what I see quite a lot and can't wait to take this one for a spin. Screens below the jump.

Gamescom 2011: Street Fighter X Tekken - A Winner Is Everbody!

Another one-two punch from Cologne = stop ducking, stick your chin out and get carried away by the blow. Capcom and Namco's upcoming fighter is still bending fans' brains around the concept of these classic 2D fighters finally meeting up and battling classic 3D ones. Of course they'll pull it off remarkably well, as you can see in this pair of trailers. Street Fighter has been on a roll since SFIV revitalized the franchise and it looks like the new game will do the same for Tekken,a s Namco Bandai will be rolling out a few new games for different platforms featuring characters from its seminal fighting franchise.

Gamescom 2011: Soulcalibur V Trailer

If the super-early demo I saw a few weeks ago was any indication, fans of the series will be in for a real treat. Combat is faster, more fluid and feels more like an action game than a traditional fighter. Sure, there's no blood spilled here, but there's a definite God Of War influence to the new combat, as even slower characters are getting a speed boost. This, of course, will probably lead some longtime fans who love beating the stuffing out of opponents using Sigfried or Nightmare wanting these characters to be their old selves. However, it seems that the dev team is merely following the trend of making a game more accessible to all sorts of players rather than simply rehashing what's come before. As with any game, we shall see what happens once a public demo is available and Nsmco Bandai hears what the fan base says...

Gamescom 2011: Dark Souls "Mighty Fiends" Trailer Is Indeed, Mighty

I saw this particular boss battle played out live at the Namco Bandai event a few weeks back - the rep playing put up a stellar fight, but lost despite his valiant efforts. When the guy doing the awesome speed run through the demo (one of the best and funniest examples of "I've been playing this build for a few months, so I know what to do here" I've ever seen) gets his armored clock cleaned by a pair of gargoyles, you KNOW the final game will be a total nightmare. I can't wait...

Ace Combat: AH & Inversion 101 Gamescom Videos Show Off The Goods Quite Well...

Yeah, yeah, I'm a bit behind here, but that's because I'm swimming in stuff to do. Anyway, a one-two punch from Namco Bandai here. ACAH is looking too dynamic for words (who needs Top Gun? Bleh.) while Inversion continues to amaze me for a few reasons. People need to start looking hard at Saber Interactive's upcoming shooter, as it breaks a few rules while breaking new ground (literally and figuratively) in the game space. I need to play this one again at some point, so I'm hoping we see a demo before it ships in 2012...

Ridge Racer Unbounded Gamescom Trailer: Bugbear Redeemed!

Hmmmm. Now that the game has a neat track editor, a lot of the misplaced heat has dissipated from the haters. Excellent. Bugbear certainly knows how to make a solid racer, so it'll be interesting to see how well their City Creator works in terms of ease of use and what sort of online/offline functionality it has. Color me even more thrilled - way to go, BBE! Now find someone to fund a Glimmerati update for consoles and handhelds and I'll be even happier!

Ace Combat: Assualt Horizon Phantom Pre-Order Bonus Trailer

Namco Bandai's latest high-flying entry in its seminal flight combat franchise gets a really cool pre-order bonus with a pretty recognizable plane. If you're a new or longtime fan of the series, don't forget the game's Facebook page can always use a few more of you top gunners. Strap on that emergency chute and get ready to rack up some killer frequent flier miles on your PS3 or Xbox 360 soon enough.

Inversion Co-Op Trailer Makes Me Go "Hmmmm...."

Saber Interactive's upcoming innovative gravity-defying shooter has co-op play I was curious about, but thankfully, Namco Bandai has dropped this Gamescom 2011 trailer on my head so I can share it with you guys and gals. I think they've got a nice sleeper hit here that will surprise a few shooter fans expecting the same old same old. More to come from Gamescom shortly...

Preview/Gallery Update: Dark Souls

FromSoftware's nightmarish, brutal (and beautiful) RPG gets better and better looking each time I see it. At the Namco Bandai event last week, I also got to see see a hilarious speed run through the demo that made a formerly torturous hour-long plus replay after replay session under normal hands get us to a pretty spectacular (and scary) boss battle in around two and a half minutes or so. The Namco Bandai rep doing the run had gotten so good at the demo that he decided to show off part of the build that few game journalists had actually made it to after multiple attempts.

While sitting there with our jaws on the floor or cracking up at the pack of death-dealing creatures running after the poor armored Templar type on screen, I had the immediate thought that Xbox 360 owners who didn't play Demon's Souls on the PS3 are in for a big, bad surprise. Dark Souls is looking to be beyond hard for newbies and trying to play it like any other game where you're guided through missions will probably lead to a few smashed controllers and complaints that the game isn't at all fair. Well... it's not supposed to be. When your official website is called PREPARE TO DIE, er... what sort of game were you expecting to play?

Dark Souls will be in stores in October for the PS3 and Xbox 360. It's going to get ugly online and off - but you'll love every minute of it.. unless you're not prepared to die (and a LOT at that).

Dragon Ball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi Hands-On

If there was any doubt that Dragon Ball Z had staying power after all these years, Namco Bandai's upcoming brawler should squash that like oh so many bugs under a hard heel. The game is intense, insane and from what I played last week as their NYC press event, pretty non-stop in terms of action fans expect. Looking even better than the anime it's based on, the game might even get some non DBZ fighting fans to pick up a controller once they get a peek at the speed and visual flash of the battles. Yes, there are indeed quick time events in these fights, but both players can either get in attack or defense moves by being the fastest to jam on a certain button when prompted. The Super attacks are impressive and can absolutely turn the tide in battle, provided you've been beating on your opponent enough so your cinematic blow can get the job done.

Controls are solid, as noted, the game looks fantastic (the destructible environments do indeed get blasted up pretty good) and yup, there are ridiculously fun boss fights that feel like something from a classic 3D platformer, memorizing pattern attacks and all. The boss demo ended JUST as things were getting good, so it looks as if we'll have to wait until October to see how it all turns out. PS3 and Xbox 360, of course.

Inversion: Saber Interactive's Shooter Is A Gravity Defying, Mind (and Level) Twisting Experience

While its first console game (TimeShift) didn't exactly make developer Saber Interactive a household name among gamers (and neither did Will Rock on PC for that matter), it showed off the company's penchant for crafting slick proprietary engines that could pump out highly detailed, impressive looking visuals and great physics with relative ease. For their new game, Inversion, Saber has whipped up an all new (and even more gorgeous) engine that features even more stellar physics that go a long way in helping sell the game's amazing combination of free-fall and free-for-all shooting action. It's one thing to merely look at screens of Inversion and while watching gameplay footage enhances impressions significantly, it's only when you actually PLAY the game that you'll be totally floored by what Saber has created. What's here is sheer design brilliance married with edge of the seat action set in and around a game world where gravity can work either for or against you and your enemies.