Dead Space 2 Multiplayer Hands-On: A Visceral Experience, Indeed

As if the thrills, chills and very bloody spills of Issac Clarke's upcoming single player adventures in The Sprawl weren't enough, Visceral Games is tweaking Dead Space 2 with a rather interesting multiplayer component that can be somewhat accurately described as tactical run & gun meets Left 4 Dead. I'll admit to being initially skeptical that any sort of online multiplayer modes added to this decidedly story-driven horror action franchise would be nothing more than another excuse for loudmouthed losers to run around shooting each other in the head while yelling all sorts of M-rated insults. However, I'm indeed thankful to report that I was proven dead wrong.

At Sony's Holiday 2010 event last week, I got to go a few rounds with the multiplayer demo and was very impressed by the experience. What's here is fun, fast, frantic and frequently freakish, thanks to the back and forth player swapping that takes place during matches.

Playstation Move Heroes Hands-On Update - Nihilistic Aims For The Core

When last we saw Playstation Move Heroes (formerly known as Heroes on the Move) back in October, the demo build was indeed a lot of fun to play but there was obviously more coming in terms of levels, game modes and other features. Last week at Sony's Holiday 2010 event, Nihilistic's peppy Design Director Harley Baldwin White-Wiedow and SCEA's equally peppy Caley Roberts showed of the latest build which was more polished and quite packed to the rafters with many lovely and destructive things to do. Not content to shove out a simple Move-enabled mini-game cash-in for the younger set, Nihilistic is cooking up a solid, hugely fun (and funny) game any fans of Sony's mascot franchises will be proud to add to their collections.

Review: Earth Defense Force 2017

Platform: Xbox 360

Developer: Sandlot

Publisher: D3Publisher of America

# of Players: 1 - 2

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Official Site

Score: B+

One of those "cult classics" that, three years after its US release is still a hell of a lot more fun than certain bigger budgeted (and bigger hyped) games, Earth Defense Force 2017 is finally back on the Xbox 360, this time as a download only Games on Demand release. Whether you missed out on it the first time back in 2007 or you're replacing that copy you sold off on ebay, 2017 is still an absolute blast to play, mixing in dozens of hours of non-stop hardcore action with couch co-op and a grand, campy "B" movie aesthetic that permeates the game from start to finish. Sure, there's no online play, the character and vehicle controls are a tad quirky and the game isn't exactly "state of the art" in terms of presentation. On the other hand, the old school gameplay coupled with some truly and terrifyingly challenging levels go a long way in proving pure fun trumps innovation any damn day of the week. That twenty bucks might seem like a "premium" price for a game in these days of too many indie games going for a buck or few on XBLA, but trust me, you're getting easily three to four times that value in gameplay length alone.

Knights Contract Update: New Screens, Art, Release Date

Namco Bandai's rather surreal fantasy/horror/action game hybrid has been on my radar pretty since its initial announcement and now, the Game Republic-developed title finally has a release date. February 22, 2011 is when you'll want to be lurking around your favorite game retailer (or creeping in to pick up your pre-ordered copy). The single-player PS3 and Xbox 360 game features Heinrich, an immortal executioner and Gretchen, a resurrected witch who acts as Heinrich's AI partner. Namco Bandai hopes that the mix of fantasy elements, high action sequences and M-rated gore coupled with the game's bizarre menagerie of monsters might lift a few of those lingering holiday blahs right out of your system.

Speaking of bizarre-looking monsters, more nice concept art images and renders of two bosses, Straeggle and Trude are below the jump along with some new screens featuring the pair of beastly beauties in action.

Hunted: The Demon's Forge "The World of Hunted" Trailer

InXile's upcoming co-op focused action/RPG is looking to be one of the more memorable releases of 2011 whether you're a fan of the genre or not. Here's a look at a few of the different environments you'll be adventuring in and around - text below courtesy of Bethesda. Keep this one on your radars, folks...

Welcome to the World of Hunted.

Tempted by riches, the warrior Caddoc and huntress E'lara will travel through a sprawling empire beset by evil. As their path twists through the once thriving town of Dyfed and towards the mighty capital city of Llyr, they will face a corruption that is spreading across the land. The kingdom's ancient ruins have become overrun with foul creatures, and innocent villagers are being driven underground into dungeons. As they draw closer to the ruins of Kala Moor a dark army gathers, threatening everything in its path.

New Dynasty Warriors 7 Screens (You KNOW You Want To Look...)

It's OK... admit it, you're a secret (or not so secret) Dynasty Warriors fan who's learned to ignore the harshly jaded critics out there and keeps buying and playing every game in the franchise (and its spin-offs) from start to finish because it's become the digital equivalent of mom's mac & cheese for you. Those long 60-plus hour campaigns with all those unlockable characters plowing through packs of enemies as kill counts are racked up in the thousands? Yeah, that's you, all bleary-eyed and smiling into your coffee on a Monday morning not bragging about hunkering down indoors for three days straight while your work buddies are babbling all about that Friday night hottie that gave them a kick to the groin after yet another bad pickup line. They fail and revel in it like the foolish lemmings they are, while you continue to win, win and win (and how!).

thatgamecompany's Journey - An Online Experience Like No Other

Some games are so good, they just make me want to sing, so pardon me while I warble a bit before the actual preview...

Gonna take a Sentimental Journey,
Gonna set my heart at ease.
Gonna make a Sentimental Journey,
to renew old memories...

OK, I'm done, the judges have spoken and I got unanimously booted off the island (without a boat or a paddle, mind you). You may remove that cotton from your ears and read on.

One of the biggest and best embargoed surprises at Sony's holiday event last week was thatgamecompany's Journey, a downloadable PS3 exclusive that just may be one of the most innovative online experiences ever created. Taking a cue from the beauty, simplicity and ease of play found in flOw, Flower and Cloud, the game combines open world exploration, platforming and puzzle elements in an elegantly simple, yet extremely lovely package. While the build on display was only playable by the two tgc staffers present, it was immediately clear what was on display just might rewrite the book on Internet play. In a way, tgc has created the safest online multiplayer game in the world... and a gorgeously rendered one at that.

Portal 2 Co-Op Trailer (Yes... and Yes)

Yes, it's the PAX 2010 trailer (I wasn't at PAX, so I'm seeing this for the first time) and Yes, Valve wants you to buy the game because they're working on it harder than you think. Hell, they've got my money as long as i can walk into a game shop and buy it on a disc.

L.A. Noire "The Technology Behind Performance" Video

Rockstar shows you how it's done in this excellent clip. As you can see, new tech is indeed a blast when the right folks get their hands on it. Note: If you somehow can't see the video, click the post title and BOOM - there you go.

Operation Flashpoint: Red River Game Site Goes Live

Codemasters' upcoming PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 military shooter looks to bring a more realistic take back to the FPS genre with this upcoming sequel. Last year's Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising, warts and all, was definitely an excellent challenge. Red River looks to top that with even better Ego Engine-powered visuals

My one worry here - content. Dated visuals aside, the original OpFlash on PC and Xbox still trump Dragon Rising in terms of allowing for user-created content and I'm hoping PC and console gamers get that chance with Red River at some point either as part of the main package or some sort of expansion pack/DLC. We'll see what happens as more news about Red River hits the inbox...

Oprah's Not Gay, But She May Be A Mutant...

How else does one explain her getting Wolverine to nearly kill himself without even lifting one of her very wealthy fingers? Poor (but very lucky) Hugh Jackman zip-lines right into a pole doing an opening for her show Down Under on Monday. I'm just getting to this now because I don't watch Oprah and someone sent me the link to a clip this morning. Yes, I laughed for a good ten minutes... after nearly poking an eye out facepalming (ouch)... Er, get well soon, Hugh!

BioWare & Treehouse Brand Stores Want You to WIN BIG!

Yup, ANOTHER awesome holiday giveaway, this time from Treehouse Brand Stores and BioWare. Click HERE to enter for your chance to win one of 100 very cool prizes including tricked out gaming PC's, headphones, hoodies and collector art packs! The contest ends in 12 days and if you've a Facebook or Twitter account (or both), you get even more chances to snag the swag!,

So get moving already! You guys are super lucky, as we poor media folk can't enter to snag one of those PC's (well, that WOULD be a bit unfair and a wee bit shifty, so it's all good)...

The Return of ROSE Online! (Well, It Didn't Actually REALLY Go Away)

Ah, Nostalgia! I reviewed the super-cute entry-level fantasy MMO ROSE Online about five or so years back for another gaming site that's long dead and found it to be very cool and quite a bit of fun at the time. Since then, Gravity has revamped the visuals a bit, retooled the game model from a per month fee to FREE to play and is looking to revive interest in it with a big media push. While my own time for MMO's is pretty much over and done with (way too many other projects cooking here!), don't let that stop you from giving ROSE a shot, particularly if you're not a total slave to the WoW juggernaut.

Game info and a few screens below the jump.

Earth Defense Force Insect Armageddon 2011 Calendar Brings Warmth To The Holiday Season (and how!)

So... guess what showed up today courtesy of D3Publisher of America? Yow-za. Now, D3 just NEEDS to answer that musical question: "Will Pale Wing be in EDFIA?" All kidding aside, that "exclusive interview" cover teaser, has me HOPING she's added into the upcoming game as a playable character (and they've had Vicious Cycle use one of the lovely ladies in the calendar as a model for her). One can only hope! Note to D3: the more fan service the better!
By the way... What, NO screen shots at all in the calendar? (Just kidding!)

DURARARA! Is Coming...

Yup, anime reviews are coming to DAF very shortly. Stick around for more interesting news on this and a few other surprises...

Holy Cats, It'll Be Raining GAMES in 2011!

Geez, it's a Manic Monday in reverse! Roll out of bed late, check the inbox and BOOM! there's an absolute bonanza of games news stuffed in there. Rather than do individual posts (although I'll run galleries and/or videos this week), I'll just hit you gently with a quick rundown (links included where applicable) of stuff that made me nearly fall off my chair:

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (11.11.11!)
Resistance 3
Prototype 2
X-Men: Destiny
inSANE
Deus Ex: Human Revolution (new trailer)
SSX: Deadly Descents (in development)

M-Rated trailers will appear on the DAF: Trailer's Gate blog, by the way.

Trinity: Souls of Zill O'll Gameplay Footage x6

Here's what to expect from Koei Temco's upcoming PS3 exclusive Action/RPG. Each of these six videos shows off developer Omega Force's skills quite well, I'd say. Love the color palette, dynamic spells and what's looking like an easy to pick up and play combat system against the swarms of enemies on screen. Of course, the KT haters will be out in full force against this game's strengths, but we'll wait and see what the actual product plays like sometime next year. Will familiarity breed contempt... or just more sore thumbs and a blissed-out grin after too many hours of whittling down goblins and big-ass wolves? Again, We. Shall. See.

More footage below the jump, as usual.

MotorStorm Apocalypse Will Make You Want to Save Up For That 3D TV...

Yeah, I'm also saying that about Killzone 3, The Sly Collection and that absolutely lovely Ico/Shadow of The Colossus twofer coming your way (and the more the merrier, right?). However, of all the first-party PS3 games I've seen that use 3D enhancements, Evolution Studio's upcoming racer truly takes the cake and even eats the damn candles in terms of total WOW factor. The game screams along at a solid 30fps with nothing stopping the onscreen chaos, except perhaps that building, opponent or gaping crevasse you'll crash into thanks to the overwhelming visuals. Sitting down, popping on a pair of Sony 3D glasses and watching Game Director Matt Southern play through normal and 3D enhanced modes was a quite a thrilling experience (to say the least).

Actual Uncharted 3 Reveal Adds Even More Tease.

Heh... oops. Well, this longer trailer only packs in a few action shots near the end, but that longer shot of the plane wreckage has me intrigued, as does who that hand in the sand belongs to. Again, it's Sony's year to lose in 2011 (if you count your games in a competitive manner). Gotta love the first-party studios SCEA has - they're just cranking them out on a regular basis these days...

Etna Needs Your Help Getting In the Holiday Spirit!

Yup, that means yet another wacky yet cool Nippon Ichi Software America contest is afoot, folks. Click on that pic above and enter to win some cool prizes! Also, go reserve a copy of Prinny 2: Dawn of Operation Panties, Dood! while you're at it. As I've said before, ANY game with a name like that can't be passed up!