Category: News (Page 6 of 108)

      A Game About Being a Janitor…In Space

      August 9, 2013 /

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      So let me paint a picture for you.

      You’ve just saved the galaxy from a race of the most despicable, vile alien beings ever to cross the threshold to existence. After a long and brutal fight, you’ve finally achieved victory, and can now find a measure of peace while the people of several worlds build statues of you and plan holidays in your name.

      However, the job isn’t done yet. See, while you were busy removing the universe of its greatest threat, you were neglecting the removal of the gunk and gore you left behind. Your likeness may be rendered in permanent remembrance, but that mess will not. Someone then will have to clean it up.

      This is the rough intro to “Viscera Cleanup Detail,” a game which was recently greenlit by the Steam community for release.

      It sees you fill the role of that video game character you may have once considered and pitied, but never really put much more thought into, the janitor. Specifically, you take the role of a space janitor who must deal with the cleanup of a space station that was a part of a scenario similar to the one described. Armed with your trusty mop, your job is to clean up the mess left behind, and get the station looking closer to normal.

      A janitor simulator in space, this has to be one of the oddest games ever approved for mass release. Looking at video of the game, it’s difficult to see just where the appeal lies, as most of your activities appear to be just clicking on blood stains to remove them, clicking on clean water to clean your mop, and picking up chunks of alien to be incinerated. Even though it’s only currently in an alpha stage, the game has a lot of issues without clear resolutions in sight.

      On the other hand, as titles like “Surgeon Simulator 2013,” “Eurotruck Simulator 2” and the very recent “Papers Please” have proven, taking an unusual or even dull concept and turning it into a video game is not necessarily a recipe for disaster, and can in fact lead to an entertaining experience.

      Whether or not “Viscera Cleanup Detail,” is destined for that path is difficult to say. However, if the developers approach this with the right level of humor, and some clever wrench in the cog scenarios, this could become not a case of a game being approved wrongfully as a curiosity, but rather an intriguing prospect on the horizon.

      News

      How Martin O’Donnell Got Paul McCartney to Help Him On Destiny

      August 2, 2013 /

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      Booting up “Halo: CE” for the first time was just one of those moments.

      While the thrill of playing a new console (the Xbox) and the hype the game had generated shortly before release were enough to amp you up before you even booted the game, it was the moment the main screen appeared that you immediately realized you were about to embark on something special. That’s because it was the moment you heard the “Halo” theme in all its glory.

      Not only does it remain one of the best gaming themes of all time, but to this day it stands as one of the few musical themes across all mediums that manages to perfectly convey the material it represents, as its haunting intensity can flood memories of long nights of play into your conscious with no more than a note.

      It’s the kind of work a composer could hang his hat on and call it a career, but that isn’t the case for “Halo’s” composer Martin O’Donnell, who has continued to work on the famed series, and who’s newest task sees him composing the theme to Bungie’s new game “Destiny.” That’s no small task considering that Bungie is trying to work with a clean slate not reliant on any previous success, meaning they’ll need a theme as epic as the one in “Halo,” but without being the one in “Halo.”

      To help him in this herculian task, O’Donnell has recruited a man that’s had more than a little experience in producing hits over changing conditions.

      Sir Paul McCartney working on an FPS with the composer of “Halo” may sound like an odd (or even dreamlike) scenario, but its roots are much more humble. As O’Donnell explains it, he was talking with a friend that worked on “Rock Band” when McCartney was helping that team out, and the friend mentioned that they could name drop O’Donnell to the rock legend. O’Donnell said why the hell not and since McCartney had played “Halo” with his grandkids (imagine that for a moment) knew O’Donnell’s work and took the chance to assist him with “Destiny.”

      According to O’Donnell, McCartney is always excited to work on new ventures, and has brought a fresh perspective, as well as his tape loop machine used on Sgt. Peppers and years of experience, to the process. The combination of these great minds, has to date produced a 50 minute soundtrack which, according to O’Donnell, tells its own story within “Destiny” and will be released separately ahead of the game.

      From the ambitious looking footage, its clear that Bungie has no interest in selling “Destiny” as a carbon copy FPS with “From the makers of Halo” stamped on the box, and this move to reach out to, and attract, a legend like McCartney is further proof of that, and that even in a crowded gaming line up we should all be keeping an eye on “Destiny” and an ear on its theme in anticipation of one of those moments.

      News

      Signs Point Vaguely to a New Bully Game on the Horizon

      July 31, 2013 /

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      Despite being known for a few distinct franchises (like that Grand Theft Whatsitsname), the fine folks at Rockstar have historically never been afraid to abandon their laurels and attempt to create new, and exciting properties.

      While some of those attempts turn into “Rockstar Table Tennis” (which is still fun in its own right), many more become noteworthy, if flawed, titles like 2006’s “Bully,” a game which tasked you with taking the role of a mischievous 15 year old at a pristine boarding school, as he pranks, learns, and generally tries to figure out his young life through a series of misadventures.

      It was a cult classic type game that certainly had its fanbase, but didn’t set the world on fire like that other Rockstar franchise. This was mostly due to an overreliance on fetch quest missions, and a general unevenness brought about between a conflict between the games more structured, but enjoyable aspects (such as attending classes, and seeking out side missions) and a determination to force the “sandbox” style gameplay in, though it often felt out of place.

      Still though, it had potential, which may be what publisher Take Two thinks, since they’ve filed a trademark registration for the “Bully” property indicating, among other possibilities, a potential interest in returning to the franchise by releasing a sequel.

      Now this is far from a guarantee, but it does make since considering Rockstar’s history of reviving franchises with potential once they feel the current technology allows for it with typically sterling results (See: “GTA III,” “Red Dead Redemption,” and “Max Payne 3”). Considering “Bully” had so much going for it initially, then the thoughts of a similar revival on par with those examples is exciting, and is enough to request everybody keep their fingers crossed that this news be confirmed soon so we can all enjoy the results.

      Plus, success for a future “Bully” title, could mean the revival of “The Warriors.”

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      Because I Freaking Loved That Game

      News

      New California Based Service Shows There is in Fact One Thing You Can’t Get Delivered in NYC

      July 23, 2013 /

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      Let’s not beat around the bush. The arcade scene is dead enough to replace disco as a cliché, and frankly deserves to be. Most of them were designed to pump more money from you than any villainized “freemium” game ever would, and the world of video games have progressed positively in a way that the scene would have never allowed for should it have remained the dominate form of gaming.

      But dammit, I still do love them. To this day getting three friends and playing “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” is a guaranteed good time that may be bested by modern games, but is never really duplicated.

      There may be good reasons why arcades are no longer prominent, but there is no good reason why the still entertaining machines should be relegated to ironic obscurity in hipster bars or the rare pizza joint and laundromat.

      Fortunately there is a west coast company that agrees, and are providing a service that allows you to rent an arcade unit with unlimited play for $75 a month, with additional charges coming for multiple units. A subscription based service, you can keep getting new cabinets as long as you’re a member, and can even switch out machines mid-month if you’d like.

      Currently available machines are based on your location, but examples include classics like “Pac-Man,” “TMNT,” “Galaga,” “Golden Tee,” and even one of the arcade holy grails, “The Simpsons.”

      Unfortunately there is a limited area service, so many will not have the chance to experience one of the best opportunities to properly enjoy all-time great arcade games in their most ideal format without trekking out to a rare arcade spot, or paying prices that can exceed $2,000 for a home machine.

      Hopefully All You Can Arcade experiences a profitable level of success then and spreads to more areas, as the look on your friends faces when they show up to see “The Simpsons” in your living room is well worth the asking price.

      News

      Fan Film “Fallout: Nuka Break – Red Star” Is the Most Surprising Thing You’ll See Today

      July 13, 2013 /

      Whoa.

      If the phrase “Live Action Fan Film” in the world of gaming makes you cringe, it would be hard to blame you. Often times they are poorly produced (if generally well meaning) works of minimal effort that remind us all that the world of gaming and film do not easily mesh.

      Even if you are adamant in that belief though, you do yourself a tremendous disservice if you don’t take about 30 minutes of your time today and check out that fan film presented by the folks at Machinima set in the “Fallout” universe.

      Beyond impressive for a fan film, it’s actually a genuinely entertaining, and surprisingly well made, piece that somehow manages to maintain the things that make the “Fallout” series so great, while just transferring them to another medium. While some production hiccups are found (the super mutant fight stands out), even the low points are enjoyable in a campy sort of way, and in no way diminish the incredible writing, pacing, direction, and yes, even acting to be found. It’s perhaps the best example ever made of the magic that can happen when you give a filmmaker with a true passion for gaming even the most modest of budgets to work with.

      Made by the same people responsible for the also entertaining, if less dramatic, “Fallout” series “Nuka Break,” “Red Star” is apparently the first in a series of fan made live action adaptations planned by Machinima, with games like “League of Legends,” “Half-Life,” and even “Minecraft” all getting the celluloid treatment.

      While the quality of those additional adaptations remains to be seen, this was an excellent way to present the idea, as “Red Star” is the greatest  live action video game film I’ve ever seen. Give it a shot, and start dreaming again of the day when a network like AMC, FX, or even HBO realizes the creative potential inherit in a “Fallout” TV series.

      News

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