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Review: Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory

Darrell Drake — Wed, 01 May 2013 15:02:18 +0000

The game-consoles-as-girls are back, and they’re out for revenge! Or something less severe. Naps, sisterhood, and industry quarreling, chiefly. Welcome to Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory, the third installment in the fourth wall-breaking series. If you’re new to Neptunia, see my Mk2 review for a more thorough appraisal of the concept. If you’d like a more concise explanation: Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory, henceforth Victory, takes place in Gamindustri, a parody of the real world industry where video game consoles and developers are personified in girls who fight for great justice. The CPUs, those [...]

How to Get Into Tabletop Role-playing

Dean Bowes — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 21:59:11 +0000

So the past few weeks I’ve been quite intensively participating in a couple of role-playing campaigns, and there has been some interest in it so I figured I would share some tips on getting into role-playing. What is Tabletop Role-playing? Sometimes called pen-and-paper role-playing or just role-playing, tabletop role-playing is a method of gaming whereby you, and others, through the use of pen, paper, dice, and your imagination, play out the role of a character in a variety of scenarios. For the most part it’s whatever you want it to [...]

BAFTA Games Awards 2013

Dean Bowes — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 23:34:36 +0000

Once again it is March, once again it is the BAFTA Games Awards, this year deciding it’s BAFTA Games Awards and not the previous British Academy Video Games Awards. Once again brought to us by Dara O’Briain, talking a bit faster than usual, though this year brining a new round of games. It also brings a new patriotic award in British Game category, though Strategy still seems to be a category that alludes them in being solidly defined. Debut Game Forza Horizon The Unfinished Swan Dear Esther The Room Deadlight [...]

Review: Generation of Chaos: Pandora’s Reflection

Darrell Drake — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 13:11:44 +0000

The latest game in Idea Factory’s strategy series, Generation of Chaos: Pandora’s Reflection is a departure from its normal fare. They’ve teamed up with Sting, best known for their Dept. Heaven games, to breathe new life into the series. And with notches like Yggdra Union and Riviera: The Promised Land on their belt, it’s safe to say this is a favorable pairing on paper. But I think that’s enough of the name-dropping. As someone who’s been grievously underwhelmed by most Japanese role-playing games of late, I’ve realistically lowered expectations. Even [...]

Friday Freeloader: Uncharted 3 Multiplayer

Dean Bowes — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 17:06:16 +0000

It is rare for a console game to grace the Friday Freeloader, and yet here we are with one of the crown jewels of the PlayStation 3 no less. As of this Wednesday Uncharted 3 multiplayer is now free to play up to a level 15 cap. For those not in the know Uncharted is a third person shooter, with a bit of platforming thrown in here and there. As is mostly standard in online shooters these days you level up as you play, allowing you to unlock weapons, skins, [...]

Review: Drox Operative

James Henderson — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 18:00:47 +0000

In today’s video gaming world, where more and more games are carving out a very specific identity for themselves, it’s a bit refreshing when one comes along every now and again where it doesn’t give you one at all. Drox Operative, may be just that game. That isn’t a negative reflection on the game at all, however, but rather positive, given the nature of each play-through. You assume the role of a Drox Operative, a sort-of freelancing space merchant/pirate of sorts who is sent in to stir the pot in [...]

Friday Freeloader: DUST 514

Dean Bowes — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 21:58:24 +0000

DUST 514 has hit open beta, allowing anyone with a PS3 to join in with one of the most interesting games of the year. DUST 514 is a free-to-play shooter for PlayStation 3 and stands out from many other games in that it shares its online server, Tranquility with the space-based PC MMO EVE Online. While you and your fellow PS3 gamers are firing bullets at each other and claiming bases on the ground, high above you EVE Online players will be flying about in their ships shooting each other, and [...]

Appetizers: Joe Danger Touch

Ben Unkle — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 23:36:02 +0000

Joe Danger, career stuntman, has certainly made a name for himself over the past few years. His charming motorbike feats on home consoles offered an approachable but challenging platforming experience that won the hearts of many gamers looking for something fresh. After two sterling entries, his managers at Hello Games have decided to move onto something new, but not before giving their beloved hero a send-off. Joe Danger Touch is his final hurrah, but several missteps prevent it from being a positive one. From the outset, Hello Games replicate the [...]

Franchise Hockey Manager 2013 – Be A GM

James Henderson — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 00:15:33 +0000

With the NHL season finally getting under way yesterday, it seems like a good time to tell you all that Out Of The Park Developments are working on a spiritual successor to their previous ice hockey management sim, due out later this year for PC and Mac. Titled “Franchise Hockey Manager 13”, the game uses a modified engine from their signature baseball title, with significant changes to make it more geared towards ice hockey. Similar to OOTP Baseball, Franchise Hockey manager will also feature a “Historical Mode”, wherein you can [...]

Bayonetta 2 From All Angles

Colin Dettmar — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 21:33:21 +0000

A sequel to Bayonetta is in development at Platinum games. Bayonetta is surely one of the studio’s more popular titles, so this is not so strange. What is strange is that this game is being produced and published by Nintendo, and is releasing exclusively on the Wii U. At the time of announcement many reactions were pretty extreme, both positive and negative. Having given the dust a few months to settle, our crack team of writers set to breaking down this unusual move and discovered that our analysis didn’t line [...]