Up until the reviews hit, I was hotly anticipating the release of Beyond: Two Souls. As the latest creation from the makers of Heavy Rain starring Ellen Page, this seemed like a surefire winner. However, it’s hard to keep my fervor going after seeing the divisive reviews from critics. In particular, concerns from some of the most outspoken critics in regards to its weak story and gameplay issues have cooled off my intentions of buying this one for the time being.
With the upcoming releases of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One approaching, I thought I’d recount some of my previous launch experiences. If you’re like me, I remember many of my experiences fondly. First up, the Gamecube. If you’ve got any launch stories, I’d love to see them in the comments!
Recently, I started playing Pikmin 3. Having never played any of the games in the series before, it caught me off guard in a number of ways. For instance, I didn’t expect the little critters to melt my heart with their sheer cuteness. I also found that watching those same adorable creatures die in assorted ways was rather traumatic. Most surprising to me was how hardcore its gameplay mechanics were. Dig past its cuddly exterior and this is a game that can mercilessly rip out your still-beating heart from your chest.
Though I don’t play fighting games with the same intensity or fervor that I used to, I’m still trying to make progress with my skills when I’m in between other titles. Of late, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 has been my jam. Since the last combo video I made, I tightened up my execution a bit, learned some new techniques and came up with a few cool ideas to make my existing combos to do more damage. In particular, I’m finally starting to get a feel for Dr. Doom. In particular, I’m proud of myself for finally figuring out how to dash cancel after the second foot dive to do the iconic foot dive loops. Check it out!
Best known for their work on Demon’s Souls and Dark Souls, From Software created Ninja Blade before that; a Ninja Gaiden inspired chopsocky game exclusive to the Xbox 360. If you don’t remember it, that’s cool, cause it came and went within the blink of an eye. For years, I patiently waited until it hit the bottom of the bargain bin before picking it up. After finding it brand new for $5, I decided to take the bait.
To say that Disney Infinity is simply a knock-off of Skylanders is rather disingenuous. The toys may work in a similar fashion at a base level, though the actual gameplay experience is quite different. There’s also a level of nuance with the figurines and discs that goes beyond the groundwork laid by Activision. But are these differences enough to justify going with one over the other?
Video Games Express is doing a Super Street Fighter II on Super Nintendo tournament at the Toronto Toy Fair this Sunday, October 6th. I’ve never been before, but I’m excited to see what cool stuff they have to offer and to (hopefully) kick some butt in one of my all-time favourite fighting games! If fighters aren’t your thing, they’re also doing tournaments for Mario Kart Wii and Super Smash Bros. Melee. If you haven’t signed up yet, head over to the site for more details!
Grand Theft Auto may have created the open world genre, though it’s clearly not the only game in town anymore. Since the release of GTA IV, the genre has been taken to new heights by the likes of Assassin’s Creed, Batman’s Arkham games, Saint’s Row, Infamous and many more. Despite my ambivalence towards Red Dead Redemption, I respect the fact that it progressed the open world formula in a number of meaningful ways.
With so many new components to draw from, what influence would they have on Grand Theft Auto V? Based on the final product, not much. The latest installment in the series feels like Rockstar ignored the work of others and continued down their own path to make things bigger and better. Can’t necessarily blame them for it, as this is another fine effort from the pioneers of the open world genre.
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The Bosscast dive deep into Grand Theft Auto V while trying their best to avoid spoilers. Mat kept his eyes on the prize and powered straight through the main story. Jett on the other hand, is busy enjoying the company of Nikki, Sapphire, and Chastity.
Games Mentioned: Grand Theft Auto V, Project X Zone, Game & Wario, Rayman Legends, Legendary: A Marvel Deck-Building Game
Jett – In Third Person
Jason – Downstab
Mat – Biff Bam Pop
The premise for Pushmo is deceptively simple. You control a character whose job it is to scale to the top of a block formation. This is done by pushing and pulling pieces of that formation until they form something scaleable. During the first few challenges, I had a hard time grasping why people loved this game so much. However, it doesn’t take long for that classic Nintendo brilliance to kick in.
In Third Person 