Since the 2D days of Super Mario on the SNES, re-imagining hackneyed fairytales always seemed like a charming idea. There’s really no telling how many of us have actually saved planets from doomsday, rescued damsels in distress and put stupid criminals behind bars as heroes. Unfortunately, not many videogames have let us step in the shoes of manic depressive killers bent on gouging human eyes out while simultaneously drinking ten barrels of blood. Overlord aimed to change all this, and now its evil twin sequel has the same goal in mind. With evil minions by your side ready to slaughter baby seals, you’d think this is the game for every aspiring Jason Voorhees. The real question is not whether you actually get to be an Evil Sauron-Looking-Son-of-another-Evil-Demon or not, because you do. It’s actually if being that Evil Bastard is as awesome as you thought it was. Well, is it?

If you’ve ever played the first Overlord, there’s probably not a whole lot of visual vista to knock your socks off in the franchise’s second outing. Character models are decently crafted; standouts being the well-varied settings and the gnarly Overlord himself. Despite some amusing character designs from hippie, tree-hugging elves to the early scenes of dumb, child bullies covered in Eskimo gear, the subpar scenery and often blocky models overshadow what could’ve been an attractive game. Even though Overlord II commits to a few visual missteps here and there, the animations of the restless minions are filled with life and personality. Their jumps, skips, leaps, bites and attacks add to the appeal of the game that your less-than-talkative antihero could ever conjure up. The problem with the game’s visuals aren’t in its art design, it’s in the transition from concept art on paper to digitally created characters in-game. That said, Triumph Studios should still be commended for their efforts in creating a world that exudes with personality, albeit one that is a little flawed in its execution.

Not one to usually give equal weighting for a game’s audio experience, it would actually be unfair to apply the same rule of thumb to Overlord II. Without the hisses, snarks, irrelevant commentary and war cry of your evil minions, the game would probably be stripped of its essence. Other than being tongue-in-cheek stupid, your personal army of uglies do provide much of the humour that carries the game forward. And this is what essentially makes Overlord II a little better than your average run-of-the-mill game. By incorporating slick lines here and there, satirically portraying your enemies as stereotypes, employing exaggerated voiceover work and having an overall flamboyant coat of audio paint; it’s a game that benefits from all the clamor’n’clatter of your demon slaves. It’s not Metal Gear Solid 4, but it isn’t supposed to be as it provides comedic relief whenever it gets the chance to.

To pinpoint how Overlord II actually plays would be rather difficult. On one end, it’s similar to a brainless hack’n’slash that requires the smallest of skills to pass a level. On the other, it incorporates elements from real-time strategy (RTS) in the sense that you get a pack of minions to micromanage in battle. Unfortunately, you probably won’t care much as to which genre it’s leaning towards. More than half the time, all you’ll need to do is summon your dirty critters and sweep the place clean without thinking twice, rendering any strategies encouraged in the game useless.

Occasionally, combat takes a backseat as the way-too-easy ‘puzzles’ pop-up here and there. While gamers may appreciate the breaks in between, they can hardly be deemed challenging. Perhaps one of the most enjoyable aspects of Overlord II is its main selling point; being downright merciless. By utilising the various minions at your disposal and simply wreaking good ol’ havoc, the game turns from a linear bore to an enjoyable romp through fairytale lands filled with humorous and quirky characters to both help and kill. Diversions such as being able to build your tower and collect trophy princesses also help to create that ‘Yeah-I’m-A-Badass-Villain-So-What?’ mood. Apart from these occasional payoffs to being a badass, the game unfortunately feels a little linear to make you feel like you’re in power. The point of being evil is to ultimately do what you please at your own whim, but because Overlord throws objectives at you left and right it feels more like a chore than a joy to play for long amounts of time. A certain critic said it best when he stated that there’s really no difference between a good hero completing good objectives and a bad villain completing bad objectives. What makes a game a humorous oddity is not the fact that you get to play as a Darth Vader-like villain, but because the chance to play as a Jedi-killing Luke Skywalker seems just that much more amusing.

After it’s all said and done Codemasters’ latest definitely has its moments, but it does ultimately fall short of being great. The linear mission designs, subpar visuals, shoddy controls and lack of inspiration all contribute to its pitfalls. Luckily, what made the original a success is kept intact in its sequel, and much of it is evident in the game. Vibrant settings that travel from icy Alaska to the tropical Amazon, the charm and wit of your ugly-headed pawns and the opportunity to play as the bad guy is all here for you to pick up and play. Your Overlord may not be as good as a manic depressive killer bent on gouging eyes similar to that of Jason Voorhees, but for now, this title will definitely be enough to hold you over until Triumph Studios decide to take more risks with their Overlord franchise.

Guitar Hero® fans will soon be able to take center stage and become the rockstar of the show by playing in-game as their own Xbox 360 Avatars in Guitar Hero 5.  When fans take home Guitar Hero 5 on September 16, they’ll be able to import their Avatars, choose their instrument and play along with their personalised characters rocking out to any track on the epic 85-song set list. Taking full advantage of the latest technology available from Xbox LIVE, gamers can choose their band mates and mix and match their Xbox 360 Avatars with Guitar Hero favorites like Judy Nails, Axel Steel and Lars Ümlaüt, or even rip it up alongside in-game talent. Xbox 360 Avatars will also get a Guitar Hero makeover in the game’s Create-A-Rocker mode, where players can further customise their creations with exclusive Guitar Hero clothing and accessories to ensure they look performance-ready.

After the trail of destruction Michael Bay’s second Transformers film left for film critics and fans of the series alike, you’d think that any product attached to its brand name would either be a cash-in or just a downright gnarly bi-product of said film. Personally, I never cried out ‘Autobots roll out!’ when I was a pre-schooler, it was the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with the swords and nunchakus that did it for me. No, decent wasn’t really in anyone’s mind. But surprisingly, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen isn’t all that bad. Game movie tie-ins have been notoriously known as rushed products that lack any innovation; and Transformers: ROTFM probably ticks the checklist with confidence. But despite its flaws and shortcomings, Luxoflux’s attempt at bringing the robot-smashing fest from the big screen to your lounge gives you enough of a decent romp that may warrant at least one playthrough.

Visually, Revenge of the Fallen does its job. But it’s that exact ‘settling-for-adequacy’ attitude that really annoys us not only in regards to the graphics department, but also throughout every dimension of the game. Luxoflux could have easily asked themselves if this is indeed a top-notch effort that they’ve offered towards a classic and beloved franchise before pumping it out of the factory. Judging by the bland textures, empty cities and repetitive enemies, the answer’s probably a hesitant shake of the head. On the flipside, detailed character models faithfully recreated from the films, cool enough explosions and the seamless animations of Autobots and Decepticons transforming into vehicles are part of the game’s highlights. The presentation is there, with right-on-point thematic artwork and decent navigatable menus. There’s really not much more else to say about ROTF’s looks apart from the fact that it’s more comparable to the rough-around-the-edges-but-still-attractive Michelle Rodriguez rather than say dazzlers Megan Fox or Scarlett Johansson.

If we told you the voice-acting, sound effects of robots clanking and gunfire were decent would you believe us? Yeah, you probably would. Considering that the keyword to today’s review is decent, don’t be surprised if we choose to disregard terms such as revolutionary because Transformers really is decent. It’s a celebration of all things sufficient, enough to push the game for a set release date with the Michael Bay flick and deem the adventure playable, yet not thoroughly engrossing. Even in its gameplay mechanics, Transformers tends to not break out of its cursed ‘decent’ mould.

There are a handful of things that were done right to bring forth the adventure in an engaging way, one being able to play with 6 (including 2 ‘super’ forms) Autobots and Decepticons equipped with fancy arsenal’n’artillery from the franchise including the 5-star-General-who-kicks-evil-robot-ass Optimus Prime and the-Shredder-of-the-Transformers-series Megatron in a semi open-arena . Usually, you can’t really go wrong with destroying other giant machines with your transforming Camaro in a crowded city. The developers have allowed gamers to utilize various weaponry depending on which Transformer you use, ranging from heat-seeking missiles to melee moves to mounted turrets for arms. Despite the myriad of coolness these features sound in theory, in reality numerous factors prevent it from actually working. Allowing you to play as Bumblebee, Optimus Prime, Ironhide, Starscream and the Aud – I mean Grindor? Cool. Making them feel similar instead of distinguishing their distinct weight and handle? Not cool. Allowing you to destroy metallic baddies in a semi open world? Cool. Boring and repetitive mission design that destroys any incentive you have to play in that open world? Not cool. We can go on and on as to why every plus this game has had was equally refuted by a flaw. But at the end of the day, it all depends on what you as gamers prefer. To us, Transformers seems a lot more like a pick up’n’play game and a lot less like a visceral action title we were hoping it’d be. Despite the semi-snoozefest the single player campaign is, the surprising inclusion of a multiplayer mode saves what would’ve been a Lost Season 5 eyebrow raising game.

Many games have tried to emulate the successes of the Call of Duty series online-wise, and many have failed falling face flat on the ground, looking a lil’ like Voldermort’s pancake of a cranium in the process of doing so.  Fortunately for Luxoflux’s Transformer sequel, the multiplayer mode actually enhances the experience and increases the overall longevity of the game. Apart from the usual Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch slaughter fest we get from standard shooters, there are other modes switching things up such as Battle for the Shards (Capture the Flag), One Shall Stand; a kill-the-leader mode, and Control Points; a battle for (you guessed it), control points. The multiplayer component of Transformers is a welcomed break from the oversaturated shooter market and there’s enjoyment to be had from bashing platinum coloured alien scum in competitive play online. Though it’s not the developers’ fault; the lack of any real crowd playing Revenge of the Fallen online takes away from the multiplayer experience by a considerable bit. Make sure that there are a handful of your mates you can take as well when playing this one on Xbox Live or PSN or it may just get a little tough finding both teammates and opponents to fill up the rooms.

At the end of the day, Revenge of the Fallen is just a barebones basic game that could’ve ultimately been something for $60 USD. Enhancements have undoubtedly been made, with an upgrades system well worth a check out if you’re into the whole turn-your-Transformer-even-bigger-and-badder thing. Though even then, as giant and muscled-out these vehicular robots are, they never seem to feel like the epic and colossal machinery they are so often portrayed as in the film. And that’s the exact essence of this game. For every thumbs up they get, there’s always another misstep lurking in the corner just waiting to disappoint you. As it is, the latest game movie tie-in is just another run of the mill generic robo-action game that might as well slot perfectly into the Games That You’ll Forget in a Month labyrinth of a library. It’s just too bad it had to turn out this way. But who can blame Luxoflux? They’ve crafted a decently average game; faithfully recreating Michael Bay’s subpar vision onto the small screen. To be fair, there’s really not much more to ask for than that; Revenge of the Fallen is an average robot romp of a game that ties in with its generic older brother and never really deviates from the epicentre that is indeed decent. Pack it up and see you next sequel guys, after all third time’s the charm. Autobots mope out.

Konami will slash the price of its iPhone games by more than half this week.

Starting tomorrow and ending Saturday, Silent Hill: The Escape, DanceDanceRevolution S, Silent Scope and Frogger will go down in price by 60 per cent to 59 pence.

The more expensive Metal Gear Solid: Touch will drop to £1.79.

They’re not the best of games, but it’s a sale, and no one misses sales. If you haven’t bought yourself a PlayStation 3 just for Metal Gear Solid 4, you can always take comfort in knowing that you have a poor man’s simpleton of a game in MGS: Touch. We’re feeling generous, why not have a screenshot of said game below. Happy hunting.

June 30, 2009 — THQ Inc. today announced plans to release three downloadable content packs for Red Faction®: Guerrilla™, starting with Demons of the Badlands scheduled to be released on August 13th, 2009.  Demons of the Badlands will feature a destructive single-player mission arc that takes place in a new Mars landscape outside of the game’s expansive world.  The pack will be available on Xbox® LIVE for 800 Microsoft points and PlayStation® Network for $9.99 USD.

Sydney, Australia – July 21, 2009 – Reinforcements are scheduled to arrive for one of the most-played online multiplayer games, as Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) and developer Treyarch, confirmed plans today to deliver Call of Duty: World at War Map Pack 3 in August. Map Pack 3 will feature three multiplayer maps (“Battery,” “Revolution,” and “Breach”), co-developed with partner Certain Affinity, and one new Zombie map (“Der Riese”), for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system. Visit www.CoDWaW.com for more details.

Activision have released another video today, and obviously it’s not for Prototype. It’s a video graphic novel of sorts, one that looks like it could swim in the same vein as Sin City. The game won’t boast such stylish artwork unfortunately, but it does look great and depicts what the franchise has long stood for — bloodshed on account of the Nazis and unashamedly dumb. Check out the video below, Activision’s hoping it’ll get you hyped enough to download Wolfenstein 3D on XBL or PSN.

It’s hard not to forgive Prototype’s shortcomings in draw distance, decent graphics and low-res textures when you’re having a blast playing through the game, creating chaos right at your fingertips and immersing yourself in a mouldering Manhattan. The amount of people on screen at a time is to say the least impressive, and the amount of powers and upgrades available to you is immense for a sandbox game.

Pop your copy of the antihero sim back in your disc trays and ready up to attempt some of these stunts. Check the video below courtesy of Activision Blizzard.

Not much is currently known about the game, apart from the obvious glaring fact that it looks to capture the essence of the Grand Theft Auto series. Apparently it’s set in the City of Angels, with multiple radio stations to accompany you as you unleash havoc on the civilians in L.A. Reportedly, the game also boasts a progression system where you’re actually required to conjure up your own gang and build a meagre posse to a full-fledged empire. We like the idea, let’s see if they can pull it off. Check out the screenshots below, courtesy of Toucharcade.com.

Hi,

Please disregard that last email. There was a problem in our chain of
command and it seems BlazBlue for the Xbox 360 will only be playable on US
and Asia consoles.

PS3 of course is still region free.

Sorry for the inconvenience!

Aksys Games Support

Good thing I purchased a PlayStation 3 two weeks ago, now I won’t have to partake in any fanboy discussions regarding exclusive games on either consoles or Microsoft’s inability to provide for region free games on a standardised basis. Though I doubt many will be losing sleep over it unless they’re dedicated fans of fighting games; it seems that European and Australian Xbox 360 gamers have been shorthanded lately also with Ghostbusters not being available to them until later in the year.  Unfortunately, it’s tough luck to those living in Australia and Europe, hopefully they didn’t really care for the game in the first place.

First things first, the visuals in Prototype don’t look like Gears of War or Mass Effect. In fact, they look a little more like a downgraded GTA4 and a lot more like Saints Row 2. The main character, Alex Mercer, and other various supporting acts such as Dana Mercer and Elizabeth Greene are done fairly well visually. They’re probably the most detailed out of all the other characters and NPCs of the game. Mercer’s powers look great when activated, all of his powers distinctly different from one another as they boast visual flair like no other sandbox games have provided. Consuming the minds of many pedestrians you’ll come across triggers a Lost-like flashback scene that looks stylish and synchronises well with the whole atmosphere of the game. With that said, the game is thick with brooding ambiance that always seems to follow you as you glide, jump 30 feet high, eat (or consume to put it mildly) people, bodysurf pedestrians and fight off both the Infected and Military in epic proportions. There are a handful of highlights visually, from the art direction of the game to the relentlessly stubborn framerate which never seemed to drop for our benefit. Adaptive parkour animations also seem to find their home here, allowing for the fluidity of fast-paced action to never really stop. But on the contrary, there are also some questionable character models and the inclusion of poor last-gen textures that we shouldn’t be seeing in a 2009 game. Explosions look rather unattractive compared to other games in the same genre and buildings may seem to get repetitive. Despite this, Prototype’s visuals aren’t great but are, to a certain extent, justified by its incredible framerate-never-letting-you-down achievement and the massive scale of battles that you’ll encounter along the adventure.

Whether games have ever had amazing voiceover work is a debate in itself, but recent titles have shown that it’s still a void we need to fill up. There haven’t been any outstanding performances vocally from a game since the cinematic Metal Gear Solid 4 or even as far as 2007 when Andy Serkis portrayed King Bohan in Heavenly Sword. Suffice to say, every male protagonist in a game sounds exactly the same. It’s a decent job, but coupled with poor writing it’s one that seems lacklustre and even cringe worthy. Prototype doesn’t exactly boast dumbed-down dialogue, but it could do far better in trying to stay away from Vin Diesel’s machismo tone of voice from his last 10 films. Fortunately, the soundtrack in Prototype tells a different story. There are various tracks that seem to represent a mix of genres from orchestral pieces to grimier, louder music. Essentially, it captures the mood of different scenes and set pieces and stood out not as amazing, but good enough to create a thick, apocalyptic atmosphere that is ever so present in the game.

Prototype’s highlights aren’t found in its graphics or its soundtrack, but rather its gameplay. There are a myriad of achievements in Prototype when talking about the mechanics of the game, from the powers you receive, the copious amounts of upgrades and abilities to learn to the infiltration of military bases to stealth consume unsuspecting military AI in order to learn various abilities such as calling air strikes. Upon waking up in a morgue at the start of the game, you’re not open to the powers you were when you first played the tutorial mission at Day 18. You begin the game as a flashback from Day 1 as Mercer tells his story to a man unknown by the player. Giving a preview of all the powers the amnesiac anti-hero is open to during the tutorial mission creates an incentive for players to try and reach that point in the game again as they wade through hordes of enemies in the lead up to Day 18. Said powers include turning your hands to tentacles as a bio-whip to rip torsos from afar or hijack a helicopter as you leap from a building and grapple yourself to it, turning your hands to a blade to slice your way through waves of enemies and bio-hammerfists that make Mercer’s hands Hulk-like.  Other powers also include turning yourself to a walking Man of Steel as you cover yourself in bio-mass and the ability to consume pedestrians and military personnel to disguise as them.

Once you’ve grasped all of his powers, there are still devastators (larger-scaled attacks that deplete your health) to ‘buy’ via Experience Points (EP) and various other abilities such as bulletdives and enhanced sprinting abilities to further Mercer’s relentless and unlimited power. The beauty of the game is that it never feels too easy but never too hard either for it to get plain cheap, finding a balance for players to settle down with the main character’s array of weaponry. Though some have argued that the second half of the game peaks in difficulty, it’s nothing the average gamer can’t handle. Boss battles are epic, but may tend to get long-winded as they take a while to take down. Apart from the main missions, there’s also a plethora of side missions and other activities to do while you’re in the decaying Manhattan. Side missions provide longer hours to play through depending on your attentiveness. There are some mediocre mission designs for both the main and side quests, but standouts are exactly that. Some set pieces create sheer mayhem and chaos that you’ll note them for memorable gaming experiences. And this is essentially what makes Prototype so impressive. It never fails to surprise you with its instantly gratifying gameplay to hold your attention right from the get-go, as you slice a Hunter in half, land from the Empire State to the ground as you create waves of inertia to flip cars over and landing force enough to kill pedestrians to gliding around the city collecting orbs while simultaneously consuming unsuspecting victims and hijacking the many helicopters and tanks available to you at your disposal.

It’s hard not to forgive Prototype’s shortcomings in draw distance, decent graphics and low-res textures when you’re having a blast playing through the game, creating chaos right at your fingertips and immersing yourself in a mouldering Manhattan. The amount of people on screen at a time is to say the least impressive, and the amount of powers and upgrades available to you is immense for a sandbox game. There are copious amounts of things to do in your playground, and everything will feel natural thanks to adaptive parkour and Mercer’s animations. Though not the most polished game as the main storyline may get a little confusing with the way its presented, it doesn’t detract the fact that if you’re being entertained by a game and enjoying playing through it. So the question stands: graphics or gameplay? If you’re going to take a stroll through the buildings to stare at its textures or analyse the draw distance as you ride a helicopter, maybe you should stay away from Prototype. But if you know games are meant to be mediums to entertain, and Prototype does so through and through, grab a copy of the game and make sure you lock your door in a dark room Marshall Mathers-style because what Prototype provides is sheer, unparalleled carnage that is both accessible to casual gamers and enough to satisfy a deep enough game for those who are looking for that next great sandbox game. It’s not a technical masterpiece like GTA4 was, but you sure as hell will be doing whatever it takes to waste your time in a breathing city just like you did when GTA: San Andreas first came out. What will it be — graphics or gameplay?

Considering the fact that Mass Effect is one of, if not my favourite game of all time, I don’t know if I should be purchasing this in the App Store or stay away from the bitter disappointment it supposedly is. On the flipside, many have also praised its narrative, stylized artwork and top-tiered presentation that’s usually found in all EA-published games. And if you’re a collector of all things Mass Effect, ME: Galaxy is one for the fans. And yes, ME: Galaxy also comes with a ME2 unlockable award at the end of the adventure. Once you complete the iPhone iteration of the franchise, you’ll be presented with a screen stating that your reward will be able to be claimed in Mass Effect 2. Yeah, that’s a while away. But whatever it is, I doubt it’d be worth checking out. Not everyone has an iPhone/iPod touch and may feel left out if a significant part of ME2 is not available to them equally. Well, for those who do, by all means check it out if you must. But just remember that this may not be the Mass Effect you remembered back in 2007.

Despite their previous statements claiming that the PS3 technology is “a lot more powerful than the 360’s” and that they could’ve fit a lot more content if it wasn’t for the multiplatform release, we’re equally as confused as you are when it came to the side-by-side comparison. We’re not one to advocate that graphics trump over gameplay, but when the difference is more than marginal, it’s actually surprising to see. The first screen is from the PS3 version while the latter is taken from the 360’s. Notice the difference in textures on the door, brick wall, trash can, proton pack and to a certain extent the lighting? Yeah, we don’t have a clue why Terminal Reality’s done that either. For more comparisons, read the full article at Lens of Truth.

Australian developers Firemint have announced that they’ll be ushering a few new updates to their critically acclaimed racing sim title Real Racing. Submitted last week for approval, the 1.1 update adds a few new features while including bug fixes relating to app crashes.

The rest of the release notes are listed below:

- Added dynamic environment shadows to all vehicles on screen
- Added Flight Control sponsorship to some of the unbranded vehicles
- Accelerometer is now turned off during menu screens to save power
- Device fades to power saving mode after 1 minute of inactivity
- Updated league splits are now based on best times through any given sector of a race
- Various improvements and bug fixes

For those who still haven’t clicked the Buy App button in the App Store, you probably should do it now. The acclaimed developers of Flight Control have crafted a racing experience like no other for your iDevice. Boasting sim-like driving physics and graphics that utilize the graphical prowess of Apple’s devices to an impressive extent, we’ve had a bit of hands on time with Real Racing even prior to its release. We’ll have a review out soon, for now, check out the initial production description and some of these screenshots from the game.

Firemint Real Racing™ immerses you in all the excitement, competition and glory of championship racing. This is handheld racing like you’ve never experienced before!

• 36 cars in three classes, a dozen unique tracks, five game modes
• Three divisions to play through
• Massive career mode with 57 events to complete
• Ten licensed music tracks from indy artists
• Six cars on screen
• Touch or tilt to steer
• Manual or automatic acceleration and braking
• In-car cockpit view or external camera
• Local multiplayer over WiFi
• Online league play
• Online leaderboards
• Video replays on YouTube
• Create personal leaderboards at realracing.cloudcell.com