G4 TV - TheFeed - Game Previews

Exclusive Left 4 Dead 2 Walkthroughs, Scavenge/Survival Mode Explained

Wed, 4 Nov 2009 09:35:00 -0800

If you thought Abbie Heppe's Left 4 Dead 2 Realism Mode Walkthrough was stellar, you'll be stoked to know she had time to do some exclusive, direct-feed walkthroughs for both the Survival and brand new Scavenge modes as well.

First, check out the fast-paced 4 vs. 4, gas can-gathering extravaganza in the Scavenge Mode walkthrough, where you'll be tasked to run like the dickens gathering can after precious can of gasoline in the fastest time possible.

Then, Ms. Heppe gives you the lowdown on laying out your best chance at a time you can brag about in the returning Survival Mode. You'll have to hit the jump to see it, though!

Mike Laidlaw Talks Dragon Age: Origins With Adam Sessler

Mon, 2 Nov 2009 07:00:00 -0800

Dragon Age: Origins will be released tomorrow for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360. While you wait one more excruciating day, watch this interview between Adam Sessler and Mike Laidlaw, lead designer on the game at BioWare.

Adam and Mike discuss the game's 5-year development, lessons learned from previous BioWare games like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect, and how the dev team specifically wanted to help players that may not be familiar with the company's previous titles that relied on the Dungeons & Dragons ruleset get right into the action.

"Moving away from things like round-based concepts and things that were very tabletop-heavy and moving to elements, talents, and abilities that make sense and are, ideally, very visceral. So you can actually see them play out. That's the thing about tabletop gaming. It's abstract by nature. It's a bunch of friends and a bowl of chips. The bowl of chips have no part in combat, but they're there! So, you have to get past that "it's all in your imagination". With a game, you can create animations and models. When you 'Shield Bash' someone, even if you aren't quite sure what effect that has and then [the enemy] goes ass over tea kettle... well, it's pretty obvious what just happened."

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Are you picking up Dragon Age: Origins tomorrow? For which platform? For me, it's PC all the way. I need that isometric viewpoint.

BioShock 2 Hands-On And X-Play All-Access Previews

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:29:00 -0700

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Take a deep breath, folks. It’s time to dive back in to the world of Rapture, and it ain’t going to be pretty when you see what’s happened to Andrew Ryan’s undersea utopian nightmare over the past decade. Seriously, there’s so much I’ve wanted to tell you about 2K Marin’s BioShock 2, but I just haven’t been able to…until now!

Here’s a little taste of what awaits you in my hands-on preview:

“When my destination came into focus, I discovered that I had arrived in a Disneyland-ish area called Ryan Amusements, a now dilapidated shell of what was once used as a place to terrify Rapture’s children into never wanting to venture to the surface. I quickly found out that my mission was to locate the Incinerate plasmid so I could melt a frozen door blocking the progress of the train I was using to move between areas of the city.”

Would you kindly check out the full preview located right here? And definitely watch that X-Play all-access preview to find out even more about what awaits you in the twisted world of BioShock 2.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Writer On Being Disturbed By Writing Process

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:35:00 -0700

Say you're an accomplished entertainment veteran credited with projects like the 2003, Oscar-winning feature film Monster (story editor) and television drama staple N.C.I.S. (writer). You're minding your own business when highly regarded game development house, Infinity Ward, comes knocking on your door. They ask you to create a story from scratch having no consideration for any financial restrictions whatsoever, to explore the dark recesses of the modern day terrorist mind.

"...some of the things that we would come up with as fictional ideas, basically, started happening. So you start feeling like... okay, we've got our finger on the pulse a little bit, we're starting to think like terrorist... and that's, disturbing."

Find out more, as Adam continues the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 interview train with veteran writer Jesse Stern.

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Assassin's Creed II Interview Blowout

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:00:00 -0700

Morgan Webb recently traveled to Italy to get her hands-on with Assassin's Creed II and interview the makers of Ubisoft's new game.

First, Morgan talks with Patrice Desilets, the game's creative director, about the character of Ezio, the challenges in recreating real world cities like Florence and Venice, and how the team wants different players to experience Assassin's Creed II in their own way. Patrice also drops hints about some of the secrets that Ubisoft has included in the game.

If you haven't been following the development of Assassin's Creed II thus far, Morgan sums the sequel up nicely in her preview:

"While the first game took place during the time of the Crusades, this time it’s the Renaissance, and while there’s still no penicillin, life has certainly improved. Ezio is the son of a rich nobleman, and most of his attention is wasted on the exploits of young men with too much money and too little responsibility: booze, boobs and brawls. Everything changes one day when his family is double crossed, and he dons the assassin’s hood to get his revenge. While Altair from the first Assassin's Creed always seemed a bit of a cipher, Ezio feels like a living breathing human you relate to immediately. He doesn’t start out as an assassin, he becomes one because of the hand that life has dealt him, and you are happy to follow him on this 30-year journey."

Click through for two more video interviews with Benoit Lambert, the game's director, and Casey May, the game's writer.

Next, Morgan speaks with Benoit Lambert, the game's director, about the new combat engine, enemy types, cities, and even about how the game's story, though it takes license in inserting Ezio into events, follows historical fact.

Finally, Morgan spoke with Corey May, the writer of Assassin's Creed II. Corey is careful to avoid spoilers, but drops some details about the plot and progression of the game. The Animus of the first game is back and players will once again journey into the life of an ancestor, Ezio in this case, through Desmond Miles. Desmond might also get to do more than just walk around in ACII, but Corey is being extremely tight-lipped about those details.

Stay tuned as we rollout more interviews with Morgan Webb and the development team of Assassin's Creed II shortly.

Are you looking forward to Assassin's Creed II?

Hands-On Preview: Left 4 Dead 2 "Scavenge" Mode

Wed, 7 Oct 2009 23:02:00 -0700

X-Play's Abbie Heppe is a lucky one. She's up at Valve Software right now getting her hands on Left 4 Dead 2's newly announced "Scavenge" mode! While we sit patiently in Los Angeles for the game's November 17, 2009 release, she was kind enough to send back her impressions of the mode.

"For the final rollout of Left 4 Dead 2 goodness before launch, Valve announced the new Scavenge mode. This 4 vs. 4 mode pits survivors against infected and not in the way we've come to expect. Four survivors must retrieve gas cans around the map to power a central generator. Each can that is poured into the generator buys 20 seconds of time on the clock which counts down to the survivors demise from 120 seconds. The catch? You can't take damage when filling the generator and the gas cans are spread so widely throughout the surrounding area that it takes an impressive feat of skill and teamwork to get all 16."

Read her full preview now!

Splinter Cell: Conviction Maxime Beland TGS 09 Interview

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 15:30:00 -0700

Ubisoft's Splinter Cell: Conviction has all the makings of a stellar game: expertly crafted presentation elements, tight gameplay and a gripping story. X-Play's Morgan Webb caught up with Ubisoft creative director Maxime Beland during TGS 2009, and as Beland explained, one of the welcomed side effects of Ubisoft's reworking of the franchise's stealth-action combat is that players will have more control than ever over how the game unfolds.

"Also, what we're trying to do is put the player in control of the pace. So if you want to play it slower, you want to take your time, you really want to be tactical, you can. If you're more of a gung-ho player--I don't think it's going to work that well unless you're really good and you're playing at an easier difficulty level--but other than that, I think you're really going to need to think before you act."

To find out more about some of the new and exciting elements of Splinter Cell: Conviction, be sure to check out the full interview below.

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TGS in Review: Top 10 Games of Tokyo Game Show 2009

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 12:07:00 -0700

There weren't as many games at this year's Tokyo Game Show as there had been in years past, but there were still enough quality titles on display -- from both the East and West sides of development -- to compete for a spot on our unofficial and completely unscientific list of top games from the show. Winners shall receive nothing beyond our continued anticipation. Feel free to nominate your own candidates in the comments section!

Top 10 Games of Tokyo Game Show 2009

1) Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

TGS 09 Trailer | Hands-On Preview | Demo First 13 Minutes | Developer Interview

Billy Berghammer: "However, co-op is the main dish in Peace Walker, and based on our short hands-on time, it's looking quite promising. When playing a cooperative level, players choose which type of Snake they want to use to tackle a mission -- Battle Dress (best armor, yet slow), Sneaking Suit (Snake has a shield, yet if not equipped has weak armor), Jungle Fatigues (balanced), and Naked Snake (little defense, but fast and has a brutal weapons load-out). I initially chose Naked Snake, and enjoyed his speed and vast weapons."

2) Crackdown 2

Gameplay Demo | Hands-On Preview | Developer Interview | Screenshot Gallery

Patrick Klepek: "Let it be known: Crackdown was made for a robust, sprawling series of multiplayer options. Deathmatch is a perfect compliment to the Crackdown gameplay and the sense of verticality means the ebb and flow is completely different from anything else out there. Unlike a great many other shooters coming down the pike, Crackdown 2 doesn't have to worry about the monster that is Modern Warfare 2; this is another beast entirely."

3) Final Fantasy XIII

Gameplay Footage | Hands-On Preview | Demo Walkthrough Video

Patrick Klepek: "I have to commend Square Enix for giving players opportunities to encourage movement about the environment in order to dodge enemy encounters. It's tough to tell how extensively this will extened to the entire game, but there were several instances in the Final Fantasy XIII demo where I was able to find a secret path around the enemies that prevented those encounters from ever happening."

4) Dead Rising 2

Multiplayer Trailer | Hands-On Preview

Patrick Klepek: "By far the most popular mode shown here at TGS was Slicecycles. Are you ready for this? Imagine an arena filled with thousands of zombies ready to be ripped apart by motorcyclists who have strapped chainsaws to the sides of their bikes. The laughter was infectious across this and the other game modes, as well."

5) Gran Turismo 5

Gameplay Footage | Hands-On Preview | Studio Tour of Polyphony Digital | GT5 Modes Revealed

Billy Berghammer: "However, the big news is that we finally have game details. Gran Turismo 5 will feature 900 cars, 20 locations, 70 variations of tracks, a new physics model, and promised damage that will affect not only the physical appearance of the cars and affect performance, but for race cars, parts will see physical damage, and also get completely torn off the vehicle. Lose a fender or door, and it will lay in the track – damaging other cars that run into it. It’s about time Polyphony!"

6) Assassin's Creed II

TGS 09 Trailer | Preview | Developer Interview

Billy Berghammer: "Tasked with dropping five archers perched upon rooftops, Ezio clears them out and lets imposters move into place to further the mission. Combat is greatly expanded, and not only did we witness Ezio scale buildings and then pull unsuspecting archers off their posts, but he can also use one as a shield before head slamming two enemies at once.

7) The Last Guardian

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TGS 09 Trailer | Fumito Ueda Interview

Patrick Klepek: "The small boy, whom we presume to be the main character, appears on the screen, looking at something we cannot see. Soon, though, he moves around the wall and peers over at the creature. The boy is quiet, very quiet, deliberately attempting to not wake the slumbering beast. His hand moves closer and closer to the creature until he begins petting and brushing him. The beast awakens."

8) FFCC: The Crystal Bearers

TGS 09 Trailer | Hands-On Preview | Demo Walkthrough Video

Billy Berghammer: "A much more interesting encounter happened when while running down a hallway I set off a trap,which sent a moving skeletal demon platform towards me that had a door in the middle branded with an arrow on it. By locking onto the door it and jerking the Wiimote in the desired direction, the demons would attack, and by latching onto them would cause them to jab the platform. It was actually a pretty neat combat mechanic and I hope Square-Enix has gobs of things like this in the game to keep things fresh."

9) Splinter Cell: Conviction

TGS 09 Trailer | Hands-On Preview

Sterling McGarvey: "Sure, during E3, Ubisoft's demo felt like watching a Bourne movie, but when you're in the role of stealthy badass government agent, you start to see how easily a pack of thugs can dispatch you. They chat with each other a lot, and they'll move in packs if there are enough of them. I was also told that by the time I reach the point in the game that was today's demo, I'll be well-versed in Conviction's combat style."

10) Lost Planet 2

TGS 09 Trailer | Hands-On Preview

Sterling McGarvey: "The tools came in handy as my team faced two giant boss Akrid who were blind as bats, but just as resourceful with their hearing. As my teammates made noise, these one-story-tall creatures would use their sonar abilities to rush in with vicious attacks. Fortunately, the VS gun allowed me to keep some distance from them and land some devastating attacks. Eventually, we floored both of them."

TGS in Review: G4tv.com's Full Tokyo Game Show Coverage

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:20:00 -0700

Tokyo Game Show is a wrap for 2009, and that's music to the ears of our Tokyo Team who just returned to the office in a sleepy funk. Not that it wasn't fun, mind you, it was just completely exhausting for pretty much everyone involved. Hopefully you've been with us for the last week or so and have been keeping up with our long list of previews, trailers, demo videos, interviews, and photo galleries.

And if you haven't, well...here's our long list! (Read after the break for written previews, news stories, and photo galleries.)

Pre-Show Activities

Kaz Hirai Keynote Liveblog
Sony Computer Entertainment Japan Press Conference Liveblog
EA Tokyo Showcase Report
Patrick vs. Tokyo, Round 1 | Round 2 | Final Round
iNiS' Keiichi Yano Interview: Music Games and Project Natal
G4's Tokyo Arcade Adventure

Videos

G4tv.com's Feedback: The Tokyo Game Show Episode
Alan Wake Developer Interview
Assassin’s Creed II Trailer
Assassin's Creed II Developer Interview
Avatar: The Game Trailer
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow Trailer
Crackdown 2 Gameplay Demo
Crackdown 2 Developer Interview
Dead Rising 2 Weapons and Multiplayer Trailer
Dead Space Extraction Developer Montage
Dead Space Extraction Trailer
Dragon Age: Origins Zevran Trailer
FIFA 10 Kazuya Makita Interview
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Crystal Bearers Trailer
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Crystal Bearers Demo Walkthrough
Final Fantasy XI: Shantotto Ascension Trailer
Final Fantasy XIII Gameplay Footage
Final Fantasy XIII Demo Walkthrough
Forza Motorsport 3 TGS 2009 Interview
Gran Turismo 5 Gameplay Footage
Lost Planet 2 Jun Takeuchi Interview
Lost Planet 2 Trailer
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Trailer
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Demo's First 13 Minutes
No More Heroes 2 New Character and Mini-games Trailer
No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle Suda51 Interview
PixelJunk Shooter Trailer
Quantum Theory Trailer
Scribblenauts Developer Diary
Sengoku Basara Samurai Heroes
Splinter Cell: Conviction "Numbers" Trailer
Super Monkey Ball Step and Roll Trailer
Tekken 6 PSP Gameplay Footage
The Last Guardian Extended Trailer
Toy Soldiers Trailer
Trinity: Souls Of Zill O'll Trailer
Tsumuji Executive Producer Interview
Warriors: Legends of Troy Debut Trailer
White Knight Chronicles Trailer
Winning Eleven 2010 Trailer
Yakuza 4 Trailer

Previews

Alan Wake New Impressions
Assassin's Creed II New Impressions
Crackdown 2 Hands-On Preview
Dead Rising 2 Hands-On Multiplayer Preview
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers Hands-On Preview
Final Fantasy XIII Hands-On Preview
Ghost Trick First Impressions
Gran Turismo 5 Hands-On Preview
Joy Ride First Impressions
Lost Planet 2 Hands-On Preview
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Hands-On Preview
Okamiden First Impressions
Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles
Splinter Cell: Conviction Hands-On Preview
Toy Soldiers First Impressions

News

X-Play's Adam Sessler Goes One-On-One With Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aime.
Bayonetta Team Not Discussing PlayStation 3 Version At TGS.
Sony abandons UMD transfer program for PSP Go.
Microsoft and Sony showed off motion controllers.
New details on White Knight Chronicles
Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. group CEO Kaz Hirai claimed that the company has sold one-million PlayStation 3 Slim systems.
Text search coming to 360.
Microsoft clarifies facebook availability for Silver users.
PSP Room announced...like Home, but smaller!
Resident Evil 5 and LittleBigPlanet getting the motion-control treatment.
New Gran Turismo 5 modes have been revealed.
Sony charging different prices for digital vs. UMD versions of Gran Turismo 5.
Frank West has been added to the cast of Tatsunoko vs. Capcom Ultimate All-Stars.
Take a look at Sony's motion controller.

Screenshot Galleries

Photo Galleries

TGS 09: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers Hands-On Preview

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 02:43:00 -0700

What We Know: Square Enix is bringing the Crystal Chronicles series to the Wii, but in a whole new direction. Crystal Bearers ditches the normal Crystal Chronicles format in favor of a much more action adventure based affair that’s one of the best looking Wii titles to date.

What's New At TGS: Players control Layle using the Wiimote and Nunchuck, and as a Crystal Bearer, Layle has a special magic ability to control and move objects, characters, and enemies by pointing at them with the Wiimote. Not only that, but he can grapple onto ledges and floating bars to traverse platforming sections. In the demo, while Layle and Belle are exploring an underground cavernous dungeon, they become separated, and Layle chases her down. I’m going to assume this demo takes place early on in the game considering the fact that the platforming is fairly basic. Point to an area you want to jump to and press A. Later in the levels, the platforms start to move and float around making navigation more difficult. It also doesn’t help that you control the camera with the D-pad, so if you’re jumping around and then your next desired location is in back of you, you need to stop, move the camera, and then jump slowing down the pace quite a bit.

The combat is also quite simplistic, just grab an object and toss it at incoming enemies. Upon reaching a room populated with a few baddies, all you have to do is nab a nearby boulder and whip it at an approaching enemy. A much more interesting encounter happened when while running down a hallway I set off a trap, which sent a moving skeletal demon platform towards me that had a door in the middle branded with an arrow on it. By locking onto the door it and jerking the Wiimote in the desired direction, the demons would attack, and by latching onto them would cause them to jab the platform. It was actually a pretty neat combat mechanic and I hope Square-Enix has gobs of things like this in the game to keep things fresh.

What We Want To See: A deeper and richer combat system. Enemies were sparse and combat is a bit too easy, and I hope later on in the game there’s more complex battles. There was an over abundance of running through long halls in this demo, and I’d rather fight a lot more enemies, and keep the action going than just running. Yawn. Square-Enix is demonstrating a solid presentation for a Wii title, but the combat, camera, and lack of battles needs some attention.

Tokyo Game Show 2009: Gran Turismo 5 Hands-On Preview

Sat, 26 Sep 2009 22:09:00 -0700

What We Know: Gran Turismo 5 has been in development for what seems like an eternity, and eons after its demo version - Gran Turismo 5: Prologue – was released, it seems like Polyphony Digital is finally getting the game together for a March 2010 release in North America, Japan, and Europe.

What’s New At TGS: The new build of Gran Turismo 5 showed off a new course – Tokyo R249 – a track that’s actually built in the same neighborhood as Sony Computer Entertainment Japan. While the physics model seems to have been updated since we played the game at GamesCom, the promised damage modeling doesn’t seem much improved. The gameplay is still solid, and actually, while I usually think racing games are more difficult to play with a wheel, I loved it even more with the wheel when I got my hands on it at Polyphony Digital. Granted, it also helped to play with the wheel inside a slick racing rig, as well.

see our photos from the Polyphony Digital studio tour

However, the big news is that we finally have game details. Gran Turismo 5 will feature 900 cars, 20 locations, 70 variations of tracks, a new physics model, and promised damage that will affect not only the physical appearance of the cars and affect performance, but for race cars, parts will see physical damage, and also get completely torn off the vehicle. Lose a fender or door, and it will lay in the track – damaging other cars that run into it. It’s about time Polyphony!

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Gran Turismo 5 will also support many of the modes seen in Prologue including arcade and online modes, a beefed up Gran Turismo TV, as well as the ability to export recorded video to both YouTube and your PSP. Series creator Kazunori Yamauchi says that there will be even more features in the game revealed later, including PlayStation Eye camera support. Sweet!

What We Want To See: The game finally come out! There were rumors that Gran Turismo 5 might make it out before the end of the year, but sadly that won’t be the case as Polyphony confirmed that the game will make it out in March 2010. Better late than never, right?

Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 Developer Walkthrough Video

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 14:40:00 -0700

Team Ninja producer Yosuke Hayashi wants you to want to play Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 in the worst way. How else would you explain this lengthy walkthrough video that's jam-packed with tons of wildly violent and gorgeously rendered action? Now, while the video does show off quite a bit of in-game action, you should know that if any of the following things offends you, you might want to avert your eyes:

Big breasted women smashing monsters into paste using a giant war-hammer
Co-op demon hacking and slashing
Boss battles including an electrified and visibly troubled Statue of Liberty
Sixaxis boob shaking

If these things don't bother you, then by all means, click play!

Watch Larger Version | Watch HD Version

Final Fantasy XIII Hands On TGS 2009 Preview

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 08:53:00 -0700

What We Know: Square Enix has been working on Final Fantasy XIII for years now and even though we are still waiting to find out the exact date for when the PlayStation 3 debut of the RPG series will show up over here, a December release date in Japan at least means the game is in the final stages of development. Final Fantasy XIII appears to be a return to form for the series, after the MMO-inspired gameplay departure of the last game. Much of the game's fundamentals have been shown off in the months leading up to the game's release in Japan, which means most fans are already pretty aware of what to expect from Final Fantasy XIII -- a pretty and traditional RPG.

What's New at TGS: Look, I'm going to be honest. I can't read Japanese. The roughly 10-minute playable demo of Final Fantasy XIII at Tokyo Game Show let me play around with the summons-who-act-as-party-members mechanic, but other than that, I could't tell you much about what happened while I was pressing the circle button because the entirety of the demo was in a language that looked like moonspeak to me. Specifics on the gameplay will have to be left for another time, but I have to commend Square Enix for giving players opportunities to encourage movement about the environment in order to dodge enemy encounters. It's tough to tell how extensively this will extened to the entire game, but there were several instances in the Final Fantasy XIII demo where I was able to find a secret path around the enemies that prevented those encounters from ever happening. I'm always a fan of RPGs that make enemy encounters optional if players are being observant.

What I Want to See: An English release date. Square Enix has been teasing Final Fantasy XIII for a long, long time now. It's big, bold and beautiful, but at this point, I'm tired of seeing new trailers with characters I don't know much about and a story shrouded in mystery.

Dead Rising 2 Multiplayer Hands-On TGS 2009 Preview

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 08:22:00 -0700

What We Know: Dead Rising 2, like Crackdown 2, is a game that should have been announced ages ago. For whatever reason, it took forever for Capcom to move forward with Dead Rising 2 and even when the game was announced, it was revealed Capcom Japan wasn't even developing the game -- Canadian developer Blue Castle is behind the game. When Capcom announced Dead Rising 2, the main takeaways were that Frank West was no longer the main character, the setting was Las Vegas and a good portion of your time would be spent running around casinos.

What's New at TGS: When I showed up at Capcom's Dead Rising 2 event after the second day of Tokyo Game Show, I didn't expect a controller to be thrust in my hands. Capcom was highlighting the newly introduced multiplayer features of Dead Rising 2, albeit in a severly limited capacity. The version on display was four-player simultaneously competitive multiplayer spread amongst four different game modes. Connecting each game mode to one another was a MadWorld-esque game show motiff. The four game modes -- Ramsterball, Headache, Pounds of Flesh, Slicecycles -- each involve having gamers compete against one another to multilate zombies in different ways.

By far the most popular mode shown here at TGS was Slicecycles. Are you ready for this? Imagine an arena filled with thousands of zombies ready to be ripped apart by motorcyclists who have strapped chainsaws to the sides of their bikes. The laughter was infectious across this and the other game modes, as well. Capcom attempted to conduct a multiplayer tournament, but most players in attendance groaned at the concept, since it was clear Dead Rising 2's scoring system was far from balanced at this point.

What I Want to See: More of these game modes. If these four modes hint at a multiplayer system just as imaginative, gamers are in for a treat.

TGS 09: Okamiden First Impressions

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 05:14:00 -0700

What We Know: Before Tokyo Game Show, Okamiden (tentative title) was a Capcom fanboy's wet dream. Well, I should say "before the Famitsu scans hit the Internet," but that's neither here nor there. The PS2 cult favorite (and Wii almost-cult favorite) has always felt like a game that would go together with a touch screen like pickled plums and shiso or peanut butter and jelly. Apparently, Capcom thought so too. That's why it commissioned another adventure for the great white wolf goddess Amaterasu. Also, from what I can tell in my limited Japanese, it seems to be a prequel.

What's New at TGS: An Okami game for DS, that's what's new. It's Okamiden's worldwide debut this week at the show, and of all of Capcom's lineup for TGS, it boasted the longest booth lines with a 45 minute wait today. More than Lost Planet 2, more than Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles, and more than fellow DS debutant Ghost Trick. Demos were restricted to 15 minute playthroughs, but that was enough to get an idea of how it works. Also, enough time to overcome the language barrier that made simple puzzles more challenging.

The basic idea is that you control both Amaterasu and a child. The child rides on Amaterasu's back as she performs many of the same mechanics we saw in Okami. Those include shattering clay pots for items and using the Celestial Brush to overcome obstacles. The brush, if you haven't played Okami, allows you to draw brushstrokes in the environment that affect the game. A slicing motion can clear a path of forest trail. Filling in the parts of a broken bridge with paint can restore it. And in Okamiden, the brush is as intuitive as you'd expect, thanks to the touch screen. Although I couldn't read the differences, it appears that two types of ink are used, depending on the character. Puzzles for the child use red ink to lead him to a point on the map. Puzzles for Amaterasu are similar to Okami and use black ink.

I used both inks for a handful of puzzles during the demo, and although it took a little time to get used to when and where to use them (it helps if you can read Japanese), the gameplay felt perfectly intuitive to anyone who invested time in the first game. Combat also feels like the PS2 game, since Amaterasu has similar button-based attacks.

It also helps that Okamiden boasts the same stylized art design that the prior game had. Although it's not as clear in visual fidelity, several DS games have proven that you can do cel-shading well on the platform, and Okamiden is no exception.

What I Want to See: A time machine that will fast forward me to the English translation. Barring that, I'm simply looking forward to more time with Okamiden. My short 15 minute demo showed off an experience that seems to pack all of the beauty, magic, and Zelda-like gameplay into a portable package. Whenever Capcom announces it for the US, it'll immediately be one to watch.

TGS 09: Splinter Cell: Conviction First Hands-On Impressions

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 04:50:00 -0700

What We Know: Splinter Cell: Conviction epitomizes the term "reboot." Two years ago, it was launguishing as a dark, Assassin's Creed-like game in which Sam Fisher went rogue, grew out a beard and sat on park benches. Good thing that version's gone. It's been replaced with a sleeker-looking game that really updates the series from the Xbox era (Double Agent was good, but it still had the trappings of an Xbox game) to today's consoles and design philosophies.

Basically, the new Splinter Cell: Conviction rocked faces at E3.

What's New at TGS: Why Ubisoft picked a Japanese show to give first hands-on is beyond me. But I'm glad I got to finally play it. And although some of the Ubisoft Montreal team balked when I said "it feels like Splinter Cell," it's a compliment. I know it's revamped. You, the gamer, know it's revamped. But underneath some of the amazing tech (such as the drive-in movie style projections of clues and background information on walls) and some of the new features, the game will hand your ass to you if you waltz in carelessly.

I know this fact because mine got handed to me on a silver platter. The thing I noticed most about the game (which admittedly, still isn't finshed in some small aspects) is just how smart enemies are. Sure, during E3, Ubisoft's demo felt like watching a Bourne movie, but when you're in the role of stealthy badass government agent, you start to see how easily a pack of thugs can dispatch you. They chat with each other a lot, and they'll move in packs if there are enough of them. I was also told that by the time I reach the point in the game that was today's demo, I'll be well-versed in Conviction's combat style. I certainly hope so.

In the mission, Sam must rescue a scientist who is devising some sort of weapon for a terrorist group. Or something. The demo started with Sam parked outside a warehouse where the scientist is located. It's his job to interrogate a squad leader for the scientist's whereabouts. Does the squad leader cooperate? About as much as Rainbow Six: Vegas is a JRPG. However, it's a fine chance to show off some of the damage effects on human faces. With each face-first slam into a military jeep, a tree stump, or an air conditioning unit, the squad leader's face gets progressively bloodier and more gashed. Yet, he won't give up the info until his attempt to stab Sam ends with his arm twisted and his combat knife pinning his twisted hand into a tree stump. Looks like brutal interrogations will be part of the process.

You might've also noticed the quick kills that Sam can perform. The idea behind them seems to be killstreak-driven. In order to quickly dispatch of a few guards, you've got to effectively incapacitate at least one of them. Whether that's a stealth kill, taking him hostage, or popping a few into his skull, you need to take one down to start the takedown chain effectively. It's harder than it looks. Again, enemies are smart, and on more than one occasion, I was detected just as soon as I nabbed one of them. But once I got the flow of the "kill one, then mark the rest for a combo kill," I got a sense of how the system works. There are so many ways to initiate a streak, whether it's flashbang grenades or hanging from a ledge and taking down a guard.

What I Want to See: Aside from multiplayer, which was one of the things that defined Xbox Live a half decade ago, I want to try out some of the earlier stages and get some practice time in with the "kill combo" technique. I tihnk it's an interesting approach to the Splinter Cell formula, and beside the visual splendor of watching Sam efficiently take down a number of enemies with Bourne-like speed, I find it fascinating in execution. It's also a great way to take away the paralyzing paranoia that some have toward stealth games (some gamers take a really long time to eliminate enemies one-by-one) and pace the action better. Will Splinter Cell: Conviction deliver the goods come February? There's an excellent chance that it can.

TGS 09: Ghost Trick First Impressions

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 19:45:00 -0700

What We Know: Until 24 hours ago, none of us knew it existed. Ghost Trick (which I imagine will have a new name if/when it shows up on US shores) seems to be a supernaturally-focused game from the creators of the Ace Attorney series over at Capcom. The art design is quite different from the law and order focus of Capcom's other series. It's got a more stylized look that's reminiscent of the art trends of the 1960s. Other than that, no one at the Capcom booth spoke English, and the only Romaji in the entire demo was the game title.

What's New at TGS: Everything. It's Ghost Trick's worldwide debut. From what I could ascertain from the demo, the game's hero has the ability to jump out of his own body and momentarily inhabit objects. It seems to be his tactic to scare off enemies. I can't tell if he's dead or if he just has out of body experiences. The demo starts in a junkyard with a gunman aiming to kill a young lady. After what I can assume is some "I'm going to kill you" explanation, the would-be assassin gets ready to shoot. Suddenly, the action stops, and the screen turns red. A blue flame pops up onscreen, and everything in the environment is outlined. The blue flame seems to represent the hero's spirit, and can be controlled with the DS stylus. When you flick the flame over an object that can be possessed, it glows blue. From there, he can inhabit the object and use it to scare off enemies. In this case, he jumps into a gate and slams it open to spook the gunman and give the woman a chance to escape. She does, but ultimately, the shooter manages to pick up his gun and fire off a shot.

She falls and seems to be dead. The gunman escapes, and the hero regains consciousness. He goes to her body, but before doing so, he's interrupted by what appears to be a talking lamp. Maybe it's someone else's soul inhabiting the lamp? Hard for me to tell when it's all in Japanese. The lamp, which I'll dub Tutorial Lamp, tells the hero that he can "jump" across different objects to possess them in a chain combo. I tapped the stylus and moved the soul across some junk in the area in order to move the spirit flame around the environment. After reaching Tutorial Lamp, I led the flame over to the young woman's body, and it reanimated her. At that point, I had to wrap up the demo, but I have an idea of the main mechanic of Ghost Trick.

What I Want to See: An English translation. I'm a huge fan of the Ace Attorney games, and I think that the team is totally capable of creating cool, weird experiences that outpace other Japanese-produced games out there. The idea of possessing objects and chaining together objects with the touch screen is a novel one. Based on my personal experience last year at TGS, I imagine we won't be seeing any translated versions of the game for some time -- after all, Ace Attorney Investigations debuted at last year's TGS, and although it's probably close to finished, it's still not out in the US. I imagine that we in the gaming media won't see much more about Ghost Trick until at least spring of next year. But when we do, I'll be one of the first in line to try out a translated demo.

TGS 09: Tekken 6 PSP First Impressions

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:01:00 -0700

What We Know: At this point, Tekken's no stranger to handhelds. 2006's Tekken: Dark Resurrection did an amazing job of porting the button-mashing action to the small screen. And if you're super-nostalgic, Sony's had Tekken 2 in the PlayStation Store for a long time. That said, Namco Bandai's been awfully gun-shy about showing off the handheld version of its arcade hit until Tokyo. Up until now, the gaming media has only gotten glimpses of Tekken 6 either at arcades (my first playthrough was during TGS last year) or at Namco Bandai's various events. The PS3 and Xbox 360 versions are right around the corner -- October 27 is the magic date -- but the handheld version will come roughly a month later. There's a huge push behind PSP this fall, and alongside several other franchises that have been evergreen PlayStation franchises, this is a huge one.

What's New at TGS: Everything, actually. Namco-Bandai has been rather coy about the details regarding the handheld version of Tekken 6 until today. I couldn't go hands-on with it, but I got a good idea of what the team is aspiring to deliver.

It retains the main ideas of the arcade game. That means that the core concepts, including combos and environmental damage, have been adapted to the platform. I asked one of the producers for some details on what's been sliced and diced to make room for a UMD -- and for now, it's only on a UMD; sorry potential PSP Go owners -- and the elements are few. Unsurprisingly, the platform's visual horsepower isn't on par with a PS3 game -- the image above is in place until Namco-Bandai sends out new PSP-specific screens. Tekken 6's unique quirks like the rage system and wall/floor breaks had to be adapted to the PSP. As a result, there will be platform-exclusive stages that are designed to give you all of the impact of the other games, but within the confines of the hardware's abilities.

Although the dev team wasn't ready to reveal much during the demo (they're waiting to unveil PSP-specific modes after TGS), I discovered a few choice nuggets. Tekken 6 won't support online multiplayer (fear of lag and performance were cited as issues), but it'll have some online interactivity. The game will support ghost data, which enables you to either upload your best playthrough or put up your worst techniques for all to see. Unless the translation was slightly off, it seems that you can download ghost characters of either yourself or friends and use the data to learn styles and techniques.

What I Want to See: How it plays. Namco-Bandai hasn't set a firm date yet, but I don't believe the handheld version is trailing too far behind the other renditions of Tekken 6 regarding release. I was hoping for some hands-on time during today's presentation, but unfortunately, I couldn't play it myself. It's gorgeous-looking, from its cut-scenes to the in-game fighting, and I expect a level of quality that's more like Tekken: Dark Resurrection than Tekken Advance. Keep an eye out for this one.

TGS 09: Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles Hands-On Preview

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:18:00 -0700

What We Know: Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles is the sequel to 2007's Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles. Both games are retellings of RE classics from the PlayStation era, redone as light gun shooters for Wii. My last hands-on demo came during E3, when I played through a remixed section of RE: Code Veronica. RE: DC offers up some high-octane co-op action while rewarding both hardcore fans and casual gamers (read: loved ones who couldn't understand why those hardcore fans were so into the series over the years) with individualized difficulty settings during each playthrough.

What's New for TGS: Something big, actually. Although Capcom's been showing off levels inspired by Resident Evil 2 and Code Veronica up to this point, the publisher had something completely different up its sleeve today. In a mission titled "Operation Javier," I stepped into Leon S. Kennedy's shoes to play a pre-Resident Evil 4 mission in South America. Leon's partner? Krauser. Yep, "Knife Fight Krauser." The mission aims to provide some backstory to the two characters' mutual animosity in RE4. Both men are special forces members at this point in the series timeline, and they've been sent to South America to track down Javier Hidalgo, a notorious drug lord who's suspected of having ties to Umbrella Corporation. It's no small coincidence that at the same time that the two men are hunting him down, there's been a rash of disappearances in the area.

There are only so many ways that you can describe the play style of a retro-inspired on-rails shooter, but "Operation Javier" definitely has some moments that resemble Resident Evil 5. The flooded village has elements of that game's shanty towns in its art style, and that's no coincidence. Some RE: DC's team also helped out with the level designs of RE5. I also shot my way through new mutated B.O.W. classes, including deadly man-sized mutant frogs. It's an interesting break from the sort of environments I'm used to seeing after 13 years of playing Resident Evil.

What I Want to See: If Capcom can maintain this momentum, I don't need to see much else to be sold on it. So far, if you're a fan of on-rails shooters, Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles is pretty entertaining. It might come off as a bit anemic if you don't have buddies to play with, but it's a blast (pun slightly intended) to play in co-op. If the stages maintain the same level of slightly brain-dead entertainment I've been testing out for the last few months, then I expect RE: DC to be one of the best shooters to grace the Wii this year.

TGS 09: Lost Planet 2 Co-Op Hands-On Preview

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 10:49:00 -0700

What We Know: Lost Planet was a hit for Capcom when it released nearly three years ago. It seemed to epitomize the publisher's approach to developing Japanese-made games designed with global appeal outside of native soil. It's a shooter that's good enough for Westerners, but also feels well-suited to gamers who can't wrap their heads around shooter mechanics. It also touted some fun, if not forgettable multiplayer.

From the time Capcom unveiled Lost Planet 2 a few months back, we've been hearing all about its co-op multiplayer experience. Allegedly, you can play through a great deal of the game with others. It's part of the difference between the first game and the new sequel, aside from a huge change in locale. The Akrid, the mineral-rich monsters of the first game, are back and as warped as ever. Their soft underbellies are filled with rich loot for you and your friends to snag.

What's New at TGS: Two co-op desert stages. Both are interconnected, but their contribution to the game's plot is still a mystery. I played as part of a group of desert pirates who are lost and in search of thermal energy that will power them for a long time. The pirates run into an encampment full of enemies, as well as a train loaded up with some super weapons. They need that train in order to escape the desert, but also to gain the thermal energy stored onboard. The idea behind the first stage seemed to display an average co-op level, complete with strategic skirmish points, and general action. The controls feel largely similar to the first game, save for new armor and weapons. The armor feels like a middle ground between the heavy, laborious VS suits of Lost Planet and the dangers of running around a stage unprotected. You can run in it, it has a lot of protection, but you lose a little speed (not nearly as much as a VS suit). I also tried out a VS gun, which functions as the sci-fi equivalent of an .80 cal rifle. You can cover long distances, and they floor the competition.

The tools came in handy as my team faced two giant boss Akrid who were blind as bats, but just as resourceful with their hearing. As my teammates made noise, these one-story-tall creatures would use their sonar abilities to rush in with vicious attacks. Fortunately, the VS gun allowed me to keep some distance from them and land some devastating attacks. Eventually, we floored both of them.

In the second part of the demo, my pirate group boarded the train and tried to escape the desert. We ran into more pirates aboard the train, and had to blast our way through them. Mind you, the level was fraught with peril, since a few misguided steps or a badly timed jump led to instant death (and one of the most drawn-out death animations I've seen in a game in years). It all seemed okay until a Category G Akrid showed up. It's a monolithic Akrid worm that is huge enough to devour an entire train car (or three) in one bite.

The focus of the level shifted from one or two people capturing spawn points to all four players working to collect giant artillery shells to kill the G Akrid. And ultimately, we failed to kill it before the end of the demo.

What I Want to See: Hopefully, a Keyboard Cat video to accompany that death animation. Seriously, it's long, drawn out, and brutal to see yourself fall off a speeding train, hit your head on the rails, and tumble through the dirt repeatedly as you wait to respawn. Ideally, I'm interested in seeing more co-op missions, and hopefully, they're a little less convoluted than this one -- the second demo stage felt rather Monster Hunter-inspired, since it required as many hands on deck as possible -- but it didn't quite fall together as well as I'd like. So far, I love the idea of bringing four-player co-op to Lost Planet, but the execution needs a little extra panache to completely sell me. That said, Capcom's still got time to work it out.