Deep Silver has been getting publicity over the latest project; Risen 2: Dark Waters, even more so now with the release of the ‘Hope Emerges’ trailer. The game looks to have taken the hugely desired pirate style RPG and mixed it with the world featured in the previous title. I’m trying so hard to keep an open mind and objective personality towards this sequel, but the first game was just so bad it’s very difficult. From the trailer you can see that the graphics have been improved drastically, and there is now some form of variation in the voice acting and one or two of them actually have emotion too! That’s always a good start for an RPG. The main focus seems to be that there is a Kraken plaguing the ocean ways and you are tasked with finding a way of putting an end to it. The game is moving away from the standard knight/archer/mage combo and giving the player the chance of being a pirate. Travelling from island to island, base to base, you will be attempting to convince or destroy other pirate bands and settlements in a quest to find the answer to slaying the Kraken. The trailer certainly shows a decent game in the making, but unfortunately I fell for that with the first one, it received pretty decent customer reviews upon release and I wasted £20 on an
on-sale item. Hopefully this game will prove me wrong and turn the Risen name in the right direction with a new story and approach to the physics of the game.

The GAME company has been reported to be in trouble for the past few months, but with the release of Mass Effect 3 last Friday, even more people have become aware of the issue the UK’s number one video game retail company is facing. GAME began cancelling the pre-orders of Mass Effect only a month before its official release, offering a full refund in the process but little in the explanation as to why the nations’ number one distributor was unable to supply one of the most wanted video games on the market. According to trade paper MCV, the credit insurance that GAME shares with its supplying agencies was slightly changed at the beginning of this year. What this means, is that the money that the company would normally have to order and license the new stock, isn’t there anymore. GAME is having to make new deals with each publisher individually.

Trade association UKIE has today unveiled the first ever UK videogame digital sales chart, covering PC downloads.

Though still in beta, the UKIE has been working on a digital chart since 2010, and the fruits of that labour are this chart which covers January 2012. The 25 members of UKIE represent about 80% of the boxed PC market, and although only 10 shared data for this first chart, it's believed that they represent 40% of the overall digital PC market.

UKIE CEO, Jo Twist, commented “We are delighted to reveal the UK’s first digital chart based on real sales data. This is a watershed moment for our industry, but it is only the first step in capturing the full digital market. There is still a lot of work to be done, and we need more data, but we felt that the market would benefit from seeing that this project is very much on course.

The Reapers are coming on the 9^th of March. The end of the Mass Effect series is being released next Friday, the third and final instalment is bringing as much sadness as it is joy to all us long term fans of the franchise. Bioware have decided to include multiplayer in this release, whether you like it or not, people enjoy multiplayer. I’ve never been the biggest fan of online gaming, especially when the game requires online capability to play offline; but this multiplayer keeps the same flow of gameplay as the offline mode. The difference being that multiplayer requires you to play in a team of other players and fight off waves of enemies whilst completing objectives. The more experience you get and level up, the more maps and challenges are unlocked. The traditional offline game mode offers three types of gameplay: Action mode, Story mode and RPG mode. As you can imagine action mode consists of mainly combat, with automatic responses in conversation. The story mode focuses on conversation and dialogue with minimum difficulty in combat. RPG mode gives you the typical Mass Effect gameplay that we’ve all thoroughly enjoyed throughout the series; the perfect balance between combat and dialogue which creates the ultimate game.
With five days to go, I am one of the many people who can’t take the wait any longer now that it is so unbearably close. The game is set for release March 9^th here in the UK and three days earlier in the States.

Sony’s much anticipated response to Nintendo’s 3DS is here. After an incredibly disappointing launch in Japan (where sales dropped exponentially in the second week of release), the PS Vita hits shelves across Europe and North America today. At £229 for a Wi-Fi only version or £279 for a 3G version, it’s certainly easy to see why gamers are reluctant to get one. Times are tough for many and the 3DS gives a cheaper alternative, and whilst the launch lineup is better than the 3DS’, it’s still rather weak, so there is little incentive to get the system right now.

But for those that do, the rewards are great. The features of the system are plentiful and are integrated nicely enough so people feel at ease using them. There are two screens on the system, the front being a touchscreen (which has become industry standard nowadays alongside cameras), and one interestingly enough is located on the back. This is planned to be a useful integration with the games that will be released on the Vita as so far there is little use for it on the home screen.

The Mass Effect 3 demo offers both a single and multiplayer section to its offered gameplay. The single player I covered last week and now after playing the multiplayer demo all week long, I am more than satisfied. Bioware have given the player the opportunity of customizing the appearance and abilities of your character, just like you can in the single player mode. As a big fan of third person shooters and RTS being able to customize appearance was a good instalment. The armour and weapons available to your character differ with the class that you select. You can choose Adept, Soldier, Engineer, Sentinel, Infiltrator and Vanguard classes. They range from close combat with use of the omni-blade to biotic based powers from range. The multiplayer also features a store which offers you a choice of three packs to purchase. The first pack you get for three and the other two cost some credits. But after just one game I was able to buy a veteran pack and improve the equipment I could take into a match with me. So it doesn’t take long until you can buy packs which come with medi-gel, weapon mods and instant addition thermal clips. At the start you are capable of carrying two weapons into the match with you. You can have two primary weapons or one primary and one secondary; secondary being sub-machine gun, shotgun or hand cannon. The heavier the weapons are however, the longer your powers take to recharge, which is a very clever addition to an already thorough multiplayer system.

From Dust has been called a God game, with Populous the most frequent reference, but in play it bears closer relations to Bullfrogs other classic, Theme Hospital. More a management simulation than a true god game, it’s also an excellent sandbox. Your objective might be to reach the end of the level, but you’ll often find that the opportunity to play outside that is simply irresistible.

 
The Mass Effect 3 demo is finally here and it comes with 1.8gb of Single and Multiplayer gameplay. This is a review of the single player mode. Just like anyone who has fallen in love with the previous two Mass Effect titles I was eager to get this underway and play it over and over again until my Xbox burns out.  I could not be more pleased with what Bioware has crammed into this demo. There is a good amount of customisation for your character for a demo and it shows the predicted features of final product. After deciding with the appearance of your Male or Female Sheppard you get to chose your preferred class and way of play as well as the psychological profile of the character. You get to choose from the following:

Soldier – Pure combat, focus on weapons and heavy armour

Infiltrator – Tech and combat balance, favours the sniper and is capable of cloaking.

Vanguard – Close quarter combat, use of powers such as pull and shockwave to move and stun enemies and allowing for the close fighting

Sentinel – Tech and biotics. Equips an advanced shield and can detonate armour when near enemies and explode for splash damage.

Undoubtedly one of the biggest games to be released for the 3DS will be the remake of  Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. Huge news within itself but one that has been overshadowed somewhat by the release of the Metal Gear Solid HD collection for PS3. In order to generate more attention for this release Nintendo have decided to put a demo version of the game on the eShop for players to whet their appetite before the game’s release on March 8th.

Much like the Sons of Liberty demo that came with the original Zone of the Enders game on the Playstation 2, this demo places the player in the very first level of the game, known as the ‘Virtuous Mission’. Like the rest of the game, it’s set during the Cold War. The protagonist, named “Naked Snake”, must rescue a captured scientist from within a Soviet Union facility. That’s pretty much all that is revealed for the demo. There is no opening cutscene, and much of the dialogue focuses on the mission at hand rather than the overall plot.

Video is coutesy of IGN.com and the company's Youtube channel: IGNentertainment

So the Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning video game has been released in the United States and has received unbelievably high praise. Due to the involvement of Ken Rolsten, and the fact that it's an RPG, the game is being compared to the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which was awarded Game of the Year status. The simple connection is Ken Rolsten but both video games offer an expansive database full of lore and history. Reckoning offers a simple world for you to travel in however as well as a better constructed quest system. The flow of the game is more linear than the Elder Scrolls series which gave you the freedom to basically wreak havoc. In Reckoning you have such a strong range of spells to cast, as well as a list of skills and attributes which become even more impressive with the new equipment that you find throughout the game. The power of your skills and talents are on a larger scale in comparison to almost any other video game out there. Until it's released here on the 10th however there's not a lot I can tell you, just passing on IGN's well respected words.

George Bush has just been re-elected as president! The Mars reconnaissance orbiter has just launched! And the 2012 olympics have just been awarded to London! That’s right, reader, you’ve been taken on a magical journey back to 2005, the year this humble video gaming hack reckons the industry turned on its axis irreversibly. Why? The launch of the Xbox 360, the first of the current generation consoles to see the light of day outside of the darkened, dingy labs in which they were probably all created.

Set for release on February 10th, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is one of the most anticipated games of 2012. The game has been created and developed by Big Huge Games and EA have put their name behind it.

Taken from the game's FAQ page: http://www.ea.com/uk/reckoning/1/faq

Q. “What can you tell me about the game?”
A. “Set in the Kingdoms of Amalur™ universe, Reckoning will offer unrivaled RPG action combat, seamlessly integrating magical and melee attacks into an innovative and visceral experience. Reckoning includes hundreds of quests, characters, creatures, weapons and spells. More details about the game will be revealed over the coming weeks and months.”

The developers are promising one of the best mixtures of combat and story writing so far in an RPG and if you've played the demo you will agree with them. The game offers a fairly good variety of skills to unlock as you level up and a simple inventory system for your character; but also taking the cartoon style graphics to create the world imagined by R.A. Salvatore is a good way to go.
EA’s link to Mass Effect also allows you to unlock in-game items in both game demos. If you complete the Mass Effect 3 demo then you unlock Omni-blade daggers in Kingdoms of Amalur and if you complete the Kingdoms demo then you unlock a tasty piece of armour and a chakram launcher in Mass Effect 3; so it’s worth playing the demo’s if you plan to get one of the biggest RPG’s in recent years.

So keep counting down to February 10th and soon you’ll be playing what is supposed to be one of the must play games of 2012.

In the Darkness II Jackie Estacado will be taking you on a trail of destruction, as he becomes one with his powers again. Whilst tackling an unknown faction, craving for the possession of the darkness. First and foremost the art direction, is the most striking element of the game. The developers have approached the visuals, with a comic book presentation in mind. Reflecting the gritty but rich world of the mob in terms of the atmosphere.

Bloodshed is aplenty especially when you use the darkness, to dismember your enemies. Controlling the demon arms with your left and right trigger buttons, can either initiate a slash, Melee attack or a projectile launch at your enemy (e.g. a car door). The shooting mechanics are accurate and deadly. Firearms and demon arms are both as lethal as each other.

Once combined you can take out  waves of enemies, in an entertaining but gory fashion. Adding to the experience, is the ability to dual wield any pistol or sub machine gun.  The Darkness II is shaping up to be a unique, must have shooter for fans of the series and newcomers alike. Watch this space as we approach February 10th 2012, when The Darkness II is released for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.