Manny704 Blog

New Assassins Creed video takes a deep look into the franchise's history.

Manny — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 17:05:00 GMT

Ubisoft's latest Assassins Creed video takes you back in time and gives a brief retrospective on every product ever released in the franchise's history.

Not that the company really needs to do anything else to market a product that practically sells itself at this point, but I can't deny the fact that the video does make me want to play every single game all over again!

The video clocks in at little over three minutes, so its a quick, but VERY interesting watch.

Just sit back, relax, and follow the link above to see just how deep the rabbit hole goes.

Operation Rainfall proceeds with phase two

Manny — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 13:30:00 GMT

For those of you that aren't too familiar with what exactly Operation Rainfall is, here's a quick overview of what it's all about; "Operation Rainfall is a community-driven movement of like-minded gamers who enjoy quality Japanese video games, and want to see three great titles release stateside." Earlier this year, the group expressed exrememe discontent over Nintendo's decision to not release Xenoblade, Pandora's Tower, and The Last Story in North America.

The group has now began an interesting second movement, or "Operation Rainfall: Phase two," as they like to call it. The plans calls for a "mass purchase" of Final Fantasy on the Wii's Virtual Console on August 19 (the same day Xenoblade launches in Europe). The idea behind it, is to show Nintendo of America that there is still a good market for Japanese Roleplaying Games here in the U.S.

While I get the whole idea behind the movement, I can't say I agree with the game they've picked. Either way though, it's still great to see gamers come together under one banner and stand up for what they believe in.

So now that the line has been drawn, and the revolution has begun, what will you you? Will you stand up and answer the call to arms?

Let me know in a comment below.

Bungie's new trademark hints at next title

Manny — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Bungie is one of those very rare companies that needs little introduction. After creating the very successful Halo franchise, the company parted ways with Microsoft, leaving the fate of their masterpiece in the hands of the company's "343 industries." Shortly after it's departure from Microsoft, Bungie announced that it would continue to build triple-A games, and seek to establish itself once again as a world-class studio through a new IP. However, details on the VERY secretive, Activision-Published, title has been incredibly hard to come by. And although Bungie still isn't saying anything about their next game, the latest bit of news might be enough to make some fans happy.

Bungie has just recently reported that they have trademarked the taglines "Be Brave" and "Destiny."

If their Halo 3 tagline -(Finish the Fight)- is anything to go by, then chances are the company is working on another futuristic Sci-Fi shooter as their next project.

Whatever the case may be, I'm extremely excited about this title. Bungie has proven itself time and time again as being one of the very best studios in the industry, and that alone makes me anxious to learn more about their next project.

Isaac's worst nightmare, Dead Space could have been "canceled"

Manny — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 01:39:00 GMT

The original Dead Space may have been a huge hit when it launched, and while the idea seemed original and promising to just about anyone who took a second to read about it, EA wasn't too enthusiastic about the idea at first. During a recent interview with CVG, executive producer Steve Papoutsis revealed what scared him the most while working on the first game; there was a good chance the whole project could have been “cancelled” at any moment.

During his interview, Papoutsis spoke of the “immense pressure” his was under in order to create a more appealing product for EA, and that he was worried that “at any minute we might have got cancelled.”

“EA might have said, ‘This isn’t making any progress, we don’t like it.’”

With Dead Space 2 due early next year, chances are Dead Space 3 is already well under way, and while it might not be exactly a "hint" at future titles, this, along with Papoutsi's previous statement about "looking forward to working on Dead Space 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10 and 20” does show a promising future for the Dead Space franchise.

So, next time you're playing Dead Space, and get a little worried about about Isaac's mental health, just remember that he's had to overcome a lot more than just necromorphs on his journey to fame.

Metro 2033 DLC coming next week

Manny — Tue, 11 May 2010 22:35:00 GMT

Lets face it, Metro 2033 was a financial success for 4A games, and as so, it’s only logical that the company would take advantage and capatilize on the opportunity to make some extra cash on some DLC. So, while it might not be a surprise that the game is finally getting some DLC, what might come as a surprise, however, is how soon it will be available to gamers.

The company has just recently announced via the game’s official Twitter feed, that the Metro 2033 DLC is almost finish, and could possibly be revealed before the end of the week.

“like a fine single malt, the DLC is almost done… we hope to be able to take the wraps off it this week”

Based on previously made comments by the studio, a couple things can already be ruled out as to what gamers can expect in terms of the DLC. When the game’s DLC development began back in March, the developer had already cleared up a few things, stating that any add-on content that may get released will not contain any new narrative content for the single-player campaign, nor missing levels or the addition of a multiplayer component. “That would be very cool, but sadly not possible.”

So, what can we expect from Metro 2033’s DLC? More Weapons?… Maybe some extra Ammo?… I guess we’ll have to wait a few more days to find out.

Dead Space 2 not coming this year

Manny — Tue, 11 May 2010 22:26:00 GMT

EA is either trying to just straight-out ruin my day, or they just want to straight-out ruin my day. I just don’t see any other reason behind the latest bit of news to come out of the mega-publisher.

According to a release schedule, which included EA’s freshly released fiscal results, Dead Space 2 will not be making an appearance this year after all.

The dreadful little document has the hugely successful title down for a Q4 fiscal 2011 release, which means the game could be available anywhere between January 2011, and March 2011.

Wow, and to think I was actually having a pretty good day so far.

All three major consoles to possibly get price cuts this year

Manny — Tue, 11 May 2010 22:25:00 GMT

Surprise surprise, just when you thought both Sony and Microsoft had gone as low as they could possibly go with the pricing of their home consoles, comes some rather unique (and always welcomed) news. According to a senior global publishing source of MCV, both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 are in for additional price cuts this year.

The source makes some pretty tough claims, stating that the cuts will undoubtedly happen before the end of the year, but could possibly be seen as early as E3 next month.

The news does coincide with the fact that Sony is believed to introduce a new entry-level system, and while there’s nothing down on paper yet, Microsoft is also believe to soon be making an Xbox 360/Natal bundle available.

Additionally, the source also predicts that Nintendo may very well bring down the price of its Nintendo Wii to hold off possible competition from both, Microsoft’s Project Natal, and Sony’s PlayStation Move. However, Nintendo UK has already dismissed such claims, stating that “This is total rumour and speculation and we currently have no plans to cut the price of Wii in the UK.”

Capcom to take Mega Man Online?

Manny — Tue, 11 May 2010 22:22:00 GMT

It seems that almost every major developer out there has a little secret that they just aren’t willing to share with anyone. Obviously, Ubisoft is on the top, with its recent Assassins Creed website and all. Who knows what they have in store for us with that. However, Ubisoft isn’t the only one with big secrets. Recently, Capcom’s 2011 fiscal plans gave light on something called “Mega Man Online.” According to a financial report, Capcom is working on the title alongside the South Korea-based Neowiz Games.

This interesting little bit of news now joins a very similar from late last month, in which, according to a trademark filing with the US Patent and Trademark Office, Capcom also happens to be working on something called “Mega Man Universe.”

I'm not entirely sure as to what exactly Capcom’s plans are for their Mega Man franchise at the moment, but I have a feeling that a lot will be revealed once E3 rolls around.

Ninja Theory’s Enslaved finally gets debut-trailer

Manny — Mon, 10 May 2010 19:30:00 GMT

Man, news is just pouring in from everywhere today. First we get some new LittleBigPlanet 2 screens, then, about an hour later, we get word that a new trailer for the game was released, and now this: a nice little debut trailer to Ninja Theory’s upcoming, Enslaved.

A while back we heard a little about Enslaved, a game being developed by the creative minds behind Heavenly Sword. Except a little about the overall story-line, not that much is really known about the title right now. Still, Enslaved is a very highly-anticipated game, and probably one of the “most wanted” titles of 2010.

The trailer shows some of the platforming that players will experience once the game launches, as well as a small glimpse at some of the enemies, and the overall battle system. While the game doesn’t quite make the impact Heavenly Sword did back in 2007, I have to admit that I'm still very anxious to get my hands on it.

Check out the newly-released trailer for yourself.

PS3 users to get live baseball games, reports the New York Times

Manny — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 18:34:00 GMT

It looks like Microsoft isn’t the only one trying to bring TV over to its gamers. Apparently Sony wants a slice of the cake too. If a recent report by the New York Times is to be believed, Sony is expected to make a big announcement today; one that is sure to excite baseball fans all around the world.

“By the end of the week, PlayStation owners will be able to sign up with MLB.TV to watch out-of-market baseball games transmitted over the Internet.” Reports the New York Times, “It is the latest in a series of digital distribution deals recently announced by sports franchises.”

No pricing for the subscription has yet been announced, though the package is estimated to cost you around $100-120 annually, or between $20-25 per month.

So, will you pay the extra cash to watch baseball games via the PSN once Sony makes the official announcement?

Batman: Arkham Asylum 2 probably not coming this year, comments UK source

Manny — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 17:16:00 GMT

If you thought you were going to be able to get your hands on Rocksteady’s highly anticipated, Batman: Arkham Asylum 2 -tentative title- this holiday season, think again. Warner Bros. has officially announced that they are keeping an eye on an early 2011 release.

While there have been several suggestions of a pre-holiday 2010 release, that release date is probably not going to happen, as a senior UK retail source has told CVG that the game’s publisher, Warner Bros. is more interested in taking advantage of and completely dominating Q1 of next year instead.

“We’ve been told that Warner has acted early to avoid releasing the game into a heavily congested pre-Christmas market,” commented the source. “It wants to dominate the first quarter of 2011 instead, when it can get maximum retail space and mindshare amongst gamers.”

Judging by the successful launches of Q1 2010 games such as Mass Effect 2, Heavy Rain, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, and God of War III -to just name a couple- I think it might be a great idea for the publisher to pick such a release date, and would probably just go ahead and scratch out Batman: Arkhan Asylum 2 out of the 2010 “Games to Play” list.

New Silent Hill could be a FPS

Manny — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 16:16:00 GMT

A while back ,we got word that Konami had revealed a new Silent Hill game at a German press event. However, what we didn’t hear about was the direction in which Konami wanted to take that game.

Well, It appears that the next iteration of the horror action video-game might just come in the form of a first-person shooter.

If there’s any truth to the recent reports, developer Vatra Games is working on a FPS based on a “major franchise for the Xbox 360, PS3, an PC” which is due to be out Q1 of 2011.

I’m not entirely sure what to make of this. I suppose that since Silent Hill is a survival-horror game, it would make for an interesting first-person shooter, but I'll hold of judgment on that until I can get a little more dirt on this rumor.

Famous Japanese gaming magazine gives Peace Walker perfect score

Manny — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 16:13:00 GMT

I'm not entirely sure how the famous Japanese Gaming Magizine, Famitsu, 40/40 games-rating system really works, or how they came up with it for that matter, but whatever the case may be, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker has managed to take home the gold, pulling of a perfect, no not 10/10, not even a 20/20, but an amazing 40/40.

While the game is still pretty far from being released in both the U.S. and Europe, one has to admit that snagging a perfect score from probably the most famous gaming magazine in Japan is a pretty impressive accomplishment.

The game hits store shelves here in the U.S. on June 17, and I have to tell you, the anticipation of trying this “perfectly-scored” game for myself is driving me nuts!

New Super Mario Galaxy 2 trailer shows Mario’s new cloud power-up in action

Manny — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 16:08:00 GMT

Ok, here's the deal, everyone's excited about Super Mario Galaxy 2, and you should just be honest with yourself, and just admit that you are too... What's that?... I heard someone say something all the way in the back. You say you're not excited?

Well, I have something that might just change your mind; A brand spanking new Super Mario Galaxy 2 trailer that's sure to win your heart over.

The newly released trailer gives some insight into how the recently announced cloud Mario power-up works, allowing you to literally take Mario to a who new level.

Check out the trailer for yourself.

Second Lost Planet 2 demo out today

Manny — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 15:45:00 GMT

Available now on Xbox Live, is the -previously only available through site giveaways and to some of Capcom’s own community members- second demo to the much anticipated sequel to Capcom’s 2007 award-winning, Lost Planet.

Players will now be able to experience some of the turbulent Jungle map they saw from early Lost Planet 2 trailers, as well as see a few other details announced a while back for themselves.

PlaySation 3 players will also be able to enjoy the demo once it hits PSN tomorrow, but the release date of May 11, can’t get here fast enough for me.