I cannot believe that I would ever post anything “Hello Kitty” on a site named “Zombiegamer”, but this is for a real good cause.

Throughout September Sanrio Digital is hosting a unique online charity event in Hello Kitty Online (HKO), the official massively multi-player online game (MMOG) of Hello Kitty®, to raise money for initiatives by [...more after a munch...]]]>

I cannot believe that I would ever post anything “Hello Kitty” on a site named “Zombiegamer”, but this is for a real good cause.

Throughout September Sanrio Digital is hosting a unique online charity event in Hello Kitty Online (HKO), the official massively multi-player online game (MMOG) of Hello Kitty^®, to raise money for initiatives by Oceana, an international organization focused on ocean conservation, and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). In the month of September, Hello Kitty Online’s “Chocolate Harbour Rescue” allows players to generate donations in response to two current concerns: the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and the massive floods that have destroyed much of Pakistan.

Chocolate Harbour Rescue is a brand new Hello Kitty Online in-game charity event running September 9 – 30, 2010. When an accident at an offshore chocolate refinery spills tons of the sweet stuff into the sea, Sanrio Harbour is inundated by sugary threats. The whole zone is a mess, but fortunately Pochacco is on the scene to recruit volunteers. Interested players should talk to Pochacco in Sanrio Harbour to receive a free Mop-A-Choc which they can use to help clean up the chocolaty mess and generate donation points. When the chocolates are all cleaned up, players will receive virtual chocolate bags full of special rewards.

“Chocolate Harbour Rescue is an event that gives players the opportunity to do something about the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and the tragic floods in Pakistan while having fun in our exciting virtual world,” said Robert Ferrari, vice president of publishing and business development, Sanrio Digital. “One of the goals of Hello Kitty Online is to encourage all players to contribute to relief efforts for real world problems. Our in-game events are our way of promoting charitable causes.”

At the end of the month-long event, Sanrio Digital will use the total donation points generated by all HKO players to calculate cash donations to Oceana and UNICEF, with each receiving 50% of the total. Oceana is an ocean conservation society that is researching the impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the largest such spill in history. UNICEF is an international organization providing humanitarian assistance in developing countries, currently working to deliver aid in flood-devastated Pakistan. In August, UNICEF issued a press release warning that its life-saving operations in Pakistan are in jeopardy due to a shortfall in funding. Hello Kitty Online encourages players and fans to donate and/or volunteer directly by visiting http://na.oceana.org/, http://www.unicef.org/, and other charitable organizations.

Chocolate Harbour Rescue continues Hello Kitty Online’s drive to recruit players to participate in socially responsible causes. Highly popular HKO charity events have already benefited Doctors Without Borders’ mission in earthquake-struck Haiti, UNICEF, The Asian Youth Orchestra, and the Po Leung Kuk orphanage. A sample of Hello Kitty Online charity events is available at http://www.hellokittyonline.com/charity.

Nexuiz is an upcoming XBLA and PSN cult futuristic Arena First-Person Shooter out this Winter which is powered by CryENGINE®3. Nexuiz is a fast paced Arena first-person shooter with competitive game play built specifically for consoles.

Featuring the innovative mutator system, players progress through the ranks opening up new mutators that allow players to [...more after a munch...]]]>

Nexuiz is an upcoming XBLA and PSN cult futuristic Arena First-Person Shooter out this Winter which is powered by CryENGINE^®3. Nexuiz is a fast paced Arena first-person shooter with competitive game play built specifically for consoles.

Featuring the innovative mutator system, players progress through the ranks opening up new mutators that allow players to alter the rules for each match. On launch, Nexuiz will feature multiplayer modes including Team Deathmatch and Capture the Flagcomplete with full competitive leader boards designed for social networking. New games modes, models, and maps will be available as downloadable content post launch.

Nexuiz is set in a galactic war fueled for centuries by the Kavussari and Forsellians. Over time the two races entered into treaties with the Herald Accord, a union between different cultures in the galaxy. Even though peace settled across their planets, the seething hatred between the races kept the fire of war simmering under the fragile truce. Sensing their newest members could spread war throughout the galaxy; the Herald Accord gave the Kavussari and Forsellians a choice. Pit their warriors against each other in the arena rather than on the fields of war, or face total annihilation. The Nexuiz was formed, a series of battle arenas on the home planets of the Kavussari, Forsellian and the desolate planet of Atavirta.

For those of you that don’t know of Peter MacKay, he is a Canadian Minister of Parliament and from what I have read, not the most popular either.

Like many others before him, MacKay is not happy with the game because it has the option of playing Taliban fighters which is fair enough, however I don’t believe his [...more after a munch...]]]>

For those of you that don’t know of Peter MacKay, he is a Canadian Minister of Parliament and from what I have read, not the most popular either.

Like many others before him, MacKay is not happy with the game because it has the option of playing Taliban fighters which is fair enough, however I don’t believe his argument is quite the sharpest. In a press release McKay pointed out that, “The men and women of the Canadian Forces, our allies, aid workers and innocents Afghans are being shot at, and sometimes killed, by the Taliban, this is reality. I find it wrong to have anyone, children in particular, playing the role of the Taliban. I’m sure most Canadians are uncomfortable and angry about this.”

Children? Who’s parents are going to allow their kids to play a game that will be filled with people getting shot and gore every other minute? I know most people pay little attention to ESRB ratings, but I seriously do not see a parent picking up a copy for little Johnny when they read the description of this, or most shooters for that matter.

So to anyone else that plans to join the Medal of Honor hate brigade, please come up with a better argument than it is not good for children. I can promise you on some level, no shooter will be good for their sensitive eyes, be it shooting US, French or people from the Island of Fiji… all bad. Sir, Medal of Honor was not aimed at children, that you can be sure of.

Looking for a good time with family, friends and a Wii. Look no further than Oops! Prank Party which has gone gold. The upcoming title ships on Oct. 5 and will be exclusively on Wii TM .

The game, published by Hudson Entertainment, the North and South American subsidiary of HUDSON SOFT, continues Hudson’s [...more after a munch...]]]>

Looking for a good time with family, friends and a Wii. Look no further than Oops! Prank Party which has gone gold. The upcoming title ships on Oct. 5 and will be exclusively on Wii ^TM .

The game, published by Hudson Entertainment, the North and South American subsidiary of HUDSON SOFT, continues Hudson’s legacy of party games and features 100 brain-teasing, puzzle-solving, reflex-testing party games.

“Players can play through an incredibly fun, smart mix of 100 games that will liven up any party or family gathering,” said Mike Pepe, director of marketing for Hudson Entertainment. “And at just $19.99, it’s a great value and consumers will definitely get their money’s worth.”

Oops! Prank Party even makes losing fun with embarrassing costumes and pranks for the mini-game winner to assign to any losing player, who will be stuck in the silly costume for the duration of the game. With unlockable levels and one of the most robust avatar creators in a party game, players can put their personality directly into the game, including more than 500 avatar customization elements.

Oops! Prank Party features four play modes to get the party started:

• Master mode invites up to three players to try and best the master computer player
• Board mode puts a spin on gameplay by placing players on one of seven boards in a race for points
• Free Play mode gives players total reign to build their own competition from unlocked games
• Trial mode seeks to find the best competitor in different game mixes

For more information on Oops! Prank Party and Hudson Entertainment, please visit www.oopsprankparty.com

By Clinton “dreddsix6six” O’Shea

Overview

Let me be quite blunt here – Spider-Man is not really my favourite comic book hero ever.  He is always a little bit too emo for me to be honest and a little too cocky at times.  He needs to be cut down to size sometime.  The next problem the [...more after a munch...]]]>

By Clinton “dreddsix6six” O’Shea

Overview

Let me be quite blunt here – Spider-Man is not really my favourite comic book hero ever.  He is always a little bit too emo for me to be honest and a little too cocky at times.  He needs to be cut down to size sometime.  The next problem the web-slinger faces is that Batman: Arkham Asylum came along and raised the bar for “super-hero” games, and it’s not like previous Spider-Man games were exactly mind-blowing.  So now the poor dude has an Arkham Asylum fan that doesn’t really like him, reviewing his latest game…will it all end in tears?

Features and Game play

Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions has a rather intriguing premise – play as four different Spider-Men over four different dimensions.  However, don’t think for a second that means jumping at will between them, but it does add a rather nice twist to the gameplay, as each dimension has a different style – both in terms of gameplay and look.  The overall constant is that all the dimensions play out in third person, with a little first person switch in some boss battles.  In fact all the levels are essentially themed around a specific boss, with you, as the Spider-Man attempting to “chase” and defeat said boss – Deadpool, Electro, Carnage and many more make their appearance along with their henchmen.  You are after all these “bad” guys to get back some stone.  Yep, stone.  But wait, it’s not any old stone, it’s pieces of an ancient magical slab, the very thing needed to restore ‘the shattered fabric of reality’.  Gulp.

So what’s all this about Spider-MEN you ask?  Well you get to whip ass over the four dimensions as the ‘Amazing’ Spider-Man, ‘Ultimate’ Spider-Man, Spider-Man ’2099′ and ‘Noir’ Spider-Man.  Again, don’t go thinking you can choose which one.  Like the whole dimension thing, the level (read boss) you are fighting dictates which one you will play as.  Yes, the game is linear.  You do get the chance to choose which order you would like to complete each ‘Act’ in, but open-world it is not.  Maybe not a bad thing, but, considering each Spider-Man has unique abilities, it would’ve been absolutely awesome to choose your preferred Spider-Man and kick seven shades of [damage] out of the evil-doers.

The Amazing Spider-Man isn’t quite as amazing as he thinks (and boy, does he like to say it too) – he is the stereotype Spider-Man that the world has kind of grown to know (and in some cases love or hate).  Present day setting is present and correct.  Web combat is, well, there.  Boring blue and red outfit is…boring still.  Essentially, this is also the man to blame for all the trouble that is happening – he was stupid enough to punch the large slab and cause it to break in to smaller ones that he, and his alter egos, must now recapture.  Man, I hate this fool.

The other Spider-Men however, are 100% better.  ‘Ultimate’ Spider-Man comes replete in the powerful black suit – and of course that just looks cooler.  He also has a ‘Rage’ ability, which equals mass destruction on a relatively grander scale than ‘Amazing’ can do.  The 2099 version fights in a slightly more ‘vertical’ city and has a rather sinister way about him.  He also brings a freefall ability to the game – almost a mini racing game in a techno city – as well as the ability to slow time.  The ultimate (pun possibly intended), absolutely best of them all is the ‘Noir’ Spider-Man.  Of all the dimensions, this is truly the one that stands apart from the others.  While the other three tend to be colourful beat ‘em ups in corridors, the Noir setting is striking and a complete contrast.  It has a sepia finish on the graphics given it a slightly brown hue.  It also drops the beat ‘em up, bash ‘em up of the others and uses stealth as its key ingredient.

Now, at this point, the parallels between Arkham Asylum and Shattered Dimensions need to be pointed out, as it is the right thing to do.  Batman introduced the wonderful, but easy to overuse, ‘Detective Mode’…Spider-Man almost copied it wholesale and called it ‘Spider Sense’ (push up on the D-pad).  Batman used stealth as a weapon…Spider-Man does this too in every sense, but only in the Noir dimension – the shadows are your friend there.  Now, a sceptic may think I’m about to say that lacks originally.  And that sceptic is right.  However, this is the games major saving grace.  Out of all the dimensions, I could play the stealth option only.  And this again brings me to a point I made earlier – why couldn’t I choose my (Spider-) Man of choice…?

So, as can be garnered from the above paragraphs, the game is essentially a third person action beat ‘em up that follows a set pattern of chase the boss, fight the henchmen, fight the boss, boss escapes, chase the boss, fight the henchman, fight the boss, etc.  To change things up a little as you battle through the levels, you can collect ‘spider emblems’, which along with the simple act of clobbering bad guys, allow you to get Combat and Character upgrades to further dish out the pain, as well as some alternative costumes.  These become unlocked to ‘purchase’ as you complete in-game challenges – “web-zip ‘x’ number of enemies”, “stealth takedown ‘x’ number of enemies”, etc.

Graphics are, except for the ‘Noir’ levels a little disappointing.  Yes, the comic book feel is there in all the glory of cel-shading and vibrant colours, but it all feels so…2D.  There are some cutscenes, especially the opening sequence one, which really come alive, but the in-game graphics seemed functional at best.  Although, to be fair, maybe I just wanted a grittier feel from the graphics – hence my preference for the ‘Noir’ levels.  The sound and voice acting are all perfectly in keeping with the game’s style.  Cheesy.  Not a bad thing, but considering Peter Parker and his alter ego are not my favourite people in the world, I constantly wished he would STFU.

Controls are infuriating at times, but I’ve always found myself completely confused when movement leaves the floor and heads up the walls and along the ceiling, so some of that is my own fault, not the games.  However, the camera angle can also accept some responsibility at times – it’s not going to get away that easily.  The problem appeared to disappear as I played on.  But, that may have been because I stopped walking on the ceiling.

Bits I Loved

• The ‘Noir’ dimension.
• Rage mode made me feel invincible.
• Some promising ideas.
• Each dimension has its own style.

Bits I Hated

• It isn’t Batman.
• Quite repetitive.
• Boss battles are a little uninspiring.

Conclusion

Against all odds, I found myself not completely disliking the game.  This is possibly the best Spider-Man game to date, but not the best “Super-hero” game to date.  If you are a Spidey fan, you won’t be disappointed at all.  If you are a fan of games, don’t go expecting any dimension shattering gameplay…

Zombiegamer rating:

Buy it here.

Link to site for more info, screen shots and videos: Official site

Eighty of the gaming industry’s heads will gather at the Montreal International Gaming Summit to discuss various aspects of the business and they will be outlining some of the key aspects.

Ed Fries (ex Microsoft VP) and Ron Carmel (founder of 2D boy) will be providing the main keynotes for the event and various other [...more after a munch...]]]>

Eighty of the gaming industry’s heads will gather at the Montreal International Gaming Summit to discuss various aspects of the business and they will be outlining some of the key aspects.

Ed Fries (ex Microsoft VP) and Ron Carmel (founder of 2D boy) will be providing the main keynotes for the event and various other gaming heads will provide speeches including, Steve Beaudoin (Technical Art Director Ubisoft Québec), Thierry Dansereau (Art Director Ubisoft Québec), Yannick Roy (Studio Director Bioware), Olivier Proulx (Senior Producer Electronic Arts) and Ollie Sykes (Creative Director Electronic Arts) to name but a few.

Ollie Sykes and Olivier Proulx from EA are to give a special presentation on the benefits and pitfalls of developing games on Apple devices as apposed to PC, which has been the majority norm.

Heading a talk on the technical section will be Square Enix’ global chief technical officer, Julien Merceron, who is to talk about the special challenges faced in building a global technology strategy for when East meets West.

The full list of speakers has been released for November’s Montreal International Games Summit, with Ryan Challinor, Craig Morrison and many other luminaries giving talks on various areas of the videogames business.

The full list of the speakers is available at the summit’s website.

Paramount Digital Entertainment is launching the title in celebration of the 20th anniversary of Days of Thunder by releasing a game that mixes the best of the classic racing movie with today’s top NASCAR stars. The upcoming title is for both Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

Paramount have released to the press four driver profile pics for [...more after a munch...]]]>  

Paramount Digital Entertainment is launching the title in celebration of the 20th anniversary of Days of Thunder by releasing a game that mixes the best of the classic racing movie with today’s top NASCAR stars. The upcoming title is for both Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

Paramount have released to the press four driver profile pics for Days of Thunder: Nascar which are from the Playstation 3 version.

See pics below.

Amazon US has announced that the retail giant plans to drop their release day delivery charges for many games to 99 cents… seriously.

They are dropping from around $6 they were charging before, and on top of that they usually have games priced  below. The $5.99 would ensure US citizens of having their new releases on release day, which [...more after a munch...]]]>

Amazon US has announced that the retail giant plans to drop their release day delivery charges for many games to 99 cents… seriously.

They are dropping from around $6 they were charging before, and on top of that they usually have games priced  below. The $5.99 would ensure US citizens of having their new releases on release day, which is only around R40. Wouldn’t you pay R40 for day one delivery guaranteed? I would, but now it is around R8 – day one – guaranteed!

Amazon did say that this was not on all titles which suggest that that they could possibly have an arrangement with some publishers. They have confirmed AAA titles like Call of Duty: Black Ops and Halo: Reach at this insane price.

The launch of Activision Publishing, Inc.’s (Nasdaq: ATVI) Guitar Hero®: Warriors of Rock is almost upon us and to whet the appetites of gaming’s rock fans, the Guitar Hero® Music Library expands today with the Rock 1 Track Pack. Featuring hits by bands such as Faith No More, Godsmack, Limp Bizkit, Marilyn Manson, [...more after a munch...]]]>

The launch of Activision Publishing, Inc.’s (Nasdaq: ATVI) Guitar Hero^®: Warriors of Rock is almost upon us and to whet the appetites of gaming’s rock fans, the Guitar Hero^® Music Library expands today with the Rock 1 Track Pack. Featuring hits by bands such as Faith No More, Godsmack, Limp Bizkit, Marilyn Manson, Orgy and Papa Roach, the Rock 1 Track Pack is sure to have fans shredding right into the launch of Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock. The Rock 1 track pack will be compatible with Guitar Hero^® 5 and Band Hero^®, as well as forward compatible with Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock and will feature the following tracks:

• Faith No More – “Epic”
• Godsmack – “I Stand Alone”
• Limp Bizkit – “Nookie”
• Marilyn Manson – “The Dope Show”
• Orgy – “Blue Monday”
• Papa Roach – “Last Resort”

The Rock 1 Track Packs will be available on Xbox LIVE^® Marketplace for the Xbox 360^® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft for 880 Microsoft Points, on the PlayStation^®Store for PlayStation^®3 computer entertainment system for £7.22 and for Wii^TM for 1100 Wii Points^TM. All songs in the Rock 1 Track Pack will also be released as downloadable singles for the Xbox 360^® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft for 160 Microsoft Points, PlayStation 3 system for £1.59 and Wii for 200 Wii Points each. In addition to the in-game music store and Xbox LIVE Marketplace for Xbox 360, Xbox 360 owners can expand their Guitar Hero music library using the Guitar Hero VIP Pass Music Store, available exclusively on Xbox LIVE^® online entertainment network.

For more information about Guitar Hero 5, Band Hero, Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock and their entire line-up of downloadable songs and disc imports, please visit www.guitarhero.com.

Konami Digital Entertainment Inc. today unveiled Silent Hill 8 which is still a working title, scheduled to launch in 2011 on the PlayStation®3 and Xbox 360®.

The upcoming eighth title in the series is staying true to the franchise’s original roots, the game returns with another third person horror experience, and an all new [...more after a munch...]]]>

Konami Digital Entertainment Inc. today unveiled Silent Hill 8 which is still a working title, scheduled to launch in 2011 on the PlayStation^®3 and Xbox 360^®.

The upcoming eighth title in the series is staying true to the franchise’s original roots, the game returns with another third person horror experience, and an all new thought provoking storyline. Players will once again find themselves face to face with their deepest sins and fears in the strange world of Silent Hill.

“In honoring the rich history and strong following of Silent Hill, we’re working hard to build a next generation horror game that the fans truly deserve,” said Shinji Hirano, President of Konami Digital Entertainment Inc. “This Silent Hill introduces an all-new storyline and unique evolutions in gameplay, building on innovations and successes from over a decade of true survival horror and terror.”

The survival horror experience begins after a prison transport vehicle careens off the road, leaving lone inmate Murphy Pendleton stranded in Silent Hill. Gamers will encounter mind-bending puzzles, as well as horrific creatures and otherworld terrors using everyday objects from wooden chairs to glass bottles to fend off their enemies. The natural response, fight or flight is left to the player as they unravel a dark, thought-provoking storyline which will appeal to fans of the early, classic Silent Hill series, as well as anyone who enjoys a deep, psychological horror experience. In addition to the main storyline, players will also be presented with variable side quests along the way that can change depending on their play style, revealing unknown evils within the town.

For additional information, please visit the game’s official site.