The name of the game is FUN and where Saints Row: The Third is concerned fun is delivered twenty-fold. As the third title in the sandbox-based Saints Row action series that many have cited as a Grand Theft Auto clone, Saints Row: The Third comes out the gates pushing boundaries, dropping jaws and separating itself in every comparison from Grand Theft Auto.

The Third Street Saints take their game outside of Stillwater (setting for the previous two titles) and hit the streets of Steelport. The series of events that lands our heroes (?) in Steelport is comical and utter madness at best, but once the guys and gals hit Steelport, one thing is clear: Get to the top of the food chain.

Once you hit the streets of Steelport, you get a chance to create your character by way of the customization system. Pay close attention because the customization system is pretty integral to the game as one of the major ways to earn respect (the equivalent of XP in Saints Row) overall. You may have already gotten a taste of this if you managed to download and try out the Saints Row: The Third Initiation Station. The level of customization and creation for your character is pretty in-depth (possibly rivaling that of Mass Effect) and it’s easy to see that virtually no two characters will turn out the same. Using the Initiation Station ahead of time, you can easily access characters that you created and plug them straight into the game, forgoing losing any time in the attempt to get your feet wet with the story mode of the game.

Steelport is under seige by three different gangs that are actually a united front calling themselves ‘The Syndicate’ and are controlling the entire city. The only way for the Saints to survive is to knock off the competition and take over Steelport. Getting through that means taking on the likes of cyber-terrorists the Deckers led by hacker extraordinaire Matt Miller, the masked paramilitary group the Luchadores led by wrestling sensation Eddie Killbane and the financial muscle of the Syndicate, the Morning Star, led by Phillipe Loren. Loren winds up being the primary target of the Saints’ wrath thanks, once again, to the events that led to the Saints arriving in Steelport. If having three unified gangs on your tail isn’t already bad enough, after gang war shenanigans come to a head during an important ceremony in the city, a US Senator calls in a government sanctioned military unit known as STAG who ultimately declare martial law on the city.

What does all this lead up to? The unleashing of unbridled mayhem on the township of Steelport itself. There’s no other way around it when you consider that the game gives you so many opportunities to do so and the results are downright hilarious (if not spectacular).

The main campaign for Saints Row: The Third will see you doing everything from breaking into military installations and stealing blockbuster bombs and UAV drones, to taking tigers on joyrides in convertibles, enduring a TRON-inspired computer environment, avoiding paparazzi while letting hookers do their thing in your backseats with their johns, and even selling yourself as a drugged out sex slave just to smash up the local prostitution ring in Steelport. You earn money and/or respect as you handle the missions which all pay off for boosters such as more territorial control of the map, new weapons, upgrades, and even clothing (which plays into more respect). Respect unlocks new abilities to you such as the ability to have multiple gang members for a small posse, increased ammo which will ultimately lead to infinite ammo as well as complete fluff abilities like “infinite sprint” and “no fall damage.”

The game gives you license to do anything and everything to net yourself more money and respect with challenges and side missions that sees players participating in streaking events to shock the public to participating in a run and gun game show killing human targets to jacking cars and delivering them to chop shops. As you move through the game, you get rewarded with more insane items such as a military VTOL hover jet and experimental weaponry, outlandish cribs (one being an actual nuclear reactor plant) and some of the most colorful allies that Steelport has to offer. Don’t believe me? Wait until you meet up with Zimos, a super pimp in Steelport that talks his talk through an autotune voicebox…

The notion that sex and violence sells is very thick in Saints Row: The Third and the antics that the developers cooked up for players to get into is downright artistic in the approach. It may mean that I’m shallow or easily amused by even saying this, but Saints Row: The Third gave me the diversion I have been looking for this year with its in your face humor, juvenile sexuality and twisted mayhem. While the story is zany and sometimes completely nonsensical at some parts (miniature zombie apocalypse?), it is definitely entertaining and pushes itself at a very good pace. There’s enough twists and turns to keep you wanting to move on, and major acts and in the decision to go one way or the other leading to some decent replay potential. The campaign mode will set you back a good 15-20 hours and even allows for online co-op for the actual story mode.

Featuring two endings, the fun doesn’t stop once you’ve beaten it as there’s also enough DLC (scheduled to run through a good part of 2012) to help maintain some more longevity after you’ve had your fill of the game.

Saints Row: The Third is a solid enough title with good graphics and some solid gameplay. There are a handful of glitches that’ll at times leave you scratching your head, but there’s nothing in there that’ll break the game or make you hurl your controllers across the room in disgust. The voice cast includes some big names such as Daniel Dae Kim (Hawaii Five-O, Lost), Yuri  Lowenthal (Ben 10: Ultimate Alien), Sasha Grey and Hulk Hogan who lend their talents well to the over-the-top appeal of the dialogue and the game has a very diverse soundtrack that keeps with the edge and tone of a present day action crime drama.

The game does not take itself seriously and once you realize that much, what you have is a very exciting adventure that doesn’t disappoint. Proving to break the norm of typical sandbox games of its type, Saints Row: The Third does its job of entertaining the masses by taking the known rule book and slinging it out the nearest window.

Ever wonder what might happen if some of your favorite car movies such Driver, Bullitt or Gone in Sixty Seconds and put zero limits on how over the top the stunts could get? That’s right, what you’d end up with is the last Fast and Furious movie. And although this game – Need for Speed: The Run – is as ridiculous as Fast Five, they have one thing in common. They both fall short being good and settle for mediocrity.

Despite me calling NFSTR mediocre, there are many things this game excels at. To start, there’s the premise of the game itself: taking the speed and carnage of the NFS franchise and going Gumball Rally with it. The Run takes things coast to coast in a race to see not only who makes it first but to see who manages to cross the finish line it at all. Some truly shady and nefarious characters are encountered along the way and the game’s protagonist is potrayed well enough, if a bit cocky and over confident, for his predicament. Throw in a plethora of cars that range from the most extravagant imaginable to the most nostalgically recollected.

Things went from cool to batshit crazy as I raced down the side of a mountain in a 280Z when a Sprinter Trueno makes a pass on me. In lot of ways, The Run simply oozes ‘cool for car guys’ out of more orifices than a Thai restaurant dish from a pissed off chef. Looking back, this is probably why other aspects disappointed me so much…

The beginning of the downers for me was the unremarkable visuals. Though I have to admit that taken as a whole, things weren’t offensive to the eye but as I focused in on details in specific I was unimpressed. When compared to other NFS titles such Shift 2, I never had a true sense of speed and once even lost myself in the visuals to simply observe. Which brings me to the second disconnect in my mind, the controls. While the game controls adequately, cars seemed to feel both slow and sluggish. In a title where obstacles in the road can (and often do) end your race, responsiveness is key.

My final nitpick is the lack of raw horsepower that comes from the sound presentation. The engines don’t seem to roar and scream like they should. Tire squeals don’t sound like violent shifts in weight that break traction. And once again, that’s even compared to other NFS titles. The motors do sound authentic and accurate, just emotionless. And there in lies the balancing act that can make things solid but unremarkable.

The Run has moments of being enjoyable filled with too many long gaps of being mundane. I wanted to like this game but couldn’t get past the feeling of simply playing to progress versus playing for the experience. Amidst so many other holiday season releases that suck you in to the point of not realizing where the time has gone, The Run doesn’t compete strongly enough to take you away.

It’s only been nine months since the release of the top scoring Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds and now the ultimate fighters from the Marvel & Capcom universes collide again. MvC3 was the most highly anticipated sequel to a fighting game in almost all of history (don’t worry, Tekken Tag Tournament 2 will take this mantle soon), but not even a year later, could Capcom have actually shot off the gun too early for fans of the game?

Let’s just go ahead and say it now, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is the versus game you’ve been waiting for. Boasting to be more than just an expansion to the game, UMvC3 features 12 new characters (6 from Marvel and the other 6 from Capcom) and sees the return of all original 36 characters along with DLC characters Jill Valentine and Shuma Gorath. Continuing with the benchmark fast paced action and gorgeous graphics of its predecessor, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is more than just another pretty face, it’s a refinement of the original game.

Capcom took a serious chance releasing this title and it pays off for them in spades. The game plays more seamlessly than last time featuring textbook combos that are a little more accessible (and even cheesier), smoother character animations and more outstanding effects and sounds. Gameplay has been completely rebalanced for UMvC3 and, while some battles are still completely lopsided, it doesn’t feel as crippling as was the case with the first game. The X-Factor mode has been toned down significantly. Unlike the last game where X-Factor furnished players with insane comebacks and outrageous acts of overkill no longer seems like the ultimate desperation move making victories seem a lot less cheap than before.

To say that Capcom simply tweaked MvC3 would be an injustice. Capcom fixed more than a few of MvC3‘s flaws and actually injected some real fun into the game (thanks to the inclusion of characters such as Phoenix Wright, Rocket Raccoon and Nova).

As with previous games in the series, players pick out three fighters each with their own unique assist types and set to work beating the competition senseless. With 48 characters to select from (50 if you include Jill and Shuma), the fighting game insanity that the series is known for is just as frantic as before and character interaction (read: smack-talking) is just as hilarious as ever. Galactus returns once again as the final boss and this time, he does more than just stand there and take it. Galactus actually fights back this time so don’t expect a pushover. To add some more of the proverbial ‘icing on the cake’, players can actually fill the shoes of the planet destroying nightmare in Galactus mode and unleash some sheer mayhem.

Traditionalists of the Versus series can say welcome back to Strider Hiryu (one of many characters sorely missed in MvC3) who continues to be a master of fluid special attacks and lightning strikes. Phoenix Wright matches the likes of Deadpool in the category of pure comedy and the cheeky Rocket Raccoon (he’s from Marvel, not Capcom) is a pretty serious contender to say the least.

In a world of flashy graphics and gimmicky characters, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 keeps the style going and doesn’t take any shame in doing so. The backgrounds and versus stages are just as beautiful and the soundtrack is just as playfully hokey as ever. The character selection screen better distinguishes the Capcom roster from the Marvel roster (which was a slight annoyance in MvC3) and everything comes together in another visual fest surely meant to induce epileptic seizures. The menu systems have also been reworked to fit in even more with the quirky comic book stylings establish by the previous game. The only disappointment with the presentation of the game is that the new stages are actually just alternate versions of the original stages and not new stages entirely built from the ground up.

While it is true that the new characters could have been added as a downloadable pack (or a few downloadable packs) for owners of Marvel vs. Capcom 3, you could have spent forty dollars on something a lot worse… New modes such as the Heroes and Heralds Mode and the Spectator Mode helps to round out the new features of the game. Heroes and Heralds Mode is a new single-player and multiplayer team-based mode where players earn new abilities with upgrade cards. You can customize characters with new powers, and compete in groups as either the Heroes defending Earth or as one of Galactus’ Heralds. Spectator Mode is just like it sounds allowing you to watch two online players competing against each other.

Let it be known now that even with the inclusion of the two new modes, UMvC3 is pretty light on new content which will probably bring up a brand new slew of complaints from the fighting community. A lot of fans will say not enough fan service was delivered (where is Mega Man?), but for what is packaged in UMvC3, you’ll be hard pressed to be disappointed.

The bottom line is that if you’ve already played the original MvC3 or waited for this (because you knew Capcom was going to pull this particular rabbit out of its hat…), you can’t go wrong picking this up and adding it to the collection.

Following up this year’s earlier hit inFAMOUS 2, Sucker Punch returns with a brand new adventure for Cole and Zeke with inFAMOUS: Festival of Blood. While this newest title is DLC for the PS3, don’t judge the present merely by the size of the bow. Sucker Punch delivers an adventure good enough to entertain both fans of the series as well as adding an interesting diversion to casual players.

For those of you wondering how this new story ties in to the mythos of the previous inFAMOUS games, Festival of Blood is more of a spoof story told by none other than Zeke as an attempt to impress a woman but the story seems to line up after events of the original inFAMOUS but before the main game of inFAMOUS 2 itself. A little confusing to be sure, but with Cole actually having access to his amp weapon (at the beginning of the game, at least) this possibly puts the game just before Cole, Zeke and Lucy make it to New Marias.

As the story begins, Cole is on the streets during the Pyre Night festivities — think Halloween meets Mardi Gras. While party goers are busy celebrating, something is lurking in the shadows and soon enough, all hell breaks loose and the story really begins. While attempting to save people trapped in the city’s catacombs (a new area of the New Marias map exclusive to Festival of Blood), Cole is unwittingly jumped by a group of vampires who use his conduit blood to reawaken their creator, Bloody Mary.

Bloody Mary explains to Cole that she is much to powerful for him to tangle with as a newborn vampire and that by sunrise, if  he hasn’t cured himself from her vampiric kiss, he’ll become a full-blown creature of the night (and her eternal play toy). Left with no other choice, Cole must venture through New Marias and try to gain back his humanity, even if it means sacrificing the people of the city to do so.

Festival of Blood is a standalone game in the Infamous series and does not require an inFAMOUS 2 game disc in order to play. Broken into 7 chapters, the game takes roughly 4-5 hours to beat and sets Cole off through one isolated part of New Marias (The Bayou, Gas Works and Flood Town districts can’t be accessed in the game) attempting to unravel the secrets of Bloody Mary and the truth behind the legend of Pyre Night. Considering that Festival of Blood is pint-sized when compared to inFAMOUS 2, don’t look for much along the lines of side missions. The only real diversions from the main story in this game is having Cole questing throughout the town seeking out vampire glyphs that are similar to dead drops and carrier pigeons from previous titles as well locating a number of Canopic jars that increases Cole’s vampire powers.

The real meat and potatoes of Festival of Blood is User-Generated Content. Using the same mechanics as inFAMOUS 2, UGC serves a dual role as both a provider of side quests for the story as well as an opportunity for players to try their hand at creating missions and unique story arcs for the game. New features in the UGC have been introduced in Festival of Blood. You can now create cutscenes and add SFX like pyrotechnics and lighting to your missions. In an attempt to get more and more players to fully realize and appreciate UGC, Sucker Punch has made it so that Cole doesn’t receive all the abilities available in Festival of Blood until they complete a set number of UGC.

Cole’s conduit abilities have been streamlined to keep the adventure reigned in so don’t expect to see a complete return of all of the cool powers that Cole possessed in inFAMOUS 2 but for everything that Cole lacks Festival of Blood gives some new abilities that fill the void. Cole can’t make moral choices in his vampire state so the morality system from the last two games are void. Sadly, don’t expect access his Ionic Powers as well (possibly because they’d make him overpowered for this particular game). Once you learn you way around Cole’s new abilities, you may find yourself wondering why he didn’t have anything like them for inFAMOUS 2.

With a price tag of $9.99 on PSN, Festival of Blood is worth the money for fans of the series. While it doesn’t really do anything for the main canon of the story, it is a good trek into the actual universe of inFAMOUS. It’s quite obvious that Sucker Punch really wanted to push the limits with the game’s UGC and making it play more of a bigger factor this time around was a good approach. The game doesn’t have a whole lot of replay value outside of the UGC, but for a lot of people, going back in and checking out the similarities of New Marais from inFAMOUS 2 and Festival of Blood as well as some very interesting easter eggs (movie theater).

Some of the best highlights of the game consist of acts like just walking the streets ferreting out hidden vampires to stake, flying from point to point using the Shadow Swarm ability and unlocking the origins of Bloody Mary. If you haven’t played inFAMOUS 2 (or the original inFAMOUS), don’t shy away from this title. Actually spending a little time with it may find you going to grab the previous titles and trying your hand at two titles from the same group that brought us Sly Cooper.

It’s hard to believe that it’s only been two years since Nathan Drake was tearing up our PS3′s with a his last adventure but here we are again with Drake, Sully and various company for Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception. In the two years since Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Naughty Dog has teased us with bits and pieces of clips, plot teasers, a multiplayer online beta and even an announcement of a series first-ever collector’s edition but now the question has to be asked: Has Naughty Dog brought home the gold?

Hand’s down, my entire reason for owning a PS3 is because of Uncharted. Many people will say that this series brings nothing new to the table with its mashup of various gameplay styles but no one can argue that Uncharted is a master of doing everything well. I was more than happy to get snatched back into numerous over-the-top scenarios and really sneaky plot twists that has defined this top-notch series since debuting 4 years ago.

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception welcomes you back into the best of everything gaming has to offer with a riveting story and enough tweaks and refinements to let you know that Naughty Dog does care. No sooner do you press start than you are caught up in a bar brawl that reintroduces you to Uncharted’s melee combat system. Having been toned down to make for a better flow with the story than in the previous entries, melee combat is an even bigger focus for this campaign. You now have bigger opportunities to counter and get out of having the living snot beaten out of you when you consider that some serious bruisers barrel straight at you. Getting jumped is no longer a pain to get out of as Drake now has the ability to both escape holds and defend himself while being held.

Without spoiling the story, I’ll let you know that this adventure is a direct continuation of the very first PS3 adventure from Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune. You’ll meet the game’s major antagonist, Katherine Marlowe who has known Drake just as long as Sully has and is after Drake’s heirloom ring that belonged to the Sir Francis Drake. Nate and Marlowe are at odds about the reported lost treasure that Sir Francis seemingly lied about and covered up and this sets the whole thing up for a good 8-9 hours of exciting and emotional gameplay.

Drake’s relationship with the other main characters gets better flushed out this time. You’ll learn about his real ties to Sully and how Elena fits into Drake’s life. Be aware that the game is titled ‘Drake’s Deception’ for a reason. You’re going to learn what makes Nate tick and why he does what he does. Never bombarding you with filler, the game has some of the best pacing that a story could have. Kudos to the team for making sure that we care about everyone that’s a part of Nate’s life.

The core of Uncharted has always been the platforming and third person combat and Drake’s Deception showcases what 2 different games (Uncharted 1 & 2) and 2 different beta events (Uncharted 2 & 3) can truly reap. No one does platforming as good as Naughty Dog. Drake’s death-defying antics while traversing the various terrain is a testament to how much detail the developers paid attention to. From the casual running of the hand while moving next to nearby walls, to flinging himself back and forth from ledge to ledge, Drake is a master of his surroundings. This is better emphasized when you find yourself in moments where Drake is trying to keep balance on a rocking (and sometimes capsizing) boat, or when you’re actually up to your gills in water trying swim for proper footing among buoys and docks or trying to trying to keep from getting crushed to death from unstable cargo during firefights with enemies.

Changing gears to the actual gunfights, Drake’s Deception pulls a few new tricks out out of the bag, the first being the ability to lob grenades back at the bad guys. Grenades have always been a staple of the Uncharted series, but this new twist with the combat really thrusts you into some of the most frantic action seen in the series since last game’s tweaking of the brawling system. As with previous games, cover comes into play and is a life saver but the enemy will find ways to not only flank you, but completely surround you making it a ‘fish in the barrel’ scene.

With all this talk about platforming and shooting, don’t think that Naughty Dog has forgotten about puzzle solving. There’s a slew of new and very intricate puzzles which may have you praying that the clue system is up on its game. If you came here for the archaeology, you will not be disappointed.

Multiplayer is back and comes with a different, yet all to familiar feel with it. There was nothing really bad about the multiplayer in Uncharted 2, but if you were like me, playing through and getting owned could feel like a monumental waste of time. Don’t worry, because this time, Naughty Dog has made it more appealing to even the most casual of players by way of a rewards system. Boosters and Kickbacks have been added to the game and this one dynamic alone will ensure people come back to the multiplayer long after they’ve gotten all the game’s trophies. It’s simple enough — pick your loadout, get into combat, accrue bonuses. The boosters level up and progress is made to make them better. Even when you’re doing terribly at the game, you’re still being rewarded.

The standard multiplayer modes are back as well (team deathmatch, capture the flag, free for all, etc.) Co-op sees some fundamental changes as well. As the alternative for those not wanting to play against other players, co-op rounds the online experience out by presenting a different spin on the single-player story. There’s something for everyone here and Naughty Dog definitely lets the players know that they were thinking about them.

There you have it. If it’s an experience you want, Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception delivers. Everything that defines the series is back. From scaling walls, to swimming (actually underwater this time), to lush and vivid environments — this game is the total package deal.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again this time… The Uncharted series sets the standard for action adventure games and Drake’s Deception sets the standard for all future games after it.

I don’t like the word ‘fanboy’ one bit, but if I have to be that guy, then I’ll proudly be it when it comes to a franchise such as Uncharted. If you own a PlayStation and love these types of games, there’s no excuse not to be playing it. Trying to find a better game than Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception may as well be Drake’s next adventure because you won’t find it any time soon.

All the back and forth banter and bullshit aside, the best thing for the consumer is competition. It’s fairly obvious to most that there’s a grudge match, or rivalry that’s come of age between EA’s Battlefield franchise and Activision’s Call of Duty. Both games are shooters, both games are multiplayer powerhouses, and both display the upper echelon of polish and commitment. But, to make an analogy here, both series are as different from each other as a Lamborghini is from a Ferrari. And, with this new installment — Battlefield 3, I think EA will further separate itself from CoD as a unique and rewarding experience unto itself.

To some it may seem a bit odd that I speak about how unique and different BF3 is from any CoD game when one of BF3‘s selling boasts was it’s new, more theatrical like Campaign Mode. Without beating around the bush, I’ll say right off the bat, DICE tried admirably but fell a bar short on that one. The campaign is good, but a bit far-fetched and intangible at times. That’s possibly the ambition from obviously striving for that Clancy-like notion with the storyline — that what you are seeing is possible. The first 10 minutes will convey this easy enough. As best put by a fellow PCS writer, “they on some Jack Bauer shit right now.” But despite this, it’d be ludicrous to say the campaign was at all unsatisfying. You step into many roles, which I won’t spoil here, being so much more than just a foot soldier and leaving players waiting to see what’s next. The only thing that drove me crazy is the difficulty when set on hard. I swear every enemy on the map will use his jedi forces powers to instantly sense when your cross-hairs are present on them and return expert marksman fire! Just once I wanted to pop my head up when friendlies had an enemy distracted and not have him turn right towards me. Normal difficulty doesn’t have this problem so to speak. Story aside, the real reason BF3 sucks you in so hard is the visuals and the sound.

Skull crushing sound effects are nothing new from DICE. Battlefield: Bad Company was truly impressive as hell, but BF3 ups the ante. Nothing, I mean nothing, has assaulted my ear drums outside of a movie theater like this game has. Bullets snap, crackle, and pop appropriately. Sniper rounds produce the most insidious and alarming hiss. Tank cannons literally shake you up, providing a rumble followed by an appropriate moment of temporary deafness. Honestly, anyone with a decent home theater with surround will instantly realize DICE sound engineers have few, if any, equals. Having never been in a war zone I imagine this has to be as close to real deal as your gonna come in a living room. All that and some visuals that may underwhelm at first but will grow on you as you watch them in motion.

The draw distance is impressive and when you jump into a jet or chopper and actually see the entirety of the maps things wow you even more. But what really shines with BF3 is the lighting effects. This is the first game I ever experienced where light is a weapon. It’s not the same old laying in a dark corner or the old flashbang effect but light being used naturally as an advantage… Flashlights will blind momentarily and laser sights will dazzle opponents. My new favorite BF3 moment has to be standing at the top of a hill with the sun above you using it to obscure the enemy at the bottom whose sighted you in multiplayer. Where CoD seems to reward the skilled and responsive, BF3 rewards ingenuity and creativity.

A side note about the graphics…

Like Rage, there is an option to download the disks to your hard drive and let the 360 stream textures for the best visual experience. I highly recommend this option.

The joy of playing against other humans truly shines in BF3. Battlefield 3 showcases true head-to-head action in multiplayer with many sorties resulting in multiple individuals trying to outmaneuver or outthink each other. BF3 maps offer so much ground to cover that approaching objectives from straight on is almost never required and seldom encouraged. This dynamic leads to the aforementioned outmaneuvering — something few other shooters ever really reward as much. Vehicles are vulnerable and attention grabbing but also rapid moving and destructive. Sometimes speed is a must and other times sheer firepower is the drug of choice. Battlefield’s textbook building demolition comes into play to turn the tides of a firefight. Explosives can demolish buildings that enemies entrench themselves in and serve to dynamically change the battlefield. You can find the very area you’re standing in quickly losing more and more cover as the battle ensues. Factor in the changing objectives in a rush match and you get an idea of the pace that BF3 can have. Multiplayer sees Rush, Conquest and Death Match modes returning, allowing squad-based options as well. The only thing I have to negatively say is that it can take several minutes at times to find a match or open server even when using quick match but once you’re in, it is worth the wait. In-between games you’ll be given a comprehensive report of your previous performance and progress towards new unlocks.

Balancing in BF3 does a good job and keeps things from feeling overpowered and unfair as players progress in ranks. Let me be the first to say how annoying it can be when people spend all their time playing a game and sharpening their skills are rewarded with even more overpowered weaponry. It’s always nice when you can play a game like a normal person who has a life and still be competitive when you do. The checks and balances system in this game actually works and allows players to react to the various situations around them for success instead of learning the best exploit to triumph.

Battlefield 3 has grabbed my attention like few shooters have in the last few years. In your hands it feels like the realization of Bad Company 2‘s promise in almost every way. Modern Warfare 3 hasn’t been released yet, so comparisons are unfair at this point, but I honestly think that a comparison is futile anyway. As I said before, you’d be comparing apples to pears — at least as far a multiplayer is concerned. They’re both fruit, but some simply prefer one to the other. DICE grabs you by the balls with this one and doesn’t let go!

Nowadays, only few developers attempt to make flight-sim games, let alone arcade style flight combat games. If you want to play the best that’s out there, always bet on the Ace Combat series. Project Aces delivers up Ace Combat: Assault Horizon, the twelfth game in the series. Truly showing their hand as masters of a niche genre, this Ace Combat entry is shaping to be the next masterpiece from Project Aces. Opting to not cater to just their hardcore fanbase, Project Aces has managed to make the series accessible to casual gamers as well.

With original titles in the series having taken place in a fictional universe with a version of Earth called Strangereal, Assault Horizon is set on the actual planet Earth. The year is 2015. Situations have escalated militarily to where NATO has been tasked with snuffing out an uprising in Africa. Taking on the role of Lieutenant Colonel William Bishop, the leader of the Warwolf Squadron, you’re part of the 108th Task Force, a large multinational U.N. force that represents NATO and a joint effort with Russian forces. The rebel insurgent group, known as SRN, are a paramilitary organization funded with weapons and mercenaries by the Russian crime syndicate Blatnoi.

SRN holds a terrible secret in the form of a WMD called Trinity. Bishop and his team have no idea of the true scope of these problems in Africa until after Trinity is revealed but the game really starts to move when an SRN attack is staged on the 108th air base followed by a betrayal by General Ivan Stagleishov of the Russian forces and half of the Russian air force defects and joins the SRN. As the game plays out, you’ll go to different mission locations in East African, Miami, D.C., Moscow, Hawaii and Dubai (just to name a few).

Written by New York Times bestselling military author Jim DeFelice, there is true quality in the story. Typical of a lot of  military stories, Ace Combat: Assault Horizon follows the formula of a lot of plot twists and intense action, though at times, the action happens too fast. If you follow war stories, the plot can be a little predictable at times, but there are a few ‘keep you guessing’ moments. You will also find yourself bouncing from character to character in Assault Horizon due to the story’s pacing which can be a small oversight of the game because you never really get a chance to feel out the characters.

Moving away from the traditional elements that made Ace Combat more for the hardcore flight sim player, the combat in Assault Horizon has been retooled to allow anyone who’s never played a game of this kind the ability to easily pick it up and go. It’s not easy to the point where it feels dumbed down, just simple enough for anyone to pick up and play.

Introduced into the game is a new system called ”Close-Range Assault” (CRA) which actually increases the intensity of combat and brings the action directly to the player. This is a definite change as you’re always right up on your targets (so to speak) as opposed to shooting as far away objects that usually plague flight games. The actual game term used in Assault Horizon is “Dogfight Mode” (DFM) for air-to-air battles and “Air Strike Mode” (ASM) for air-to-ground targets. Through specific use of the camera, you get a up close and personal feel of the action that’s very impressive.

Marking more changes to the core of the series are the helicopter missions as well as stealth bomber missions, and levels where the player controls a Black Hawk door gunner and an AC-130 gunship. These modes all give the Ace Combat series a different feel and allows veterans of the series new mechanics to try out and learn.

Graphically speaking, Ace Combat: Assault Horizon beautifully renders the intensity of aerial combat without taking away from the overall gameplay. Sparks, aerial trails, and plumes of smoke fill the screen as you tear through the skies bagging bogeys. Oil spray dots the camera and debris flies everywhere and it practically lives up to the ‘Make It Bleed‘ slogan on the back of the cover of the game. Like most other flight sim games, you can change your perspective view from the back of the plane all the way to the tip of the nose but you may want to keep it in the back of the plane so you can see the best of what the game has to offer graphically.

There’s a lot to take in with Assault Horizon and Project Aces seams it all together rather nicely. From picking your plane and selecting the payload, to toggling in and out of the various fighter modes, the game serves up a truly nice experience. Although it can be easy and sometimes monotonous, the game keeps the challenge steady with intermittent spikes from mediocre to plain out hard. Clocking in at around 8-9 hours of solid gameplay for campaign mode and various different multiplayer modes, Ace Combat: Assault Horizon has enough there for series aficionados to enjoy while allowing newbies to hang tight.

You can’t speak about old school gaming without naming at least 1 title from Treasure. Joining the ranks of Gunstar Heroes, Radiant Silvergun and Bangai-O HD: Missile Fury on Xbox Live Arcade comes another gem from Treasure’s vast vault — Guardian Hereos. Originally a title from the Sega Saturn, Guardian Heroes was considered one of the best games in the Saturn’s library and 15 years later Sega gives a new generation a chance to play this great game once again.

Guardian Heroes follows the story of four treasure hunters (though most would consider them thieves or rogues), Han, Randy (with his pet rabbit, Nando), Nicole and Ginjirou, who’ve just recovered a relic sword from a time long ago. As they’re celebrating their spoils in a tavern, Kingdom Knight Serena bursts into the bar warning them all that they have to move quickly as the castle knights have learned of their possession of such a powerful sword, and are coming to take it back, no matter the costs. Caught unawares, the thieves barely have time to react before an ambush is sprung and fighting ensues — as the tavern is burning down around them. After escaping from the knights with the help of Serena, the heroes gain another ally in the form of an undead knight that reclaims the relic sword in a surprising turn of events.

Guardian Heroes is a beat-em up game that boasts a lot of colors and gorgeous sprites. Particularly a side scrolling fighting game, the action RPG meshes in a lot more than just the typical fare RPG’s are known for. Characters have their own unique skills and abilities with opportunities for players to augment any of six different character attributes ranging from strength to durability to luck. Each of the hero characters represent a different class of fighter in the story. Han is the overall tank character while Randy and Nicole are the magic users. Serena specializes in both melee and magic while ninja character Ginjirou is a minor magic user with lightning fast melee attacks. Any of the five heroes can also issue commands to the undead knight turning him into an almost unstoppable force and a wonderful NPC ally.

Treasure made sure to add some balance to the game adding in new tweaks that makes the gameplay mechanics a little smoother. Air dashing is added along with powerful knockback moves, and other little tweaks. If you logged tons of hours playing the Sega Saturn original, you’re guaranteed to notice the difference. The English translation was also completely redone, and our heroes’ dialogue during cut-scenes sounds much more humorous and brings out more depth to the characters (along with injecting a modern day twist to the dialogue).

Alongside the beautiful graphics and frantic gameplay, Guardian Heroes is also remembered for the multiple levels in the battlefield. Players can access three planes of battle: a foreplane, a middle plane, and a back plane. These planes can be switched between in set sequence, or at the player’s choosing based on which button is pressed and also serves as an avenue for escape when you find yourself mobbed by bad guys. Along with the RPG element, the game’s story mode features branched paths which allow players to choose how the story plays out. The player can make choices on where to go and what gets done after every level. This allows for multiple endings and different boss encounters each run. The game scores some serious replay value as players are encouraged to play through the game many times and change the story dramatically each time.

If you know your way through Guardian Heroes, one of the chosen paths will lead to Golden Silver from Gunstar Heroes as the final Boss. Just as in Gunstar Heroes he uses the power of four gems to aid him in battle. 100% nostalgia!

Guardian Heroes gets an upscaling to HD in the new remix mode bringing the game up on the times. Before starting a game, you can choose to use the original 2D sprites and less detailed textures keeping it the same as the original Saturn version Saturn (graphics which actually stand up quite fine given the native system resolutions of today) or go remix mode which “remixes” the graphics making the character sprites take on a less saturated pencil-sketch look (think Valkyria Chronicles). The sprites aren’t redrawn, only smoothed over. Purists of the original will be put off as the pencil effect is a little too subtle to look stylish. What can you really say? The game is over 15 years old and this isn’t a true remake…

For you guys looking to get more substance out of Guardian Heroes, the online mode offers co-op with the ability to accept other players to join your game at any time you’re online. The new Arcade Mode is a single-player variation of the six-fighter Versus mode (which now features 12 fighters) pitting you against over 20 monsters in a survival free-for-all melee.

Ultimately, Guardian Heroes does it’s job of delivering that old school fix you want whenever any game from previous console generations makes the jump to the here and now. When you weigh in the appeal of the remixed graphics, a chaotic 12-player versus mode and the ‘choose your own adventure’ style of branching storylines, the realization that the Online Co-Op is much harder than the single player only adds more icing on a beautiful cake. The game can definitely feel a little chaotic at times, but aren’t all brawlers chaotic to some degree?

Guardian Heroes is currently available on Xbox Live Arcade for 800 MS Points ($10). Considering that the original game sells for over $100 (mint condition) over eBay, this is a steal — unless you’re one of those purists that have to play a game on it’s original release system.

The first thing that stands out in RAGE are the beautiful graphics in the post-apocalyptic backdrop of the game.  Id Tech 5 easily proves itself to be one of the most powerful game engines on the market.  RAGE has an incredible draw distance and as a result there is practically no fog when looking far, far away into the environment.  Dust blows by, water ripples, ambient lights flicker, and fires have the heat waves surrounding them.  Character designs are full of post-apocalyptic personality.  NPCs and enemies have varied and interesting designs about them.  But most noticeable are that no outside environments look the same, not even the rocks seem duplicated to create the seemingly vast desert in RAGE.  Animations are easily the best of any game on the market because they are so smooth and varied, plus everything runs at 60 frames per second.  Enemies will roll, flip, jump, crawl, and most importantly react to every shot that hits them.  Shoot an enemy in the leg and they will limp.  Shoot them in the arm and they will hold it in pain.  There’s even some cool death animations for the various weapons used in-game.  Some of the other reactionary animations are also great and have a lot of do with complimenting the game’s super cool A.I.  More of on that great A.I. later though.

RAGE’s storyline might be the weakest point of the whole game.  The story of RAGE opens to a post-nuclear future where a destructive asteroid is headed towards Earth.  The nameless player character is one of a selected few humans chosen to be placed in life-support in a subterranean pod called an Ark.  Apparently the Ark inhabitants have been given nanotech implants as well.  A disturbance causes the Ark to awaken the game’s main character to a world truly gone mad.  Upon existing the Ark, being attacked, and rescued by a local outpost leader the game introduces players into a serious of quests to familiarize one with the world.  As the player talks to NPCs, picks up fetch quests, and meets new personalities throughout the game the storyline opens up slowly at first and then later moves a lot faster.  A few too many locales are returned to a bit too often though and the narrative is lacking.

RAGE’s gameplay has what many single player FPS are missing today.  Superb A.I.!  From the very first enemy encounter to the last, RAGE’s A.I. will keep even the hardest of veteran FPS players on their toes.  Most enemies in RAGE are always moving which makes them very hard to hit.  Add to that enemies who dodge, duck, climb, and jump around the environment just to make sure the player dies a quick and painful death.  Some enemies will hide behind cover and take shots, but will alway reposition themselves once they’ve been shot or shoot at by the player.  It’s almost stand seeing the A.I. in a game pulling off S.W.A.T. turns to get better position on the player.  Even enemies who have been injured will limp, slide, or crawl away to cover while taking potshots at the player.  Some will even attempt to retreat and regroup once most of their comrades have been killed.  This is the way A.I. should be in most games!  Not the usual treatment of the enemies being more accurate and doing more damage just because the difficulty setting is higher.  Gamers deserve their single player games to be challenging outside of multiplayer.  Id Software has answered that call with RAGE.

RAGE’s A.I. is complimented by some truly great FPS and combat racing action.  Expecting less than a stellar FPS gameplay experience from an Id Software game is foolish.  RAGE continues Id’s tradition of bloody, violent FPS action with an arsenal of killing weapons.  Id created the concept of  ”gibs” in games afterall.  Shotguns will blow heads off, grenades turn enemies to tomato paste, wingsticks (a smartblade ripped straight from the 80′s film Krull) will decapitate any enemy in its path with a chance of returning to sender, and a number of other exotic death animations abound with other weapons.  Add to that the fact that weapons have up to four different ammo types with varying effects and there’s plenty of devilish fun to be had with the enemies.  While there are the expected shotguns, assault rifles, pistols, and other firearms, RAGE also sports a number of other death-dealing weapons and ammo types that can be found or crafted with schematics and items found in the environments.  One, in particular, creates a spider-like sentry drone with a mounted machine gun on its top that will hunt down nearby enemies.  There are many other ways to give the game’s enemies pure Hell though and trust that they will still not be easy to take on later in the game.

RAGE also has a built-in racing combat portion that is fairly seamless.  Driving outside of towns will frequently result in vehicle battles with bandits in the desert.  Vehicles are earned during races and can be upgraded with tires, weapons, nitro, suspension and other parts.  There’s also many race tracks and arenas to participate in.  The driving parts of RAGE bear a slight resemblance to Motorstorm at a glance.  This is simply no tacked on feature as the racing is just as fun as the rest of the game.  In fact, Id was so confident about their racing component that the games versus multiplayer mode is vehicular combat, NOT FPS player vs player.  To some that may be a sin coming from Id Software, but it really is fun and worth playing.  And there is a co-op online FPS mode that plays out like a horde gametype.  Maybe Id will consider a DLC for FPS deathmatch later on to meet fan demands.

Even with a few minor setbacks in its formula RAGE still reeks of a high quality game.  Sporting a beautifully powerful new game engine, some of the best FPS A.I. seen in years, a fun combat racing portion, a plethora of mini-games, and a long list of quests to complete, RAGE is something truly special for FPS lovers.  Id Software seated this game deeply in traditional old school FPS style fun and added just enough modern features, gameplay diversions and customization to make it flesh out into a great experience all-around.  An incredibly polished game that runs smooth at all times (provided the HDD install was done) with barely even a glitch or bug to be seen.  With all of the other highly anticipated games releasing this Fall, RAGE may fly directly under the radar of most gamers, but without a doubt it’s a game well worth adding to the must-buy list.

For the first time in 10 years a game worthy of being called better than Diablo 2 may have finally emerged. Guess it shouldn’t be surprising that it’s actually Diablo 3 but the wait was at least worth it. After spending months looking at concept art and gameplay videos Blizzard has a lot to live up to. From just the brief taste Blizzard’s beta brings us, I can say the hype is well deserved.

Spanning only a few hours of campaign gameplay, the beta starts off allowing the creation of all five character types, which essentially multiplies that by a number of five. As always, each character feels unique and powerful. The depth of each character immediately becomes clear once you get it all rolling. You start the game with the ability to equip just one skill. Although you have many more you can equip, it isn’t until higher levels that you can assign more than one. Runestones are also available which you can attach to your skills and imbue them with new even more beneficial powers.

Wherein previous Diablo games where your equipment defined your character, in Diablo 3 the greater emphasis is on the skills you equip. This allows you to switch your style on the fly — something co-op mode benefits from immensely. Theses small changes retain the feel of the previous games but add something new and fresh to the experience. A familiar face will pop up during gameplay adding to the series’ nostalgia many will defintiely feel.

Another familiar feature to Diablo 3 is the top notch art direction that the series (along with pretty much every Blizzard title) has come to be known for. Though the environments in the beta are dark and dreary, Diablo 3 still looks colorful and vibrant. You can tell by the overall depth and detail put in from Blizzard that the game has been designed to run on virtually any system. With the visuals cranked all the way up on my Nvidia 555m equipped laptop the game came out running smoothly.

Going along with the storyline for Diablo, the game takes place in Sanctuary, the dark fantasy world of the series. Saved twenty years prior by a handful of unnamed heroes after the events from Diablo 2, you’ll immediately feel the familiarity of the iconic PC series as you start out. Sound effects will instantly remind those who have spent countless hours farming Diablo for loot and XP that countless hours of your existence will soon be lost to Blizzard once more.

Currently, Diablo 3 is slated for a 2nd quarter release in 2012. I’ll update if/when things are changed or added to the beta.

Skipping the common ‘wait until the end’ format to deliver the bottom line, let’s just say it outright: Gears of War 3 is the new benchmark for adventure/action games. That goes for PC, PS3, Wii, and any other system out there. Sure, there are games out there that tell a better story, or look better, or maybe even possess more longevity, but none that accomplish it all on the level that GOW3 delivers.

To start things off, you’ll be treated to the now easy-as-ever menu system that will immediately reward you for achievements and extras unlocked from previous Gears of War chapters already played through. Next, on to the Campaign Mode. Epic was polite enough to include a cinematic intro to give newcomers a quick rundown of the previous chapters to explain just how things have become as desperate as they are. And things are quite desperate. Humanity appears on it’s last leg on Sera. Without spoiling things I will say the looks often convey this desperation poignantly.  The Gears are no longer in their shiny, fully armored COG gear. There is no COG any longer and now the crew is decked in grungy, obviously patched gear. Gloves are now fingerless and obviously stitched together. Beards look grungy and armor looks dingy and worn.

The environments in Gears of War 3 seems to match. Unlike previous installments where so much was dark and grim with the blue glow of COG armor serving up the only break from the drab greys, GOW3 is bright and beautiful, save for the remnants of civilization. Much of the game takes place outside with beautiful lighting effects that contrast the ruins of the cities that once were, almost reminding me of Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. This truly helps to reinforce the thought that once the world was beautiful and magnificent in a mix of old world cobblestone streets and technological constructs. The polish is evident and no game to date has provided such atmosphere (in my opinion). You get a glimpse of what these characters have lost as they travel through their old towns and witness them reminisce.

Amidst all this ruined beauty is the threat and constant presence of violence.  Bloody and brutal things escalate from calm to total melee in an instant. Just like in previous Gears, you march onward from skirmish to skirmish doing the best you can to restock on ammo and approaching every room with the anticipation of a waiting ambush. The sarcasm of Fenix and crew always seems to fit the mood. “Can’t believe we survived, and we probably wont survive the next one but what can we do?” The dialog may be a bit like an action movie at times but it works — it’s macho and fits the vibe of a group of guys desperate and at times scared, constantly trying to hang on with levity and courage. It’s obvious in this last game that Delta Squad isn’t fighting for the COG, or for honor, or to save Sera. Delta is fighting for survival, revenge, and obligations to each other.

With top notch voice acting, GOW3 does a great job of telling it’s story amidst the action and not slowing down to do so. The one thing GOW3 doesn’t suffer from is pacing, the one thing that GOW2 didnt achieve quite as well. But even with the new sounds and sights, GOW3 remains consistent and familiar in every aspect to the series. Throwing in the lambent adds a extra layer to the game however, forcing changes in strategy according to the opponent. That new aspect alone helps keep the action in Campaign Mode from ever becoming repetitive and dull. At around 15 hours (for me) on Hardcore, I ended things blown away, only to realize that there was enough multiplayer to last me months remaining.

So now we reach the online portions of the menu including all the new upgraded Horde Mode and the brand new Beast Mode. Returning are the previous Gears multiplayer modes. Everything from your standard Deathmatch to CTF and even escort gameplay. Multiplayer feels more like the original GOW than the last installment bringing back gameplay that is fast and always moving. Trying to hold back a group of the enemy ends sadly on most occasions. When you’re outnumbered and outgunned, cover doesn’t mean safety. Moving in groups and quickly popping in and out of cover seems to be the formula for success, except for when it comes to Horde 2.0 where the object of the game is simply turtle up.

With a money system set up players can now purchase fortifications and defenses to help hold back the waves of Locusts. Money can even be shared between players to allow for that critical purchase necessary for the group to survive to the next round. This adds a whole new layer of strategy to Horde and reinforces the benefits of teamwork.

Offsetting this Strategic Mode is the new Beast Mode. You can now play as the ever aggressive waves of Locusts using points earned by downing COG to purchase even more powerful beasts. Beast Mode is a bit more like mindless fun but it’s simply yet another mode rolling out hours and hours of time online. Gears of War 3 is almost like three different games in one with each of the modes playing at a slightly different pace.

In short, GOW3 is not only what’s believed to be the apex of its own genre but also a bargain in terms of content. With a campaign that’s as much an experience as it is something you play and a plethora of options for playing with others, it’d be hard for many to argue that the Gears series hasn’t evolved over the years with each installment consistently climbing over the previously set bar. It’s an impressive feat when you consider this has all been done on the same generation console it began on. Disagree? Pop in the first GOW after you’ve finished with GOW3 and then refuse to buy it… That’s what I’ve been doing with Madden football for years.

The third game in the newest off-shoot of the Warriors brand sticks to the same hack and slash stylings of the previous titles peppered with a little bit of tactical play. While you are using characters and mechs from the Mobile Suit Gundam universe, the story is unique and does the job of explaining how characters such as Heero Yuy, Milliardo Peacecraft and Amuro Ray are actually squaring off against Apolly Bay and Char Aznable in a dramatic war. Overall, the story is weak in some ways but does a decent job of keeping everything together when you consider that the game has characters and mechs from very different facets of the mythos.

If you’re returning from playing the last two Gundam entries in the series, the very first thing you’ll take note of is the overhaul in the graphics engine. The visuals have shifted to cel-shading setting it apart from the other games and giving it a ‘truer’ anime look. You’ll be hard pressed to find a Dynasty Warriors that looks as good as Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3.

Gameplay in Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3 follows the same style as in previous entries to the series. Attacks are chained together with the X and Y buttons with each machine having signature strikes. With over 60 different mobile suits available in the game as well. With the diversity in both mechs and pilots, the game provides its own enjoyment to players who follow the actual Gundam series. Pilots aren’t attached to their respective mechs from their original series which basically gives fan-service to wanting to use favorite pilots in favorite mechs.

The game boasts new features such as the emergency dash basically can be used as a dodge action to keep players out of danger but results in a hit to a portion of a MS’s Boost gauge. Players are also able to make use of Mobile Suit Factories, Repair Hangars and Missile Bases which all add buffs and added support to mission sorties. A partner strike system gives added support depending on which characters are in play adding more depth to gameplay that’s considered stale following so many iterations to the Dynasty Warriors franchise.

If you are a buff to the Mobile Suit Gundam series you will probably cry foul to the removal of the historic battle option of the game. Previously, modes were split between Mission Mode and Official Mode but now that all seems to be combined in this game for the main campaign mode. Major battles can still be unlocked, such as the infamous Amuro Ray vs Char Aznable battles but they are played out in the game’s prerendered stages instead of in stages designed to recreate the originals of their respective storylines. Classic dialogue and voice acting is there from the stories but it comes off more than a little anti-climactic in the end. With nearly 400 different missions to complete, seeing yourself in one of almost 20 different backgrounds really cheapens the look and feel of the actual anime series. Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3 manages to better integrate RPG elements into the game so that is probably the trade-off for losing accuracy to the anime. Online play has evolved with the new feature of allowing up to four players to cooperatively take out difficult ace pilots through unique missions.

With all of the additions to game (and subsequent subtractions) Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3 is not a bad game, but the repetition and lack of presentation to the actual source materials holds it back from being a great game. It is a member of the Dynasty Warriors family so it literally goes with the territory. Fans of the anime and gaming series will finds this a good addition to their library and newcomers just looking for something to pass the time while waiting for their next big booming title can find a good enough distraction with Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3. Pick it up and waste some time as the busy (and wallet-busting) fall season of games starts to march your way.

What you need to know:

Let’s forget that there ever was a Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1. I reviewed that game last year, and if you read my review you already know of the completely sour taste that was left in my mouth because of it. Sonic Generations is a whole new beast. While you only get to play with Classic Sonic in the demo, there will be 2 Sonics that you can use in the completed version of the game. Players get their first crack at this re-imagining by putting Classic Sonic through his paces in the brand new Green Hill Zone (from Sonic 1).

Everything is here that made the Sonic of the old school what it was. Sonic is fast. The controls are responsive. The terrain is negotiable. The enemies are familiar. Simply put, this game feels great!

For the first time in possibly a long time, Sonic no longer feels ‘floaty’. His movements have definite inertia, therefore it feels like real weight is behind Sonic’s movements. When Sonic runs, he RUNS! While today’s technology makes it almost impossible for Sonic to run faster than the camera can track (which was a parlor trick used by the old Sega Genesis games), your eyeballs will have a tough time tracking him. With Sonic’s return to speed, you also have a return of fun factor.

The game looks gorgeous. Vivid environments are bursting with both color and activity. Enemies have their own movement patterns and newer attack sequences that, if you aren’t careful, you may find yourself watching in dismay before realizing you just got attacked. The environment reacts to you as you push on with bridges disintegrating, boulders being smashed to bits and walkways collapsing from Sonic’s weight..

The true gem of the Sonic series has always been the soundtrack. The moment you press start, you’ll know you’re back in a real Sonic The Hedgehog experience as the catchy tune of the Green Hill Zone starts up. Just like the redesign of the Green Hill Zone itself, the classic tune has been remixed in an update more fitting to the times. Classic sound effects from the original games remain intact. Sonic Generations not only feels like a real Sonic game, it also looks and sounds like one. But, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. The demo is only one stage long and only features Classic Sonic…

What you should know:

Sonic Generations is still more than 3 months away from being released. While we haven’t seen any other stages than the Green Hill Zone and we haven’t seen what Modern Sonic is capable of, we’re getting a pretty clear picture that Sega may finally be bringing their A-game. There is some polish that still needs to be applied.

The camera of Sonic Generations can at one time feel super tight and at other times feel far away leaving players almost at a loss to locate Sonic. The backgrounds are almost overwhelming to this degree as well and sometimes ‘swallow’ Sonic up and adding a slight degree of frustration. When the camera shifts to mark a change in the terrain background, it almost slows the pace of the game. Hopefully, these issues will be addressed as the game comes closer to release.

Sega pushed out the demo with a limited shelf life — 20 days. As of right now, you’ve got about 5 days left to download it and try it out before it’s gone. The final verdict? You may want to start setting aside some money because Sonic Generations may prove to be the next must-have title for this year. One thing is for sure: Sonic Generations will probably be the first great Sonic game to come along in almost a decade.

Check back with us when the game actually releases for a full review!

Following a formula that comes off as a severely cheesy B-movie parody à la Robert Rodriguez, Shadows of The Damned tells the tale of Garcia Hotspur and his fight to save his kidnapped and repeatedly tortured girlfriend Paula from the clutches of the underworld’s most despicable bad guys led by demon lord Fleming. Garcia is a demon hunter with a foul mouth, a somewhat quirky sense of humor and a style all his own. Equipped with a talking familiar named Johnson (you’ll get the pun soon enough) that also serves as his gun — and subsequently a torch, Garcia braves nearly 20 levels hurling obscenities, crawling around in the life-threatening dark and seemingly one step away from his love.

The Underworld that Garcia throws himself into is a bleak and treacherous area, full of both grisly and comical sights that do their best to get your attention. Doors with infant faces starving for strawberries, eyeballs and brains as well as goats heads that are living breathing light fixtures are all over the place and all vie for Garcia’s attention. If that isn’t enough to slightly unnerve a player, demons get off in sheer delight of graphically climbing out of orifices of Paula’s body to no doubt shock Garcia into fits of rage. With a musical score helmed by Akira Yamaoka (Silent Hill series) the mood of the game stays pretty true to its Horror-meets-Once Upon A Time In Mexico ambiance.

What you can’t see can be very dangerous. Areas devoid of light will drain you of life in a matter of moments and if you aren’t busy relighting lamps or shooting off fireworks to light things up, you will find yourself back at a previous checkpoint starting over. The enemies use dark to their advantage, covering themselves in it for extra armor or simply dousing all sources of light an making you fight your way through the poisonous terrain. One of the biggest annoyances of the game is the constant lack of ability to backtrack. You’ll easily find yourself frustrated as doors and ladders you’ve just used are no longer useable. Word to the wise: explore every nook and cranny of the Underworld before moving to a new section…

As you make your way through hell, not only will you be bombarded by enemies that want to keep you from saving Paula, you’ll also be in the middle of an onslaught of terrible dick jokes. While the humor, at times, can be well placed, ultimately it wears out its own welcome by the time the second act begins. By the time you’re through with your run of Shadows of The Damned, your appreciation for penis humor will have surely been tested. On a side note, the rampant nudity throught the game serves as a major distraction that will get you killed. You have been warned…

Johnson, Garcia’s faithful companion and sidearm, truly finds his place as your best friend whether he’s lighting up your way through hell, or blasting various bad guys to shreds. The aiming seems a little off-center when you first start but a true ability to move and shoot makes up for this shortcoming and big rewards come by delivering head shots which instantly drop most lesser annoyances. By collecting blue gems (which are normally dropped after boss encounters), Johnson’s abilities are upgraded giving Garcia a bigger and better arsenal to use. When things get a little too close for comfort, Johnson can also be used to deliver a melee strike which gets enemies off of you quickly or, when charged up, delivers a lethal blow that takes care of most light work. Get Johnson really excited enough and you’ll be able to play around with a Big Boner in a really comical (and easily frustrating) shooting session.

Garcia can make upgrades to his health meter and overall adjustments to Johnson’s arsenal through use of red gems while spending white gems collected from fallen enemies at vending machines grabs you various types of liquor that actually restores health instead of killing you. The Underworld’s traveling half-human half-demon salesman Christopher shows up throughout various stages and lets you purchase everything from healing items to red gems and ammunition. Unfortunately, there are no upgrade for the sluggish responsiveness of the control that players will ultimately have to adapt to in order to enjoy playing the game.

While Shadows of The Damned stumbles in a few categories that may or may not make up the exact recipe for a masterpiece, the story manages to keep you hooked long enough to see it all through to the end. If you can keep from putting down the controller from the onslaught of dick jokes, or the sometimes sluggish gameplay and clumsy aim controls, you’ll enjoy yourself in a shoot ‘em up kind of way.

As inFAMOUS 2 starts, it’s been a month since the events that concluded the first game. Cole has made a couple of new friends in the meantime, but true to the warnings from the previous game, his hometown Empire City gets completely destroyed and everything that Cole fought hard for was all for nothing. Licking his wounds, Cole, along with Zeke and their new partner Lucy Kuo head to New Marais (a city based on post-Katrina New Orleans, Louisiana) following leads that Cole will be able to power up and get strong enough to save the world.

The karmic alignment system that was a heavy influence for inFAMOUS is here and plays out in a much more relevant way than just making right and wrong decisions. Your actions determine how the world around you reacts and your choices always spell out which way your powers will evolve. Cole will be faced with literally dozens of opportunities to make a change — some of which are so subtle that you may not even realize you’ve done something that sends your karma in the opposite direction. Your ally Lucy, as well as Marais resident Nix, do what they can to push Cole’s buttons along the way.

New Marais is broken up into two sectors in which Cole will have to work his way through. In similar fashion to the past game your missions are layed out as waypoints on the map and there tons of side quests which help to push Cole’s alignment along the way. While the map is expansive, the sandbox style of the game always gives you something to do if you want to explore and see what’s out there. New to the game is the ability to create and play through User Generated Content. In a manner quite similar to Little Big Planet, players can create specialized missions or play through ones made by other players.The UGC provides a perfect distraction from pushing along with the main story and also extra ways of gaining overall XP to help Cole gain new powers and abilities. While not perfect, creating and using UGC adds another element to the overall enjoyment of inFAMOUS 2.

The Parkour-style of gameplay from the original game gets some tweaks and revisions that makes Cole’s ‘freerunner’ style of exploration a little less of a headache than it used to be. Nearly every surface has something for Cole to have a handhold (or foothold) on, and there’s a few new ways to traverse the landscape in the form of vertical launch poles that propel Cole up sides of building in mere seconds. The experience really leaves players feeling as if the environment is working with you versus against you.

Cole’s powers are significantly changed from inFAMOUS and a lot of the new powers Cole gains actually have a use for practically every situation you’ll encounter on your way to becoming either the Hero or the Infamous villain. Though it was said that Cole wouldn’t undergo the traditional ‘power reset’ that all heroes get when a new game starts, you find yourself back to square one in the first chapter spending the course of the game getting back to where Cole started off. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it is a little annoying to know you have a bad ass that’s essentially nerfed. The combat system has also undergone some work allowing for Cole to get in and out of combat quickly and easily. The enemy AI still sets itself up for defeat, but the real challenge of combat comes into play when the larger enemies make their appearance. Players will find themselves using ‘run and gun’ tactics and using the environment against the enemy instead of the ‘run right at them’ style that was heavy throughout inFAMOUS.

The big questions of the story are answered as you play through inFAMOUS 2 and Sucker Punch delivers on the promise of a bigger and more immersive adventure. Gone is the repetitiveness of gameplay that bogged down inFAMOUS. There’s more to do and now there’s more ways to do it. Cole will see the best and the worst in both humanity and himself as he travels through New Marais and tries to set things straight.

Developer: Spicy Horse

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Platform: XBOX 360, PS3, PC

11 years ago American McGee’s Alice was released on PC.  A twisted descent into Wonderland that was refreshingly gothic and sported some nice action-adventure gameplay.  And now American McGee has brought Alice back, fully grown, and suffering from mental issues in Alice: Madness Returns.  Madness indeed, Alice.  The game’s twisted world is easily part of its appeal as is the narrative and throwback gameplay.  Add to the package a DLC of the full original Alice game and it seems to be a winning package for fans of the genre.

Alice: Madness Returns takes place 10 years after the original Alice game’s story.  Alice is now a grown woman suffering from the mental and emotional trauma of losing her whole family in a house fire.  An incident that left her institutionalized in an asylum for years until she is released to a psychiatrist in London.  Alice still suffers memory loss and nightmarish hallucinations as a result of her trauma and questions whether her family’s death was truly accidental.  Thus begins Alice’s return to a Wonderland even more twisted than the one she left years ago in hopes of collecting pieces of her memory to uncover the truth.  Along the way set pieces of Alice’s previous adventure in Wonderland are present as  a treat for players of the previous game.

Alice: Madness Returns is an adventure game with loads of platforming throughout and a number of other gameplay styles mixed in.  Alice has the ability to jump two to three times in the air and use her dress to float.  She can even use her dodge ability once in the air as well, though it doesn’t seem very useful for platforming.  There’s a plethora of high places Alice must traverse and many have moving platforms, invisible platforms, variations of jump pads, etc to help her on the way.  Alice will get a jump boost if she makes contact with a jump mushroom or a steam vent.  Very helpful when she seemingly floating to her death over an abyss and you just barely reach that steam vent to get boosted by up high.  Invisible platforms and clues are only able to be seen when Alice uses her shrink ability.  Small Alice can walk into keyholes and under obstacles, but it will also show chalk drawings and arrows that give directions to nearby secrets.  Later on Alice will be even able to grow into a giant size.

Alice: Madness Returns’ weapons are as twisted as the game world itself.  Alice’s default weapon is the legendary Vorpal Blade used to kill the Jabberwocky in the classic Alice story and the first game.  But instead of a sword, in Madness Returns and the first game, the Vorpal Blade is an engraved butcher knife.  Along the journey Alice’s other weaponary include a gatling gun styled Pepper Grinder, an enemy distracting Clockwork Bomb, the hammer-like Hobby Horse, a Teapot Cannon, and her Umbrella which is used to block or deflect attacks.  Each and every weapon is diverse and fun to use.  Weapons can also be upgraded up to three times at the menu screen by using the teeth that can be collected throughout the world.  Combat can get a bit hectic when multiple enemies attack, but thanks to weapons being mapped to certain buttons and a nice quick lock-on system things don’t venture into frustration.  Use every weapon and ability Alice has and survival is ensured.  And speaking of survival, Alice’s last ditch effort when near death is a Hysteria mode.  When activated Hysteria mode  turns the world black and white and Alice into a bloody-eyed, heavy damage dealing, psychopathic killer.

The graphical and audio presentation of Alice: Madness Returns mostly good with a bit of bad sprinkled in.  Character design is easily this game’s strongest visual point.  Everything about Wonderful is a twisted vision of the original story.  Alice, while beautifully designed, looks like a goth, the Mad Hatter is a freakish mechanized man, and the Cheshire Cat just looks weird.  Those freakish and nightmarish designs carry over into other familiar characters and especially into the game’s enemies.  Ruin enemies look like walking sludge with doll faces, cycloptic teapots with insect legs, animated dolls, and a number of other enemies based on the theme of the level Alice is on.  American McGee is truly a man with a twisted mind…and that’s a good thing.  The only things that mar the visual presentation are the lower resolution textures present in some environments and on many of the game’s characters.  Sharper visuals would’ve really been a big win for such an artistically stylish game like this.  Other than those few flaws, the lighting is atmospheric, the animations are fluid, and there’s is not a single  bit of slowdown in framerate through the experience.

The voice work in Alice: Madness returns is topnotch.  Every character sounds wonderfully twisted.  The dialogue and narrative  is  well-written, even if the story itself is a bit lacking.  Sound effects are good for various parts of the environment, though they seem a bit low.  In combat, every sound comes through loud and clear which is good due to some enemies with ranged attacks.  Cutscene audio also seems a bit low as well, but it may just be due to default settings.

Rarely does any game merit an 11 year wait for a sequel.  Alice: Madness Returns proves that even after over a decade long wait a sequel can still be good, something that other games couldn’t pull off.  Not many games today give the player so many abilities and weapons and actually require them to utilize them all throughout the whole game.  Though it has moments where extra polishing and tweaks would’ve made a world of difference, the core gameplay and mechanics work well.  And honestly, there’s just not many games of this style being developed in today’s gaming industry.  Alice: Madness Returns hails back to the days when games like Super Mario Bros 64, Ratchet & Clank, Conker’s Bad Fur Day, and MediEvil were highly popular.  Those looking for a return to the days of heavy platforming, exploration, and action elements would do well to give Alice: Madness Returns a shot.  But it’s highly recommended that gamers play the original game that’s offered free with this sequel as it will enhance the narrative.

In 2001 Capcom’s fighting game hit Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 was released to arcades and the Sega Dreamcast.  With mixed bag of reused sprites from older games, great music, 3D backgrounds, and slightly unbalanced characters, MvC2 would end up being considered one of the all-time favorite fighting games in the world.  To this day, MvC2 is still heavily played in fighting game tournaments.  After over 10 years of waiting and a load of speculation, Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 has finally been released.  With a roster comprised of new and old characters, a new gameplay system, and 3D visuals it would seem that Capcom is once again on the verge of having another mega-hit in their fighting game series.

Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 packs a strong punch with it’s graphical presentation and sound.  Visually, MvC3 looks like a comic book in motion.  The character’s sport a great looking shading style and are animated nicely.  Every character is detailed and authentic to their in-game or comic book sources.  Worth noting also is that Capcom has done this whole game with 3D models.  Gone are the days of recycled sprites and reused animations.  Even the backgrounds are full of nice touches and characters from other Marvel comics and Capcom games.  The music is a bit of a mixed bag of techno sounding tunes and remixed theme music from MvC2.  Not for everybody, but still not lackluster or bad either.

If gameplay is truly king then MvC3 is clearly vying for the crown when it comes to that.  MvC3 sports a 6 button setup instead of the old 4 button layout of MvC2.  2 years ago Capcom introduced an almost similar button layout in their Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom game in arcades and on the Nintendo Wii console.  MvC3 button layout consists of three attack buttons, a universal launcher button, and two tag/assist buttons.  Button presses plus various directions would equal a variation of basic attacks.  This is a simple system, yet it is complex to master as well.  Back from the old MvC2 game is the advancing guard and a few other variations of old techniques.  Almost every character sports two to three super moves and the combination supers are still around as well.  Combos are pretty easy to pull off in MvC3 and the launcher button now makes air combos a lot easier to start.  Add in new mechanics like X-Factor, which can completely turn a match around, or being able to swap characters in mid-air combos and there’s a lot to be learned.  Once again, this is a game that will be easy to learn but once mastered it screen will become a masterpiece of combo madness.

For everything MvC3 does right there are some blaring omissions in the package that takes the experience down a bit.  After the addition of Tournament Mode to Street Fighter IV as DLC one would expect that MvC3 would’ve shipped with a similar mode.  This is not the case.  So what players get is a bare-bones multiplayer experience.  A theater mode which has now become somewhat of a standard in a lot of high profile games would’ve been pretty nice to allow players to upload and showoff those wild matches.  None of the modes from Capcom’s last fighter Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom made it into MvC3.  None!  Not even Time Attack or Survival Mode.  One could also complain about a roster of fewer characters than MvC2 had, but that would really be nitpicking.  36 characters is plenty, especially when they are well-balanced and there aren’t any palatte-swapped clones to be found on the roster.

As it stands, Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 has lived up to its 10 year legacy and the year of hype surrounding the release.  One would be hard pressed to find a fighting game right now that ignites so much competitive spirit amongst fighting game fans. Despite it few shortcomings in the features department this is still a fighting game that no fan of the genre should be without.  After 10 years Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 has been passed the torch and it shines brightly like a beacon in the horizon.  Fighting game lovers follow that beacon…and come get your butt kicked!

Sony has codenamed their new device the Next Generation Portable or NGP. While it shares a physical design that resembles the PSP very strongly it differs in many ways. First of all, most gamers are going to notice the dual analog sticks this time around, marking a first for a portable system. Another eye-catching feature is the 5-inch OLED (960 x 544) display on the face of the unit that also has multi-touch sensitivity. As if that weren’t unique enough, the unit also encapsulates a multi-touch surface on the back as well.

NGP features front and rear facing cameras like some of the other anticipated devices making a debut this year (Blackberry PlayBook; unconfirmed iPad 2 feature). Where things take another interesting turn is that in addition to communicating via WiFi, the NGP will also be able to reach out to the network via 3G.

The NGP is projected to launch towards the end of 2011. We’ll have more information as it breaks.

PRELIMINARY SPECS

CPU ARM® Cortex™-A9 core (4 core)
GPU SGX543MP4+
External Dimensions Approx. 182.0 x 18.6 x 83.5mm (width x height x depth) (tentative, excludes largest projection)
Screen 5 inches (16:9), 960 x 544, Approx. 16 million colors, OLED
(Touch screen) Multi touch screen (capacitive type)
Rear touch pad Multi touch pad (capacitive type)
Cameras Front camera, Rear camera
Sound Built-in stereo speakers
Built-in microphone
Sensors Six-axis motion sensing system (three-axis gyroscope, three-axis accelerometer), Three-axis electronic compass
Location Built-in GPS
Wi-Fi location service support
Keys/Switches PS button
Power button
Directional buttons (Up/Down/Right/Left)
Action buttons (Triangle, Circle, Cross, Square)
Shoulder buttons (Right/Left)
Right stick, Left stick
START button, SELECT button
Volume buttons (+/-)
Wireless communications Mobile network connectivity (3G)
IEEE 802.11b/g/n (n = 1×1)(Wi-Fi) (Infrastructure mode/Ad-hoc mode)
Bluetooth® 2.1+EDR (A2DP/AVRCP/HSP)

Time Crisis: Razing Storm is a compilation disc featuring the arcade version of Time Crisis 4, the lesser known cabinet shooter Deadstorm Pirates and Razing Storm — a 2009 shooter that adds some new features to the formula made popular by Time Crisis. Razing Storm is not a sequel, but an actual spin-off from the Time Crisis series. You’re placed in the middle of a fight against futuristic terrorists and renegade soldiers in a South American country as part of a special forces unit called S.C.A.R. (Strategic Combat and Rescue). The mission is to quell a revolution and capture the leader of the rebels, who masterminded an attack on the United States.

Make no mistake, this is classic Time Crisis, but with the addition of destructible environments. Everything that makes up the series stays the same, with players mowing down enemies and firing at target specific opponents. The stylings of the game look as if pulled directly from Metal Gear Solid 4 with you combating terrorists and paramilitary soldiers and twisted mechanical bosses. The ability to destroy environments adds for maximum havoc and big score bonuses and helps to keep the game from being crushingly hard. To keep the action intense, players will, from time to time, find themselves involved in rescue scenarios aiding AI characters that are actual teammates or thrust into hostage situations and civilian encounters. At times, the civilian encounters will frustrate you enough to the point of pulling your hair. Any time an innocent is hit by friendly fire, you will lose health (and score bonuses) and there are a lot of times where random civilians and hostages move right in the way of friendly fire.

Razing Storm features 4 modes of play: Arcade Mode, Story Mode, Online Battle Mode and Sentry Mode. Arcade mode will see you playing through 3 acts either alone or with a partner and is the core of the game (based off the actual arcade release). Sentry Mode will have you and up to 3 other players competitively picking off escaping prisoners as a sniper. Story mode and online battle mode both feature a new-to-the-series first person shooter-style navigation, in which the player can freely navigate the environment “off the rails”.  While the first person aspects of these modes add something new to the game, they don’t contribute anything ground-breaking or change the game. The online mode can be its own experience as it’s plagued with lag issues that will suck the fun out of the experience.

Razing Storm does what it sets out to do: give you a new gun shooter adventure. Though GunCon and DualShock support is included, the game seems to be built for use with the PlayStation Move accessory. Using the Move’s setup to play will give you a sense of playing Metroid Prime or other rail shooters from the Wii. If you’re used to that style of play you’ll find yourself right at home here. The addition of Time Crisis 4 and Deadstorm Pirates increases the overall play time spent and playing all 3 games offers up rewards for your PlayStation Home avatar. The bonus game Deadstorm Pirates is the weakest of the three games, but is adequate enough for this compilation.

Time Crisis: Razing Storm is a solid enough shooter that plays itself out like a b-rated action movie. The game has enough to keep you playing and even takes itself seriously enough that it comes complete with its own campy dialogue and even an alternative track that serves as the game’s ending theme. The $50 price tag may seems somewhat high, but overall, Time Crisis: Razing Storm offers enough to get your money’s worth.

As Kratos embarks on his adventure, more of his past is revealed and the more you learn, the more you want to slay the bad guys. The game delivers one of the best looking adventures on the PSP (and this year has seen it’s fair share of gems on the PSP). Combat in Ghost of Sparta is just as fluid as it was in its predecessor Chains of Olympus, but Ready At Dawn has done their homework this time around and Ghost of Sparta is a true masterpiece. Everything comes together and never feels stale as you rack up insane combos and utilize all the parlor tricks that made the last four games the best gaming has to offer.

Kratos hasn’t gotten complacent since his last sighting in GoW3. One of his tricks borrowed from the PS3 hit is a new ability called Thera’s Bane, an ability that is similar to the Rage of Sparta skill from GoW3. Utilizing a separate meter that can replenish over time, Kratos uses the skill to add a powerful fire attribute to his trusted Blades of Athena giving his attacks more of a wallop than normal and downright necessary for progression in the story. You’ll use Thera’s Bane to power through doors and other obstacles as well as chipping away at the armor of some of the game’s behemoth mini bosses. Kratos will also acquire the Arms of Sparta spear and shield combo. This new addition to Kratos’ arsenal gives our hero the ability to mix up ranged and melee combat. Kratos can either throw the spear at distant opponents or completely punish them by jabbing at them up close. The ability to bash the shield into foes (instead of just blocking strikes) coupled with defending yourself while moving is almost like an answer to the problem of progressing forward while being assaulted by foes and environment. Kratos also inherits a couple of new magical attacks to keep it all interesting.

The presentation in Ghost of Sparta is everything you’ve come to expect from a God of War game and the PSP never seems underpowered in pulling off something this good. Whether it’s the blood and gore, the lush backgrounds or the solid gameplay, Ghost of Sparta will hold your attention up to the very end. Actor T.C. Carson (Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Living Single) returns as the voice of our hero, and is spot on in the performance. The QTE scenarios that are a trademark of the series also receive an overhaul. Commands for the button presses are in their geographical location on-screen in relation to their layout on the PSP face buttons, and the analog-stick commands aren’t as frequent, making it an easier climb up the mountain.

Replay factor isn’t too big for the game, but there are some interesting options just in case you’re seeking completion. The biggest of these being the Temple of Zeus where players can purchase concept art, videos and foes to fight in the arena by simply offering up red orbs in sacrifice. There are also unlockable costumes to be gained as you make the journey. The game is longer and has more depth than Chain of Olympus allowing for a more satisfying adventure. If you are one of the many who play games to follow story, Ghost of Sparta will tell another facet of Kratos’ tragic story. Ready At Dawn knows how to fit the God of War experience into the pint-sized PSP and Ghost of Sparta is the perfect example of what PS3′s little brother can do.