First Look PSN #8

Alien Spidy by Enigma / Kalypso Media (2013) - PlayStation Network (PSN)

Spiders aren't anything new to the games world - I've reviewed one of my favourite examples at this very blog in fact - but I'm still surprised they don't feature in more. They do after all possess some unique abilities which are ideal for puzzley platform games, and that's exactly what this multi-format release from a few years back is. The featured arachnid is apparently an alien who has crash-landed on earth (as revealed in a few nice cut-scenes) but neither the slightly vague story nor Spidy's other-wordly origins really affect the gameplay which mostly involves skillful use of aforementioned talents. The stages are standard 2D side-scrolling affairs and it's your job simply to get Spidy to the end of each one which is mostly achieved by swinging around on webs.

First Look PSN #7

MicroBot by Naked Sky Entertainment / EA (2011) - PlayStation Network (PSN)

Exploring inside the human body in microscopic form isn't a particularly new concept for the gaming world but this latest effort by Naked Sky must surely be a contender for the most realistic attempt yet. You play as a teeny robot designed to fight infection, and are in fact the fourth generation of such a device. The previous three are still in the body and, after having apparently gone haywire, have caused a load of problems including many infections. The game takes the form of a twin-stick shooter with your job being to travel around the body destroying all of these ghastly viruses, curing diseases, and tracking down the pesky microscopic culprits themselves, which are found across five areas of the body which are each split into four procedurally generated stages.

First Look PSN #6

Bang Bang Racing by Playbox / Digital Reality (2012) - PlayStation Network (PSN)

I'm not really sure why I'm so keen on top-down racers as I'm not too good at them, but new ones still always catch my eye all the same. Just like this one of course, which despite being released a few years ago now, is at least new to me. It features those stupid melted cars with giant wheels - some twenty of them, no less, spread over four classes, and which can be raced over fifty-four track variants. Most of them are very tight and compact and will have your chosen car sliding around their many, many hairpins and chicanes more or less permanently, and most likely regularly slamming into the barriers and other racers as well. I guess that's the point with games like this - fun, not realism!

First Look PlayStation 3 #3

Motorcycle Club by Kylotonn / BigBen Interactive (2015) - PlayStation 3

All those open-world driving games that have been appearing lately have been rather cool, so when I saw this game advertised recently I immediately thought it would be a motorcycle equivalent. You know, kind of like Test Drive Unlimited or something but with biker gangs? But alas it is not. It's actually little more than a bog-standard racing game featuring open-road circuits (though no regular traffic), with the only innovation coming in the form of the three different types of bikes available. These are Superbikes, Roadsters, and the Custom bikes (big spluttery Harley-type things). The twist is, you can switch between them while racing. That's right, simply pressing the relevant button will somehow switch your bike 'on the fly' with no discernible loss of speed!

First Look PSN #5

Dustforce by Hitbox Team / Capcom (2014) - PlayStation Network (PS3)

I've played a few environmentally-themed games in recent years but this one is probably the first that actually makes you do the menial labour yourself. Dustforce takes place within a world that has been tainted by 'dust and disorder', you see, and it's your job to cleanse its 50+ stages using one of the four selectable janitors. This is done simply by running over all the dirty areas (which only seem to be covered in leaves - surely not that big a deal?) which are dotted around all surfaces of the side-viewed, scrolling landscapes, including the walls and ceilings, and also by smacking up all the poor creatures living there. That means you'll need a fast and agile janitor and luckily all four of them are, to varying degrees. Time to get cracking with your trusty broom!

PSN Downloads #5

Fatal Inertia EX (2008)
By: Koei Genre: Racing Players: 1-8 (online) Difficulty: Medium
Featured Version: Sony PlayStation 3
Also Available For: Xbox 360

For a while now, the main question amongst gamers when it comes to futuristic 'hover craft' racers has simply been... F-Zero or Wipeout? My personal allegiance is very well known in these parts but there are a few examples that aren't part of either series. One recent example is this one made by KOEI, initially released for the Xbox 360 before a slightly spruced-up conversion was bestowed upon us lucky PS3 owners, and it was one I was eager to try out. It has a short introduction which mentions something about you being invited to participate in the 'cutthroat motorsport' of the title where 'only exceptional pilots will survive'. You are of course given an 'advanced prototype' with which to do this, and there are Single Player, Multiplayer, and Garage modes available to choose from.

PSN Downloads #4

Vessel (2014)
By: Strange Loops Games Genre: Platform / Puzzle Players: 1 Difficulty: Medium
Featured Version: Sony PlayStation 3
Also Available For: PC, Mac

There doesn't really seem to be a massive amount of games starring genius/mad scientists but most of the ones that are around seem to be platformy puzzle games. One of my favourite such examples is the Amiga game, Morph, but Vessel, while further proof of my theory, is quite a bit different. It's a game I recently happened upon via PSN and is a port of a game I've now discovered was released a full two years earlier in it's original PC incarnation. Not sure what the delay was as it seems to be pretty much the same game, and that's one starring M. Arkwright, an inventor who has created a type of splooshy liquid automaton called the Fluro (fluid robot). They were supposed to take over all the laborious monkey jobs that us lazy humans can't be arsed to do but, unsurprisingly, they soon had other ideas.

First Look PSN #4

Chime Super Deluxe by Zoë Mode (2010) - PlayStation Network (PS3)

Video games have not often fared well as far as charity is concerned, in my experience at least, and it seems Chime here is the first title released by non-profit publisher OneBigGame, so naturally I feared the worst. I bravely gave it a try anyway though, and what I found was a fairly simple music-based puzzle game. The idea is to choose from a list of dance/trance music tracks, charitably donated by such artists as Moby and Paul Hartnoll, which then play while you attempt to arrange a succession of various shaped blocks within a (nearly) screen-sized grid. As you're doing this a 'beatline' continuously sweeps the playfield from left to right. If your block-placing antics has left behind any completed blocks of 3x3 or bigger, known as 'quads', they are permanently added to the 'coverage' of the grid when the beatline passes over them which means you can then place more blocks on top.

First Look PSN #3

Elefunk by 8bit Games (2008) - PlayStation Network (PS3)

My interest in this game originally stemmed pretty much entirely from the curious elephant used on its cover image, and in particular its amusing 'stomping' animation, but I had absolutely no clue what kind of game it might be. I guessed it might be a platform game and that turned out to be the case... kind of. It turns out, however, that you are required to build the platforms yourself! Well, they're actually bridges you must build - each stage features a ravine or waterway or something and at least one elephant (though often several) that needs to get to the other side. Your job is to build a bridge by choosing from a set selection of small pieces made of metal, wood, and even rope. It needs to be strong enough though, or the poor elephants will fall through to their deaths.

First Look PlayStation 3 #2

Heavenly Sword by Ninja Theory (2007) - PlayStation 3

Exclusives are hard to come by for the 'main' consoles these days but one such release that had PS3 owners warbling excitedly a good few years back now was Heavenly Sword. Unsurprisingly I've only just gotten around to sampling it myself and was far from shocked to find that it's a hack 'n' slasher through which the player controls Nariko, a red-headed young lady who also happens to be a big-boobed hottie wearing a typically skimpy outfit. In between jiggling around and flashing her legs, much of her time is spent fighting the forces of King Bohan, a tyrannical ruler bent on subjugating the various tribes that inhabit the mystical world in which the game takes place.

PSN Downloads #3

PixelJunk Shooter: The Depths of Disaster (2009)
By: Q-Games Genre: Shooting Players: 1-2 Difficulty: Easy-Medium
Featured Version: Sony PlayStation 3
Also Available For: PlayStation 4, Vita, PC, Apple Mac

My knowledge of the modern game scene is slowly improving but back when I first got my PS3 I knew about as much as a blind octopus. The whole PSN, downloadable indie games thing was new to me then, but upon my first browse through the ominous PlayStation Store, I kept seeing games with 'PixelJunk' in their name. As primarily a retro gamer I like pixels so I decided to take a look at one of them and, as a shmup fan, the choice of which one to plump for was easy - PixelJunk Shooter. Despite featuring a name as generic as most other PixelJunk games, it still had to be a shoot 'em up, surely? And that meant it was already awesome, potentially at least! I still had no idea what to expect though...

Currently Playing...

F1 2012 by Code Masters (2012) - PlayStation 3

Now that the new Formula 1 season is upon us and already looking (though not sounding) more interesting than the last few seasons combined, I figured it was time to refresh my own racing skills. The last F1 game I played extensively was F1 World Grand Prix 2 for the N64 which is very good, but that was quite a while ago now so this was a good opportunity to see how the genre has progressed. Code Masters seemingly holds the official F1 license these days which of course means yearly 'updates'. However, owing to people's idiotic need to always have the most up-to-date release, I picked up this slightly older version for a very reasonable sum. As far as its play modes are concerned, little has changed. There are the standard Quick Race and Career modes, both of which are splendid, with the latter obviously being significantly more involving, but there are also two other modes called Young Driver Test and Season. The former is basically a tutorial mode but the latter is where I've spent most of my time so far. This consists of a shortened season of ten races during which you can pick a 'rival' who you then need to try and beat over a best-of-three mini-series.

PSN Downloads #2

Page Chronica (2012)
By: Red Hare Studios Genre: Platform Players: 1 Difficulty: Medium
Featured Version: Sony PlayStation 3
Also Available For: Nothing

Being a librarian must be a pretty decent job. You get to sit around reading interesting books in peace and quiet - something I think I would enjoy a lot. I guess it's not the most exciting way to spend the majority of one's waking day though, and one young lady who definitely feels that way is Topez, the star of this intriguing indie release from Singapore. She's an apprentice to Morpheous, the 'Lord of Dreams and Master of Stories', who resides in a place called the Infinite Palace which contains all the stories that have ever been dreamt. Despite her talent and promise, though, Morpheous just leaves her to tidy and organise the many special books. That is, until one day while doing her chores she found a mysterious book she had never seen before, bound in chains.

First Look PSN #2

ibb & obb by Sparpweed (2013) - PlayStation Network (PS3)

As a platform game fan (2D ones, obviously), it’s very pleasing for me to find so many new ones turning up in the world of homebrew and independent developers. This particular example is one I’d never heard of and just happened to stumble upon during a rare flick through the PSN Store. It is indeed a platformer, you see, but not a normal one. It was designed to be played by two, each controlling one of the titular characters - semi circular green and red creatures respectively - who must simply make their way from left-to-right through each of the surreal scrolling stages. The trick is, the 'platforms' in them consist of a single line representing the horizon. Both characters can walk and jump around at will, but they can also flip from one side of the horizon to the next by passing through wibbly sections called warps.

First Look PSN #1

Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse by Sega (2013) - PlayStation Network (PS3)

There can't be too many owners of the mighty MegaDrive, whether former or current, whose eyes don't mist up at the mere mention of the words 'Castle of Illusion', so I think it's safe to say this update (or reboot?) by Sega is one that's been excitedly awaited. The big question is: have they produced a fitting tribute to the original, an entirely new game, or have they conjured up a stinker to tarnish our cherished memories? Based on my first impressions of this PSN version, I'd say the first of those would be the most accurate classification (despite the fact that the stages are only based on those of the original rather than direct copies), and that does of course means it's a platform adventure spread across several themed worlds featuring many dangerous creatures, and indeed a good few spooky illusions here and there as well.

Exploring the PlayStation 3

As some of you may already be aware, my time as a gamer was spent on 'current' systems like everyone else right up until my beloved Sega went down as a hardware manufacturer. Indeed, since the untimely demise of their supremely awesome Dreamcast, I've been unable to muster much enthusiasm for any other current systems whether I've liked it or not.

This isn't just because of Sega's absence, obviously - I'm not quite that sad (hopefully!) - I just seem to have gradually been losing interest in them. I think it was a coincidence as much as anything else. It was around that time in my view that the sheer scale of games started exceeding my simple 'short sharp fix' tastes, for one thing. Most of the kind of games released in the 21st century no longer seem to cater for gamers like me. It's not realistic to switch on a PS3 or Xbox 360, have a quick ten minute blast on something, then turn it off again - it would usually take that long to even get to the title screen on most games for these systems, and even then the games themselves usually require hours of attention at a time! Anyway, I'm rambling now - the truth is, I really can't explain why I lost interest in 'modern' gaming, but it is something I've been trying to rectify. I guess I just need that one special game to ensnare me and all the rest will then fall into place...

First Look PlayStation 3 #1

Everybody's Golf World Tour by Clap Hanz (2008) - PlayStation 3

As I’ve probably mentioned before, I’m a big fan of arcade-style golf games and some of my favourites have been the various instalments of the spiffing Everybody’s Golf series (known as Hot Shots Golf in the US). The PSP version took up a startling amount of my time so when I bought a PS3, World Tour was one of my first stops. First impressions of it, however, have proven more mixed than I had expected. The graphics have been significantly improved as you might expect with some beautifully presented courses, but some of my favourite things about previous games have not seen improvement. Quite the opposite in fact, based on my first impressions. There's a new shot/power gauge system which takes some getting used to (although it's optional, luckily) but the characters are now rather irritating, especially their comments and post-shot animations. I also greatly enjoyed unlocking and using all the many nonsensical accessories on the PSP version and that is apparently gone from here altogether. It's still a highly enjoyable game with some nice touches though, and there's a lot to it. It's just not as magnificent as I was hoping.

RKS Score: 3/5


 

PSN Downloads #1

Retro/Grade (2012)
By: 24 Caret Games Genre: Rhythm Action Players: 1 Difficulty: Medium
Featured Version: Sony PlayStation 3 First Day Score: 2,902,770
Also Available For: Nothing

Sadly, I've still been struggling to embrace the modern era of gaming but one aspect that appeals to me is that of the homebrew/indie games available for download on the current systems. The first one I tried, thanks to an advert on the very first PlayStation Store screen, was this very game. I was of course initially intrigued by the inclusion of the word 'retro' but it turns out it's literally a retro game as well as being somewhat retro-ish in style. This is because, you see, it's a shoot 'em up... in reverse! What this means is, you have to play through the game in reverse 'un-firing' all your shots while avoiding all the enemy's shots which they are also in the process of 'un-firing'. Confused yet? I was too, so allow me to explain.

Me? Modern Gaming?

As those of you with whom I'm friends on Facebook will already know, as of this past weekend I not-altogether-enthusiastically joined the ranks of the modern gamers! Well, that's not actually correct yet but I do now possess a current generation console, namely a PlayStation 3 - eeek! But what brought this on? What could make a self-professed 'retro king' step foot into the camp of the accursed enemy?

Just about found space for the PS3 beneath the new TV!

Up until now, my experience with the current consoles equates to a few hours with a friend's Wii (mostly playing Sports Resort and Animal Crossing), around an hour with an Xbox 360 at the Replay Gaming Expo back in November 2010 (playing the splendid Split/Second), and a few hours with one of those guitar games on a friend’s PS3 during my last visit to Brazil. None of these brief experiences impressed me enough to ‘take the plunge’ and actually buy one of the system’s in question but I’ve always held the 360 in the highest regard of the three. This is primarily due to the splendid retro-flavoured updates and sequels on offer for Microsoft’s Live Arcade service as well as the mental bullet-hell shmups getting released for it in Japan so I always thought that if I did buy a current system, it would be that one.