Added: 25.02.2014 22:15 | 8 views | 0 comments


Getting one great game out for release may seem like an incredible accomplishment, but in todays market its not enough. Most major releases are designed to make things open for a follow-up or even a trilogy. If a game is even moderately successful and does more than just break-even, its a pretty safe bet youll see a product to succeed it. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow was the reboot we all hoped it would be. An action-packed, third person adventure with a gripping narrative, tight mechanics, beautiful graphics, elegant soundtrack and an all-star voice acting cast, featuring Jason Isaacs, Robert Carlylse and Patrick Stewart. The game also features one of the best endings this generation. Needless to say, Lords of Shadow 2 has been a long-time coming. Its just a shame that now its here, we cant give it back.

Added: 25.02.2014 12:15 | 9 views | 0 comments


gamrReview's Patrick Day-Childs: "When it first started everything was pretty fine, but it began to develop and became worse over time. Metal conducts temperature very well, which means that it's often a shock to touch anything metallic because it's usually colder or hotter than most other materials. So every time I buy a collector's edition of a game to add to my game collection, and it's in a metal case, I face a dilemma - endure the pain and tremors which could mean I can't even play, or find something to open the case with. You see, the tremors make it so I can't grip anything, including a controller. Nowadays I often ask people to open them for me, but it's kind of degrading to be unable to perform such a simple task. Eventually I worked out how to pop them open using a thin screw driver without scratching the case or paintwork."

Added: 25.02.2014 11:16 | 4 views | 0 comments


GR-UK writes: "Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 takes elements of the first game to pioneer the interconnected world - Symphony of the Night - and mixes it in with the God of War series. So; expansive areas to explore and enemies that'll send a chill down your spine. A long and entertaining plot that will take you by the hand and guide you from area to area, that has both Robert Carlyle return to lend his voice to an angered Gabriel, now Dracula, and Patrick Stewart as his once mentor, now puppet master Zobek. And in keeping with the best traditions of the franchise, the music is some of the best we've heard in the field in a very long time."

Added: 25.02.2014 8:11 | 37 views | 0 comments


Sequel bites off more than it can chew by trying to cater for too many.
Lords of Shadow 1 was a come-out-of-nowhere, put-a-studio-on-the-map gem. MercurySteam dug the fangs of modern tech into the neck of Konami's 8/16-bit adventures resulting in a supercharged take on those simpler times. It was a linear action romp in the vein of God Of War, but shot through with a bleak Gothic beauty and Patrick Stewart delivering enough ham to fill a deli counter. We loved it, many of you loved it, but some of the hardened 'vania core didn't. It's in trying to get that last lot on board that LoS2 may have bitten off more than it can chew.

Added: 25.02.2014 8:06 | 17 views | 0 comments


Twice bitten. In the past few years vampire media has taken a turn for the worse, rolling in its coffin with so-called sparkly biters and overwrought television serials more focused on sex-appeal. I’d like to think Dracula woke up briefly in the last ten years, went to his local cineplex, and declared "this sucks!" before transforming into a bat, fluttering up to the projection room, and ripping the projectionist's neck out. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 hopes to address the lacking vampire mediascape with a focus on the big boss himself, the originator, Dracula. For fans of the franchise, this means finishing the journey Gabriel Belmont set out on in the first game where he destroyed the four Lords of Shadow and became the prince of darkness. Awoken from slumber centuries later Gabriel "Dracula" Belmont, embodied with the franchise’s greatest forces, near limitless power, and up against Satan himself, suffers through some god-awful stealth. The first or 360/PS3) explains away a lot of loose ends and plot holes from the previous game, including but not limited to two generations of successive Belmonts eager for their father’s demise, it’s impossible not to feel like the lore has been tied up into knots in service of cranking out one more game. Bottom line, Satan is on his way back to Earth and he intends to, , eat all the people or something. Basically we know Satan is bad. The Brotherhood of Light in the game’s bombastic tutorial sequence seemingly represent good, since that’s the group Gabriel was originally aligned with in the first game, but when the player is the vampire prince of heaven and hell, good and evil get a little blurred. Old buddy Zobek, voiced by Patrick Stewart, awakens Dracula, but it feels odd to be ordered around as the prince of darkness. Dracula has visions of his wife and son and frequently warps back and forth between his castle and the surrounding city. The city features map rooms and magic energy stations throughout but the castle looks and feels like old Castlevania, complete with candles and other goodies to break open for power-ups and souls inside. The modern city has barrels and other industrial knickknacks to smash for health pickups and skill-purchasing soul currency too, so fans will still feel at home with the amount of junk to break in every level. Mercury Steam has strewn concept art throughout the game, so bust everything up with OCD, or Obsessive Castle Destruction. I abandoned the hunt for hidden goodies long before hitting 100%, but Lords of Shadow 2 has buckets of bloody action even after the credits roll. Exploration can be confusing at times, but once you beat the main story, you'll be ready to explore the next night. A unique map can confuse any vampire, but it's more -vania than Castlevania and 3D entries in the franchise will continue to struggle with emulating iconic 2D maps. Gabriel even uses a shadow whip in place of the famed Vampire Killer, but combat is still the best component of this adventure. The whip, Void Sword, and Chaos Gauntlets make up most of Dracula’s attacks. Shadow whip has decent reach and builds up the focus meter with every uninterrupted lashing, depleting completely if Dracula is hit even once. At maximum, focus will cause magic power to drop from Gabriel’s enemies which can then fill either Void or Chaos energy bars with a push of the left or right analog sticks, respectively. With power in each meter, you can regain health by striking with the icy Void Sword or deal excessive damage with the fiery Gauntlets. Dracula also gets throwable blood knives, a freezing blast that slows enemies down, and a colony of bats that can distract enemies both inside and outside of combat. Gabriel has a very responsive dodge maneuver as well that’ll bring back memories of 2D Castlevania dashing with some gorgeous visual effects. Leveling up weapons with repeated skill use also improves their look and power, turning the Shadow Whip from a low level wisp into a damaging blast of maleficent magical energy. Digging deeper into the game, fighting waves of enemies as Dracula feels as good as anything the franchise has ever offered. I personally loved juggling enemies with all three of Gabriel’s weapons. Lifting an enemy with the Shadow Whip, wailing on them with the Void Sword to recoup health, and then slamming that enemy with a meteoric crack of the Chaos Gauntlets will please any action game fan. At its best, Lords of Shadow 2 feels on par with . Several narrative moments feel wasted, dashing whatever excitement was built up seconds prior. There are also a few weak boss fights early in the experience, but generally combat mechanics entertain and contribute to the momentum through to the end. I certainly felt eager to know the conclusion of Dracula’s adventure but just as the blood starts to stream, absolutely unnecessary stealth sequences clot the momentum. Occasionally, Dracula will come upon Golgoth guards equipped with hell-fire cannons and a vicious sense of detection. I know the name of these enemies, despite my hatred for them, because on death Lords of Shadow 2 repeats tips that don’t really help at all and one of these names the guards specifically. I must have read the same unhelpful tip dozens of times. Now if only I could get a tip on which Mercury Steam designers to damn for all eternity. While Dracula’s character and abilities have been given definite twists to fit within the Castlevania mythology, there’s really no purpose for the stealth in Lords of Shadow 2. Dracula can possess enemies briefly, the bat swarm can be used to distract the Golgoths, and at certain points our bloodlusting hero can even transform into a rat to solve navigation puzzles. None of this is entertaining compared to the speed and power Dracula displays in non-stealth rooms and all of it is wasteful of the engine, sound design, and mythos. Not only do these gameplay loops slow Dracula’s quest for vengeance, they haphazardly interrupt particularly engaging sequences of plot and combat. Traversal gameplay might not be as deep as stealth, but I would still rather Dracula jump across a thousand chandeliers than sneak around the Golgoth guards. Make them powerful enemies in combat instead of gothic no-fun police. Frequently, Golgoths would turn well out of their pre-programmed path or detect me behind walls. While I could have played straight through without these poorly executed mechanics, I put down the controller in frustration on more than one occasion. It’s enough to warn Castlevania newbies off. Other parts of the game seem to suggest that Lords of Shadow 2 had a scrapped co-operative component, making the advent of an open-world adventure both a blessing and a curse. While the first game was hampered by controlled camera angles and some wonky controls, Dracula actually has bigger problems in Lords of Shadow 2. The experience will certainly satisfy anyone with the patience and determination to see Gabriel’s story through to the end, but you’d be forgiven for passing up the opportunity to exist trapped between light and darkness. Despite some truly gorgeous visuals on now last-gen hardware and satisfying combat mechanics that feel as Castlevania as 3D gameplay could ever hope to get, Dracula gets hampered and hogtied far too frequently by poorly executed stealth. These mechanics have no place in an experience that, without them, could have totally satisfied your bloodlust. PS3 developer code provided by publisher. Tested on Xbox 360. Also available on PC.

Added: 25.02.2014 2:15 | 7 views | 0 comments


"Hiroki Kikutas Secret of Mana soundtrack remains one of the most lauded soundtracks on the Super Nintendo. To satiate fans burning questions about his work, the game composer took to Reddit to answer questions in an Ask Me Anything post. One eye-catching revelation involved one fans inquiry about his work on a fan favorite, Prophecy, which he apparently wrote in 15 minutes. 'The composer also gave a neat explanation for the games aggressive boss tune, 'Danger,' saying that a key factor in crafting battle music lies in focusing on the positive factors clashing with negative ones.'" - Patrick Kulikowski

Added: 21.02.2014 16:41 | 21 views | 0 comments

Will your new product be successful ? If you believe in yourself, it will.

Added: 18.02.2014 3:15 | 8 views | 0 comments


"Microsofts Major Nelson tweeted out an announcement regarding the Xbox 360 Ultimate Games Sale, which is a week-long sale that heavily discounts a bunch of digital Xbox 360 titles. You have until the end of tomorrow, Feb. 18, to take advantage of the first batch of deals before it switches to a new one for each day of the week. Move past the break for the full list. Time for me to use that $70+ credit Ive amassed since last summer." - Patrick Kulikowski

Added: 17.02.2014 14:15 | 22 views | 0 comments


"When Nintendo announced Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze as a follow-up to Retro Studios Donkey Kong Country Returns at last years E3, some fans felt bummed that it wasnt the developers glorious return to the Metroid Prime series. I think theyll be singing a different tune once they start playing the game. Theres no monkey business behind it; the games style and feel are largely the same as its 2010 predecessor. Youre still ground-pounding, rolling, shooting out of barrels and collecting bananas and coins. Nevertheless, there are a number of improvements that are readily apparent in this Wii U sequel, and Cranky Kongs celebrated reveal is only a small slice of the proverbial banana." - Patrick Kulikowski

Added: 11.02.2014 19:20 | 5 views | 0 comments


"He is known as the self-titled Corgi King on the Internet and officially as the Editor-in-Chief of Destructoid, but you can now add another title to Dale Norths resume: videogame music composer. North is no stranger to music, having done a fair assortment of arrangements for OverClocked ReMix over the years. His biggest breakout to original game scoring came last year with the release of Dragon Fantasy Book II, a 2013 indie RPG developed by Muteki Corporation for PlayStation 3 and Vita that serves as a throwback to classic 90s JRPGs. The digital and physical versions of the official soundtrack were released via Scarlet Moon Records in early January." - Patrick Kulikowski