GTA V, 2012 Release?

Gamespot got the word from sources close to Rockstar that GTA V is “well under way”. A 2012 release was described as “pretty likely”. No further information was given, except that “it’s the big one”. Two sets of casting calls, in early and late March, are suspected to point to GTA V. Mention in a resume as well as a number of domain registrations and job listings, have all added heat to our feverish anticipation. Obviously Rockstar is working on GTA V, but it’s still nice to see the shape behind the curtain. 

Fingers crossed for gamescom.

Is Duke Nukem Forever Really That Bad?

Is Duke Nukem Forever worth the wait? No. Come on, Is Duke Nukem really that bad? Yes! So bad in fact that I am contemplating whether to complete it or just bury it in the garden. 14 years in development and it shows, The game is a mess from top to bottom and it really does feel like its been through 4-5 different studios. Not only does the game look horrible (and believe me, the game looks Horrible!) It is also incredibly boring. If this game had come out when it was supposed to then we would have been raving about DNF. The fact is that games have moved on since Duke Nukem 3D. Parts of the game grabbed your attention and make you believe that it is trying something different and unique. This only leads to frustration at repeating the same bits on several occasions. The saddest part for me is that Duke Nukem himself is no longer relevant any more. This stereotype just doesn't exist in this day and age. Repeatedly spouting phrases which are totally out of context with anything he is doing, parodies of film and games which were around years ago and to be frank, Duke just isn't that funny. The rest of the world has moved on, Sadly Duke hasn't.


Reviews


GiantBomb - 2 of out 5
Edge- 3 of out 10
Eurogamer - 3 out of 10
Joystiq - 2 out of 5
Gamespot - 3.5 out of 10
IGN 5.5 out of 10


The King is well and truly dead.

Valve Preparing Free To Play Project - Dota 2?

By Tom Magrino, GameSpot

"Valve opened up its digital distribution portal Steam to in-game transactions through the Steam Wallet last September. Following that move, it seemed only natural that the Half-Life creator would bring free to play, Micro transaction supported tiles to Steam, making this week's announcement that Valve would be doing just that no big surprise.

As the next logical progression, Valve appears to be prepping a free-to-play title of its own. Barre De Vie reports this week that Valve has plans to create a microtransaction-based title. According to the French-language gaming site, Valve's marketing head Doug Lombardi reportedly offered a perfunctory "yes" when asked about whether the studio was developing its own project using the business model.

Lombardi reportedly offered no additional information on the mystery title. Valve had not responded to GameSpot's request for comment as of press time.

Though the title could be an unannounced project, one other possible candidate could be DOTA 2. Due for release this year, the game is an official sequel to the Warcraft III mod Defense of the Ancients, which melded the action genre with tower defense gameplay mechanics. A similar project from the original DOTA team, Runic Games' League of Legends, adopted the free-to-play business model upon its release in 2009"

Pro Evolution 2012 Press Impressions

Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 was a massive improvement from 2010.. but seeing as PES 2010 was beyond terrible, that praise is meaningless. Konami had dropped the ball and they knew it (Eventually) Which led them to re-thinking there strategy for the future of the PES series. 2011 was a huge step in the right direction. It improved every aspect of the game and brought back a few glimpses of magic that made PES so incredible. The press haven't been to kind to the series in the past few years, Some of it harsh but most deserved. Pro Evolution Soccer 2012 seems to have taken the base of 2011 and once again improved on almost everything. PES has always been close to my heart, Even through the dark days, Which is why reading these impressions from the press gets me all giddy with excitement! Can Konami bring back the King of Football Gaming? The race may be close than you think...

Official Playstation Magazine

”Elsewhere, PES 2012 was Borderline astounding for me – not in terms of overall quality, but in the sense that last year’s game was so far behind FIFA 11 in terms of on-field gameplay, and that most definitely isn’t the case any more. This is a much slicker, more immediate experience, which harks back to the halcyon days of PES’s last PS2 years: zipping balls around in tight spaces, admiring the almost human AI of players off the ball (diagonal runs across and around defenders, something FIFA still hasn’t quite nailed, are a particular joy), and introducing an intriguing set piece concept where you can control a specific player on a corner, free kick or throw in, rather than the actual kicker himself. It doesn’t play perfectly – keepers still need a bit of work (and we’ve been saying that about PES for many years) – but no game at the show surprised me more in terms of how far it has turned around since a previous iteration.”

IGN

"FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer continue to provide the world with realistic soccer action, year after year. With each set of 365 days, tweaks and changes come to the game, and players continue to step onto the field. Some years the changes are greater than others, but sometimes it's the little tweaks that are surprisingly groundbreaking. We've talked about the great additions to FIFA 12 this year, but I was pleasantly surprised to see what Konami did to their franchise"

Your teammates will use the space.

"In Pro Evolution Soccer 2012, the differences all fall on the shoulders of AI - but it truly opens up the playing field. It's based on the idea that you're not in charge of your team - they live their own lives. So they need to react to the field like a unique specimen. If you're jogging around a real field, as much as you yell, you're still not in charge of what your teammates are doing. PES2012 implements this idea beautifully into the game.

So when the whistle blows in any match of PES2012, the computer gets to work. When you're dribbling down the field, your teammates are going to break into space (even diagonally), draw defenders off of you, and help finish the play as any trained footballer should. This leaves you the ability to concentrate on your footwork and not worry about the execution around you. In action, the difference is immediately noticeable and you can always find the open man"

The AI is open for a pass.

"On the defensive side, you're going to notice the computer taking over as well. If a striker blows past his cover, the computer will automatically jump to cover him while the rest of the team catches up. This makes scoring a more difficult undertaking – but that's exactly how it needs to be.

Konami's a few months away from announcing its licenses for teams this year, and the modes and additions are still a secret. But with some simple finesse of artificial intelligence, Pro Evolution Soccer 2012 has leapt ahead of its predecessors and feels like a fun day on the pitch"

Gamespot

"FIFA 12 wasn't the only football game on show at this year's E3 expo, with Konami unveiling a bunch of new features for Pro Evolution soccer 2012. As yearly updates go, PES 12 is looking like a big one, with improved animation, visuals, and AI updates that attempt to make it a more realistic experience. With FIFA currently taking the football crown, Konami's certainly got its work cut out to return the series to its glory days and back to the top of table"

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"Of all the new features, PES 12's AI improvements are the biggest, with changes being made to almost all aspects of the game. Our first look started with active AI overlap, a new feature that's designed to improve the performance of players off the ball. In PES 11, if you passed the ball forward to an open area on the pitch, more often than not supporting players wouldn't chase the ball down. Players will now run forward to receive passes, letting you make better use of open space.

This is enhanced by improvements made to dummy runs and diagonal runs, which see players drawing out defenders to give you space to play the ball and make runs across the whole length of the pitch, rather than just along one side of it. The next new feature we were shown was zonal defense. It attempts to improve defensive lines, so players now stay in formation. We were shown a clip from PES 11, which showed defensive players in a zigzag formation outside of the box. In PES 12, that line has been straightened up to more accurately mimic real-world players.

The final AI improvement we were shown was called zonal marking, which attempts to improve the defensive play of your teammates. Players will automatically pick up on runs of attacking players, chasing them down and launching tackles. As well as AI improvements, we were shown one tweak to the controls, which allows you to control players off the ball. For example, if you've got a throw in or a free kick, you can move other players around the pitch, as well as line up your throw or shot"

"improvements are substantial, and if they work as promised, they'll go some way toward making PES 12 a more realistic experience and a better alternative to FIFA. With the game currently only 60 percent complete, there's still a lot of new features Konami has yet to implement, including new personal update data, animation improvements, and more responsive button presses. Pro Evolution Soccer 2012 is due for release in the third quarter of this year. Look out for more on GameSpot soon"

Everything You Need To Know About The Wii U

A very detailed, in depth article into what exactly the Wii U is. I don't know about others but I was a little bit confused with the presentation, So this article should explain a few things, if not everything.

"At its E3 2011 press conference, Nintendo confirmed some details about the successor to the Wii and even gave its new platform an official name: Wii U. While the name might not suggest much of a difference from Nintendo previous system, the Wii U has some significant upgrades and changes, the most important of which is undoubtedly its new controller. While the Wii U supports all of the Wii's controllers, the controller designed for this new platform is not unlike a tablet. It has a large touch-sensitive 6.2-inch screen in the middle surrounded by a plastic enclosure that features traditional console-style control characteristics, including a D pad, two sets of shoulder buttons, four face buttons, and more. The Wii U is also capable of streaming a video signal to the controller's screen, making it possible to play a Wii U game when the household TV is in use by others.

These are just some of the features of Nintendo's next system. We've compiled everything we know about it into one spot, so you can get caught up on all the latest information revealed at E3 2011.Features

Nintendo Wii U: Inside and Out
Nintendo found lightning in a bottle with the Wii, and with the Wii U--the company's upcoming console--it might have found the bottling plant. The Wii U builds upon the barriers broken by the Wii and takes advantage of a touch-screen-equipped controller that offer players a new way to interact with games paired with a console capable of HD visuals.

Nintendo Wii U Controller Hands-On
Get our thoughts on Nintendo's Wii U controller, and see it from every angle.

More features coming soon.

News

Wii U Pikmin revealed at Nintendo developer roundtable
Creative mastermind Shigeru Miyamoto confirms long-delayed Wii installment in series has been pushed to new console; Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Ocarina of Time 3D, Super Mario 3DS, and Luigi's Mansion 2 demo'd.

Activision supporting Wii U
Activision publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg confirms console support, saying "you bet against Nintendo at your peril."

New Super Smash Bros. game in development
Nintendo announces fresh entry in the brawler series for 3DS and just-announced Wii U; titles promised to work together on both platforms "in some fashion."

Wii U unveiled at Nintendo press conference, Skyward Sword due in Q4
New console will feature 6.2-inch touch-screen controller with a host of features; next Legend of Zelda gets release window; massive third-party support includes THQ, Sega, Tecmo, 2K, EA; 2011 3DS lineup detailed.

Wii U boasts M-rated third-party support
Nintendo confirms Assassin's Creed, Ghost Recon Online, Tekken, Ninja Gaiden 3, Darksiders 2, Batman coming to new console; Ubisoft also confirms Rabbids, two new brands en route; Aliens not a lock.

Tekken trio heading to Wii U, 3DS, PS3
Namco's King of the Iron Fist franchise confirmed for Nintendo's latest console as Tekken Hybrid remakes the original Tag Tournament for Sony's system this November.

Ninja Gaiden 3 slicing up early 2012
Blood-splattered sequel gets updated release window; now scheduled to arrive at the beginning of next year.

Previews

Chase Mii Preview Hands-On
As of right now, Chase Mii Is just a tech demo. It hasn't been announced as a full-fledged game yet, so don't get your hopes too high for some indoor tag action. But what's here is quite fun and a good showcase for how the Wii U can extend the reach of local competitive games.

New Super Mario Bros. Mii Hands-On Preview
Aside from being in HD, the visuals looked essentially indistinguishable from those of New Super Mario Bros. Wii, and the levels we got to dash through were challenging, with quickly moving platforms and tricky jumps galore. We had fun with the demo, but we didn't feel that it was a particularly strong showcase for the Wii U's technology, at least at this stage.

The Legend of Zelda Wii U Hands-On Preview
Aside from the streaming technology taking place, what makes this remarkable is the fact that the screen on the tablet is pretty high quality--obviously, it's not on par with the HD resolution being displayed on the TV in front of us, but it was impressive nonetheless and we could easily see ourselves using this feature in the manner Nintendo demonstrated during the conference (switching to the tablet when someone else needs the TV).

Battle Mii Wii U Preview
By moving the tablet down and holding it in a natural position (as you would any normal controller), the camera perspective takes a top-down view, letting the player flying the ship get a more tactical view. Moving the position of the controller in between these points presents any number of different perspectives, and players can ultimately settle on what's most comfortable for them for any situation.

Shield Pose Wii U Hands-On Preview
It's not a great visual demonstration of the Wii U's graphical capabilities, but what makes Shield Pose an interesting demonstration of the Wii U technology is just how the tablet functions as a second screen, not unlike the second screen on Nintendo's DS handheld platforms--only it's completely dynamic, functioning much like a magnifying glass"

More previews coming soon.