Wheeeeeeeee!

Its funny; when you pick up a first-person shooter in the bargain bin, and even considering its proud and deserved heritage, you can’t expect too much. The fine and subtle art of console FPS is so much a hit-and-miss affair. But seriously, it is awesome. Really awesome.

Okay, it has it’s problems. Most of the jerry enemies are either too weak, or too strong. The last three types of enemies are far above and away tougher than than the rest, which by comparison seem like kids with super-soakers.

Oh, and melee attacks and using the pistol as a weapon are useless.

Now, all the pitfalls are out of the way. It has so, so many winning factors.
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My mind was inexplicably drawn to this image

Saw this one over on GamerLimit and couldn’t help but repost.

So when EA Montreal made the original Army of Two, they comissioned a weapons design contest from the fans to include in the game itself.  The winning designs, the SAL-86 and the BST-V1 were included as unlockable content with the original game.

Well now that the sequel is coming closer and closer to release, they’ve announced they’ll be running the very same contest this time around two.  The challenge?  Design EA a weapon that they can include into Army of Two: the 40th Day.  The site includes the usual set of rules and regulations: the weapon must be at least feasible to the current era, be able to be implemented into the game and not include any trademark material.

The parameters are kind of wide open, but if the last game’s winners are anything to go by, they’re not going to be looking for tactical innovations like the double-barrel broadsword launcher.  Which is a pity, I could see Rios taking to one of those.

Peruse the details.  If I could imagine any new weapon that didn’t somehow have a medieval one attached, I’d probably totally enter.  Oooh, I know, the Gunblade!  Wait a second … curse you Final Fantasy!

Saving the world ... for very reasonable prices!

It’s been absent for a long time now, but the adventure game is clawing it’s way back into your gaming field of vision.  Sam and Max: Save the World delivers in one package the first six episodes of Telltale Games’ continuation of the Sam and Max franchise.  To clarify however, these games aren’t new, they were originally released online in the bygone yesteryear of 2006.  Sam and Max: Save the World is simply a new port to make the first six games available for the 360.  Hopefully, with enough interest, we’ll also be getting the next six!

Even though I knew of their existence, I hadn’t actually tried the new games yet, because I’m not really into playing my games in short segments (as witnessed by the fact I sat down and finished this game whilst forsaking all others).  So when this package was announced, I immediately vowed to get on board: it compiles several episodes for sustained gameplay, it’s nostalgic off the charts, combines classic adventure gaming and also nurtures the achievement whore deep inside too.

And I was not disappointed, on any of these scores.  If you haven’t played the original Sam and Max: Hit the Road, well a lot of gamers (me included) will tell you of your deficient gaming lineage.  It’s one of the all time classics of computer gaming, which is why it was an obvious choice to update for the new generation. (more…)

Last night the missus headed off with friends of our from the Herald Sun Geek Panel to see the preview of Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen.  Whilst in attendance, she also got to have a play of the movie’s game equivalent, and offered me up a rather quick preview of the game via text message.  I’ll repeat it here verbatim for the readers:

News for your blog: Transformers game just as good as movie.  Cryptic!

-Wife plays game, damages sarcasm detector

While she did have some rather amusing pictures for me, the “nasty” security type person ended up making her delete them from her phone, so no such luck there.  But if any of the colourful language she used to describe the film also applies to the game, well, you might want to hold on until the reviews on this title folks!  She wouldn’t tell me if this movie included Roddimus Prime lighting anyone’s darkest hour either.  Some of the secrecy surrounding the game must have worn off on her.

Sure he's bald, but he's sporting an epic beard!

So if you’re any one of the eight thousand people or more following the Rockstar Games account on Twitter, you’ll already know about the new screenshots of Max Payne 3 that have been released.  The website is only for mature audiences, so be sure to remember your CORRECT birthday when taking a look.  I’d bet anyone would find it surprising how few under 21 year olds there are on the internet.

Anyway, for anyone who played the previous two games, you might find it difficult to even recognise Max from this new art.  The game is supposedly set twelve years after the Fall Of Max Payne, and will be set in Brazil.  No mention yet if Max’s penchant for overanalysis survived the move.

Still, it’ll be nice to have another balding action game star to play.  I mean the last one I can think of was Lynch from Kane & Lynch, and everyone knows what a brilliant game that wa … hey wait a minute …

Oh, and Riddick, Kratos and Kane from C&C.  So I guess there are a few still around.

Nevertheless, the new direction Max is getting taken in is at least something fresh for the series.  Even if it does kinda look like Resident Evil 5 sans-zombies.  Check out the screenshots here.

We’ve upgraded to WordPress 2.8, and as this means nothing to your Armchair Diplomat looking-ness, and relatively little for our writing-ness, so… as you were.

Donkey Kong Country STILL won’t be included (you’ll have to buy that seperately), but the SNES case modded PC is now on sale on eBay in the UK!  It’s got a whole week of bidding to go, but if there is any justice in the world this thing should heartily reward it’s creators.

Take a gander.

Surely the metal ribbing effects his swing?

Much as we’re all accustomed to zombie games making use of a golf club as a weapon, a few rather amusing videos displaying the “CEC Mining Hazard Suit” (read: the suit Isaac of Dead Space fame wears) in Tiger Woods PGA 10 have been posted up on 360Sync.

It’s kind of a match made in heaven for a guy who went to the recent Melbourne Zombie Shuffle dressed as a zombie golfer, and long term advocate of making ridiculous custom characters in sports games.  Myself and a friend actually created a team of zombie golfers for Tiger Woods PGA ’05.

This gains double cool points as having this costume also unlocks an achievement.  Given I haven’t owned a Tiger Woods game since the original Xbox, maybe I should check this game out when it starts filling up pre-owned bins?

Check Isaac making both putting and a driving here.

Oh dear, it’s going to be console fanboy wars all over again with this announcement.

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick has been making rumbles to the UK Times that unless Sony considers a price cut for the PlayStation 3 sometime soon, Activision may consider removing it’s support for the console.

“I’m getting concerned about Sony; the PlayStation 3 is losing a bit of momentum and they don’t make it easy for me to support the platform. It’s expensive to develop for the console, and the Wii and the Xbox are just selling better. Games generate a better return on invested capital on the Xbox than on the PlayStation,” he says.

-Bobby Kotick, fire starter

Bobby Kotick: Notice he's holding an XBOX Gutar Hero controller!

Now before sides start gearing up their war horses in the eternal flame war of console superiority, stop and think about this kind of statement from a business point of view. Everything Kotick says is completely true, Activision would be concerned that their property isn’t making as much money on PS3 as compared to other consoles, but removing support? I truly doubt it’d come to this. This is most likely a simple, yet public reminder to Sony that a price cut would be in the game developer’s best interests. In Sony’s interest, well that’s another story altogether. But a big public claim like this is going to have Sony reviewing their relationship with Activision, which is most likely the whole point of the exercise.

So it’s not a hollow threat by any means (nobody doubts the fact that Activision is one major player in the games market), but it’s more probably an angle to improve their circumstances with Sony. A light nudge to the sleeping guy on the train … metaphorically of course.

Sony would appear to be calling the bluff on this one too, with it’s offical answer being: “We respect our third-parties’ opinions and their right to express those opinions but we will not be commenting on this story”. A diplomatic answer, to be sure, but who knows? We might not have heard the last of this yet.

You know a game is hardcore when even the ball is covered in spikes

A new trailer has been released for the upcoming reworking of Blood Bowl,  and it’s looking pretty neat.  For those unfamiliar, Blood Bowl was one of the many table-top games released by Games Workshop back in the day.  It’s basically an ultra-violent take on American football, where the objective is to get your team into the scoring zone with the ball … preferably with all your limbs.  The twist of course is that fouls are actively encouraged in this game, alongside any other devious underhanded tactics you could think of.

Before anyone asks, yes, I once played table-top games. I was young and impressionable and hadn’t found out that D&D is just as much fun and with no expensive minatures to buy!

Blood Bowl has seen a previous incarnation as a video game however, in the beautiful glory of MS-DOS no less.  Unsurprisingly it wasn’t that great a game, but it also didn’t have a lot of the great off-field aspects that the table-top game excelled at.  So I’m pleased to read that not only will the new game feature the “classic” play style, in which teams take turns with their actions, but also a mode called “Blitz!” which sees the player take control of the match in real time.  Overall, I’m kinda intrigued.  The game sees it’s release for DS and PSP in around a weeks time, and an 360 version on the way in September.  If the reviews are favourable enough, I might just grab myself a copy!

You can check the game’s site out here