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Rainier's Articles


PS2 Preview - 'Kingdom Hearts II'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2005

Genre: RPG
Publisher: Square-Enix
Developer: Square-Enix
Release Date: TBA

One of the titles I anticipated most before this year's E3 was Kingdom Hearts II, which picks up the story a year after Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. The Heartless are back once again, but so are Sora, Donald, and Goofy. Some of the supporting characters from the original game have returned, as well as a few new friends.

For me, Kingdom Hearts was always about two things: the gameplay, and the joy of seeing the Square-Enix characters working with the Disney characters. As far as gameplay goes, a lot of

PS2/Xbox/X360 Preview - 'The Godfather'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2005

Genre: Action/Adventure
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: EA Redwood Studios
Release Date: Fall 2005

They all just make it look so easy, don't they? The mob, that is. Control of underground criminal activities, a reach that spans cities, the power to make or break lives within minutes, manpower to call their own … oh, yeah, it's incredible.

Most movie mobs, however, don't show you the nitty-gritty side of things, just the raids and the gunshots and the thick accents. But what about getting there? Isn't that half the fun?

Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither were organized crime empires. There's

PS2 Preview - 'Beatmania'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2005

Beatmania

Genre: Puzzle/Rhythm
Publisher: Konami
Developer: Konami
Release Date: TBA

Konami has finally started bringing their music games stateside, which means that we gaming fiends can finally experience Beatmania. I'm hoping that this will start a trend, forcing Namco to import more Taiko goodness, and Konami to bring over DrumMania and Guitar Freaks.

For those who are new to Beatmania, the game is Konami's version of deejaying. It plays like Dance Dance Revolution, but instead of using your feet, you are using your hands to hit the keys of their deejay controller, basically a turntable and seven buttons. At the Konami booth, they

'MechAssault: Phantom War' (NDS) - Features, Screens & Trailer

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - E3 2006 May 12th

Get the MechAssault: Phantom War Trailer off WP (12mb)

MechAssault: Phantom War brings the future of interstellar combat to today’s handheld gamers in a third-person futuristic shooter. Players assume the role of a MechWarrior, an elite fighter trained to control the ultimate war machine of the 32nd century...the BattleMech. Gamers experience fast-action, 3D ‘Mech combat on the top screen, while the lower touch screen positions them inside the cockpit at the controls.

The year is 3134 and after 60 years of peace and prosperity, the Republic of the Sphere is now living in a dark age of ex-communication. Nearly all Hyperpulse

PS2 Preview - 'Radiata Stories'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2005

Genre: Action RPG
Publisher: Square-Enix
Developer: tri-ACE
Release Date: Q4 2005

One of the pleasant surprises about E3 was the presence of the special Radiata Stories localized demo. This game caused quite a stir when it was launched in Japan, debuting at #2 on the sales charts and receiving some astronomical review scores from Famitsu. Import fans were more divided on it; while the game was enjoyable, it was almost totally unlike anyone's expectations. A lot of the micro-management that fans expect from RPGs was simply not there, replaced with what was obviously an experiment in Western-style, open-ended gameplay

PS3/X360 Preview - 'Batman: Arkham Asylum'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2009

Genre: Action/Adventure
Publisher: Eidos/Warner Bros. Interactive
Developer: Rocksteady Studios
Release Date: August 25, 2009

Superhero games are a weird genre. On the surface, it seems like it shouldn't be too difficult to come up with a good game, but they have some of the worst records as far as licenses go. Even games that are based on extremely popular characters like Superman or Iron Man tend to be mediocre at very best, but perhaps the greatest surprise here is Batman, whose failure record easily dwarfs his successes. For the last good Batman games, we have to

X360 Preview - 'Full Auto'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2005

Genre: Racing
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Pseudo Interactive
Release Date: Q4 2005

Now this will involve thinking way back, the length of which being painful for some to attempt, but think back to when you were little. Remember how you had the Matchbox cars and imagined them racing each other and doing whatever was necessary to cross the finish line first? Missiles making opponents fly into heaps of rubble, explosions, and ridiculous amounts of violence? Maybe it's just my childhood that was as strange…

In either case, Pseudo Interactive has captured that same wanton destructive glee and digitized it in the

'Jaws Unleashed' (PS2/Xbox/PC) - Screens

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - E3 2006 May 12th

JAWS, from Universal Pictures and Steven Spielberg, broke all box office records to become one of the highest grossing films of its time. The movie has had a lasting impact spanning decades and now JAWS Unleashed is poised to recapture the horror of being preyed upon by the most feared creature in the ocean. JAWS Unleashed recreates scenes and character spinoffs from the movie while allowing the player to experience the JAWS universe from a unique perspective—that of the Great White Shark.

Amity Island is growing, making corporate connections with prestigious companies like Environplus to improve the Island’s economy. Unfortunately the

PS2/Xbox/PC Preview - 'Total Overdose'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2005

Genre : Action
Publisher: SCI
Developer: SCI
Release Date: November 2005

"So," the PR agent said, "have you ever seen I’m Gonna Get You Sucka?"

That was what first got my attention about Total Overdose, because truly, that film is the Wayans brothers’ magnum opus. What kept my attention was the insanity that followed.

Total Overdose is a sort of demented cross between Robert Rodriguez’s Mexican Westerns, i.e. Desperado, and Max Payne, with a lot of room for improvisation, a Mexican hiphop soundtrack (featuring bands like Control Machete), and a lot of points for style. You begin the game as an

'Huxley' (X360/PC) - Screens & Trailer

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - E3 2006 May 12th

Get the Huxley trailer off WP (80mb)

Webzen introduces Huxley for the PC and Xbox 360™, the first game to allow console players and PC players to go head-to-head in first-person shooter (FPS) battles on a massively multiplayer scale.

In a post-apocalyptic world human beings have mutated and divided into Sapiens, Alternatives and Hybrids. The Sapiens and Alternatives both battle for control of the Earth’s resources as the Hybrids, a mysterious third race, fight for their very survival. In the PC game, players take on the role of the Sapiens or Alternative. On the Xbox 360™ they enter the game as