PSN Users get to demo Sonic Generations today

by: Sean Colleli
NEWS - Just a quick update on the second demo for Sonic Generations. 360 users have had access since the 18th, but now it's available for the PSN crowd as of October 25th. Sega is really hyping this game which means they actually feel confident about it--I hate to say it, but most recent Sonic games, with the possible exception of Colors, just kind of slithered their way onto the market without much fanfare.

I think Sega was kind of guiltily aware that they were using their mascot for a quick buck instead of giving him the front-and-center triple-A treatment he deserves. Say what you will about Nintendo and how much they trot out their mascots, but Mario games are at least always good and most of the times they're fantastic. Maybe Sega has finally figured out how to translate the blue blur into modern game mechanics, and that gives them the confidence to hype Generations. In any case it's an interesting strategy--retool all the classic levels from the last 20 years, maybe as a stepping stone to a truly next-gen Sonic game? All I know is I've been fooled before.


Read The Full Article:
http://www.gamingnexus.com/FullNews/PSN-Users-get-to-demo-Sonic-Generations-today
/Item24545.aspx

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Defenders of Ardania in-game footage

by: Sean Colleli
NEWS - Paradox Interactive has another trailer for Defenders of Ardania, and this time they're showing off more of the in-game engine and gameplay. I like the unique take on tower defense and the array of colorful animals that are involved--you rarely see nature as an integral element in this kind of game.




Read The Full Article:
http://www.gamingnexus.com/FullNews/Defenders-of-Ardania-in-game-footage/Item2454
4.aspx

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PC requirements for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
outed

There are a few games this season that are high profile enough to warrant that PC upgrade you've been putting off. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is one such title. Bethesda has posted the official system requirements ahead of the game's rapidly approaching November 11 release.

Recommended Specs

• Windows 7/Vista/XP PC (32 or 64 bit)
• Processor: Quad-core Intel or AMD CPU
• 4GB System RAM
• 6GB free HDD space
• DirectX 9.0c compatible NVIDIA or AMD ATI video card with 1GB of RAM (Nvidia GeForce GTX 260 or higher; ATI Radeon 4890 or higher).
• DirectX compatible sound card
• Internet access for Steam activation

Minimum Specs

• Windows 7/Vista/XP PC (32 or 64 bit)
• Processor: Dual Core 2.0GHz or equivalent processor
• 2GB System RAM
• 6GB free HDD Space
• Direct X 9.0c compliant video card with 512 MB of RAM
• DirectX compatible sound card
• Internet access for Steam activation

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Meet the characters of All Zombies Must Die

by: Russell Archey
NEWS - Doublesix has released a new video for their upcoming game All Zombies Must Die for Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, and Steam.  The trailer shows off the characters of the game and gives a little taste of what to expect when the game is launched this winter.

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New content for Dungeons - The Dark Lord now
available...and free!

by: Russell Archey
NEWS - Kalypso Media has released some new Halloween themed content for Dungeons - The Dark Lord.  From now through November 13th, all the dungeons will contain pumpkins and other new Halloween-themed gimmicks, plus you can play a new map and cast "a most spook-tacular spell"...whatever that means.  Check out the press release for some more info.


Read The Full Article:
http://www.gamingnexus.com/FullNews/New-content-for-Dungeons---The-Dark-Lord-now-
availableand-free!/Item24542.aspx

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Serious Sam: The Random Encounter now available

by: Russell Archey
NEWS - If you've been itching for more Serious Sam, then you're in luck, as Serious Sam: The Random Encounter is now available.  Along with this announcement and small press release (I mean, Serious Sam needs no introduction), Vlambeer has released a bunch of media to go with it, including screens, a launch trailer, and even an enemy chart.  Well, now you should definitely be ready to take on whatever the creators throw at you.

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Disney Universe: Initial Impressions

by: Dan Keener
NEWS - Another game hitting retail today was Disney Interactive Studios latest creation, Disney Universe. Even though I have put up some news on the various costumes and playable areas in the game over the last month or so, I really wasn’t sure whether I was going to get a mediocre movie tie-in, a collection of mini-games or something that had the potential to give Disney Interactive a hot new IP with some legs. After spending many hours within Disney Universe, I think we are looking at the later as the game most certainly isn’t a movie-tie in despite all of the Disney character costumes and play areas.

To this point, I have played about 1/3 of the time in single-player campaign and 2/3 of the time in 2-player co-op with my son and I am so far pretty impressed with the game. The controls are simple to use, the levels challenging, yet not insanely complicated and each area is simply gorgeous. The plot (Disney Universe hijacked by the evil HEX) and cut scenes that support it lend to an even better gaming experience by tying things together.

I will say that the game is definitely geared toward kids of all ages and is very family-friendly, as your players never “die”, they just continually respawn. In addition, the Disney characters suits you dress your little dude up in add some ambiance, but the game seems like it could have been made without these character skins and done just fine on its own. But to me, the integration of the Disney play areas and using signature features of each are the coolest design aspect so far. Cannons, pirate ships and rigging in the Pirates area and the doors and scream canisters in Monsters Inc., are just a few of these cool details.

As I continue working toward a full review, I am not sure how much different the additional levels will be and how my rating of the game will evolve. However, you can expect to find out in the near future. In the meantime, check out the Disney Universe launch trailer.



Read The Full Article:
http://www.gamingnexus.com/FullNews/Disney-Universe-Initial-Impressions/Item24540
.aspx

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Saints Row 'Initiation Station' closed beta goes
live

Those who want to get a head start on crafting their character for Saints Row: The Third can do so now by way of the Initiation Station beta. Assuming they either pre-ordered Red Faction: Armageddon or bought the Saints Row: Double Pack, which is where the codes stem from.

Looking over some of the pre-made creations has me desperately wanting in the beta. It's set to go public across PlayStation Network, Steam, and Xbox Live on November 1. The best part? Once The Third launches, you'll be able to download these monstrosities in-game.

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Preview: The Lord of the Rings: War in the North

There will be blood... and lots of it. The Lord of the Rings: War in the North sets to dismiss the stench of mediocrity that has befallen one of literature and cinema's finest franchises in the videogame realm.
Past games have been hit or miss -- partially due to the usual movie tie-in fate that rushes development cycles, but also due to the fact that the The Lord of the Rings' book and movie rights, in past, were under license from different entities.

Thankfully, we don't have to deal with that nonsense anymore. With WB Games holding the rights to both the movies and novels now and without the presence of a film to coincide with its launch, The Lord of the Rings: War in the North appears to be what fans have been waiting for: a deep, action-centric affair set in the heart of J.R.R Tolkien's fantasy epic. Oh yeah, and it also doesn't hurt that folks who brought us classics such as Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance and the Champions of Norrath series, Snowblind Studios, are helming the charge.

With just a mere week away before launch, I was able to take a final look at this three-player co-op fest.

The Lord of the Rings: War in the North (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 [previewed], PC)
Developer: Snowblind Studios
Publisher: WB Games
Release: November 1, 2011

My adventure began, fitting enough -- as I am a stout man sporting a beard -- with Farin the Dwarven Champion, a Gimli-esque warrior who is all about smiting and mitigating damage. Paired with Eradan the Human Ranger, and Andriel the Elven Loremaster (played by fellow members of the gaming press) we cooperatively made our way through the goblin-infested stronghold of Fornost.

The path was straightforward, but we pressed forward into the first wave of soon-to-be cannon fodder.  Wielding a two-handed sword (Where's my axe?), slashing apart the denizen forces was instantly rewarding. Melee combat is quick, visceral, and highly satisfying as you watch the blood douse your armor. Though combat is essentially relegated to two buttons -- one for light and another for heavy attacks -- each character also possesses a ranged weapon -- a crossbow, in my case -- to further mix up the offense. If you're familiar with the top-down hack and slash fests that put Snowblind on the map, you'll feel right at home with War in the North.

In fact really the only thing that has changed from Snowblind's previous action-RPGs is the viewpoint from which War in the North is played from. An action-driven third-person camera provides more immediacy to the tensions at hand. With this more personal vantage point, each character is free to explore the surroundings for loot and hidden treasures without the limitations of being fixed to the host's screen. My only gripe with the camera is that it, at times, left me susceptible to enemy flanking, but this became less of an issue once I was accustomed to rolling successfully out of harm's way.

Outside of the camera though, not much has deviated from Snowblind's tried and true path of delivering addicting loot-collecting, hack-and-slash adventuring. There are five different levels of loot to pillage from and weapons and gear even contain sockets to add extra attributes to their standard statistics, such as elemental damage and bleeding effects.

Loot dropped is unique to every player, so there is never a need to race for the rare item. You can trade items amongst players or even sell them at certain "shop" locations found per level. There is no weight encumbrance to worry about, but there is a predetermined number of slots for carrying gear -- providing ample storage.

While War in the North does limit itself to just the three predetermined characters -- forgoing a character creator -- the amount of customization available should provide adequate depth to allow for the play style of choice. After leveling up during combat, I was afforded the opportunity to gander at just how the character progression system works. Typical to this sort of fare, a few points can be allocated to improve certain attributes -- i.e. strength and defense -- followed by the upgrading or purchasing of a new skill.

Each character skill tree provides three branching paths, and from what I was told, only one would be able to be fully completed by the time the campaign concludes. Fear not, those who must have the most complete and well-versed combatant, as War in the North contains a new game plus and even a new game plus plus with more challenging difficulties -- which I can attest should be a trial.

After my fellowship made it through Fornost, we skipped ahead a bit into the dank caves of the Barrow-downs. If you remember the part in Return of the King where Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli venture into the Paths of the Dead, you'll have a good idea of what to expect esthetically. It was here also that I began to understand how imperative strong cooperative play is for War in the North.

As we fought the vile undead that make refuge in the Barrows, we were tasked with working together to defeat both the level's mid-boss and final boss. While the end boss consisted more or less of making sure no one perished and focusing our offense in unison, the Barrow's mid-boss was a shining example of using all three character's proficiencies. 

While our nemesis stood off in the distance, hurling boulders and powering up nearby enemies, our communication was paramount to our success. Having Andriel protect us with her shield bubble -- which had been augmented to heal us on top of block projectiles -- I took it upon myself to agro the nearby enemies so Eradan could use his bow to pick off the mid-boss. Had we not worked together so cohesively we may have easily fallen in our attempt. In fact a few times we were close to death, but each character is offered some time to be revived by fellow players before a mission is failed.

After we wrapped up the Barrow-downs, we stopped off at on the game's hub location, Rivendell. It was here we actually met up with many of the main characters from Lord of the Rings trilogy -- all of which resemble their likenesses from the films. These characters serve as story drivers and some even offer additional side quests to further the adventuring. From theses hubs, previous areas can be revisited to find any missing secrets or to finish up incomplete side quests.

While The Lord of the Rings: War in the North doesn't bring a whole lot new to the genre, Snowblind has appeared to update its classic gameplay for a modern generation -- engaging, team-focused co-op surrounded by the addiction of loot and hack and slashing. I'm frothing at the bit to get more time with War in the North as it definitely feels like the Tolkien-esque experience gamers have been waiting for.

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New DSi XL bundles for the holiday: Blue and Rose
colors

I always think that Nintendo invites trouble each holiday with these bundles, especially with the ones that contain older hardware. The gamer kids I know would be pissed if they got a DSi XL for Christmas instead of a 3DS. Sure, you've got those kids that don't know any better, and this would make a good gift for mom or grandma, but most kids are going to ask if you kept the receipt.

If you're out to piss your kid off this holiday, get them one of these new DSi XL bundles. They come in Metallic Rose and Midnight Blue, and they're each packaged with a copy of the Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem! They're priced at $169.99, which is just going to piss your kids off even more. 

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