Category Archives: GAMING

South Park RPG in the Works for 2012

Comedy Central’s golden-boy franchise South Park has dipped its toes in the video game pool a few times before, but always on the fringe of things, and never with good results. The demographic overlap of gamers and South Park fans has got to be pretty huge, so it’s kind of sad that all that’s come out of the match-made-in-heaven crossover so far is a steaming pile of shovel-ware.

The South Park video game experience, to date

Hopefully all that disappointment will be a thing of the past, because Gamma Squad reports the show’s co-creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker are working with THQ and Obsidian on a brand new game, scheduled for a 2012 release on PC, XBOX 360 and the PS3. This will be the first time Stone and Parker, who’ll be writing, voicing and overseeing the production, have actually participated in the development of one of their games, which is a good sign that the quality might finally be up to snuff. Continue reading South Park RPG in the Works for 2012

PS3’s The 10 Best Video Games of 2011

2011 has been one of the biggest and most memorable years for the video game industry that I can remember. An amazing library of games has come out in the past 11 months, and we were treated a massive fourth quarter that likely took a huge toll on your wallet. As 2012 draws ever-closer and with thanksgiving just passing by, I think it’s time we reflect on the best titles of the year. So here it is, the top 10 games of 2011:

10. Mass Effect 2

I’ll be completely honest; I’m cheating here. Those of you paying attention should know that Mass Effect 2 actually came out in 2010. I’m copping out by using the PS3 port that came out in January as a brand new release because even as a game I’d already played on the more responsive PC, ME2 is one of the most impressive space-sagas I’ve experienced in any medium.

The galaxy you explore as Commander Shepard is as deep and fully realized as those in Star Wars, Star Trek or any other galactic fantasy out there but what really makes Mass Effect 2 an amazing video game is a great story, real choices with actual narrative impact and satisfying, tight combat mechanics.

It’s a good enough package that a year later it would otherwise tie for 2nd place on my list of 2011’s best games, but I can’t quite overlook that it already came out in 2010, so I’ve compromised and put it at #10.

Continue reading PS3’s The 10 Best Video Games of 2011

Batman: Arkham Asylum, Arkham City and Beyond… What We Want Next

I didn’t think a sequel to Arkham Asylum would ever be able to outdo its predecessor. But in an age where video games are all about topping the previous installment in terms of scope and depth, Arkham City did just that. Arkham City was huge compared to Arkham Asylum with familiar locales such as Crime Alley and the Ice Berg Lounge to geek out the countless Batman faithful out there. And if you thought that Asylum sported a good amount of the Batman Rogues Gallery, it was nothing compared to Arkham City. From Two Face to Mad Hatter, Arkham city showcased over a dozen of Batman’s greatest villains in roles small and large. So the next question is; where does the story go from here given what happened at the end of Arkham City? As those of you who have beaten the game know, there was a death at the end which is a pretty large void to fill. What villains should be featured in the next installment? I can think of a few that didn’t show up and a couple from Arkham Asylum that were noticeably absent from Arkham City.

Below we will discuss which villains need to make the cut next and what the possible story could be for the next Arkham sequel. So please don’t read any further if you haven’t beaten Arkham City because I’ll dropping spoiler almost immediately.

So we all know that the Joker is dead. D-E-A-D. And I doubt he’ll be coming back since Mark Hamil has stated that he won’t be back to voice the Clown Prince of Crime in any future Batman material. I’m fine with Joker being dead by the way, and it’s for the best because I wouldn’t want to see anyone voicing the Joker again. Hamil owned that role and for as big of a Star Wars fan that I am, I think that Hamil’s career is defined by the excellent work he has done voicing the Joker these past twenty years. Luke Skywalker comes in a close second. I can’t see anyone else voicing the Joker as well as Mark Hamil and would like to tip my hat to him.

Now, if you did some exploring to past locales after beating the game and you happened to go back to the Joker’s hideout at Sionis Industries you’ll find an interesting tid-bit on the floor next to Harley’s Arkham Asylum outfit. Yes, it’s a pregnancy test that is POSITIVE!

Also at the end of the credits you’ll hear Harley singing Hush little baby to someone in her own twisted way. That means we may have a baby Joker on the way? Oh, boy…. If done right this could be very interesting indeed. This would also mean that the next game would have to take place years down the road. And if we’re introducing the son of the Joker as Batman’s next big nemesis then I’d be all for them bringing Damien Wayne into play as well. Son of Batman v.s. Son of Joker? Sounds like a dream come true if you ask me! Talia did die after all, before Bruce could have any knowledge of little Damien if they decided to have him be a part of this Bat-continuity.

Also, if the games just want to continue going bigger and bigger in terms of environment then I suggest Rocksteady break free of the Arkham aspect and simply call the game Gotham City or Gotham Knights. This way the entire city can be opened up to play in and we can see plenty of other Gotham locations such as Wayne Tower. Actually, Wayne Tower would be the perfect place for the game’s climax if there is a final fight between Bruce and Joker Jr. or Damien and Joker Jr. I’d like to see Wayne Manor (Bat Cave included), Blackgate Prison, the Wayne Botanical Garden and even a revisiting of good old Arkham Asylum.

Now to the villains and my favorite part. There were not a whole lot left out of Arkham City that’s for sure, but there are a couple that I think would make good additions to the third installment. One of the most deranged villains and a personal favorite of mine is Professor Pyg. Pyg has his own strange meaning to the word “perfection” which he forces upon his victims by bonding doll faces onto their own face in gruesome fashion. Then by some form of surgery or simple lobotomizing, Pyg turns his victims into his own personal soldier, known as a Dollotron. I think it would be far the creepiest aspect of the games yet when Batman is being swarmed by groups of hideously transformed Dollotrons who want nothing more than to present the Dark Knight to their master for “surgery”.

Garfield Lynns would also be a welcome addition to the game and provide Batman with an interesting boss fight. It’s one thing fighting Mr. Freeze on the ground with his freeze ray assailing you at every turn, but imagine a foe flying above and trying to incinerate you! Lynns would of course not have much story depth to him, but after being featured on the front page of a Gotham newspaper in Arkham Aslyum I think it’s time for the resident pyromaniac to be set loose upon our gaming systems.

In terms of crime boss villains such as Two Face and Penguin, I think that the Great White Shark Warren White would be a great addition. The once meek Warren White underwent a terrible transformation during his time in Arkham Asylum that turned him into the hideous, hardened crime boss that he is in the comics. White was once on top in the Gotham underworld in the comic book continuity and he would work great in the next game.

I envision all of the established crime syndicates to show up in the next game actually including the Maroni and Falcone crime families and the return of Two Face, Penguin and Black Mask. Roman Sionis, the Black Mask, in particular had a very brief role in Arkham City which disappointed me greatly. If you’ll remember he was at the very beginning getting the living shit beat out of him by TYGER guards. Unacceptable! Black Mask is one of the most ruthless crime bosses in Gotham and he needs a little more to do than get beat down in the next installment!

Aside from Black Mask, Penguin and Two Face being brought back I have a few other choices of villains that need to make a repeat, two of which were noticeably absent from Arkham City; The first being that of Jonathan Crane, the Scarecrow. After being taken down by Killer Croc in the first game, Crane was not heard from in Arkham City except in a couple of instances. First, there is his mask and some hay laying atop a bridge just outside of Sionis industries.

Then close by on the little barge/boat in the water there is a secret door you can use your cryptographic sequencer to open which reveals a little laboratory of sorts. There’s even a tortured “patient”, containers of cockroaches and a shipping manifest made out to Dr. Crane from Falcone Shipping. The place is just straight up creepy. I suppose this means that our friend the Scarecrow is alive and well and Batman will have to stop him again sooner or later. I say later in the next video game.

Killer Croc was another who was missing from the game. You can have a little confrontation with him in the sewer after facing off with Ra’s Al’ Ghul but nothing beyond that. In the third game I want to see Killer Croc as a boss or someone’s enforcer. I enjoyed running from him in the sewers of Arkham Asylum but a head on fight would be most excellent.

Bane would be another foe worth running into again, this time as a head on enemy again and not a pseudo ally. This will more than likely happen depending mostly on the success of his character in the Dark Knight Rises which is already bound to be a box office smash hit. It would be nice if they use him a little better than just the Solomon Grundy type brute in the next game, maybe as a more calculating foe as he was in the Knightfall arc of the Batman comics.

It wouldn’t hurt to see Ivy return either, just because I’ve always had a thing for women with green skin who dress in skimpy prison clothes. I liked her small role in Arkham City but I think they could use her a little more somehow in the third game. Another huge favortite of mine would also be Clayface, who was my favorite rogue to show up in Arkham City. You know they’ll be doing something with him after he fell into the Lazarus Pit; perhaps he’ll return with some new mutation that will make him more dangerous than before.

On the bat family side of things I wouldn’t mind seeing more of Batman’s allies as playable characters in the third game. It was excellent being able to switch between Batman and Catwoman in Arkham City, and it was awesome to kick ass in the challenge modes with Robin and Nightwing. Hopefully in the third game it will allow you to switch between all of the characters to perform different missions throughout Gotham City. And I may go completely ballistic if the map is bigger than ever before and you are not allowed to use the batmobile. Vehicles seems like the next logical step in the franchise. It would be like Grand Theft Auto: Gotham City.

Well, that’s about all I have for now. Have I forgotten anything that needs to be in the next Arkham game? Locations, characters or otherwise? It’s probably a long way off from now but who knows, Rocksteady might be moving their asses off on this red hot franchise to follow up the release of the Dark Knight Rises.

Assassin’s Creed: Lineage

In case you missed it, a couple weeks ago I reported on the Assassin’s Creed movie deal that had been announced. I admit that I was a little concerned about the amount of control that Ubisoft demanded as part of their deal, that was until I saw Assassin’s Creed Lineage today.

“The story is a prequel to the video game Assassin’s Creed II. It centres around the father of the game’s main character Ezio Auditore de Firenze. Giovanni is an assassin living during the Renaissance in 15th century Italy. At this dawn of a new era, a conspiracy is being plotted by one corrupt family to overthrow the powerful Medici family and destroy a unified Italy. As an assassin, Giovanni must face this threat and bring justice. The story introduces the situation before Assassin’s Creed II, and the enemies of both characters.”

Thanks Wikipedia!

I had stumbled upon this little gem while browsing the video store on my way to rent Assassin’s Creed Revelations.

It was a really well made film and the environments in it were surprisingly good considering it was almost entirely done in green screen. It really says something for Ubisoft that I was able to recognize all the characters from the game and remember what roles they played in the story. I for one now have complete faith in their ability to make a kick ass movie.

Now because I am such a nice guy I will save you all the rental fee. Assassin’s Creed Lineage was posted on Ubisoft’s YouTube channel long ago, I just didn’t know about it… Enjoy!

Grizzly Game Review: Dark Souls

Japanese publisher From Software were responsible for dozens of broken controllers in 2009 with their release of Demon’s Souls, an action-adventure RPG that became notorious for its unforgiving difficulty. The game enjoyed a niche success for the few thousand sadists willing to dip into the devilish game-world, and suffer frequent trips to the Game Over screen. It became somewhat of a critical darling for its unique gameplay and the innovations it made to online play.

This year From Software released Dark Souls, an indirect sequel that promises more of the same nightmarish game design, and for some reason after playing Demon’s Souls (A game I own and have been stuck on for two years), I said “Yes, I’d love to be reduced to tears by a videogame! Direct me to your nearest store, good sir,” and bought a copy. Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results – I’ll check myself in after this review.

Dark Souls begins with an equally gorgeous and vague cinematic that forms the basis of the game’s lore and history; dragons and powerful beings at war for power, the birth of fire and the rise of humanity. It is revealed that you are one of many humans branded with the ‘darksign’, a symbol marking you as an immortal undead, damned for all eternity to rot in an asylum until ‘hollow’.

You begin the game by escaping your prison, at which point you are chosen to travel to Lordran, Land of Lords, to ring the bells of awakening and remove the darksign. There’s little in the way of exposition – in many ways the story is as indifferent to handholding as the combat, but that’s the point – Like the gameplay, Dark Souls’s story expands and unfolds through exploration and interaction, found in small tidbits such as NPC dialogue and item descriptions, so the more you see and play around with, the more there is to learn and do. This philosophy is what drives the experience of Dark Souls and while it can be immeasurably hard to penetrate and endure, the reward for succeeding is a sense of achievement that you will not find anywhere else in a video game.

The majority of Dark Souls’s design carries over from its predecessor. Like Demon’s Souls you create a character by specifying your desired class (Mage, warrior, thief, etc.), although this time there are a few more levels and specifications to apply which can affect your play, such as starting gifts which can boost certain stats or open elements of the game-world earlier on. While it’s a good idea to select a class that reflects your play-style, Dark Souls never completely punishes you for your choices; if you select a class with low magic stats for example, certain magic attacks or NPC interactions may initially be cut off, but if you’re willing to grind and build your stats you’ll eventually gain access to whatever you desire. In this way, I managed to build a melee-focused Wanderer class who was also quite adept at pyromancy.

Once you’ve given your character life (Or the game’s nearly-hollow equivalent) it’s time to go out and slay some demons. In keeping with Demon’s Souls’s established system, souls are your experience points and currency. Killing enemies rewards you with their souls and the more powerful the demon, the larger the purse. By successfully surviving for longer and longer you’re able to afford more powerful weapons, armor and spells, as well as boost your own statistics. It’s a true-RPG format that forces you to decide where those souls should be applied. A strong weapon is only useful in the hands of a strong enough wielder, so you have to think hard about when to purchase what item.

Making each soul even more precious is the fact that whenever you die, your souls are depleted, you’re returned to a spawn-point and all the enemies you’ve defeated (Bosses excluded) are brought back to life. Your ‘lost power’ is left where you died and you have one chance to reclaim it – you die before then, and it’s gone forever. This is the mechanic that can drive the player insane: Impatience, distraction or a misplaced attack can lose you hours of work. I have slain several bosses in one run only to be stabbed in the back by a generic weak enemy, losing me thousands of souls.

So sure, be careful. You’ve played a video game before, you know the deal. The risk-reward system doesn’t sound too evil until you experience Dark Souls’s difficulty. Mid-way through the tutorial level you’re faced with an enormous boss you have no business fighting that sets the tone for what you’ll have to face throughout the game. His attacks are devastating and a huge change of pace from the easily defeated undead warriors you’ve faced up to this point. It takes a bit of trial-and error to discover the proper way forward, and eventually how to exploit his weakness.

This is how every new enemy is taken care of. It’s a different pattern of blocking, dodging and attacking for each foe you encounter, and several hours in you’ve already mapped the combat tactics for dozens of enemies. The first time a new monster one-hits you it feels like a cheap and impossible attack to overcome but with patience and a level-head you learn its tells and the maneuvering necessary to take it down. The suffering you’re forced to undergo doesn’t seem worth it until you feel the elation of killing a demon three times your size. It’s a satisfaction earned entirely from your own skill and strategy, none of it simulated by gimmicks like quick-time events or restricted by contextual set-piece moments.

The last main aspect carried over from Demon’s Souls is the online system which introduced an entirely new way to interact with other players. For the most part, there’s no direct contact at all with other people playing the game, although every now and then you’ll see the ethereal silhouette of another player moving through the landscape. They can’t be interacted with, but there are several ways they can affect your experience. Most notably, there is a system in place to leave basic messages on the ground for other players to read, which can be helpful or detrimental depending how sincere the message is. Some will advise against tough enemies ahead or reveal their weaknesses, while others will encourage you to jump to your death. How much you follow the advice of other players is up to you.

Additionally you will sometimes find bloodstains of fallen players on the ground, which you can touch to replay their last moments before death. It can serve as a warning for players entering a new environment. There are also several ways to trigger ‘invasions’ where you can battle other players for their souls, as well as summon other players to help you fight for a time, but it’s possible to avoid this altogether if you prefer to play solo. In Dark Souls you’ll have a few more subtle elements that incorporate online play which deepen the sense of camaraderie, like the stony remains of a cursed player or the ringing of a bell signifying a nearby boss has been defeated by a fellow player. Small incidences like this help to richen what could otherwise feel like a lonely endeavor.

Dark Souls’s biggest departure from its precursor is its lack of a hub-world between levels. While Demon’s Souls was composed of 5 large ‘levels’ linked by a safe, nuclear base of operations, the sequel boasts an entirely open and interlinking world comprised of a myriad of different environments. While many of these are available right from the beginning and you are free to tackle each area in any order, there is a general route to follow in which the enemies will scale gradually in difficulty – Stray from this path and you’ll likely find yourself smashed to pieces by a demon far above your capabilities. Finding this route can be a painful lesson in experimentation, but coming back to cut apart an old nemesis when you’ve eventually built the strength to do so is a powerful feeling.

Safe zones are few and far between, but you will be able to rest and upgrade your character at bonfires you’ll find scattered throughout the land. By lighting them you can sit by the flame and fix up and alter your player in all sorts of ways, depending on purchases and upgrades you apply to the fires. The bonfire element is probably Dark Souls’s biggest refinement to the franchise in that it allows the player to progress more efficiently and with less travel back and forth. It also means load times are almost non-existent once you’re in.

From Software have done a fantastic job of expanding on the medieval and mythical influences they drew upon in the first game. Dark Souls oozes with atmosphere and history, not only in the beautiful landscapes which showcase everything from crumbling ancient castles to gloomy, dense forests but even in grotesque and inspired monster designs that could give Guillermo Del Toro a run for his money. There are some frame-rate issues which can almost bring the game to a stand-still, and ragdoll physics that can either be taken as hilarious or incredibly annoying, and these are issues that can really bring down the otherwise amazing presentation. Besides that, you’d be hard-pressed to find another game that can boast an equally deep, immersive world.

It’s hard to advocate Dark Souls as a must-play because it’s such a polarizing game. There is such a high learning curve, and the gameplay is so unforgiving that it’s just too hard to break into for many people. If you’re really into games and you can handle the challenge, there are very few RPGs out there that can match Dark Souls’ refined combat system and action-adventure gameplay.

Take it from me, as I stand stuck for weeks on the final boss, ready to fly to Japan and murder-punch everyone at From Software: Dark Souls may be one of the best games you’ve ever played, and I hate it.

4/5 Bears. 

Grizzly Game Review: Rage

Way back in the early ‘90s, id Software essentially invented the first-person shooter when they released Wolfenstein 3D. They continued to dominate the genre they defined with Doom and Quake in the years following, which today are recognized as some of the most successful and important franchises in video game history. While all three of these IP’s have had all kinds of sequels and remakes in the years since their initial creation, id seemed to have retired more or less from the industry proper. That is until this year with the release of Rage.

Wolfenstein 3D

In the year 2029 a massive asteroid collides with Earth, wiping out the majority of life on the planet. The player wakes up in an ark, one of many cryogenic stasis chambers buried beneath the Earth as part of the Eden Project, an international attempt to preserve humanity’s existence after the Apophis asteroid’s impact. However the Eden Project was an apparent failure – you’re released from cryo to find the rest of your ark killed and much of the ark itself badly damaged. After making your way out into the wasteland, you discover a handful of small civilizations meekly carrying on. Between constant raids by bandits, swarms of attacking mutants and the oppressive Authority, the few good people in the wastes are left to survive or rebel, both lifestyles leaving little time for anything other than shooting, gambling and racing. You’re thrown into the push and pull of things, using a myriad of bullets and vehicles to blast your way through what’s left of Earth.


Without understanding it’s pedigree, Rage might not seem like it warrants the attention it’s getting. Particularly because the game’s been marketed with fairly tight lips there seems to be a lot of fuss over what seems to be just another post-apocalyptic monster-shooter. I was definitely a part of that mentality, even with the knowledge of id’s importance in the industry, and superficially at least, it’s a fair judgment. You probably won’t come away from the game remembering unique set-piece moments and caring much about the story itself, but what you will get is borderline addictive gameplay and, well, fun.

id can definitely use Rage as proof that history and reputation count for something; these guys understand gunplay like no one else, and boy do they make use of that knowledge. Right from the start you can feel the weight and power behind your pistol, and though there are a pretty modest set of firearms you get to play with, there are enough ammo types and weapon classes to keep things varied and interesting. Every weapon has its benefits and detriments and you learn quickly what works on each enemy type. Lots of shooters can boast far more weapons to pick up and use, but it usually just means finding the most powerful one and using it forever. Rage isn’t satisfied with that. For the first time in recent memory, I found myself ducked behind a wall thinking strategy in an FPS game: “Okay, my assault rifle isn’t working, and they won’t get close enough for my shotgun. I have 12 explosive bolts left in my crossbow, but Ghost bandits are too evasive for my accuracy.” Solution? Pop some fatboys in the chamber and blow them away with my pistol.

This leads into my second point. The AI in Rage is fantastic. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen an NPC actually dodge bullets before. I mean, many games have had enemies that will duck, roll or hide behind walls, but never contextually to my actions. Different types of enemy have their own unique behaviour – certain bandits will rush and throw mid-range weapons before slashing at you with axes and blades, mutants will climb and jump around your bullets, and heavily armoured Authority soldiers will use cover and grenades to try to draw you out of safety. There are even occasions where I’ve nearly cleared out a room and the last two bandits will shout ‘He’s kicking our ass! Fall back!” and run back to the next room. It really feels like the AI reacts organically to you, and whenever it seems that you’re actively affecting the game world around you the game is doing its job.

The game is set up in a sort of faux-RPG format. The world is essentially open, and missions are doled out through optional jobs chosen through conversing with NPC’s in hub worlds. Most of these jobs involve traveling by buggy through the wasteland to one of the many faction territories that function as ‘levels’ in the game. Here is where you’ll find the majority of enemies to shoot and explode. Accompanying the ‘RPG-lite’ mission format is an equally simplistic RPG system for upgrading your equipment. Throughout the game world you’ll pick up and purchase recipes and schematics that allow you to build more advanced tools that’ll help you throughout the campaign. The most popular and easily the coolest of your kit is the ‘wingstick’, a bladed boomerang that does heavy damage and can even return to you if thrown properly. Working out the bullet, evade, wingstick rhythm is a joy, and it’s probably the most satisfying weapon in your arsenal. The little RPG elements benefit the game by deepening the gameplay just a few inches more. It’s just a taste, but it’s enough.

Finally there are mini-games to play in each of the small hubs that include gambling your money on 5-finger fillet, a simple chance game called ‘Tombstone’ and a collectible card game similar to Magic: The Gathering. On top of this is the more campaign-relevant racing circuits you’ll need to participate in to upgrade and unlock your vehicles. The cars all feel clunky and handle wildly at first, but before long you’ll be breezily boosting and shooting your way around corners relatively easily. The racing is barely more than another distraction that helps vary the gameplay and keeps the gunplay from getting stale, but it works and can be a blast.

Rage can be a really pretty game most of the time. It features wide, varying landscapes and beautiful lighting. Up close the details start to blend and look a little muddy, and (at least on PS3) the game is constantly popping in layers of detail every time you move the camera, but truthfully you spend so much of the game in a frenzy of movement and bullets that these issues are pretty hard to notice when you’re actually involved in the game world. It also helps that characters move and speak with relative liveliness, thanks to less rigid dialogue animation and some quality voice-acting. Add to this the sheer size of the damn thing (Rage comes with three discs on the Xbox 360) and minor graphical problems are easy to overlook in exchange for the length of gameplay you get out of it.

If you’re exhausted by the amount of similar-looking FPS games that seem to come out every month, Rage is probably not on your wish list. In that respect, you might not want to go the $60 route. That being said, you may be surprised to discover how much you’ve been missing real entertainment in a shooter. The story is a tad conventional and truthfully, doesn’t really go anywhere and ends quite suddenly, but this is a rare occasion where it doesn’t matter. Rage is just that fun to play.

3.5/5 Bears


Here is something extra for all our Breaking Bad fans….