It’s been quiet for a while. December brought only Star Wars the Old Repulic and january is just as barren until the last week. Febuary however promises to hold a plethora of gaming gems. I doubt many people have even finished Skyrim yet, but time waits for no man, not even the Dragonborn, and like a man whose adventuring days have been cut short by a knee related injury, february comes with its multitude of games and a new handheld launch.
The last week of January brings the long awaited Resident Evil Revelations to 3DS along with the Platinum Games online brawler, Anarchy Reigns to PS3 and 360. The first week of February brings heavy hitters Final Fantasy and Sould Calibur 5 to the party along with Konami’s MGS and ZOE HD collections. The following week sees EA’s RPG Kingdom’s of Amalur hit the shelves along with the rather sudden Darkness 2 and Atlus’ rather strange Catherine.
After that we see the months main attraction – the PlayStation Vita launches along with a bunch of games. The Vita hasn’t had the best of starts in Japan, but then neither did the 3DS. There’s a lot of great games at launch, like Uncharted, Wipeout and Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom – and there’s a lot of great titles coming soon. The month closes out with the SSX reboot, the Syndicate reimagining and the bizzare spectacle of a game, Asura’s Wrath. Read on to see the month’s full listings.

27th Jan

• Resident Evil Revelations (3DS)
• Anarchy Reigns (PS3/X360)

3rd Feb

• MGS HD Collection (PS3/X360)
• Final Fantasy XIII-2 (PS3/X360)
• Soul Calibur 5 (PS3/X360)
• ZOE HD Collection (PS3/X360)
• Neverdead (PS3A/X360)

10th Feb

• Kingdoms of Amalur (PS3/X360/PC)
• Fallout: New Vegas Ultimate Ed (PS3/X360/PC)
• Catherine (PS3/X360)
• The Darkness 2 (PS3/X360/PC)
• Grand Slam Tennis 2 (PS3/X360)
• Saint Seiya: Sanctuary Battle (PS3)
• Inversion (PS3/X360/PC)
• 17th Feb
• ??Twisted Metal (PS3)
• Binary Domain (PS3/X360)
• UFC: Undisputed 3 (PS3/X360)

22nd Feb

• PlayStation Vita
• Uncharted: Golden Abyss (PSV)
• Little Deviants (PSV)
• Everybody’s Golf (PSV)
• Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom (PSV)
• Reality Fighters (PSV)
• Unit 13 (PSV)
• Wipeout 2048 (PSV)
• Modnation: Roadtrip (PSV)
• F1 2011 (PSV)
• Rayman Origins (PSV)
• Virtua Tennis 4 (PSV)
• Michael Jackson: The Experience (PSV)
• Army Corps of Hell (PSV)
• Asphalt Injection (PSV)
• Dungeon Hunter: Alliance (PSV)
• Lumines: Electronic Symphony (PSV)

24th Feb

• Jak and Daxter Trilogy (PS3)
• SSX (PS3/X360)
• The Last Story (Wii)
• Hyperdimension Neptunia Mk2 (PS3)
• Jagged Alliance: Back in Action (PC)
• Syndicate (PS3/X360/PC)
• Asura’s Wrath (PS3/X360)
• Captain Morgane & The Golden Turtle (PS3/X360/PC/DS)
• DIRT3 Complete (PS3/X360)

]]> http://dpaddependency.wordpress.com/2012/01/12/the-gaming-month-ahead-febraury/feed/ 0 valaysir ps_vita_uncharted http://dpaddependency.wordpress.com/2011/10/31/the-gaming-month-ahead-november/ http://dpaddependency.wordpress.com/2011/10/31/the-gaming-month-ahead-november/#comments Mon, 31 Oct 2011 17:40:49 +0000 valaysir http://dpaddependency.wordpress.com/?p=2739 ]]>

It’s that time again – when there’s more games than we have money or hours in the day to play. It happens every year – but still all the publishers would rather risk the avalanche of year end, christmas rush games, than try to launch in a clear window. This Novemeber sees an immense wealth of titles across all genres and platforms wedging themselves into the timetable. So much so that I haven’t listed all the games on this months schedule. Don’t worry – I haven’t left off Skyrim or anything like that, just a slew of Kinect, Move and Wii titles that I figured wouldn’t be missed too much.

The main players this month include the likes of Uncharted 3, Skyrim, Modern Warfare 3 and Assassins Creed Revelations. And they’re surrounded by the like of Halo Anniversary, Saints Row 3, King of Fighters 13 and Ultimate MvC3. Remember to spread your purchases – because apart from Old Republic, December’s got nothing!

2nd

• Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (PS3)

4th

• Sonic Generations (PS3/X360/Wii/3DS/PSP)
• 007 Goldeneye Reloaded (PS3/X360)
• Blackwater (X360)
• Persona 2: Innocent Sin (PSP)
• Disgaea 4 (PS3)
• Blazblue Continuum Shift 2 (PSP)
• PES 2012 (Wii)
• Hasbro Family Game Night 4 (PS3/Wii/X360)

8th

• Modern Warfare 3 (PS3/X360/PC/Wii/DS)

11th

• Skyrim (PS3/X360/PC)
• Batman: Arkham City (PC)
• LA Noire Complete (PC)
• Dodonpachi resurrection Deluxe (X360)
• Black Eyed Peas Experience (Wii/X360)
• Naruto Shippuden (PSP)
• Puppies World 3D (3DS)
• Witcher 2 Ver 2.0 (PC)
• Shinobi (3DS)

15th

• Assassin’s Creed: Revelations (PS3/X360)
• Halo: Anniversary (X360)

18th

• LA Noire Complet (PS3/X360)
• Saints Row The Third (PS3/X360/PC)
• Dynasty Warriors 7 Xtreme Legends (PS3)
• Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii)
• Super Mario Land 3D (3DS)
• Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom (PS3/X360)
• Mario & Sonic London Olympics (Wii)
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 (PS3/X360/Wii/DS/PSP/PC)
• Need For Speed: The Run (PS3/X360/Wii/3DS/PC)
• Dreamworks: Super Kartz (PS3/X360)
• Cabela’s Adventure Camp (PS3/X360)

25th

• King of Fighers 13 (PS3/X360)
• Professor Layton and the Spectre’s Call (DS)
• WWE 12 (PS3/X360/Wii)
• Zumba 2 (Wii)
• Tekken Hybrid (PS3)
• LOTR: War in the North (PS3/X360)
• Kinect: Disneyland Adventures (X360)
• Cooking Mama 4 (3DS)
• Rayman Origins (PS3/X360/Wii)

Wow – how did I miss the start of October? I blame the Eurogamer Expo! Well better late than never (hopefully) October’s already kicked off with some decent titles like Dark Souls taking up everyone’s time. But there’s still three fridays left in this month and a shed load of awesome gaming. Taking the spotlight this month is undoubtedly Batman: Arkham City. I don’t think anything need be said about it. Arkham Asylum was a fantastic game and City adds tons of new content and features – including a playable catwoman!

Also this month Battlefield 3 – nipping in before its rival comes out in early November. Battlefield has certianly whipped up a media frenzy – some good press, some bad press – but all of it making sure it remains firmly in everyone’s thoughts in the coming weeks. It certainly looked the more popular at Eurogamer and while I somehow doubt it will outsell its rival – I’m sure it will make a sizable dent in their profits. Read on to see the full list of games for the remainder of this month.

14th

• Forza 4 (X360)
• PES 2012 (PS3/X360/PC/PSP/DS/Wii)
• Dead Rising 2: Off the Record (PS3/X360/PC)
• Jonah Lomu Rugby Challenge (PS3)
• Might and Magic VI (PS)
• Red Dead Redemption GOTY (PS3/X360)
• Spiderman: Edge of Time (PS3/X360/DS/Wii)
• WRC 2011 (PS3/X360
• X-Men Destiny (Wii)

21st

• Batman: Arkham City (PS3/X360)
• Football Manager 2012 (PC)
• Ratchet and Clank All 4 One (PS3)
• FIFA Manager 12 (PC)
• Tropico 4 (X360)
• Naruto Shippuden: Ninja Impact (PSP)
• Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn (PC/Wii/DS)

28th

• Battlefield 3 (PS3/X360/PC)
• DragonBall Z: Ultimate Tenakichi (PS3/X360)
• Football Manager Handheld 2012 (PSP)
• Disney Universe (PS3/Wii/Kinect)
• Sword of the Stars 2 (PC)
• King of Fighters 12 (PS3/X360)

A quick word of warning. Batman for PC is listed by all retailers at the same date as the console – but reports from the publisher suggest it will be delayed into November.

September…kids go back to school and the gaming schedule starts ramping up for a end of year extravaganza finale. While this September isn’t exactly the most packed in written history, there’s still a healthy variety of games coming out. The month starts strong with Dead Island and Space Marine early on. Not sure about Dead Island (more zombies? really?) but Space Marine looks and plays like top notch entertainment. We also get a double dose of alien killing with the last of two trilogies – Gears of War 3 on X360 and Resistance 3 on PS3. And the month rounds off with the powerhouse of Fifa12 – offering even more football than you can stand on every platform (Even the PS2 apparently). Other noteworthy’s include El Shaddai, a very strange biblical game (demo’s on PSN if you’re curious) and a revamp of ICO and Shadow of the Colossus – both of which you should play if you missed them on PS2. Even if you did play them – play them again, cause they now run at a smoother framerate in HD and have trophy support.

And that pretty much sums up September. I’m still playing Deus Ex, but I may just have to pick up Space Marine as well…and ICO and SOTC…

2nd Sept

• Bodycount (PS3/X360)
• Driver San Francisco (PS3/X360/PC)
• Madden 12 (PS3/X360/Wii/PS2/Wii/PSP)

9th Sept

• Dead Island (PS3/X360/PC)
• Space Marine (PS3/X360/PC)
• Resistance 3 (PS3)
• Jonah Lomu Rugby Challenge (PS3/X360)
• NHL12 (PS3/X360)
• Kinect: Rise of Nightmares (X360)
• Monkey Island – Special Edition (PS3/X360/PC)
• El Shaddai (PS3/X360)

16th Sept

• God of War Collection 2 (PS3)
• Bleach: Soul Ressurection (PS3)
• Kinect: The Gunstringer (X360)
• Splinter Cell Trilogy (PS3)
• The Cursed Crusade (PS3/X360/PC)
• Red Orchestra 2 (PC)
• Tropico 4 (X360)

20th Sept

• Gears of War 3 (X360)
• F1 2011 (PS3/X360/PC)

23rd Sept

• Supremacy MMA (PS3/X360)
• Ride To Hell (PS3/X360/PC)

30th Sept

• FIFA 12 (PS3/X360/PC/Wii/PS2/PSP/DS)
• ICO and Shadow of the Colossus (PS3)
• Child of Eden (PS3)

Pro tip: Avoid bodycount. If you haven’t played the demo – it looks like a last-gen game. Honestly, it looks no different to Project Snowblind or any number of Ps2 FPS. I know looks aren’t everything, but they’re not even trying anymore!

That’s right – it’s officially a game drought. Also known as catch up time. Last month was pretty slim pickings anyway, this month is famine worthy. Deus Ex: Human Revolution is pretty much the major release this August. Most annoyingly it also comes out right at the end of the month, leaving a barren gap until then. On the one hand this is good news – as it means we all have time now to finish Witcher 2 (your all playing that of course – and if not, you should be ashamed and go buy it…and a decent PC if you don’t already have one) – but it also means it comes out a short gap from September’s releases which include the likes of Resistence 3, Warhammer: Space Marine and Fifa 12.

Deus Ex is looking to be a great way to round off the summer. Offering RPG elements in a solid shooter shell – much like Mass Effect did a while back, but with the emphasis more on the shooting here. It’s already gotten a 95% review from PC Gamer and we’ll see closer to release if it holds up critically to what it looked like in the trailers.

Other releases this month include Arcana Heart and a Rugby Title…that is all.

A Dynasty Warriors spin off, a couple of movie tie ins, a few budget bundles and a cult insect smashing game. Bit of a filler month really.While it doesn’t offer us much in terms of quality titles, it does give us time. Time to go over and finish games we may not have, or pick up games we didn’t have time for. I’ve still Shadows of the Damned and Dynasty Warriors 7 to finish and Alice and Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood to pick up. Of course I’ll have to pick up Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3 at some point too.

1st

• Le Tour De France 2011 (PS3/X360)
• Dynasty Warriors Gundam 3 (PS3/X360)
• Air Conflicts: Secret Wars (PS3/X360)
• Resident Evil: Mercenaries (3DS)

8th

• D&D: Daggerdale (PC)

15th

• UFC Personal Trainer (PS3/X360)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (PS3/X360/PC/DS/Wii)
• Captain America: Super Soldier (PS3/X360/PC/DS/Wii)

22nd

• Earth Defence Force: Insect Armageddon (PS3/X360)
• Uncharted Double Pack (PS3)
• Resistance Double Pack (PS3)
• Ratchet and Clank Double Pack (PS3)
• Cars 2 The Videogame (PS3/X360/PC/DS/Wii)
• Just Dance 2: Extra Songs (Wii)
• Max and the Magic Marker (Wii/DS)

29th July

• Bodycount (PS3/X360)
• The Cursed Crusade (PS3/X360/PC)
• The Smurfs Dance Party (Wii/DS)

June comes and brings with it many, many games.  Chief among these are Duke Nukem Forever and Infamous 2. The latter has already been getting many good reviews and as those who have tasted the level editor can attest to – it thouroughly appears  to deserve the praise. EA continue their support of the new and the original with Alice: Madness Returns and Shadows of the Damned both out this month. Also PlayStation gets a double helping of RPG with White Knight Chronicles – a sequel (with the first part included!) on PS3 and a prequel on PSP.

3rd June

• Hunted: The Demons Forge  (PS3, X360, PC)
• Major League Baseball 2K11 (PS3, X360

10th June

• Infamous 2 (PS3)
• Duke Nukem Forever (PS3, X360, PC)
• White Knight Chronicles 2 (PS3)
• White Knight Chronicles: Origins (PSP)
• Red Faction: Armageddon (PS3, X360
• Green Lantern (PS3, X360, Wii, DS)
• Kung Fu Panda 2 (PS3, X360, Wii, DS)

17th June

• Alice: Madness Returns (PS3, X360, PC)
• Dungeon Siege 3 (PS3, X360, PC)
• Child of Eden (X360)

24th June

• Shadows of the Damned  (PS3, X360)
• FEAR 3  (PS3, X360, PC)
• PSMove: Ape Escape (PS3)
• Transformers: Dark of the Moon (PS3, X360, Wii, DS)
• Arcana Heart 3 (PS3, X360)

Infamous 2 and Shadows of the Damned are my must buy’s of the month – though I’m sure most people will want to check out the long-long-long-awaited Duke Nukem Forever.

Brink and LA Noire take top billing in an otherwise dry month for gaming. Fear 3 out at the end of the month and niche interest titles No More Heroes Paradise on PS3 and Gladiator Begins on PSP (which I highly recommend) – but other than that, there’s not much. I guess most people are gonna go Rockstar crazy as always and buy LA Noire – and that’s probably why other games have avoided this month.

6th

• Sniper Ghost Warrior (PS3)
• Cabela’s Dangerous Hunts (PS3/X360/Wii)

13th

• Brink (PS3/PC/X360)
• Lego Pirates of the Caribbean (PS3/PC/X360/Wii/DS/PSP/3DS)
• MX Vs ATV (PS3/X360)

17th

• The Witcher 2 (PC)

20th

• LA Noire (PS3/X360)
• Splinter Cell Trilogy (PS3)
• Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Reverie (DS)
• Dead or Alive Dimensions (3DS)
• No More Heroes Paradise (PS3)

27th

• DiRT 3 (X360/PS3)
• FEAR 3 (PS3/PC/X360)
• Gladiator Begins (PSP)

Well I’ve had it since Friday morning, what do I think of it? I think it’s bloody amazing. I know it sounds stupid, but it’s like they made a sequel to Dynasty Warriors 3 (see my retrospective to see how much I loved that). The combat system has been streamlined – all the unnecessary 9-hit combo’s from 5, the renbu and Musou overcharge are all gone. Instead we get character specific proficiencies and the good old Square to Triangle combos. 

The presentation of the game is brilliant – well done cutscenes, descriptive narrative and for the first time since DW3, they’re sticking a lot closer to the original story. The Voice Overs still sadly lack the option of Japanese voices, but thankfully the bland voices of DW6 are gone and replaced by the far more caricatured VO’s seen in previous DW’s. The difficulty is also back – Hard mode is almost to challenging to start off on and Normal feels just right. While normal enemies are still a walk over – if you try to mindlessly button bash, you’re gonna lose the war. Enemy generals are tough, friendly generals can hold their own and the musou specials have been shortened to be used far more often.

I really can’t praise this game enough – the campaign mode is slick, authentic and fairly lengthy and the Conquest mode let’s you battle to your heart’s content with unlocked characters.  As Destructoid pointed out in their review the only thing missing is a free mode – it’s not a major fault and hopefully something that may be rectified with DLC later. Until then – I’ve got a country to conquer…again!

Where it all went wrong – Dynasty Warriors 6. The supposed first next-gen entry. This was supposed to be something only possible on PS3 and X360 and was subsequently released on PS2 later. Low detail graphics, a simpler combo system (you could mash square to infinity and had a single combo on triangle to interrupt with), a much smaller roster (only 15 characters and some clones among those too) and a story as far removed from the original text as possible. DW6 was every DW fans nightmare – it was becoming what reviewers said it was – bland, repetitive and uninspired. Even the additions of swimming and climbing ladders did little to endear this to players hearts. I may be demonising DW6 more than is fair – but it helps understand exactly the kind of hopes that are riding on DW7.

There have been many other games along the way in the Warriors series. Samurai Warriors focused the action on the warring states period of Japan. Warriors Orochi was an enormous mash up of both Dynasty and Samurai series characters in one game – the roster for that title was unbeleivably huge! And Dynasty Warriors Gundam brought the action of the warriors series to the anime mobile suits of Gundam. The formula for DW has always been the same – but to be honest, we the fans wouldn’t want it any other way. Tomorrow Dynasty Warriors 7 comes out – and I can’t bloody wait!