I have decided to let the game decide which of these community levels I’m going to try. You can do this using a feature in the LBP2 Community area called “Lucky Dip”. I’m not going to try to sort based on what the community thinks is hot, or look for specific subjects. I’m going on a roll of the dice here. I’ve been called a “braver man” for doing this.
That’s how I wound up playing DOOM 333. DOOM 333 is an exceedingly simple little level. That’s me up there in that picture, about to fall headfirst onto a jump pad. It’s basically all jumping and running, and it’s very quick. I was a little put off by it, actually, because there’s nothing to it. You get a couple goodies, go through a gate, and then jump over some giant things. That’s it. I was about to leave it behind and try another Lucky Dip when I saw that I was in second place on the scoreboard. Yes, second out of two. But still second. So…I played again. And again. And again. Now I’m in first, a position I’ve held for almost a day. With at least three other sack creatures trailing me. I like being first.
Most of the time I’m playing Marvel vs. Capcom 3, I have no idea what’s going on. Stuff just happens. Crazy colorful stuff. I may or may not have made it happen. I may or may not know who’s involved. Sometimes it’s a famous superhero or Albert Wesker. Sometimes it’s some crazy character from Japan. I feel the same way looking at screenshots. Like that up there. Jill Valentine from Resident Evil is beating up an octopus? I didn’t even realize there was an octopus in Marvel vs. Capcom 3.
You’ll be able to confuse yourself with the game as of February 15th. Until then, more bewildering screenshots are available here.
[THQ] CEO Brian Farrell made the announcement at an earnings call today, explaining, “In the Fall, we plan to launch the latest installment of our Saints Row franchise, which we view as a significant growth driver in fiscal 2012.
“Volition is setting a new bar for this outstanding franchise and we look forward to unveiling this game in the near future.”
Albert Wesker voice actor D.C. Douglas’ take on the Old Spice commercials by way of Resident Evil 5’s overcromulent climactic cutscene answers a question I’ve often wondered: Do voice actors know how ridiculous videogames are?
Microsoft just announced the development of Class3, the working title of a zombie survival MMO for the Xbox 360.
[Class3] is designed to let zombie fans answer the ultimate question: What would you do in the face of the zombie apocalypse? The end is here. Human civilization has been annihilated. The few, scattered survivors must band together, rebuilding civilization in a third- person action game packed with sweet guns, fast cars, hand-to-hand combat, and copious amounts of zombie gore. Players choose where to make their stand, designing and fortifying their settlements, performing daring raids for valuable stores of food and ammunition, and rescuing other playable survivors. The open world develops in real-time, shaped by player actions, with content determined by their choices and the ever-increasing zombie threat.
Developer Undead Labs has a pretty cool blog, where you can find cool artwork like the above picture and lots of theoretical discussion about the game, including the following “high level picture”:
Zombie survival. We start with an unwavering focus on bringing the whole zombie survival experience to life. It’s not just combat. It’s about meeting survival needs. Food, water, shelter, ammo…You’ll need them all.
Amazing action. Absolutely zero compromise on the moment-to-moment look, feel, and fun factor of the game. You shouldn’t have to put up with unexciting mechanics just because they’re packaged in an addictive wrapper. The game must play like a great console action game.
An evolving, dynamic world. These sound like buzzwords you’ve heard so many times before, but for us it’s a real goal: creating a game where players’ choices and ability to build have permanent impact on the world. It informs everything we do design-wise.
Player choice and empowerment. Every one of the points above is tied to this. A survival situation is about making choices. Great action gameplay is about responsiveness and feel, but it’s also about freedom, and the way to have an evolving, dynamic world is to empower players to affect that world.
No word on a release date, but given that it’s an Xbox Live Arcade game likely to have a subscription fee, I’m going to guess this is the sort of thing they wouldn’t announce until it was within a year of release.
Anyone who played Batman: Arkham Asylum is surely looking forward to Batman: Arkham City. Just look at it (pictured). You can fly around with a helicopter! As someone who’s been gliding around Gotham City for the last three weeks, I can’t wait to see developer Rocksteady’s take on this larger world.
However, it’s hard not to notice the careful language in the press release and wonder if there’s some sort of expectation management going on.
Developed by Rocksteady Studios, Batman: Arkham City builds upon the intense, atmospheric foundation of Batman: Arkham Asylum, sending players soaring into Arkham City, the new maximum security “home” for all of Gotham City’s thugs, gangsters and insane criminal masterminds. Set inside the heavily fortified walls of a sprawling district in the heart of Gotham City, this highly anticipated sequel introduces a brand-new story that draws together a new all-star cast of classic characters and murderous villains from the Batman universe, as well as a vast range of new and enhanced gameplay features to deliver the ultimate experience as the Dark Knight.
Arkham City isn’t Gotham. It’s a district. A “sprawling district”, according to that press release, but still a district. I get the feeling I’m not going to get to drive the Batmobile around after all. At least I’ll always have this.
