When a new Arcen Games title is released, I am immediately intrigued by it. What new take on a well-known genre have they done this time and does it work? Skyward Collapse is a turn-based strategy/"god" game where you are responsible for the development and existence of two warring factions: the Norse and the Greek. The catch? You have to prevent either faction from destroying the other. Oh, and you can't tell the people what to do. Free will really is problematic.
Sega's classic sidescrolling brawler Altered Beast is getting a remake for the 3DS eShop. Well, the remake is done and the game is out in Japan, but the rest of the world can still pretend it's "in the works". 3D Altered Beast is an enhanced port of the Genesis version of the game (as opposed to the arcade version) that keeps all the classic elements in place, including werewolf transformations, some odd plot points about Zeus, hordes of winged demons and goat men to punch, and that wonderful "POWER...UP" sound effect.
Like so much warm dragon-made honey (note: fact check that before publication... maybe), Atlus has released a delicious tidbit of news for its upcoming Vanillaware-made brawler Dragon's Crown. Players who grab the game during the first month after launch will have free access to the voice pack DLC, a cosmetic add-on that allows you to swap the narrator's voice with the voices of any of the six playable characters. After a month has passed the DLC will cost $1.99, which isn't very much, but we'll take every freebie we can get.
Seeing brother against brother is never a pretty thing, be it the Double Dragon boys fighting over a less than fair maiden, or Mario and Luigi scoping the town for some Shroom. I've always known that Luigi was the better of the Mario brothers; after all he is younger and taller. Proof has finally been found in this new footage for New Super Luigi U that compares the Plumbers Two and shows how Luigi's unique abilities affect the game.
There are a ton of Tales games out there. They are a staple for many JRPG fans who want some co-op in their JRPGs and one of the most popular and most celebrated Tales games is certainly Tales of Symphonia. To celebrate its 10th anniversary, Namco Bandai has announced that this classic JRPG will be remastered in HD and bundled with its Wii sequel Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World for the PS3. As to additions and changes to the original games, details are currently slim, but new cut-ins for Artes are promised as are additional character costumes from Tales of the Abyss.
Black Forest Games have a new project in the works. The German developer successfully Kickstarted Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams last year. They're trying to replicate that achievement with another crowdfunded venture. If a cooperative steampunk-esque platform shooter set in a somewhat technologically advanced (yet still medieval) world sounds like something you'd enjoy, get ready to donate some cash.
Fuse came out this week and by all accounts, it's a solid co-op game. So you'll definitely be seeing some of the staff play that this weekend. Otherwise we've got a solid variety of games from the staff with everything from Borderlands 2 to Halo 4.
343 Studios will be putting out a massive weapon update to Halo 4 very soon. As a part of an ongoing effort to balance the game and ensure fair play and longevity, the team at 343 will be changing something about virtually every weapon in the arsenal. The patch will roll out for the Xbox 360 on June 3. Perhaps the biggest change will be made to the Battle Rifle, which will see an increase and damage, and the capability of killing a player in four bursts. Conversely, the rate of fire has been decreased for the gun, and the reticle range for auto-aim has been decreased. For a complete list of the weapons tweaks that will come as a part of the update, take a look below.
Gearbox continues to pump out Borderlands 2 content. They recently dropped this short video on Krieg, giving a little insight into how a Psycho Bandit got in good with our beloved Vault Hunters.
Travel through the rugged countryside of Borgova as Van Helsing in this epic ARPG from Neocore Games. Aid the resistance of Borgova in the neo-noir steampunk metropolis and fight against waves of mutated monsters and mechanical beings. Level up and earn loot on your quest to defeat a mad scientist.
Company of Heroes 2 is the sequel to the much beloved RTS Company of Heroes. Since the first game was so highly regarded, no one disputes the fact that Company of Heroes 2 has some major commando boots to fill. Is it up to the task? According to our own Nick and Locke, things were looking extremely promising when they went hands-on with the game at PAX Prime 2012. The good news continued when a new mode was announced for the game called Theater of War which has 9 missions per faction that can be played cooperatively. Quite a quantitative improvement over the lonely cooperative mission of Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor.
I always consider June to be the start of Summer, even though it technically is three weeks away. Still here we are with June at its precipice and E3 a little over a week away. May was a surprisingly strong month for co-op gamers with releases like Fuse, Resident Evil Revelations and Van Helsing. While the news was mostly quiet, there was one big exception, the announcement of the Xbox One.
