The story takes place in Sumaru City, Japan, population 1,280,000. Its protagonist attends Seven Sisters High School (“Sevens” for short), whose emblem is considered a status symbol even amongst students from other schools. Soon, though, a rumor that Sevens emblem was actually cursed, and that wearing it would disfigure one’s face, had spread around the city. Even worse, the rumor came true… And it was only the beginning of a string of rumors becoming reality, one after another… Before long, the protagonist discover the power to summon another side of them called “Personas”, which they use to investigate the strange incidents around the city, all while facing their own personal demons as well. Time is once again on the march… Personas are the manifestation of power from one’s other selves lurking within them. These Personas with otherworldly abilities and appearances of gods from worldwide mythos are drawn from the unconsciousness of of Persona-users to appear in the real world, lending their power to the wielder. The “you” that others recognize is only one of the countless selves that exist, and of these innumerable selves, there are those with the compassion of gods, the cruelty of demons, and even those with the capacity to wield swords or guns. Personas are no more or less than “another you”. Up until this point the game was a Japan-only release (12 years had to pass for it to see a release outside of that wonderful island). We DID get the second half of Persona 2 (Eternal Punishment), and back in the day we had no idea we were missing out on a huge part of the picture. How has this game aged during all this time? Let’s find out! There’s a lot of great anime cut scenes in all the game, as you’ll immediately notice right after booting up the game. Animated cutscenes are always a nice extra, and you can watch them in original, medium or widescreen format. Isn’t technology wonderful? There’s also an updated and remixed soundtrack you can choose in case you don’t like the original one. All in all, it’s great music that truly brings this experience to life. The remixed music really shines. The original tracks were taken in for a tune-up and all its intricate elements and nuisances really pop (there’s a limited edition available at retail comes with a soundtrack CD so track down that one!). You also have the option of installing a 200 MB+ portion of the game to the memory stick to reduce load times. Since there’s A LOT of random battles (oh, happy days!) and the install time is only 1-5 minutes at most…the install is time well spent. Before getting started, players have the option of picking between easy, normal or hard difficulty. The higher the difficulty, the harder it will be to defeat the many, many, maaaaany demon’s you’ll run into. But Easy isn’t really THAT easy, as it will still require the player to carefully plan their approach to every fight. Unless they want to die a LOT. This isn’t a simple game, but it is just what we needed. Controls are easy to understand. You can use the analog stick or the D pad to move around. L and R are used to move the camera around (very important since most of the time the camera plays tricks on you and blocks NPCs or items on purpose). X confirms choices and O cancels them. Oh, and the triangle button activates the auto-battle feature during fights, which takes into consideration the last set of actions performed by your party and replicates them until you cancel out of it. You can move around a Town Map to select the next location to visit. You can even talk to people (represented by green arrows) in the town map to obtain new info. You can travel between different zones by exiting the world map and selecting another area you’ve already opened up in the new menu that will pop out. Now, with that out of the way, let’s take a moment to meet our party of intrepid youngsters that will save the world this time around: Tatsuya Suou An 18-year-old young man attending Seven Sisters High. He is tall, handsome, and has a mature, cool demeanor which has won him the admiration of female and male classmates alike. He’s a loner who does his best to avoid getting involved with anyone. Initial Persona: Vulcanus Lisa Silverman A 17-year-old girl nicknamed “Ginko” who also attends Seven Sisters High. She has beautiful blonde hair, blue eyes, and a figure that’s the envy of other girls her age. Because she was born to parents who were naturalized as Japanese citizens, she looks Caucasian, but she speaks fluent Japanese. Initial Persona: Eros Yukino Mayuzumi An active twenty-year-old student at vocational school for photography. She’s grown out her hair and settled down a little since her days at St. Hermelin High. Her goal is to become a professional photographer and she’s now working as an apprentice to a freelancer. Initial Persona: Vesta Maya Amano A 23-year-old reporter for a teen magazine. She’s a beautiful, cheerful woman who naturally draws others to her with her considerateness and affable nature. Initial Persona: Maia Eikichi Mishina A 16-year-old and second-year at Kasugayama High, less flatteringly known as Cuss High, who refers to himself as “Michel.” He is the Boss of a gang of delinquents at Cuss High and also front man in his band. He tends to take what people say too personally, is easily swayed, and is often a bit too taken with himself. Initial Persona: Rhadamanthus Jun Kurosu A 17-year old young man with slender, feminine looks. He transfered to Kasugayama High, but hasn’t been seen attending classes for some time. He loves flowers and always wears fresh blossoms such as an iris or iceland poppy. Initial Persona: Hermes As usual, you can change the name of the characters in your party. You can even decide what nickname to give them. Me? I just leave then as is since it’s how the story was written. No need to add my own name to the mix as I’m pretty sure I’ll remember I’m the one that is playing the game. Want to make something become a reality? Spread a rumor about it and see how it goes! First one is free (mmm, where have we heard that before?) but the others will cost you dearly. Also, you must first HEAR a rumor straight from a rumormonger’s mouth before you can pay the Head of the Detective Agency to start the rumor machine. Rumors play a big part in our adventure, even more so when we remember that this whole thing started because of one single rumor. You’ll be able to decide the type of items sold at each store, how awesome a prize you can get from the lottery, open up new areas to progress the story, etc. Rumors are what makes the world go round! Your first shopping experience will be at the Kameya Alley. Each store has an icon next to their name and this can help you identify at first glance what each one of them deals in. A sword means its a weapon store. A jacket identifies an armor store. A fork and knife means its a restaurant or a food store. A little silhouetto of a man (Scaramouche, scaramouche, will you do the fandango?) is there to let you know there’s gossip to be heard, learned or spread. A red cross sign is for places you can heal your wounds at (HP and SP restore and all status ailments dissapear for the whole party). The characters in your party get hungry from time to time. Buying something to eat will give them a temporary boost to one of their stats which will last until they’re hungry again. Gotta try them all! And you must also remember that some armor is gender specific (a hairpin, for example, is female-only) before you go purchase crazy, and start spending all of your hard-earned money. And yes, hard-earned is definitely the way to describe this. Your Personas grow with every use (even more when using fusion spells), increasing their abilities and unlocking new ones. They go up in rank from 1 till 8. Each character has different compatibilities with the various Personas. If their compatibility is bad, it will cost more SP to invoke the Persona, and especially bad compatibility may prevent the Persona from being assumed at all. Conversely, if their compatibility is good, it will cost less SP to invoke, and especially good compatibility may cause the Persona to occasionally demonstrate special powers. After you complete one of the demonic battles you’ll wage against… demons that are demonic, you’ll be rewarded with experience points and money you can use to upgrade your equipment or for items that can help you in battle. The currency is expressed in Yen and, I don’t know about you, but for me, a Japanese game that uses Y as the in game currency is just crazy and completely goes against the atmosphere and feeling of this adventure. A very intersting element in Persona 2 is the Pacts you can make with Demon’s. You start things of by making Contact (talk) with them while in a fight (and, sometimes, the Demon’s are the ones that initiate things) to try and convince them to give you items, info, tarot cards, money or to heal you. They have for attributes (eager, happy, scared and angry) that increase from each action you select once contact has started (Tetsuya can, for example, do impressions), OR from the answer you give a demon to the question they’ve presented to you. Get them to full eager or happy and they might ask you if you want to enter into a pact… and this is how you get better items, money and other extras from them once you find them again in battle AND fill their eager or happy metes during the new encounter. Should you make them angry they will break the pact (if one existed) and attack you. Tarot Cards, demons, and Personas all have an associated Arcana. A Persona’s Arcana indicates which Arcana of Tarot Cards is necessary to summon it. Negotiating with demons can earn you Tarot Cards of the same Arcana that the demon belongs to. The higher a demon’s level, the more Tarot Cards you’ll receive through negotiation with it. More cards are necessary to summon high-level Personas. Negotiate with strong demons to quickly gather enough cards to summon the better Personas. As is always the case with old-school RPGs, grinding is not an option, it IS a requirement. I grew up with random fight, turn-based RPGs back in the day and I’m very happy to finally get a chance to play Innocent Sin. I own Persona 3, P3 FES and 4 on PS2 as well as the first Persona that was also released on PSP. Thus, I was only missing Innocent Sin and Eternal Punishment (the second released in the Persona 2 world) to have a complete set. Grinding for money and experience, while also increasing my Personas, is just part of the fun experience you can enjoy in this game. Persona 2 has been a long time coming, and we should be happy about finally having it officially released over here. A solid combat system, the crazy but interesting story, the remixed soundtrack, the great 16:9 cutscenes and overall presentation, all contribute to make this a very welcome addition to the still growing number library of the PSP. Any Persona fan should run to buy this right now to tell Atlus that we want more Persona games! Review Pros Cons The game we’ve been waiting for during the last 12 years It’s an Old School JRPG for our portable needs! It’s an Old School JRPG, which some people really, really, really don’t like, for some reason Rating 92% Published by Atlus Cost – $29.99 Disclaimer Total amount of time played: 30 hours (and counting!). This review is based on a retail copy of the PSP version of Persona 2 – Innocent Sin provided by Atlus.

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[Review] Persona 2 – Innocent Sin (PSP)

Okabu centers around the conflict between two tribes – the Yorubo and the Doza. Many generations ago, a ideological rift tore the population into two factions – those that felt a deep affinity with nature and wanted to maintain a simple life in harmony with the environment, and those that felt that their life could be improved by harnessing machinery to exploit the land. While the Yorubo dedicated their lives living harmoniously with nature, the Doza travelled to a far part of the continent, pursuing an industrialised existence and exploiting their environment. As many, many years have passed, the Doza have exhausted all of their resources, and their hunger for raw materials has driven them out of their borders, in a search for fresh lands to devour. Their path of destruction has finally arrived on the doorstep of their distant cousins, the Yorubo, and the Doza have begun to enslave and imprison these peaceful people and tear apart the natural beauty of their homeland. With hope fading amongst the Yorubo, the pollution from the Doza smog stacks has spread far and wide, eventually reaching the habitat of an ancient race of Cloud Whales, high above the ground. The pollution has begun to cause a great sickness, leading the elders to dispatch our heroes, the brothers Kumulo and Nimbe, to investigate the source of the pollution. ● In this brand-new Action-puzzler from the creators of Rolando, guide Kumulo, Nimbe and four cloud-flying heroes as they battle to save their people and their world from the industrialized threat of the Doza. ● Dive into a hyper-tactile toybox world filled with a huge number of puzzles, playthings, adorable creatures and devious machines spread across an epic co-op campaign. Enjoy endless fun with the unique and compelling mini-games and compete with your friends online. ● Designed to be instantly accessible to both seasoned players and those new to PlayStation, Okabu is even more fun when played with a friend. Here’s a look at the heroes you’ll directly control in the game: Kumulo and Nimbe The Cloud Whales Liquids and small objects make great fodder for Kumulo and Nimbe – they are able to suck in water, oil, honey and other liquids, and then spray or rain them to grow plants, put out fires or wake up sleeping Yorubo. They can do the same with smaller objects too, such as acorns and fire nuts, to plant seeds, smash pots or take out Dozabots. In addition, all of the other heroes can catch a ride on their backs. Captain Monkfish The Fisherman Monkfish is our first hero. Using his trusty plunger, he can harpoon all manner of objects in the environment. Allows a huge amount of interaction with the game world, from yanking open gates and catching fish, to pulling down drawbridges and wrenching exploding fruit from trees. Picolo The Pied Piper A master of charming, hypnotic rhythms, Picolo can bring to his aid a huge variety of creatures and friendly Yorubo. Once entranced these creatures can be persuaded to perform all manner of tasks, from operating switches and climbing ropes, to healing trees and making bulls charge and smash though planks of wood . Roki The Doza Mechanic Horrified by the actions of his own people, Roki took a stand against the Doza to join the fight, helping Kumulo and the others to clean up the lands and free the Yorubo. He can take control of many Doza machines and vehicles, from bulldozers and turrets, to giant robotic spiders and wrecking balls. Kat and Toto The Warrior princess & fearsome pet Teamed up with her flying pet, our Yorubo warrior’s swiftness and combat ability are unsurpassed. Don’t let her pet’s appearance decieve you, this can be one vicious little creature thats more than happy to sink its teeth into a Doza. Her pet can be used to get into narrow areas that Kumulo and friends cannot, as well as neutralising Doza foe and rewiring Doza circuits. As you’ve probably realized by now from the trailer an the character pics, Okabu is a colorful, cel-shaded game that brings to life all the characters, environments and enemies you’ll meet in your adventure, bringing diversity to each of the four major areas available for our long, long journey. This is a huuuuge game (even has a Platinum!) and is a brand new IP. We’re thankful of new IPs when they’re done right… and done right Okabu truly is. As soon as you start you’ll notice some very upbeat, tribal infused music (with vocals!) that duly complement the on-screen action. I really liked the music and felt it made it easier to relate to what was going on in this new universe and, in the end, it made the whole experience better. This video showcases the process by which they made it all click: Okabu can be played by yourself (since in single player mode the other Cloud Whale will follow you closely, every step you take, every move you make) or you can decide to take on it in Co-op. In single player you can switch between Cloud Whales by pressing the triangle button which can help you speed things up. Dip one into water and you can then spray it out with circle button (and aim the reticule to where you want to do so). Or you can also use X to let go and make it rain. Both actions can be used to take out wildfires, make young fruit grow or even attack your enemies. Dozabot (robots) can be destroyed by spraying them with water. X can also be pressed near acorns or other specific items that can be used as ammo to destroy objects, start (controlled) fires or sound of alarms when needed. Swapping in single player is useful since you can, for example, have one Cloud Whale carry water while the other one has acorns to be prepared for any obstacle… or have each one carry around one of the heroes so you can use their special abilities! There’s lots of collectibles, objectives, NPCs that never overwhelm you and do bring several objectives that must be completed… along with optional ones that encourage you to search every single spot around the world. For example, there’s a lot of large fruit all over the place and if you bash into them you can collect the smaller cloudberries that pop out. Collect lots of cloudberries to obtain the medal for each level… and lots of trophies as well! Since this has a full retail-like trophy list you’ll hear the “Ding” sound in this magical mystery quest many, many times. You can hold down either the L2 or R2 to boost your speed and dash along which is helpful for flying through strong winds and finishing levels “on time”. Why “on time”? Well, there’s a timer that counts downs to the all mighty zero. This only counts for obtaining the Time medal on each level since you can still complete the level even if time “runs out”, but if it indeed runs out you’ll have yo replay the level for the time medal… which makes it easier to finish within the time limit as long as you’ve already obtained the other 3 medals for the level. Either way, you at least have a choice on how to tackle each level! You can replay levels from a Main Hub (one hub for each world) to pick up any medals you might be missing (eggs, time, dozabots destroyed or cloudberries collected) which is great since it means that no trophy is missable! That’s the way ALL games should be since replaying a game just because you didn’t know you had to hop on top of the goat statue on the entrance to a small shack on the side of the main path that can only be accessed when playing the game at 2 a.m. so the game can use the internal clock to make the full moon shine on said statue… wait, what was I talking about? Anyways, moving on. Eventually the Dozabot (and the Doza as well) start attacking you (and you loose your hero and some cloudberries if hit) AND they also greatly reinforce their armor which forces you to first get rid of the extra armor (by any means necessary) before carrying on as usual with the “wicked witch of the west” tactics. If you loose your heroes (for whatever reason) you can get them back at the sanctuary tree. Just fly around it quickly while touching its fruit. All other allies that are helping you in that level will also be brought here which really helps speed up the process since they sometimes decide it’s a good idea to get stuck behind a tree and a rock and a rolling hard place and going back all the way to the start of the level to tell them to get out there is a bit of a hassle.. There’s a bonus minigame available on each world…as a bonus. First one is Bushybeat Rampage – the objective here is to lure several Bushybeasts to the elder for bonus points. All minigames have a trophy that unlocks once you complete wave 10 so you better get better at being better at it. Practice makes perfect! Leaderboards are in place so you know how well you REALLY did on each level and mini game Brag about your score or hide in shame from your friends thanks to your puny efforts! Nice extra to have on a game with so many things to do and a great way to motivate your friends to try and beat your best effort. Okabu is an awesome game that merges old school platformers with new school mechanics and ideas. I’ve had a blast playing it for this review and I hope you can give it the chance it deserves. We need more new IPs for our hobby of choice… and the more sales Okabu gets, the closer I get to playing a sequel! Buy it NOW! Review Pros Cons Very fun game that has a lot to offer Only $14.99 AND it has a platinum trophy! The AI for your allies can make them get stuck here and there Rating 93% Published by Sony Computer Entertainment Developed by Hand Circus Cost – $14.99 Other Information Disclaimer – A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for this review. – Total amount of time played: 16 hours (and counting!).

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[Review] Okabu

Just because Halloween has passed doesn’t mean the dhampir goodness needs to end! The critically-acclaimed BloodRayne: Betrayal is getting a temporary price reduction on the PlayStation Network in Europe. Now, the blood-sucking, vampire-decapitating 2D action will be available for 20% off between November 16 and November 30 ! Taking the role of everyone’s favorite sexy half-human, half-vampire has never been a better deal. Here’s our review of the game in case you’re wondering how fast you should jump at this great opportunity!

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European Fans: Limited Time Discount on Bloodrayne Betrayal!

Sanzaru Games has shared a few new details regarding the fourth installment to the Sly Cooper franchise. Thieves in Time will feature new playable characters whim we’ve only heard about throughout the series. One of those characters is Rioichi Cooper, a ninja from Feudal Japan who utilizes a technique Sly Cooper was able to learn in the first game. In Thieves in Time Sly must travel through time to save his ancestors from an enemy interfering with the fabric of time. After being rescued by Sly, Rioichi becomes playable as one of the gang. SG has confirmed that other members of Sly’s lineage will join the group at some point in the game as well. See more of Rioichi after the jump. Sly Cooper: Thieves In Time is scheduled to release sometime next year. Via Game Informer

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Meet Rioichi Cooper From Sly Cooper: Thieves In Time

Hold on to your hats folks, here we go again with another review of a great PSN title. Let me start off by saying that this was a real treat to play. Much like my last review, it seems like lately I’ve had the privilege to review some top notch PSN titles, and this one is no exception. Dungeon Defenders is an interesting mix of tower defense and RPG elements, and it mixes them well. Dungeon Defenders does a great job of balancing these two genres. The story focuses around 4 young kids learning their craft, as wizards, warriors, knights and rangers. One day their parents leave them alone in their castle, and as you know, kids will be kids. Chaos ensues and the children unleash a great evil into the world. They are now forced to clean up the mess before their parents return and are undoubtably grounded. Huh? Kinda sounds like when I was a child. Here’s a quick overview of the gameplay. So the game starts out with a very handy and well scripted tutorial to familiarize new players with the game. It explains the gameplay, character abilities, controls, as well as all the other functions in the game, and there are a lot. Each class has their own variation of towers related to their skill set. For instance the rangers ‘towers’ are traps that have a variety of functions. Some are slowing traps, while others are explosive damaging traps. These traps and towers form up the bulk of your defense, the rest is you running around and vanquishing evil with your character using a variety of weapons and skills. When I say variety, thats pretty much a huge understatement, there is an insane amount of weapons and armor in this game, so much variation and possibilities. When you find weapons and armor that you like you can further improve it by leveling up items using the mana you collect from chests and killing enemies. Battle gets pretty hectic as you progress, requiring you to think on the fly and act fast. I found myself monitoring traps, collecting loot and rebuilding traps that ran out of charges all while still trying not to be trampled to death by hoards of bad guys. The objective other than to not die, is to protect a giant crystal from being destroyed, which is very challenging at best. When I first started playing it was not uncommon for me to attempt to pass a level 5 times, sometimes it takes a few tries to figure out a good strategy for each level. As much fun as this game is playing by yourself its more intense when playing with a few friends or on on-line co-op. Really, in the end this game is more geared for co-op play, and even though you may be playing with three other players, the game is still very challenging, the hoards are larger, tougher and extra badass! But the loot is more rewarding and much more abundant. The graphics in this game are very artsy, very crisp and vibrant, they remind me of a game called Torchlight, it to had a very crisp artsy look to it. All of the animations on the monsters, NPCs, and characters is very smooth. I really enjoyed the attention to detail that was put into this game, the levels are well designed and vibrant and alive when they need to be, and dark and gloomy when you are probing the depths of the castle, everything flows together very well. When the challenges of defending your castle and trying to hide the mess from the parents you can retire to your tavern explore further upgrade possibilities. Look through the item store to purchase even more items and abilities. I said it before but I need to say it again….there is a crazy amount of items and even more customization, so much you could drown in it all, and for just $10 there is a ton of value here. In closing the blending of tower defense and RPG elements, something that was new for me, made for a phenomenal experience. This game took 2 of my favorite genres and melded them together in a perfect mix of gameplay bliss. There is so much content here and with the online gameplay and multiple classes, adds a vast amount of replayability which I find in most PSN titles is hard to come by. But here, there is plenty, and is even further reinforced with the insane amount of customization opening up even more replayability options. This game is a must buy, I could find nothing wrong with this game, as far as glitches or poor gameplay mechanics. This is a well polished game, it’s apparent to me that the team really cared about this game and wanted to give the people nothing but the best, which sometimes, values like that are hard to come by. Review Pros Cons Crisp and rich environments Insane amount of content High value Lots of replayability Perfect price point Difficulty ramps up pretty fast At times the amount of content can be overwhealming Communication in Co-op can be difficult Rating 98%

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[Review] Dungeon Defenders

Buy Dead Island, right here for only $39.99. Hurry, because we don’t know how long this will last. …or, you can try to win a copy here!! Also, don’t forget to read my review of this great game.

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Dead Island Only $39.99

Conquer the Galaxy like never before! Galcon Labs is an awesome high-paced galactic arcade-strategy game. Send swarms of ships to defeat enemy planets and conquer the universe! Play an exclusively designed for PlayStation Minis version campaign mode and unlock the four innovative new game modes to you: * Billiards : “Moving Planets” – need I say more? With a constantly changing battlefield this game never has a dull moment. * Stealth : Enemy ships become invisible, changing Galcon into a game of inter-galactic hide and seek! * Crash : Ships battle in mid-flight, bringing a whole different twist to the classic gameplay. You can now defeat the enemy in the air! * Assassin : Each opponent is assigned a target. The first player to annihilate their target wins the round! Want to get a quick idea of how this game works and are you too lazy to watch the trailer above? Ok, here goes a quick explanation: Remember Mushroom Wars on PSN and how fun it was? Same genre here which is great… but this is more fast paced and you don’t have to worry about different types of anything. In Galcon Labs you’re tasked with conquering the universe, one planet at a time. Both you and your opponent are trying to eliminate each other AND gain control over as many planets as possible to increase your ship production and therefore have a bigger fleet than your opponent which will allow you to send him into oblivion… until the next match has started. Eliminate the threat and steal all enemy controlled planets to win! Controls are easy enough and only take a minute to understand. You navigate between the planets with either the D-Pad or the Analog stick, use the R Button to select the planet where your cursor is OR use the L button to select ALL the planets in your control. After that you can send 50% of your entire fleet to attack a neutral or enemy controlled planet by hitting the Square Button or send your entire fleet by pressing the triangle button. Once your choice has been made you can’t control your ships until they’ve finished the attack. You LOOSE the spaceships you use to conquer a planet (my take is that they’re fighting either the neutral forces on unclaimed planets or on enemy controlled ones). Be sure you don’t use your entire fleet to conquer a lot of planets at the same time since it will leave you in a weak and vulnerable state in which your enemy cab easily swoop in and take you out with a small attack group. Unclaimed planets show up in gray and the number shown on their surface represents the number of spaceships it takes to convert them and it’s usually the case that bigger planets require more ships for you to be able to conquer them BUT the bigger the planet the more ships you can produce once you claim it which can help you to quickly recover. To start things off you must battle through all 20 levels available in campaign mode in order to unlock the other game modes that the game has to offer. As you progress the enemy becomes smarter and the number of enemy ships will no longer be displayed on the planet you intend to attack. When you run into a new mode during you campaign AND you beat it you’ll unlock it the second half of this gaming package: Fussion. The Campaign mode is only 20-30 minutes long and it’s just preparing you for Fussion since you can’t replay any of the levels in unless you delete your save file. What IS Fussion? In it you gain points to increase your rank (going up through 10 ranks in all) and you do so by playing in all 5 battle types (and can select between 10 difficulty levels as well) we’ve discussed at the start of the review. How are points awarded? Glad you asked! – Time bonus: How quickly you finish the battle. – Mode bonus: Depending on which one you play you’ll get more points. Classic gives 100 points and it goes up from there. – Hardness bonus: 100 points for super easy and an extra 100 for each difficulty increase. I played Fussion until I reached the top spot in the ranking (Master of the Universe) and then continued to play just for fun for another hour and a half without even noticing it. This is a game that would greatly benefit from some online multiplayer but since its a minis release there’s no way that could have even been considered. Galcon Labs is a great game that is inexpensive and will give you more than enough fun for your investment. As is the case with all minis, it has the extra incentive of being playable either on your PS3 or on the go on your PSP (and remember, you can transfer your saves between said systems). Beatshapers is definitely on a roll and I hope they continue to provide us with great minis and PSN releases (I wouldn’t mind a sequel to Stardrone!). Review Pros Cons Excelent game Great for small windows of gaming time Fast paced action No online MP since it’s a minis Rating 87% Published by Beatshapers Developed by Phil Hassey Cost – $2.99 Other Information Disclaimer – A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for this review. – Game was completed before writing this review. – Total amount of time played: 3.5 hours. Want to get this game? Then you can: Buy a $20 PSN Card! Buy a $50 PSN Card!

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[Review] Galcon Labs (minis)

The original video game femme fatale, Rayne, has returned to battle and feed in a brand new hack ‘n slash adventure. Slay ghastly enemies as Rayne, the sexy Dhampir with superhuman strength, speed, and agility, recruited by the vampire hunting Brimstone Society for one last mission. The target is a lavish, yet sinister ball in a secluded castle with plenty of dark and gruesome surprises. With the help of a mysterious friend, and members of Brimstone, Rayne must infiltrate the manor, take out the fiendish horde, and stop an evil master plot once and for all. * Kill evil vampire scum in 15 challenging levels across multiple unique acts, including: The Forest, The Attic and The Freaky Ballroom. * Meet new characters along the way including a mysterious shape shifter. * Feed on enemies and refuel your blood reserves in gruesome new ways including the Blood Fountain. * Solve environmental puzzles including Blood Seal, Grinder Switch and Rising Blood Tower. * Punishing combat skills deliver Rayne’s intense brutal fatalities: * Infection: Enemy vampires bloat and explode when triggered. * Heel Stomp: Instant-kill enemies after laying them out. * Drain: Bite and drain your enemy’s blood to restore your health. * Full arsenal of lethal weapons including Rayne’s signature arm blades and super guns. * Battle a variety of new enemies and deadly bosses including Flying Parasites, Blood Balloons, Elite Guards and more! After that great trailer, let’s get the control layout out of the way so we can sink into the rest of the review: Circle is used to Infect enemies (after you’ve hit them at least once so you can stun them) Hold DOWN Circle to Suck their blood and regenerate your health. Triangle is used to make any infected enemies go Boom-Boom. R2 shoots your gun (and you’ve got a limited ammo count to work with). R1 switches guns (once you get the second one). R3 lets you transform into Raven Form (again, once you’re given said transformation power). L2 is used to dash… and is THE most important ability you have. You’re REQUIRED to dash past enemies and their attacks in order to survive since right after you dash (and right until the precise moment when you stop) you’re invincible. X is used to jump AND to do a backflip by pressing the directional buttons in the opposite direction you were traveling at. Square is used to Slash and you can combo this by pressing it two or three times after the first hit. Combo you get out of it depends on the timing and the total number of hits you’re about to deal. You can hold Square to do a charge slash but be careful as you can’t move while charging which makes you easy prey for all the enemies around you Your journey begins as they all do: diving into action while riding inside a Rocket Coffin. You arrive in a Rocket Coffin… you leave in a Rocket Coffin. The first one flies, the second one crushes the ground. It’s just how Rayne likes to roll in these desperate times… you dig? Just because this is a task presented to you by the Vampire hunting Brimstone Society doesn’t mean you can’t do things in style! Most fights in the game can be avoided but there are several mandatory ones sprinkled on every level. You’ll know when you’ve reached one since the screen stops scrolling and a LOT of enemies start to pour in from magical portals. It is here where most of your score will be achieved since completing a mandatory fight before the timer runs out grants you a small points bonus (300-1,000 points at most) BUT finishing the fight without getting hit grants a bigger 2,000+ bonus points and when you realize there’s 4-7 mandatory fights per level AND you can get a theoretical 1,200-7,000 bonus for the level due to the timer AND a 8,000-14,000+ bonus for not getting hit…well, it adds up and FAST. I was able to get a Damphir rank in 6 out of the 15 levels available in the game and I was practically required to do a perfect run to get there. Only in one level did I have an extra 10,000 points left after the final tally but that was due to some very awesome fighting on my part, something that I was never able to replicated again. The Bonus score you receive at the end of the level is needed to reach the top rank. How do you get said extra points? One is tied to how quickly you can finish a level while the other takes into consideration how much damage you’ve received during the level. Being nimble, being quick, kicking ass and fighting slick is the way things are supposed to be so you better be great with your fingers and have a good enough reaction time to not only complete the game but to actually make a dent in the score leaderboard. As such, the online component in the game consists of said Leaderboard which helps to keep track of all high scores obtained on the game so you can bring your EGO down a peg or two when you realize your “awesome and huge score” is not that awesome nor huge… AT ALL. The game awards extra point during each fight for performing special “Feats” and this can be awarded for something as simple as killing an enemy or for something as specific dashing through an enemy attack right before it’s about to hit you. Died? You loose a chance to gain a high enough score when you’re graded at the end of the level… but at least there are checkpoints available so you don’t loose your progress. What are these checkpoints? Why, blood fountains, OF COURSE! They also recover your health the first time you touch them which is a nice side bonus to it all. After finishing level 1 I got a rank of C (which stands for Cadaver) and that is awarded when you score points somewhere in the 25,000 to 49,999 range. I replayed the level thinking I must have gotten a low score because I missed some bonus treasure or me not being fast enough at fighting the enemies and it turns out I was right on both accounts since small, medium and large treasure play a huuuuge part on you getting the 30,000 base score you need to add to the 70,000 points total bonus between speed and health so you can reach the S (Dhampir) rank. After clearing level 1 I was eager to see how much I’d improved and was greeted by the letter C again, barely scratching the 40,000 mark. Took me 10 tries before I could finally reach an S rank… and then I realized there’s a trophy for getting said rank in ALL levels in the game! Sure, I’ll get back to that by the end of the year once I’ve got the extra time needed. Thanks! The soundtrack for the game is great. An energetic, dynamic and moody combo that perfectly suits the atmosphere of Bloodrayne: Betrayal. What’s even better than an awesome soundtrack? An awesome 8-Bit soundtrack as a bonus that unlocks with a very special code that I’ll gladly give to you in the next spoiler proofed solution: 8-Bit Is Back! While on the level selection screen, simultaneously press L1, R1, L2, RR, L3, R3, Start and Select.Yes, that is all at the same time. 8 buttons in total. Hard to do… which is why you ALSO get a trophy for doing so! There are several boss fights available in the game (you even fight the same enemy type twice thanks to some thinkering and improvements made on the “model”) and these will truly test how good you’ve gotten at knowing how to play the game and make the most of the fighting system set in place. Luckily, when you die you just have to start the fight over and are not taken back to bite your way ahead of the smaller enemies once again. Some bosses will take you one or two tries, some will take you twenty. One requires you to defeat it without being dealt a single point of damage and another is cheap as hell (and we ALWAYS need one of these to bring back memories of x-Bit eras past). They’re almost all huge ones that really show all the work WayForward has put into the art and animation sides of the game ( of which they are experts as they’ve shown us in all their recent releases in the last couple of years ) and will help us realize how awesome a 2D Castlevania with hand drawn 720p artwork would look. Bloodrayne: Betrayal is a very fun old-school-based action game with great 2D artwork and animations that make everything pop and feel different from other games. Those gamers that got to play releases from the late 80s-early 90s will enjoy this more than others that grew up post N64-PSX as it seems their tolerance for hard, methodical and awesome 2D games has been diluted thanks to all the “me too” shooters and platformers they’ve played in the last decade or so. Review Pros Cons Awesome 2D Art Interesting combat mechanics S Rank for a Trophy? Daaaaaaaaaaaamn Rating 85% Published by Majesco Developed by WayForward Cost – $14.99 Other Information Disclaimer – A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for this review. – Game was completed before writing this review. – Total amount of time played: 10 hours. Want to get this game? Then you can: Buy Bloodrayne: Betrayal Itself! Buy a $20 PSN Card! Buy a $50 PSN Card!

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Bloodrayne: Betrayal Review

Official PlayStation Magazine Australia has published the first review for the upcoming Batman: Arkham City, giving it a stunning 10-10. Those who enjoyed the first title have a lot to look forward to it seems. Some of the quotes read as follows: “Presentation: Endlessly creative, perfectly moody, and technically flawless. This is Epic’s Unreal engine pushed to its absolute limit.” “Sound: Alternatively foreboding and frantic, the game’s orchestral soundtrack matches the on-sccreen action perfectly. Voice acting is brilliant.” “Controls: Complex and initially overwhelming, but also logical and responsive. It’ll take a while to get used to them, but once you do, it feels perfectly natural flinging Batman around.” “Replay Value: Immense. A massive main quest, dozens of side missions, Riddler challenges, secondary game modes, and DLC will keep most people occupied for months.” “VERDICT: We can’t imagine how a superhero game could be better than this. Absolutely sublime.” I personally don’t count on reviews too often, but this is hard to ignore. Source: Arkhamcity

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Batman: Arkham City – 1st Review!

The all-new 4 Elements HD for PlayStation®3 is a complete remake of hit PC casual game, 4 Elements by Playrix Entertainment. It is specially designed to experience a unique Match-3 gameplay in Full HD resolution. The player has an option to use the PlayStation®Move controller that is fully supported by 4 Elements HD. In 4 Elements HD, the ancient kingdom is in peril! Evil forces have corrupted the balance between the four elements causing the altar of life to run dry. The player has to unlock four ancient books of magic, collect 16 mysterious cards and restore the kingdom to life. The mix of classic, addictive Match-3 gameplay combined with innovative twists, explosive bonuses, spectacular visual effects and intuitive controls makes 4 Elements HD a joy for players of all ages. In addition to everything fans have come to know and love about the original game, 4 Elements HD includes a vast array of new features and improvements including re-playable levels, trophies, per-level and global leaderboards. Moreover each player gains a castle to manage and can upgrade it using points earned by completing levels. All the power of PS3, intuitive PlayStation®Move controls and Full HD resolution raises this game to the new level of reality. Game Features: * 4 elements to tame; * 64 levels to complete; * Own castle to restore; * Full HD resolution; * PlayStation Move support; * Worldwide leaderboards and trophies. As soon as you start the game you’re sent to the Kingdom Map where you can move around with the right analog stick and gaze at the artwork. The chain of tokens is the list of levels you have to complete to conquer the 4 elements and they’re all separated into the 4 Elements (hence the game) at 16 games per element. Using the left stick you can freely browse already completed levels. The hint near the selected level shows your score and the best worldwide score on this level so you can replay any level you wish to improve your results. In order to make any progress in the game you need to make chains of at least three matching pieces to remove them from the game field and remove the tile that hosted them. Use the X button or the Analog Trigger in the Move controller to make a selection and then draw a line and release the button. When you clear three or more tiles, the energy underneath is released and can flow freely into that area, bringing you closer to the altar where the energy must be taken to. Since levels are often larger than the screen you’re playing in you can check the level map (by pressing the Triangle Button) to find your way on a big level. After you’ve finished a level you’ll get a final recap of how well you did, showing you the total time it took you to complete the level, the bonus points for time remaining in the container to the right of the screen, points bonus for chains completed, the best score that has been uploaded to the leaderboards, your online spot in said leaderboard AND your final score for the level. Somewhere far away, amongst endless seas and high mountains lies a magic land. There was no other place in the world where life was so infinitely blissful. And thus carefree days rolled into years and centuries. There was no omen of the approaching calamity. In an instant, the land became a lifeless desert. The sky grew black with clouds. The rivers froze from a piercing cold and the trees perished. What happened? What was the cause of the disaster? Is there a way to save the once blooming fairytale valley? There, in the tower of an old castle, lives a wise mage… Only he knows the answer to these questions… Eventually you unlock four rechargeable power-ups that will help you drive the energy to the altar. The image next to each one shows which pieces you should match to charge it and you can use the Square or PS Move Button to reach shortcuts: Spade: This can be used to clear any tile. Bomb: Will explode and remove a host of pieces from the game field. Swap: You can swap two pieces on the game field (they don’t need to be next to each other at all). Shuffle: Can be used to shuffle around all the pieces on the game field so you can take a new approach to your advances. You’ve also got to understand the type of Special Tiles and extra objects you’ll encounter in your adventure to be able to properly use your power ups and not get stuck for too long as when time runs out you’ve got to start over: Stone: Can’t make chains of matching pieces with it or through it. Ice: To break it, make a chain of matching pieces through it. Stone Slab: It can only be removed when hit by a flaming arrow. Multi-Level Ground: You have to remove the tiles several times to clear it (2 or more times). Flaming Arrows: They are activated as soon as the energy reaches them, clearing all pieces in their way. They can shoot out 1, 2 or 8 arrows depending on the type of mechanism that is reached by the energy. Finally, hitting the Triangle button while in the Kingdom Map will take you to your Castle and there’s a lot of things you can do while visiting. Care to read about it? Upgrades: Using points earned in the levels you can upgrade your castle. More and more upgrades are unlocked by clearing levels in the map so be patient! You could decide to buy a new stone road for your castle or maybe clean it up a bit and place a new coat of paint on it. Or how about getting rid of the dark clouds and even buying a Dirigible to make it a better place to live in? Better keep those points handy! Statistics: The game keeps track of several stats that are listed on a single page so you can really get an idea of exactly what you’ve done and what needs to be done. Total time played, total score, current place in the online leaderboard, number of levels completed, number of tiles cleared and many, many, many other stats are kept here for future reference. High Scores: The Online Leaderboard part of the equation. You can see how you’re doing against the rest of the world which will in turn motivate you to do better on each level and shoot for the top 10! Library: You have a chance to read the Books of Elements which contain tales of fantastic creatures of magic lands. As you progress you will unlock books and their knowledge. 4 Elements HD is a great puzzle game available on the Playstation Network Store that is easy to understand and hard to stop playing. When I started playing the game for the first time I kept doing so for 3 hours straight thanks to all the fun I was having and how the game flows from one level to the other in an instant. A great purchase for all puzzle fans looking for something new to try their hand at. Review Pros Cons Fun puzzle game that introduces new elements to the genre PS Move Support Only $9.99 Big difficulty spike in the last couple of levels Rating 86% Published by Boolat Games Cost – $9.99 Other Information Disclaimer – A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for this review. – Game was completed and all trophies obtained. – Total amount of time played: 7 and a half hours hours. Want to get this game? Then you can: Buy a $20 PSN Card! Buy a $50 PSN Card!

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4 Elements HD Review