We travel deeper into the halls of the DC Universe's most famous penitentiary in our latest look at this crime-fighting adventure game.

Written by Brain Ekberg

You couldn't ask for a richer setting than Arkham Asylum in a Batman game. In developer Rocksteady's upcoming Batman: Arkham Asylum, you'll be exploring every nook and cranny of Arkham Island as you guide Batman through an adventure fraught with two-fisted action, plenty of detective work, and encounters against some of the caped crusader's best-known villains. This week, we spent some time with a recent build of the game, plunging a bit further into Arkham's depths to see what awaits Batman.

By now, you're probably familiar with the opening sequence of the game, which features Batman delivering his archnemesis, The Joker, to the authorities at Arkham. From the outset, however, Joker's capture seems like a setup, and as you guide Batman down the halls of Arkham's entrance with the shackled, cackling Joker in tow, the feeling of impending doom only increases. Eventually, once Joker and Batman are separated, Joker's trap is sprung when he overpowers his guard and escapes into the bowels of Arkham with the help of his trusty sidekick, Harley Quinn, who has taken control of the Asylum's computer-monitoring systems.

From there, Batman kicks it into gear; first, by stomping on some bad guys. The game's fighting controls are as simple as can be: X (on the Xbox 360 version) is for kicking butt, Y is for countering moves and then kicking butt, and B is used to stun an opponent, which gives Batman enough time to collect himself before continuing to kick butt. The simple controls are tied to some truly cool fight animations, with Batman twisting and flipping in midair as he lays out enemies and performing more than a few slo-mo bashes for good measure.

With Joker on the prowl, Batman's problems begin to mount as he travels deeper into Arkham, not the least of which are the guards, whose lives are in danger because of the freed criminals. Freeing the guards will require Batman to make the most of his gear, such as batarangs, which he can toss to stun opponents or activate switches from a long distance, as well as a grappling hook that will turn out to be one of the most effective tools in Batman's array. By aiming and pressing the right bumper, you can shoot the hook to swoop Batman up in midair and let him perch on ledges, which is a perfect vantage point for taking bad guys by surprise. The hook will also save you in desperate situations; for example, when you miss a jump with Batman, a quick press of the RB button will reset you to a safe spot nearby.

 The Batman of Arkham Asylum is more than just a fighting machine with loads of cool gadgets; the game plays up his detective aspects as well. For example, when Commissioner Jim Gordon is double-crossed by guards early in the game and hauled away into Harley Quinn's custody, Batman has to track down clues that will lead you to Gordon's whereabouts before Quinn can finish him for good. The first clue involves tracking down the guard who betrayed Gordon. To do so, you first enter detective mode by pressing the left bumper, which then overlays information about Batman's surroundings. When you find a clue on the ground--in this case, the guard's nearly empty bottle of booze--you can investigate it more closely by holding the A button.

With the flask analyzed, Batman can now track the guard's trail by detecting the trace amounts of alcohol in the air. This results in several more encounters with Arkham residents and more opportunities for Batman to save innocent victims before making his way out of Arkham's main entrance building and into the outdoor island. Arkham's main structures are placed around the island, and presumably, you'll visit them all as the game's narrative progresses. Our first goal upon reaching the outdoor area was to rescue the Batmobile, which was under assault by a group of thugs. After dispatching the enemies, Batman grabbed another piece of gear from the Batmobile's trunk, a small pistol that squirted explosive gel, which quickly proved to be handy.

By squirting a small amount of gel on a weak point in a wall (which you can identify by using detective mode), Batman can blast an entrance or use the explosive gel to bring down walls on top of criminals. During one mission--as Batman works to free three doctors that are being held captive in Arkham's medical facility--you'll place the gel on two separate walls and then blow them up in succession, without the bad guys even knowing you were there.

Rescuing those doctors from harm becomes a big part of the next portion of Arkham Asylum's plot. After rescuing a certain Dr. Young from harm, she informs you that there are three other doctors being held captive in the medical facility. Each rescue scenario is a bit different. In one, you're simply beating up waves of thugs; in another, you're blowing up walls with the aforementioned explosive gel; and in a third, you're carefully navigating a room filled with the Joker's patented deadly laughing gas. To save the doctor, Batman must use his batarangs to activate a series of fans in the room that will suck the toxic fumes out.

As the game progresses, you'll lead Batman throughout the many buildings of Arkham, on the trail of Gordon. Eventually, you'll catch up with Harley Quinn, who's holding the Commissioner hostage in a small office overlooking a machine room teeming with the Joker's henchmen. The Joker--true to his prankster namesake--has instructed Harley to execute Gordon on the spot if she even suspects Batman is attempting a rescue. With the threat of Gordon's death hanging in the air, Batman must get stealthy, quietly taking down the bad guys by sneaking up behind them and performing a silent takedown (with a press of the Y button).

After finally sneaking in and knocking Harley out, Batman and Gordon escape. The pair then encounter Batman's muscular nemesis, Bane, who is strung up by the hoses that feed him the venom that grants him his incredible strength, and he is looking decidedly nonthreatening. Bane mentions that Dr. Young, one of the doctors Batman rescued earlier, is responsible for his predicament. Just as he asks for Batman to cut him free, the Joker manages to remotely pump Bane full of venom, which bulks him up and enrages him in the process. A quick boss battle between Batman and Bane (and a few more Arkham inmates thrown in for good measure) follows. After Batman beats Bane, it's off to explore the rest of Arkham Island and discover the connection between the Joker and the mysterious Dr. Young.

That's all we're able to report about Arkham Asylum's plot for now, but there's obviously much more to play and see in the game. Stay tuned for more reports from inside Arkham's confines in the coming months as we lead up to its release in late August.

Want to know how Alex is going to get his memory back?

February 7, 2009 - If you've been following Prototype, you know all about Alex Mercer and his amazing powers -- the dude wakes up on a morgue slab with amnesia and a the ability to shapeshift into a number of deadly weapons. However, how anything beyond the destructive powers will work has been kept under wraps.

At least until last night's New York Comic-Con Prototype panel.

Amid a PowerPoint presentation bringing everyone up to speed on the game and showcasing the trailer you can see here on IGN, Radical Entertainment talked a bit about how Mercer will go about piecing together his existence. See, when this antihero consumes a human being -- after tearing a person in half or punching through his or her skull, Mercer absorbs the body into his own -- he also takes all of his or her memories. For some of the smaller NPCs, this will grant abilities such as being able to call in an air strike, but for bigger roles, this will play into the Web of Intrigue.

Eat his memories!From the in-game menu, you can check out this web that displays the memories of the important people you've consumed. You'll view these blips that are somehow tied into your missing memory, and they'll give you clues as to where you need to go next. These pieces won't mean much on their own -- during the panel, one memory from a lieutenant talked about a strange substance -- but when put them together, they should tell the tale of Prototype.

According to the developer, there will be more than 130 Web of Intrigue parts to find in the game.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves has a new game mechanic (stealth) and a new dead famous guy (Marco Polo). Both we knew. What are some things we didn't know about Uncharted 2?

Creative Director Amy Hennig tells EDGE magazine, "Our last story was about Francis Drake... Our 'what if' was: what if Francis Drake hadn't died when everyone thought he had? This time we're going with Marco Polo. Our catalyst is this man who catalogued all of his journeys - all the details of everything that happened in his life - but despite that he left one gaping hole."

That hole is 1292. Polo left Kublai Khan's court for Venice, commanding a fleet of 14 treasure-laden ships and a crew of 600 plus men. By the time he arrived home in Venice, he was down to one ship and a dozen or so survivors. "He never once said anything about what happened to him... And on his death bed, after people had called him a liar for what he had spoken about in his book, he said: 'I didn't say even half of what I saw.'"

In Uncharted 2, the game kicks off with the search for Polo's fleet and moves on to Polo's real secret: the Tibetan city of Shambhala, also known as Shangri-La. Gone are the rich foliage of the first game, and in its place, snowy mountains and the war-torn urban Tibetan streets.

The game also explores the "shadier" side of hero Nathan Drake, who, as Naughty Dog points out, is sometimes "a jerk."

Besides a new gritty feel, Uncharted 2 brings a new mechanic: Stealth. Developer Naughty Dog calls it "action stealth" - when or when not to enter combat. Another new? Drake also has a new love interest, a treasure hunter named "Chloe."

The developer is wringing more out of the PS3's horse power with Among Thieves. Naught Dog co-president Christophe Balestra explains: "Uncharted used 30 percent of the PS3's SPUs, and this time we're maxing it out. That means we can blend and switch the animations a lot quicker, and we have more facial joints in-game for characters to react with believable expressions."

"We didn't want things in the game that stop people dead. There's a connection between games people have finished and games they love - so we didn't want to put up too many walls along the way," says Naughty Dog co-president Evan Wells.

EDGE [Official Site]

inFamous will be "about quality", not length, says creative director News

News by Ellie Gibson - EUROGAMER

Yesterday

Sucker Punch creative director Nate Fox has said developers should focus on quality, not quantity - suggesting inFamous is being produced with the former firmly in mind.

"Look at God of War - it is an excellent game, an instant ****c, and it's only like seven hours long," he said in our Live Text interview. "GTA IV is 30 hours long, and people wanted more? That just tells you how excellent that game is.

"It seems to me that it's not about length, but about quality," Fox continued. "And because I love both of those games, I hope that developers never try to shoot for a long game, but instead for the most fun they can pack onto the disc - at any length. That's what we're doing for inFamous."

Sucker Punch is best-known for producing the Sly Raccoon series on PS2. However, their new game is a PS3 exclusive with a much darker tone. There's no word on when it'll be released yet, but Fox hinted that a downloadable demo could be in the works.

"You can expect to see some downloads from PlayStation Network closer to our release date," he said. What about downloadable content following the game's launch? "You'll have to wait and see."

Fox did confirm the game will feature Trophies, however. "We'd be complete and total jackasses not to support them," he observed. "They are videogame crack and everybody knows it."

Read the full interview.for more, or check out the gamepage

Microsoft Chips In $25K in Search for Missing Kid

There's still no sign of 15-year-old Brandon Crisp, who went missing after his parents confiscated his Xbox, but Microsoft Canada added $25,000 to the reward for information leading to his safe return, doubling it. Microsoft is also working with Barrie, Ontario authorities, divulging IP addresses of anyone who may have come in contact with Brandon via Call of Duty 4, his favorite game.

Microsoft is to be lauded for putting its money where its mouth is, and a missing child is a no-holds-barred effort, to be sure. But man, who knows how many people this kid gamed with over Xbox Live. They better not have any porn laying around when the cops come calling. I'm deadly serious.

Meantime, you-know-who has thrust himself into the Crisp family's misery. Jack Thompson says he called the cops offering his help, then said some **** about game addiction. I don't know what offer he made to them, maybe to cast the demons out of Brandon when they get him back. Why not. His faith healing skills are probably as effective as his lawyering ones.

If you have information you believe can help find Brandon Crisp, contact the Barrie police at 705-725-7025.

Added by Ryan on Oct. 11, 2008

I have to say, after the initial culture shock, I've been a little surprised at how easy it is to get along at the Tokyo Game Show without any working knowledge of the Japanese language. Games are games all over, it would seem, though there are certainly moments when you truly have no idea just what the hell is going on. I had just such a moment at the beginning of the 15-odd minute movie that Sega is screening here at TGS 2008, though I still managed to pick up a few new things about this PS3-exclusive criminal action game.

After taking a little feudal detour with Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan! in Japan earlier this year, Yakuza 3 will bring the series back into modern-day Japan, once again focusing on former Yakuza leader and back-tattoo enthusiast Kiryu Kazuma. With the movie being entirely in Japanese, the story stuff was largely incomprehensible for me, and while Sega of Japan also released an English language press release, it's a little dodgy as well.

As best as I can figure, the game will start off with Kiryu leaving the violence of Tokyo in favor of a quieter, more peaceful life running an orphanage in Okinawa. This doesn't last long, of course, and after the government begins to encroach on Kiryu with its plans to develop resorts and expand the US military base in Okinawa, he ends up in a full-blown war with his old posse, the Tojo Clan. Jump forward two years, when two people close to Kiryu are assassinated--worse yet, his foster father is implicated in the attacks, forcing Kiryu to return to Tokyo to find out the truth.

The game itself will take place in both Okinawa and the fictional Tokyo nightlife district of Kamuro-cho, greatly expanding on the scope of the previous Yakuza games. There's still a big focus on brutal, over-the-top hand-to-hand combat, which is equal parts street-fighting and pro-wrestling. Beyond the usual street violence, there were also scenes of Kiryu training with tonfa sticks in a makeshift ring out near the beach in Okinawa, as well as taking part in an arena fight. Kiryu will be able to learn new moves while out on the street, as illustrated by a sequence where he witnesses a pervert grabbing a girl's chest from behind. After her initial shock, the girl flips out, breaking the fondler's elbow, then hurling him over her shoulder and slamming him into the ground. Kiryu immediately flips out his cell phone, and after a bunch of comically speedy button presses, this new move gets added to his arsenal.

Sega turns its booth into a hostess club for Yakuza 3. Further proof that Yakuza 3 isn't taking itself too seriously came with all of the goofy minigames that were featured. A rhythm-based karaoke minigame, which saw Kiryu singing a cheesy ballad up on a gaudily lit stage, got the biggest reaction from the theater, though you'll also be able to play pool, darts, golf, go bowling, go to a batting cage, and play with a UFO catcher. A hostess club will play a big role in Yakuza 3, where you'll be able to play dress-up with female characters based on actual models featured in the popular Japanese women's magazine Koakuma ageha.

It's apparent that Sega has some pretty high expectations for Yakuza 3 here in Japan, as the theater takes up a healthy portion of its booth on the show floor, and much effort has been put into conveying the flamboyant Yakuza feel. Incredibly made-up female models in ornate, floor-length gowns were being paraded around the booth and the show floor, and the theater itself was dressed up with cases of expensive liquor and framed head shots of more models.

Yakuza 3 doesn't have a US release date yet, though there's nothing to stop you from importing the Japanese version when it drops in Spring 2009. Except, you know, maybe all that Japanese.

Link:

giantbomb.com

We team up with Chris Redfield in our look at the co-op multiplayer in Capcom's latest frightfest.

TOKYO--We're glad we got to play Sheva during our co-operative multiplayer time with Capcom's upcoming survival horror game, Resident Evil 5. The reason? Well, simply put, Sheva kicks some serious butt. That isn't to say that her partner in the game, Chris Redfield, is a slouch when it comes to kicking T-Virus infected monster butt, but there's just something about a girl who doesn't mind getting her fists dirty with zombie blood.

While we spent some time in both of the previously playable levels in RE5 solo, our co-operative team-up took place on the Shanty Town level. As the name suggests, this level takes place in the narrow confines of poor village made all the more intimidating by a rash of T-Virus-infected lunatics running around looking to make a meal out of Chris and Sheva's faces.

We started out armed with a pistol and a machine gun, while Chris was armed with a handgun and a rifle. All the weapons proved to be handy; though, this being an RE game, ammo is never as plentiful as it needs we'd like. After dealing with the first pack of zombies, Chris and Sheva split up for the first time, with Sheva taking the roof of a building to provide covering fire while Chris made his way deeper into the level. Providing cover isn't a walk in the park because as soon as Sheva is spotted by the enemy, she becomes just as enticing a target as Chris. And if you think shambling zombies are scary by themselves, try shambling zombies firing flaming crossbow bolts at your head.

With most of the baddies out the way, we headed back down to find Chris. We found another building entrance and made our way inside, fighting our way through a thick wall of infected victims. A gate downstairs was locked, so we had to find a way to get that door unlocked. After picking up a few red and green herbs--yep, some things never change, RE fans--we headed upstairs until we came to the roof where Chris helped Sheva get to an adjacent building by tossing her across.

Naturally, with the pair of us split up, the bad guys descended in force. What the brain-dead undead didn't count on was the high-powered rifle covering fire courtesy of Chris on the roof across from Sheva, which resulted in another big kill count for the duo. With the enemies dispatched, we guided Sheva down the stairs and into the streets where she could find the aforementioned locked gate and shoot the lock off, which took an excruciating four bullets to finish.

Thinking that each one of those bullets would be better served in a zombie's brain stem, we met up with Chris once more and headed down a narrow path before running into one of the creepiest bosses we've seen in an RE game. It was a hideous, malformed freak wielding a bloody chainsaw and wearing a nasty-looking mask that only partially hid his mutated features. As if that wasn't bad enough, we also had to deal with a number of the virus infectees entering the fray, resulting in a frantic boss battle that got more hectic by the moment.

While the control scheme in Resident Evil 5 can be awkward and the character movements are still a bit on the sludgy side, we did appreciate some of the special moves that both Chris and Sheva have at their disposal. Sheva, in particular, has a great flying kick move, which she can use with a press of the button when in close proximity to an enemy. Similarly, if one partner is in trouble, the other can rush in and help free him or her with a well-timed punch or kick (or indeed, a blast from a pistol or shotgun). In addition, even if you manage to get separated from one another, you can keep track of each other by pressing the R1 button (or RB on the Xbox 360) button, which will then automatically turn your character in your partner's direction and show an icon identifying his or her location.

We played the demo of RE5 "online" with a partner sitting in the same room as us on another console, so we didn't really get a chance to see if or how network performance will affect gameplay. We do know that, as it stands now, the host of an online RE5 match will always play as Chris, while the "guest" will always play as Sheva. That may change once the final game is released--in fact, we're hoping it does because more choice is usually a good thing--but we'll have to wait to see how the game progresses. In all, we're curious to see more of how the game will take advantage of the cooperative opportunities that RE5 presents and we look forward to bringing you more on the game in the coming months.

With Silent Hill: Homecoming, everything's changed. So many of my associations with the franchise simply aren't applicable anymore: The clunky controls are now streamlined, combat's much more intense (at times, a little too intense), and the storyline -- for once -- makes clear-cut sense. None of this is bad, just...different. Very different.

Click the image above to check out all Silent Hill: Homecoming screens.

For starters, combat's now a dance of sorts, with a dodge (yes, a dodge!) mechanic available to narrowly avoid enemy attacks. Sure, you can still swing away at enemies, but this often results in taking too much damage yourself. And while you might feel empowered by the new battle system at first, it's also incredibly frustrating when fighting more than one monster at once. I simply could not effectively dodge multiple enemy attacks, and even when running, I had to chug an unacceptable amount of health drinks (due to aggressors' parting swipes). Granted, I could circumvent this once I armed myself with a gun, but with bullets so scarce, I often wound up using firearms as a desperate last measure. I'm not saying combat should consist of simple 1-on-1 encounters, but part of a great survival-horror experience is the ability to safely run when things get too hairy.

While Homecoming's combat system has its growing pains, I wholeheartedly endorse the new camera and movement controls. You move with one analog stick and control the camera with the other, which enables you to manipulate the view with far more precision than ever before. Moreover, your character can now strafe, which really helps cement the more action-centric focus. I'm sure some Silent Hill fans will miss the cinematic angles when entering an unknown area, but this should pass -- the new camera and controls do little to detract from the atmosphere in the long run.

Homecoming stays true to the macabre Silent Hill atmosphere without feeling stagnant. Exploration's perfectly in line with previous games, complete with tons of locked doors, decaying structures, and doubling back between the real world and its hellish counterpart -- but some little nuances intrigue. In the older games, you either went through a door, or it was too damaged to bother with (or simply locked). Now, though, you might have to hack through a wood-blocked door or find a damaged wall where your character can slip through into an adjacent area. Doors are also no longer bound to loading screens; most allow you (and enemies) to pass through in real time. All this goes a long way toward establishing a feeling of actually exploring a decaying environment, and it makes much more sense than exploration restrained via broken locks.

Click the image above to check out all Silent Hill: Homecoming screens.

While Homecoming's look and feel are in line with Silent Hill, the narrative's much clearer. It still deals with familiar series themes (love, forgiveness, sin, redemption), but it's also the most straightforward story to date. By the time I reached one of the game's multiple endings, I had a clear understanding of exactly what happened, and why -- leaving little for me to think about afterward -- whereas previous games were incredibly nuanced and downright confusing, no matter which ending you received.

Homecoming developer Double Helix has stayed true to the series' foundation while also taking steps in a brave new direction; they've crafted a tale that stands well within franchise lore, and they've produced horrifically beautiful environments, occasional framerate drops aside. If Double Helix learns from their mistakes here -- combat balance being the most glaring issue -- their future work could rival the series' best. Homecoming definitely fits well within the franchise, but it also left me eager to see what's next, as this is clearly only the first step in Silent Hill's next evolution.

Score: B

By Tor Thorsen, GameSpot

Last week ended with the Associated Press reporting that Pandemic Studios was, at one point, indeed working a game based on the Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight. However, the report said that development had halted prior to the $400 million-grossing film's release, costing Electronic Arts an estimated $100 million in game sales.

Today on its Web site, Game Informer confirmed a new Batman game is in the works--at a publisher other than EA. The September 2008 issue of the Minnesota-based magazine touts Batman: Arkham Asylum, a new Eidos Interactive action title based on the DC Comics which inspired the films. Besides Batman, the game will feature the Joker and "an army" of other supervillains, and will be set in the titular madhouse featured in many Batman comics and graphic novels, including Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns.

According to Game Informer, Batman: Arkham Asylum has a "dark and gritty setting reminiscent of Bioshock." Cowritten by Paul Dini, producer of TV's Batman: The Animated Series, the game begins when the Joker breaks out of jail and escapes to Arkham. There, he orchestrates a plan to kill Batman and wreak havoc on Gotham City with the help of unnamed accomplices.

Batman: Arkham Asylum is being developed by Rocksteady Studios, which is currently boasting a Batman-logo countdown clock on its Web site. Though there is no text on the site, its Web page description reads, "Rocksteady Studios is an independent videogame developer based in North London, currently working on our latest FPS title for next-gen platforms." (Emphasis added.) Rocksteady's sole previous effort was 2006's lukewarmly reviewed Urban Chaos: Riot Response for the PlayStation 2 and original Xbox.

[UPDATE] Wednesday morning, Eidos publically announced Batman: Arkham Asylum will ship for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC in 2009. In North America, the game will be co-published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, which is self-publishing the forthcoming Lego Batman. WBIE is the game division of Warner Bros., the movie studio holds the Batman film rights and bankrolled The Dark Knight.

The House of the Dead meets Grindhouse thanks to London-based developer Headstrong Games. We took a first look at Leipzig GC.

The House of the Dead games have long been a staple of Sega's internal Japanese studio. However, the developer has finally given over the reins of one its most famous franchises, and the UK's Headstong games has been tasked with taking it in a new direction. The team has decided to cross the shooter with '60s Grindhouse cinema, making a gritty but trashy homage to both the game and the movies.

The story centers on Agent G's first mission out of college. He's joined by a new character called Detective Washington, and the entire story will be playable in single-player or co-op. While it's still an on-rails shooter, the big new change comes in the way that you can control the camera angle. By moving the target reticle to the edges of the screen, you can move the camera another 30 degrees. Sega says that this will come into play when finding hidden items, as well as killing certain zombies.

The level that we saw was set at The Carnival of Fun, an all-American fairground riddled with hicks-turned-zombies. You use the Wii Remote to aim at the screen, with the trigger used for firing and a quick shake for reload. You can obviously also use the Wii Zapper, but with 1 and 2 used for weapons, as well as + and - for special items, it could become a little convoluted. You'll be able to carry two weapons in Overkill, and in the demo we saw, both a machine gun and a magnum were featured.

As the Sega rep moved through the Carnival level, we got to see some of the new additions that Headstrong has added to the game. There are power-ups, such as Slo-Mofo, which slows down time for a few seconds, while the new damage model means you can shoot off arms and limbs. There are also combo bonuses for the more accurate you are, with the bonus dropping out as soon as you miss a zombie. You'll also be able to collect upgrades for weapons to increase damage and accuracy, although we didn't get to see them in action. The demo ended with a freakish boss character who was about 15 feet tall and had a baby's head growing out of his stomach.

The new visual s-t-y-l-e seems to suit the game perfectly, with all the degraded film effects that were resurrected in Tarantino's Grindhouse. The game is set for release in the first quarter of 2009, so expect more information on the game in the coming months.

HotD Overkill Trailer

22 August, 2008

Preview by Ellie Gibson

"But I'm sure you want to know about the games." So said David Reeves, about half an hour into Sony's Games Convention press conference. He was right, having spent the last 30 minutes showing off portables and bundles and peripherals and services. And quoting Bob Dylan, perhaps ill-advisedly: for all the talk of selling out, it's unlikely that The Times They Are A' Changin' was about the seventh generation of the console war.

With apologies to SingStar Queen and EyePet, though, what we really wanted to see was a specific game: Quantic Dream's long-awaited follow-up to Fahrenheit, called Heavy Rain. And we did. But for all the impressive visuals and talk about emotional experiences during the conference trailer, Heavy Rain still came off looking like a string of pretty Quick Time Events. It wasn't until afterwards, during the 45-minute demo held behind closed doors, that Quantic Dream boss David Cage got to explain why Heavy Rain is so much more than that.

He begins by telling the familiar tale of how the game didn't start out as a game at all. In 2006, having enjoyed success with Omikron: The Nomad Soul and Fahrenheit, Quantic set about creating a tech demo for Sony to show at E3. The crowd went wild, and so did the internet. According to Cage, the original Heavy Rain demo has since been downloaded more than a million times.

Now there's just over a year to wait until the full game is released. So what exactly is it all about? "Heavy Rain is an adult thriller based on five simple ideas," says Cage. The first of these is the "story-driven experience"; the plot that unfolds not via cut-scenes but directly through the players' actions. "You don't watch the story, you play it, and even generate it. You are not only the actor, but the writer and the director of the experience." Cage says he wanted to create an emotionally-involving narrative that would make the player care. "The characters on-screen are not just a bunch of pixels," he says. "They are real, living and breathing characters, and we do whatever it takes to create a feeling of empathy with them."

Madison considers her options.

In addition, there is determination to create a game with an adult theme and subject matter. "We believe that videogames are mature enough to tell more complex stories carrying depth and meaning," explains Cage, "You've seen so many games telling you about rookies going off to the second world war, heroes trying to save the world... We try to tell a real story that's happening in a real world. No supernatural powers, no monster to kill, just real life." He reckons this can be just as exciting. "If not more."

Quantic wants Heavy Rain to be "accessible to a broad audience", which is always odd to hear from a company famed for cult PC games, but, says Cage, "We believe the challenge should be transferred from the controller to the player's mind, because this is where the difficulty should be." This game isn't about solving puzzles or working out what you're supposed to do next; "We see Heavy Rain more like an unfolding journey, rather than a series of obstacles which have to be set up just to stop the player."

Please be a secret Twin Peaks licence.

While Cage is explaining all this the Heavy Rain menu screen is being displayed on a big screen behind him. It's a close-up of a woman's eyes, which appear to be scanning the room from within the TV. We may still be in the uncanny valley but the level of realism is high, and the effect is unnerving. The menu, says Cage, is running in real-time 3D. The eyes have not been hand-animated but motion-captured, using a technology specially developed by Quantic. "We don't know about the game, but we believe we have the most beautiful menu of the show," he says with a smile.

And we're off, with a cut-scene that begins just as the trailer shown at the conference did. A woman on a motorbike pulls up outside a suburban house as rain pours from steely skies. Her name is Madison, says Cage, and she's investigating a series of disappearances. But before going any further he's careful to emphasise what we're seeing won't tell us anything about the finished game's characters or plot; this is just a "bonus scene", which will be on the disc but only as a sideshow.

As Madison begins exploring the exterior of the house, which a sign reveals to be the home of the local taxidermist, Cage explains how she's being controlled. The left analogue stick does the movement of her head, rather than her whole body. To make characters move you press and hold the right trigger; they will travel in the direction they're facing. It's "very simple and very intuitive", he reckons.

Madison walks up to the front door. Cage shows how you can choose whether to ring or knock, or what to shout through the letterbox. The options appear on the screen as text, as we've seen in previous games, but to select one you tilt the Sixaxis. The idea is you can move, interact with the environment and talk at the same time - you don't have to wait while your character carries out instructions.

Having established the house is empty and the front door is locked, Madison looks for an alternative point of entry. She comes across a barrel lying near a window that's been left ajar. The chap holding the Sixaxis demonstrates how you can push the barrel by pushing the controller forwards, and force the window up by shaking the Sixaxis up and down.

Inside, the house looks just like it did in the trailer; dingy and dirty, all shabby furniture and yellowing wallpaper. It's full of stuff and it looks lived in. "Sometimes in games you see living rooms that look more like football stadiums than real living rooms, and we didn't want that," says Cage. He confirms you can interact with everything you see - sit on the rocking chair, open the cupboards, turn on the television. It's all context-sensitive; when you're next to items icons appear on screen to show you what button to press to perform the relevant action.

Are we out of the uncanny valley yet?

Madison takes a brief tour of the garage, where a chainsaw lies on the floor. She tries the switch-operated door to the exterior and discovers it won't open fully. After returning to the main house, she proceeds up the stairs. "We're just having a look around, it's just exploration. Everything's fine," says Cage, but the soundtrack suggests he's lying, having shifted from heavy piano to ominous strings.

He's lying. Madison swings open the bathroom door to reveal there's a dead woman in the bathtub, her head and torso submerged in a pool of blood. Our heroine gasps, stumbles out of the room and opens another door. Just like in the trailer, we see oddly posed and dressed mannequins; except now we see they aren't mannequins at all, but real women who have been gutted and stuffed by the taxidermist.

"Oh sh**," says Cage. The strings reach a peak. The screen splits into two panes, and in the one that takes up the left-hand third of the screen we see a man pulling up outside the house and getting out of his car. In the right hand pane, Madison hears the car and starts looking frantically for an escape route. She heads for the stairs as he enters the house and heads for the kitchen. This isn't a cut-scene, confirms Cage; she's being controlled all the while, and the guy doing the demo is being sure to creep rather than run so the taxidermist doesn't hear anything.

Is that spot motion-captured? We demand to know.

As he settles down in an armchair and turns the TV on, Madison carefully and quietly opens the door to the garage. She presses the switch, rolls under the gap, races to her motorbike and rides away to safety. The strings ebb away and the ponderous piano music returns. Cage and his audience breathe a sigh of relief.

"That was cool, that was okay," he says. "But that was one story. We made it out of the house, we didn't get caught. We will call the police and the guy will be arrested. But what if, when we were exploring the house, we had changed something - left a cupboard door open, maybe - and the guy had noticed? What if, when we were escaping, we didn't catch that bottle we knocked over, and it smashed and made a noise?" Any number of actions, explains Cage, could have changed the outcome. So, "Let's play differently and see what happens."

Once again, we watch the man leave his car and enter the house. But this time, instead of heading for the kitchen, he starts walking up the stairs to the bathroom. "He's managed by AI, so I can't predict what he's going to do," says Cage.

Madison starts searching for somewhere to hide, and once again the options are context-sensitive - except now more than one button icon appears. This demonstrates something called the "impress system", according to Cage. You may have to hold down several buttons at once to maintain a position, and you may find that as a result your fingers are uncomfortable just like your character. In this instance, the man controlling Madison must hold down triangle, circle, R2 and L1 to keep her hidden in a wardrobe.

The taxidermist, having heard Madison moving around, enters the room. He looks under the bed. "It's a good job we didn't hide under there," says Cage. But now he's approaching the wardrobe. "Sh**." He pulls open the doors, Madison screams and the split-screen disappears as a fully fledged fight gets underway.

It's just like in the trailer; the two characters face off across the bed, and after an X icon appears on-screen Madison picks up a lamp and smashes her enemy over the head. He chases her into the toilet, she kicks him out of the way and races down the stairs. She stumbles and a triangle icon pops up; when the demo man fails to press it in time, she falls and stands up with a bruise on her cheek. Eventually, she makes it to the garage, rolls under the door and runs out to the motorbike. This time it won't start, and another series of button presses is required before Madison is able to drive away. The taxidermist watches her go, then turns and heads slowly back into the house. The screen fades to black and a single shot is heard. It's over. Again.

The shadows are amazing. On her face we mean. Anyone can do black backgrounds.

"That was another way of playing the same scene. We could play it five, ten or 20 times and show you different versions," says Cage. "We could have stayed hidden in the house, found a phone and called the police, who would have turned up and arrested the man. We could have killed him, perhaps using the screwdriver or the chainsaw. Or we could have been killed by him, which would be taken onboard by the script, and the story would continue with this information... There are many different options."

Cage reiterates that what we've just seen won't be in the finished main game, but adds, "There will be around 60 scenes like this, each one unique and contextual. Each fight is unique. Each situation is unique. You will never see the same animation twice. Each scene has its own story arc, its own interactivity.

"And all this in a very dark and mature thriller full of twists and turns," says Cage. "If you can imagine that, you will start to see what this project is about."

It's raining in Brighton today. Coincidence? Yes, coincidence.

True, we know more about Heavy Rain now than when there was nothing but a tech demo and a conference trailer to go on. But this more extensive demo asks more questions than it answers. How will it feel to move characters around by controlling where they look? Just how interactive will the environments be? How can game storylines progress once the main character has been killed?

More broadly, what is Heavy Rain? Is it an interactive movie? Is it an action game? Is it next-gen point-and-click? Is it Choose Your Own Adventure for the 21st century?

The answers, as David Reeves might say, are blowing in the wind.

Towards the end of Konami's Games Convention 2008 press conference this morning, while certain members of the press were slowly inching towards the door, Head of Product Planning for Konami Digital Entertainment Dave Cox to the stage to present a brand new 3D action title for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, Lords of Shadow. The press release describes it as as a dark fairy tale, an epic battle between good and evil, and a stunning new action-adventure IP. You play as Gabriel, a mysterious protagonist on a journey to discover the true meaning of Christmas> self-sacrifice. Sounds like fun, in a vague sort of way.

The trailer itself featured the main character, seen above, looking all tense and powerful, and some giant critter showing up. This is the way of early trailers.

Lords of Shadow Debut Trailer

As we excited the press conference we were given a little bundle filled with cards featuring art from the game, which I will post in a gallery below for your enjoyment. Lords of Shadow is due out in 2010.

The darkness descends... Lords of Shadow arise
Konami unveils details of incredible new 3D action-adventure title from European Product Planning department

Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH has used Europe's leading video game event, the annual Games Convention in Leipzig, to unveil a landmark new title for PLAYSTATION®3 and Xbox 360 from its European Product Planning department entitled Lords of Shadow, which is due for release in 2010.

Developed by Madrid-based Mercury Steam, Lords of Shadow is a stunning new action-adventure IP, boasting an incredible level of visual detail and far-ranging gameplay. Set in Southern Europe during the middle ages, Lords of Shadow has beautifully-realised locales that play host to an epic battle between good and evil. This is a story of one man's journey to discover the true meaning of sacrifice amidst murder and betrayal.

Best described as a dark fairy tale, Lords of Shadow casts the player as the mysterious Gabriel. At its heart it is a vast third-person-viewed adventure, but combat and puzzle solving also play a major part in the main quest, while dark artifacts can be used to enhance Gabriel's powers.

Lords of Shadow also utilises a unique multi-functional weapon system called the Combat CrossTM, wherein Gabriel's favored armament can serve a multitude of purposes. For ranged attacks, an extendible chain can cause major carnage but also grip enemies, for melee the Combat CrossTM can be extended into a stabbing weapon, or changed into a heavier night stick ****device for defensive capabilities.

With a play area that spans forest glades, underground catacombs and snowy wastelands, Lords of Shadow is a key title for Konami. It represents the most ambitious offering from the European Product Planning department to date, with the beautiful visuals married to fine-tuned gameplay that features a wide range of monstrous enemies and huge, screen-filling boss creatures.

"Lords of Shadow is a momentous title for us," commented Dave Cox, Executive Producer and Head of Product Planning for Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH. "Every element of the game pushes the host hardware to its limits, with Mercury Steam producing a game that has breath-taking visuals, incredible cinematic qualities, and varied and engrossing gameplay. It is truly an epic game but telling a human and emotive story. This is a title we hope will set a new standard for action-adventure titles."

Lords of Shadow will be released for PLAYSTATION®3 and Xbox 360 in 2010.

Written By: Brian Ekberg and Alex Sassoon Coby

PARIS--The Barbarian sees, and the Barbarian smashes. The Witch Doctor sees and usually lets something else do his dirty work. The two character classes shown off during today's announcement of Diablo III (unveiled during the opening ceremonies for the 2008 Blizzard Invitational in Paris) is a mixture of old and new, representing the formula that the Blizzard development team seems to be aiming for with the latest installment in its blockbuster action game series.

We'll spend some time recounting our observations of both classes in a bit, but first, we should talk a bit about the trailer that introduced the world to the game for the first time. It started off with your typical dire portents of dread, backed by spooky music and gorgeous visuals. What stood out to us was the variety in those visuals, as well as what they could mean for the gameplay and story. First, we saw a number of different settings in the trailer--including more than one city setting. In addition, the color palette seemed to be much larger than in previous installments; we noticed a grimy, dusty-looking battlefield teeming with soldiers and war machines, as well as at least one night-time landscape, backed by a huge full moon. While maintaining that grim gothic feel to the game, it seems like the Blizzard artists are getting a full chance to explore a larger visual palette that should give the game some variety.

The same impressive look continues on to the actual gameplay. Characters were big and richly detailed (especially when wearing more elaborate armor) but nicely scaled to the environments. In other words, the characters are big, but they can still be easily dwarfed by some of the bigger creatures in the game, as the demo proved with that massive spike-wielding demon at the end. While we thought at first that this was a boss, due to its sheer bulk and the complexity of its attacks, it was later confirmed this was just a run-of-the-mill mob, the likes of which you can expect to see on a fairly regular basis. In addition to monsters of various sizes, the enemies in the game will demonstrate a variety of behaviors. During the demo, we saw the Berserker, a large, mace-wielding monster that's equal parts strength and bad attitude. During a post-announcement game design panel on Diablo III, we also saw the skeletal shield bearer, a slow-moving skeleton wielding a huge shield. Often accompanying larger enemies as support, the shield bearer will be a tough enemy to deal with, as you'll first have to take out the monster's shield before attacking it properly. As a result, shield bearers will be ideal support for enemies who are strictly focused on dealing damage.

With different types of monsters on hand, it's fortunate that the character ****s in Diablo III will be just as epically powerful as you remember. The Barbarian is still a melee specialist (though not without his specialized ranged attacks). The Barbarian's skills will be familiar to Diablo II fans--we saw the whirlwind in effect, sweeping through scores of enemies--but he'll have some other tricks up his sleeves (that is, if he wore sleeves), including the sweep, which can blast multiple enemies around him. During the on-stage demo, the Barbarian managed to take down a stone wall on a group of zombies, pointing to more interactive environments throughout the gameplay. While environments won't be fully destructible, you can look forward to many instances, such as this one, where you can use the environment to your advantage, with a certain amount of real physics involved in the destruction.

If the Barbarian is all about wading into the fray with both weapons blazing, the newly announced Witch Doctor is all about variety. He (or she--Diablo III will let you play as a male or female version of your chosen ****but will not offer more advanced customization options) will have more straightforward attacks, like the firebomb, which drops fiery death onto the enemy, as well as more interesting attacks that seem more in keeping with the ****

The Witch Doctor will have control over disease, can summon pets, and can even control the minds of his or her enemies. We saw a few examples of these different approaches in the game demo: Locust swarm is a spell that summons a nasty horde of flying locusts that can overwhelm an opponent. Better yet, the locusts will automatically spawn to attack additional enemies in the area. We saw one pet in use too; the mongrel. This pet can attack enemies and can be buffed with other Witch Doctor spells; during the demo, the player cast locust swarm on his mongrel, giving the pet an attack bonus. We also briefly saw the horrify spell, which causes enemies to temporarily flee in terror. By far, his coolest ability was the wall of zombie, which was truly terrifying. If you've seen a wall of fire or ice in a game before, you probably have a pretty good idea of what this skill involves.

At first glance, the Witch Doctor resembles the Necromancer from Diablo II, both in his relatively skinny appearance (at least, when compared to the Barbarian) and through the ****abilities (pet summoning, disease control). When asked about it during the gameplay design seminar, Blizzard developers were quick to point out that the Witch Doctor is very much its own ****and that its presence in the game wouldn't necessarily require the removal of the Necromancer in Diablo III. In other words, it's conceivable that both ****s could end up in Diablo III, even if it looks unlikely to us at this point.

Using new skills will be easier than ever in Diablo III, thanks to a new combat system and user interface that seems to put a premium on skill usage over potions. As explained during the gameplay seminar, Blizzard developers felt that potion use was too prevalent in the previous game, resulting in combat encounters that were rarely more than wars of attrition because the user kept pounding health potions en masse. In another seminar, Jay Wilson, the lead designer, confirmed that the interface would not be customizable with mods; while this is nigh-on essential for World of Warcraft, Wilson said that it would be detrimental in Diablo III and was not on the table.

In Diablo III, potions will still play a part of the action but their importance has been downplayed, thanks to a couple of changes. The first are health globes, which drop off defeated enemies and will serve to boost the health of your character, as well as those around you if you're playing co-operatively. As the developers put it, the idea of enemies dropping health is one that will keep the player moving forward in the game, as opposed to trying to avoid combat. In addition, a new skill toolbar, similar in location to the old potion belt in Diablo II, will make your skills that much more accessible, easily allowing you to switch between skills on the fly. You'll even be able to swap skills quickly using the roller on your mouse for even more ease of use. The result is a game you'll likely be able to play almost completely with your mouse; no more hunting for skills using the F key on your keyboard. Here's one more important addition regarding cooperative play: When a character picks up a health globe, any surrounding allies also benefit from that health globe, which seems like it will encourage players to stick together when hacking and slashing their way throughout the game. To our ears, it also makes it sound like practically any ****will be able to tank effectively (as long as someone is picking up the health globes and standing nearby), but we'll have to see how it plays out as the game develops.

Random dungeons will still be a big part of Diablo III. In fact, randomness will prevail throughout the game (and we mean that in a good way). In addition to having randomly created dungeons to explore, the developers have introduced random monsters, random loot droops, and new random scripted events into the game to make each play-through a new experience. In terms of monsters and loot, the stage demo alone was proof of that concept--we saw loads of different types of beasts to fight, from snakelike monsters to hulking brutes, like the final big bad beastie. Blizzard didn't go into much detail regarding loot, but we do know that it's hard at work creating custom-designed armor and weapons that will look great, as well as get the job done in the field of combat. More tie-ins with lore with higher-level drops have been promised than was the case in Diablo II, with items being one of the development teams key focuses in increasing your feeling of involvement with the story as you progress. During the demo, we saw the Barbarian decked out in a suit of golden armor with an imposing-looking helmet and wielding a pair of axes: one enchanted with frost; the other with electricity. We also saw him wielding a fire-enchanted two-handed mace, trailing fire impressively as he spun through a crowd of skeletons.

The random scripted events sound like one of the coolest additions to the game. Each play-through, players will encounter scenarios that are quite different from their previous trip through the game. In one area, you might see a house filled with undead enemies--along with a story about the home's former residents. The second time you play through, that same area might contain a caravan that you'll be prompted to escort to safety. The next time that area might simply be filled with monsters just begging for the opportunity to be killed by you. Scripted events look to greatly increase the level of immersion into the world of Diablo III while keeping the player coming back for more at the same time. There will also be a conversation system in the game, which will give voice to your character in the game; more so than the handful of exclamations your character had in the previous game. We hope to learn more about the conversation system for Diablo III over the weekend and will report back with more details.

Much has yet to be settled in the development of Blizzard's latest game. The pair of character ****s we know about are just two in an undetermined (or at least, unreleased) final number of ****s that will be in Diablo III, though Blizzard has confirmed that not all the ****s from Diablo II are going to make the cut. In addition, while we do know that the online cooperative play will be a huge part of the game, Blizzard hasn't settled on the final number of people that will be able to play together: eight is the current theoretical maximum, but Blizzard made it clear that the final decision was going to be based on what was best for the player and that this number was likely to be lower than the theoretical maximum. Indeed, even the fate of "hardcore" mode is as of yet undecided, though Blizzard devs said they see no reason why it won't be in the final game, given its popularity in Diablo II. As for a secret cow level...when pressed, all Blizzard reps would say was "No comment."

On the other hand, we can confirm the game's release date; it's the same date as for all Blizzard-developed titles: "When it's ready." Until that time--however far in the future it may be--we'll be sure to bring you the latest coverage of the game, including more coverage from this weekend's 2008 Blizzard Invitational, so stay tuned.

Gameplay Footage

Teaser Trailer

Interview with Rob Pardo on Diablo 3

Written By: Joshua Schwartzman -gamer20.com June 27,2008

June 27,2008 - The Tomb Raider franchise has been through a healthy stretch as of late. With one of the best reworked ports to ever come out (Tomb Raider: Anniversary) and one of the most satisfying entries in the long-running series (Tomb Raider: Legend) garnishing critical acclaim, developer Crystal Dynamics has more to prove than just adding new levels with an intriguing story. Lara Croft's latest adventure shows specks of old school flair with plenty of new ideas and features that will make the latest Tomb Raider game a benchmark for adventure games to follow.

Simply put, Lara Croft is back and her adventure is better than ever.

Tomb Raider: Underworld will pit Lara against even bigger challenges, more formidable foes, and greater odds. While Legend had players traveling to faraway places in search of a lost treasure, Underworld will have a much more personal and historical feel to it, reminiscent of the stories that the first games were so notorious for. Such instances have you traveling to Mexico scavenging across the Mayan Ruins in search of lost clues, while other quests have you spelunking deep within ancient caves trying to decipher a mysterious language. The locations in Underworld are much more dynamic and approachable than ever before, offering the chance for players to enjoy their adventure while learning a thing or two in the process.

While the story of Underworld has been pretty hush-hush, we do know that the Mayan Ruins level has Lara searching for clues as to the missing days from the Mayan calendar. According to legend, the Mayans constructed a calendar modeled after a 300 day/year format, and every year an extra five days went missing from the calendar. If Lara can find those pages, the clues could reveal the time when the gates of hell will be opened. Another level shows Lara relaxing aboard a luxurious yacht just minutes before she jumps off and swims flawlessly through the Mediterranean Sea in search of a mysterious location.

Exploring every nook and cranny throughout the levels has always been an important part of the series, but it's something that Crystal Dynamics is really looking to enhance in Underworld. Instead of having the game prompt you to use certain items and weapons to continue through a certain part, now it will be up to the player whether or not they need hints to advance. Such instances show Lara looking at a pole with an awkwardly shaped hole in the center. Lying nearby on the ground is a tall pole, which Lara picks up, slips into the hole, and uses as a guide to swing up onto the ledge above her. Scenarios like these are only examples of the many ways in which you can use the environment to help you solve puzzles.

Of course, what would Underworld be without some enemies to battle along the way? The AI in Underworld has been totally revamped to allow a more realistic approach to battle. For example, enemies will no longer stand prone when you run and gun them to death; they will now find cover and flank you accordingly. Animal predators (such as those frustrating lions) will also react differently depending on the situation. For example, if you remain calm around them, you could usually sneak past without any harm, while running at them may pose as a threat and they will be more likely to attack you. Choosing your actions around certain enemies reveals different aspects to how the game is played out.

Lara will have use of many weapons to help her through the game, and many of her useful gadgets will make a return or get enhanced along the way. The grappling hook has been upgraded to allow Lara to grab onto any solid object, whether it is within eyesight or not. For example, rather than just locking on to the closest solid object, Lara, for example, could jump off a cliff, access her grappling hook and then swing underneath a waterfall by latching onto a rock embedded in the Cliffside. Accessing grappling points is harder than it was in Legend, as Crystal Dynamics has stated that the look of the levels make some points harder to see without some detective work. Instead of downright killing enemies, Lara now has the option to use tranquilizer darts to immobilize enemies, which surely will please fans who thought Lara was too vicious in her previous games. New SCUBA gear allows Lara to stay submerged longer and the ability to utilize roll and shoot techniques together branches off a new form of stylish combat.

What makes Underworld even more intriguing is how stunning the game actually looks. Besides more fluid animation during combat and cutscenes, Crystal Dynamics has implored the help of an Olympic Gold Medalist Gymnast to motion capture over 200 different movements for Lara. These moves help give Lara a realistic feel that was often missing in such a personal game. One of the coolest new features is an effect called spherical harmonics, where the game utilizes the effects of an indirect lighting source instead of a direct one. For example, instead of the sun casting tons of shadows on an area, the indirect lighting source actually makes the area look fully alive and naturally colored; as if you were actually standing in spot you were looking at. Besides the new addition of spherical harmonics, Crystal Dynamics will enhance its use of HDR and bloom lighting, weather effects show wear and tear on objects, and objects now cast realistic shadows according to its surroundings.

The weather plays a very important role on Lara as well, and not just on the objects she interacts with. The rain could cause a giant mud puddle that blocks Lara's path, and when she jumps in to get across, the mud and grime actually stick on her for the rest of her quest. If it happens to rain after she is drenched in mud, then the water will simply wash off her dirtied loins. Simple effects such as muddy footprints and dirty clothes can hinder your progress through the game, as enemies will become aware of your location and Lara will react differently to being messy instead of clean. Even Lara's facial expressions show a stunning detail of humanism. Lara will grimace is she has to use a gun instead of tranquilizers, and she will sigh in happiness when all the fighting is over. Up-close facial movements during cutscenes and story segments should help make Lara a more humanistic presence then previous games as well.

With less than five months left before Underworld hits stores, things are looking extremely polished for the next entry in the Tomb Raider series. With already so much to look forward to and so much promise from the previous two games, there is definitely a lot of promise in Tomb Raider: Underworld. Expect to explore these tombs on your own this November for the Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PC and DS.

Taking a cinematic view on EA's 'scariest game ever'.

UK, June 10, 2008 - Games have long looked to their cinematic counterparts for inspiration, be it Resident Evil's skewed appropriation of George Romero's Dead canon or Halo's unmistakable premise of melding James Cameron's entry into the Alien series with its own cullings from the front line of seventies sci-fi pulp, and Electronic Arts Dead Space looks to plunder further than most as developer Redwood Shore endeavour to create the most terrifying experience committed to the digital medium.

So keen has been its borrowings that many have expressed dismay at the weary familiarity of protagonist Isaac Clarke's traipse through the strobe-lit corridors of Dead Space's Ishimura ship, and while the game's Product Manager Derek Chan won't be drawn on specifics, it's clear that Dead Space wears its celluloid influences on its sleeve. "It's the best stuff," says Chan when pressed on where the Dead Space team turned to for inspiration. "We're influenced by the best horror films and the best sci-fi films and there are obvious homages to survival horror games."

Prelude to a kiss.We're willing to be a little more explicit in speculating where Dead Space got its ideas - be it the melancholic and tatty environs of Ridley Scott's Nostromo in the stark shadows and beaten metal of the game's similarly sprawling ship the Ishimura, the voyages into inner space seen in Solaris and Sunshine that are echoed in the psychological extremes endured by the traumatised shipmates Clark encounters, or the putrid protagonist of John Carpenter's 1982 remake of The Thing whose resemblance squirms under the skin of Dead Space's contorted and wildly mutated Nectomorphs, there's always a celluloid parallel that comes to mind when playing through the game.

But it's churlish to accuse Dead Space of uninspired thinking, as in being so eager to appropriate the good and the great of sci-fi horror the game is again aping its forebears that would unashamedly purloin their influences. Alien itself, a film which still casts a heavy shadow over the sci-fi horror genre some thirty years since its cinematic release and whose presence is so readily felt in Dead Space, was a Frankenstein of a creation as its screenwriter Dan O'Bannon picked at the highlights of some of the more offbeat products of sixties cinema.

Dead Space prescribes largely to the LOUDquietLOUD school of scares.It! The Terror from Outer Space, a 1958 black and white ****c, featured a stowaway alien that stalked the crew, plucking them off in the now time honoured fashion one by one, and so heavily in debt was O'Bannon deemed to the premise that representatives of the film were moved to take legal action against Alien's producers. Planet of the Vampires, an obscure Italian film from 1965, featured a crew that goes to answer a distress signal, only to be greeted by chaos and in one scene that Alien heavily apes come across a derelict alien spaceship, complete with a deceased extra-terrestrial pilot at the controls.

Which is not to act as an apologist for Dead Space's brazen thefts, but rather to suggest that from the solid chassis Redwood Shores has welded together from the scrap yard of the sci-fi horror genre there is potential for a landmark title to emerge - permitting, of course, that a layer of innovation and fresh thinking can be applied to the proven framework.

Chan is forthcoming about the task for Dead Space's developers, confessing that, "Without going into specifics about our influences, it's challenging to take what's been done before and try and forge your own way and do something original and innovative."

And while innovation may be the furthest thing from the minds of players at the behest of Dead Space -who are more likely to be preoccupied with the flow of hostile tentacles that's constantly trying to tease Clarke's head from his spine - there's a certain amount of bravura to the way that Redwood Shores has approached a genre that was not long ago deemed to have flat-lined, not least in its courageous take on the HUD.

The shipmates Clarke encounters are a traumatised bunch.Indeed, so dramatic has Redwood Shore's solution been to one of gaming's perennial hangovers that upon the unveiling of the in-game inventory a small internet tremor was triggered as gamers tried to get their heads around the idea of tackling Dead Space's marauding mutants and maintaining their inventory at the same time. Whilst not so extreme as to steal away the chance for people to break from the action - a pause button is, after all, present - what the in-game inventory does is force players to juggle their belongings as the tentacled threats approach.

This philosophy of immersion stretches to the HUD, which ingeniously is present in a read out on the back of Clarke's power suit, in another step towards creating an experience that is more akin to watching a film than playing a game. "If you start cluttering up the HUD you start to lose the fear," says Chan, "and everything in Dead Space is about maintaining that level of intensity and attention. We always want you to feel like you're not exactly in control, that you're not okay."

Staying in the moment is something that's vital for a game like Dead Space to preserve its grasp on the player, and when the player is at liberty to do what they please it's a challenge to uphold the suspense that's needed to incite true fear. The introduction in the latter half of the game of a persistent enemy that hunts the player down throughout the game, as was used to such chilling effect in Resident Evil: Nemesis, is another baton with which Redwood Shore can orchestrate the pace at will. "It's about contrasts, and not constantly pounding you with loud noise, intensity and enemies swarming all over you, it has to be about some areas that are very quiet, some areas are going through tight spaces and zero g and airless environments so we change the pattern over a 15-20 hour experience."

Excuse the prospensity of brown - there's no doubting Dead Space is pretty.Perhaps one of the most pertinent challenges faced by the Dead Space team is playing to the strengths of their chosen medium, and when a game looks so heavily to the silver screen it can be all too tempting to ape tricks that produce scares on celluloid yet can leave those with a controller in hand limp. "You have to maintain intensity whether or not the player is progressing forwards," says Chan, "We use heavy scripting and iteration for some of the scare moments, and we have a lot of fake outs with light and sound."

Finally, Dead Space's rich and suspenseful narrative looks to be flourished by a multimedia assault leading up to the game, commencing with a series of comic books and culminating in a full length animated feature to screen just before the games release this Halloween. The comics, written by sometime Alan Moore collaborator Antony Johnston and inked by 30 Days of Night illustrator Ben Templesmith, suggest a story that's deep in religious overtones, and again looks to cinema for its inspiration with the monolith of Arthur C. Clarke and Stanley Kubrick's 2001 looming large over a tale of a mysterious artefact unleashing grim violence in the dwellers of a dystopian settlement. Little is known about the film beyond the fact it's being handled by Project Roman, who contributed to the animation for the Simpson's cinematic debut, though Chan assures us it's "badass".

It all adds up to a game that could well lay claim to being the definitive horror experience this Halloween, and if Redwood Shores can build upon its influences Dead Space could stake a claim at the forefront of the horror revival.

Due to some spoilers on this update, I can not show you the story on the front page.

CLICK ON THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK OF BEING SPOILED

All credit goes for this information goes to cameraslens.com, a very good fan site for the Fatal Frame series.

May 29, 2008 @ 1:36pm

Summary:Namco Bandai announced today that Splatterhouse will officially make its return in 2009 with a few interesting additions.

Full Text:

I've returned, and I'm still taking names

Namco Bandai announced today that the ****c gorefest Splatterhouse will be making its return on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 sometime in 2009.

A press release from Namco said that the next-gen version of the arcade and TurboGrafx 16 ****c will feature a melee combat system complete with grappling and combos.

The infamous 2x4 wooden board also makes a comeback some 20 years after the original, as well as the ability to use the limbs of your enemies as weapons to dispatch them and, in effect, create more weapons.

One final noteworthy addition to Splatterhouse is actually an omission. Gone is the traditional health bar, which Namco said will be replaced with a regeneration feature. As main character Rick takes damage, it will be represented on his enhanced frame in real-time. Only by waiting it out and not taking further damage will he begin to regenerate. Players will get to see body parts, skin and blood reform in real time.

GamePro has the latest screenshots of Splatterhouse available now

As you all should know, Fatal Frame (Project Zero for our European users, or Zero for our Japanese users) 4 was announced by Tecmo early this year with some released shots. Today, I found this...a scan of a Japanese magazine with not only a whole two pages on the game, but in-game photos as well! However, if you don't know how to read Japanese, the text is pretty useless, but it's still something very interesting to look at.

If someone could try to translate what the text is, that'd be really great for everyone.

From the looks of this...Fatal Frame fans, including myself, have something to look forward to.

FF4 is still scheduled for a summer 2008 release in Japan, but it has been confirmed to be a worldwide release, so American and European players should get an opportunity to play this on their Wii systems.

EDIT: Due to issues of the full images being forced to be cut off, these are the resized versions. The true (and much larger) versions can be found here and here.

May 16th, 2008

The Silent Hill series has been a reliable provider of chills and thrills for video-game players, dating back to its PlayStation debut in 1999. Konami is hoping to keep the string alive this September with its latest entry in the franchise, Silent Hill: Homecoming.

Alex Shepherd thought the worst was behind him. He leaves the military and is returning home to his parents and younger brother, Josh, who are all anxious to get the family back together again. However, a dream about his sibling's disappearance soon proves to be reality, and his mother then lets him in on the situation that his father went out to look for Josh and hasn't returned either. That's a series of strange, heartbreaking events breaking up his family-and, in fact, Mom's not looking all that with it in her rocking chair, speaking almost as if she's in a trance and holding a loaded pistol on her lap.

Konami's recent press presentation revealed the fundamental mission in making this new Silent Hill title, which was to keep the series' signature **** After all, you couldn't have a Silent Hill game without, for the most part, topping everything that's come before it. However, when the developers dove deep into the making of the game, they took pause at how "clean" the gameplay and graphics were on the next-generation console. That led to a vital decision to, for lack of a better term, "dirty" up the game and get back to what they wanted out of it: to scare the socks off thousands of gamers.

Alex won't likely get the homecoming he'd hoped for.

Our short session with the game raised expectations that the designers have certainly mucked it up in a number of ways. First and foremost is the environment, which is a hazardous beast of its own. A good chunk of the action in our hands-on gameplay was spent in pea soup-like fog, which limited our visibility and raised our already-high stress level, given the expectation that something could spring at us or growl loudly from within the fog.

Though Konami has said it doesn't want its Silent Hill games to be filled with just "creature in a box" moments-which is good for startling the player...at least, the first couple of times it happens, but then the player learns to adapt to them happening if they're too frequent. In fact, there's a strong amount of psychological terror in play, which can be much more effective and unexpected as a way to keep the player on the edge of the seat.

One good way to accomplish that, as we saw from a sample clip, is to play on nearly everyone's fear of being out of control. From the perspective shown, the player is tightly strapped to a gurney and wheeled by a nasty creature through the halls, where doctors can barely be seen through the shadows committing experiments in neighboring rooms.

Konami also mentioned that its surround-sound support is "being used to full benefit." While a good chunk of any title's horrific experience comes from what is seen onscreen, there's undoubtedly a lot that can be injected into the gameplay via supporting audio. If you are playing in a home theater set-up and move your character forward in the game world, for instance, only to hear some other creature's squeal getting closer in the back speakers of your surround-sound system, you can bet the hair on the back of your neck will stand at attention and you'll be much more anxious when something else happens shortly after.

And the creatures are masterfully crafted, with many of them having odd shapes and varied ways to attack. One that we saw has a pendulum blade where his head should be, at the end of his long, bloody neck, and a swinging slice of his sharp noggin is not the only offensive tactic he can use. Similarly, zombie dogs are as vicious in their springing leaps and powerful bites at your limbs and body armor, but they can't take too much of a beating themselves (and thankfully you're equipped with a large metal bar that's fast to swing and brings some major smack to the animals).

http://screenshots.teamxbox.com/screen/74317/Silent-Hill-Homecoming/

Konami estimates that the first playthrough should be completed in about 15 hours. However, there's also repeatedly loads of replay value, with multiple endings that are determined by certain choices you make at various points in the trek. Of course, there are also 1000 Gamertag points in there to earn from gameplay, as well as the promise of unlockables, which we were told are going to be "standard for the series," such as new articles of clothing that your character can don.

The four months left on Silent Hill: Homecoming's development will undoubtedly be used for a massive amount of polish and nuance-to make the cool cooler, the intense much more intense and the harsh all the harsher. Hopefully, our next look at it will bear that out. Check back with TeamXbox for updates as we receive them.