New Heavenly Sword Fact Sheet

Emotionally charged, stunningly beautiful, and delivering unprecedented dramatic character performance, Heavenly Sword™ showcases the power of PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) computer entertainment system. A dramatic tale of revenge sees Nariko, a fiery red-haired heroine, embark on a quest for vengeance against an invading King and his army. The story builds around the ancient Heavenly Sword, which once belonged to a powerful deity. It can never be wielded by a mortal without it slowly but inevitably draining their life-force.

When the invading King (played by Andy Serkis) destroys the warrior clan that guards the Heavenly Sword, the clan leader’s daughter, Nariko, takes up the sword in a desperate fight for survival. Nariko must now pay the ultimate price as she embarks on one last mission of vengeance against the King and his army before her life is finally and irreparably overtaken by the omnipotent Heavenly Sword…

Andy Serkis, the world’s leading CG actor, famous for his roles as Gollum in “The Lord of the Rings” and Kong in “King Kong,” was heavily involved in the creative process. As well as starring in Heavenly Sword as the villain, King Botan, Andy was a major contributor to the character development, writing, casting, directing and performance capture for the PS3 title.

Heavenly Sword features a deep, diverse combat experience made possible only on PS3.

KEY FEATURES

• The Heavenly Sword – The Heavenly Sword itself can transform into three distinct weapons, each with its own accompanying fighting stance used by Nariko to vary combat styles.
• The Combat Engine – The combat engine can scale up from sophisticated one-on-one encounters to one-on-many, where enemies employ intelligent squad-based dynamics, right up to combat against battalions pushing real-time gameplay and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to unprecedented new levels.
• Physics-Based Combat – The physics-based combat allows players to sweep debris against opponents, kick tables to halt an oncoming surge of fighters, smash the enemy into the scenery, or throw bodies into other enemies using “aftertouch” controls.
• Wide range of Objects & Weaponry – Heavenly Sword provides a wide range of objects & weaponry including rapid fire crossbows and massively damaging bazookas.
• Creative in-game Cinematography – Coupled with real-time story evolvement and amazing set-pieces, Heavenly Sword feels like a blockbuster action movie that takes combat gameplay to new heights.
• PLAYSTATION®3 – Greater processing power on the PS3 enables more immersive visuals and sound effects in Heavenly Sword, heightening the character performance and combat within the stunningly beautiful environments.

Yeah that’s right, use your heavenly sword BAZOOKA! this is supposed to be a game set in ancient times, but they are giving you a bazooka, giant enemy crabs anyone?

Jam Sessions is coming this summer!

From an Ubisoft Press release.

Today Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest video game publishers, announced that Jam Sessions™ – a groundbreaking music title exclusively for the Nintendo DS™ system in which players actually strum a guitar via the Touch Screen to make music – will launch in EMEA territories this summer.

“Jam Sessions is an amazing title with limitless potential to entertain and engage a wide audience of people who love music, guitar and singing,” said John Parks, EMEA Marketing Director. “Basically, it’s a guitar in your pocket but that’s just the beginning. It’s a chance for people who have never thought of themselves as ‘musically inclined’ to jump right in and play through entire songs, compose their own music and sing along with friends.”

Players will rock out, or smoothly strum, on the lower screen of the Nintendo DS system, producing an authentic sound digitally remastered from an actual acoustic guitar. The simple interface will guide players into the various easy-to-play modes which include: Performance Mode, allowing users to sing and play along both yesterday and today’s hottest artists; Free-Play Mode, where people can play anything they chose; and Tutorial Mode where novice musicians will learn to play guitar without paying for lessons.

One of the most compelling features is the ability to record what you play and play it back, therefore making Jam Sessions virtual notepad for players to write, play and save their original music anytime, anywhere. The portability of the DS system makes Jam Sessions a complete concert-on-the-go entertainment system, perfect for parties and other social gatherings – simply hook up some external speakers via the headphone jack and you’re a rock star!

I really like the idea of Jam Session, but I do realize that I will look like a fucking tard playing this thing. Despite that I will probably be purchasing it the first day it comes out.

we now have a message board

It’s not the greatest because well I have a kid, Nate is in school, and we don’t need a reason beyond that to use free products and services. There we be a quick link to the forum on the top right of the blog so there is no excuse not to visit it and at least post once or twice. In the future when the visitors of UUDD(we need a new name!) have grown to record breaking numbers we will have the means for a great forum. For now we have to make lemonade out of lemons.

Resident Evil Umbrella Chronicles fact sheet

“Resident Evil®: The Umbrella Chronicles is a brand new game in the Resident Evil® franchise, with familiar locales from the entire series. This action/shooter hybrid reveals the back story behind the fall of the Umbrella Corporation by exploring locations from Resident Evil 0, 1, 2 and 3 as well as new never-before-seen locations, such as Umbrella’s stronghold. Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles combines first-person, light-gun style combat with interactive pathways, multiple weapons and new enemies to create an entirely new Resident Evil experience that could only be delivered on the Wii.

• Using the Wii RemoteTM as a gun, players can experience breathtaking combat against a horde of zombies and various creatures in dynamic first-person perspective.

* 480p and 16:9 Widescreen support
* Certain weapons can destroy environments and items. Shoot objects and watch them splinter, explode and disintegrate.
* Interactive paths – choose various routes and pathways through the game, allowing for multiple levels of replayability
* Multiple weapons, including pistols, submachine guns, rocket launchers, the trusty knife, grenades and many more.
* Classic locations from previous Resident Evil games in full 3D, including the mansion from the original and RE 0, and elements of Raccoon City from RE2 and 3.
* Umbrella’s stronghold, a new location, holds many secrets to events throughout the RE series
* Returning characters from many RE games, including Billy Coen, Rebecca Chambers, Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine and Carlos Oliveira.”

After Resident Evil 4 I have no doubts that this game is going to be dominating systems across the world. Shooting zombies with the Wii Remote…it gets no better then that.

Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo coming to Xbox Live Arcade

“One of the most addictive games of all time has just gotten better! Super Puzzle Fighter™ II Turbo HD Remix downloads Capcom’s incredibly popular puzzle game into the new generation. Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix comes to Xbox LIVE® Arcade, PLAYSTATION®Network and PC in its greatest incarnation to date, featuring enhanced 1080p HD graphics, several new game modes, improved game balance, and online play.

* Three different gameplay options:
o X-Mode: play in classic Puzzle Fighter style
o Y-Mode: gems automatically break when three or more gems of the same color line up in a row vertically, horizontally, or diagonally
o Z-Mode: players move a 2×2 cursor around the screen rotating the positions of the highlighted gems; more gems are added from below, moving all the current gems toward the top
* Game balance options for X-Mode
o Original X-Mode or a newly rebalanced mode that makes every character a compelling choice
* Counter Gem Edit – allows players to create their own drop pattern
* Multiple online gameplay options:
o Ranked Match – using the TrueSkill system players are matched 1-on-1 based on their ranking points
o Player Match – non-ranked, casual Quarter Match setup allows players to view ongoing matches and stand by to become the next challenger
* Worldwide rankings and leaderboard
* Two graphics options – players can switch between the exact pixels of the original game or an all new 1080p HD version which includes revamped graphics for gems, effects and interface”

As the only game to ever come close to putting a dent in my Tetris Attack addiction I am ecstatic for this release.

Super Paper Mario – Very Funny

Well I found my favorite part of Super Paper Mario. Call up the ESRB, they need to change the rating due to user generated content!

Halo 3 beta available on May 16th

REDMOND, Wash. — April 10, 2007 — Microsoft Game Studios and Bungie Studios today confirmed the multiplayer beta of “Halo® 3” will debut to audiences worldwide via Xbox LIVE® on May 16 at 1pm GMT and run through June 7 at 7:59 a.m. GMT. Coming exclusively to the Xbox 360™ console this fall, “Halo 3” is the highly anticipated third chapter in the groundbreaking “Halo” trilogy from legendary developers Bungie. “Halo 3” lets gamers experience Master Chief’s greatest battle as he launches an epic mission to stop the Covenant, destroy the impending Flood threat and ultimately save mankind.

Made possible through Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox LIVE gaming and entertainment network, which provides a robust online service for more than 6 million gamers worldwide, the multiplayer beta for “Halo 3” will give anxious Xbox 360 gamers their first opportunity to get their hands on the new levels, weapons, vehicles and game types, as well as a chance to provide valuable data that Bungie will use in continued development. Starting May 16, gamers who secured their admission to the multiplayer beta either through the “Rule of Three” promotion or by purchasing a specially marked copy of “Crackdown™” for Xbox 360 will be able to don their Spartan armor, download the beta on Xbox LIVE, and jump online using their Xbox LIVE Gold account* to battle other gamers from around the world.

When gamers gather online to play the multiplayer beta via Xbox LIVE in May, they will be treated to three richly detailed, action-oriented maps: Snowbound, High Ground and Valhalla, which represent a mixture of large- and medium-scale combat environments and are brand-new to “Halo 3.” Each map will test gamers’ mettle as they are placed behind the controls of new “Halo 3” vehicles such as the agile Mongoose all-terrain vehicle, and armed with deadly weapons such as the new and improved Assault Rifle, the ferocious Brute Spiker, the devastating Spartan Laser and the treacherous new Spike Grenades. This is just a taste of what gamers will experience later this fall when “Halo 3” goes on sale.

“‘Halo: Combat Evolved’ and ‘Halo 2’ changed the face of console gaming forever,” said Shane Kim, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios. “Gamers from around the world have logged more than 800 million hours on Xbox LIVE playing ‘Halo 2,’ and years after its launch it remains the No. 1 title on our Xbox LIVE network. Bringing an early look at the multiplayer elements of ‘Halo 3’ to our passionate fan base is tremendously exciting for us.”

Gamers worldwide who did not participate in the “Rule of Three” promotion but are interested in joining the multiplayer beta of “Halo 3” can still participate through the purchase of the critically acclaimed Xbox 360 title “Crackdown,” which was launched in February. “Crackdown” sets players loose in a free-form, persistent city for action-packed crime fighting that requires a bigger, faster and stronger hero that evolves as a more efficient weapon through continued gameplay. Each copy of “Crackdown” has been specially marked with a “Halo 3” beta sticker prior to the beta period, and starting May 16 the game will act as a key for gamers to download and participate in the “Halo 3” multiplayer beta.

In addition, gamers who can’t wait for the multiplayer beta this May can get an even earlier look at “Halo 3” with a new, behind-the-scenes video feature available at http://www.bungie.net and in high definition over Xbox LIVE Marketplace. Starting today, viewers can go behind the scenes at Bungie Studios to learn about the people, technology and process that are making “Halo 3” an unforgettable multiplayer experience, and to get a taste of what to expect from the upcoming “Halo 3” multiplayer beta. The latest multiplayer video documentary, titled “Is Quisnam Protero Damno!,” will offer a glimpse at how “Halo 3” multiplayer maps are being designed, built and architected, and how these amazing spaces are converted into fun places in which to play. Gamers can also catch the first-ever glimpse of brand-new “Halo 3” multiplayer levels in their early stages of evolution and construction.”

The title of this blog might as well have been Brett is a Halo Fan Boy. Saying that I’m excited for the game that I spent an entire year playing is an understatement.

new Xbox 360 Dashboard coming soon!!

We’re not sure when this was announced or even who or where it came from(or we would have given credit) but we found this on you tube.

Sensible World of Soccer coming to Xbox Live Arcade

“Codemasters Online Gaming is pleased to announce that Sensible World of Soccer has been listed as one of the ten most influential games of all time at this years Game Developers Conference. In order to gain a place on this prominent list, games must represent the start of a genre that is still a key component of the games industry today.

David Solari – Vice President of Codemasters Online Gaming commented, “‘Sensible World of Soccer is a seminal title which delivers a very pure gameplay experience. It’s fabulous to get such an accolade and we are really looking forward to bringing this classic game back on Xbox Live Arcade and PC later this year. We think it’s important to stay true to the original and we’ll be delivering what fans of the original SWOS have been eagerly waiting for years, SWOS online multiplayer!”

Sensible World of Soccer is scheduled for launch on the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft via Xbox Live Arcade in Summer 2007, with a PC version to follow thereafter. Sensible World Soccer brings with it all the classical elements of Sensible World of Soccer to the next generation of players. Sensible World Of Soccer for Xbox Live Arcade will keep all the original touches that made it a genre influencing title, as well as introducing optional enhancements to bring its look right up-to-date whilst retaining all its rapid pick up and play-ability. Get ready to play your friends online in this fast paced, genre defining title.”

I have never heard of this game but thousands of game developers can’t be wrong….can they? Plus Nate says it’s good so I’ll give it a shot despite my lack of excitement for anything soccer(thanks 2006 US World Cup team)

Ubisoft Issues Press Release Regarding Brothers in Arms on Wii, DS.

Maybe this will be the great shooter for the Wii I’ve been waiting for.
Today Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest video game publishers, and Gearbox Software, one of the world’s leading independent video game developers, announced that the critically acclaimed and multimillion-unit selling Brothers In Arms® franchise is in development for the Nintendo DS™ and Wii™ systems. Scheduled to ship this year, Brothers In Arms® Double Time (fall) and Brothers In Arms® DS (summer) will, for the first time, immerse Nintendo® system owners into the intensity of World War II through the stories of Sergeants Baker and Hartsock and their squad of paratroopers during the Normandy invasion.

“Brothers In Arms on the Wii and DS systems is really exciting for us,” said Randy Pitchford, president of Gearbox Software. “I am a huge fan of both systems and thrilled about making games for the two platforms. In the entire space of first-person shooters on video game systems, Brothers In Arms really lends itself to both the Wii and DS interfaces. Imagine using the Wii Remote to give actual hand signals or aiming with the DS stylus from a covered position. That’s what you can look forward to with Brothers In Arms Double Time and Brothers In Arms DS.”

Brothers In Arms Double Time brings the best of this acclaimed WWII action franchise to the Wii system, while adding the use of innovative gameplay with the Wii Remote™. Brothers In Arms DS brings all the action and strategy of the series to a handheld, utilizing the DS Touch Screen to control the squad.

More about the key features of the game, after the break.