Diablo 3 (wowsers)

http://www.blizzard.com/diablo3/media/

Everything you need to see is on that link. Check out the trailer, it nothing short of "you gotta be kidding me" rediculous. Blizzard finally spends some time on a title other than Warcraft, which makes me very excited. I have completed Diablo 1 and Diablo 2, and they were both awesome games. For all the console gamers out there, I can easily relate what this game is gonna be. Mix God of War with Gauntlet, enough said. The coolest thing about this game is that you can play with other people, using Battle.net, and experience the pure carnage together. To all the online gamers out there, this will merely seem like a red headed step child to World of Warcraft, which is exaclty what it is. Diablo is NOT a MMORPG, it is an action adventure game that can be enjoyed with multi players. The funny thing is that you get item sets, complete quests, and travel a vast world, exactly like the fundemental basis of World of Warcraft.

They way that Diablo sets itselfs apart from the RPG genre is what makes the game so incredible. You can beat this game by yourself, if you choose. You can come home, sit down, and enjoy this game til end, without every needing a group to proceed. Its basically Gauntlet, to be honest, with a much wider range of gear and skills. Add some God of War gameplay, and combat situations, and you have Diablo. The graphics on the trailer look good, not great, and I have never been a fan of the loot dropping system Diablo offers, but my overview of the game so far has been awesome. In fact, I am eager to learn when this game is released. From what I can read, I am asuming the game is about 25% complete. I would think they would aim to get this out near Christmas time, but I highly doubt that will happen. They have not even started beta testing yet.

My prediction is that the game will begin beta testing by Q1 2009, and we will be able to get a realistic release date by that time. My guess for an actual release date would be May 1, 2009. Of course, I am hoping for sooner. This game is creating alot of buzz with old Diablo fans, and in a way reviving Blizzard from a World of Warcraft overplay. Everyone is super excited, but lets see if Blizzard can produce the game fast enough to please. The longer they wait, the better the game will have to be to satisfy its audience. Im sure no matter what, this game will do fine. Diablo jump started World of Warcraft, so old and new Blizzard gamers have to at least be curious how the title has evolved itself.

This game will give MMORPG players a nice break from the hardcore raiding atmosphere, and allow them to relax and just kill stuff. Console gamers will surely want to take a peek into this, especially if they have yet to venture into the PC gaming world. This game is the perfect balance of PC power matched with console gameplay. Trust me, any gamer needs to give this game a try. If they whole mouse and keyboard thing is bothering you, I understand, but still try it. If this game can't get someone into PC gaming, I expect nothing would. I will keep you all updated as soon as I hear anything. GAME HARD...

Video Gaming Gems Volume: 10

Do you like 3rd person shooters? Do you like Guns and futuristic pimped out rides? Well look no further than developer Day 1 Studios upcoming sci-fi shooter: Fracture. This game looks to be promising in my humble opinion. Why? It's done by the guys that ported F.E.A.R. to the PS3 and 360 and did a flawless job making the PC to Conlose switch. Not ot mention they created the Mech Assault Series!

-Wiki-
Global warming and the search for ways to combat its effects have split the United States, and the world, in two. On the East is the Atlantic Alliance, a staunch supporter of and leading innovator in the field of cybernetic solutions to the worlds problems. Their adversary is the Republic of Pacifica and its Pacific Rim allies in the West. They have embraced adapting the human genome to cope with the changing world. Both factions are armed with a new type of tectonic technology that allows armies to raise and lower defenses out of the earth at any location of their choosing.

This game has been in development for around two years and looks to showcase more of its' "guts" and game play at this years E3 event. The games release date is tentative right now however they have stated in the past that it would be October of 2008; lets cross the old digits on that time line! So, stay tuned for more up to date Fracture news, specs and footage right here! Until then....



-GAME HARD-

Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix Beta [Hands On]

The anticipation for this XBox Live Arcade title (which just happens to be the longest name ever) has been percolating since the odd news hit of it being bundled with the Commandos 3 Arcade game. Being a huge SF fan, I downloaded Wolf of the Battlefield (Alternate Name: Commandos 3) last night knowing damn well I'd probably end up playing it for a mere 5 minutes and then reverting to the SF Open Beta...and I did. After playing it for about an hour and a half I came to this conclusion: There is still a lot of work to be done.

Graphically, the game is tight. Everything looks nice and shiny, flows nicely, no texture bumps or slow down hitches. The pacing of the game feels just right; fast, furious and sometimes manic. For a 2D fighting game, SFII Turbo HD Remix looks just right and plays just as smooth.

With praise comes criticism, though. The beta is very "narrow minded" and one sided. You only get one background/fighting stage to play on [Ryu's] and you only get to choose between two fighters to use: Ryu and Ken. Now, being the huge Ken fan that I am I didn't mind to much but for those out there that are better suited to use characters like E-Honda, Chun Li or even Blanka; their SOL. I also feel as though this technically hampers us "Beta Invitees" in being able to give a full run down of what's good and whats not when its time to make our suggestions to the developers. Two characters? Come on guys, I NEED SAGAT! If they really want good feed back they need to incorporate more characters and stages through a down-loadable patch. This would make playing the game and figuring out its flaws a little more accessible.

All and all, being such a huge Street Fighter fan and long time player I had a blast playing the beta. I did a few online matches and [of course] won...well to be honest I won 15 and lost 2, not bad for a rusty player. I also went back and played through Wolf of the Battlefield; expect a full review on that game in the very near future but if you want a little taste I'll say this: Mehh.

Look for more Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix coverage over the next few weeks!

Sagat: Bustin' Heads since '92

-Game Hard-

This Week "In The Box" [6/23-27/08]

This weeks bevy of releases focuses on the more refined Xbox 360 Gamer; of course that being my own interpretation. It's all about strategy, strategy and more strategy with the exception of one little bitty FPS to satiate the war-monger in all of us. In the words of the great Captain Tenneai of MXC (hit Spike TV Show)... "Lets Get It on!"

Lets get started on the real time strategy titles coming out this week. First up we have the highly regarded and anticipated release of the expansion pack for Command & Conquer simply titled Kane's Wrath. Kane's back on the Xbox 360 with a new campaign, exclusive "Kane’s Challenge Mode" and the Revolutionary Command-Stick Interface for Only $39.99. I never really got into C&C and for that matter Strategy games all together (with the exception of Star Craft). I do, however, recognize the series as one of the fore fathers of the strategy genre and that it helped pave the way for such great titles like the aforementioned Star Craft and even War Craft. Lets hope the expansion lives up to the hype...for the sake of all those Billy D William lovers out there.

Second on the list is Supreme Commander. This is also a straight up strategy game plucked right from the Computer. This series has been a long time staple in the CPU universe and now looks to break into the console wars. I have actually played this series before (albeit a short stint) and enjoyed it, which surprised me seeing as though strategy games don't really cater to my most inner needs. Supreme Commander for the Xbox 360 is an adaptation of the original, award-winning real-time strategy (RTS) experience, updated and enhanced for Microsoft’s powerful console. Gamers will live out the title’s "self proclaimed" epic battles in ways unimagined on a PC with hundreds of units waging war across gigantic maps in High Def and surround sound. Xbox 360-exclusive units, new online game modes and updated maps will bolster Xbox Live play as gamers wage war against opponents around the globe. Even though the game has been given a decent amount of praise for its fluent transition to the console I'll still most likely only rent it...less money to spend...less stress. Starting bid: $59.99

Last up is my pick of the week! Battlefield: Bad Company. Did you enjoy Call Of Duty 4? How about Halo 3? If you checked yes to both of these questions then do yourself a favor and give Bad Company a whirl. It's a breath of fresh air in the FPS genre. How you may ask? Humor, and lots of it. Yes it's about war and all that hub hub, but with the humor twist (i.e. constant jokes, great character exposition and a ton of potty mouthed men totting AR-33's and sniper rifles) is a sure fire good time in my book. *Curtesy of Gamezone.com: "Built from the ground-up for next-generation consoles using Digital Illusions’ bleeding-edge Frostbite™ game engine, Battlefield: Bad Company drops gamers behind enemy lines with a squad of renegade soldiers who risk it all on a personal quest for gold and revenge. Featuring a deep, cinematic single-player experience loaded with adventure and dark humor, the game delivers the series’ trademark sandbox gameplay in a universe where nearly everything is destructible." I couldn't have said it better! Price Tag: $59.99

Another week here, another week gone. Until next Monday my people, make sure to always...

-GAME HARD-

The Effect of My Mass

Microsoft over the past year and a half has definitely raised the bar to an all new level when it comes to innovative role playing games. The original XBox wasn't ever known for its' plethora of RPG's and Strategy games; they were more like a hybrid action/FPS distributor gun-ho on making titles such as Doom, Ninja Gaiden and even Prince of Persia. Gaggled with complaints from the rabid RPG fan base over the previous shortage during the original XBox's lifespan, Microsoft has begun what is now known as the "RPG Influx" on the 360. From hit titles like Lost Odyssey, Eternal Sonata and Enchanted Arms; the RPG market seems to be making quite the comeback. Yet, if it were not for one hit title that debuted last year with uncanny success I feel the genre that is now booming would yet again be in that everlasting niche market 'haze.' Not only was it a first party title (meaning Microsoft solely published and distributed) but it sold over one-million copies within its first 12 weeks. I'm talking about non other than: Mass Effect.

At the 2006 E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) convention there happened to be a lot of buzz surrounding a particular game that was set to be released in November of 2007. People all around the show floor were clamoring about a BioWare (high profile developer known for creating the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic franchise) game that had completely flown under the radar. No one knew anything about this game except for the fact that it was suppose to revolutionize the RPG industry. As the Microsoft press conference got on its way and dwindled down the heap of game title announcements and demos they had to show the public it was time to see what everyone there had been waiting for, Mass Effect. What was this game? What did it look like and why in the blue hell has this title garnered more of a buzz than games like Bio Shock and Super Mario Galaxy? Theses questions were answered within the first two minutes of the Mass Effect promo trailer showed to the entire E3 stage floor. To sum the reaction of the crowd up in one sentence it would have to be: Complete and utter amazement.

BioWare had successfully silenced the entire E3 crowd (and there's Youtube footage to prove it, just look up Mass Effect/e3 2006). The graphics looked like nothing else ever to come out of the video game industry and the game play mechanics where "vividly remarkable" says K. Van Ord of Gamespot.com. The depth of everything you could do and accomplish in this game where amazing. From being able to completely customize the main character to look any way you would like to the epic in game dialog trees that guided you through each conversation allowing you to make you own decisions and not be held down by "set in stone" story structure. This game allowed for the user to make his or her own story. Want to be a bad ass renegade out for vengeance on the world? Or how about a goody two-shoes looking to help everyone in need? You make the call, it's as simple as that.

In layman's: This is every sci-fi action flick rolled up into one large burrito with a side of beans and rice to satiate the pallet. I hope that made sense. If it didn't try this out: It's Star Wars meets Star Trek jacked up on steroids...how was that?

The Mass Effect world is large...really large. It spans over 8 galaxy's all filled to the brim with different worlds to explore. Your means of travel to all these different worlds is by your ship, The Normandy. This gigantic hunk of metal is a stall-wort amongst the galaxy's most instrumental space crafts. It's a beautifully aerodynamic structure that has two floors and helms the all-terrain armored personnel carrier called the M35 Mako. This clunky yet refined means of ground transportation is how you explore each world. Driving is a little tough in some situations and BioWare has addressed these concerns since its release with a patch to help alleviate some of the stress the Mako creates.

The story of Mass Effect is wonderfully played out through what I like to call jig saw plot twists and heavy dialog. The game is roughly 40 hours long and has an additional 10-15 hours of playability if you choose to tackle the many side quests offered throughout the campaign. All in all, you can probably get a good 50+ hours of game play...a lot of bang for your buck!

In addition to the many hours of game play, the graphics in this game are something straight out of a big budget CG Movie. The game is damn pretty! The graphics are powered by the saucy Unreal Engine and pushes the 360 to its limits. How can you tell? Pop the disc in, load the game up and listen to the innards of the console chug. It's as if the game is bringing the box to its knees. Virtually no texture pop ins, fluid ambient resolution and a startling amount of in depth neon coloring to give the game the look and feel of a true Sci-Fi action film. This actually leads me into the game play mechanics if you can believe that. The in game (game play itself) graphics are just as good as the CG cut scenes. Its also not your typical turn based battle system like you see in more traditional RPG's. It is more like a real time strategy battle system where, yes, you can pause and then set your aim on your target of choice but you can also sync up medical spells and use all you 'Bio-Tech" accessories learned through the game. The 'track wheel' as they call it pops up when in this 'pause' mode and allows you to choose your varying abilities, select weapons and med's and also give directional orders to your A.I. partners. The wheel itself can be overbearing at times as well as the inventory system, however, this never takes away from the excitement of the game.

It is without hesitation that Mass Effect will go down in the annals as one of the
most influential games ever created. Just look at the Meta-Critic scores its acquired throughout the past year; an average of almost 9.8 all around the world. Now, that's a feat most game developers never come across. With the inevitable Mass Effect 2 coming out in early 2009, BioWare looks to increase our anticipation by debuting the first game play footage of the upcoming sequel during this years E3 event held in California. With the current success of the first installment and all that it has stemmed (books, comics and even a movie deal) Mass Effect has now become an uncanny staple within the games industry...and I couldn't be happier.

Mass Effect Gets a WHOOPING

10 out of 10

-Game Hard-

Top 5: Video Game Boss Fights

It is easy to understand how boss fights, in many ways, define the difficulty of the game. Level mobs and puzzles are great for killing time, but every intense gamer anxiously awaits for a challenging boss fight. Games for older systems, pre memory card era, could not truly make an insane boss fight, because the gamer had no way to save his progress. In most cases, losing to a boss meant starting the game over. Newer consoles developed a memory card system that allowed you to save your progress at designated locations, which allows for more intense boss fights. You are supposed to be stuck, from days to even weeks, on one boss. In this post, I will announce the top 5 video game boss fights of all time.

#5 - Ganon (Zelda) - The end boss in probably the best video game ever continues to extend it's legacy. When they created this game, they covered all the corners. All the bosses in this game were unique, and each required a specific strategy to complete. The idea itself was enough to set a standard for video games to come, but Ganon was even a step above that. He could only be defeated by silver arrows, which were hidden in the final level.

#4 - Mike Tyson (Punchout) - Another NES game makes the list. I don't know about you, but I have still to this day never beaten him. I read about the strategies online, but it is still the hardest boss fight I have ever played. From what I read, the trick is to dodge the whole first round, then find his weak spots second round. Even with that, he hits hard. One of his uppercuts will floor you.


#3 - Mirror Image (Prince of Persia) - Once you realize that you can not defeat yourself, the fight becomes annoying beyond words. There within the anger lies the trick to winning. The idea has been used in games before, but the storyline and gameplay of this game make this boss fight one to remember.




#2 - Hydra (God of War) - Graphically, probably the best video game fight I have ever seen. God of War refused to slack in this area. You could probably pick several boss fights from the game and add them to this list, but Hydra was by far my favorite.





#1 - Psycho Mantis, Revolver Ocelot, The End (Metal Gear Solid) - Yes, all three had to be mentioned in this top spot. It is hard to even compare the quality of these fights to any other game. Mantis used the same idea as Prince of Persia's mirror image fight, but the strategy to defeat him was completely out of the box. Revolver Ocelot was a great opening boss. If I had to knock one aspect of the game, it would be the aiming controls. This boss fight made you learn them super fast. The End, most properly named, was a cripple with an attitude. Just imagine how sick he would be fully mobile. I would easily say that this game set standards for future shooter / stealth games as Zelda did for RPGs.

This Week In "The Box" [6.16.08]

Wow, this week looks dismal. I know I'm a little late in getting you the inside scoop on whats coming out for the 360, yet I'm not really sorry for my tardiness. Why? Well, there's only one game coming out this week and nobody cares about it. So, with that said this week "Inside The Box" will be short and sweet...I Promise!

As previously stated, this week we are treated to only one disc release and two extremely poor XBox Live Arcade titles. First up we have the disc release: Deadliest Catch. Great, yet another movie/TV Series tie in looking for a quick fix money wise. I guess if you really like the TV show and feel you must be loyal then by all means by this turd. Be warned though, Meta Critic shows you all the aggregated scores this catastrophe has accumulated since its release...not so good. It's a fishing game people; how much stuff can you do in a fishing game?

Next up is the two Arcade Titles released just last night. The first one being Elements of Destruction (nice timing with all these natural disasters going on in the South and over seas). The "digital box" description for this game sums up the 'craptastic' nature of this 800 point download: "Wield the destructive power of nature as you unleash tornadoes, earthquakes and lightning storms in rural, suburban, and urban environments." Nice job guys...Nice job.

Lastly we have Sea Life Safari for yet another whooping 800 points. You play an underwater scientist trying to capture pictures of exotic sea life...and that's it. Ten dollars to snap pictures of gold fish and hammer head sharks? You know there's a TV channel filled to the brim with this kind of stuff, I suggest you all stick to that media outlet for all you fish finding primal instincts.

See ya's next week...

-Game Hard-

There's A Limit To My Burst...

Fighting Games; I love 'em. Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter, Soul Caliber, Samurai Showdown... these are all legendary titles and should be played by any hardcore gamer. It is in the essence of these games that I still make it mandatory for myself to play this niche genre. Love them or loath them you need to respect them in a sense for what they have done for the industry as a whole. So, in theory, I am a little harsh grading fighting games now these days. I hold them almost to a higher standard just because it is a niche market with such a hardcore following. Therefore, it brings a big smile to my face to announce another entry into the fighting games "Hall of Champions"...Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit.

First things first; this game looks gorgeous. Dimps (developers of the game) did such a good job of seamlessly blending the anime and game that in many cases I caught myself saying, "Wait, is this game play footage or actual anime footage?" It looks that good people! To describe the look and feel of the game wouldn't do it justice, you need to see to believe. It's a cell shaded brawler with some of the most flashy "cut-scene" finishing moves I have ever come across. The in-game backgrounds are lush and full of detailed drawings from the actual Dragon Ball Series; a little ode to the hardcore DBZ Fans (I loved the little nods they did for us fan-boys!). Almost every major character from the Z Chronicles is available for use and they all look perfect; for me, this was a huge deal and they delivered.

The fighting mechanics are pretty much the same as the previous DBZ Games. There have been, however, "Drama Pieces" encorperated into the mix. These are basically your saving grace once your power meter goes down a certain amount. At start up you pick a partner; it's with these partners where in lyes the drama pieces. You get three in all and they all can be used in one sitting if you so choose to allow it. Your partner will jump on the screen in a little CG sequence and either A.) heal you a little B.) Taunt the other player or C.) Damage your opponent. To me, sometimes the cut animations throw the pace off a little bit and interrupt the flow of battle. It took me a while to get used to this new mechanic but I did eventually grasp the concept.

The game comes pretty much jammed pack with different types of things to do. There's the Z Chronicles which takes you through the DBZ Sagas (story lines). Then there the online Versus matches where your pitted against other players from around the globe (I played someone from Switzerland the other day..I beat his ass). There's also the Trial Mode, which is your basic mini game scenarios, i.e. beat 100 opponents, survive ten minutes etc. Then there's leader boards, tutorial mode...you get my drift. There's plenty to do in the DBZ universe and Dimps went out of there way to pack so much content in, hats off.

The sound quality of the game is what I loved most. DBZ has such a distinct sound to it. From punching, to yelling to combo moves each instance has its own unique sound to it. Burst Limit pulls not only the look and feel of the DBZ world off perfectly but the sound, music and FX are absolutely spot on. The fighting is loud...and I mean real loud. Some special attacks take up the whole entire screen, rumble your TV speakers and just scream power. Even the ambient noises in the backgrounds such as trees purring from the air moving through them or a broken down ship spitting sparks are well done and set the mood.

All in all DBZ: Burst Limit is a welcome competitor in the realm of fighting games. It is in my opinion that with the resurrection of the new Mortal Kombat vs. DC Game, new Soul Caliber game, Street Fighter IV as well as this title that the fighting market is still flourishing and going nowhere but up. I couldn't be happier.

Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit gets a...

8.0 out of 10

-GAME HARD-

The BallZ P'wned My 360

This past Friday I treated myself to a brand spanking new XBox 360 game. I had the house all to myself for the entire weekend; nothing but lying around eating potato chips, drinking beer and pretty much doing what ever the hell I wanted to. So, what did I do you may ask? I gamed...I gamed real hard. It's not often where I can wake up in the morning, grab a bite to eat and then immediately sit down in my Lazy Boy and game for 6 hours straight. It was pure bliss. However, Friday will go down as one of the scariest days in my life; also one of my most hardcore gaming moments ever.

Let me set this one up for all of ya's and please stay calm. I got home from work a tiny bit early this past Friday with the new Dragon Ball Z game in tote. I was pumped! The last DBZ game I bought and played was DBZ: Tenkieshi and it made a big impact on me. So to put it bluntly, I wanted to get home and play the ever loving turds out of Burst Limit. However, that's not how it went down. As I proceeded to enter my living room that I had specifically set up just for this weekend (big comfy chair, arm table for drinks and remotes etc.) I unwrapped the game and took out the disc. I was getting excited just thinking about who I would start the game off playing with. Trunks? Naa. Gohku? Naa. Vegeta? Hells Yes! I quickly sat down, turned my 360 on, popped the disc in and waited for it to load up. Nothing happened. I waited some more. Still nothing. I figured at first it was a simple freeze up; boy did I figure wrong. I then proceeded to turn the 360 off and then back on. The same thing happened and furthered my perception of what was going on. DBZ had just killed my baby.

Ok Ok, DBZ didnt kill my console...it just broke the final straw. After what seemed like hours of figuring out what the hell was going on I gave up. Now, it was freezing on the start up screen not allowing me to navigate. The box was possessed. In fact, in some instances i would actually get the game to load up but after 2 minutes of navigating the title screen the game would freeze and then go to this "black screen of death" with all this CPU jargon. It kinda looked like this:

-Dramatization-

As I sat in my chair trying to contain the anger that was slowly overtaking my body I began to think of possible solutions. Should I gut it? Try to MOD it? Perhaps I can look online to see how to take it apart and fix it myself. No No No, too dangerous. I immediately called my wife to vent my effervescent rage. Luckily, for me, my she is one hell of a trooper. She calmed me down to say the least and informed me to get all pertinent information about how to fix the console. Does Best Buy fix 360's? Nope. Could I send it to Microsoft for refurbishing? Well, yes if I wanted to pay 200 beans to have it fixed and wait almost three months to get it back. For me non of these solutions were an option. Instead (with my loving wife's consent), I straight up went to Best Buy and bought a brand new XBox 360. This would go down as my hardest of hardcore core gaming moments ever and $349.00 dollars later I was at home playing some DBZ: Burst Limit...Happy.

So, to make a long story a tid bit longer...I not only had a 360 completely die on me, but I bought a new one, configured it, switched out the hard drives and played the new DBZ game for the entire night (probably stopping at 3:00am). All and all it makes for a pretty good horror story with a happy ending.

*Look for a Full Review of Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit this Wednesday*

The Ballz Killed Me 360!

-Game Hard-

Exclusive Beta Access Quick Update

As OverlordStrider mentioned in his last segment of This Week in the Box, Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando 3 will be available for download over the XBLA service as of today. Along with this fantastic game will come access to the online beta test of Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix that will follow in a weeks time with availability on the 25th of June. The beta test is scheduled to run for approximately 8 weeks. As always, with any remake there are promises of better gameplay, graphics, online capabilities, etc. As long as it is better than the Street Fighter II Hyper Fighting edition that came to XBLA in August of '06 then we should be in good shape. Lets hope for the best.

Upcoming Gems Volume 7: Death and Rebirth

Upcoming Gems and Inside The Box have become a forefront staple for Warp 9 Gaming, in fact both segments are now weekly. However, I have come to a cross road with Upcoming Gems. I know I have been "previewing" upcoming games (ones that haven't come out yet) yet I feel the need to "upgrade" the already in place system for Upcoming Gems. So, from here on out the once reluctantly named 'Upcoming Gems' will now be known as: Gaming Gems! Why you ask have I done this? Simple, now I can preview games that aren't out AND games that are out. Genius, simply genius. Now, without further ado I give you this weeks Gaming Gems: Dragon Ball Z - Burst Limit.

The Dragon Ball series has been around since, well...forever. The Anime series spanned a damn near close 200+ episodes (thats not including the Sagas), a dozen movies, action figures, "plushies" and a crap-ton of video games. Some good some bad. Most of the original titles came out on the Playstation 2 and XBox and now Developer Dimps and Namco Bandai have brought about the first next gen DBZ game, entitled Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit.

I've always been a fan of the DBZ Anime and games. Being a huge Mortal Kombat fan I would be doing a disservice to myself not playing other fighting games and to tell you the truth, I like this series...a lot! The fighting is frantic, violent, fast and beautiful. Something that I can attest too from playing pretty much all the other installments of this niche series. Seeing as though this game just came out on the 10th of this month (yesterday), I haven't had time to put forth a diplomatic play through. That all changes tonight though. I have game. I will play. I WILL PLAY A LOT! Look for a full review in the near future, but until then enjoy this awesome trailer for the game.

-Game Hard-

This Week In "The Box" [6.9.08]

After a hardcore plethora of releases last week we're dwindling down a tid bit. This week we are treated with three retail games and one major XBox Live Arcade game. I'm not going to lie, the past two weeks have been great and if Microsoft can keep the pace...this Summer is going to be epic. Short and sweet this week people, so here goes!

First up we have NASCAR '09. I've never really been a NASCAR fan and I highly doubt I will ever play this game. However, it has gotten some decent reviews in a few aggregated sites out there so if you a fan of watching cars go 'round and 'round in circles...do it up! If your not a big fan, your probably not even reading this section, I know I wouldn't be.


Second release of the week just happens to be a game I'm actually very excited to play. Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit. DBZ brings its signature frantic Anime fighting action to the Xbox 360, bringing with it a bevy of playable characters and online capability. I've played just about every DBZ game out there and I have to tell you something...they are actually really fun to play! Speed fighting mixed in with cell shaded baddies (and goodies) from the entire roster of DBZ characters with next gen graphics? Hells Yes! If you're dying to know just who my favorite DBZ character is (which I'm sure your not) I'll tell ya: Cell. Nobody stands a chance, muahahaha!

Thirdly we have Don King Presents: Prize Fighter. My opinion? Mehh at best from the vid's and game play footage I've seen. The game is a basic rip off of the Fight Night series with all new Tork graphics and facial distortion schematics. This boxing sim also aims to expand gameplay beyond the ring, chronicling a fighter's rise to stardom in a documentary-style narrative. Listen to me when I say this: WAIT FOR THE GAME FACE BREAKER! This is the real boxing game you want.

Lastly is the game I've been personally waiting for. Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando 3. Up to three players can take up arms, chose a soldier, and wage war against the evil nation of Zalestad. Ever played MERCS? What about the the Commando Series in the arcade? If you answered yes to these questions than you owe it to yourself to suck it up and just download this game. It's a top down shooter in the vein of MERCS and has already been getting high praise from magazines and web sites alike. OXM (Official XBox Magazine) gave it an 8.5 and said, "This game could just be one of the funnest games we have ever played!" Plus to top it off it made my Upcoming Gems segment way back in April. Not too many games make that list, people. Download the demo if your hesitant but if you want my word...just download it, you wont be sorry!

Well, that about wraps up yet another good week for gamers. Lets just hope that with the recent influx of games and Live Arcade releases we've been hit with doesn't go away too soon. Especially for us here on the East Coast who have been hit with the craziest heat wave (today its suppose to be 99 degrees out with humidity pushing 90%). I'll be in my basement hitting up The Incredible Hulk smashing fools in the face.

-Game Hard-