Category: Xbox 360

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons review – Of a Feather

Hey, I bet you’ve never heard of this game.

Coming from Starbreeze studios (The Darkness, The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay), Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is a fairy tale wrapped in some of the most innovating framework any game has seen this year. If you aren’t grinning wide at how charming and new it all feels within the first 15 minutes, I really don’t know what kind of games you’re looking for. Despite feeling like a less emotionally resonant Journey (and really, it’s easy to see what the influences are), it’s more of that style of game, and it’s the most well crafted work Starbreeze has ever produced. (more…)

August 8, 2013
It’s almost August…what’s left?

With less than half of the 2013 left, we’re rapidly approaching an onslaught of Fall game releases, alongside the launch of two new consoles. There’s going to be a lot of games coming out soon. For the sake of jogging your memory and mine, let’s take a look at what we can expect in coming seasons.

Pikmin 3 – August 04
WiiU

I’ve been a fan of this series since I tore open the Purple Lunchbox™ and dropped Pikmin in as my first game. Variety is a key factor in determining my enjoyment in a game, and both titles always had plenty to see. Tons of enemies, several levels to explore, puzzles to solve – Pikmin is always a treat. My expectations are high for this third entry, and let’s hope Nintendo finally gives us a reason to plug in our Wii Us.

Dragon’s Crown – August 06
Vita

Despite the controversy with Dragon’s Crown, it still appears that Vanillaware is bringing their A game with this beat ’em up with an eye-catching art style.

Tales of Xillia – August 06
PS3

While I’ve never been a fan of the Tales series, Xillia looks to be another hit for those looking for another fantastical adventure.

Mario & Luigi Dream: Team – August 11
3DS

My favorite Mario RPG is still Legend of the Seven Stars. I’ve enjoyed the Mario & Luigi games since, but they’ve never hit that sweet spot that even the Paper Mario series did. I still look forward to the fourth entry, and while I don’t expect it to win over any new fans, I’m sure serious devotees will enjoy this one as well.

Payday 2 – August 13
360/PS3/PC

I enjoyed the brief time I spent with the original Payday, and Payday 2 looks to be an appeal to an even wider audience, especially as it’s launching on consoles this time.

DuckTales: Remastered – August 13
PS3/PC/WiiU

The NES classic is being brought back to life by the talents at Wayforward.

Saints Row 4 – August 20
360/PS3/PC

Please be good. Please be good. Please be good. I enjoyed the juvenile, off-kilter humor of Saints Row 3, but I didn’t enjoy the majority of the gameplay, which consisted of shootshootshootcovershoot. PLEASE BE GOOD. I WANT TO LOVE YOU. This time you take on the role of the president of the United States, who also happens to have superpowers. Please don’t screw this one up.

Splinter Cell: Blacklist – August 20
360/PS3/PC/WiiU

Splinter Cell: Conviction was something I aggressively wanted to enjoy, but never quite clicked with. After finishing the game, I wished I enjoyed the gameplay as much as previous Splinter Cell games, but the amount of shooty action brought the experience down for me. From what I’ve seen, Blacklist looks like even more action than before…so we’ll see.

Divekick – August 20
PS3/Vita/PC

A fighting game with two buttons. That’s it. You can dive into the air and come flying back down with a kick. It’s the fighting game to relearn fighting games with, and it looks like just the perfect refresher for anyone even remotely interested in the genre. Even if you aren’t into fighting games, Divekick hopes you get you started with it’s ease of entry. It has plenty of extra strategy for those looking to go deeper, as each character has specific quirks to master. It looks fantastic, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it.

Killer is Dead – August 27
360/PS3

Grasshopper and Suda 51 never fail to turn some ridiculous ideas into something tremendously entertaining. No More Heroes, Shadows of the Damned, and Lollipop Chainsaw were all extreme exercises in stylistic lunacy, and I can’t imagine this story of cyborgs, executioners, and assassins being any different.

Rayman Legends – September 03
360/PS3/PC/WiiU/Vita

This beautiful looking game could be incredible. I really enjoyed Rayman Origins, but I never quite felt anything more than “this is a pretty good game.” Rayman Legends looks like it could be taking the leaps beyond good, and straight into something special.

Outlast – September 04
PC

The long awaited horror game from Red Barrels sounds terrifying from everything I’ve heard, and looks to be the best way to destroy any hope of sleep until the next Amnesia hits the market.

The Wonderful 101 – September 15
Wii U

Platinum Games makes some incredible stuff. Bayonetta is my favorite action game of all time, and Vanquish is one of the most solid third-person shooters of the generation. With The Wonderful 101, they really seem to be spreading their wings into brand new territory. As a Wii U exclusive, I really hope it turns out to be another slam dunk from an incredibly talented team.

Grand Theft Auto V – September 17
360/PS3

Where should I begin? I’ve never been the biggest proponent of most Rockstar games, and seem to be one of the few voices to consistently call their projects “just okay, at best.” Red Dead Redemption and Bully are both fine games, but I’ve never thought they were as incredible as many do. I actively disliked playing Grand Theft Auto 4, to the point that I stopped a third of the way through and didn’t pick it up again. I really want to be won over this time, so here’s hoping.

Beyond: Two Souls – October 8
PS3

Heavy Rain was one of the most interesting gambles of a game that I’ve ever played, and I enjoyed it immensely. It was thrilling, weird, sometimes kind of broken, and I loved it. Whatever happens with Beyond, I hope it can improve upon what made Heavy Rain so special.

Pokemon X and Y – October 12
3DS

The new generation of Pokemon is showing enough innovation to actually get me excited for a new Pokemon game. It’s got a completely revamped way to move around the world, all of the Pokemon are actually animated in battle, and plenty of brand new content and Pokemon. This could be the first Pokeventure in a long time to really change up a familiar formula in a great way.

Batman: Arkham Origins – October 25
360/PS3/PC

The first of the popular Batman series not being handled by Rocksteady, Origins is (who guessed it?) takes place five years before the story of Arkham Asylum. After losing a bit of interest after Arkham City, I’m much more excited to see what Rocksteady is working on next.

Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag – October 29
360/PS3/PC/WiiU/XBO/PS4

After losing me about three games ago, the annualized stabby franchise is heading into the world of pirates. Will the new setting be the one that brings back many of the fans who fell off around AC3?

Battlefield 4 – October 29
360/PS3/PC/XBO/PS4

-Shooty shoot. Bangbangbang. Kaboom.- “Look at that guy who just crashed a helicopter and jumped out and landed in another helicopter and exploded and and and…”

Call of Duty: Ghosts – November 5
360/PS3/PC/WiiU/XBO/PS4

Call of Duty is a fun ride every year. The campaign’s solid, the multiplayer is snappy and enjoyable, and whatever other modes they throw in are usually worth your time. It’s Call of Duty. You probably either know if you like it or not by now. (I still think it’s kinda rad.)

Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I Don’t Know! – November 12
360/PS3/WiiU/3DS

A Diablo style Adventure Time game developed by Wayforward? Sign me up!

Watch Dogs – November 19
360/PS3/PC/XBO/PS4

Watch Dogs was our first glimpse into the next generation, and is going to be one of the first games that will get to show off what next generation consoles are capable of.

Tearaway – November 22
Vita

Media Molecule’s back again, with what is shaping up to be a delightful reason to break out the Vita one more time before the year closes down.

Plants vs. Zombies 2: It’s About Time – Late Summer 2013
iOS

A sequel to one of the most addicting games to come to every single device you own, Plants vs Zombies 2 is launching as a free-to-play game on iOS devices sometime later this Summer.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD – October 2013
WiiU

Remastering one of the most beautiful games of all time seems like a pretty good way to sell a few Wii Us.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds – November 2013
3DS

A sequel to one of the most revered games ever, is there any way it could ever stand up to it’s predecessor? Probably not, but I’m still sure looking forward to whatever Nintendo’s got cooked up for the beloved franchise.

Shovel Knight – Winter 2013
WiiU/3DS/PC

If Shovel Knight isn’t my most anticipated game for the rest of the year, it’s very, very close. A wonderfully imagined throwback to Mega Man and other classics, I can’t imagine a game more tailored specifically towards my interests.

Super Mario 3D World – December 2013
WiiU

This is the first instance of a cooperative 3D Mario game, and is a follow up to the best original game on the 3DS. Platformers continue to be my favorite genre, and I’m pretty sure this one’s going allow Mario to keep the crown.

Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs – Late 2013
PC

This trailer pretty much sums up why I’ll be playing this one with the lights on.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2
360/PS3/PC

While the first game was an imperfect mix of God of War and Shadow of the Colossus, it wasn’t a bad game by any stretch. It was a game that held tons of promise, but was held back by one too many bad decisions. If the sequel can capitalize on that potential, we’ll be looking at something amazing.

Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number – Late 2013
PC

The sequel to one of the best games of last year is shaping up to be another adrenaline fueled, murderous trek through insanity.

Killzone: Shadow Fall – Late 2013
PS4

Probably one of the first things you’ll do on your hot new PS4. If you’re into shooting things, that is.

Super Time Force – Late 2013
360

Capybara games (Swords and Sworcery, Below) continues to show off their talent with a clever bullet-hell platformer.

Knack – Late 2013
PS4

Every new console needs a weird, colorful platformer, right?

Image Sources – gametrailers.com forbes.com dealspwn.com edge-online.com gameinformer.com wiiudaily.com cinemablend.com mynintendonews.com digitaltrends.com chip.de geeksofdoom.com gematsu.com pcgamer.com shopto.net justpushstart.com multiplayerblog.mtv.com neogaf.com eggplante.com indiestatik.com

July 30, 2013
2013 Midyear Guest Post!

What’re you playing? Today, HippoChippies is your soapbox to tell the world what games you’ve been loving during the first half of 2013. Haven’t been playing anything new, or just want to use this chance to get some of your favorite older games out there? Not a problem. Guest Posts are some of my personal favorite posts every year, and I love seeing what all of you have been up to. Let’s kick it off with…

“2013 has had a great start so far with titles such as The Last of Us and Bioshock: Infinite. There are tons more where that came from as well. Most would argue that The Last of Us would be the number 1 choice. Not today. My favorite title of the year so far is Animal Crossing: New Leaf. Why? Animal Crossing is known for being a casual game where you live a normal life (with animals) trying to be someone and paying off a huge debt that is thrown onto you from the get go. New Leaf changed everything and put you in charge of a town that you move to and I must say it couldn’t have been done any better. Fans of the game will understand what I mean when I say that it may be my favorite Animal Crossing yet, because of the newfound leadership which comes with tons of new opportunities for you to pursue during gameplay.

I could talk about it all day but really the best way to understand my point of view is to just get out the ol’ Nintendo 3DS and play it yourself.

P.S. I have nothing against The Last of Us. I just have not been able to play even a single minute yet. Looking forward to it when I do. – Trevor Baldwin

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“I really liked Soul Sacrifice because it has this unique system of giving you super amazing power while stripping you of something vital. Like one of those abilities will use your brain to create this electric storm that does a ton of damage to enemies, but afterwards you don’t know what abilities you have in your slots. It’s a really neat system. Then there’s the upgradeable powers: you can fuse them to give you more uses, or combine them to create totally different powers. The whole game is awesome and if it wasn’t so repetitive and hard I’d probably play a lot more than I do.” – Michael Mays

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“My favorite game of the year so far has to be The Last of Us. Naughty Dog did a phenomenal job on the game with its storytelling and mechanics. The first 20 minutes of the game will have you so sad that you would probably wouldn’t want to play the game, but it’s the perfect setup for so much more. Naughty Dog took a risk in going the way they did with The Last of Us, but it has to be one of the greatest games they have made. During the game I noticed that there were some mechanics that had similarities to the Uncharted series, but with a fresh twist on it. Most people probably wouldn’t even notice that the combat and cover systems are pretty similar to each other, but that is to be expected from a game by the same company. Not to mention the game made you feel human, ever shot mattered, no health regen, and you had to be smart for most of the encounters you had. I could go into this game more but I don’t want to spoil anything for you, who should go get this game or at least rent it. I would play this game over and over again.” – Zack Dickerson

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“Before I begin, I would like to thank our gracious host both for inviting me to contribute and for allowing me to talk about a game that was not released in 2013. Yes, gamefans, I’m actually going to bring up one of last year’s gems and, very appropriately, it’s a little game called Yesterday.
Now this game had been sitting on my Steam wishlist since before it came out but I hadn’t thought I had the time to invest in it. As you can imagine, I was rather elated when I found that it was available for free download from the Google Play store right before the night I was going to get to spend in an airport terminal waiting to fly home from a business trip. I downloaded the game, started playing, and then felt it – that remorse for having waited so long to do this. It was a good, solid game. Great style, classic adventure gameplay, a good helping of wit, and an engrossing story. I’ll try not to ruin it if you haven’t played but I would like to leave you with an image that I hope inspires you to correct that soon: the image of a man with a shaggy beard sitting in a sparsely populated airport terminal at 3AM gleefully smiling at the plot unfolding before him while blissfully unaware that his headphone cable has just pulled out of his tablet and that those nearby are listening to discussions of homeless people being set on fire and are getting nervous at said bearded man’s recent chuckles.” – Shannon Nichols

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“To put it simply, BioShock Infinite is the best game in the series in terms of story. My brain is still recovering from the ending.” – Jonathan Vaughan

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“Dragon’s Dogma is a pretty interesting game. It’s your token dark medieval setting and the story is pretty milk toast at best, but that’s not important. This game is stuffed to the gills with interesting locales, cool gear and badass monsters. The combat is a combination of Dark Souls, Skyrim and Shadow of the Colossus. If you wanna climb on top of a cyclops and stab him right in the eye, you can totes do it. Also its got a day/night system that makes staying out after dark feel really dangerous, even if you’re way stronger than any monster you’ll come across. And the graphics, oh Lord the graphics!” – Colton King

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Once again, THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE. It really means to a lot to me, thank you to everybody that participated. This is one of my favorite things to do on the site. We’ll have another one coming up at the end of the year, so everybody get those Game of the Year picks ready!

– Zach

Image Sources: edge-online.com neoseeker.com heatherannecampbell.com

gamingbolt.com atthebuzzershow.com gamingirresponsibly.com

July 20, 2013