Fighting games always make me feel like an old man. Not because I’m outclassed online more often than not, although that’s true, but because it reminds me of starting out with the original Street Fighter arcade game and the Genesis version of Mortal Kombat. There have been countless iterations on various franchises since those salad days, and I am always surprised by just how great the Dead or Alive series is. As much as I want to hate it for the rampant sexism,  Dead or Alive 5 Plus finally convinced me that the Vita could deliver an amazing rich fighter both online and off, boob physics or not. Read the full story

Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is a difficult game to talk about, not simply because of the mechanical side of the game, although that part is amazing, but because it is a difficult game to play emotionally. I have referred to it as “brutal” many times while talking to others about it. After many false starts and trying to write about Ni No Kuni as I would a normal review, I decided to address the parts of the game that make it so outstanding and unusual as both a game and a work of art. Read the full story

When someone says that a game is not worth $59.99 solely because of its length, I always throw Vanquish out as an example of an incredibly high quality, yet short, experience that is unequivocally worth full retail pricing. If a game is both short and underwhelming, then I can understand the argument, but simply discounting a game based on length will always result in an impassioned argument of…Vanquish. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is as short as Vanquish (shorter, if you don’t count the length of Revengeance’s cutscenes), but is it good enough to join Vanquish as a cornerstone in the argument of quality vs. quantity? Read the full story

Years ago, I reviewed the original Fist of the North Star: Ken’s Rage. I enjoyed it, despite its faults, because it was the best game based on one of my favorite anime. Does the Koei sequel improve upon the original, or fall flat?

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Nintendo had been making an incredibly strong, and frustrating, case for me to purchase a Wii U. Rayman Origins was one of the best platformers of the entire console generation, so Ubisoft’s announcement of Rayman Legends as exclusive to the Wii U was all but the nail in my coffin. The nail in my coffin was the announcement of Bayonetta 2 as exclusive to the Wii U, with Bayonetta being one of the best action titles of the console generation. With these two exclusive titles in its library, the Wii U had only to wait before it would appear on my game shelf. Now, though, a huge blow has been dealt, with Ubisoft announcing that Rayman Legends will be coming to the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 platforms in September of 2013. Read the full story

DmC: Devil May Cry is Ninja Theory’s latest release on the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. You’ll be able to find this game in stores as of January 15th, 2013 for consoles and 25th for PC. In 2010 most of us were most likely gaming or keeping an eye on the Tokyo Game Show. Most of us remember DmC: Devil May Cry being announced and shown off a little during the event. I can clearly remember seeing so many people *whining* about how Dante is now “emo”. Honestly, I could give zero fu©ks about what a character looks like. For the past few days I’ve been playing nothing but DmC: Devil May Cry. Read the full story

I do not believe that any game developer or publisher is perfect, even in cases of a perfect track record. A company with a perfect record is simply a company that has not yet made its first mistake. Platinum Games is one of the companies that sits on my “haven’t screwed up yet” list, primarily because of their absolute brilliance in developing Bayonetta and Vanquish (my game of the year for 2010). Two years ago, Platinum Games announced the title of their fifth game in partnership with SEGA: Anarchy Reigns (Max Anarchy in Japan). Read the full story

LOOT Entertainment, a well known Playstation Home developer, recently announced a new multi-platform multi-player action title, currently slated for PC and Android devices. More recently, the fine folks at LOOT have announced that the Android version of Forsaken Planet has now moved into the alpha playtesting phase, and they are inviting YOU (the collective “you,” not a specific “you”) to participate. From the trailer (embedded below), it seems that Forsaken Planet will be a competitive multi-player title focused on resource gathering and enemy elimination for scoring. Read the full story

There is a certain expectation that comes with seeing NIS at the opening. As the stalwart hold over for traditional Japanese RPG’s, NIS offers a regular injection for those of us with old school sensibilities. Mugen Souls looked to be a fun, turn based romp that would satiate those that crave turn based combat. It was clear it wouldn’t appeal to a massive audience, but it also managed to be such an offensive and ridiculous game that the appeal extends to only a small group of perverts, overshadowing the best elements that would make Mugen Souls a rather enjoyable, if archaic, experience. While the argument over cultural differences can mitigate a bit of the strangeness, that excuse shouldn’t be a free pass. Read the full story

I find myself in a somewhat contradictory position. I have never played Zone of the Enders or Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner, yet I am a massive fan of mech games and anime series. I’m not sure why I never got around to it, but the recently released Zone of the Enders HD Collection is my first experience with the series at all. That being said, aside from a few bumps that really should have been worked out in a collection such as this, the Zone of the Enders HD Collection is, for a first-time player, an absolute gem. Read the full story