General gaming

General gaming

Pushmo Sequel, Guild01 Games Comprise a Strong Fall 3DS eShop Lineup

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 03:57 PM PDT

3DS eShop Guild01

Recently I've called attention to the fine job Sony has done of giving gamers reasons to spend money on the PlayStation Network. Between Day One Digital releases, a solid October promotion, and PlayStation Mobile on Vita, there is a lot happening on that front. Not to be forgotten, Nintendo today announced a lineup of games coming to the 3DS eShop over the next few months, and it's looking awfully good.

Pushmo was a particularly pleasant surprise when it launched on the eShop late last year -- for those who played it, that is. It was released with very little attention called to it, leaving it to word of mouth and reviews (1UP gave it an A) to make people realize that, yes, there really is such a thing as an original eShop game worthy of their time and money. It was a game that should have gotten more support from Nintendo than it did; there simply aren't a lot of good, original titles on the 3DS eShop, and Pushmo was an exemplary example of one. As Jeremy said in his review at the time, it deserved better.

Interview: Firaxis' Garth DeAngelis on XCOM's Inspirations and Challenges

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 02:16 PM PDT

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Interview: Firaxis' Garth DeAngelis on XCOM's Inspirations and Challenges

How the surprising influences behind Firaxis' XCOM revival appeal to both veterans and newbies.

By: Bob Mackey October 4, 2012

When I signed on to review XCOM: Enemy Unknown, I felt a strange sense of anxiety about my upcoming duties. The impeccable legacy of this classic PC series can be incredibly intimidating, since it comes from an age when strategy games focused on being ruthless above all else. After a few hours with the preview build, though, Enemy Unknown surprised me with its easy-to-learn mechanics that evoked memories of my favorite strategy RPGs of the past -- ones that didn't come from the world of PC gaming. I recently had a chance to sit down with Garth DeAngelis, Lead Producer on the project, for a discussion about how Firaxis has adapted this classic franchise for a modern audience while making a point to keep fans of the originals happy.

1UP: I'm more accustomed to Japanese turn-based strategy games than European and American ones, and it surprised me to see XCOM borrow many of the mechanics and interface elements of the former. (One of my editors actually noted that Firaxis name-checked Final Fantasy Tactics at PAX East.) Can you go into any detail about how this particular genre inspired you, or any important lessons you learned from it?

Paper Mario: Sticker Star Evolves the Series

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 01:18 PM PDT

My history with Mario's various forays into the RPG genre is spotty at best. I'm a huge fan of Square's Super Mario RPG on the SNES, as well as the first two Paper Mario titles for the N64 and GameCube respectively. While I appreciate what Super Paper Mario on the Wii tried to do by really toying with the idea of 2D vs 3D, it ultimately lacked enough substance to hold my attention for more than a few hours. Likewise, despite the legion of fans who constantly sings the praises of the plumber's various handheld outings over the past decade, I've never been able to really get into any of those portable adventures. But after some hands-on with the opening hour of Paper Mario: Sticker Star, it's looking like this upcoming 3DS title has what it takes to grab my attention during the busy holiday season.

As the title may have clued you in, stickers are your lifeblood throughout Mario's journey. Battle-wise, all attacks come in the form of consumable stickers that you hold in your album. In typical turn-based fashion, you'll use various degrees of hammer attacks, stomps, and fireballs, all of which are contained within individual stickers. Your allies are gone this time around, replaced by certain stickers that allow you to bring in some aid for a few rounds. While some may worry about going through battles by themselves, I honestly didn't notice that my partners were missing. Other larger stickers, such as a gigantic pair of scissors, are Sticker Star's version of summon spells. These larger attacks can also be used out of battles in order to solve various environmental puzzles. But keep in mind that most stickers have a one time use, meaning that you don't want to waste a powerful hammer attack when your enemy only has a sliver of HP left.

paper mario

Since stickers are generally consumable items, much of how Mario interacts with the world hinges on his ability to add to his collection. Individual stickers are scattered throughout the environment and can be peeled off for use later in battle. Sometimes these items will be stuck on the side of a wall in plain sight, just begging for you to add them to your collection. However, other stickers will be much harder to find, requiring you to fully explore the corners of each area in order to unearth them. Alongside this method of collection, stickers are available for purchase using coins you earn in battle. Instead of grinding through an area to amass experience points, Sticker Star encourages players to fatten their wallets in battle and subsequently use those to bulk up their plumber with more advanced attacks and techniques.

The Five Biggest Resident Evil Rip-offs

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 10:03 AM PDT

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1UP COVER STORY

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1UP COVER STORY | WEEK OF OCTOBER 1 | A DARK DESCENT INTO RESIDENT EVIL

The Five Biggest Resident Evil Rip-offs

Cover Story: Bring some health spray, a shotgun, and a lawyer for this terrifying journey into the legally questionable.

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ny popular property will eventually see its share of wannabes looking to cash in while the cashing's good. Just as Finding Nemo had its Shark Tale and Transformers had its Transmorphers, the success of 1996's Resident Evil spawned a collection of games looking to adapt the concept of survival horror in an equally profitable fashion. And while the popularity of Resident Evil helped launch some genuinely good games like Silent Hill, most of the developers looking to capture that Capcom magic made one futile attempt before moving on to chase The Next Big Thing. The following games might not scare you in the traditional sense, but those with a fear of plagiarism were undoubtedly driven to the height of madness.
Posted by Shri Krishna

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