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Did Someone Say Lighting Effects?

Did any of you play Fahrenheit(/Indigo Prophecy)? Literally a masterpiece of technical art and storytelling, Fahrenheit attempted to tell a story in a way that no game has ever done before. And succeeded on the most part. I wish I hadn’t been so careless in my placement of all my reviews for now defunct website GamesMainFrame but I’m sure I gave the game a score close to both 8 and 10. It’s actually one of the few games I’ve played that ever got inside my head — a psychological thriller to say the least.

Why all this bigging up of Fahrenheit then? Well because same developer Quantic Dream are set to unveil they’re latest game today Heavy Rain. It’s already unbelievably hyped due to a demo that was made for E3 2006 to show off the power of the Playstation 3. “The Casting” as it was known was a 3D demo prototype showing character emotion and interaction. It’s something that’s been impossible in video games until this breed of consoles and games like Uncharted and Metal Gear Solid 4 have been the first ones to really showcase it.

While we’re told The Casting has absolutely nothing to do with the game as a tech-demo it’s visually very impressive; mainly in terms of the way the protagonists body flows. What you’re looking for in that demo is not the subtle problems with the lip syncing and her weird looking teeth but the way in which her eyes and whole body show emotion. Now imagine that same tech-demo polished and put into the context of an amazing story. Then you’re somewhere in the region of what I’m expecting from Heavy Rain.

Heavy Rain on Playstation 3 Is Undoubtedly Going To Look Gorgeous

It’s interesting that with all this hype we still remain totally in the dark about this game until 4PM (UK time) this afternoon but what we do know is that it’s going to be another “dark noir thriller” (similar to Fahrenheit; although it won’t be a sequel) and also that there won’t be free-roaming areas a la GTA but there will be a lot of life-like environments with living, breathing people.

Heavy Rain is floundering somewhere near the edge of my top 10 Most Wanted games but if it so much as matches the psychological intensity of Fahrenheit no doubt it will shoot to the very top.

Here’s an interview with director David Cage:

Excited yet? I am.

How Far Are You Prepared To Go To Save Someone You Love?

Oh my!

You know how I said Fallout 3 was going to be amazing because of it’s presentation values? Well this is probably on a par, if not better. The most retro-sylised awesome trailer I’ve ever seen. Ever. If the actual game can carry across the theme of substandard 60’s horror movie I’ll totally cream and actually buy a light-gun shooter game.

Who cares if the actions thin and short when you have presentation like that? I certainly don’t.

Anberlin's "New Surrender" Is Out September 30th.

As a huge fan of Anberlin I’ve followed them since Blueprints From The Black Market and was quite surprised to hear that the single from their fourth album, New Surrender, was to be a song off their sophomore release “Never Take Friendship Personal”.

“The Feel Good Drag” has always been a fan favourite but I’ve never been sure of it’s potential as a single and I’m still not entirely convinced after hearing it. This probably won’t get much airplay and I doubt it’ll be the song to push Anberlin into the mainstream like I’m sure the record label is hoping. What I am sure of is that this is an amazing song and they’ve improved it ten-fold.

The intro is pretty awesome but it’s in the verses you’ll hear the most changes. A swirly, epic feeling has been added into the verses and Stephen’s delivery is a lot more subtle before exploding into the nostalgiac “Was this over before?” screams in the chorus.

The guitar work is far greater - be it the production style or band growth the solo screechs across the sound scape.

As a whole the song is essentially the same track it was 4 or so years ago — it’s just a helluva lot more epic.

Now, now haters. This is a very good song. Sadly she won’t let me embed “So Sublime” so this is “Oh My Life”.

Still good.

Bionic Commando Rearmed on Playstation 3, XBOX 360 & PC

Bionic Commando is simplistic genius from the 80’s. I say simplistic because the formula may seem very basic now — but back in the day it was ground breaking. Coupling a swing mechanic with 2D shooting opened up a whole new plain for platforming puzzles. You’d have tow swing and grapple to get yourself up into new areas. One of the most polished, fun and downright exciting experiences that could be found on the NES.

Bionic Commando Rearmed is essentially a remake of the game that many of us remember so fondly. A few tweaks have been made to the gameplay including the ability to pick up health packs and barrels with the arm. Said barrels can be thrown into enemies. Boss battles have also been reworked for the better.

Graphically Bionic Commando is unreal — set in a 2.5D perspective with vibrant colours and awesome character models. The bosses are particularly impressive with some filling the entire screen. It’s enriching, totally over-the-top and just generally awesome. The presentation is spectacular too, with the menu’s slanting across the screen and the cutscenes that are done in a comic-book style. All the art is so well drawn and there are plenty of easter eggs in this game for fans of the original and for gamers in general. The whole game has a tongue-in-cheek kind of humour which keeps dialogue fresh and the thin-but interesting story flowing.

If the awesome graphics and polished gameplay weren’t enough though — the music is where Bionic Commando Rearmed really shines. So much so that the soundtrack of the game is available on iTunes. It’s hard for me to stress how much this game rules musically. I’ve literally never heard anything like it. A collection of 8-bit techno hits that just keep coming and coming. The only way to better explain is to show you, so without further adieu, here are some choice tracks:

Capcom could be forgiven for just including the 3-4 hour singleplayer experience that Bionic Commando Rearmed boasts for roughly £7 (price fluctuates depending on which platform you buy the game for) but much to their credit the game supports a “Medals” system which sets some difficult objectives, mlutiplayer co-op and a new Challenge Rooms area which provides the most replay value. These are mini-puzzle rooms where you must use skill to traverse the levels in the quickest time. The levels are hooked up to scoreboards so you can find the worlds best player and as you can imagine the scores set are already virtually unbeatable.

That said though it’s still fun trying.

Bionic Commando is going to appeal to fans of the original and general newcomers. It’s unreal value for money (and by that I mean I’d probably pay £30 for this game) and thus I recommend it to everyone who has a compatible platform.

Buy this game.

10/10.

Black Kids - I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend.

Bionic Commando Rearmed Now On European Playstation 3's.

RE: Registering My Disgust At The Lack Of Bionic Commando On The Playstation Store - posted 14th August.

Ah-hah thanks Mr. Capcom again!

Madonna Is Getting A Bit Old For That Kinda Cleavage IMHO!

Let’s have a disco to celebrate Madonna’s 50th.  What you have to do is close the curtain, get your Mum to keep altering the dimmer switch on your lights, get a packet of Cheese & Onion crisps and cherryade and play these songs one after another, dance like Mark Corrigan. Enjoy.

Amazing.

P.S. Sorry about the lack of Like A Virgin. It’s against the law to play that song in the UK or something.

P.P.S. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MADONNA!