Portable Gaming Revolution

Kratos is stunned: there isn’t a flock of identical zombies…

After the short and sweet opening cinema detailing the you-whomp-‘em-Persian-guards objective, you’ll become immediately aware that the tried and true hack-‘n-slash formula is in full, familiar force in Ready At Dawn’s God of War: Chains of Olympus. Fortunately, that means loads of enemies on screen to catch the business end of Kratos’ blades in the neck, eyeballs or frequently bisected torso. In true God of War fashion, Chains of Olympus flows at a smooth pace as players progress through mythological Greece as a tormented and violently angered, hopping from one legendary location to another.

Unfortunately, the amount of backtracking required to progress to a new setting limits the amount of scenic routes to about a half dozen. Puzzle solving on COO, while equally satisfying and tedious, requires hiking it through entire temples or caves, which are shockingly huge and completely devoid of load times. Navigating Kratos from one end of a city to another, through buildings, over bridges and vertically towards rooftops, is seamless and without framerate drops.

The scope of this game is as impressive as its art style and visual design. Epic views of a crumbling town, complete with a look-out of your future path, compliment the great character models and beautiful textures. Facial and combat animations are spot on, and the dialogue – while irritatingly pretentious – is well delivered throughout the entirety of Kratos’ six hour, vengeful adventure, which will requre you to do nothing but rapidly beat the hell out of your square button to succeed.

Continue reading ‘God of War: Chains of Olympus Review’

So you really want to play God of War on your PSP, huh? Maybe you don’t have the money to buy it, the parents cheaped out, or perhaps you’re just incredibly cheap. Lucky for you Nukoda and PGRevolution are here to hook you up like two topless and randy Greek vixens.

We’re giving away a free copy of God of War: Chains of Olympus because we liked it so much and want to spread the love. Our review copy was so good to us that we want it to share its gruesome, gritty Greek-God action with the readers and listeners of the Bmashers network. How do you get in?

Check it after the jump.

Continue reading ‘Win God of War: Chains of Olympus!’

I recently had the opportunity to sit down with a preview build of FlatOut: Head On for the PSP. I have to say that I was genuinely impressed with how this racer is shaping up for it’s March 11th release date.

Racing games can basically be distilled down into two key types; the Arcade Racer and the Simulation. FlatOut thankfully has always accepted that it was the former and pushes that envelope. Any game with a driver high jump event as a challenge can’t be taking itself too seriously after all.

Head On is the latest in the series of games that started out on the previous console generation and most recently made an appearance on the Xbox 360 as FlatOut: Carnage. FlatOut: Head On was based on that 360 version and places heavy focus on its predecessor’s Carnage mode. Carnage is a perfect fit for the quick pick up and play gaming habits that us portable gamers tend to develop. Instead of trying to finish first in a race your goal is to cause as much damage as possible while running the race. Think of it as a cross between Burnout’s crash mode and a smash up derby and you’ll have a good idea what I’m talking about.

Continue reading ‘FlatOut: Head On Preview’

With weapons-based combat titles such as Devil May Cry and Ninja Gaiden largely coming out of Japan, it was great to see a western touch on the genre when SCEA dropped God of War for the PS2 in 2005. The differences in these games were quite noticeable, most poignantly that God of War required less skill and encouraged heavy amounts of button mashing as opposed to learning combos, parries and evasion, as Japanese action games did.

Despite this, the game was a roaring success, and with the third iteration of the God of War franchise hitting PSP’s in early March, the series looks to be embracing its success.

God of War: Chains of Olympus, the third edition of the gruesome Greek gore-fest, is one of the most impressive handheld titles ever created.

Even critics of the game’s simplicity and ease will be converted at the immense technical capabilities that the game offers. While it still retains its square-square-square method of fighting, Chains of Olympus manages to be an impressive and fun button masher, and an absolutely incredible tribute to the console series.

Continue reading ‘God of War: Chains of Olympus Preview’

At the recent Destination Playstation event held by Sony in Arizona two new bundles were announced. The one announcement that peaked my interest was of course, the God of War PSP Entertainment Pack shipping in June. This bundle contains a new blood red PSP and a copy of the God of War: Chains of Olympus game (full package details below). I so want this bundle, but there is one odd thing about it. The bundle hits in June, but GoW:CoO hit the streets on March 4th!? If you can hold off on picking up God of War: Chains of Olympus until then you will be able to play it on this sweet new PSP, but if you wait you’ll end up with a second copy of the game. Also announced was a 80gb PS3 bundle shipping with MGS4 and a Dualshock 3.

Still cool, but I really don’t understand the method to Sony’s madness on this one. Package details follow from the official press release:

In June, a new PSP Entertainment Pack will be hitting stores, featuring the famous face of the Ghost of Sparta — Kratos. Here’s what you get in the bundle, which will be available for $199.99 (MSRP):

• Limited-Edition “Deep Red” PSP with Kratos silkscreened on the back
• God of War: Chains of Olympus
• Superbad on UMD video
• Voucher to download Syphon Filter: Combat Ops from PLAYSTATION Store for free

God of War: Chains of Olympus still arrives for PSP on March 4, 2008

Reblogged from our sister site Nukoda.

At Sony’s Pre-E3 press conference Sony spent an unusual amount of time talking about our favorite little handheld, the PSP. Announced at the conference was a new version of the PSP (nicknamed the slim, but no official name was given). This new version of the PSP will be 19% slimmer and 33% lighter, but still have the gorgeous 4.3″ screen. This new version will have greater battery life due to new battery technologies, and feature video out!

During the conference Kaz Hirai demoed this video out and it looked pretty simple. To output your games, movies or images to your TV you just have to plug in the video cable to the headphone jack and hold down the display button for 5 seconds. This is a feature that we were all begging Sony for when UMD videos were still viable, sadly it took Sony this long to do it since the UMD video format is nearly dead.

Also announced were a pair of new coloured systems releasing as bundles. The first bundle contains the PSP, a 1GB memory stick, the game Daxter, and the UMD movie The Family Guy Frickin’ Sweet. This bundle will sell for $199 US. Chewbacca joined Jack Tretton on stage to show off the second bundle, The Star Wars Battlefront edition. This bundle will come with a sweet looking white PSP that has a nice Darth Vader image on the back, and will come with a copy of the exclusive PSP title Star Wars Battlefront Renegade Squadron. This bundle should drop in October for $199.

All in all I was underwhelmed with the new PSP. The new size and built in video-out is nice, but I was really hoping for built-in flash memory and a tie in to the Sony Online store. The rest of the great PSP game announcements at the show left me feeling better though.

Its finally here! If you decided to update past the 3.03 firmware and missed the downgrader, you probably kicked yourself. Well kick yourself not anymore; the 3.50 downgrader has been released.

People are skeptical when they downgrade as they fear of making their PSP “bricked” or non-functional. Well the Noobz team have made sure this downgrade is as simple as simple can be. At no point should you feel stuck in downgrading. As long as you can read and understand English, own a PSP with firmware 3.50 or below and a copy of Lumines (Any version such as platinum ETC), then you can downgrade. You may also want to try out the ‘Illuminati Hello World’ homebrew that you can try on a 3.50 PSP to get the feel of downgrading. You can see ‘Illuminati Hello World’ below:

With this new downgrader, it detects which motherboard your PSP has and downgrades it to that type. This way, its safer than just guessing. You may want to ask, ‘But all this downgrading must break PSP’s?’. Well thats were you are wrong. The Noobz team say that if your PSP breaks then you either didn’t follow the instructions 100% or you are one of the unlucky percent that just break.

Overall, I think anyone who has a PSP should take a look into the homebrew scene as it offers a wide scale to view your PSP from. I know that everyone that I helped to downgrade said that they fully enjoy their PSP’s now and it brings a whole new life to the PSP area.

Hope you enjoyed this as I am really exited for you guys as I want you to join me into the homebrew scene and take full advantage of your lovable handheld’s

Cheers
-Matt

As we view the ‘Most Wanted games this Summer’, we just can’t help but notice that more and more games are being put on hold or canceled. Manhunt 2 has been crossed off the summer games list. Not only will Manhunt 2 not make the July ship date that Take-Two promised, but development for the game has been put on hold altogether.

A Take-Two representative reveals, “We continue to stand behind this extraordinary game. We believe in freedom of creative expression, as well as responsible marketing, both of which are essential to our business of making great entertainment.”

Lets just hope this game will be on our shelves soon.

Grab your grappling hook folks, it’s time for CONTRA! In a direct sequel to Konami’s 1990’s SNES title Contra III The Alien Wars Contra 4 (Working title) will slap you in the space boots of four characters. They’ll be taking on the “Black Viper” in this new sidescroller that boasts new mechanics, and thankfully, multiplayer.

Everything sounds like it’s on the right track, and we here at PGR are eager to see how multiplayer works aside from the co-op campaign, be it top-down or sidescrolling…

What modes could be included? Capture the flag would be really difficult in a straight 2D plane… Deathmatch would be insanely fun though and we can’t wait any longer. BRING IT ON KONAMI!

[Via Press Release]

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – June 20, 2007 – Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc., today announced Contra 4 (working title) for the Nintendo DS™. Marking the 20th anniversary of the quintessential action franchise, the game pushes 2D side-scrolling action in an all-new direction with gunplay that spans two full screens, original gameplay mechanics that grant players deadlier abilities than ever before, and frantic multiplayer functionality.

Contra 4 takes place two years after the events of Contra III: The Alien Wars. After saving earth from invasion by Red Falcon, Bill Rizer and Lance Bean are confronted with a new extraterrestrial menace: the terrifying Black Viper. Joined by hard-boiled mercenaries Mad Dog and Scorpion, the warriors must once again wage war against an entire army of invaders.

Refining the 2D side-scrolling genre the series established 20 years ago, Contra 4 delivers pure action at a fever pitch as players jump, shoot, and dodge oncoming hazards. Utilizing a new dual screen presentation, the action spans both screens of the Nintendo DS, giving players the opportunity to battle across expansive environments in which death can come from any direction. The use of both screens for the game’s core action also allows for massive boss battles as players try to seek and destroy the weak points of sky-high enemies. A first for the series, Contra 4 introduces a grappling hook accessory that lets players grab onto elements of the environment directly above them. Whether using it to avoid oncoming dangers or attack from a strategic vantage point, the grappling hook allows for new combat situations and dramatic set pieces that underscore the game’s adrenaline-soaked pedigree.

Continuing the multiplayer tradition of previous games in the series, Contra 4 lets two players battle together against Black Viper’s army of vile alien forces and reclaim Earth for mankind.

Developed by WayForward Technologies, Contra 4 is planned for release on the Nintendo DS in 2007. For more information on the game and the Contra franchise, please visit: www.konami.com .

Looks like a solid release this week folks! If you head down to your local game retailer tomorrow you can pick up any of these titles, since for the most part they look decent. Transformers even looks half decent! We had a preview for the stellar looking Brothers in Arms which you should probably get without hesitation. Here’s the full list of this weeks releases:

Brothers in Arms DS
Full Metal Alchemist Trading Card Game
Sim City DS
Time Ace
Transformers: Autobots
Transformers: Decepticon
Zendoku

Who knew Sim City DS existed? Not me. I think I’m looking in to that one as well.
What are you picking up? I know you Aussie readers will finally be getting Pokemon this week, so we’ll see you online.

[Thanks DS Fanboy]

Rainbow Six Vegas has been delayed so many times, one begins to wonder if the quality of the game is even there. The lack of public reviews across the major gaming news outlets is a huge worry, considering how excited a lot of PSP fans were for this game.

If you hit up YouTube you can certainly find videos for the game, finally released this week, but don’t get your hopes up. While the first person elements seem to work fine, and the third person mechanic looks just fine, the visuals and action are a little… lackluster. Textures are totally absent and the firefights look too simple, however, the game still looks like some kind of fun, especially online. Hit up the link and there’s a ton of related videos for you to check out. What do you think? Did anyone buy it? Leave us a comment!

Earlier this year we heard that Jackass would not only be a series and a film, but also a game. Skeptic’s said that it would never happen, but now new screenshot’s have been released, Jackass: The Game may be closer then we thought.

Jackass: The Game includes over 30 different stunts you can compete at. These include games such as Whack-a-Weeman and the famous Trolley Racing as you can see below:

Multiplayer has also been talked about and we hear that you can save your best replays to upload onto the internet for the whole world to see. Head to Head mode is the top favorite as you can challenge your friends but no Infrastructure mode has been heard yet.

Overall, Jackass: The Game is getting more popular as gamers discover more abouts its concept. I hope this game is worth buying and not just a rent.