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Rainier's Articles


'Castle Shikigami III' (X360) - Screens

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under Tokyo Game Show - Tokyo Game Show 2007

PS3 Preview - 'Time Crisis 4'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Pre - E3 2007

Genre: Light Gun Shooter
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Developer: Namco Bandai
Release Date: November 2007

The launch of another PlayStation means the eventual launch of another GunCon peripheral, and sure enough, the blindingly colored accessory is making a comeback this fall with the release of Time Crisis 4 for the PlayStation 3. Both pieces of the Time Crisis equation were on display at a recent Namco Bandai press event, and though our time with the game and gun was limited, we came away with a few details about the next-gen light gun experience.

Time Crisis 4 initially seeped into arcades last

Wii Preview - 'Monster Lab'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2008

Genre: Action/Role-Playing
Publisher: Eidos Interactive
Developer: Backbone
Release Date: Q4 2008

Who doesn't love mad scientists? From their crazy hair to their bizarre fixations on anything from raising the dead to launching someone into space to watch terrible movies, they're the crazy nutbags that everyone loves. That's why it's so surprising that so few games actually put you into the role of a mad scientist. It seems like the perfect thing for video games: tons of innovation and the lack of morals or common sense to question if said innovation might, say, doom mankind. Thankfully, Eidos is

'Street Fighter IV' (PS3/X360/PC) - Screens

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - E3 2008 - July 17th

Street Fighter IV brings the legendary fighting series back to its roots by taking the beloved fighting moves and techniques of the original Street Fighter II, and infusing them with Capcom's latest advancements in next generation technology to create a truly extraordinary experience that will re-introduce the world to the time-honored art of virtual martial arts.

Everything that made the legendary Street Fighter II a hit in the arcades, living rooms and dormitories across the globe has been brought back in Street Fighter IV. Players will be able to play their favorite classic characters, such as Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li

PS3/X360/PC Preview - 'Dead Space'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2008

Genre: Survival Horror
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Electronic Arts
Release Date: October 20, 2008

Survival horror's a genre in transition. It began as a sort of half-assed, 3-D subcategory of adventure games, and while the involved technology changed, many of the tropes didn't. From 1996 to 2006, you were still using tank-style controls to steer some luckless chump through a terrible situation.

Resident Evil 4, while not really horror by any stretch of the imagination, reinvented the genre while also giving action games a good swift kick in the ass. Dead Space is the first post-RE4 survival

'Naruto: Uzumaki Chronicles 2' (PS2) - 8 New Screens

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under Namco Bandai Gamers' Day - Namco Bandai Gamers' Day 2007

A new evil has risen and threatens to take over not only the Hidden Leaf Village, but all the other villages and ninja clans as well. An ancient organization which was long thought disbanded is alive and well and in search of several orbs to resurrect a mechanical horror that will ravage the land. It’s now up to Naruto and all the Hidden Leaf Genin to join forces with those of the Hidden Sand Village to stop this menace.

NDS Preview - 'Away: Shuffle Dungeon'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2008

Genre: Role-Playing Game
Publisher: Majesco
Developer: Mistwalker
Release Date: October 2008

Last year at GDC, Hironobu Sakaguchi was at Microsoft's hotel talking up Lost Odyssey. He was seriously jet-lagged and, in response to another reporter's question, mentioned that Mistwalker Games' next project was going to be a DS game. He was promptly hushed by a PR agent.

Away: Shuffle Dungeon is apparently that project, with character design by Sakaguchi and music composed by Final Fantasy legend Nobuo Uematsu. Unsurprisingly, it's an RPG; specifically, it's an action-RPG starring a brash young hero named Sword. (The name is meant to

'Digimon World Dawn' and 'Digimon World Dusk' (NDS) - 11 New Screens

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under Namco Bandai Gamers' Day - Namco Bandai Gamers' Day 2007

Complementary features for both versions intensify the experience as players follow the journey of two different Digimon Tamers as they investigate the cause of a mysterious incident that has ravaged cities in two worlds.

A huge earthquake has stricken the Sunshine and Dark Moon districts, damaging the access points to the Digital World and causing many Digimon to mysteriously devolve into Digi-Eggs. In Dawn, rumors have spread that the Night Crow Team, from Dark Moon, was responsible for the incident.

Xbox 360 Preview - 'Project Gotham Racing 4'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Pre - E3 2007

Genre: Racing
Publisher: Microsoft Games Studio
Developer: Bizarre Creations
Release Date: September 2007

Project Gotham Racing 3 was an undisputed hit, both from a commercial and critical standpoint, but there was a distinctive air of exclusivity behind it — almost an arrogance, if you will. By limiting the vehicle selection to those that could reach speeds of 170mph or more (i.e., cars that most of us will never own), any semblance of a learning curve was swiftly axed, as even the most basic car was difficult to control. That didn't stop the Xbox 360 launch title

Wii Preview - 'Castlevania Judgment'

by Rainier on Jan. 1, 2006 @ 1:30 a.m. PST | Filed under E3 - Post - E3 2008

Genre: Fighting
Publisher: Konami
Developer: Eighting
Release Date: Fall 2008

Three-dimensional Castlevania games have always been a bit lackluster than their 2-D counterparts. While Symphonia of the Night or Dawn of Sorrow are considered among the best games on their respective systems, Lament of Innocence and Castlevania: 64 are generally held to be mediocre at best and borderline unplayable at worst. There's just something about the trip into 3-D that makes Castlevania lose its magic. Perhaps this strange curse is what made Konami decide to make the first Wii Castlevania title into something completely different. Castlevania: Judgment