For the past several years, video games has had an increasingly larger presence at Comic-Con. It seemed that this year, attendees were far more interested in what the publishers had to offer. On the PC gaming side of things, massively multiplayer online games were the biggest thing, with games like Crimecraft and DC Universe Online, making waves. Microsoft brought a several great Xbox Live Arcade Games for gamers to try out. Microsoft also sponsored autograph signings with the cast of the tremendously funny web series, “The Guild.” Attendees flocked to the Capcom booth for Street Fighter tournaments throughout the con, and were treated to multiplayer sessions in Lost Planet 2. Indeed, Capcom even had some of the best swag for prizes, uncluding a plushie alien worm from Lost Planet 2.
Capcom v. Street Fighter 2 was playable at Comic-Con, and gamers waited in imense lines to get their hands on this classic fighting game. In this version of the game, available now on Xbox Live Arcade, Capcom did not change much from the arcade or Dreamcast version. Capcom however, did bring updated, smoother images and widescreen support for the Xbox 360 platform. The resulting game is still just as fun and easy to play, but difficult to master. One of the features of the game is immediate access to all 56 characters from the start. Obviously, this allows gamers to jump in and immediately begin experimenting with an endless combination of three-character teams, but it also relieves the gamer from the frustration of tedious unlocking. If you haven’t already done so, download the free trial, or better yet, get the full version!
Over at the EA Showcase, we were able to spend some quality time with EA’s biggest upcoming titles. From Jack Black to rockstars, to lawsuits, there has been a lot to talk about with regards to Tim Schafer’s Brutal Legend. Having spent some quality time with this rock-parody title, the two main aspects of the game that really struck a chord with me (pun intended) are that first, gamers will laugh their head off playing this game, and second, the hack-and-slash action is superb. Sure, the game will probably be repetitive at times, but the writing is truly top-notch, and with Jack Black’s delivery and intonation, any repetition in action or characters will be broken up quickly.
Partnering up with Hasbro, EA has created a G.I. Joe game to accompany the blockbuster film hit. The game takes place after the events of the film, so the story will be fresh for gamers who have seen the film. More importantly, the game features Joes that were sorely absent from the film. While you can only play two Joes at any given time (A.I. controls one character, but you can switch between the two at-will), EA promises to have a huge lineup of characters to choose from. Moreover, there is offline-only co-op, with jump-in/jump-out gameplay. The graphics aren’t the prettiest, but the run-and-gun gameplay looks frentic, with hundreds of Cobra’s minions to dispatch. Each kill racks up points, which are used to unlock other characters and weapons, so there is some replayability value in this title.
Dragon Age Origins was also on-hand for us to check out, and for fans of Bioware’s Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect, this is one game you need to keep your eye on. The gameplay is similar to the aforementioned RPG hits, but of course, in an entirely new setting. Lord of the Rings afficionatoes will see many similarities, but that’s not a bad thing. Defending from orc raids and troll boss battles are done right here, with multiple spells and attacks available (spells and special attacks may be assigned to face buttons on the controller). What was really great to see was the character creation system; it is so deep, even character portraits are customizable. The blood and gore have been making headlines, but they aren’t over-the-top, and are presented at a level that isn’t distracting from the gameplay. And on a final note, no, we did not see any of the “adult” portions of the game.
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