Mini Ninjas: a tale of stealthily cute proportions

I'm a little late to the game (so to speak), but I've recently just finished playing IO Interactive's latest IP, MINI NINJAS. It took me a long time to realize that a demo isn't just a bit taken directly from the game and given to you to play, they are tailor-made to show off some of the best qualities of the game to get you hooked enough to purchase it.

I remember playing the demo for Mini Ninjas two or three times when it first became available and enjoying it immensely, but I'm so glad I finally got the complete game because it was more fun and creative than the demo can display. Although it may initially appear to be targeted towards kids and girls due to its cutesy character renditions and simplified  environments, I think it's got enough to satisfy gamers of any gender who appreciate video games as art. And believe me, video games are art- but that's a whole other argument and post.

Velvet Assassin

I had a lot of hope for Velvet Assassin since it seemed to have a pretty bad-ass female as the protagonist who could take care of herself with no problems. But then I got to play it, and none of that really seemed to matter.

The story is interesting, as it should be since it's loosely based on a true story, and the graphics are decent. It's the combat engine that is really lacking and is obviously something that the developers didn't put a lot of thought into.

I owned this game for about a day and a half and I was very sad to have to take it back. It's the second game I've returned without completing. The combat engine is not user-friendly and is almost impossible to even do correctly. Within the first level, you have to sneak up behind a German soldier and press the 'A' button to kill him. Simple enough, right?. But there's a catch- you can't just stand behind him and then kill him, you have to be a specific distance away from him before the dialogue pops up telling you to push the kill button ( 'A', since I play on Xbox) to take him out.

That's right; you can't just push A whenever you feel you're close enough to kill him, you are only allowed to do so when the game tells you to. This makes it difficult to actually do a kill because you only have a second to push the button right as it pops up before the guy turns around and starts shooting at you, killing you almost instantly since you have no armor to speak of and a measly pistol against his automatic.

This impossibleness is aided by the fact that the game fails to actually give you tips that could help you with this problem. I had to figure out for myself that when I start to get close enough to the enemy the sides of the screen will turn red, and that's how I know that soon the kill dialogue will pop up and allow me to kill the guy. But it took me about five or more deaths to actually notice that.

This game had a lot of potential and it was pretty much ruined by the horrible combat mechanic. Maybe when I'm 50 there will be a remake of it and they'll have actually made it into a better game, the game that I wanted so badly.

This short review is provided by the lack of content to write about. Even though there's a story and an intriguing character, you can hardly get far enough into the game to muster up the energy to actually care about either of those things. The real Violette Summers, Violette Szabo, would be rolling in her grave if she knew what they had done with her life story and how they failed at properly portraying her life as an Allied secret agent who accidentally parachuted into German-occupied France.

Sorry Replay Studios, better luck next time. Unless you're still in insolvency, then I guess not.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

First things first, I would like to say that I am a huge fan of Wolverine, both in comic form and movie form. I think what Hugh Jackman does for the character is complimentary, despite him being too tall. And even though the Wolverine origins movie was kind of crap, I can still appreciate it for being an action movie and think it accomplished what it set out to do.

Hugh Jackman is passionate about the character and has already said that the next installment, which will be set in Japan, will actually be the movie they intended to make first, but because Fox is producing and not Marvel they just couldn't do that.

With that in mind, the X-Men Origins: Wolverine game was a pleasant surprise for me. I think it helps that the game was in production long before the movie, and only became a movie tie-in later. This puts it above the other X-Men movies because it had more time and thought put into it. And this is all apparent when playing the game.

Even more Brutal Legend DLC to melt faces with

Metalheads who picked up Doublefine's Brutal Legend on Rocktober 13th have more DLC to look forward to after the previous "Tears of the Hextadon" map pack.

Coming on December 17th, the next installment of downloadable extras includes a lot more than just maps or a guitar. Titled "Hammer of Infinite Fate", the goods within will provide not only aesthetic qualities to the Druid Plow and Eddie Riggs, but the in-game GPS, "Oculus of the Lost", will guide you to all the collectibles that you may have missed or are tearing your hair out trying to find.

Here's exactly what to expect in the Hammer of Infinite Fate DLC pack:

• Three different oufits for Eddie Riggs so that he may travel in style: Mountain Man (which comes with a beard), Black Metal and Zaulia Threads. This also includes seven new patches to rock.
• Four new paint jobs as well as four more upgrades for the Deuce aka the Druid Plow: Oculus of the Lost; the Eye of Sorrow, a weapon that harnesses the power of the Sea of Black Tears and launches black projectiles of doom at enemies; The Disgorger; and the Coiling Maw. No descriptions for the last two but judging by the names alone they would definitely shine better with the gore filter ON.
• Nine new achievements/trophies become available with correlate with the other DLC
• Six new heads for Mount Rockmore, one of which is Tim Schafer himself. The others are stated as being the busts of Rima, Razputin, Dadbat, Hunter, and Kage the Kannonier.
• And not to ignore the already expanded multiplayer, you can also expect four more maps to rock out and summon those burning zepplins on. Look forward to the Altar of Blood, Coiled Remains, Crucible of the Titans and The Amplified Cliffs maps.

December 17th for the PS3 ($4.99) and Xbox 360 (480 MSP), be there or be left in the dust. Of the Deuce, that is.

Dante's Inferno Demo and Exclusive PS3 edition

For PS3 owners there is a lot to look forward to in the Dante's Inferno aspect, as the playable demo came out on the 10th which includes the entire first level of the game. Xbox Live subscribers won't get their taste of hell until December 24th, an interesting way to spend Christmas Eve. Many people have already alluded to the God of War-like fighting mechanics which seems more like a compliment than anything, and having played the demo myself I can say it's definitely as fun as God of War but certainly much more disturbing visually.

Visceral Games also announced on the 10th that for the PS3 only they have released a special "Divine Edition" of the game which includes lots of extras like commentary tracks, a digital art book, the complete soundtrack as well as a translation of Dante Alighieri’s "Divine Comedy" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, a poet who was the first American to translate the epic poem in the mid-1800s.

If you still need more Dante's Inferno to hold you over until the game's release in February, the new comic mini-series has just been launched with issue one, written by Christo Gage and illustrated by Diego Latorre whose art style is very unique and poetic in its own way. A #0 issue was given away at the EA booth at PAX this year where you were able to play an early version of the demo and take photos of the large Dante statue.

If you've played the Dante's Inferno demo already, what did you think? Was it what you expected, and what did you like most about it?

New Batman: Arkham Asylum sequel teaser trailer

Hot off Spike TV's VGAS, an awesome trailer has been released. Watch below!

Prince of Persia: Sands of Time

Lookit that mug. That's the face of someone who's seen more than his fair share of fucked up shit. And it's true, he has. Sand demons, unnecessary spikes everywhere, an evil king's assistant (called the Vizier) copying Jafar's moves from Disney's Aladdin and trying to acquire a source of power that he doesn't understand. You know, just another Tuesday, really.

The unnamed Prince in the game is arrogant, sarcastic, and mostly shirtless during the game but that doesn't stop you from liking the character. Indeed not, the charm is when he starts talking to himself randomly as you're playing, acting like any of us might when frustrated or angry at someone: he mocks them. Of course, he is not always so bratty and he even proves himself once he gains a little Sands of Time power, learning how to use it deftly and kicking the asses of evil sand minions.