If you are a Resident Evil fan then you’ve probably already picked this DLC up and played though it. If any of Evolved Gaming’s Staff Writer’s owned a PlayStation 3 version of Resident Evil 5 then a review of it’s DLC would have been more timely. But as it turns out Drew, @FrustratedFury, is the only one with a copy and its on the Xbox 360. Therefore as we a community website we turned to the community to find a gamer that still owns Resident Evil 5 on the PlayStation and is willing to still play it. Now we did have to go all the way to Peurto Rico to find said gamer but @HECV stepped up and helped out with the following “Guest Review” of the fist Resident Evil 5 DLC “Lost in Nightmares”. Stay tuned for his review of the second RE5 DLC “Desperate Escape” in the coming days.

Also if you didn’t know the Resident Evil 5 “Gold Edition” is being released this coming Tuesday, March 9th, 2010. On the PlayStation Blu-Ray both DLC episodes will be included. The Xbox 360 edition will contain Voucher Codes for the DLC. Now on to the review.

Resident Evil 5: Lost in Nightmares Review
By Hernán E Colón

This DLC takes place in Ozwell E. Spencer estate, one of the key founder’s of Umbrella. Resident Evil fans will notice how familiar the place looks. Doors will open slowly in first person view and you can examine the main door three times to enable the classic camera mode; and there are more references to the classic Resident Evil throughout.

The atmosphere is just as creepy and tense as classic Resident Evil games. The only new bits of story are found in diaries and most of the cut scenes are the complete flashbacks you see in the main game. The new enemy is called Guardian of Insanity and is very powerful!, but walks slow because of a huge anchor that it carries. Throughout this chapter you will find different types of weapons depending on the difficulty you play and the Guardians will show up in different places randomly which adds a bit of replay value. There are a total of 18 hidden stars to find but only help on your final score for the leaderboards.

It took me 1:37 to finish it on my first try. One thing to note is that there is no saving system and that means you will need to finish this DLC in one sitting. A total of 5 new achievements/trophies to collect. You also get to play as Barry Burton and Excella Gionne on the Mercenaries mini-game.

If you’re looking for more Resident Evil 5 or want an excuse to come back, this DLC is a good chance to do so. For 400 Microsoft Point or $5 on the PSN I’d say this DLC is worth a try.

Well there you have it. DLC that is actually worth picking up! Let us know what you think of the Lost in Nightmares Episode in the comments below and look for a review of the second DLC Episode Desperate Escape in the next few days.
A big thanks from everyone here at Evolved Gaming to Hernán for doing a review and for Capcom for providing a review voucher token.

Today we have both Cory Grimes and Drew “FrustratedFury” giving their impressions of the PS3 exclusive Heavy Rain. This noir crime drama is brought to us by Quantic Dreams, developers of Indigo Prophecy. This is more an interactive story then a game. Told through the lives of four people; their actions all trying to answer the question: ‘How far would you go to save someone you love?’

First we have Cory Grime’s impressions:

Heavy Rain is a game that should be experienced by anyone who is a fan of games. It shows how completely different from the norm a game can be and be brilliant at the same time.
The gameplay is similar to that of Quantic Dream’s previous title Indigo Prophecy – using the controller in ways to complete motions, but is done much better than it was in Indigo Prophecy. The things you do with the joysticks range from the mundane – like shaving or setting a table, to the intense – like a car chase or a fight. The gameplay may be hard to comprehend at the beginning, but soon becomes easy and intuitive. This gameplay is innovative and could totally be a new wave in gaming, to be used in games of the future.
The plot is complex and reminiscent of the Saw films, only good. In the game, you are tested to see how far you are willing to go to save someone you love. Each character in the game has a different story, and their stories often intertwine. The story has a branching narrative based on what you do, so each playthrough could have a different outcome based on your actions. The story is also gripping, and you can bet to experience a ton of different emotions to the game.
The characters are fully developed and seem real, unlike stereotypical video game characters. Each character’s story is interesting and different in its own way.
The graphics are mind blowing and showcase what the PS3 is capable of; not only in cutscenes but in gameplay as well. There are several jaw dropping moments caused by the graphics.
I think Heavy Rain is possibly one of the best games ever made. It is new and innovative in a time where gamers are given sequels and mediocre titles. It is definitely my game of the year and I doubt it will be topped. If you own a PS3, you must own this game!

and now Drew’s “FrustratedFury” impressions of Heavy Rain

So, I sit down with a Dual Shock 3 controller in hand. I have an audience with me consisting of Rage Quit Radio’s Joel and Alan (and special guest, Montay.) After the origami folding installation process, we begin. Right away, I’m hooked. What I didn’t know was that my viewers were hooked as well. It felt like we were in a movie theater watching the newest summer blockbuster. The crazy thing is that the things I were doing were everyday mundane things: taking a shower, drinking some OJ, setting out dinner plates. That’s how powerful Heavy Rain really is! Anyone in the room will be glued to the screen to see what happens next.
Then, after brief introduction to all the characters, the real drama begins.
Heavy Rain will keep you guessing the entire time you’re playing. At one time, I thought everyone could possibly be the Origami Killer. The story telling is so top notch I actually started to feel emotional for some of the more tragic characters. Everything from button presses to moving the controller in a direction makes you feel like you’re trying to do it will all you might just to get the point across. Knowing that your characters can die at any moment really does put you in distress mode. There were many times I shouted out loud, as well as my audience, when a close call happened.

The tone is very impactful as well, you really feel depressed during the beginning of the game due to what the main characters are experiencing. You really feel flustered and panicky during one of the moments where your character could die. This is all conveyed through the music, dialog, and settings. Even the button responses that flash up on the screen get shaky and blurry during stressful moments. The developers know how to keep you entranced in the game and story.

Honestly, if you have friends who don’t play games you should have them at least watch this game. Both Joel and Montay agreed that watching was more of an experience than playing it; and I couldn’t agree more. I haven’t finished the game as of yet but I can safely say the hunt for the Origami Killer is one NO ONE should have to miss.  

Well there you have it. Possible the “best game(s) ever made” and if you’re not a gamer just watching someone else play Heavy Rain may make you one quickly.
Are you picking up Heavy Rain and going after the Origami Killer? How far would you go for someone you loved? Let us know your experience with Heavy Rain in the comments below; and Happy Hunting!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (41.8MB)

We here at Evolved Gaming had the pleasure of participating in a conference call with some of the developers working on MLB 2K10. MLB 2K10 is set to release on 3/2/10. Take a listen and look at the screens below to help make up your mind if this is the baseball title for you to pickup this year!
On the call were: Read the rest of this entry »

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Its almost time to go to Hell! Are you ready? If you’re not sure if you’re up for the trip, well I’m sorry to say that most of you will be going one way or another.

But on a lighter note! Some of the production team for Dante’s Inferno, EA’s and Visceral Games’ newest venture into the seven circles, will be on a live chat over on CoverItLive, direct link here, tomorrow, February 9th, 2010, starting at 5pm EST. You can also follow the chat below.
The schedule of attendees is as follows:

• 5:00 – 5:45 pm EST = Vince Napoli, Combat Designer
• 5:45-6:30 pm EST = Zach Mumbach, Assistant Producer
• 6:30-7:15 pm EST = Jonathan Knight, EP
• 7:15-8:00 pm EST= Justin Lambros, Producer

If you are going to attend the chat fans are encouraged to RSVP on Facebook here. But while you wait for tomorrow come check out Evolved Gaming’s review of Dante’s Infernohere.
Official DantesInferno.com Blog Post here.

Last Friday, RQR went up against Monday Night Crew in a friendly Street Fighter IV match up. As Alan said, We got rocked…big time. The highlight of the night was Drew(RQR) VS. Dexter(MNC) Both players played great and really put on a show you can watch it right here:
DrewVsDexter
All great guys over at Monday Night Crew. Go check out their blog and comics over at www.mondaynightcrew.com

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (57.7MB)

We here at Evolved Gaming had the pleasure of participating in a conference call with some of the developers working on BioShock 2; they were from 2K Marin and Digital Extremes.
Read the rest of this entry »

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Dark Void is an ambitious game with new ideas and mechanics to the 3rd person genre, but can the game be that good?

Presentation:

As Will you start off with a crash of your plane right into the Bermuda Triangle. What you are going to face along with your partner and formerly lover Ava will bring true meaning to a lost planet; with new breeds of life-form and never seen enemies on Earth.

The game has a very slow beginning, especially regarding the more in-depth story encounters and elements. While the vibe is there at the beginning, the characters, factions and the actual story is not that interesting and I found the dialogue between Ava and Will, and between most of the other human characters, boring. Also the past between the two have nothing to add to the story or even the feel of the characters. Some of the cut-scenes look really impressive and epic; while others look oddly low-res. The main gameplay and story parts do use the jet-pack, and it works well for the most part.

Visuals:

The inconsistency within the visuals is really visible! Some of the environments looks really inspired and detailed with fantastic scale, but most areas look really bland and boring. The character and enemy design is visually fitting, being very sci-fi mixed with an alien idea that works really well. The enemy vehicles, weapons and the miscellaneous bosses look good as well.

Sound:

Overall the voice-overs are decent, some characters sounds fit while some are not. My main dislike is in the two main characters Will and Ava. The characterization and personality of Will is not to my liking and Ava could have been even more extreme with the direction the game is portraying her. Weapons and vehicles sounds really good, even if there is not that much of a variety.

Gameplay:

The game is a 3rd person shooter combined with aerial sections using enemy’s saucer like vehicles and your own jet-pack. While on-foot Dark Void is a cover based action game and added in is some vertical platforming to maneuver the environments to pick journals, technical points (EXP) and enemy weapons.
Dark Void is mainly linear with its missions, but at points there is some freedom; especially when the game is focusing its missions on the more shooting oriented missions, where its driving you to use your jet-pack in different areas while most of the enemies are on the ground, and its also vice versa at later levels when some enemies can fly as well, and that’s where the game is really open for your decisions and game style. 

Dark Void does give technical points for its basic experience system. These you can use to upgrade your jet-pack and the weapons that are in the game and you usually get points from killing enemies or in the open world areas you will have points to get as well; but the actual upgrades really don’t make that much of an impact to the weapons.

While the game has a good pace and direction, all the mechanics are really wonky. The on-foot shooting feels really bad, the weapons feel weak and not accurate (if the sniper feels the best weapon in an action game, you know there’s a problem) and also the shooting with the jet-pack feels weak, even if you are upgrading it, it’s just not there. The platforming animations looks really weird and out of place, same for the melee animations in the on-foot sections, but the biggest problem is the aerial mechanics with the saucer or the jet-pack. Camera issues and just overall really weird mechanics just do not work, big sections with flying can be a very frustrating because of this.

Pros and Cons:

Pros:

Fun and satisfying AA\turret sequences. Actually they were the only fun part in the game.

Really cool enemies, with their vehicles and weapons.

Pretty good variety to the environments.

Cons:

The story and the entire narrative is not intriguing as it may seem and most of the characters are not fascinating to talk to.

A very glitchy game. I had at least four or five game-braking glitches with enemies missing from the world but still in the radar. Also the game has inconsistent frame rate issues at points.

All the mechanics in the game has problems. Whether its technical or animation problems I don’t know but then lead to a very frustrating game to experience.

Conclusion:

Dark Void had some really good ideas improving and innovating the genre, especially with the aerial mechanics, but sadly, the entire narrative and set of characters are boring.

Scoring:

Presentation:

5.5 Boring characters with annoying personalities along with a non-interesting story and narrative to be in, the good part is the enemies that give something good to the entire game.

Visuals:

7 Inconsistency is the key word, some great areas but some are really blend, also the design for Will is really unappealing.

Sound:

7.5 Weapons, enemies and vehicles all sound great, voice overs are only decent at best.

Gameplay:

4.5 Some fantastic ideas that are not done well sadly, since it seems that the game had some good set pieces, but its just not good on the actual gameplay, also the technical issues are not helping.

Replay Value:

6.5 Around 8-10 hours for the campaign, some minor exploration for picking journals and extra technical points can help the length a bit.

Final Score:

6 Dark Void could have been a great game to experience, sadly everything about it is not there, boring story and characters, technical problems and bad mechanics to almost everything in the game.

Nexon, one of the leaders in Free to Play Games, today announced that its upcoming 2D arcade-style multiplayer game Poptag! will be entering an Open Beta on January 26th, 2010. All that is needed is a login over at Nexon’s website. Not only that but if you are signed up and playing the Beta you will also receive a complimentary Welcome Package filled with in-game items. Check out the screens below…

… or head over to Poptag!’s website to see a video of the game in action, more screenshots and there is even a flash demo of Poptag! already up on the site.
While there you can sign-up for your Nexon ID and you’ll be all ready when the beta starts on January 26th, 2010! Oh! As another bonus, and different then any Beta I have heard of, “all stats and items obtained during the beta and its events will carry over into the game’s official launch.” from official press release
If you’ve played any form of Bomberman then you will want to check out Poptag! for free from Nexon!

Set to release in early 2010 on XBLA is the newest offering from EA in RISK: Factions. While never before having played the “Factions” variety of RISK I will for sure be playing the trial before purchasing. Have you played the “Factions” variety of RISK? Do you like it better the regular RISK? Happy that EA chose “Factions” to bring to XBLA? Let us and EA hear you opinions in the comments below.