Announced at E3 last year, Heroes of Ruin is the new action RPG from Square Enix for the 3DS. Featuring unprecedented online connectivity for a Nintendo handheld, it will allow for drop-in/drop-out multiplayer and plenty of character customization. Check out this video to see just how much you can customize your heroes.
March 2012
I hate seeing a good idea go to waste, so I hope that a development team with more time and money accidentally played Deep Black: Reloaded and realized that if you add fun to this formula you’d have a good game. As it is, I can’t recommend it to anybody. If you want to shoot guys there are a million better options, and if you desperately want to play underwater your choices are fewer, but Deep Black still isn’t the game for you. Something like Undertow would serve you better, and it has the added benefit of actually taking place primarily underwater. READ MORE
Asura’s Wrath is a game unlike any other. Ever since it was first revealed, it has been compared to games like Dragon’s Lair and Heavy Rain, offering an experience full of cutscenes and quick time events. You might be surprised to learn that there is more of a traditional action game here, but a lot of what makes it entertaining is not entirely present in the gameplay itself. READ MORE
Ever since those crazy Rabbids took over, the Rayman series has been pushed to the side as if it never mattered in the first place. With Rayman Origins, the limbless hero returns with his first 2D outing since the original Rayman back in 1995. Many of the elements that made that game stand out back then apply here: it’s whimsical, addictive, and very French. And trust me, that’s a very good thing. READ MORE
Writers Andrew Passafiume and Graham Russell tend to be on opposite sides of the debate when talking about handheld games: Andrew would usually rather be playing on a big screen, and Graham likes that lower system specs makes devs focus on gameplay. In this two-part feature, the two get together and make their picks of the games that best and least fit on a portable. Check out part one here.
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
Andrew: Okay, portable is even in the name, but this is one game that would have been much better had it been on a console. It tells an interesting story and has some great moments, they are just ruined by the terrible controls. The PSP was not made to play an action/stealth game like this and it really shows. Peace Walker managed to do more with the limited control scheme of the PSP, but the HD upgrade showed just how the series really needs two analog sticks. An update of this game for the Vita might fix the problems too, but it’s hard to say.
Graham: When Sony decided to make a portable system, I get why they’d want themselves and others to move their popular franchises there. The problem? That’s not how they were designed. Konami actually did some interesting things, like the Metal Gear Ac!d series, but this particular entry was one that really could have used some extra thinking. READ MORE
