Tophat Top 5: Best Characters in the Infamous games

I had a few ideas for tonight's top five: Best enemy types, best powers, best locations... but I've decided that I'd focus on my favourite part of the InFamous games; the characters, This is spanning BOTH Infamous games, so...
SPOILER WARNING
SPOILER WARNING
SPOILER WARNING
SPOILER WARNING


NUMBER 5
JOSEPH BERTRAND III
Believing he was sent by God to act as Earth's saviour, Bertrand's belief's were cemented when he finally found out he was, in fact, a conduit. Believing his "Higher Purpose" was to defeat The Beast, he used the Ray Sphere on himself, and became the first "Corrupted".

After becoming a towering monstrosity, Bertrand also gained the power to make more corrupted, and soon believed his higher purpose was to show the world the harm that Conduits were capable of. Bertrand is a perfect example of an antagonist who is trying to do what he thinks is best, even if it is misguided, and somewhat insane.


NUMBER 4
LUCY KUO
Lucy Kuo is an NSA agent who shows up at the start of InFamous 2, offering to take Cole to New Marais to increase his already strong powers. While in New Marais, however, she develops her own powers, and provides more up front aid to Cole, while also suggesting the more lawful, orderly choices in the game.

What's interesting about Kuo is, she is forced to develop her powers against her will. The first time we see the new Kuo, she's quite timid and scared, and clearly overwhelmed by the whole situation. Her normally in-control attitude breaks down and we see a rare glimpse at her more emotional side. What's more is, despite being a conduit, Kuo seems to value human life highly. But her personality is very much like her Ice powers. She is very cold, focused towards the goal (due to her agent training), but she's also somewhat brittle (compromising her own integrity and belief's just to survive).


NUMBER 3
ALDEN TATE
Alden Tate was one of the main antagonists in Infamous, and he makes the list for a number of reasons. First off, he's basically a Mega powerful Psychic Hobo. Video games need more interesting, out there ideas like that. Secondly, he's a somewhat sad, tragic character.

Alden was the heir to the First Sons, a secret society based around the advancement of humanity, including the engineering of special gifts and abilities. But the arrival of the mysterious and extremely powerful Kessler forced him out onto the streets. With no roof over his head and no-one looking out for him, Alden was forced to enhance his powers, and when the time came for Empire City to go into Lockdown, Alden Tate rose up, with his army of "Dustmen" and claimed dominion over an entire burrow of Empire City.

However, he stood between Cole McGrath and the Ray Sphere, the key to Cole's mysterious new powers. So, McGrath took Tate down, and the last we see of him is as he jumps from a bridge to what would have killed a normal man. But Alden isn't a normal man. If there's a sequel, it'd be damn cool to bring back this Telekinetic Psychic Hobo.


NUMBER 2
COLE McGRATH
It seems weird as putting the games protagonist as second on the list, but whatever, it doesn't mean he's a bad character. What's interesting is that there actually two distinct Cole McGraths to talk about.

If players choose the karmically "good" choices, Cole McGrath is a man who, despite being put in a tough position, uses his powers for the good of the many, despite the adversity he faces. He's blamed by the people of Empire City for the destruction caused by the Ray Sphere, but still he puts the good of the people over himself. In InFamous 2, "Good" Cole takes more of a Lawful approach, while still trying to help the masses.

InFamous Cole, on the other hand, is a selfish man, who uses the power he has gained for respect through fear, as well as to put himself above all others. Instead of feeding the masses, he scares survivors away from supplies so he and his friends can have them. In InFamous 2, he takes a more chaotic approach, choosing to use explosions that could harm bystanders to distract guards as he saves Agent Kuo, or tricking Rebels into following him by using Nix as a Militia imposter.

The one thing that would have made Cole Better, was if the final choice of Infamous 2 wasn't labelled Good or Evil. If they were neutral, a more important, heartfelt decision could have been made. Tough decisions are what life is all about, and we could have learnt something, not only about Cole, but ourselves with a little Grey. Not every situation is black and white, and Infamous 2's ending is as grey as they get. In short, whether Cole is good or evil, his final choices (so far) could be good or evil, all depending on the reasons he makes them.


NUMBER 1
ZEKE DUNBAR
Zeke isn't just your usual comic relief pudgy sidekick best friend of the hero character. While his is that to a degree, Zeke is one of the most human characters I've seen in any game. In Infamous, you get the feeling the Zeke is kind of jealous that Cole is the one who got superpowers, and those feelings are confirmed when he steals the Ray Sphere to use on himself. When it doesn't work, Zeke finds himself in Cole's bad books.

Zeke tries really hard to make amends, but Cole still never fully trusts him again until late in InFamous 2, leading to two really touching scenes between the old friends.
Who among us could really blame him for wanting to be like his best friend? Sure, it was kind of a dick move to steal the Ray Sphere, but Zeke had always been a fairly underimpressive person. To then have to stand next to a superhuman, it would have been terrible. So while you can' really condone his actions, you can understand them, and admire his attempts at being forgiven.

Ignoring all that, Zeke is more or less genuinely funny. And funny is a hard thing to pull off in most games. He's like someone I would honestly want to be friends with in real life, so kudos to Sucker Punch for making a character I actually care about, leading to my final decision in the game.

OK, so next monday, looks like a review for BRINK, unless some other people get in on the current Facebook Poll. See you next time!

InFAMOUS 2

Last week I posted a poll on Facebook asking readers to vote for this weeks review. And with a landslide victory of ONE VOTE, the winner is InFAMOUS 2. Thanks guys. You fill me with confidence. Because I'm already a day behind, lets not waste any more time!

STORY
InFAMOUS 2 begins with a handy summary of who Cole McGrath is, and what's going on in his life. For those of you who haven't played the original, Cole was a bike courier who unwittingly activated a deviced that killed thousands, but also activated superpowers in people called Conduits. At the end of the game, it's revealed that "The Beast", a conduit of destructive power, is making his way to Cole's home of Empire city, and it's up to him to fend off the attack.

The sequel begins with Cole leaving for New Marais (an in game clone of New Orleans) when the Beast launches his attack. After Cole flees, the game follows his efforts to gain more powers and local support in his new surroundings before the Beast tracks him down, while having to deal with the oppressive Milita, and a mysterious swarm of dangerous Swamp Monsters.

In short, the game has a very comic book-y feeling, which is perfect for a game about a super powered man who has to decide what to do with the gifts he's been given. While there are two paths to follow, there aren't many major story ramifications until the very end, although its fun to play through twice to see the awesome endings.

While the story isn't as focused as it's predecessor, it works well enough. We're reminded of the Beasts ever nearing presence by captions at certain points in the game, and it helps keep the game's feeling of tension. My biggest problem with the story is that there weren't mny characters that were associated with the three enemy factions, like Alden Tate and Kessler from the original. Instead, we get Joseph Bertrand, who is interesting to say the least.

PRESENTATION
The city of New Marais is a fresh, vibrant setting for a sandbox game, that still manages to be gritty and realistic when it wants to be. Sucker Punch has neglected to go the route of NYC clones, and instead they've built their own New Orleans, complete with Streetcars and flooded neighbourhoods. It's alot more bright than I remember Empire City being, and it just feels more busy and alive.

Cole and Zeke, the returning characters, have gotten minor makeovers, and they work well enough. The biggest change is to Cole's voice; instead of sounding gravelly and gritty, he sounds somewhat lighthearted, and a bit more human. This is, in part, thanks to the entertaining script, which contains some truly funny lines, between Zeke and Cole in particular.

Voice acting as a whole is interesting, and each main character has their own unique sound. Nix's dialogue is very seductive and playful, which is all part of her character, while Kuo is all about Order and Control, which is reflected in her very business-like tone. The south african accents of the Ice Soldiers are some of the funniest things I've ever heard. But that might just be cause it's South African.

The soundtrack isn't really anything to write home about. It gets the job done, but I never found myself listening to the soundtrack and getting chills like I do from other games. On the other hand, the comic book styled cutscenes are expertly drawn and they provide a fresh, vibrant look that cointrasts with the sometimes gritty game engine visuals.

GAMEPLAY
If you played the original, this'll all be fairly familiar to you. InFAMOUS plays like a platformer/third person shooter, with a sandbox for you to cause chaos or enforce order in. Controlling Cole is fairly easy, as climbing a building is as simple as mashing the jump button against a wall with grabbable points. Sure, it's not as fluid or as pretty as, say, Assassin's Creed's parkour system, but it gets the job done and opens up many approaches to different situations in New Marais.

Occasionally, however, McGrath gets bogged down while traversing the city. Grinding rails and train tracks are a quick way to get around, but falling off can be a nuisance. Luckily, the addition of upward boost poles helps get Cole off the ground, and enhanced thruster abilites allow McGrath to stay off the ground longer. It keeps zooming around the city fast and satisfying.

Using Cole's powers works like a third person shooter, you aim with one button and use each power as if it was a different weapon (i.e. grenade, rocket, standard gun) mapped to each button. Cole retains most of his powers from his first outing, and this time adds multiple flavours of each power to his repertoire. Using the "Punch Blast" variation of the "Blast" power is damn fun, for example, but within seconds, it can be swapped out for a different variation. Sucker Punch have found a great way of accessing a good helping of powers on the fly without disrupting gameplay too much.

Combat makes up most of the gameplay, and one of the biggest improvements over the first game is the addition of "The Amp". The Amp is like a giant cattle prod which McGrath uses to bash enemies around. The old melee system was pretty sterile and lifeless, but InFamous 2's finisher/ultimate meter helps keep the Amp melee feeling powerful and fun.

REPLAYABILITY
InFAMOUS 2 is one of the best kinds of sandbox game: fun main story missions, collectibles to find and a whole bunch of Territory gaining side quests to finish help InFamous 2 justify all that open game world. Finding blast shards and dead drops increase your power and uncover the story respectively, while the side quests help Cole clear out the majority of enemies from any one area.

Aside from these, inFamous 2 provides heaps of minor side missions, which can range from Stopping a Mugging to beating the hell out of street performers. They help to change your Karma meter, and all of the actions above net you Experience to spend on varieties of Cole's vanilla powers.

Done all of that? Found everything and beaten every mission? Well theres another playthrough waiting for you, good or evil, depending on what you played last time. On top of that is Sucker Punch's User Generated Content, and while nothing particularl impressive has been made by the community as of yet, I have faith in Sony's creative user base. I mean, just look at Little Big Planet.

OVERVIEW
InFAMOUS 2 is a damn good sequel to an utterly fantastic title from two years ago. There a lot more likeable characters, and even the protagonist seems more human, but the overall story has taken a bit of a hit in terms of focus. It has a good sense of tension, but there aren't many memorable faces on the opposing team, with Bertrand being the only real villain for the majority of the game.

The gameplay has improved in various ways; the amount of power variations means players can play the way they want, additions to the landscape and Cole's repertoire make traversing the map fun and fast, and the sandbox feels so much more alive than Empire City.
If you can excuse the less focused, but still serviceable storyline, then the gameplay shouldn't really disappoint. Fans of the first InFamous should definitely pick this one up. PS3 owners should definitely give it a try, because its just a whole lot of fun when it comes down to it.


Going to put another poll on Facebook for next week. Lined up are; Brink, Fable 3 and Red Faction Armageddon. Go vote, or not, I don't care. See you next time!

Tophat Top 5: Best Ego boosts in Duke Nukem Forever

So, while I enjoyed Duke Nukem Forever, I can't ignore the glaring faults in it. The bad graphics, unappealing visuals and bland gameplay were almost enough to make me put down the controller. But, what kept me going was the humour that DNF held throughout. Many people found the jokes/visual gags immature and dated, but I found that they were timeless; stuff thats funny no matter what age you are or background you're from. Adding to this were the Ego Boosts. These are funny little activities that help boost Dukes overall health bar, allowing him to take more damage. So, on we go with Top 5 Ego Boosts in DNF!

NUMBER 5
Copier
Approach any photocopier you can find in the game and press the action button, and The Duke will turn around and sit his cheeks on it. The camera looks down to see numerous copies of Nukems ass printing. While not the most interactive Ego Boost, it certainly is one of the funnier ones.

NUMBER 4
DUKES GYM
I want to put these three Boosts in together because, alone, they aren't that amazing. Together however, they form the basics of Duke's gym, where he goes to be all that is man. Pick up some dumbells and start curling, stack the weights on and benchpress the hell out of them, or shoot some hoops; all to increase your Ego. And after all that, check yourself out in the mirror, coz what man doesn't do that? Oh and that Boosts your Ego too. Fitting.

NUMBER 3
SIGNING AUTOGRAPHS/DRAWING SHIT
While in the "tutorial stage", you find a whiteboard detailing "Operation Cockblock"; The EDF's plan to stop the rampaging alien in the stadium. I, as Duke, walked up, rubbed out most of the diagram and drew a penis entering the aliens butt. Coz it seemed like thats what Duke would have done. When backstage at Damn, It's Late, Duke gets asked to sign a boys book. Channelling the Duke himself, I drew a pair of tits. Lucky kid.

NUMBER 2
AIR HOCKEY
One of the most infuriating, yet addictive mini games in DNF also increases your overall Ego (and nabs you a trophy if you can win without letting your opponent score). The mechanics work well enough, but sometimes the disc acts as though it hasn't been touched. And we all know The Duke never misses.

NUMBER 1
PINBALL
This game pops up all over the place, and is just about as fun as normal pinball! That is to say, not particularly but damn it's addictive! The most annoying thing, however, is when you miss the ball, Duke says "I have balls of FAIL". What does that even mean? But I'll let it slide though, coz the pinball is almost more entertaining than the game itself.

Sorry about the lack of pictures, but I'm lazy, and it's hard to know if all of these have pictures floating around on the net anyways. See you next Sunday for my review of whatever it is that gets voted for the most!

Duke Nukem Forever

14 years. It was in 1997 that Duke Nukem Forever had been officially announced by 3D Realms. In the near decade and a half since, Duke Nukem was stuck in developmental Hell. Numerous engine changes, reveal trailers and exclusive screenshots would remind us that DNF was still there, but it was little more than a joke. The biggest running joke in gaming, in fact. Now, 14 years after the first announcement, Gearbox Software looks to be bringing this joke to a close. And the real joke was..

That it was on us all this time.


STORY
Duke Nukem Forever picks up about 12 in-game years after the last canonical game. The aliens are back and they're looking to take over. But they shouldn't have taken our babes. That's the kind of shit that should be a no brainer by now. Stop taking Donkey Kong's bananas, and Stop taking The Duke's BABES! What follows are Dukes attempts to not only save our babes and our world, but to remain relevant in a world that, clearly no longer has a place for him.

Ok, that last part isn't part of the story, but Duke as a character seems pretty outdated. Mysogynistic, crass and more man than we've seen in quite some time; maybe the Duke is something that we really needed. Gaming today is full of gritty, conflicted characters, and strangely enough, Duke Nukem provides a more lighthearted machismo that, in my mind, sorely needs a comeback.

While none of the characters, save Duke himself, are on screen enough to really dwell on. What you need to know is Nukem retains his old personality, and it is somewhat entertaining. The story on the other hand isn't anything special. It's just a frame for Duke to do his manly action hero thing in, and I can appreciate it for that at least.

PRESENTATION
Duke Nukem Forever is a game that looks like it's a few years too late(yea, I know, it is, but shuttup). Gearbox could have done so much with the games visuals, but instead we get a blocky, grey and somewhat uninteresting setting across the board (aside from some locations, like the western styled ghost town). DNF was the perfect opportunity to bring back the colourful style of the oldschool shooters, but instead it subscribes to the same visual styles that make things like CoD, MoH and Battlefield so visually uninteresting.

The sound design is fairly boring, aside from the sweet electric guitar track playing across the opening and ending credits, and the smooth voice acting of Jon St John. His delivery is perfect for all the classic one liners and crude jokes that Nukem spouts. Honestly, while the lines can be somewhat cringe worthy, I thought they were more hit than miss. Sure, some of the more politically correct or modern of us might think that Dukes humour is dated but, in my view, a lot of it's still funny. Especially when DNF takes shots at other gaming franchises or developers.

Which makes it all the more sad when the gameplay lets it down, where those games would have delivered the goods.


GAMEPLAY
Leading up to it's release, optimists were hoping Duke Nukem Forever would be the end of only-two-weapons-at-once syndrome, grey and gritty backdrops and the regenerating health meter. Oh how wrong they were.
While Duke Nukem Forever makes jokes at the expense of games like Halo and Gears, it makes use of some of their most basic mechanics, despite the oldschool games not doing so.

First off, having two weapons is fine in some games. Military shooters, yea, it's perfectly acceptable to be limited to two weapons. But the Duke is meant to be more man than God himself. He should be able to lug around a whole armoury, not just two weapons he finds on the ground.
I just think that it suits the character better to be able to fuck some alien shit up in 8 different ways, at least, without having to drop a weapon. The gunfhighting gameplay is mixed up occasionally with Duke's access to Beer and Steroids to make him resilient and stronger, but it doesn't add enough to keep it interesting.

This would have been excusable if it weren't for The Duke's health system. While a "health" bar is present, it's regenerated by hiding behind cover, just like every other game ever. And Nukem isn't one to hide from a fight. To make matters worse, the health bar is actually Duke's Ego bar. His Ego regenerates while he hides behind a wall sucking his thumb. Riiiight. That makes no sense.

That said, the Ego Bar as a whole wasn't a bad idea. Having actions to lengthen this bar was a stroke of brilliance, and helps DNF with one thing that it does superbly. Humour. The Ego actions include checking yourself out in the mirror, taking a piss, drawing cocks on whiteboards, among various other activities. The biggest boosts come from more interactive mini-games, such as Pinball and AirHockey. These are sometimes more fun than the actual game part of the game.

To break up the monotonous shoot-hide-shoot sequences, DNF also features Vehicle sections in his monster truck (The Mighty Foot) as well as more platform-centric stages where Duke has been shrunk to action figure size. The vehicle sections work well, and launching a giant monster truck through the Las Vegas desert at high speed is damn good fun. The platforming sections on the other hand are a bit hit and miss. Platforming in First Person barely ever works, but I can excuse it here, because listening to Duke's usual hilarious lines in a high pitched mini-Duke voice make them so much funnier.

Boss fights are also fun, but there isn't much variation between them. It's hard to tell the difference between one giant grey alien and another. They are pretty funny, but saying that DNF is funny at this point is somewhat redundant.

REPLAYABILITY
Duke Nukem Forever is a game with not much replay value. Aside from the meh multiplayer (which I could barely get a connection on) theres little to no reason for playing the single player campaign again. However, one playthrough does reveal a number of extra goodies that are interesting to say the least. The saddest thing, however, is that the trailers from 10 years ago paint the picture of a better game that has been delivered. And that is a shame.

OVERVIEW
Duke Nukem Forever is a game that tries to keep its old-school sensibilities (or lack thereof) and mix it with the solid gameplay of todays heavy hitting FPS's. This is where, I feel, DNF has cocked it up. The dialogue and Ego actions are funny, but the gameplay doesn't have the fun factor to match.

While I kept playing for the one liners, other gamers may not be so forgiving. Let's face it, DNF looks preeetty bad. Like something from the very start of this generation, at best. They're functional, but thats all really.
I think that comedy is a hard thing to pull of in games. Very few games make me actually laugh out loud, despite me knowing that the dialogue or action is funny (see: Uncharted). Duke Nukem, for me, is laugh out loud funny. It's just a damn shame that the gameplay is grey, bland and boring. Gearbox, this is two from two you've failed in my eyes. *glare*


Next week, it's either InFAMOUS 2, Red Faction: Armageddon or Fable 3 (which has been a long time coming). If you want to have your say, head over to the poll on Facebook. See you next time!

Tophat Top 5: Gaming News and reveals from E3!

The biggest show in gaming has come and gone once again, and while there wasn't much in the way of new IP's, we got to see some fantastic sequel footage, the announcement of certain HD remakes and some sweet pieces of tech. So today, I'm counting down my top 5 News and Reveals from E3!

NUMBER 5
HD REMAKES GALORE!!!
Recently, someone had the brilliant idea to get us (the consumer) to pay more for games we already owned, if only to see them in shiny HD and on our current console of choice. At E3, we were told that the ICO collection (Ico and Shadow of the Colossus) would be out in a few months, as well as Zone of the Enders and Metal Gear Solid collections from Konami, for both the 360 and PS3. And to top it all of, Halo: Combat Evolved is getting rereleased 10 years after its debut. And it isn;t just an HD remake. It's a full engine upgrade, with revisions to the original maps and such. And to top it off, theres a button to switch from old school to new. Now that, is just too cool.

NUMBER 4
NEVER DEAD
It's been a while since I've seen games that are crazy, colourful and over the top, and I lay the blame directly at the feet of the FPS gods. It's been too long since I played a game with some good Eastern crazy mixed in, but Konami's Never Dead looks to be bringing madness back to the gamers. It remains to be seen how a game where you play as an immortal will work out, but it looks funny if nothing else. I shit you not, the character rips off his head and throws it at a monster at one stage.

NUMBER 3
HITMAN: ABSOLUTION
It's no secret, that when a game does stealth badly, it seriously pisses me off. And as such, it pleases me to no end to see a return of the Hitman franchise. The Hitman games allowed such freedom in how you went about your business (assassination), and the true test of skill was to have no one even realise you were involved. A Hitman game on this current generation of consoles would kick so much ass, it's not funny. The developers promise a living, breathing world with more nuanced NPC's, and that sounds like a good starting point to me.

NUMBER 2
OVERSTRIKE
When a developer like Insomniac announces a new IP, it makes sense to take note. They developed franchises like Ratchet and Clank, Resistance and Spyro the Dragon (before it got shit), so they have a damn fine track record. With Overstrike, it seems as though they're offering full 4 player co-op, as well as the sense of humour the Ratchet and Clank games are known for, as well as the over the top weaponry seen in R&C as well as Resistance. Can't wait to hear more about it.

NUMBER 1
GOTHAM CITY IMPOSTERS
Many people might find it strange that I'd put a downloadable title at the top of my list, but it honestly appears to be the most interesting thing that came out of E3. To me at least. With gameplay that mixes the FPS fun of CoD with the gadgets of Batman, Gotham City Imposters pits two teams (The Batz and The Clownz) against each other in what can only be assumed is multiplayer shenanigans. I can't wait to use a grappling hook to leap down upon my unsuspecting prey. HIYAAAAAAAAAH!

I'm gunna put a poll on facebook for next weeks review. I have three options: Brink, Duke Nukem Forever and Infamous 2. If i don't get any votes, well.... screw you guys. See you next time!!

E3 2011 Wrap Up

Well, it's that time of year again. Instead of commenting on E3 all through the week, I thought I'd do a quick wrap up here, tell you all about the most interesting parts of the three main press conferences, and also some of the newly announced games, games that have been seen for the first time, and gameplay features that have made a debut. Let's get into it, shall we?




MICROSOFT CONFERENCE
Microsoft's press conference could be summed up in a few words. X-Box Live. Kinect. Not enough exclusives, but some surprises.

Big demos of Modern Warfare 3 and Tomb Raider started the conference. MW3 apparently features enough explosions to make Michael Bay wet himself. Sounds fun. The Tomb Raider demo, on the other hand, shows off Lara's new look, as well as the "Survival Instinct" feature to help solve puzzles (now known as "Survival Escapes"). All in all, the rebooted look of Lara Croft is interesting. It's different, but still familiar. I'm looking forward to both of these games quite alot.

Games like Mass Effect 3 and Ghost Recon: Future Soldier made an appearance, if only to make Microsoft's investment in Kinect seem like a good idea. Mass Effect features some fairly cool squad commands for battle, but aside from that, the voice control seems a bit silly. I don't know about you, but when if I was to speak Shepard's dialogue option, I wouldn't want him to paraphrase right after me. But that's exactly what it does.
Ghost Recon, on the other hand, uses vocal and motion controls to modify weaponry, among other things. While it is cool to say "Optimize for close combat" and have the game modify your weapon accordingly, it all seems kind of lazy. But still cool.

X-Box live seems to be increasing it's features, with Bing and Youtube apps coming sometime in the future. I have no idea what Bing is, but I'd assume it's a search engine. Being able to search for something via voice control is pretty cool. And let's face it, Youtube makes everything better.

After showing off Gears 3 and Forza 4, Microsoft goes back to selling thier motion control crap and I become uninterested. A Fable rail shooter, Star Wars Kinect, Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster and Dance Central 2 are among the motion games that are coming out. Oh goodie...

And with that, the Microsoft conference ended... Or did it?.. One last trailer, and holy crap, who saw that coming? Halo 4. Microsoft has officially announced Halo 4. And 5 and 6. Yep, new trilogy. Coz when the lead developers leave, it's not the time to let a franchise die /sarcasm.


SONY CONFERENCE
Amazingly enough, the Sony press conference started with the recognition of the elephant in the room. They flat out apologized for the Hacking incident, and by my count, this is the second or third time. Can't say they aren't human.

After announcing the addition of CinemaNow, a movie and TV streaming service, Naughty Dog reps came on stage and showed off Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception. Stunning visuals are a benchmark of the series, and it seems as though Naughty Dog are continuing the trend with Drakes Deception.
A Resistance 3 presentation follows that up and, as with the preceeding demo, looks stunning. Sony have two really amazing looking games in their camp. Both demos were shown in 3D. Yes, Sony are still peddling that to those of us who can afford it.

But, in addition to their usual 3D displays, Sony unveiled something really interesting. A display that allows two people to look at the same screen and see two different displays. Not splitscreen. Two seperate displays to two different people. It's LIKE splitscreen... but it isn't.

More announcements, God of War: Origins are coming to the PS3 (that is, the PSP games), as well as the ICO collection, available in September. On the subject of HD remakes, how cool is it that we finally get the Metal Gear Solid Collection and Zone of the Enders collection??
Also a blast from the past, a new Sly Cooper game!! Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time comes out next year. Damn, Sucker Punch has been busy, what with InFAMOUS 2 being so awesome (oops, I guess thats my review gone).

Ken Levine makes an appearance to show off some Bioshock Infinite and talks about it's PS Move capabilities. Oh yay.. He also hints at some Bioshock NGP action. Oh Ken, you tease.

Speaking of the NGP, it's no longer known as the NGP. Say hello to the Playstation Vita. The PSVita features front and rear touch pads, motion sensing technology, front and rear cameras, two sticks. There will be both WiFi and 3G/WiFi models with about $50 difference between them. Honestly? I think Sony has a credible contender to Nintendo's coveted hand held crown.

Lots of console ports to make thier way to the Vita, including Uncharted: Golden Abyss, LittleBigPlanet and Modnation Racers. Eyewitness reports say that the graphics are just as slick as the console visuals.

The Sony conference was really 3D and Vita centric, but good none the less.


NINTENDO CONFERENCE
Following an orchestral arrangment of pieces from Legend of Zelda it's announced that For the 25th Anniversary of the series, each current platform is getting a new version, starting with Link's Awakening for the Gameboy Virtual Console. Next week, the 3DS is getting Ocarina of Time in 3D, complete with better framerate and improved graphics. In September on the DSi, Nintendo is giving away the four-player cooperative game as a free download. Then, to top it off, at the end of this year, Wii owners finally get Skyward Sword. Finally.

Super Mario, Mario Kart, Star Fox, Kid Icarus and Luigi's Mansion 2 have been revealed for the 3DS, so that thing might finally get some good titles that aren't Street Fighter. There are some good 3rd party titles on the way too; Mario and Sonic at the Olympics, Ace Combat, two Resident Evils, Tetris, Cave Story, Driver Renegade, PacMan and Galaga, Tekken and Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater.

The biggest announcement of the Nintendo conference was no doubt the final reveal of "Project Cafe", which will henceforth be known as... "Wii U". Oh shit. Come on guys, just make a normal sounding console!!! The tech behind the console sounds good, as the Nintendo higher ups seem to think that it will finally catch up to Sony and Microsoft on the High Def graphics race. However, that is yet to be seen, as most of the footage of 3rd part games seen for the Wii U was actually from PS3 and 360 versions. Smooth move Nintendo. I don't feel like you're trying to lie to me at all. No sir.

The most interesting thing about the console, however, seems to be the controller. The new controller features a 6.2" touch screen along with the usual suspects - two analog sticks, a d-pad, and the regular buttons found on the current Wii controllers. It also includes a microphone, speakers, an accelerometer, a gyroscope and an inward facing camera, which also supports videochat. It's not, however, a portable system; the images on the screen are generated by the console itself.

But the strange thing here is, according to sony, the PSVita and the PS3 will be able to do something similar on a console more reliable with 3rd party support. Only time will tell how this pans out.

As per usual, Nintendo carts out the old familiar franchises. A new Smash Bros will feature on the new system (and the 3DS), but aside from that, nothing particularly special. But, once again, Nintendo leads the charge into the next Gen, even if it's only catching up to the competition in terms of graphics now. Good luck to them.

CONCLUSION
As a whole, this wasn't the most exciting E3 for the big three. In terms of new IP's there was very little. In terms of unnannounced game reveals, there weren't that many. But in terms of showing us all a lot of new content from games releasing this year, yes, it was pretty full on. Best announcments of the big 3 are the details of the PSVita, Wii U and the X-Box Live updates coming soon. Not to mention the awesome dual display TV setup. That's awesome.

As for my top 5 games of E3, you'll have to look me up on Tuesday. For today, it was just the Big 3. Hope you guys enjoyed hearing all the E3 news. On Tuesday, Ill be back with "Top 5 Games of E3". See you Next Time!

Tophat Top 5: Characters that Should be Added to MVC3

One of my favourite things about Marvel Vs Capcom 3 is the wide variety in the roster. Albert Wesker, Dormammu, Wolverine, Deadpool, Amaterasu, Viewtiful Joe: All characters who are visually and functionally distinct. The roster wasn't without it's issues, however. Characters like X-23 and She-hulk just seemed like female counterparts to other, more popular characters, and could have been replaced for some really cool characters. Here's my top 5 characters who should have made the cut.

NUMBER 5
Bishop

When it comes to fighters, few are more varied than Bishop. Yes, there are characters who use guns, energy blasts and fisticuffs, but Bishop uses all three. Bishop also looks inherently badass, and as far as not-so-well-known X-men characters go, theres few more awesome than Bishop.

Besides, I think his mutant power to absorb and repurpose energy as destructive blasts fits perfectly with Marvel Vs Capcoms goal to cluster fuck my senses. Just imagine bright pink beams shooting across the screen! Awesome.

NUMBER 4
Pheonix Wright

Ask anyone to name a popular Capcom character, without mentioning a Street Fighter game. I bet that alot of gamers mention this slick haired, suit wearing ace attorney. Sure, when you think of a fighting game, you don't think of suits and ties, but Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 is a melting pot of absurd characters and out there visual design.

I wouldn't have a clue what his special attacks would be, but if he did anything while screaming "Objection" I'd be down for that.

NUMBER 3
Black Panther

A quick, yet powerful character to add would be the Black Panther. Again, not particularly well know, but damn cool if nothing else. His attacks could utilize throwing knives or standard daggers, as well as his natural hand to hand combat gifts.

I'd like to think that if he was a character, during his Hyper move, all you'd see was the blur of a black costume as your health steadily got lower and lower. Though not as bright and vibrant as the other characters on the roster, theres always the opportunity to mess around a bit with alternate colour schemes. I'd dig playing as the Pink Panther (ba dum tish).

NUMBER 2
FRANK WEST

If anyone has a varied move list, it's the Frank West. The man is an expert at using almost anything he can find as a weapon. The only way I could forgive his exclusion would be if Chuck Greene was in the game. Which he isn't. But if he was, weeeeeee SLICECYCLE!

Back on topic, Frank West won't just beat you down; after the fight, he's likely to put some stupid novelty mask on you and take a photo. Your shame will be immortalized with the snap of the lense. Besides, a fighting tournament? Please... He's covered wars, you know..

NUMBER 1
Nightcrawler

Ok, so MVC3 may have a lot of X-men as it is, but how could you miss out on Nightcrawler? He utilizes his teleportation powers as well as swift feet, swords and his demonic tail to deal damage, and his costume is visually interesting, with the standard colours being red and black with blue skin. And when he teleports, he leaves a puff of smoke behind. This sounds like the sort of visual design that was made for MVC3.

And as a little extra fan service to the comic book nerds out there, every time he teleports, flash the word BAMF up on screen. It would be epic. So.. maybe I love Nightcrawler a little too much. Shuttup, he's awesome.

Marvel Vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds

People who know me well enough might know what kind of games I'm into. For those of you who don't, pay attention. I'm more for a game that has a single player experience and I like me some story in games. Most of the time, I don't go in for games that really only offer multiplayer, or gameplay that relies heavily on multiplayer (The CoD games are somewhat of an exception). The point I'm labouriously trying to get to is, I'm not really one for racing games, mini game collections or fighting games. Mortal Kombat was an exception, because I've always liked the universe it was set in. Another exception, of sorts, were the Marvel Vs. Capcom games. MVC 3 was released recently, so lets so what I thought, shall we?

STORY
As with many fighting games, the story is told to us mainly through ending sequences, and the opening cinematics. Unfortunately there isn't much dialogue, so I'll try and sum it up as best I can.

Somehow the two worlds of Marvel and Capcom collide, and everyone starts beating up on everyone who looks different. It then becomes apparent that villains of these worlds seem to be working together, with their main plan having something to do with Albert Weskers Uroboros virus, and the power cosmic of Galactus. Yes, the Devourer of Worlds shows up, but only briefly, and theres no real explaination as to what the hell is going on.

The story, as I said before, is conveyed mainly through ending slideshows and the opening cinematics, all of which look awesome. They hint strongly at other characters being transported between worlds, but the whole thing lacks context, or details.

PRESENTATION
Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 looks amazing, once you see through all the particle effect cluster fucks that are the special moves. The game sports a lightly cel shaded aesthetic that really suits the comic book style of the characters, games and the comic book look of the ending slideshows.

The soundtrack is upbeat and high energy, perfect for the high speed combat that the game pulls off so smoothly. There are literally no visual hiccups to speak of, which is amazing, considering how much is going on at any singular moment. The character design is slick, and just detailed enough to not look too busy or messy.

Voice overs for the characters as they spout the name of thier special attacks or partners over and over again are spot on, and never stray too far from what the characters should sound like. Yes, hearing thier voice every time I do a certain move can be irritating, but there is an option to turn it off. Or switch it to Japanese. If you're into that.


GAMEPLAY
Going into MVC3, I assumed that it would be fairly standard compared to most fighters. I was wrong. In the past, many fighting games would require to know the list of intricate combos to be genuinely good, without button mashing. Marvel vs Capcom 3 has changed the usual button layout (two buttons for punching, two for kicks) for a much simpler approach. There's now a button for light, mid and heavy attacks, as well as a special pop up attack to send your opponent flying. While the control scheme is simplified, it still takes a while to master, or even become adequate without relying on button mashing.

For those of you who still feel this might be too much effort, a simple mode has been added. It apparently maps full combos to each button, so have fun kicking as with that. I say apparently because I never got the chance to try it myself. My bad.

My biggest complaint with many fighting games is that sometimes the CPU opponents come of as cheap. While this is certainly true of MVC3, I find it somewhat justified, because the cheapest fight in the game is, you know, GALACTUS. I fdefeating a cosmic entity was easy, then no one would be scared when, you know, it threatens to EAT YOU.

The roster, while not as large as previous games, is quite varied (If only due to the omission of palette swap characters), and no one in particular feels overpowered. Amaterasu (from Okami) has an extremely easy attack that does seriously demented damage, and she has an absurdly small hit box (every attack goes over her). While this seems unfair at first, you then have to remember that she can't take a whole lot of damage. The roster is surprisingly balanced; there are characters who can be completely unbeatable, but its ok, because ALL the characters can be like that.

My biggest problem with MVC3, aside from the lack of contextual story, is that its very light for different modes. While there are training mission modes, as well as online and arcade modes but really, thats about all there is.
Looking at new models or images in the gallery is all well and good, but I buy games to play. MVC3 doesn't have the variation of other games in the market.

REPLAYABILITY
Like I said above, there are very few different modes, so your main source of replayability stems from multiple playthroughs of the Arcade mode, and getting friends over to kick the crap out of them. While fighting games have always been sort of like this, Mortal Kombat showed us that you are allowed some variety in your modes. MVC3 just doesn't show that.

OVERVIEW
Marvel Vs Capcom 3 is a fast paced, over the top, beautifully stylized game with little variety, despite everything it does well. While the game works well enough, theres just not enough to do to keep someone like me interested. I've played the Arcade mode alot, and I still find it fun, but I find myself stopping every so often to play something else. A few more modes would have solved this problem, I believe.

But, if you're looking to just kick some ass, you could do worse than this. The roster isn't huge, but it's varied. Lots of awesome Marvel AND capcom characters have made the cut, and I was impressed to see the Dread Dormammu as a playable character. The simplified control scheme is basic enough to pick up and play, but deep enough for you to master characters with a fair amount of time invested in it. Gamers who enjoy a straight up fight will most likely enjoy this one.
NOW WHERE THE HELL ARE PHEONIX WRIGHT AND FRANK WEST?!


Thats all for this week, for the Tuesday Tophat 5 I'm thinking maybe "Top 5 Characters", or "Top 5 Characters I think need to be added". And for next weeks review, if the fates deem it so, Brink. If not... I havent got a clue.
See you next time!