20 PS3 Exclusives in 2013

20 PS3 Exclusives in 2013

Even though the PS4 has been announced and is coming by the end of this year, Sony continues to dutifully support its current console, with at least 20 PS3 exclusives scheduled to be released this year.

IGN wrote an article with details about each game – The 20 PlayStation 3 Exclusives of 2013 – but I’ve created a concise list below.  And believe me, it ain’t bad at all.

• Atelier Ayesha: The Alchemist of Dusk
• Beyond: Two Souls
• Disgaea D2: A Brighter Darkness
• Dragon’s Crown
• Dust 514
• God of War: Ascension
• Gran Turismo 6
• Guacamelee!
• Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory
• MLB 13: The Show
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch
• Puppeteer
• Rain
• Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time
• Tales of Xillia
• The Guided Fate Paradox
• The Last of Us
• The Witch and the Hundred Knights
• Time and Eternity
• Until Dawn

NEW GAME - Metroid Other M

NEW GAME – Metroid Other M

I was browsing Toys N Joys yesterday (a game and collectible store here in Hawaii), and came across a copy of Metroid Other M for $15.  I’ve been on the edge about picking up this game for awhile, so the low price encouraged me into the purchase.

I’ve read positive reviews about the game, so I’ll let you all know what I think shortly.

Major Skyrim Update

Major Skyrim Update

Steam Skyrim players scored a pretty awesome update to Skyrim today (with console versions coming later this month).  For one, a new Legendary difficulty setting has been added, and two (this is the BIG one) skills can now become Legendary.

What does this mean specifically?  Skills that have been maxed out at level 100 can be designated as Legendary.  This resets the skill level to 15, and allows increases in the skill to once again count towards your character level.  So really, this also significantly increases the overall character level cap.  This means the longevity of the overall Skyrim experience has been bolstered, as well.

The IGN article where I obtained this information also mentions that, when a skill becomes Legendary, the Perks are “returned”.  What does this mean?  It wouldn’t make sense for a character to “forget” Perks, so to speak.  Perhaps additional Perks, or higher maximum levels for existing Perks, become available?  I’m really excited to see how all this works in practice.

Any Steam users have any commentary on this update yet?  Let me know!

PlayStation News this Week

PlayStation News this Week

Some PlayStation news bites for you all...

• Beyond: Two Souls Release Date Announced as 10/8/13 for the PS3
• Assassins Creed 4: Black Flag Announced
• Each of Sony’s 12 studios are working on PS4 games
• Gameplay videos can be uploaded straight to Ustream, but it won’t be a service exclusive to PS4
• Every PS4 game will be available as a digital download, but primary games will still be available on Blu-Ray disc
• No cross play between the PC and PS3/PS4 versions of Diablo III
• Battlefield 4 has been announced for next generation systems
• Cost for PS4 games will range between $0.99 and $60.00

For a full recap, see the IGN video here - Everything You Need to Know About PS4 (03.01.13)

My Concise Ni No Kuni Review

My Concise Ni No Kuni Review

I’ve been hearing some mixed reactions about my beloved Ni No Kuni, so I wanted to share my HONEST opinions about the game, condensed in a quick and dirty list:

Positives:

• Stunning graphics and music
• Lots to do – sidequests, bounty hunts, and catching familiars
• Huge game world, full of things to find
• Variety of options to customize your team
• Simple battle design and mechanics
• Heartwarming story and memorable characters

Negatives:

• Grinding is necessary, sometimes excessively so
• Familiars only learn from a relatively small pool of moves, and hardly any are truly unique
• Locket fetch quests become tedious quickly
• Feeding familiars is expensive and requires you to round up a considerable number of rare ingredients, and the results aren’t all that noticeable
• Merit rewards for completing tasks are forced on you (i.e. you have to get them all)

All in all, I loved the game for (1) the visuals and musical score, (2) the ability to catch, raise, and evolve familiars, and (3) adventuring around the world to “collect everything”.  It really is a JRPG at heart and requires a significant time investment, but the negatives are worth it IF you like this type of game.  If you’ve never cared for JRPGs, its probably going to be boring to you.