2D-X » Strategy

Worms Reloaded weapons trailer

Thomas Rivas — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 14:06:25 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

From humble beginnings, the original Worms titles took PC gaming to new levels of popularity and mass appeal. Selling in excess of 25 million copies over its 15 year lifespan, Worms has taken its wholly unique brand of addictive gameplay, hilarious humour and wild weaponry across almost every console possible. Now, Team17 is presenting the first in a number of trailers that show off Worms Reloaded, their triumphant 2D return to the PC; the first in nearly 10 years.

This video focuses on the incredible new weapons, tactics and features available to the avid Worms player, with nods to old favourites that can still be found in Worms Reloaded.

Worms fans can pre-order Worms Reloaded via Steam now, with bonuses including a 10% discount, 24 hours early access to the game and exclusive in-game items to enhance your chosen team. Worms Reloaded releases August 26th but early birds can click here to pre-order.

Battle vs. Chess adds violence to the classic game

Laurie-Anne Vazquez — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 23:48:29 +0000

Ever thought about playing chess, but figured it wasn’t man enough for you? Topware Interactive and Gaijin Entertainment thought the same thing – and that’s why they created Battle vs. Chess.

A cross between Fritz11! chess software and a traditional beat ‘em up, Battle vs. Chess incorporates the strategy of chess with the action of fighting games to make what sounds to be a truly awesome blend. There are six game environments with animated pieces like giant stone golems and creepy horsemen to disguise the fact you’re playing an upgraded board game. And then there’s the fighting.

When one player tries to take another’s position on the board, Action Mode kicks in. Transporting both pieces to an arcade-style fighting arena, the two sides engage in mortal combat for their position on the board.

There are 10 levels of difficulty for 1-2 players, but some ports will feature online combat for an additional challenge.

Battle vs. Chess will be released on Xbox 360, PS3, PC/MAC, Wii, DS, and PSP in fall 2010.

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Worms Reloaded heads to PC August 26th

Jeffrey L. Wilson — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 03:10:53 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

I loves me some Worms.

The series, much like N+, is unique in that you can have an absolute blast playing even if your endeavors amount to consistent and total failure. Truly, it’s a testament to Team 17′s remarkable game design vision.

The lastest series entry, Worms Reloaded, is slated to be released on August 26th on the platform that started the insanity: the PC. The skinny!

“Worms Reloaded has been a labour of love for the team given the legacy of 2D PC Worms™ titles such as Worms 2, Worms Armageddon etc. It has been almost 10 years since the last 2D game was released on personal computers”, said Martyn Brown, iconic figure in the world of Worms™ and Business Development Director at Team17. “In bringing Worms Reloaded to PC, we’ve reintroduced so much of what gamers loved about the good old days, and it’s fitting that it is also the first Worms game we’ve self-published since the early games. We are very much looking forward to supporting the game through the community on Steam as well as our own Facebook page.”

Worms Reloaded will feature over 60 single-player missions (including new Warzone Campaign and Bodycount Mode), a fully featured landscape creator, 45+ plus weapons spanning the entire Worms series, and a currency-based customization system. It also sports cutesy high-definition 2D graphics.

Diehards that pre-order Worms Reloaded will receive several bonuses: a 10% discount, 24 hours early access to the game, and exclusive in-game items to enhance your chosen team. To pre-order Worms Reloaded, point your browser toward http://store.steampowered.com/app/22600.

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No StarCraft II? We got screenshots for ya

Jeffrey L. Wilson — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 05:53:40 +0000

It’s been a long, LONG, time coming, but Blizzard Entertainment’s hotly-anticipated real-time strategy game is finally upon us–any true gamer knows the significance of the StarCraft II release. In fact, can you hear that faint, rumbling sound in the distance? It’s the entire nation of Korea having a simultaneous gamergasm.

If you aren’t one of the many playing StarCraft II, don’t fret–feast your eyes on these images until you get the game into your grubby little paws. Enjoy.

Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together to PSP

Timothy Torres — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 03:00:08 +0000

Square Enix is finally reviving the Tactic Ogres brand they absorbed so very long ago, and they’re getting a dream team together to do it.

Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together, a remake of the original Super Famicom strategy RPG from 15 years ago will arrive on Japanese and American PSPs courtesy of its original creators: Character designer Akihiko Yoshida, director Hiroshi Minagawa, composers Hitoshi Sakamoto and Masaharu Iwata and game designer Yasumi Matsuno, who all worked together on venerable RPG classics Final Fantasy Tactics, Vagrant Story and Final Fantasy XII. The return of Matsuno is a particularly large surprise since he has been out of the news for the past five years after walking away from development on Final Fantasy XII.

This new remake will be created with the simple idea – “how Tactics Ogre would be if it was developed and played now.” That includes reworked through still 16-bit-inspired visuals, new 3D maps that enhance the concept on height in battles, a re-arranged soundtrack by the original composers that will include 15 new tracks, new characters, new gameplay mechanics and a new Wheel of Fortune system that should extend gameplay value significantly.

Anyone unfamiliar with the name Tactics Ogre, know it’s one of the only titles to place in the Japanese gaming magazine Weekly Famitsu’s “Top 20 games voted by readers” for 14 years running. Also know that the other games this team made — Final Fantasy Tactics and Vagrant Story, and Final Fantasy XII in some circles — are some of the best video games ever made. Not just the best RPGs, some of the best games. Period. These guys haven’t disappointed yet and I don’t think they’re about to start.

Alien Breed: Impact Looks like Starcraft 2 and Doom 3 had a kid

Chris Gampat — Sat, 29 May 2010 14:01:29 +0000

Alien Breed: Impact, with its desolate, war-torn sci-fi setting, is a game that should appeal to Starcraft 2, Doom 3, and Dead Space fans. Created by Team17 and coined as an “action-packed mix of arcade-shooter, survival-horror and tactical weapons upgrades and customization,” the video footage from the game (seen below) looks like a top-down RPG on steroids, and appears to contain similar drugs as the Stim Packs in StarCraft 2.

Features include a a single-player campaign mode that follows the narrative of the game through five different environments, two-player co-op mode where players need to work together to defeat the alien horde across three specifically customized maps, Quick Match, Create Game, Friends Lists, Voice Chat, Leader-boards and Co-operative Achievements. Team 17 states that more goodies are coming down the pipe as well.

Alien Breed: Impact can be pre-ordered from Steam before its June 3rd for just $15. Team 17 also offers a free trial so that you can try before you buy.

XSEED brings Yuji Naka’s Ivy the Kiwi? to North America this summer

Timothy Torres — Thu, 06 May 2010 02:24:06 +0000

Yuji Naka, best known for his marvelous work as the head of Sonic Team, looks to dazzle games yet again, this time with Ivy the Kiwi?, the latest creation from his programing house, Prope.

Akin to Nintendo’s Kirby Canvas Curse, Ivy the Kiwi? puts players in control of vines that guide the flightless bird to safety and to her mother, across spiky floors, pits and “other menacing obstacles.” Ivy the Kiwi? also sports a “a beguiling storybook-like art style.”

More than 100 stages are in store for curious gamers when Ivy the Kiwi? comes to the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, and Windows Mobile platforms this summer, courtesy of XSEED.

Record of Agarest War brings video game sexy time to Xbox 360 today, PlayStation Store Thursday

Jeffrey L. Wilson — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 02:36:19 +0000

What happens when you combine video game sexy time with a thinking man’s strategy-rpg? The result is Aksys Games’ Record of Agarest War, which hit store shelves today (for Xbox 360; the PlayStation Store version will be released on Thursday).

Many games claim an epic scope, but Record of Agarest War truly delivers with over 100 hours of gameplay–100 hours! Developed by Compiled Heart, RED Entertainment, and Idea Factory, Record of Agarest War invites players into a gorgeous, expansive world of hope, despair, cute 2D sprites, and lots of anime-style eyecandy to titillate and delight. Players will wage war against the evil forces of darkness, take a bride (several,actually), and extend their lineage across five generations. It sounds very much like old school Phantasy Star, really. But with more ta-tas. Aksys Games speaks!

“As the release of Record of Agarest War nears, spirits are high here,” says Ben Bateman, Localization Editor, Aksys Games, struggling to be heard over a scene reminiscent of the end of Return of the Jedi. “The discs have been pressed, the mousepads fully tested, and the downloads uploaded. We feel confident that this game is poised to bring happiness to untold thousands. Candidly, anyone who does not feel elation at our impending release may have lost the capability to do so.”

Awesome. Some of the key gameplay features include Soul Breeding (the system that allows you to create a family), Collaborative Attacks (massive combo attacks using multiple party members-both in melee and at range), Affection Rating (used to gauge how the ladies feel about you), trophies, and achievements.

For some glorious Record of Agarest War visuals, check out our gallery for more sexy time images. Oh yeah, and gameplay, too. You can purchase the game from the 2D-X Store.

[View with PicLens]

Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes headed to PSN/XBLA this summer

Jeffrey L. Wilson — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 03:06:47 +0000

Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes may very well be the best game of 2009 that no ones’s played. A shame, really, as the strategy-RPG featured a compelling storyline, tough boss battles, and a chess-like element that added plenty of brain-stimulating challenges.

If you missed out on the Nintendo DS version, you can still get in on the action as Capybara Games is porting the game to PSN and XBLA this summer complete with the HD treatment and a fresh graphical overall that adds lots of visual flair that’s a step above the ho-hum sprites seen in the original. Once you make your way past the above video’s gag-worthy IGN lovefest, you get to see the game in action–and it looks damned good.

TimeWasters: Infector: World Domination

Chris Gampat — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 05:19:40 +0000

TimeWasters highlights many of the excellent Web-based/lightweight downloadable titles that you can dive into within the space of a lunch break. This week, Chris Gampat explores Infector: World Domination.

I have seen the end of the world, and it has zombies. In fact, Infector: World Domination is literally all about zombies taking over town after town, and country after country. It’s not a simple game, but a couple of clicks with a mouse allows you to really lay siege to the entire world. Plan it all out carefully as you’ll really need it later on.

The premise of the game is that you’re a virus that is infecting the world and turning them into zombies. You need to spread and kill off the human population in each town. Each town requires you to kill off a certain amount of people and collect money as well. Ultimately, you want to kill the entire population if you can.

After you’re finish with the level, you go to a news screen reporting what happened and showing your results. After this, you can choose to upgrade your stats using the on/off switch in the bottom right hand corner.

There are loads of upgrades: amounts of times you can spread the virus, inter-spreading, attack, speed, and more. Additionally, you can upgrade your special infected that you get along the way. The Tank is just like the Tank in Left 4 Dead 2. MJ is Michael Jackson who comes out and dances with his zombies and then ravages the population. Santa Boomer is identical to the boomer in Left 4 Dead. Col is Colonel Sanders who drops infected chickens that attack people in swarms. McD is Ronald McDonald who drops infected burgers. And Venom is received after you defeat Spider Man in NYC: he shoots webbing at people which paralyzes them.

Later on in the levels, the people start fighting back and sometimes even the military, special agents, and special forces come in to take on the infection. This gets really hard as you need to divide and conquer fast and also swarm your opposition.

That’s the problem them: the zombies run around mindlessly. I can’t tell you how many times I could’ve beat the game if only they just attacked this one person walking around on the other size of the map. Instead the zombies basically just went around in their own little corner before dying (yes, they have a limited amount of time that they stay alive.)

The music is nothing really epic, but takes you back to that old school 8-bit days. If you remember Zombies Ate My Neighbors then you’ll feel right at home with this.

The graphics are very, very 8-bit and the whole experience is top down like in a real-time strategy game. You can actually think of it that way because the people move around often in the level and you have to try to figure out where to place your viruses and special infected in order to maximize the spread.

If you’re a zombie lover or just some maniacal person that plots of taking over the world from their cubicle, this is a rightous game for you to check out.