GTA Trilogy Remaster

There was news back in the summer about the PlayStation 2 Grand Theft Auto games getting a remaster. While III, Vice City, and San Andreas are still excellent games, some aspects could have been finely tuned to be better. The news is confirmed that they are getting a re-release this year. Downside is that the original versions are getting delisted on PS3, PS4, and Xbox 360. The same is going to happen for the HD San Andreas game on 360. At the time of this blog on a Monday night, they probably have be taken off the digital stores already. If not, this week. 

These are coming out on everything. Xbox One, Xbox Series, PS4, PS5, PC, iOS, Android, and the Switch. The fact that Nintendo is getting these is a huge surprise. Only their handhelds had GTA games with ports of the first two and two original releases. Rockstar has shown some support with Manhunt 2, Table Tennis and Bully on the Wii and L.A. Noire on Switch. Having GTA is a benchmark for the developer. From all assumptions, these will play roughly the same, but have better visuals. I have a feeling it will get cleaned up quite a bit to retain their looks but utilize the hardware of everything.

As far as delisting goes, I'm not sure if this is going to be permanent or not. I wouldn't think so, but weird things do happen in gaming. With the PC, you can find copies of them. You can also find copies for the PS2 and original Xbox. These were mega sellers. Millions upon millions, especially on PS2. Very common and going for 10 to 25 dollars. Maybe more if people are trying to popularize theme even more. There is that talk of game preservation, but the discs are not inaccessible. GTA is in a strange spot and I don't have an easy answer on how to solve the issue of digital stuff being taken away.

These should do decently and the price will hover around 40 to 60 dollars. You're getting 200 plus hours worth of content with these three games. I'll have to wait and see how it fares and see some gameplay to see if it's worth getting. For now, it's a decent way of celebrating 20 years since GTA III released and changed how games could be played.

Crash Bandicoot 4 Thoughts

Crash Bandicoot was one of the very first games I ever played on PlayStation. The N. Sane Trilogy was why I bought a PS4 back in June 2017. But will people bite for a brand new game? I think so. Many have wanted a new release for a long time. Ignoring mobile phone games, there hasn't been a new game in 12 years. Enter Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time. Playful words for multiple reasons. Time will come at the start of October for PS4 and Xbox One.

There was a leak not too long ago about the game and today, June 22, Activision put out a trailer. This is a sequel, but it's a follow up to Warped. If you got the true ending to Warped, you might have an idea on what they are doing. From the trailer, Cortex has had time to make plans to defeat his nemesis. Crash and Coco are ready and set to foil whatever bad deeds the scientist has. The designs are a little different on the characters, but not completely altered like a Crash of the Titans or Mind Over Mutant.

Looking at gameplay, it looks like it would be a bit more fast paced. Stuff from the original trilogy like riding on a vehicle in the water. Futuristic levels. Creative boss fights against bad guys like Dr. N Gin. It's taking what made the 90s games great and going with notion of not needing to tweak it for specific reasons. If I'm guessing, it's going to at least 30 levels. Secret ones. Time trials. Variety of worlds to go through. I do have some concern. I'm curious as to whether it will be like Twinsanity (I don't think it will) in being a bit open world or be like the original trilogy. The length I'm wondering, but that's more of a nitpick. Ultimately, I would like to see how much original stuff is brought into this release.

All that in mind, I am very interested. It will be the first time where I can experience an original new release as an adult for this series. We do need to see more of these. Hopefully, the release date is not bad considering the potential releases of PS5 and Xbox Series X around mid-late November. Hell, I could see this coming to those systems. Kind of surprised no Switch version, but I do think there will be one. Maybe release a month or two later around Christmas. Toys for Bob has done ports to the system. But this should be an exciting time to fully revive the bandicoot, especially as he reaches 25 years old next year.

Console Buyer's Guide 2019

Black Friday and the holiday season begins very soon, so there is the look of what game systems are out on the market. For 2019, it may mark one of the last big years for the current ones out there.

Starting with the dead systems, it's safe to say you can't find many PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, Wii U, and Vita games on store shelves. Your best bet is going to be the used local stores or having to use online to get the games. Everything but the Vita can still be found easily at a GameStop, but how much longer they will have these games, I'm not sure. Until PS3 and 360 stop using servers for good would be my guess or when the new systems come out in November.

I'm surprised to still see the 3DS on store shelves. Nintendo stated that it will still be supported heading into 2020, but I don't buy into it fully. Not any big releases and being eight years old is not healthy. I guess milk it until the cows come home. For what it was able to do, it stabilized and did very well following a disastrous launch due to the high price. You can find 2DS XL's and some games, but the selection is not the greatest at most stores. Used local stores and online may be the ultimate way to get the titles you may want that aren't the usual suspects.

This year will be the last very huge year for PS4 and Xbox One. I don't think there's one advantage over the other except in exclusives. It comes down to what you like more. Do you like Halo, Gears of War, and a couple others? Uncharted, MLB, Ratchet and Clank? I still think the edge goes to PlayStation, but I don't think either one is a bad choice. They're cheap and you can get games at good prices everywhere. Not much else to say.

Last is the Switch. The Lite model should entice some for the holiday season, but will they like that it's portable only? That I'd ask because it being a hybrid prior to the release may be the only incentive. I think there should be a price cut for the original model. Beyond the first party games, there is relatively good support still and plenty of releases from older games and new ones. It's a way to make up for some of Nintendo's blunders. How well this does beyond this year and 2020 is a question in itself and if the novelty sticks or fades away.

Shop safe. Shop smart. And shop carefully for these systems and games.

Friday the 13th: The Game Review

There are plenty of horror games on a number of game systems that do stuff their own way or in a tribute. Titles like Spltterhouse, Resident Evil, Alone in the Dark, the list goes on. But how about Friday the 13th? The franchise has been around for almost 40 years and the only game it has prior to this May 2017 release is the NES game from 1988. You play this one, and you are hooked.

You can either be the good guys or the bad guy. As camp counselors, you must survive for 20 minutes, but there are ways of escaping Jason Voorhees. You have to find parts for cars and boats. Once you got them and for the cars, the keys, you can get out of harm's way. Be aware, though. Jason is one tough cookie and will stop you in those vehicles. There's always calling the cops... if you can find a phone box fuse. If they are called, you got a five minute waiting time before they show up and you go to them to successfully escape. There's also just going through those 20 minutes.

There's an assortment of counselors, some of which you will unlock over time as you play more of Friday the 13th. Each one has their own strengths and weaknesses. Some might have good stamina and repair skills with horrible composure and stealth and vice versa. It's a matter of who picks who when playing online. You will want to team up and escape, but scattering is not always a bad thing. Be aware of those skills. They will either help or hurt you. You can also set up distractions and use an assortment of weapons to stop the killer. There is health, which can be healed with first aid spray.

People can also play as Jason. There are various versions of him, each with pros and cons. Some versions may have better weapon damage or kills, and other ones might have better physical stats. Either way you must kill all the counselors Both sides will have traps that they can set. Jason has knives. He can use certain moves that are time based and need to fill up every time they are used. Either way, get rid of all seven, maybe eight if a counselor called for Tommy Jarvis. There aren't too many locations. After all, it's about being alone and fearing Jason.

It's not too bad graphically for being a Kickstarter game. There are some goofy looking models of some of the characters, but it captures the horror of being at a camp quite well. It's dark, there's only some lights in the area. The deaths are quite brutal. Add in the soundtrack and the theme of Jason, and this is the kind of game for some that will want you turning the lights off and cranking the sound up. The voice actors are believable enough to be scared and ready to wet their pants. Overall, those two facets cover strongly what should be done for something horror related.

When you play online, you get experience points and CP. The CP is currency. You can choose to upgrade the counselors and Jason. They have various perks, kills, the whole nine yards. Unfortunately, it's only a few slots, but that's perks of a horror game. You can't always carry everything. As far as other goes, there is offline play. You can customize the characters via the upgrades. Options can be tweaked for audio and gamma capabilities. Progress can be checked a little bit.

I don't have a lot of complaints about this game so far. The lack of jumping and even vaulting from fences is a bit annoying. There isn't much to say about the counselors, but with Jason, sometimes, tapping the button very quickly tires out your finger. That being said, you can still play well and get at least few counselors. Anyway, you should check out Friday the 13th. It's on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. You will be having some fun in a game that is campy, cheesy, and knows when to throw the punches.

Score: 8 out of 10

.Wolfenstein: The Old Blood Review

WARNING: To anyone that is reading this in Germany, this might be censored.

What was originally going to be an expansion DLC to The New Order, Wolfenstein: The Old Blood got built up as a stand alone game. It's result in May of 2015 was one that had a bit of praise. Once again with MachineGames developing, it's more of the same single player action. It's still good, but not as strong as its predecessor.

Set before The New Order, Old Blood is set in early 1946. The Allies are losing the war and Helga Von Schabbs has a folder containing the location of General Wilhelm Strasse at Castle Wolfenstein. B.J. Blazkowicz and Agent One must get it to plan an assault and stop the war from getting worse. More or less, it's their own version of Return to Castle Wolfenstein, but with their own timeline. Things don't go as planned and B.J. must survive to get the Allies a much needed victory. Obviously, it doesn't come close to what the previous game did, but not every game needs a story. Still, there is some development and a decent cast of characters that B.J. surrounds himself around.

Nothing changed in terms of gameplay. It's still that same love letter to the 90s and 2000s. Just like before, there is exploration and a number of secrets similar to Wolfenstein 3D and Doom. It also retains the one man army and objective based ideas of Goldeneye and Medal of Honor along with some new school ideas from Wolfenstein 2009 and Bioshock. There are eight levels, but very expansive and complex as you go through parts of Germany. The focus on single player is still MachineGames' bread and butter, so no multiplayer.

I didn't notice much of a change in the graphics, but it's still nice for an early release. It's more the little details and with the focus on newer hardware and no older tech (was not on PS3 and 360), you can notice finer details on the characters and areas. Just some of the outdoor areas are breathtaking and nice to get a look at. The audio is more or less the same. It's music is part orchestra and part rock depending on your scenarios.  Voice acting is top notch and the accents are very real. Doesn't seem fake. Both facets are still given a lot of care.

Like New Order, Old Blood doesn't have a huge variety of weapons, but each one has its use. It's more old school like Medal of Honor as you don't have any laser type weaponry. Dual wielding is still a part of the fun. The knife still has its use along with the grenades. Unlike most games, it has a good balance between stealth and action, and they give you an equal amount of both aspects. The focus there is bigger. As before, there perks to what you can do during the game, as well as trophy and achievement support.

Brought back is the health system where there are plenty of health pickups, regeneration, and armor. Overcharge returns, but unfortunately, there is no small upgrades. They offer one upgrade perk, but that's it. As with the series, an emphasis on treasure is present. The same can be said with concept art and letters. No enigma stuff, but there are challenges to get medals, adding to a bit of replay value. More or less, the level design has the same ideas. It's linear, but there is a bit of freedom to explore in the areas combined with having strategies for different kinds of Nazis.

There wasn't a huge spike in difficulty, but it had a few more cheap moments compared to New Order. Outside of the story, (which that can be forgiven) the only major complaints I have is trying to fight off a handful of enemies at once and their constant throwing of grenades. The armor still has some problems, but it's not as bad. Anyway, this is still a fun game. Old Blood may not be like The New Order, but it still has some good satisfaction in gameplay and still retaining what made the Wolfenstein games excellent.

Score: 7 out of 10

Battletoads is Back!

No review today, but some interesting stuff to come out of Microsoft's E3 conference. Within the past year, we've seen Sonic Mania, a new Bubsy, and the recently released Shaq Fu sequel. It's like living in the 90s again. Now it's going to keep feeling like that decade with the announcement of a new Battletoads video game.

The franchise made it's debut in the summer of 1991 on the NES and only lasted a few years. All of it's games were developed by Rare and were pretty much an attempt to go after Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Years have gone by and there's that question of whether there would be new games. It's slated for next year and that has to be making waves.

Now comes this question. What kind of game is it going to be? If anything, it could be a platformer/beat em up type similar to the original. Then again, it could be one genre, but how that flies with Rare is up to them. As long as it doesn't stray from what made it a bit recognizable, this could be one of Microsoft's bigger exclusives for the Xbox One. Hopefully, it's not as brutally difficult as the NES original.

People envy the 90s, and that's not always a bad thing.

Wolfenstein: The New Order Review

WARNING: To anyone that is reading this in Germany, this might be censored.

If you've read a few of my blogs, I am big into Id Software. Mainly through Doom and Wolfenstein. The Wolfenstein reviews are some that I have thoroughly enjoyed writing. It has had several revivals in the new millennium with the recent one beginning back in May 2014 with The New Order. To say it's a refreshing game is an understatement. This was a shot in the arm that first person shooters needed.

Let's pretend that World War II still continued. MachineGames gives audiences an alternative history. Once again, B.J. Blazkowicz  is leading a group to kill General Deathshead in 1946. Things go awry and shrapnel hits his head. This leads to a coma that lasts for 14 years. In that time, Nazis have taken over the entire world. Not even its Italian allies were supported. Determined to do whatever it takes, B.J. tries to assemble resistance members in hope of eradicating the Nazis and bring the world back to normal. Normally, Wolfenstein games are pretty weak in story, but this is developed very well. It gives you a range of characters with their strengths and weaknesses. You feel for the resistance group and it gives B.J. a personality beyond killing Nazis. Retconning his life to this is not a bad thing. It may not be the strongest story of this generation, but they do good with what they have.

Why is this game refreshing? Because it doesn't cater to the way Call of Duty and Halo are played. You got 16 levels. Each one has you completing various objectives. These are pretty lengthy. You're going to spend quite a bit of time exploring each area. It's a love letter to both old school and new school games. Obviously, it's a love for the Wolfenstein 3D and Doom. Levels with tons of exploration, secrets with valuable items. It's also a tribute to late 90s and early 2000s games like Goldeneye and Medal of Honor. Games that had you as a one man army, but doing objectives, finding tons of ammo at your disposal. New school wise, it's more in line with 2009 Wolfenstein and a bit of BioShock. Locations take you through parts of Europe and even one special level that you have to experience yourself.

There is a lack of a muiltiplayer. That isn't a bad thing. While it might hurt its value, MachineGames had one goal in mind. Deliver a single player experience that has been sorely missing following the first Modern Warfare game. To be able to have a game that is like the early Medal of Honor games, and Goldeneye along with Id's early shooters is why this gets a lot of praise.

It's a very early title for this generation's set of systems, but it looks nice. This feels optimized and developed with PS4 and Xbox One in mind. The areas and character modeling is nice. How the Nazis built parts of Europe are crafted beautifully (ironic, isn't it) and showcase what the hardware is capable of. It's audio reminds of Medal of Honor and Doom. They have parts with orchestra for certain parts, but with gun play, it's rock music that gives you a rush to go after the Nazis. Overall, they got both facets done well.

New Order's set of weapons is not huge in variety, but it gets the job done. What really helps is each one has good use and you have to rely on them, with MachineGames making sure that each one is not forgotten. You can dual wield guns. The knife aspect going back to 3D is still here. Grenades can still be carried. Some of them have certain upgrades like rockets and silencers. The idea is not always to run and gun your way through an area. Taking the stealth approach is more rewarding than most other games. There is perks that can be unlocked if you perform certain kill tasks and add to your trophies/achievements.

The health system is a combo of regenerating and a health bar. Once again, the love letter to 3D and Doom are there. You have armor pickups as well as health. Even dog food is a pickup. You can overcharge your health, but it will drop to whatever the maximum you can have. There are upgrades to both, increasing by 10 each time. Treasure is still a trademark to the series, so there are plenty of gold to find. Quite a bit more is added to the mix like enigma code pieces, letters, and concept art of levels, all of which can be accessed at any time in the main menu. It adds to the phenomenal level design. To be fair, it is linear, but it still gives you the freedom at times to take a look before heading on to the next area. You have to figure out how to deal with Nazis, since each kind is not the same.

For the difficulty, it's pretty good. They give you different difficulty modes, and the combat against the Nazis is mostly fair. There are some cheap moments at points during the game. My biggest complaint is the armor. At times, you can get hit with little damage from gunfire or too much. It's hard to explain, but I feel at times it is useless, especially when trying to hold off certain enemies on your own. Some levels do have certain parts that are questionable, but not anything to where you give up very quickly. But overall, Wolfenstein: The New Order is a great game that needs to be played. Worthy of the praise it has had the last four years.

Score: 8 out of 10

Sega Genesis Compilation for a New Generation

In a world where selling older games individually is common thing, only a couple companies are willing to continue selling compilations. One of them is Sega. It goes all the way back to the Genesis around the mid 90s beginning with 6-Pak and Sonic Classics. As the 2000s started, they became more interested in bringing their older game lineup to modern systems. At the end of May, Sega Genesis Classics will make its way to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

Over the years, consoles have seen a set of games from Sega. The PlayStation 2 saw an arcade set and a Genesis set, the latter going for 20 dollars with over 30 games and also appearing on PSP. Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection had just about 50 when it made it to the PS3 and Xbox 360. This new one will have just over 50. For people on computers, this isn't exactly new. Steam has a version of this, but in different volumes when it came out back in 2010, though it's all together as one package.

Some notable inclusions are Gunstar Heroes, ToeJam and Earl, and Landstalker. The same usual suspects are here like Streets of Rage, Phantasy Star, Sonic the Hedgehog. One of the most notable omissions as some websites have mentioned is Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic and Knuckles. Why, I don't know. Unless there is something regarding the music or some other nonsense, there isn't a reason why it shouldn't be included. Doing the lock-on feature shouldn't be this complicated. It's not like it's on a disc that holds a few gigabytes.

Articles have gone on about Sega planning the use of online multiplayer for some of the games. That will help a bit if you don't have someone to sit with you and play. As with other compilations, it will have filters for the games. One interesting aspect is a mirror mode where it is played but flipped horizontally. That would be something to see if speedrunners try to play in that style.

People will bitch about it not being on the Switch, but these compilations are usually not on Nintendo systems. If they are, it's a very small set on a handheld. Not to mention the eShop and Virtual Console, though for the latter, it's over on the Wii. Some stores are putting up prices for 30 dollars. That's a huge bargain, but I wouldn't count on it yet for the official price.

Overall, it's seems like an easy choice. This is a must buy for anyone that likes compilations and Sega's output on the Genesis.

Spyro Reignited: More 32-bit Interest?

The last 24 to 48 hours has been an interesting one if you are into gaming. If you grew up in the 90s, odds are you are familiar with Spyro the Dragon. It was one of the reasons to get an original PlayStation back in late 1998. Much like Crash Bandicoot, the original trilogy is about as beloved as most other games from that era. Some have wondered if it seemed inevitable that there would be a remastered set following N. Sane Trilogy last year. That's put to rest with Reignited coming out in September for PS4 and Xbox One.

Whether you want to call it a leak or not, this will excite a lot of people. Judging by the trailer for this, Spyro is getting the same kind of makeover like Crash. I'd like to say it looks a lot better, but it's a matter of what will be seen when it comes out. Activision is at the helm of this with development by Toys for Bob, who have made Skylanders. If it's anything like N. Sane Trilogy, that will mean a few things. One is that it will be the same games you remembered playing in the late 90s and early 2000s. Two might be additional content, meaning some cut levels that never made it into the game if there is any. Three could the possibility of seeing if new interest in the franchise will spark a demand for new games.

At the moment, there is no plan for a Switch or PC release. N. Sane Trilogy is set for Nintendo's hybrid in July along with the PC and Xbox One, with Toys for Bob developing the former. It would be nice to see beyond Mario and Sonic other platformers onto the system, but depends on what the sales expectations Activision wants from Crash. This should be a no brainer to bring it over, but the stigma associated with Nintendo home systems since 1996 will leave companies with a bit of concern.

Could this make companies really interested in the 32/64-bit era? Maybe. There is a bit of games that will make you want a remaster or remake of. It could bring back certain franchises, but that's just an idea that seems more of a fantasy. Either way, Spyro should be another huge hit for this generation. If it's anywhere like N. Sane Trilogy, it will score well critically and commercially.

Night Trap, Another Sega CD Release

When the Sega CD released in October of 1992 to U.S. stores, it's launch lineup was not the most impressive. Quite a bit of the full motion video lineup was there on day 1. Night Trap was one of those games. Like the genre, it was not held to high regard but it had its following, especially when idiot Senators (who have never played video games) targeted it as being a game where you kill girls when it was the complete opposite. You were trying to save them. It would also be released on the 3DO and the Sega 32x, which required both the 32x and CD add-ons. Today, it is going to be re-released this year for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One to honor it's 25th anniversary of coming out.

The history behind this game is intriguing. In 1987, Hasbro had plans to release a console of their own that ran on VHS tapes. Night Trap was filmed around that time. The system which was called Control-Vision never saw the light of day due to pricing at a time when the Nintendo Entertainment System was a lot cheaper and popular. At 300 dollars, Hasbro thought it wouldn't have sold well if it launched in 1989. Along with Sewer Shark, the game didn't catch interest until Sega looked to companies that could give them titles for the Sega CD. Looking at Night Trap, it is a cheesy 80s horror product, but with hordes upon hordes of vicious bad guys that are way stupider than the Wet Bandits, although this pre-dates Home Alone. There's nothing gruesome, especially compared to all the Friday the 13th, Elm Street, and Halloween films. If it were a movie, it would get maybe a PG-13 rating. Maybe PG since the standards weren't so strict back then.

Unfortunately, a sad reality is that Sega CD never gets games re-released. The only one that really has is Sonic CD, which has seen releases outside of it's 1993 release on Windows in 96, GameCube in 2005, and a re-done version in 2011 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Obvious games like Batman Returns and NHL 94 can't come out because of licensing. Arcade ports like Final Fight will never see the Sega CD version re-released because people want the actual arcade game. With all the compilations in the last 20 years, you would think a Sega CD game here and there would be nice. I don't know if emulation is a factor, but another big downside is that there isn't many games that can be picked that have a following. Some games are in limbo like Lunar. There's other factors but overall, it's kind of hard to figure what titles from this add-on could get a modern re-release.

Night Trap is one of the cult classics of the 90s and Sega CD. It doesn't have a putrid reception compared to later FMV games, but someone's mileage will vary on whether they think it is good or bad. It will be digital, but it will also get a physical release on PlayStation 4. There will be a low print run from publisher Limited Run Games. If stuff like this can come out, Sega and a few surviving third party companies that made games for the add-on can sure as hell do something like this for whatever original titles they might have. It's about time there is some love given to this add-on for at least one of its games.