Electronic Gaming Monthly articles from April 2008

Electronic Gaming Monthly archives from April 2008

THE GAME OF LIVES.(Interview)(Brief article)
April 1, 2008... BioWare founders Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk knew how to heal ailing role-playing-game lovers last year. The cure was simple: Mass Effect. Answering our five questions, however, is not so easy. But with two heads working together,...

VALKYRIA.
April 1, 2008... Platform: PS3 Publisher: Sega Developer: Sega Release Date: Fall 2008 Describing Sega's upcoming part-real-time, part-turn-based strategy game Valkyria (apparently, the Japanese title, Valkyrie of the Battlefield, was way...

BOOM BLOX.
April 1, 2008... Platform: Wii Publisher: EA Developer: EA Casual Release Date: May 2008 GOOD IDEAS ARE A DIME A DOZEN. Legendary filmmaker Steven Spielberg's good ideas are a bit harder to come by. So even if the concept for his upcoming...

Sweet Land of Liberty (continued).(Grand Theft Auto games)(Product/service evaluation)
April 1, 2008... Learning Curve: What each GTA game forged, fixed, and left fouled up GTA 1/2/LONDON Main character: Unnamed criminal/Claude Speed. What they introduced: Freedom, and lots of it! The original GTAs featured the same hedonistic,...

Where would we be without Grand Theft Auto III?
April 1, 2008... At first blush, it sounds like a sweet deal for the average gamer. Imagine, if you will, a world where presidential hopefuls didn't demonize your seemingly innocent hobby. Where class-action lawsuits didn't stigmatize your favorite game....

FAR-OUT FANS.
April 1, 2008... The Guitar Hero series is on just about every system: PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PS2, PC, Mac, cell phones, Commodore 64...wait, what? Commodore 64? Well, sort of--talented retro programmer Anthony Westbrook is currently converting the megapopular...

OBSCURE: THE AFTERMATH.
April 1, 2008... Wii (also on PS2) Publisher: Ignition Developer: Hydravision Players: 1-2 ESRB: Mature wJENN F: In Obscure: The Aftermath--a sequel that requires no knowledge of the first game--a creepy, looming darkness is brutalizing a...

DYNASTY WARRIORS 6.
April 1, 2008... PS3/XB360 Publisher: Koei Developer: Omega Force Players: 1-2 ESRB: Teen wA. FITCH: The Dynasty Warriors series may be the whipping boy for derivative gameplay these days, but don't forget that, as a first-generation PS2 title,...

MLB 2K8.
April 1, 2008... PS3/XB360 Publisher: 2K Sports Developer: Kush Games Players: 1-4 ESRB: Everyone wTODD: I prematurely named 2008 the "Year of Baseball Gaming" in my head, wishfully believing both of last year's efforts were now ready for...

CONDEMNED 2: BLOODSHOT.
April 1, 2008... XB360 (also on PS3) n Publisher: Sega Developer: Monolith Players: 1-8 ESRB: Mature wG. Ford: Like any great horror movie, Bloodshot succeeds with its scares, turning seeming serenity into unsettling horror. (You can now chalk up...

LOST ODYSSEY.
April 1, 2008... Xbox 360 n Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios Developer: Mistwalker/Feelplus Players: 1 ESRB: Teen wA. FITCH: Early on in Lost Odyssey, Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi's Xbox 360 follow-up to the disappointingly kiddie Blue...

SEGA SUPERSTARS TENNIS.
April 1, 2008... Wii/XB360 (also on PS3) Publisher: Sega Developer: Sumo Digital Players: 1-4 ESRB: Everyone 10+ wANDREW P: Beloved Sega characters playing tennis isn't any more ridiculous than beloved Nintendo characters playing tennis. But...

PROFESSOR LAYTON AND THE CURIOUS VILLAGE.
April 1, 2008... DS Publisher: Nintendo Developer: Level-5 Players: 1 ESRB: Everyone wJEREMY: Professor Layton and the Curious Village takes two genres that thrive on the DS--brain games and adventure games--and mashes them together into...

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney.
April 1, 2008... DS Publisher: Capcom Developer: Capcom Players: 1 ESRB: Teen wMICHAEL: Capcom's wacky courtroom series contradicts real life: The legal system shouldn't be fun. But Apollo Justice manages to make typical humdrum hearings...

Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII.
April 1, 2008... PSP n Publisher: Square Enix Developer: Square Enix Players: 1 ESRB: Teen wJeremy: I was dreading Crisis Core a bit, because let's face it--Square Enix's Final Fantasy VII spin-offs have run the gamut from "awful" to "complete ass."...

The Rock and Rollest Games of All Time.
April 1, 2008... As technology improves, the purpose of devices grow into one another. Phones become cameras, cameras become TVs, and you don't even want to know what this Jell-O-filled flashlight is about to become. Videogames are no different; they've...

SOCOM: Confrontation.
April 1, 2008... SEAL TEam, Reporting for duty "When we reintroduce SOCOM: Confrontation," said Sony CEA Director of Development Seth Luisi a few months back, "I don't think anyone will be disappointed." Well, it's put-up-or-shut-up time: Next month,...