Estuans interius
Ira vehementi
Estuans interius
Ira vehementi
Sephiroth
Sephiroth

Sors immanis
Et inanis
Sors immanis
Et inanis

Estuans interius
Ira vehementi
Estuans interius
Ira vehementi
Sephiroth
Sephiroth

Veni, veni, venias
Ne me mori facias
Veni, veni, venias
Ne me mori facias
(Gloriosa, Generosa
Gloriosa, Generosa)
Veni, veni, venias
Ne me mori facias
Sephiroth
Sephiroth
Sephiroth

Final Fantasy VII Remake (PS4) – Releases Apr. 10^th

Sony’s 2015 E3 press conference is probably one of its most legendary in recent memory. Three long assumed dead/dormant games were announced; The Last Guardian, Shenmue III, and Final Fantasy VII Remake. Two of those have been released, both to somewhat lukewarm receptions, so it’s really up to FFVII Remake to make that monumental E3 worth all of that hype. One thing that might tamp down some of the excitement is that, if you aren’t already aware, this game is part 1 of…who knows. There could be two volumes, three, four, five; it’s currently a mystery (though many outlets think four). However, while the game is only part 1, Square Enix has confirmed that it will run the length of a full sized JRPG epic, several hours long (i.e. 60+). I’ve heard some scuttlebutt that players who have received early copies are claiming that the remake changes certain plot points from the original game. This isn’t completely surprising, I mean, the Resident Evil 2 Remake changed things, but it was still, overall, the same story. We’ll see how big these changes are in just a few short days and finally experience a game that people have been dying to get their hands on for several years.

Disaster Report 4: Summer Memories (PC/PS4/Switch) – Releases Apr. 7^th

Well here’s a fun diversion from our current state of affairs. This could, actually, be quite therapeutic in these trying times, as the goal of Disaster Report 4 is to rescue and help people who are affected by a major disaster. Still, this is probably not the kind of game many of us want to escape to for our entertainment.

Planet Zoo: South America Pack (PC) – Releases Apr. 7^th

This trailer is really lacking in content, but maybe if you’ve played the game it’ll make more sense? In any case, I’m sure most of us are spending our days remodeling our Animal Crossing islands and aren’t really looking to make a zoo look like Brazil, especially since it will be lacking in space, you know? Like, it’ll have some technological marvels, but there’s no space, and I need…space!

Slime Rancher: Deluxe Edition (PC/PS4/Xbox One) – Releases Apr. 7^th

I got the base game for free from Xbox Live Gold a few months ago, never played it though. This is that same game, but with all the DLC included, so…yeah. I’m tired, can I just go back to sleep…

Notable Releases from 10, 20 and 30 years ago:

While nothing nearly as notable as Final Fantasy VII Remake came out this week(ish) 10, 20 and 30 years ago, we still had some pretty interesting titles to play through, including one of the all time great arcade games.

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction (Xbox 360) – Released Apr. 13^th, 2010: Wiki Link

In the wake of Metal Gear Solid we began to see a few copycat titles come out. Titles like Syphon Filter and Hitman would release in the immediate aftermath of MGS, but a true challenger to its crown as the de-facto “stealth game” wouldn’t hit until Ubisoft released the first Splinter Cell title in 2002. Players and critics were smitten with Sam Fisher, the tough as nails former Navy SEAL, now working for the clandestine “Third Echelon”. That title, and it’s four subsequent follow-up’s, had a heavy focus on stealth, making the games incredibly difficult, but also incredibly rewarding for patient players. When it came time for the fifth entry, Ubisoft had decided that players no longer enjoyed stealth games, and instead preferred rough and tumble action games…with a cover system; so it was decided that the next game, Conviction, would abandon many of the series’ mainstays in order to meet this new style of gameplay that the modern gamer so desired. While stealth would still be a core feature, Ubisoft decided that it should work like something closer to Assassin’s Creed and FarCry, meaning that you’d have a better experience if you were stealthy, but if you got caught it wouldn’t be the end of the world. This was unlike other Splinter Cell games which would generally lead to a “mission failed” screen if you were detected by the enemy. Another major change was the “last known position” mechanic, in which players would see a silhouette of Sam that indicated where the enemy last saw him, which would allow for tactical retreats and a chance to flank the enemy. One popular feature was removed, that is Sam’s trademark night vision goggles, with the game instead employing a color vs. black & white system, meaning that Sam was most hidden when the game was in black & white, and in full view when the game was in color. It was a strange mechanic, for sure, and it was completely abandoned in the next installment. It also wouldn’t be a modern video game if it didn’t employ a cover system, and boy howdy did it employ a cover system, man, just look at that cover in the screenshot above. Finally, the most baffling change was that this was the first (and only) console Splinter Cell game to NOT appear on a Sony or Nintendo system, which was absolutely bizarre. Ubisoft tried to say that this was not a big deal because the series always had been considered an Xbox exclusive, despite appearing on multiple platforms (including mobile devices) since the original game. Despite all of the changes to the game’s formula, it was still well received by critics and (the few) players who picked it up, however, many of the critics did not enjoy the new changes to game, particularly the bizarre black & white feature. With the poor sales the next entry in the series, 2013’s Blacklist, would bring many of the original features back, but it would sell even worse, putting the entire franchise on hold with no official word on a follow-up.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure (PlayStation) – Released Mar. 31^st, 2000: Wiki Link

Hirohiki Araki’s manga series JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has been going strong since 1987, a phenomenal 23 year run. It was supposed to originally come to North America in the early 90’s under the title The Strange Adventures of JoJo, but another Araki manga, Baoh sold poorly, so the localization was scrapped. An OVA of the third arc, Stardust Crusaders, was released on VHS and Laserdisc in Japan in 1993, but those too never made it to North America. JoJo, however, was incredibly popular in Japan and had an inevitable video game adaptation. First there was an SNES RPG that we never saw stateside, and the second was a fighting game developed by Capcom, which would finally be our introduction to the series and its characters. As with the 1993 OVA, the game would take place during the Stardust Crusaders arc, and featured all of the characters associated with it. The game hit arcades in 1998 before it was ported to home consoles, with the PSX version coming out a few months before the Dreamcast port. The gameplay is very reminiscent of other Capcom fighting games of the era, and holds many similarities to Street Fighter III, as the same team worked on both games. While many of us are likely familiar with the JoJo series today because of the popular anime put out in recent years by Viz Media, at the time we were all pretty much in the dark about it (unless you were an uber nerd who imported anime and manga). In the game you have the option of playing a standard vs. mode in which you pick your character and fight, but the game does feature a story mode in which you are forced to play as a specific character and fight your way through a re-imagined version of the Stardust Crusaders arc. Looking at it now, I can easily understand what “Stands” are, who these characters are, and their relation to one another, but in 2000 it must have been a bit, well, bizarre seeing this game and trying to make sense of what was going on. As far as fighting games go, it’s okay; not bad, not great, just another game. However, because of the pedigree of the anime/manga today, this is highly sought after by collectors, fetching high prices on sites like eBay and with third party sellers on Amazon. An HD remake was released for the PS3 and Xbox 360 on their digital storefronts, and we have received a couple other fighting games as well, though not developed by Capcom. Despite the release of a new series on DVD in May of 2000, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure wouldn’t really hit big for another sixteen years when the most recent series arrived, meaning if you were rockin’ this game back in 2000 you were well ahead of the curve, and my hat goes off to you.

Smash TV (Arcade) – Released Apr. 1990: Wiki Link

The 1990 arcade game Smash TV is a twin stick, or dual-stick, shooter that was designed by one of the pioneers of the genre, Eugene Jarvis, who popularized the format with his 1982 co-creation Robotron: 2084. In Smash TV, up to two players would compete on a futuristic game show for cash and prizes…as well as their own lives. You see, in order to win the game, you would have to survive a seemingly endless onslaught of enemies, from simple grunts who would hit you with clubs, to giant robots with tank treads for feet. Taking heavy inspiration from 1980’s action and sci-fi films, particularly The Running Man, players would fight their way through several screens of intense, over the top violence in an effort to collect the most loot. If the genre and gameplay were inspired by Eugene Jarvis and his Robotron game, the film inspiration probably comes from programmer Mark Turmell, who had just left Hasbro after they cancelled an interactive movie project he was working on that would eventually turn into Night Trap. What about the violence and over the top visuals, those are courtesy of a new hire in the art department, a young man named John Tobias, who would go on to co-create another game that married movie inspiration and live action visuals, Mortal Kombat. With the talent behind the scenes it’s not hard to see why Smash TV was such a success in arcades. Video games (and their playerbase) were starting to hit their rebellious teenage years, so to speak, and Smash TV was right there to help bridge the gap between 80’s excess and 90’s cynicism, with both its celebration, and satirical take, on consumerism and financial success. The game would eventually be ported to, well, just about every console and PC of the era, from the NES to the Commodore 64, and would see more modern re-releases as both a part of Midway/Williams arcade collections, and as a stand-alone release on the Xbox 360’s digital store. The Xbox 360 digital version has been de-listed as of 2010, so if you’re looking to get a current copy of the game you’ll need to purchase Midway Arcade Origins for Xbox 360, which is also playable on Xbox One through backwards compatibility.