Readers of this blog may be aware that I am a huge fan of the recent Batman game. If you've yet to play the game the I strongly recommend you download the demo and if you've already done that, then buy the game already! (For more info about the game, check out myreview of Batman: Arkham Asylum)
Along with an amazing story the game also offers an addition "Challenge" mode in which Batman (and Armoured Suit Batman after completing the game) get to fight off hordes of foes and silently take down enemies in a handful of challenges.
Within the first week of the game's release, we lucky PS3 owners got our hands on B:AA first DLC- playable Joker content. This opens up a few Challenges that can be played as the Joker.
Recently there have been a few more nuggets of free DLC on the PlayStation Store- more challenges for Batman and Armoured Batman. (Sadly no more levels have been released for Joker, but it's early days yet).
I recently played through all 4 of the new challenges and thought they are definitely worth getting- especially since they're free! The most interesting of the 4 challenges is a new Survival Mode in which you get to fight off an infinite number of bad guys. This is a nice touch to the game, as I always felt that this was one challenge that the game was definitely needing.
The fact that 4 new challenges have been released so quickly can only mean good things for the future of the game. Fingers crossed that the next batch of updates include more Joker content.
Well, it's that time of the week again when Sony adorn us with sprinkles of stuff on the PS Store. As always I'll be sharking the store for freebies- the most anticipated of which are those Dynamic Themes.
Although, as I write this I have heard that they have been having problems with the Sackboy and Motostorm themes, leaving us with the exclusive Wipeout theme.
Saying that, I have only just found out that the dynamic themes AREN'T free! Which leaves me wondering whether I would want to pay for such a small thing, when up to now I've been happy using the free ones on offer...
At least out exclusive Wipeout Dynamic Theme is free, and available to download, so I'm sure I'll be happy with that. Anyone curious why we had to wait longer for our Dynamic Themes, have a read of this article, as Sony finally responds to user feedback of the Firmware 3.0 update.
But for now, get yourselves onto the PS Store and check out these updates!
--BIZNITCH--
Downloadable Games
Interpol: The Trail of Dr. Chaos (£7.99/€9.99) PEGI 3+
Demos (free)
FIFA 10 PEGI 3+
Fat Princess PEGI 16+
LittleBigPlanet PEGI 7+
Katamari Forever PEGI 3+
Add-On Game Content
Pain
George Takei Character Pack (£1.19/€1.49)
PEGI 16+
High Velocity Bowling
Back To School Ball Pack (£0.79/€0.99)
Graphic Pattern Ball Pack (£0.79/€0.99)
Heather Haughtfer Pack (£0.79/€0.99)
PEGI 3+
Guitar Hero 5 (visit www.guitarhero.com/songimport for more information on using the disc import and DLC Update packs)
GHWT Disc Import Pack (£2.99/€3.99)
GHWT DLC Update (free)
100 Little Curses by Street Sweeper Social Club (£1.59/€1.99)
Fight! Smash! Win! by Street Sweeper Social Club (£1.59/€1.99)
Street Sweeper Social Club Track Pack (contains 100 Little Curses, Fight! Smash! Win! and Somewhere In The
World It’s Midnight) (£4.39/€5.49)
Prodigal Son (Live) by The Rolling Stones (£1.59/€1.99)
You Gotta Move (Live) by The Rolling Stones (£1.59/€1.99)
Rock Band
Freezepop Pack 01 (this pack contains the three Freezepop tracks listed below) (£1.69/€2.29)
Get Ready 2 Rokk by Freezepop (£0.59/€0.99)
Less Talk More Rokk by Freezepop (£0.59/€0.09)
Science Genius Girl by Freezepop (£0.59/€0.99)
The PAX 2009 Collection (this pack contains the three tracks listed below) (£1.69/€2.29)
Opening Band by Paul and Storm (£0.59/€0.99)
Origin of Species by MC Frontalot (£0.59/€0.99)
Re: Your Brains by Jonathan Coulton (£0.59/€0.99)
ABC by The Jackson 5 (£0.99/€1.49)
Gasoline by Audioslave (£0.99/€1.49)
Kryptonite by 3 Doors Down (£0.99/€1.49)
Miss Murder by AFI (£0.99/€1.49)
PEGI 12+
Videos (free)
Ratchet & Clank: A Crack In Time Story Trailer
Batman: Arkham Asylum History of Arkham Trailer
Battle Tanks Trailer
Shatter Trailer
WET Video Short 5
IL2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey Launch Trailer 2
Mini Ninjas Futo Gameplay
Mini Ninjas Suzume Gameplay
Mini Ninjas Launch Trailer
Dynamic Themes
WipEout HD Dynamic Theme
MotorStorm Dynamic Theme (£1.59/€1.99)
LittleBigPlanet ‘Sackboy on the run’ Dynamic Theme (£1.59/€1.99)
Themes (free)
Batman: Arkham Asylum Batman Theme
Batman: Arkham Asylum Joker Theme
Army of Two: The 40th Day Theme
Wallpapers (free)
Dante’s Inferno Wallpapers x4
PlayStation Store via PSP and Media Go
Downloadable Games
Fate/Unlimited Codes (£23.99/€29.99) PEGI 12+
BIGS 2 (£11.99/€14.99) PEGI 3+
Demos (free)
Holy Invasion Of Privacy Badman! PEGI 7+
Add-On Game Content (also available via the PS3 store)
Prinny: Can I Really Be The Hero? – Flonne’s Castle (£3.19/€3.99) PEGI 7+
Readers of my Top Demo lists may already know that after playing the Trash Panic demo over and over, I eventually decided to bite the bullet and splash out a whole £3.99 for the full game. The Student Loans company would be so proud of me.
You may also be aware that I've embarked on an extremely frustrating and time consuming endeavour of playing every demo I could find on the PlayStation Store. Although some demos are true gems, sometimes even inspiring me to buy the full game, the process as a whole has basically felt like excavating lumps of crap out of the PS Store... But it's ultimately worth it for the games that really stand out.
But we're here to talk about Trash Panic, aren't we? First thing I have to say about Trash Panic is- download the demo. I'll wait.
Done? What did you think?
After recommending it in an article, a few people got back to me with their opinions- pretty much mixed reviews all around. Some people felt the same way as me, a fairly good game and quite addictive. On the other hand, some people thought it was a pointless waste of time, so this game really does depend on your taste of games. The way I saw it though was if the full game could give me even a little bit more fun then it would be worth the mere £3.99 I would pay for it. It's safe to say it didn't disappoint.
The full game has a variety of modes. Well, 3 modes really. There is "Main Mode", "Challenge Mode" and "Versus Mode".
MAIN MODE In the Main Mode you play 5 levels of varying difficulty. Each level increases in size but pretty much stays the same, by which I mean the objects, as well as the bin, get larger, making it a more cosmetic change than anything.
The first level is a waste bin in a bedroom, therefore the objects are smaller, such as cups, dumbbells, lighters, pencils etc. The second level is set in an office, with filing cabinets, office chairs and such. The third level (the level from the demo) is set in a waste disposal site. The levels get increasingly larger scale until the final level has you throwing entire countries and islands into, well, a giant bin.
The levels are great fun as different objects have different properties, things can be set on fire, broken up, decomposed etc, so there is a fair bit of skill needed to complete each level. Changing the difficulty makes each level longer and adds a special "Boss" item at the end of each level- an object that is much larger and tougher than the others which you have to destroy in 10 seconds.
The main problem I had with the game was how frustratingly hard it is. I didn't want to write this review until I had completed the main mode, which has taken me a fair while now... On easy. There is no save option, which means that if you want to complete it you have to do all 5 levels in 1 sitting which, believe me, is much harder than it sounds.
If you just want a quick game you can simply select a level to play and have a bash. However, annoyingly all the levels aren't unlocked from the start. To unlock a level you have to complete it in the main mode. Which means to play the last level you have to play through the entire game, start to finish- which as I stated earlier can be EXTREMELY frustrating.
CHALLENGE MODE Another mode that seems necessary in all puzzle-type games is the "Challenge Mode". This features an array of different challenges to complete, including "Small Bin" in which you play a level with a bin half the size, "Ring the Bell 108 times" in which you battle the raging, non-existent elements to strike said bell with all your might (108 times) and... I don't know the others. That's right, this mode suffers from the same Achilles Heel as the main mode in which you have to do the previous challenges to unlock the rest. At least I assume so, I've yet been able to ring that damn bell more than 90 times.
I really can't understand the reasoning behind this system of unlocking the games I want to play. I paid for this game with the tax payers hard eared cash, the least the game should do is let me play it. It feels like a strange and redundant method of prolonging game-play, adding longevity. But puzzle games shouldn't need that. They're specifically designed to pick up when bored and put down after a few games- hence the simplistic gameplay and low price tag. To force people to play sections of the game they find frustrating or even simply not fun is quite frankly absurd. I enjoy a good challenge and working towards unlocking extra levels and features in games- but not to have to play every challenge just to unlock the next. Perhaps if there were 10 challenges and you had to play all 10, or at least 8 or 9 of them to unlock the next 10. That would make more sense, giving the gamer more choices, getting the most out of THEIR GAME.
VERSUS MODE I'll be honest, this is one of the main reasons I bought this game. The versus mode sounded like it could be heaps of fun and although it is fun for a short while, doesn't have the longevity to make it the tipping point for buying the game. It's quite simple, you and a friend each have a bin half the size of of the regular bins, and battle it out not to lose. The only real competitive element is trying to fill up your bin faster than the other player, as when it reaches the top, your bin is poured into your competitors.
Matches don't tend to last too long and normally just end up being decided by whoever can mash triangle (throwing the rubbish into the bin faster) the quickest. Say that, it is fun for a while and it is something I will continue to play people on it- without fully explaining the rules, just to give myself that small edge...
All these criticisms aside, I'd still fully recommend this game. It's a new twist on the traditional Tetris style puzzle game which I still enjoy playing, even after all those frustrating moments. The fire and decomposition aspect of the game works really well and can make or break a level.
It's a game designed to sit patiently on your virtual gaming shelf for that moment in time when you've just finished a challenging title, or simply want to wind down and not have to worry about keeping up with some sort of ridiculous story line (I'm looking at you- EVERY GAME from Japan!).
And for £3.99 you will most certainly get a fair few hours out of it, considering it costs about £6 to see a 90 minute film at the cinema- this game is a bargain.
Well the new PS Store update should be up and raring to download early this evening. There are a few goodies this week- A handful of demos, a few add ons for current games, more songs for Rock Band and Guitar Hero and plenty of videos including game trailers (Heavy Rain Gamescom Trailer will be first on my downlaod list- make sure it's on yours!) and the official Gamescom Sony Press Conference footage.
So, without further adue...
Demos (free)
Colin McRaeDiRT 2 PEGI 3+
WET PEGI 18+
Mini Ninjas PEGI 7+
IL2 Sturmovik: Birds Of Prey PEGI 7+
Add-On Game Content
Pain – Andy Dick Pack (£0.79/€0.99) PEGI 16+
Zen Pinball – Street Fighter II Tribute Table (£1.59/€1.99) PEGI 7+
Guitar Hero: World Tour – Duelling Banjos Track (£1.59/€1.99) PEGI 12+
Rock Band
Foo Fighters Pack 02 (this combines the below three Foo Fighters tracks in one pack) (£2.49/€2.99)
All My Life by Foo Fighters (£0.99/€1.49)
I’ll Stick Around by Foo Fighters (£0.99/€1.49)
Lonely As You by Foo Fighters (£0.99/€1.49)
I Predict A Riot by Kaiser Chiefs (£0.99/€1.49)
I’m Shipping Up To Boston by Dropkick Murphys (£0.99/€1.49)
Inside Out by Eve 6 (£0.99/€1.49)
No Rain by Blind Melon (£0.99/€1.49)
There’s No Other Way by Blur (£0.99/€1.49)
PEGI 12+
Videos (free)
Modnation Racers Trailer
Ratchet & Clank: A Crack In Time Gamescom Trailer
Heavy Rain Gamescom Trailer
LittleBigPlanet Water Trailer
Tekken 6 Gamescom Trailer
Trine Trailer
Ratchet & Clank: A Crack In Time Comicon Trailer
Front Mission Evolved Trailer
Savage Moon Waldgeist Trailer
Gamescom Sony Press Conference Part 1
Gamescom Sony Press Conference Part 2
Gamescom Sony Press Conference Part 3
Gamescom Sony Press Conference Part 4
PR Sizzler Trailer
Avatar Game Day Trailer (Released on Friday the 21st of August)
Themes (free)
Katamari Forever and Noby Noby Boy Theme
PlayStation Store via PSP and Media Go
Downloadable Games
Wild Arms XF(£13.99/€17.99) PEGI 12+
Riviera (£13.99/€17.99) PEGI 12+
Warriors Orochi (£13.99/€17.99) PEGI 12+
Colin McRae Rally 2005 (£7.99/€9.99) PEGI 3+
Demo (free)
Dissidia Final Fantasy PEGI 12+
Add-On Game Content (also available via the PS3 store)
Rock Band Unplugged
A Favor House Atlantic by Coheed and Cambria (£0.99/€1.49)
As regular readers may know, I have currently been neglecting all my real games on the PS3 (and for that matter, every other console) to focus on the cheaper things in life- Free demos from the PlayStation Store.
This is why I haven't been updating as much, as it turns out I may have taken on more than I could comfortably chew over a few days. As I type, I currently have 50 demos calling my console home, (with several more still to be installed) taking up almost 70gig on my hard drive!
But don't worry, I'm not exactly planning on writing a review on every single demo that plagues my big, black baby (the only one not currently owned by Madonna). Instead I'm simply going to write short reviews on the one's I currently recommend, explaining why they're worth while.
So until I finally finish plowing through them all I thought I'd treat you all with some of the demos that have caught my eye so far...
TIGER WOODS PGA TOUR 10 NO MULTIPLAYER. As I'm not a golf fan, I had no interest in this game. I downloaded it but couldn't get into it. So I called for some help on this one and got my cousin to play it for me. Here are his thoughts (but written by me, so I take all the credit) Same as others, with some new features- one of which is a replay after a bad shot it cuts to your character getting angry. That's quite funny. (Actually that IS canny funny! The character tends to throw a hissy fit quite a lot!) If you're a fan of the others, you'll enjoy this demo. For non golf fans this may be harder to get into. (I agree- it bored the hell out of me)
NBA 2K9 MULTIPLAYER Good Graphics. Simplistic game play- easy to use. Maybe to simplistic. Good fun. Worth it to play with a mate. That's all I have to say on this really. Give it a go with a friend- scoring ridiculous shots is always great fun!
THE CLUB MULTIPLAYER I personally found it a little dull on single player, but when I forced my cousin to play it was so much better. This game (or at least the demo) isn't anything special, it's all been done before, many, many times over. But that doesn't stop it being fun! The multiplayer game available is split-screen "Hunter vs Hunted". The first person to kill is the hunter and constantly gets points until killed. Just simply running around an abandoned prison trying to kill your friend is heaps of fun. Give it a go, worth having to play with friends.
WANTED NO MULTIPLAYER Graphics are decent, but nothing special. But that doesn't matter too much when it come to something that costs diddly-squat. You play a fellow that is like an assassin from the film (to be honest, it could very well be the main character, but I didn't care enough to notice) and have to work your way from the cargo bay of an aeroplane to the cockpit- killing everything with a pulse on the way. Fun for a while, but nothing lasting that makes me want to buy the game. Give it a go.
GHOSTBUSTERS NO MULTIPLAYER I'd heard mixed reviews about this games, so downloaded it with plenty of cynicalskepticisms. Then I heard those wonderful voices, coupled with a very inviting sound track that simply suck me right back to my childhood. In the demo you are the 5th, new member of the team and join them to bust a ghost in the library. You use the equipment to track and hunt the unruly ghosts before blasting them with your giant lasers of awesome (as you'd expect really). What I didn't expect was the tension in the atmosphere of the game, causing me to freak out if even a book wobbled on a shelf! Coupled with the lovely tongue-and-cheek commentary of your fellow Ghostbusters over the radio. I didn't expect to like this demo as much as I did and I'm now seriously considering opening my cob-web riddled wallet and buying the full thing! (I can see online multiplayer being great fun) You really have to try this one.
RAGDOLLKUNGFU MULTIPLAYER (up to 4) I didn't exactly have high hopes for this one, but ended up having a lot of fun and giggling a fair bit! There are a few modes to play with- Training, Challenges, Battle and Multiplayer King of the Hill. This game is easily worth it for the multiplayer alone- me and a few friends played this over and over! A must have for people with friends. (Unless you hated Little Big Planet, Enter the Dragon and Team America)
1942 JOINT STRIKE MULTIPLAYER This is simply an old-skool flying shooter. Bad guys come from the top, you (and your mate) and at the bottom. Shooting up. At the bad guys. Throw in a few power ups, special moves, ridiculous amounts of bad guys and a few bosses and this turns into a really fun little game. I can see the appeal wearing off after a while without buying the full game, but it's a good game to try out with a friend for an hour.
ECHOCHROME NO MULTIPLAYER I first saw this little genius of a game on a friends PSP. It's another game with an incredibly simplistic idea behind it with leads to very ingenious and complex puzzles to solve. The idea is to move the world around to ensure the little man walks to his destination safely. If there is a hole in the path you simply move the view around so that it is covered by a wall- out of sight, out of mind- and the man walks straight over it. Definitely needs to be played to be appreciated.
There. That's your lot for now. I haven't included the games that I hated or lost interest in instantly, but if people would also like to know which demos to avoid (if so, either leave a comment below, send me an email or TWITTER me) then I can write that up in the next installment.
There are other demos I am playing and enjoying that I haven't written up yet because some of these gems deserve much more time on them before I can so a decent, more detailed write up. Others I just simply haven't got around to playing yet (I think "Call of Juarez" is up next!) but will be written up next time.
Any suggestions for demos that you recommend I play, please feel free to write your suggestion on a rock and hurl it through my window.
I found a lovely list of updates on the PlayStation Store, for both PS3 and PSP, that I thought I should share with you. Some of them seem fairly interesting (namely the demo for "Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood") and others, not so (Madden updates.) BUT, what isn't interesting to me may be useful to others. So let's start, shall we?
Downloadable Games
Droplitz (£7.99/€9.99) PEGI 3+
Trial and Unlock Key
(Download the trial to try the game for free, and then purchase the Unlock Key if you would like to own the full game) Marvel vs Capcom 2 (Trial free, Unlock Key £11.99/€14.99) PEGI 12+
Demos (free)
Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood PEGI 16+
Add-On Game Content
Red Faction: Guerilla – Demons of the Badlands (£6.29/€7.99) PEGI 12+ Pain PEGI 16+
Museum Pack (£3.99/€4.99)
Knockin’ Bloks Pack (£1.59/€1.99)
Smooth Jarvis Pack (free)
LittleBigPlanet PEGI 7+
Ada Lovelace Costume (£0.79/€0.99)
Boudicca Costume (£0.79/€0.99)
Genghis Khan Costume (£0.79/€0.99)
Mozart Costume (£0.79/€0.99)
History Costume Kit Pack (£2.39/€2.99)
History Level Kit Pack (£3.19/€3.99)
Madden NFL 10 PEGI 3+
DB Scout (£0.45/€0.49)
Dig Deep (£0.45/€0.49)
DL Scout (£0.45/€0.49)
Game Day Instincts (£0.45/€0.49)
Hometown Hero (£0.45/€0.49)
LB Scout (£0.45/€0.49)
Madden Max Pack (This pack contains ALL Madden packs currently available) (£6.29/€7.99)
Max Franchise Pack (This pack contains all of the Franchise packs available, Get all player, staff and scout packs combined)
Franchise Player Pack (This pack contains all the Franchise player packs available) (£2.39/€2.99)
Great Staff Pack (This pack contains all the Staff packs available) (£2.39/€2.99)
Skilled Medical Staff (£0.79/€0.99)
World Class Training Staff (£1.19/€1.49)
Dynasty Warriors 6 Empires PEGI 16+
Arabian Armour Set (women) (free)
Mystic Armour Set (men) (free)
Wa Armour Set (women) (free)
Shinobi Armour Set (men) (free)
Rock Band Further your Rock Band experience with this selection of content to download: PEGI 12+
Gorillaz Pack 01 (this combines the below three Gorillaz tracks in one pack) (£2.49/€2.99)
Clint Eastwood by Gorillaz (£0.99/€1.49)
Feel Good Inc. by Gorillaz (£0.99/€1.49)
Re-Hash by Gorillaz (£0.99/€1.49)
Chest Fever (Live) by The Band (£0.99/€1.49)
Magic Bus (Live at Leeds) by The Who (£0.99/€1.49)
Piece of my Heart by Big Brother and the Holding Company (£0.99/€1.49)
White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane (£0.99/€1.49)
Guitar Hero: World Tour – Activision Track Pack (free) Further your track collection with this additional content for download. PEGI 12+
Themes (free)
Savage Moon Waldgeist – Red Theme
Wallpapers (free)
Fat Princess Wallpaper
PlayStation Store via PSP and Media Go
Downloadable Games
Madden NFL 2010 (Released on Friday the 14th of August) (£29.99/€39.99) PEGI 3+ Patapon (£14.99/€19.99) PEGI 7+ Real Madrid The Game (£15.99/€19.99) PEGI 7+
Add-On Game Content (also available via the PS3 store)
Rock Band Unplugged PEGI 12+
The Number of the Beast by Iron Maiden (£0.99/€1.49)
Looking forward to taking a peak at the new MGS trailer....
The "Call of Juarez" demo is the update I've been most anticipating though- yet another demo to add to my list....
And for anyone interested, I've been playing loads of demos lately, with plenty more to get through. I'll write an update soon- another list of recommended downloads, with possibly a list of downloads you should avoid (and there are plenty!)
So if anyone has any recommendations for me, feel free to send me a message, Email, comment or Twitter.
Recently there have been a few more nuggets of free DLC on the PlayStation Store- more challenges for Batman and Armoured Batman. (Sadly no more levels have been released for Joker, but it's early days yet).
