After getting a few hours to play around with the new Splinter Cell at the LA launch event, it was hard to separate the fun of going to the actual party from the pleasure of playing the co-op version of the game. Now that I've given it time to coalesce in my mind grapes, I give to you the results of a night of scotch and espionage.

The first thing I learned about this game is that you can not not not not not not not not play this at all like Battlefield, Call of Duty, Mass Effect, Bioshock or any other game out there at the moment. You have to play it like a Splinter Cell game: Slow, methodically and deliberate.

Who are we kidding here though, you're going to try to gun your way through the first time, right? Right. I did too, but I got killed three times in 5 minutes doing it that way. It's a tough habit to break out of immediately. When you DO break out of it the game really opens up.

In order to enjoy playing the game you need to do certain things. Things like:
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Because Mega Man 10 released earlier in the week, and because it reminds me so much of Mega Man 2, I thought I'd share the Mega Man 2 Rap with you. Clocking in at over seven minutes it's pretty long, but it's worth watching, especially if you played Mega Man 2. no comments

It's that time of year again. Chocolate Jesus Bunny time. What better way to celebrate than by remembering our favorite video game rabbits, from the past and present?



6. Brutal: Paws of Fury (1994, SNES/Genesis/Sega CD)
Brutal: Paws of Fury was one of those many fighting games trying to cash in on Street Fighter II's success. This one came out way too late to be taken seriously. One of its central characters was a rabbit monk, Kung Fu Bunny. Not a very good game, but we've got to start somewhere.



5. Jumping Flash (1995, PSOne)
Jumping Flash is your typical giant-bunny-robot 3D platforming game. Okay, it was pretty crazy back in the day, and a demo of it came out with the PSOne on launch day. I remember being floored by how immersive 3D gaming could be. Today, it would probably just make me nauseous.



4. Bucky O'Hare (1992, NES)
This side-scrolling Konami game tried to be the next Mega Man, but it never really took off. I remember renting it as a kid, but it was too hard for me back then (probably too hard for me today, honestly). There was an arcade game that was supposed to be good, too, but I don't remember it. I still remember the theme song from the TV show, though!



3. Rayman: Raving Rabbids (2006, Wii)
Mark, Tyler and I had a Rabbids party, back when we weren't famous editors, and back when we still had high hopes for the Wii. Rayman gets captured by rabbits (cleverly disguised as "Rabbids" - those French game developers are tricky!) and you have to play a bunch of mini games. The game is amusing, but not quite laugh-out-loud funny. Apparently there have been a few sequels released already, I didn't even notice.



2. The Bugs Bunny Birthday Blowout (1990, NES)
I borrowed this game from a neighbor and almost didn't give it back. It had two things going for it: the game was practically a Super Mario Bros clone (making it easy to pick up and play), and it was ridiculously easy to beat. You have to battle against all the other Looney Tunes characters in order to celebrate your 50th birthday. I hope the same happens to me when I turn 50.



1. Star Fox (1993, SNES)
Peppy Hare may be a secondary character in the Star Fox series, but you can't deny the "wow" factor of the original Star Fox game and its 3D graphics. In today's world of crazy-good graphics, it's hard to imagine how big of a deal that Super FX chip was 15 years ago. This game still hasn't been released on the Wii's Virtual Console (although Star Fox 64 has, but I never played it), but I just may pick it up when it does come out. no comments

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It's no secret that my favorite Final Fantasy game is Final Fantasy IX, or Final Fantasy IIIIIIIII as I like to call it. I like its unique characters, not-overly-crazy ending, and universally-appealing setting and tone. As luck would have it, SquareEnixTaitoEidos confirmed today that it's coming to the Japanese PSN store, which is not terribly surprising considering the fact that Final Fantasies VII and VIII are already out. I'm sure it'll be coming to North America soon thereafter.

Next up: Vagrant Story, Parasite Eve II and Chrono Cross? no comments

Not to take away from Steve's excellent review of BioShock 2, I finished up this game last week and decided to award my utter tardiness with a review recap of my own.

I've written about this fact before and have mentioned it on our podcast, but I simply never realized that playing BioShock 2 meant that I was going to reenter Rapture and shoot up some splicers. I guess all of the mediocre press about the game left me thinking that I wasn't going to enjoy myself. Little did I know that a game that's 80% as good as one of my favorite games of all time is still pretty freaking fun. The gameplay, graphics, sounds are almost identical to its predecessor, and you'll hear no complaints from me in those departments. Sadly, the story doesn't live up to the first game (but really, what does?) but it's still good enough to keep me playing. True, some of the story mechanics really start to wear thin by the end (just go through that door…oh no!…some new element is keeping you from getting there), but there are enough new gameplay mechanics (wielding both plasmids and guns in particular) that provide enough depth that I was rarely bored with the game.

I have a few gripes that I'd like to address, but they're minor at best. A lot of the level layouts were confusing and I found myself lost a few times. It seemed like there were an overwhelming number of audio diaries this time around (100), but apparently the first game had over 120. I think they were just placed in really inconvenient places, which forced me to comb over every pixel of Rapture whether I liked it or not. None of the guns felt particularly powerful, even after upgrading them, but I felt that way in the first game, too.

Sure, 75% of my experience may have been fueled by nostalgia, I still had a great time playing through BioShock 2. I had some complaints, but there were enough clever gameplay and story tricks to make this game worth a rental. It didn't change my life, but it did let me revisit my favorite underground dystopia again. no comments

If you wanted to get in on the Blur multiplayer beta, but weren't able to get your hands on a beta code, then there's some good news; Blur developers Bizarre Creations, just announced on the game's official site that the beta will open up to all Xbox 360 owners on April 6th.

A free multiplayer demo will arrive on Xbox Live on April 6th, and all you have to do to get in on the action is download it and start playing. It's literally as simple, and as easy as that! no comments

Does anyone remember seeing a Heavy Rain trailer a long time ago, which featured Madison sneaking through an eerie house, then being chased by some creepy weirdo as she tried to get away? You know, that sequence that looked quite tense, but never made it into the final game?

Well now it's available as DLC, and the chapter goes by the name of The Taxidermist. The best part is, it should be available by the time you read this, and the price in North America is $5. So, if you enjoyed Heavy Rain and desperately want to be creeped out again, then this sounds like it should be right up your street! no comments

If any of you are fans of the game After Burner, you may remember this. Or possibly this?
Well, now you have good reason to be cheerful, as Sega just recently confirmed the release dates for After Burner Climax in North America and Europe.  The game is set to release on XBLA on April 21st, and will arrive on PSN on April 22nd in both territories.

I distinctly remember playing the original in arcades as a kid, and being blown away by how fast and slick the game was, so it'll be interesting to see how this remake holds up. Is anyone else excited for this, or does anyone have any similar memories of this game as a kid? If so, drop us a comment and let us know what you think. no comments

After playing Metro 2033 it becomes abundantly clear that it's going to be a very difficult game to review, and this is largely due to the fact that the game has the capacity to be brilliant – if it wasn't quite so broken.

Possibly the first thing you'll notice is that developer 4A Games – comprised of members of the team who worked on S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl – have tried hard to create a game that's immersive, realistic, and atmospheric. In this respect, the developers have done an excellent job, and you're unlikely to play another FPS that has the same kind of atmosphere that Metro 2033 does.  Likewise, the game is filled with lots of original touches that help keep you immersed, such as the way you use your watch to see how much time you have left before you need to change the filter on your gas-mask, or the way the mask begins to fog up when said filter needs to be changed. The game is filled with inventive touches like this, and it really helps to reinforce the atmosphere that the game does such a great job of creating.

Given that much of your time is spent in underground tunnels, the game does a good job of varying the action, and introduces enough new elements and mechanics to keep the gameplay feeling fresh, for the most part at least. However, not all of these sections are well implemented, and some sections feel like they definitely could have used more development time and a little more polish.
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Having been reported in February, but not confirmed since, Mega Man 10 should be arriving on XBLA this week. Back in February, Capcom announced that the game would release at different times on different platforms; March 1st on Wiiware, March 11th on PSN, and March 31st on XBLA.
Though it is hard to confirm, it looks like the game will cost 800MSP, when it releases later today.

After the crushing difficulty of previous Mega Man games, especially Mega Man 9, this game will include an easy mode, for people who don't like to cry while gaming. If you're unsure as to whether you want to forcefully make yourself cry, check out the video below:



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