The Journal of Arcticus: Part Two

Part two of the exciting journey of Arcticus is now up on the a la carte page. Follow the link to dive into the story! Please don't forget that if you have anything video game related that you have created, submit it to our e-mail to be posted on the a la carte page for the world to see and enjoy! gamingcuisine@gmail.com - Hope to see your submissions soon!

Until next time, keep on gamin' on!

Max Payne: Then and Now

Shotgun + guy flying backwards into an explosion of flames + Slow motion = AWESOME! 

In 1999 a movie came out that introduced a film style called “Bullet Time”. Most people have seen the scene in “The Matrix” where Neo dodges several bullets in slow motion, while the camera circles him 360 degrees. I remember being floored the first time I watched that scene. I couldn’t believe what I had just seen, and wanted more of it. The movie was released on DVD, and I watched the movie over, and over, and over. 

New Hitman Novel

A new novel titled: "Hitman: Damnation" has been announced. Check out the details on our Daily Special's Page!

Until next time, keep on gamin' on!

Skyrim: The Journal of Arcticus/ Introduction to the new a la carte page!

I’ve been playing “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” for the past couple of months. Released on November 11, 2011, Skyrim recently won the highly sought after " 2011 Game of the Year” awards from Spike TV, Ars Technica, and multiple other outlets. It is one of the best games I have ever played. If you haven’t heard of Skyrim, go buy it; don’t even think about it! If you are wondering what this game is all about, you can read my review of it here.

There are several races to choose from in Skyrim. My personal favorite race is the Khajiit. It is a race of humanoids that look like tigers. I picked facial features, war paint, eye color, hair style, side burns, facial hair, and many other features, and then picked the color of my Khajiit. I ended up going with a Siberian looking tiger, because they are my favorite tigers. When it came time to pick a name I chose Arcticus. One of the specialties of the Khajiit race is being stealth; which I consider an added bonus, because I really wanted to sneak around Skyrim as a thief. There is something about breaking into peoples houses in a digital world that is fun and exciting; which goes back to “Why we play the games we play.” To kick off our new “a la carte" section I’ve written a short story about my character’s adventures, through his eyes. I hope you enjoy it!

New Deadlight Trailer

I couldn't help but share this awesome teaser trailer for the new Microsoft Xbox Live Exclusive for "Deadlight". Our friends over at Game Insider have the video piping hot, and ready to fill your appetite!

2012: Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft step up their game, and industry rumors abound

Half Life 3 being released is a good example of that latter thing, the "rumor" part.
In short, don't hold your breath. 

It seems that as every generation of consoles nears its close rumors abound about who's pulling out of the market, which consoles will be the best, what the features are of systems not yet announced, etc., etc. For instance IGN reported the head of a gaming cloud service was predicting Sony or Microsoft to pull out of the market. In the article IGN all but says this is preposterous ("...should be taken with a huge grain of salt..."), but the rumors are going to spread regardless. Fanboys will rage, tech info will be "leaked" (only to be revealed as fake), screenshots, spreadsheets, announcements, and everything in between will be released, forums will flare, and on, and on, and on. In the end nobody will know how the systems or software will perform until they're released, but that won't prevent arguments and insanity from overflowing in the meantime.

So, why bring it up? Well, with all the rumors being strewn about, I wanted to pin down a few things we do know about what will be coming up this year, and what we know will be revealed at the upcoming E3 '12 (June, 5th-7th). I'm going to give a brief breakdown of what we can expect to hear over the coming year from each of the big three console companies. 

Shanked: Blood, blood, and more blood

This poster pretty much sums it up. 

Image courtesy: Jeff Gala

Shank,
PC, PS3, Xbox 360

"Shank" has been out for quite a while, and to be fair, I've even owned it for quite a while, but only recently have I gotten around to giving it a whirl. Created by Klei Games and published be EA, "Shank" is side-scrolling beat-em-up whirlwind of violence, and profanity. "Shank", like the recently reviewed "Rochard", uses classic gameplay style, and cartoony visuals; that, however, is where the similarities end. Playing an anti-hero instead of a hero, and a plot based on revenge instead of justice, "Shank" is more akin to games like "No More Heroes" or "Ninja Gaiden" than "Castlevania" or "Metroid"; providing action based on hack'n'slash gameplay, rather than puzzle solving, or complex platforming. There is a bit of platforming in "Shank", to be fair, but it's the exception rather than the rule; with most screens becoming a mess of blood and violence, rather than figuring out how to get to the next section.

Mad Catz MLG Licensed Pro Circuit Controller Now Available

Follow this link to our "Daily Specials" page for the scoop! 

-Until next time, keep on gamin' on!

Gears of War 3: Anvil map preview

I couldn't resist this incredibly juicy look into the up coming map being released in the "Fenix rising map pack". Follow this link to get your belly's full until it's released date of January 17, 2012. Hope you enjoy!

Rock Hard: Mining, Space, Pirates, Treachery and other manly things

Never stand between a man and his mine.

Via  Rochard/Recoil  

Rochard,
PS3, PC, Mac

"Rock is hard. John Rochard is Harder." That is the first thing I ever saw regarding "Rochard", and I have to admit, that sentence, combined with the image posted above, told me I had better at least give this game a look.

"Rochard" is a classic style side-scrolling platform action/puzzler made by Recoil Games. You play as John Rochard, a miner working for the Skyrig Corporation searching asteroids for a rare mineral commonly called "Space Diesel" (or so our protagonist tells us). The game starts off with John Rochard and crew about to be fired for being the lowest producing crew in the company. Just when things couldn't look worse, the crew gets a lucky break: they hit a major deposit, and it looks like they'll keep their jobs after all. On top of that they've uncovered a strange object in the shafts, something John immediately calls in to report. Their fortune doesn't last long though, as catastrophe strikes, leaving Johns companions Skyler and Zander trapped in one of the shafts. With their lives in peril Rochard sets off to save them, but not before calling in the emergency. To make matters worse a group of space pirates show up and invade the station. Johns shining moment of glory continues to get more and more tarnished, but to reveal more would ruin the plot, not something I care to do.

Turtle Beach X12 Gaming Headset Review

I recently purchased the Turtle Beach X12 Gaming Headset for my Xbox 360 (also works for PC) and wanted to let the rest of the world know what I think of them.

I have been debating about getting a gaming headset for about 3 years now. I have weighed the pros and cons, looked at reviews on as many as possible, and even tried some of my friends headsets. It wasn't until about a year ago that I had my eye set on the "Turtle Beach" brand. A year ago Turtle Beach wasn't as big as they are today; it seems like anyone I talk to today about a gaming headset recommends Turtle Beach.