OMG RPG

Today the Fallout 3team dished on the philosophy and design behind their latest DLC pack, Point Lookout.  Personally I was a bit curious as to why a little known spot in Maryland would capture Bethesda's attention, until I read the dev diary they posted today.  The development on this particular DLC seems have formed organically around some disparate concepts, including "swamps", "mansion siege", and "cultists".  Intrigued?  I know I am.  

Point Lookout, MD is a rural location filled with all sorts of history. From colonial America's foundations to the Civil War, this little ithsmus has held an important part in the forming of the state, and its rich history was a great inspiration as they tried to marry "organ thieves" with "steamboats."

The result is Point Lookout, a DLC pack that not only expands the Fallout 3 world, it deepens the story within it.  Look for Point Lookout on Microsoft XBLA June 23rd.

Coming out of closed beta this week is the latest game from Perfect World Entertainment entitled Jade Dynasty. It's another free to play MMO from the same company that brought us Ether Sage. At E3 we got to get a hands on look at the game, and we walked away perplexed by what we saw. The game is not the usual run of the mill MMO, but that could be a good thing!

In speaking with Craig Beers, one of the product managers at Perfect World, we find there to be a lot of enthusiasm when discussing this game. For them, it could be a new road in the well traveled path of free to play mmo's, one whose payout could be significant.

The back story on Jade Dynasty is the search for everlasting life (also known as my Saturday nights, but that's another story). The story line and characters share a look and feel with the Dynasty Warriors franchise made by KOEI with an added effect of color. The color in this game stands out greatly and helps to enhance the gameplay as the SlashNoob is always a sucker for great artwork.

They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery and with the massive success of the Grand Theft Auto and Saints Row franchises, it was inevitable for an MMO version right? Well, if you refer to All Points Bulletin as such, you'll likely end up six feet under. Yes, there are some similarities, but no, it's not an MMO clone, and that's a good thing.

At E3, we got an opportunity to meet with Realtime Worlds and get the latest and greatest on All Points Bulletin. The game is in your face, and walking into their E3 booth you certainly got that. Greeted by booth babes with more ink than the Declaration of Independence I certainly knew that in your face style was in store for APB. Some might find APB a little intense to start out and that's not necessarily a bad thing, but like Niko, if you give it some time and it will certainly grow on you.

The great thing about APB is their emphasis on you being the celebrity, which appealed to me especially (given that I am the noob). What exactly does that mean? It means that you the player determine your story, not a story determining how you play. That allows the user to do what they want, when they want and most importantly, HOW they want in the rough city of San Paro. If you want to rob a bank, go for it, if you'd like to jack a car, by all means. What you want to do, will directly affect what happens to you next.

The folks at Runic Games come from a successful line of game creation. With many who have worked on such hit titles as Diablo II and Fate the studio has come together with the idea of creating something to top even those titles.Embarking on a two part quest, the first of which I got a chance to play during E3. Phase one of their two part masterpiece is an action RPG called “Torchlight”. The game seems engrained in the Diablo II roots, which is by no means a bad thing, however they are certainly venturing off the beaten path of it is “done when its done” by promising that this title will be created, packaged and shipped out this fall. Quite the feat, since they’ve been working on it for just seven months.

Wishful thinking you might say? Well the folks at Runic Games beg to differ. First off this isn’t their first time around with this style of game; in fact it’s their third. And as CEO Max Schaeffer states it’s a lot easier to make games the third time around with your friends,

“It’s a lot easier when you’re working with a team you’re familiar with for sure” Schaeffer says. “Our meetings are a lot more efficient, sparse, and fun, that’s for sure.”

It goes without saying that being in the proverbially trenches with folks tends to push you towards the extremes, either you love the team you work with, or you hate them and for the group up in the Pacific Northwest, the team feeling is certainly one of friendship.

I've been telling you for a while now how much I've fallen in love with Riot Games' League of Legends: Clash of Fates.  Now you don't have to take my word for it, because Gametrailers just announced they've named LoL the best strategy game of this year's E3.  This genre-bending game is definitely one on my list of must have titles this year, and I'm glad to see other people are standing up and taking notice.  

Since I last got to beat the pants off of other gaming journalists at GDC, LoL has added a few new faces to their pantheon of super cool playable champions.  The latest two are Evelynn -- all straps and spikes and stealthy stabby-stabby -- and Sion, the undead abomination that just wants to hug you...to death.

There are so many levels of cool in this game it's hard to describe.  Beta sign-ups are available over on the League of Legends website, and I highly suggest anyone who loves a good time sign up immediately.  

With the recent successful launch of Warhammer 40k on PC, it was impossible to think that other versions of the franchise were not far off. But could they be as big and badass as the original RTS? Well, in walks Space Marine, and it promises to be stiff competition.

The title, which will be released on PS3 & Xbox 360 likely next year will focus on an action-RPG style of game play as you fight as one of the mighty Space Marines. Built to destroy all those who stand in the way of the mighty war God, we’ve watched the trailer and have asked the questions and here’s what we know so far:

During our travels throughout the floor on E3, omgRPG got a great chance to play the new Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks that was announced at GDC earlier this year. The game finds us many years after the previous installment (Phantom Hourglass) where once again a young hero (Link look alike) is tasked with the goal of becoming a hero. There are a lot of interesting changes to the game that were quite apparent quickly, but the one thing for sure is that this game looks like it will provide hours of entertainment for DS and Zelda fans all around.

The demo we played during E3 was split into three new game play features: New Dungeon companions, Boss Battles and transportation. All three of these sections highlighted the improved puzzle system that fans of the franchise love.

1. Boss Battles – A quintessential piece of the Zelda franchise has been unique and exciting boss battles. The key to the boss battles are solving the puzzles and they demo we played was a great example of the different levels of puzzles. Starting out you’re given a whirlwind item that allows you to shoot out a cyclone that clears out any cloudy debris. This is essential as there are a couple of fogs that will hurt you unless you whisk them away. This leads into the boss battle as the gigantic beetle you fight tends to pass the same gas out of its rear in the first stage of the battle. You must clear the gas than whack away with your sword. After that the beetle takes flight and dispatches small minions to attack you. You have to hit them once, then blow them in the direction of the boss in order to defeat it. The puzzles aren’t out right obvious, but once you get the hang of the fight, it becomes quite simple and winnable in typical Zelda fashion.

Day II had a lot to live up to after day #1's whirlwind. The day started with an interesting twist as Square-Enix called a press conference with limited details as to who & what would be discussed, all we knew was that it was important. The rest is history:

• Final Fantasy XIII & XIV discussion - Got the chance to talk with the Final Fantasy XIV creative/executive team about their upcoming title. They were quick to inform us that this is NOT a PS3 exclusive and that they are presently planning for a global PC release as well. They were also emphatic that they are still considering a deal with "other hardware devices", so unless that means the PSP, it seems like we should see it on Xbox 360 as well.
• Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks Hands On  - Yes, I know you're all upset that we didn't get a Zelda game on the Wii, but trust me, this little DS nugget will hold you over until then. With lots of puzzles and more challenges the game will keep the Legend of Zelda in high regard.

Day #1 is in the books and day #2 is getting itself geared up as well. Day #1 was wild and crazy and truly overwhelmed me in the sense that everything was large, in charge and in your face. Not to mention just crazy! Here are some of the highlights from my adventuring:

• Torchlight - Got to play the single player game that is due out this fall. I'll have a full report including discussions with one of the lead developers. If you like Diablo II, you should be excited for another similar installment. Except this one comes with the unheard of ability to customize every aspect of the levels you play. Not to mention it will be a precursor to upcoming MMO thy are creating on the same series we should hope to see in 2010.
• All Points Bulletin - Saw first ever in game footage from this new EA titled from the creator of Crackdown and Grand Theft Auto. This title pits the enforcers vs. the criminals in a new and dynamic way in game. This title like others EA is putting out is focusing on short quick quests/adventures that allows users to play for as quickly as 15-20minutes or all day if they like. It will be interesting to see if this style of MMO is welcomed by players.