The last day of January brings with it a torrent of new games.  I don’t know why the industry decided January was a no-go zone, but the drought is over for now.  To celebrate, I’ve decided to post a bunch of release trailers, rather than just one.

Soul Calibur V

To be honest, I’m surprised this video isn’t just long close-ups of cleavage and g-strings, but I’m glad it’s not that crass.  I haven’t been overly enamored with most recent fighting games I’ve tried (Mortal Kombat and Marvel vs. Capcom 3, in particular), so I’ll probably rent this one first.  Unlike Sam, though, I do recall at least enjoying a few of the Soul Calibur entries, so perhaps this’ll be the modern fighting game I’m looking for.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 (There are probably spoilers for XIII in the trailer.)

It’s definitely going to be a long time before I even attempt to tackle this one.  I still haven’t managed to get more than about ten hours into FFXIII-1, and I’ve seen some grumblings that the much-vaunted fixes XIII-2 brings may be smoke and mirrors.

NeverDead

2011′s Knight’s Contract and this week’s NeverDead both feature immortal protagonists fighting off demons and the undead.  Knight’s Contract, though, was a medieval hack-and-slasher, and immortality just meant you could mash buttons to regenerate yourself if you took too much damage too quickly.  In NeverDead (a modern-day shooter), immortality apparently means being able to rip yourself apart and some how strategically use your body parts in combat.  It’s definitely a unique take on the idea, but I think I’ll have to try this one before I buy as well.  Also, NeverDead’s trailer makes no mention of a vulnerable female sidekick (one of Knight’s Contract’s weak spots), but I’ve heard there may be one, so I’m curious if they’re downplaying that in order to avoid negative comparisons.

So, two rentals and one pass for me this week.  I’m still neck deep in Skyrim, so prospects don’t look much better for Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning next week, but we’ll see what happens.  How about you?  Any games on your radar this week?

Due to scheduling conflicts, the boys have only had a couple of days since Episode 102 was recorded, so game talk is light this week.  That’s okay, though, because we’re bringing back the headlines!

What little gaming did we do?  Alex tried to force himself through the Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood finally, and fails to make it past Hitman: Blood Money‘s tutorial.  Jonathan picked up and started playing Space Marine, and found that the atmosphere is fantastic, but the difficult spikes are irritating.  Sam, meanwhile, busts out a Skyrim dragon story, and talks up ODST with Brad and William Pall.

In the headlines this week, we’ve got protests, lawsuits, delays, leaks, and hacks.

• ESA Drops Support for PIPA, SOPA
• EA Invokes First Amendment Protection for Video Games in Trademark Dispute with Helicopter Maker
• XCOM FPA Pushed to 2013, Firaxis Strategy Reboot Still Set for 2012
• Max Payne 3 Pushed Back to May
• Windows Live Login Suggested as Xbox Live Security Flaw
• BioShock Infinite 1999 Mode for System Shock Fans
• Resident Evil 6 Logo, Release Date Leaked

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Scheduling conflicts this week means there’s been a lot of time since we recorded 101, and very little time until we record 103.  As such, we’ve got a lot of games to talk about this episode, and we’ll have a lot of headlines to cover next episode.

Before we get into that, though, we have a correction to make.  Jonathan’s not sure how he messed this up, but Ryven Cydrelle didn’t win our contest last week.  Moreover, he didn’t even enter it.  Rather, a listener named Joe was the proper entrant and winner in the contest, and all has been corrected.  Thanks to Ryven for noticing the error and to Joe for being a good sport!

In the show proper, Alex explains why The History Channel: Great Battles – Medieval isn’t a particularly good game, a fact which should surprise no one.  He also makes a case for why Asura’s Wrath needs a change of venue to the Kinect, no matter how foolish it might make you look or sound.  Then his mic goes wonky, and he kind of talks about Hero Academy (which he’s been playing with Jonathan, Luke, and others).

Jonathan’s got a big list, explaining why he shipped Battlefield 3, unplayed, back to GameFly, and only gave Record of Agarest War Zero a quick pass.  He’s also picked up Space Marine, and didn’t much care for the new NFL Blitz, or the older Madden Arcade.

Sam has been moving and has had Internet issues, so his list consists of his primary addiction of late, EDF, and the game everybody on the show has played this week (and which we end the show talking about), Skyrim.

Sam gets a bit of a rage-on about Skyrim’s AI system.  His Lydia apparently has a fondness for geology, and flinging herself headlong into hopeless battles.  Overall, though, Skyrim seems to have overcome his major gripes about Morrowind and Oblivion.  Meanwhile, Alex barely got through the tutorial mission and turned the game off.  He claims Everquest flashbacks, and no one really wants to see him relapse.  Jonathan has spent a preposterous amount of time playing Skyrim, but he’s not really all that far into the story.  Somehow it works, though.  None of the hosts think it deserves all the hype it’s getting, but at least two hosts are enjoying it quite a lot.

Next week, fewer games, and more game-related headlines!

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Dunno what was in our water this episode, but we get fairly explicit this episode, and it would have killed Sam to bleep them all.  Fair warning.

Thanks to Juriel, Ryven Cydrelle, Zatala, and ZombieLich for entering our Indie Game Contest!  And congratulations to Ryven and Zatala for winning!  We’ll contact you soon with your prizes.

Juriel, of course, officially won our Pinball FX 2 tournament.  Congrats to him, and thanks to everyone else for participating!

Jonathan has started playing Skyrim, and it’s a not bad game.  It’s almost exactly like the D&D game he wishes he could play at the table.  He and Sam have also been playing some EDF, and all hail Purple!

In addition to EDF, Sam’s been taking breaks with Grand Theft Auto 4.  Brucie tickles his fancy, and he appreciates the slower pace compared to the insanity of EDF.

Alex has picked up a Lovecraftian-style CCG strategy game for iOS called Cabals.  Multiplayer is random-opponent-only, but that’s supposed to change soon.  He’s also really enjoying Rayman Origins, which is saying a lot since Alex doesn’t typically like platformers.

In this week’s topic, we pass preliminary judgement on just about every game we know is dropping in 2012, and some we’re not sure about.  We try to be quick about it, and there are a few surprises in there.

Finally, Sam wraps up the current round of Name That Game! with a selection of titles that have no theme at all.

CES is in full swing as this episode drops, so we’ll be discussing any headlines that come out of it next episode!

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Early in the year I claimed that 2011 was proving to be the year of the almost-perfects: games that fall just shy of everlasting greatness.  The holiday release schedule has only served to strengthen that claim.  Rather than spend hours on this topic in the podcast, I’ve decided to start a series of posts making my case.

I’ve covered Portal 2.  Next up, L.A. Noire.

Read more »

I haven’t forgotten about this column, I promise.  Rather, there’s been absolutely nothing worth mentioning coming out at retail.  Last week saw three PSP double packs, and the games in the packs were old PSP games.  The biggest release this week appears to be a NatGeo PSMove title.  And next week’s biggest title is a re-release of Gran Turismo 5.  (If you need a reminder of our opinion of GT5, the cover of episode 49 ought to serve nicely.)

I wish I could find a reliable source for independent or digital-only game release dates.  I’m sure that XBLA, PSN, or Steam have some interesting titles coming out, but nothing I’ve found says when.  Of course, that kind of seems to be the nature of that market.

The point remains, though, that Two Days isn’t dead, it’s just waiting for the industry to start selling stuff again.  Looks like that won’t be ’til the last weekend of January, though.  See you then!

We break into triple digits this week with a fairly laid back show.

Jonathan talks about how comparing the 2011 version of Mortal Kombat with the 1993 version of Super Street Fighter II Turbo illustrates how modern fighting games have completely left him behind.  He’s also been disappointed in the changes made to Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, and Red Faction: Armageddon proves to be just another bug shooter.

Sam’s gone old school with Grand Theft Auto 4, which has helped improve his opinion of Red Dead Redemption and L.A. Noire.

Alex, meantime, received EDF, Dead Rising 2, and Bastion for Christmas, though he hasn’t played any of them because he’s been playing with his new toys, an iPod Touch and a Kindle Fire.  He’s also broken out some Space Marine Capture the Flag, but finds himself just wanted to go back to Exterminatus.  Finally, he and Jonathan have both been playing an Xbox Indie Game called Lexiv, which is an interesting mix of Scrabble, SimCity, and tower defense.  It sounds weird, but it works great.

In our topic this week, we still aren’t ready to discuss the games that were in the year that was, but we do decide to talk about the prevailing themes of the year.  Jonathan’s already been discussing his belief that the year is full of Almost Perfects.  Sam focuses on setting aside his expectations.  And Alex decides that 2011 was the year Day-1 DLC and Multiplayer Codes became a permanent part of the industry.

Finally, Jonathan’s in charge of this round of Name That Game!, and he’s got a 100-themed round prepped for the others.

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It’s our last episode in double-digits territory!  Hooray!

Sam calls in from one of the Dakota’s this week, and gets his EDF on.  This game is becoming more than just a little bit of an obsession for him.

Alex tries to share more Battlefield 3 stories, but is rudely interrupted by hand gestures from the other hosts.  He’s also broken out some classic Sonic in the form of Sonic CD, and it’s apparently aged well.

Jonathan has picked up some more tables for Pinball FX 2, and has found that his complaints last week about the Sorcerer’s Lair table were premature, and that he understand nothing about how pinball is to be played.

In our topic this week, the hosts take a look at their game shelves with the intent of tallying up how many unfinished games they have, and just how long it will likely take to get through them all.  Sam’s list is small, Alex’s list is a bit hefty, and Jonathan’s list rages out of control.

Finally, Name That Game! is back, with a belated Christmas theme.  A few of the titles are repeats, but we’re keeping track now.

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Early in the year I claimed that 2011 was proving to be the year of the almost-perfects: games that fall just shy of everlasting greatness.  The holiday release schedule has only served to strengthen that claim.  Rather than spend hours on this topic in the podcast, I’ve decided to start a series of posts making my case.

First up, Portal 2!

Read more »

Turns out I picked a bad week to reboot the Two Days column.  Seriously, Mr. Bean, Aladdin (not Disney’s), and Trojans (not prophylactics).  I’m not going to bother embedding any videos of these games.  The first result for Mr. Bean’s Wacky World is a commentary on how terrible it is.  I refuse to even waste time looking for an Aladdin’s Magic Racer video.  And the most recent trailers for Warriors: Legends of Troy are from E3.  Of 2010.

Actually, as I look into it, I’m not even sure the release date on Mr. Bean is correct. Gamespy claims it’s been out since early 2009 in Australia and the UK, and since January in the U.S. I use Amazon’s release calendar when I’m putting together these posts, though, and Amazon claims it’s pre-order only, so I’m going with that.

Either way, rather than ask if you’ll be getting any new releases with your (presumably huge stacks of) Christmas Cash, let’s hear about your holiday haul.  Did the jolly fat man (or whatever else) leave any gaming goodies?

Perhaps next week will be better.  (Don’t hold your breath.)  In the meantime, here’s an awesome analysis of Mega Man and Mega Man X. (Language is NSFW.)