After teasing it a couple weeks back with a contest, Sega officially announces Daytona USA for Xbox Live Arcade on October 26 and Playstation Network a day earlier for ten dollars. The same game that you loved at the arcades is finally getting a proper port on consoles (Saturn and Dreamcast versions were disappointing from what I seen). Widescreen support is in as seen in Sega Racing Classic (the same Daytona without the name) as well as online multiplayer with up to eight players on the three tracks. Extra modes are included such as the karaoke mode from the Saturn version. As I said back from the teaser blog post...
This is pretty surprising when I first read about it, but now it is happening. Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar returns to what made him the beast it is today. He is a playable legend in WWE' 12, which is out next month. Considering what you have to go through is get this approved from the UFC, this is pretty big. Dana White has said on numerous occasions that him and Vince McMahon are good friends and not competitors, so I guess Dana decided to let Brock appear in a wrestling game again. Of course, it doesn't mean The Next Big Thing will return to the actual WWE as he has a big fight against Overeem in December for the UFC, but its still nice to see him back in a WWE product.
Here Comes the Pain indeed (I'm not sure about his remixed entrance music as the original is still pretty good)
Tomorrow begins this year's dance game battle as Just Dance 3 releases on Wii, 360, and PS3 while Dance Central 2 is still on track for October 25 exclusively on Kinect. I actually saw the Wii version at my local Target last weekend (Target has two exclusive songs) and was tempted to get it at its 40 dollar price, but good thing it was only temptation. I still expect this to sell gangbusters this holiday season as here's one of the songs in full that is everyone's favorite song on radio this year. Its cool that LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem" is in it, but its missing one important thing: Shuffling!!!! To be fair, Just Dance 3 doesn't really include actual chereography to certain songs as Dance Central 2 has been doing for the most part in some of their songs.
Mass Effect 3's multiplayer has been rumored even since the game's original announcement last year, but looks like its going down after all according to next month's Official Xbox Magazine cover story. The issue comes out next week and probably the embargo on everyone else will be up by then to spill the beans on what BioWare has been up to. Even they announced it early on their Twitter about confirming some sort of multiplayer component. No official word what it is actually going to be whether its the standard competitive modes, co-op through the campaign, or a horde style mode as of yet, but I guess we have to wait till next week for the info along with plans for downloadable content (An online pass has been rumored as well). Personally, it is inevitable Mass Effect 3 is getting it and also probably one of many reasons it was delayed to March 2012. The big campaign is what still matters at the end of the day as we determine the fate of Shepard in the conclusion of this epic trilogy.
EA's NBA Jam reboot last year was a great return to form for the arcade basketball classic. Even though it was a retail release, this year's On Fire Edition is download only on Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network. NBA Jam being download only is for the best since you're getting a better value for a decent amount of content. Some new gameplay additions and online features are introduced for this year's version, but its still NBA Jam at its core, which what matters importantly at the end of the day. From ridiculous dunks, Tim Kitzrow saying boomshakalaka numerous times, and tons of unlockables, NBA Jam: On Fire Edition is a great downloadable package that is worth your fifteen bucks.
The classic NBA Jam gameplay is still intact in this version sticking to the signature 2v2 format. Games are fast and intense with easy scoring, but as sports goes, a great defense equals a great offense. Defending is key to success with the classic pushes, stealing, and timed blocks. Players on offense can still use their elbows like the original to avoid pushes, but that can only do so much. Scoring still consists of normal shooting, crazy dunks, alley oops, and being on fire to do insane over the top dunks. The new gameplay additions are great adding along to your ways to score. Team Fire allows both teammates to be on fire by scoring three alley oops in a row then the ball goes on blue fire. There is a time limit with team fire, but the opposing team can distinguish it with an alley oop of their own. Razzle dazzle brings some style to the mix with tricks straight out of NBA Street even though it is just a way to show off and crazy shots you normally don't see in a real basketball game. Tag mode is simply controlling both teammates instead of one human and one CPU AI the whole game. Having that on has its advantages and weaknesses, but at least it makes Jam feel somewhat modern to the simulation b-ball games. The core gameplay is still fun, pick up to play, and a blast especially against local friends, where it can get pretty competitive once good games get going.
While last year's reboot has numerous modes that spiced up things from boss characters and other crazy stipulations, On Fire Edition sticks straight to the point of good old fashioned NBA Jam taking those out even though they were decent ideas at the time. Other than the standard Jam Now mode, you're going to spend most of your time in the game's Road Trip and Online Arena. Road Trip is the main career mode as you have to face all the teams at least three times to complete it. The first time will be against current stars while the second time is against a team's legends (some teams don't have legends though). It gets harder at the second half of the campaign as the AI gets better at defense pushing and stealing at will even though you can breeze through teams' current stars. Even though it can be played alone, Road Trip is a grind being longer than you think becoming repetitive even though the AI steps up their game as you progress. At least if you're tired of grinding it out alone, it can be played co-op locally and even online.
Speaking of online, On Fire Edition's Online Arena is deeper with lots of stat tracking, challenges to complete (also counts for Road Trip). The Jam challenges are self-explanatory performing certain tasks to accumulate Jam Points to buy the game's unlockables. Online specific challenges are there as well as your friends list that play this game can help achieve them even though they function the same. The big feature with Online Arena is that there is a time period to accumulate wins and racking medals every week. This is neat to have pushing players to keep playing online matches against the world. Other than that, be prepared to deal with players that like to spam three pointers as unless you can defend that, online play is going to be frustrating and it has been personally. In addition, there are ragequitters that will not finish games if they are behind by lots of points. It still functions fine with minimal lag during my experience so far, but it is rare to have a fair game of NBA Jam going against online opposition. There will be intense moments during close games as you just want to scream out loud pulling off a double overtime win to yelling curse words in defeat.
If you seen the graphics of last year's NBA Jam, On Fire Edition basically looks the same with accurate faces to current stars and legends. There are some missing legends probably because of likeness issues (Michael Jordan being in NBA 2K12 is obviously an exclusive thing), but it is still pretty much a who's who of basketball players from the 80s and 90s. The crowd looks fine for the most part and the unlockable teams are obviously a nice treat in a game like this. In traditional Jam fashion, Democrats and Republicans are unlockable as well as mascots and characters from other EA games that I won't spoil (unless you saw that launch trailer above). I also like the soundtrack in the game with beats that gets people going in-game and the menus. Tim Kitzrow's commentary is still as good as it was back in the 90s with his classic lines even though he can ramble too much and when he throws out references from today's times, they're cringe-worthy at best.
For fifteen dollars (1200 Microsoft Points), NBA Jam: On Fire Edition is as good as it gets when it comes to arcade sports games. Being downloadable is a great thing as you're getting lots of replay value out of it for that price from the lengthy Road Trip mode and playing against other people locally or online. The classic gameplay is still as fun and a blast to play as it was in the 90s along with the craziness the franchise has been known for. The numerous unlockables and completing jam challenges are also keep players going for weeks and months to come along with downloadable content and updated rosters. At this rate, who needs the NBA lockout when you can go boomshakalaka on your foes with this latest NBA Jam.
Score = 8.5/10
Pros:
The core NBA Jam gameplay is still fun and a blast especially with the new gameplay additions
Tons of replay value and numerous unlockables
Sticks straight to the point taking out the gimmick modes
Lengthy career mode
Deep online focus will keep players going
Cons:
Some of the commentary could of been better (Kitzrow can ramble too much at times)
Online competition can be frustrating to play against (opponents that love to spam three pointers because they have a player with a high 3pt rating and ragequitters if they are down by a huge margin)
This is some random video I just saw regarding an Outrun arcade cabinet being driven in the real world. Apparently, when the game tells you to turn, you turn the actual vehicle for reals. Shoutouts to UC Irvine for coming up with this even though it is still in experimental stages, but there's some potential despite how scary it can be at open environments than closed ones.
We're about a month away from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's big release as the latest campaign trailer is now up on the interwebs. Activision is obviously expecting big things from their latest cash cow as if they're going to trump Black Ops as the biggest entertainment launch of all-time. The crazy setpieces will still be there along with a summer Hollywood blockbuster-like plot to conclude this trilogy. I'm still on Team Battlefield, but obviously MW3 is no slouch.
