February 17 – February 23

Section: 

Arguably, if you were to measure a console's success by the length of time between its launch and the final retail release of its last game, then the Dreamcast is the most successful console of all time. With this week's release of Neo XYX, Sega's final console clocks in at roughly 15 years of new releases. I realize it's a stretch, but I find it entertaining anyway.

This week's actual Game of the Week though is Earth Defense Force 2025. I actually know virtually nothing about this game, except that it seems to have been brought up in the comments for the past four or five Week Ahead articles, so I'm assuming that at least for some of you it's a pretty big deal. But seriously, look at that screenshot. I don't even know what to say about that.

Also releasing this week is Banished for the PC, which is an interesting city builder in a colonial period setting where a group of settlers banished from their homeland have to build shelter and civilization out of the most basic materials. The game appears to be brutally hard, and it seems pretty easy to recreate your own Lost-Colony-of-Roanoke kind of scenario.

Otherwise, a relatively quiet week, with some pretty significant releases finally perched just on the horizon.

PC
- Banished (download – $20)
- Drunken Robot Pornography (download – $15)
- Ikaruga (download)
- Journal (download – $10)
- NASCAR '14 (download)
- Plague Inc: Evolved (download - Early Access)
- Strider (download – $15)

Xbox One
- Rayman Legends
- Strider (download – $15)

PS4
- Rayman Legends
- Strider (download – $15)

Xbox 360
- Earth Defense Force 2025
- NASCAR '14
- Strider (download – $15)

PS3
- Earth Defense Force 2025
- NASCAR '14
- Strider (download – $15)

Wii U
- Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze

Dreamcast
- NEO XYX

Vita
- Gunslugs (download)

3DS
- AeternoBlade (download)
- Kung Fu Rabbit (download)
- Quell Reflect (download)
- Weapon Shop de Omasse (download – $8)

Comments

I don't know when, but I will be getting EDF 2025. If there are giant bugs to kill, then I shall be there to kill them.

I'm looking forward to reviews of Strider.

More proof that the Dreamcast will never die. Take that, Sony!

What's the skinny on the new Plague, Inc.? And it's not limited to PC, is it? Plague, Inc. is best mobile.

... Drunken robot pornography?

Easily could have given top billing to Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze, which looks amazing (despite some people piling hate for the minecart levels). Such is the life of a Nintendo game that's not Mario, Zelda, or Metroid, I guess. If you're not looking for it, it's probably not being shoved in your face and you'll miss it. It will probably also struggle to move any more consoles, too since its 'just another side scrolling platformer'.

Glad Banished got a nod, at least. That one looks like it could be really interesting and would love to hear as many opinions as possible on what people think of it.

ClockworkHouse wrote:

... Drunken robot pornography?

I'll save you the Google search. Here it is on Steam.

Nothing for me--back to Lightning Returns.

Aristophan wrote:
ClockworkHouse wrote:

... Drunken robot pornography?

I'll save you the Google search. Here it is on Steam.

It's also been on Early Access forever. I think it was actually one of the initial set of Early Access games.

Guess they finally finished it.

EDF! EDF! EDF!

And oh hell yes Banished is finally releasing.

Still working on Bravely Default, but I'd easily put down money on most of the PC games or DKC Tropical Freeze if I were to buy something this week.

Hmmm, somewhat interested in Strider and, had I the Wii U, DKC Tropical Freeze. Soooo, nothing for now.

Banished! Nothing else exists for me until I've devoured it.

How do I buy that Dreamcast game?

I've sent my wife on a mission today while I'm at work to pick up EDF 2025, me and my son plan on parking ourselves on the couch ASAP for some bug-n-robot blowin' up shenanigans.

Ikaruga on Steam! This game is amazing for those with the desire to really sink time into something that seems repetitive and impossible on the surface.

tanstaafl wrote:
Aristophan wrote:
ClockworkHouse wrote:

... Drunken robot pornography?

I'll save you the Google search. Here it is on Steam.

It's also been on Early Access forever. I think it was actually one of the initial set of Early Access games.

Guess they finally finished it.

For the curious: It's actually a rather interesting game, being somewhat of a first person 3D bullet hell shooter. (Probably a really good way to make yourself sick if you have access to a Oculus Rift dev kit.)

would have thought Ikaruga was on PC already.

stupidhaiku wrote:

Ikaruga on Steam! This game is amazing for those with the desire to really sink time into something that seems repetitive and impossible on the surface.

I remember hearing great things. A decade ago? GameCube right?

Stele wrote:
stupidhaiku wrote:

Ikaruga on Steam! This game is amazing for those with the desire to really sink time into something that seems repetitive and impossible on the surface.

I remember hearing great things. A decade ago? GameCube right? :?

Arcade -> Dreamcast -> Gamecube -> XBLA/PSN -> Steam

And supposedly Android last year, according to wikipedia.

After 10 hrs of gameplay clock time, infinite continues unlocks. If you play that game exclusively for 10 hours, that's about the time you get good enough to not need infinite continues to get to the final boss.

... Ok, maybe that was my experience, and I made it half-way through or near the end of the final boss.

And all this time I thought it was a GCN original, as well.

PC version is unlocked from the get go. And the real fun of the game is in learning how to build up the chain count. Ikaruga looks like an STG (or "shmup," if you prefer) but is really more of a fast-paced puzzle game.