February 4 - February 8

Section: 

It feels like it's been a while since we had a nice solid release week like this one. The next 8 weeks or so will see quite a few more large and interesting releases, so I hope your wallet had a nice rest and you made a dent into the pile, because things are about to change.

This week has a number of things worth attention, but likely the big game of the week from a mainstream perspective will be Dead Space 3. Dead Space is a series that could have been cookie-cutter and forgettable, but has developed its own aesthetic, following and legacy as a good, sometimes great, survival horror game. In the twilight of Resident Evil, which has become forgettable and disappointing in its old age, Dead Space has in many ways picked up that niche of the market. Though the games are very different in setting and lore, I think there are a lot of similarities in themes and presentation.

Also this week, Fire Emblem: Awakening on the 3DS, which actually is my pick for game of the week. This may be a surprise to some of you, but if you've been looking for a reason to dig out your 3DS for a while, near universal initial buzz says this is the game you've been waiting for. And, if you don't have a 3DS, this might be the game worth getting one for. A turn based, strategy RPG in the vein of great handheld games like Final Fantasy Tactics and Advance Wars, this seems like the kind of game where I could put aside my discomfort with JRPG stylings and embrace what really does look and sound like a phenomenal game.

And, if all that wasn't enough, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time also debuts on the PS3 this week. Sly has always felt like one of those series that maybe never quite stepped forward in the limelight the way it might have, but they have always proven to be quality platformers. I know virtually nothing about Thieves in Time, which seems almost criminal because it's probably a safe bet that it will be a decent game.

PC
- Anodyne (download)
- Dead Space 3
- Special Forces: Team X (download)

Xbox 360
- Dead Space 3
- Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage 2
- Special Forces: Team X (XBLA)

PS3
- American Mensa Academy
- Dead Space 3
- Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage 2 (PSN)
- Sly Cooper: Thieves In Time

Wii U
- Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage 2 (eShop)

Vita
- Bentley's Hackpack (PSN)
- Sly Cooper: Thieves In Time

3DS
- Brain Age: Concentration Training
- Fire Emblem: Awakening

DS
- Ah! Heaven (DSiWare)

Comments

And, if all that wasn't enough, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time also debuts on the PS3 this week. Sly has always felt like one of those series that maybe never quite stepped forward in the limelight the way it might have, but they have always proven to be quality platformers. I know virtually nothing about Thieves in Time, which seems almost criminal because it's probably a safe bet that it will be a decent game.

If anyone does know about it, I'd love to hear it. I adored Sly 1 and 2 but thought 3 was terrible. I'd love to know if it's a throwback or just more of 3.

[spit-take]

Also on 3DS this week: the demo for Etrian Odyssey IV, which will carry over your progress into the full game. I'm sure EOIV isn't the first to do this, but this is a practice that other games (and especially RPGs with long-winded openings) should adopt immediately.

Is this the first 3DS game to get pick of the week?

Working on the pile again / Ni No Kuni. Trying like mad to clear some room before March hits.

It's the third, actually. Not including the system itself.

OzymandiasAV wrote:

Also on 3DS this week: the demo for Etrian Odyssey IV, which will carry over your progress into the full game. I'm sure EOIV isn't the first to do this, but this is a practice that other games (and especially RPGs with long-winded openings) should adopt immediately.

The first I saw to do this on the 3DS was the eShop game The "DENPA" Men, a sort of super-casual Dragon Quest-style RPG.

I had no idea that the EOIV progress would carry over. I was really looking forward to the demo anyway, and now I'm even more excited for it.

OzymandiasAV wrote:

Also on 3DS this week: the demo for Etrian Odyssey IV, which will carry over your progress into the full game.

That's flippin' tidy, that is!

Farscry wrote:
OzymandiasAV wrote:

Also on 3DS this week: the demo for Etrian Odyssey IV, which will carry over your progress into the full game.

That's flippin' tidy, that is!

Fantastic!

ClockworkHouse wrote:

[spit-take]

Right there with ya buddy.

And I just got the Sly Collection for PS3 at Thanksgiving or Christmas on Amazon lightning deal. Still haven't played that yet, so the pile is safe from the new Sly for now.

Dead Space 3! Soooo excited!

Minarchist wrote:

If anyone does know about it, I'd love to hear it. I adored Sly 1 and 2 but thought 3 was terrible. I'd love to know if it's a throwback or just more of 3.

One of the podcasts I listen to said it was closer to 1 than it was to 3. I've platinumed 1 and 2, but haven't finished 3 yet... I really should go back to that.

Stele wrote:
ClockworkHouse wrote:

[spit-take]

Right there with ya buddy.

And I just got the Sly Collection for PS3 at Thanksgiving or Christmas on Amazon lightning deal. Still haven't played that yet, so the pile is safe from the new Sly for now. ;)

With you both on the spit-take, with Stele on the Sly Collection, which also sits atop my pile. I'm not sure if I want to break it up into separate items on the pile or leave it as one.

If I had the time/money, I'd be nabbing Dead Space 3. But not just yet. No, not just yet...

kazriko wrote:
Minarchist wrote:

If anyone does know about it, I'd love to hear it. I adored Sly 1 and 2 but thought 3 was terrible. I'd love to know if it's a throwback or just more of 3.

One of the podcasts I listen to said it was closer to 1 than it was to 3. I've platinumed 1 and 2, but haven't finished 3 yet... I really should go back to that.

Same here. 1 and 2 are pretty different, but 3 felt like more of a rehash of 2. I have absolutely no time for it now. I just spent 45 minutes exploring the flippin overworld. Tidy!

Sly Cooper has a base price of $40 and includes a copy of the Vita version. I keep thinking I should buy a Vita, but it's just another system to add games to the pile

Intrigued by a new Sly game, but Sony I guess has scaled back on marketing anything about it, because I was surprised to even hear about it coming out this week. Guess that's what happens when you're teetering on bad financials and holding your breath for a new console release.

Also, Dead Space 3...not my thing, but the buzz sounds good. I just can't play "scary" games. I watched someone play Dead Space 2 and enjoyed the commentary from a YouTube-er. Might do the same just to watch the spectacle of Dead Space 3 if people are talking it up still...

Elysium wrote:

It's the third, actually. Not including the system itself.

And this is how we learn that Sean meticulously tracks statistics on every post he makes to the front page in a spreadsheet.