El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron is an epic original action adventure game inspired by an alternate telling of biblical mythology as narrated in the ‘heretical’ Book of Enoch, part of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The game has been developed by a ‘dream team’ internal Japanese studio whose former credits include iconic multi-million selling franchises such as Devil May Cry, Resident Evil, and Okami.

El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron features a disruptive next-generation combat system and stunning original direction from director Sawaki Takeyasu, previously the art director on Okami – considered by some media as ‘the most beautiful action game ever created.’

Since its first announcement at E3 in May 2010, El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron has been critically acclaimed for its originality both in Japan, where it won the Japan Game Awards 2010’s Future Division award, and internationally where it is has become one of the most eagerly anticipated original releases in 2011.

For further information about this game visit the El Shaddai game site.

maestro! green groove screenshot

Neko Entertainment have announced the European launch of Maestro! Green Groove, a musical platform adventure game designed for Nintendo DSIWare, available from the Nintendo Shop Channel now.

Blending two exquisite flavours, Maestro! Green Groove is a unique concept combining the standards of platform gaming with the pleasure of musical creation in a unique and astonishing way.

Maestro! Green Groove gives players the power to create a symphony with the touch of the Nintendo DS-stylus. Set in the deep, dark tropical forests of the Green Groove World, players take control of Presto a colourful music loving bird.

Using the DSi stylus players strum, run and tap to the rhythm of a Bollywood musical orchestra whose reinterpretation of classics such as Beethoven’s 5th Symphony, Chopin’s Nocturne n°2 and Dvorak’s “New World Symphony” will drive you wild. Just like the world’s best conductors, to move Presto through Maestro! Green Groove players will need to stick as close as possible to the original composition to progress.

Featuring challenges including special strings, goofy enemies and crazy targets that need to be knocked down as fast as lightning, Presto will need to defeat his jealous rival Staccato and his spider gang in epic musical battles.

Utilizing the Nintendo DSi microphone Maestro! Green Groove is one of the first DSiWare games to truly make the most of the Nintendo DSi microphone, allowing players to let their vocal cords loose with the melodies featured in the game.

Laurent Lichnewsky, Managing Director of Neko Entertainment says;

“We are pleased to announce the launch of Maestro! Green Groove for Nintendo DSiWare owners throughout Europe. Its perfect mix of platform adventure gaming and musical creation featuring some of the world’s best known compositions will appeal to players both you and old.”

For further information visit Neko Entertainment.

Freejack screenshot

Game Bridger Entertainment have announced the latest game to become available on their free to play games platform Gamekraft. Freejack is a parkour racing game with slick cartoon-style graphics and innovative new gameplay mechanics based on the underground sport of free running, developed by Korean developer WiseOn.

In FreeJack, players race head-to-head as one of four hip characters, bustin’ stylish flips and tricks to increase their speed and come out on top!

The exciting new addition to the Gamekraft platform is scheduled for release in the North America and European market place during July 2010.

FreeJack is a free-to-play parkour racing game for Windows PCs supporting Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7. Players race head-to-head across the urban metropolis of New Jack City as one of four hip characters, bustin’ stylish flips and tricks to increase their speed and gain access to hidden pathways and shortcuts.

Players can personalize their character with fresh outfits and running gear and even customize their own unique in-game living space with cool furniture and accessories to show off to friends! FreeJack also supports online leaderboards, a club/clan system, in-game friends lists, and more.

FreeJack will be free to download and play. Visit the FreeJack homepage for registration and further details.

Tehra is a hybrid creature who is part human and part devil, a female warrior who must take on the monstrous Orcs, the undead and a horde of beasts, trying to confront Bacdar, the King of Demons.

Tehra: Dark Warrior is a  classic action hack’n’slash and adventure based in a fantasy world. Our heroine, Tehra will progress through the game increasing her combat skills, magical power and become brutally evil with extraordinary power.

Sistar is a world inhabited by three races: Humans, Demons and Dragons. The Humans and Demons, antagonistic races by nature, fought for control of the territory, enslaving the dragon race because of its great destructive power in battle. Finally realizing that the fight would never end, the factions of both opposing sides signed the Tarkhubal Treaty, according to which the territory would be divided into six kingdoms: three would be bestowed on the three human kings and the other three on the Devil Lords of the war. To watch over the implementation of this Treaty agreed by opposing sides, a hybrid creature, human and devil, was created: Tehra, whose mission is maintaining peace in Sistar. Her directive is straightforward, if a king breaks the Treaty, he will be eliminated.

Tehra is the only hybrid both human and devil in the game, and was created specifically to protect the fulfillment of the Treaty of Tarkhubal. She may change her physical appearance to take a more human or devil aspect although in order to do this, she needs some demon blood. When in demon mode, her attacks are stronger and more deadly, although she cannot keep this momentum for long.

The PSP version of the game includes several improvements that really convert this game into one of the most interesting titles you could find at any Playstation Store. There are new levels; more detailed scenarios; new movements and attack combos; new monsters; and better playability.

Key Features
• Tehra has two sides to her character: both human and devil.
• Easy to play. The player will understand the controls in a few minutes.
• Player magic and combat skills evolution.
• Great history mode and challenging minigames including a survival style game for fast-playing.
• Defeat enemies and complete levels to unlock Challenges.
• Hours of gameplay.
• 3D graphics with full use of PSP hardware for special effects as Bloom and smooth gameplay.

Tehra:Dark Warrior

Objects & Spells
The following list details the potions, spells and objects that the player will find across the world of Sistar, and a brief description of their effect:

Electricity: Transform demon blood into electricity, creating a lighting ray that damages the enemies.

Shockwave: Creates a powerful shockwave that can damage all the enemies on the screen.

Combustion: Creates an explosion around the player, causing damage to all the enemies near the player.
Some creatures are not damaged by this spell.

Fireballs: Results in the creation of one or various fire spheres, than cause serious damage to all the enemies currently on the screen. The numbers of spheres may change.

Power Attack: Powerful attack that hits multiple enemies in front of Tehra.

Gold: Found on chests, hidden places, or dropped by some enemies, allow Tehra to learn new spells and combat skills.

Demon Wrath: Allows Tehra transform into a Dark Warrior.

Rings of Eir: Magical body protection. Tehra will be more resistant to enemy attacks.

Dragon Claw: Provides a better assimilation of demon blood.
The consumption of blood to cast spells will be less.

Tehra: Dark Warrior is released today, June 2nd, through the Sony Playstation Store as a PSP MINI videogame suitable for PSP and Playstation 3, priced at €4.99.

Friday Town

Friday Town is a brand new groundbreaking social game created by a partnership between Cadbury’s Crunchie and nDreams, it launches today on the social media website Facebook.

Friday Town invites players into a virtual world and challenges them to help its inhabitants brighten up their lives with a series of puzzles that will unfold over the coming weeks and months.

On arriving in this virtual world the player takes on the role of a Friday Feeling Engineer, whose job is to make everyone feel more Friday-ish, with progress measured on a Friday-o-meter: the more fun and excitement generated, the better the player does.

The aim of the game’s first chapter is to help the Friday Engineers make the town fountain pump out chocolate instead of water, and turn it into a giant sundae!

As each additional chapter is then unlocked, players will face a whole new set of puzzles, meaning the game is constantly evolving to bring new bursts of that Friday Feeling. To add an extra level of competition, the game rewards those who recruit new players, via their own Facebook friend lists, with access to a secret area.

The theme of the game has been developed in parallel with Crunchie’s new TV advertising campaign, which sees a team of Friday Engineers helping a man singing to himself in a Monday-type way ramp it right up to that Friday Feeling with lights, fireworks and a full-on festival stage.  The TV campaign is in support of the launch of new Cadbury Crunchie Rocks, crispy Crunchie honeycomb pieces and golden cornflakes tumbled in delicious milk chocolate.

The game has been developed by an expert team, headed up by former Eidos Creative Director Patrick O’Luanaigh, who has worked on twelve worldwide number-one selling games over the last fourteen years.

Past successes have included overseeing a return to form for the Lara Croft franchise with Tomb Raider Legend, two Conflict: Desert Storm games that have sold well over 3.5 million copies, and Xi, the first console ‘Alternate Reality Game’, which had over six million visits in the first six months.

Patrick moved from Eidos to become CEO of nDreams in 2007, and has brought the same instinctive flair for creating addictive games that led to these hits to the development of Friday Town.

Ross Farquhar, brand manager for Crunchie, comments: “People are going to love this game. We’ve deliberately chosen to work with the experts behind some of the biggest gaming success stories of recent years, as we knew they’d be able help us realise our ambition: a truly immersive game with real fun-factor that brings that Friday Feeling to anyone who plays it, any day of the week.”

Patrick O’Luanaigh, CEO of nDreams, adds: “The challenge with Friday Town was creating a genuinely entertaining game that people would want to play, while also delivering an experience that reflected Crunchie’s brand identity. There are so many social games on offer now that having a recognisable name attached isn’t enough to make a game a success on its own. We’re confident that with Friday Town we’ve struck the right balance between exciting gameplay and brand messaging, and we have lots of great things planned as Friday Town grows week by week!”

To take part in this exciting new social game visit Crunchie at Facebook.

GamerKraft will launch with Priston Tale 2: The Second Enigma as its flagship title in April 2010. In preparation for the game’s launch, GamerKraft and Priston Tale 2 communities have been set up on the web’s most popular social networks, where excited fans can follow the latest updates surrounding the closed beta launch of the new game and platform.

Launching with the highly-anticipated, Priston Tale 2: The Second Enigma, from acclaimed developer, YD Online, GamerKraft is poised to ascend the global gaming landscape.

Marketing Manager for Game Bridger Entertainment Ltd,  Matthew Denomme, commented on the launch;

“We’ve worked hard to make GamerKraft a platform worthy of Priston Tale 2’s high quality. Finally, we are ready to offer the loyal legion of Priston Tale fans out there the sequel experience they have so long anticipated and deserved. Priston Tale 2: The Second Enigma will launch in closed beta on GamerKraft in April 2010.”

Priston Tale 2: The Second Enigma is a free fantasy MMORPG for Windows PCs supporting Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7. Players venture across the vast and wondrous continent of Priston, currently under siege from the forces of the evil god Midranda, in a race to locate the only worldly power capable of ending his evil reign: the legendary Second Enigma.

Priston Tale 2 features three unique races of playable characters, a combo-based active battle system, competitive player versus player combat, new skill and item systems, and extensive guild and party support. All this, in addition to slick, high-quality graphics made possible through the power of the Unreal Engine. Priston Tale 2: The Second Enigma is a part of the GamerKraft library of free games. GamerKraft. Play Free.

With the success of the Lego Star Wars, Indiana Jones and Batman games, speculation has been rife as to what Traveller’s Tales will do next. So far they’ve been tight lipped, waiting for the right time to launch in a blaze of press release hyperbolic glory, but they may have been beaten to the punch with a wimper. According to Kotaku, the CV of an animator working for the company has let slip that they’re currently working on two games: another Indiana Jones one and a Lego Harry Potter title.

Most people saw this coming several miles off, what with the Harry Potter licence and Traveller’s Tales being owned by Warner Brothers, and it’s a release that sounds like an excellent combination which is sure to sell millions. Though personally having never read a Potter book or seen one of the films, I was hoping for something a little more off the wall. Like Lego Goodfellas, or Lego Platoon.

The other release is sadly a lot more predictable, and adds Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull to the list of titles worked on. Given it’s only one film, I reckon there’s a good chance this could be added as DLC for Xbox and PS3, but there will probably be a “Complete Saga” tie in as well.

There’s one more juicy bit of gossip to be gleaned from the CV – apparently the animator was also involved in putting together a demo pitch based on the upcoming Hobbit films, which is another licence I’m completely unfamiliar with. That said, a well loved fantasy universe with plenty of combat sounds very familiar to the things which made Lego Star Wars such a breath of fresh air so fingers crossed this comes to fruition.

Update: The animator has now removed the details of the games from her CV. Talk about closing the doors after the horse has bolted.

Just like in the original, the player will control a boy who assists his friend – a blob from outer space – in saving his home planet. The blob can be fed jelly beans to transform him into useful tools to help them along the way.

If that doesn’t make things much clearer, the first gameplay footage has emerged on YouTube, so you can view the lovely art direction here:

Looks a little like the recently released Live Arcade game ‘The Maw’ to me, but then I didn’t play the original. Mainly because I was 5 at the time.

Looking forward to this, or think it looks like another Wii Shaped bit of shovelware? Let us know in the comments.

Space Falcon Commander mobile game

Space Falcon Commander is a new game for mobile phones

Space Falcon Commander is a new shoot ‘em up arcade style platform game based on the classic Space Invaders game.

Rapid Turtle Games, the recently formed multi-platform game development company, have created a great, fast version of the arcade classic.

Space Falcon Commander – The Game
You are in the role of an elite commander controlling an advanced space fighter: the Space Falcon. You must stand as one-against-many strange aliens invading the universe. It’s a simple plot of the game, but it is made with gameplay as the most important factor in mind.

Lots of arcade fun, adrenalin pumping action and online “Hall of Fame” where you can compete against other Space Falcon Commander players around the world!

Space Falcon Commander – Mobile Game Features:

• 48 levels giving hours of playtime
• 4 big bosses
• Wide range of power-ups, special weapons and bonuses
• High score saving and online high scores submission
• Easy to learn but hard to put away gameplay

Space Falcon Commander mobile game screenshot

Space Falcon Commander is a great addictive mobile game. Easy to play, quick to learn and good graphics.  Very addictive, just like the original space Invaders.

Space Falcon Commander mobile game screenshot

The game is available now for Java-enabled mobile phones for $2.99 from www.rapidturtlegames.com

Buzzin Games Rating: 85%

You can work your way through Single Player Mode where you defeat the enemy worms in Campaign, Quick Game, Mini Game and Custom Game; Campaign being the story mode of the game.

Worms on the mobile is simple to play, even on a small screen.

The game play is similar to that of the games console version, so it makes for great mobile gaming.

In the Multiplayer mode up to four players can play against each other until a winner emerges.

Choosing to play in Campaign Mode, you blast your way through planets defeating the enemy aiming to get to the final planet – Earth.

When you annihilate the enemy you travel along to the next planet. Between planets you have the choice to play a Mini-game. Once you have completed the Mini-game, lost all your lives or completed the task you move on to the next planet.

In Mini-Game mode there is four individual games available for you to play, which are: Invasion, Frag Command, Astro and Rescue.

Invasion:
Basically, Space Invaders but with worms replacing the invaders.

Frag Command:
Frag Command is where you have to stop the enemy attacks from reaching the cities below. To do this you use weapons to destroy the missiles in a bright explosion. But once a worm is hit, you lose.

Astro Arrival:
In Astro Arrival you have to land your space ship on the designated area softly by using your landing thrusters, but be careful not to use up all of your fuel.

Rescue:
In rescue you must stop the enemy from abducting your friends by travelling around the area and destroying the empty ships waiting to take your worms.

And finally, in Single Player Mode you can play a custom game, where you select your worms the computers worms and the destination.

Overall, Worms 2008: A Space Oddity is a fun game for everyone to play. Its simplicity and addictive game play make it a must-have mobile game for all mobile gamers.

Buzzin Games Rating: 75%