PPR at PAX Prime 2012: The Climax

T’was a Saturday night all through out Seattle while PPR was afoot, and there was a ton of peeps and noise to boot! We’ve recorded our experiences so far from PAX 2012 and we’re still so woefully behind checking out all of the games on the floor! We talk a bit about some of the triple A titles we’re given access to like The Last of Us and God of War: Acsension while talking about all of the indie titles we got hands-on with at the Indie Mega Booth!

We finally nail the right sound setup for our make-shift recording session, but we all sound like dog shit in this episode due to our exaustion. If you’ve listened to any of our other Trade show podcasts then then you’ll already be privy to the right kind of expectations to keep in mind. We’re here till tonight, see if you can still catch us and say hello!

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PAX Prime 2012: Nights--Hands-on interview with Jeff Beckham

I once read an article in an old issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly that compiled and listed the top 100 (domestic) video games of all time. While the list contained many of the games I was apparently savvy enough to pick up before they were considered all-time greats, there were a great many from a system I never had until long after its demise: the Sega Saturn.

One such game was NiGHTS Into Dreams, a game that debuted the Saturn 3D Analog Controller and came pretty close to being un-classifiable. Was it a platformer? Flight-sim-lite? A racing game?

One thing was certain: it was very popular, and very scarce in my neck of the woods, but I managed to track both it and a Saturn down to see what all the fuss was about which, all told, was a very long endeavour. And worth it. But now, there's a better way for people to be able to experience this goodness; recently, NiGHTS Into Dreams was announced as a downloadable title on the PSN and XBLA Marketplace making this fairly highly sought-after title much easier to obtain and experience on platforms that much better accommodate NiGHTS' ambitious features.

And while I could go into the finer points of what makes NiGHTS great, it's a 16-year-old game and this isn't a review. But chances are, if you're reading this, you already know NiGHTS is awesome.

I caught up with Jeff Beckham at the Sega booth for a bit of Q&Q about the upcoming PSN and Xbox 360 HD downloadable version of NiGHTS Into Dreams!

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PAX Prime 2012: Junctionpoint Q & A with Warren Spector

PAX Prime 2012: God of War: Ascension Preview

Earlier this year, Sony and Santa Monica Studios treated us to the reveal of the latest God of War title. And while we’ve seen our favorite angsty and ghostly killer about four or five times now, Santa Monica boasted the inclusion of multiplayer, and a refinement to the single player experience was also promised -- mighty big words from the studio, but the results surprisingly surpassed any predetermined expectations.

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PAX Prime 2012: Santa Monica Studios Interview With Aaron Kaufman

Imagine what kind of person you would become if everything you knew and loved was ripped away from you, and in a fashion that made it seems as if it were your own fault from the start. Only, you know, it was really a trickster god who set you up for disappointment following your assumed redemption.

Two years after God of War III, Santa Monica Studios is throwing Kratos back into action with God of War: Ascension, the latest installment of the franchise which describes the struggles and buildup of Kratos before his infamous rise as a God.

As George took some extended time with both the single player and multiplayer game modes, I had an opportunity to step aside with Aaron Kaufman, community manager of Santa Monica Studios. We discussed what’s new, what’s returning, and why fans are in for the greatest God of War console experience to date.

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PAX Prime 2012: Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two Preview

Junctionpoint is at it once again, with work going towards the sequel for the 2010’s Epic Mickey. While its predecessor was criticized for a faulty control scheme and archaic platform mechanics, the studio claims they acknowledged these shortcomings and capitalized on what worked and the addition of drop-in/drop-out cooperative play with Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two. Hands-on impressions of current build are… mixed.

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PAX Prime 2012: The Last Of Us Impressions

The dimming of lights blur off into the offset of the scene. Joel emerges onto the scene with his stalwart companion Ellie, setting off into to the crumbling remains of society to the next path towards survival. Naughty Dog’s The Last Of Us has done more than simply impress the public with its dynamic take towards adaptive gameplay. But while we’ve seen the active potential of direct combat and the abundant options available to defend against your attackers with, new footage now treats us to the nuances of towards taking a stealth approach and other mechanics that make up this apocalyptic thriller.

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PAX Prime 2012: Wii-U Impressions

 

Despite its debatable name, the Wii U seems somewhat promising. The only issue, however, is whether or not it’s truly the console Nintendo needs to win back core gaming audiences. The Wii U GamePad complements multiple titles, the new HD graphics makes games look sharper than ever, and the overall game experience is highly entertaining.

But again, is Nintendo really jumping out and breaking into the core scene again? We had a chance to glance at some of these games and figure out where Nintendo’s going with the Wii U.

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