On the Download: April 22-28

A little later than usual.  It was a busy Thursday, so got to double up today.  Right now is your weekly dose of On the Download and much later today another edition of Off the Newsstand will be up.  Just been reading a lot of magazines between work, blogging and free time.  While this week's On the Download is not as packed as last week, there are things for console, handheld and smartphone/tablet gaming will enjoy this week.  In a trade-off for no new eShop release, Nintendo 3DS owners got a system update this past Wednesday.  With the update, you can now create folders to organize all the apps and games on your 3DS, download patches and updates for retail games and a nice little re-design of the Nintendo eShop, which makes it a little easier to navigate.  If you have not downloaded it already, make sure you download it after reading On the Download.

Well Capcom did not listen to me when Soul Calibur came to iOS and I said fighting games do not work on iOS as they have just re-released Marvel vs. Capcom 2 for iOS.  Considered one of the best, most popular and intricate fighting games in video game history, it is hard to think of playing Marvel vs. Capcom 2 with a touch screen, but no matter what we say Capcom has done it.  Marvel vs. Capcom 2 has been optimized for iOS tablets and mobile devices featuring everything you will find in any previous release in arcades and on consoles.  Exclusive for the iOS release, Marvel vs. Capcom 2 features local multi-player through Bluetooth and a new control feature called the Flick Button, which makes it easier to pull off complex moves with the touch controls.  If you are a Marvel vs. Capcom superfan or really want an inexpensive fighting game for your tablet or mobile device, Marvel vs. Capcom 2 for iOS will be a perfect purchase especially at the current sale price of 3 dollars.  If you like playing fighting games will actual controllers, better stick to Marvel vs. Capcom 2 for XBLA and PSN.

Since resurrecting the Monkey Island series for Tales of Monkey Island, Telltale Games has become known for creating great adventure games for this generation of gamers.  Telltale's newest episodic adventure game project is a game adaptation of popular zombie comic and TV show, The Walking Dead. Unlike typical zombie games such as Left 4 Dead and Resident Evil, The Walking Dead is more focused on character development and emotion than action and extreme tension.  The Walking Dead: The Game puts players in control of a whole new character in The Walking Dead universe by the name of Lee Everett.  Lee is a convicted criminal who is given a second chance at life after the zombie outbreak.  In a world where the undead are walking the Earth and the remaining humans have gone insane trying to keep themselves alive, protecting a orphaned girl by the name of Clementine might be Lee's only chance a t redemption is this hell on Earth.  Telltale has tried out some new features with their Walking Dead adventure game.  These features include having the actions and choice you make in each episode affect how your story plays out throughout the entire series and a time limit for making decisions in order to further immerse the player into story.  Currently you can pick up the first episode, "A New Day" on XBLA, PSN, PC and Mac, but it will be later available for iOS as well.  New episodes will release each month up to the fifth and final episode.  If you enjoy Telltale Games other adventures or love The Walking Dead, Telltales new game will definitely be a great download.  You can find individual episodes on XBLA and PSN for 5 dollars with a Season Pass running you 19 dollars.  For PC and/or Mac users, you will only be able to pick up a Season Pass which will cost you 25 dollars.

Launch Station: Soul Calibur V

Final Fantasy is not the only big new release that lands on store shelves today.  After four years, Namco hopes write another successful chapter in the tale of souls and swords.  With the fighting genre on the rise, Namco's newest weapon-based fighting game, Soul Calibur V could not come at a better time.

Soul Calibur V takes place 17 years after the events of Soul Calibur IV.  This jump in time has allowed Namco to create a new batch of fighters to fight alongside returning fighters such as Ivy, Voldo and Siegfried.  While half of the roster is made up of newcomers, these new characters are related to characters found in previous Soul Calibur games.  Carrying on tradition, Ezio Auditore da Firenze from the Assassin's Creed series is a guest fighter for this entry in the Soul Calibur series.  At least the assassin from Renaissance Italy fits more into the story and setting of the Soul Calibur series than the likes of Darth Vader, Yoda and Spawn (guest characters in past Soul Calibur games).  As with each new fighting game, developers effortlessly tweak features to make it the most balanced and satisfying fighting experience yet.  The same goes for Soul Calibur V as Namco has tweaked everything from super moves, now known as Brave and Critical Edge moves, to character creation to give both old and new players a reason to pick up this entry in the Soul Calibur franchise.

From what I have seen and read, Soul Calibur V seems like more of iteration than reboot in the Soul Calibur series even with the time jump.  New fighters seem more or less based off of fighters from previous entries in the series.  It could be another stellar entry in this great fighting series, but Namco really has not given fans like myself (who owns Soul Calibur II, III and IV) much incentive to pick up this new entry in the series when they can go back and play older entries in the series.

On the Download: January 15-21

The steady stream of downloadable games continues on with the release of some games from the past and the first demo for the 3DS.  It has been a solid week for downloads.  Apple just released the new iTunes U app which provides hundreds of free courses for people to take.  Apple also updated the iBooks app, named iBooks 2, which adds textbooks to Apple's online bookstore.  Two very useful apps for current and future university and college students such as yours truly.  Now let us rundown the biggest download games and demos of the week.

After weeks of waiting, demos have come to the Nintendo eShop.  The first demo available for 3DS owners is Resident Evil: Revelations, which is set to release in a few weeks.  Interesting thing you will notice once you download this demo is that you have a limited amount of times to play the demo.  You are given 30 times to play the demo.  From my playthrough, you will only have to play this demo once.  It was rather short as I beat it in 18 minutes.  The demo highlighted the feel of playing Resident Evil on the handheld, the return to Resident Evil's more plodding pace and a brand new item.  The controls will take a little while to get use to especially when fighting baddies.  They do make you feel like you playing an old Resident Evil game as Jill moves like a tank.  In my 18 minutes with the game, I did jump a few times as enemies seemed to pop up when I least expect it.  You feel very tense wandering the halls that this demo is set in.  The last thing I want to touch on is the new scanner.  It is such a great tool that I used anytime I could to find hidden items and other scannable objects.  I would have liked to have had a little more time with Resident Evil: Revelations to get a better impression on it, but I am still looking forward to playing it sometime later this year in preparation for Resident Evil 6, which I am very excited for.

Like many other games before it, Soul Calibur has been ported to the ever popular iPod and iPad.  Namco has brought this fighting classic originally for the Dreamcast, but not without a few modes taken out of Soul Calibur.  Soul Calibur for iOS does not have multiplayer or story mode, but Namco hopes to soften the blow by making the game universal.  I am not a fan of fighting games for iOS.  The touch controls are not responsive enough to work for a genre that focuses on precise controls.  The removal of two key modes for any fighting game does sting as a lot of people are not going to want to play Arcade, Time Attack and Survival over and over again.   If you are craving a fighter for your iDevice, I will not stop you.  At 12 dollars, Soul Calibur for the iOS seems more like a quick cash-in for Namco as we quickly approach the release of Soul Calibur V later this month.

By now, you all should have figured out that I am a huge Sonic fan and love to talk about anything involving my favourite Blue Blur.  This Thursday saw the release of Sonic CD and Sonic 4: Episode 1 for the PC via Steam.  If you somehow missed out on these great games when they were released for XBLA, PSN and iOS before, then pick them up.  Both are great platformers that you should have a lot of fun with even with a keyboard.  Trust me, I have played a good number of Sonic platformers on the PC and they have controlled just fine.  At 5 dollars and 10 dollars respectively, this decision should be a no-brainer.  Also every other Sonic game on Steam is 50% off for this weekend only.  So jump on it and download some great games at 50% off the regular price.  You will not be disappointed.