Computer Game Reviews & News - Stuff.co.nz

Games

Music to my ears

Blog: After getting my hands on a set of Turtle Beach's PX3 wireless gaming headset last week I'm thinking it's about time I retired my several-years-old wired set.

Review: The Darkness 2 for Xbox 360

REVIEW: Gerard Campbell finds The Darkness 2 unsuitable for children and the squeamish.

Angry Birds join Facebook, hope for 800M likes

The popular avian menace game, Angry Birds, has debuted on Facebook.

Preview: Total War: Fall of the Samurai

Total War: Shogun 2 Fall of the Samurai for PC

MATT PATERSON

PREVIEW: Fall of the Samurai attempts to recreate a more modern yet highly unstable era of Japanese history.

Guinness' all time greatest game ending

Guinness World Records has declared that Call of Duty: Black Ops has the greatest videogame ending of all time.

Yager's Cory Davis on Spec Ops: The Line

Lead designer Cory Davis says Spec Ops: The Line aims to change the war game narrative as fundamentally as Apocalypse Now change war on film.

Review: Resident Evil: Revelations for 3DS

REVIEW: Gerard Cambell reviews Resident Evil: Revelations on Nintendo's 3D handheld.

Road trips and mobile games

Blogs: I'm off on a road trip this week, and it's about this time to think about what games to take with me to play during down time.

Review: Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

DAN CHEER

REVIEW: If IKEA sold RPG games, this is probably what they'd squeeze into a flat-pack.

Review: Catherine for Xbox 360

MATT MAGUIRE

REVIEW: Deep Silver has created a challenging, clever title that explores complex issues.

Top selling games in New Zealand

Games industry website MCVPacific has published a list of the top-ten selling games in New Zealand for 2011.

Is Tim Schafer a genius?

Blog: Yesterday, something quite extraordinary happened from the man behind Grim Fandango, Full Throttle and Psychonauts.

The Artist dog wins 'spokesdog' role

The dog that stole The Artist's show will now be collecting coins for Mario and co.

Kiwi game industry worth more than $179.6m

Sales of gaming software, hardware and peripherals in New Zealand generated $179.6 million in 2011.

Microsoft acknowledges Xbox Live hijacks

Microsoft has denied there is any evidence of a security breach in the Xbox Live service but has acknowledged users are having their accounts hijacked by cyber criminals.

Review: The Darkness II for PS3

SIOBHAN KEOGH

REVIEW: We join supernatural mobster Jackie Estacado in the second part of his story.

Review: Final Fantasy XIII-2 for PS3

REVIEW: Final Fantasy XIII-2 goes a very long way to redressing the shortcomings of its predecessor, but in focusing on doing so, doesn't move the series forward.

PlayStation Network merged with other services

Sony will merge its PlayStation online gaming service into its broader online platform.

Spec Ops: The Line hands-on

Blog: As promised, here's my impressions of 2K's Spec Ops: The Line, which I spent time with last week.

Preview: RE: Operation Raccoon City

JAMES CULLINANE

PREVIEW: Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City sheds the series' survival horror roots to deliver an action oriented TPS game.

Preview: Spec Ops: The Line for Xbox 360

PREVIEW: Gerard Campbell got his hands on four chapters of Spec Ops: The Line and came away impressed.

Kiwi gaming industry's best-kept secret

SIOBHAN KEOGH

Would you be surprised to learn that NZ is behind a successful online social game?

Digital copies need to be cheaper

Blog: It's not unusual to pay $130 for a console game at a bricks-and-mortar retailer. So it's not surprising that some gamers buy only two or three new games a year.

Apple to launch iPad 3 in March - report

BOB BROWN

The iPad 3 rumour mill has heated up this week, fuelled by a report from Japanese Apple blog Macotakara that the much anticipated tablet will come out in March.

Review: All Zombies Must Die! for Xbox

MATT MAGUIRE

REVIEW: Even with the soaring popularity of the undead, doublesix's effort on this downloadable title lacks bite.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning interview

Blog: Sean Bean, the producer on EA's action role-playing game Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, has a lot to thank Sean Bean, the actor, and Game of Thrones for.

Review: Voltron: Defender of the Universe

MATT MAGUIRE

REVIEW: It's great to see Voltron back on the screen again, even if this particular iteration is lacking in a few key areas.

Dotcom loses Call of Duty top spot

KATE FREEMAN

Megaupload's Kim Dotcom can't defend his top-spot score in Call of Duty from behind bars.

Valve announces Steam smartphone app

Valve has announced a Steam app for iOS and Android smartphones.

Nintendo chief promises to do Wii U launch right

YURI KAGEYAMA - AP

Nintendo's chief is determined to get right the launch of its next game machine, Wii U, but has acknowledged some mistakes with selling the company's 3DS handheld.

Preview: Ghost Recon: Future Soldier

JAMES CULLINANE

PREVIEW: Ghost Recon: Future Soldier has undergone significant delays since it was announced.

Nex-gen consoles: what do you want to see?

Blog: This week the net has been going crazy with rumours on what the successor to the Xbox 360 will be like.

Will next Xbox use Blu-Ray?

The next Xbox console may ship with a Blu-ray optical drive.

Review: Xotic for Xbox LIVE

MATT MAGUIRE

REVIEW: It may be tempting to try this visually explosive shooter, but looks can be deceiving.

Half-Life pressure group hits 20,000 members

A Steam user group seeking word on the future of the Half-Life series has reached 14,000 members.

Will Microsoft drop its points system?

Blog: Rumour has it that Microsoft will soon drop its Points scheme, bringing it into line with rivals.

Capcom announce Resident Evil 6

Capcom has announced that Resident Evil 6 is in full development and is scheduled for release on the 20th of November.

'Angry Brides' game targets dowry demands

NITA BHALLA - Reuters

Anger at the practice of demanding dowries has prompted a takeoff of Angry Birds called Angry Brides.

2012's most anticipated video games

It may not feel like it, but we've begun a very interesting year.

BioWare discusses future Star Wars content

BioWare has outlined several content updates for Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Nintendo gives second glimpse of Wii U

PETER SVENSSON - AP

Nintendo's new Wii U game console will come with a controller that has a big, touch-enabled screen.

Game maker linked to US prisoner in Iran

BARBARA ORTUTAY - AP

Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, the American sentenced to death by the Iranian government, is linked to a small New York company specialising in video games that recreate real-life conflicts in the Middle East and beyond.

Review: Star Wars: The Old Republic for PC

GEOFF PARMENTER

REVIEW: Few scenarios have preoccupied more geeky daydreams than living a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.

Review: Football Manager 2012 Handheld

REVIEW: I have been a massive fan of the Football Manager franchise since the late 90s. From the basic text-only early games to the impressive showing that is Football Manager 2012 (even having played only the demo).