Alone in the Dark

Central Park in New York on summer days can be a lovely place to come to rest in the middle of the city after sunset, it's a whole different story. This is not only due to the presence of stray vagrants or criminals, as we learn in the game Alone in the Dark.

Alone in the Dark is a 'do or die' title for publisher Atari. Although the company says it is not with such words, much depends on the success of the game. Not for nothing the publisher announced recently that this is the last single player game will be. In this market segment Atari is also 'all out' joined the marketing around Alone in the Dark. Earlier this year, the publisher organized a press trip to New York, and in the Benelux countries, the game was recently launched at a big event in Antwerp.


Alone in the Dark is not a new title, published in 1992, there is already a game with that name. The game then introduced the survival horror genre, and thus formed the basis for several other games in this corner, including Resident Evil and Silent Hill. The new Alone in the Dark is separate from the old game. Atari calls the game therefore emphatically not survival horror game. According to the publisher hears these Alone at home in the action-adventure genre. That is not to say that there is no horror influences in it, and of course you'll have to survive. Well in the new game

Iron Man

Why Sega should, if necessary, the bias based on movies games reinvigorate? We were just a little on the right track, with nice Lord of the Rings and The Godfather games, we get a sudden Iron Man on our plate.

On paper it seems stories from comics and movies sometimes quite suitable to be used in a game, but in practice it rarely leads to success. Too often after the release of a film-game combination that the game looks like an absolute must for hanging, and not even a tenth of the quality of the film - like that movie to begin with was good, of course. Or Iron Man is a good movie everyone should decide for themselves. But leave the game, please ignore.


I recommend a game off anytime soon. Tastes differ and games that I like what other people do not often appeals to something in itself. Unfortunately, this is not the case with Iron Man, all parts missing the game quality. The game looks pretty from all the actors from the movie are present and during the rare moments when you're not in combat plays quite well. The problem is that you have the time to look around you, any time you are constantly fighting and cut scenes with actors who are only very moderately developed.

Go Explore - Navigation for the Playstation Portable

Sony is trying to get the attention Playstation Portable to a wider audience by introducing three new products: the video and voice chat feature Go Messenger, the Go Cam and GPS navigation package Go Explore. With Tomtom Go Explore Sony wants to crown the stabbing. The question is whether the Dutch market leader has to fear from the Japanese competition. Anything

Go Explore comes in a beautiful set consisting of a GPS receiver, a universal media disc with software and maps, and a sturdy clip that the Playstation Portable can be pasted. On the windshield of a car 150 euros is set in the store, which includes a power supply that allows the PSP can be connected. An automobile cigarette lighter There is also a bundle sale which a PSP is included. This package costs 300 euros.


* Familiar names

Go Explore in cooperation with software manufacturer Nav N Go and map provider Tele Atlas developed. Both partners are not new to the market for GPS navigation. Go Explore comes in seven different versions, each covering a region in Western Europe. For us, the Benelux version obviously the most interesting. The required software and maps are included on a disk. Additional maps can be downloaded for twenty euros, a collection of all the maps of Western Europe costs ten dollars more. Remarkably, the additional cards can only be purchased via the PC store from Sony, and not through the Playstation Network.


The biggest attraction of Go Explore is the three-dimensional view of major cities. A total of 48 European cities are depicted, half full three-dimensional, and the rest mostly three dimensional. Go Explore do to tourist attractions. The main buildings of the three-dimensional cities are particularly detailed. In a city like Amsterdam are a forty in Brussels about 35. Across Europe is about 1.5 million "points of interest

Ninja Gaiden II

Four years ago, Team Ninja restart the Ninja Gaiden series, with a new game for the Xbox. Led by Tomonobu Itagaki has created a game that would become famous and infamous by the fast action, incredible graphics and gameplay very spicy. With the remake, Ninja Gaiden Sigma for the PlayStation 3, the series was adapted for the high definition era. A sequel could then of course inevitable.

* Story

In Ninja Gaiden II, we again assume the role of Ryu Hayabusa, whose clan descended from the legendary dragons who for centuries have fought against the evil Fiends. In part one, the Dark Dragon Blade, where the Hayabusa clan Monitored, was stolen by the Vigoor Empire and the villagers of the clan were massacred. As an avenging angel Ryu has subsequently fought through hordes of soldiers and Fiends, to the dark sword eventually get back and destroy. Thus he was able to protect against a huge evil the world.


About a year later, the rival Black Spider Clan put his sights on another evil artifact that the Hayabusa clan hid, called the Demon Statue. Astute readers feel it coming: Ryu must once again save the world and many enemies threading on the spit, so that the good will prevail. Rachel, the female fiend-hunter in the first part played a central role in further not too strong story, seems to have left. Absconded

Itagaki's love for female beauty is fortunately not gone in Ninja Gaiden II Sonia makes her debut. This CIA agent is just as blonde, busty and scantily dressed like Rachel, so you as a player have to miss anything. At the beginning of the game is Sonia looking for Ryu, to warn of the plans that the Black Spider Clan with the demonic statue has him.


The clan is planning to awaken. Utmost evil, an Archfiend, alive with the help of this statue Bad guys never come into their own. To ward off evil Ryu should also play against three Greater Fiends, accompanied by their queen and her subjects.

Ubidays 2008: Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party

They're back: the maniacal bunnies from Ubisoft. What does the name of Rayman in this new title is anyone's guess, because it platformkaraktertje of yesteryear to confess. In nowhere Apart from this, we can not blame Ubisoft rabbits be charged. Contention again Of the first two parts are quite a few copies. Although they were not appreciated by everyone, the Rayman Raving Rabbids games were often laugh at their hand, thanks to the adolescent humor in the series.

Those who then bothered the farmer, fart and scream humor will not be charmed by the third title in a row, Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party. The disturbed bunnies, who wanted to take over the world in the previous game have it in this new part feature on your television. The starting point for the different thematic mini-games is that the animals do everything to disrupt. Programs and commercials

Although this is the third part in the Raving Rabbids series, you can not say that Ubisoft utilizes the concept in an easygoing manner. A large and striking change is that TV Party partly uses the Wii Balance Board. Of the approximately fifty mini-games will be twenty playable with Nintendo's inventive controller. The way the Ubisoft Balance Board while using unique.

Ubidays 2008: Soul Calibur IV

The year 2008 will not go down in history as a fruitful year for the developers of fighting games. There will probably be no more new games appear in the Tekken, Dead or Alive and Virtua Fighter series, Street Fighter IV or even released this year, this year is very doubtful. All eyes are therefore focused on the fourth installment of Soul Calibur, which should appear in early August as the first next-gen game in that series.

Soul Calibur IV is displayed for both Playstation 3 and Xbox 360, and both versions are, apart from a number of characters, identical. The preview version we played during the Ubidays contained four playable characters. These were veterans Siegfried and Mitsurugi, the Xbox 360 exclusive character Yoda - Star Wars, for the ignorant - and newcomer Hilde.

The Soul Calibur series is all about fighting with different melee weapons. In addition, each character has its strengths and weaknesses, but the balance was in the first three parts fine. Even now, it seems that the case. Newcomer Hilde seemed at first a little impressive lady in armor, fighting with a short sword and a spear. The short sword does little damage, but is useful for stooping close combat. With the lance we could initially do little damage to our adversaries. That changed when we became familiar with a few key strokes, that we could go. Seriously our adversaries to attack The new characters ask some getting used to, as it turns out.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots

It is remarkable to see what impression the first Metal Gear Solid on the Playstation has ever made for me. Although published Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3, in recent years, but during the installation procedure of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, my thoughts wandered off to MGS mainly on the old gray Playstation. If yesterday I remember the fight with Revolver Ocelot, the sniper duel with Sniper Wolf, and how I hid behind the benches in the office of Psycho Manthis. That final confrontation actually supposed to stand as a classic in the books if only because of the trick where you had to stop at the second gate. The Playstation controller

Metal Gear Solid 4 is full of references to the story that followed. In the previous games You can play MGS 4 or if you do not know the previous games, but that makes the story a lot less interesting. And that's a shame, because the story is one of the most important aspects that Hideo Kojima, the creator of Metal Gear Solid, the series has given its strength. Therefore, especially for those who really have no idea what it's about, first a brief summary of the Metal Gear story so far.

Metal Gear Solid (1999)
* Metal Gear

Central figure in the Metal Gear series is Solid Snake. Solid is artificially 'conceived', thanks to a topsoldaat called Big Boss. To prevent the perfect genes of Big Boss in enemy hands fall, the U.S. government has ever made sure that he could not reproduce. However, three clones are made of DNA samples. A clone was all dominant genes (Liquid Snake), another got the recessive genes (Solid Snake) and number three was a one-to-eenkopie Big Boss (Solidus Snake). The latter clone was under a different name, President of the United States. However, he was also a member of the criminal organization Cell Death, and was killed in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. Solidus' adopted son Raiden is the main character in that game.

Liquid and Solid grew into opposites, which mainly Liquid stood on the side of "evil". This was best reflected in Metal Gear Solid, where Solid Liquid prevented the massive current tank Metal Gear REX would steal. Liquid seems to die at the end of MGS, but he returns in the body of Revolver Ocelot. The character in which the body of Ocelot is combined with the spirit of Liquid Snake's since been through life as Liquid Ocelot.

* Confusion

Except Liquid Solid Snake another arch-enemy: Big Boss himself. In the first game of the game series Solid discovered that Big Boss is playing a central role in a criminal conspiracy, it has provided on Metal Gear TX-55 prototype. He seems to kill him, but Big Boss returns in Metal Gear 2, which are published for the first Metal Gear Solid game. Not least in chronological terms - it even beats Solid his father, who then will not return. In Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater Big Boss While playing the lead role, but this game is set in the 60s of the 20th century. Created some confusion around the release of MGS 3 Solid as a clone of Big Boss is so much like him. There was some doubt about who the protagonist was: Big Boss and Solid Snake. This was reinforced by Big Boss in the game was provided codenamed Naked Snake.


And now the step to Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. While Solid Snake by accelerated aging with health suffers, he is put to work by his former client, former Colonel Roy Campbell. He must go to the Middle East, where Liquid Ocelot is signaled. This in a world where everything is overshadowed by the power of The Patriots, an AI system that seeks total control.