• The Wizard: Long range attack
• The Mercenary: Melee attacks
• The Assassin: Long range and Melee attacks

The assassin in particular was not unveiled until PAX.  Even though the game has only three classes, four player co-op is supported.  You will be able to tweak your character so it looks different than the other ones by changing your primary and secondary colors, changing your name, plus your look will also depend on how you equip your character since it will affect your fighting style.  You can mix and match any combination of classes, so if your party all want to be the same class (for example, all Mercenary) you can do that.

Erin and I jumped into it and I picked the Assassin as my class.  Moving the D-pad you could choose what kind of outfit you wanted to apply to the character. Erin took the mercenary to be more of an “in your face” type of player and balance the different play styles.   The controls are fairly simple:  X button for short attacks, Y button for long range, B button to stunt or dodge and the A button is your dash.  The back button allowed you to see what items you have equipped and the stats of those items; see what other things are available and change gear accordingly.  Due to the nature of co-op and the implementation in Crimson Alliance, if you pull your inventory up, you still stand the chance of being attacked.  You have to make sure that they area is secure, before making any changes.  It also makes it so that if one of your teammates pulls up their screen it does not pause the game and allows all other players to continue playing without interruption.  Some of the environment like barrels and boxes can be picked up and hurled at the incoming enemies. Erin took the front and I played more of a backup, as I tried to eliminate enemies with my , sort of, long range attack, and dashing as it will cause some enemies to be stunned.  This allowed me to get quickly ahead to where Erin with her Mercenary were at in the level.  At this point, I had certain consumables that I could use. Using the D-bad I had an explosive axe than when thrown it will spontaneously combust.  I also had monster meat that when thrown the monsters gather around it giving you the opportunity to eliminate them while they are eating.  My third option was a deployable turret that shot arrows and lastly a healing Totem that I could set up in order to serve as a healing beacon for my party.   Erin and I kept battling the enemy and I found myself getting all the loot on the screen.  I apologize for ninja looting but she said not to worry.  The money and Items are shared evenly among us and the loot can be found in barrels and chest thought the map. So we could focus on killing the monsters without worrying about who gets what and how it was going to be divided.   Another feature I liked about the game is that none of our gamertags or names would show up on top of the characters. This allowed for a much cleaner, less cluttered screen.  At the end of the game you can see a leader board, showing names with points so you can see who did better and who was perhaps riding your coat tails, thus giving you some massive bragging rights.

The game is said to clock approximately six hours of game play. This can differ due to the size of your party or how much exploring you like to do.  There are tons of secret areas that you might miss on the first play through, which together with additional achievement unlocking will guarantee that you’ll play it again.  Each character has a unique ability that you can activate by hitting the right bumper.  Since I was playing the assassin, I had the power to slow down time, letting Erin get as many hits as she could, while I threw knives at the boss and we killed him before my ability ran out.  We moved to a higher level and multiple enemies jumped at us.  At this point Erin released the Mercenary special attack, making him twirl with his weapon like a whirlwind and hitting everything in his path; very much a crowd control move.

As we kept playing, the game felt familiar, like a simpler Baldur’s Gate, with the co-op and how the game handled over all. Erin said that the developers are fans of the Action RPG style of gaming, and they based Crimson Alliance on the things they liked about the genre and what they think an action RPG should be.  Once the game is released, it will have 200 achievement points to boost your score, divided among 12 achievements.  Crimson Alliance is doing something very different when it comes to its purchasing system.  You can buy the game for 1200 Microsoft points and it will have all 3 classes, or you can buy one of the classes for 800 points.  So if you don’t think you’ll use the Mercenary or the Assassin, you can buy the wizard for 800 points and play the entire game.  If you change your mind, and you want to play another class, you can then purchase that class for another 800 points.  At this time, there are no DLC in the works, but Certain Affinity has been thinking about it and if the game does well, they will get the chance to do so.

If you didn’t know already, Crimson Alliance is part of the “Summer of Arcade” deal on Xbox.  If you happened to buy all the previous games released this summer, you will get a copy of Crimson Alliance for free.  You can also catch Erin Reed in one of the Xbox Live videos covering Pax Prime Indie games of the show, talking about Crimson Alliance.

I want to thank Erin Reed for taking her time to play the game with me, along with Jake Sorking and Robert Brown for the opportunity to play this amazing game.

Rating:

BUY

I had the opportunity, this past week, to review a mobile game for the Android OS.  With such a simple title, I figured Grow to be well…simple.  I was wrong.  Not only is this game challenging, it’s addicting.  The graphics are cartoony and the objective is obvious, eat anything smaller than you, but the game is fun.  Using a virtual joystick in the corner of the screen you take control of a small fish.  At first, I was having a hard time keeping my thumb in the right place and trying to keep myself from moving all over the screen so it really takes some getting used to.  I don’t know if you’ve used a virtual joystick but it’s different.  I also found myself moving my tablet around in the air, I don’t know if this helped but it happened.

The tasks you are given to pass each level don’t offer much variety; you’re either trying to stay alive for a set time limit or trying to grow to a set size, but trying to survive with bigger fish after you is a challenge in itself.  As you eat the smaller fish you are awarded coins which allow you to purchase upgrades, power-ups and items to help in your quest for tank dominance!  Let me tell you, they come in handy.  You’ll find that trying to gather coins isn’t as easy as it sounds, the bigger fish seem to know and they’re gunning for you when you let your guard down.  My favorite is the Lure Upgrade which gives you the ability to create a vortex that sucks in all the little fish for you to eat.  I have yet to purchase all the upgrades and power-ups but I’m getting there.  Each time you eat a fish your combo meter increases giving you the opportunity to get high scores but, once you stop eating your multiplier drops.  Once you’re able to purchase another power-up slot, you’ll be able to combine them and keeping your combo score up becomes much easier.  Getting a high score isn’t a large challenge and I found that I was receiving 2 stars on my first attempt on most of the levels.  A second play through for 3 stars will most likely happen soon.

The game also sports really great sound effects.  Some are cute and some are very realistic.  I can honestly say, if I were to imagine being a fish in glass, full of water, these are the sounds that would come to mind.  There isn’t much else I can say about it, the game doesn’t have any music.  Still, I don’t feel that takes away from the experience.  I think the bubbles blowing and echoes of water splashing in a jar really make this game interesting.

Adventure mode offers 64 individual levels played through 7 different environments.  Survival mode gives you endless game play through the 7 environments with a global leader board.  Its always fun to see how you rank amongst other players.  Challenge your friends and relatives, see who can survive the longest.  Although this is a mobile game, it’s a good one.  Some people may over look it, because it looks like a kids game but honestly, I think  its a game the whole family can enjoy.  It doesn’t matter what your age or gaming experience may be, this is a great game for anyone to play.  Although you can download and try the Free version, I highly recommend the full version download, you won’t regret it.  Both versions are available now on the Android Market: GROW

The game takes place in a world called Horodyn, and there’s a powerful stone called “Arcana,” which is the source of all order in the world. The goal appears to be getting your hands on Arcana, which will take many battles.

The action game will feature both single-player and multiplayer modes as well as character designs that resulted from worldwide collaboration between Square Enix staff and artists from Japan and abroad.

Here’s a few blurbs from Square Enix on the title’s features:

• Experience authentic multiplayer action from Square Enix, developed exclusively for the PSP system.
• Play with up to three friends to defeat tough enemies and reap rewards together, or tackle a variety of quests in single-player mode.
• Dive into the fray with simple and intuitive controls that will hook players of any skill level.
• Create one-of-a-kind avatars and produce thousands of unique weapons. The possibilities are endless.

Check out the screenshots below to see what the game looks like right now.

This new trailer gives you your best look yet at the half-beautiful, half-creepy world of Zenozoik, as well as a look at the game’s actual narrative. Here’s a few bullet points on game features from the press release:

Fascinating world of grotesque beauty–Equal parts breathtakingly beautiful and utterly disturbing, prepare to be swallowed up in a surreal fantasy world powered by the Source engine. Explore lush environments and confront bizarre animal-humanoid foes on your mission of discovery and redemption.

Visceral first person fighting–Combat is up close, personal, and entirely satisfying. Start with a series of punches, kicks, and grabs, follow up with a knee to the enemy’s face, and hit him with a finishing move to send him flying yards away. Learn new moves to mix it up. Guns and melee weapons offer additional power and tactical options.

Ultimate edition additions–The already highly praised gameplay has received an overhaul that includes combat rebalancing, interface enhancements, improved animations, new modes, and new gameplay content.

New cooperative play modes–Enlist a friend to take on enemy waves in Tower Challenge, a special survival mode that offers additional replayability beyond the single-player campaign. Play cooperatively online, or locally via split screen. With leaderboards to rank you against your friends, the challenge never ends!

I definitely agree with the “utterly disturbing” part of this. The overuse of “father-mother” doesn’t really help all that much, does it? The first-person fighting is also a little bit unsettling, but perhaps only because I’ve never been in a really good bar fight.

Check out the trailer here:

The catch: You have to design the game.

The downsides: Well, there are none. A cash prize (current amount undetermined) will be awarded for the best Flash-based game based on and inspired by the characters, all of which can be found at the Sneables website. Michael Pellegrino, founder of 2day&2morrow’s Creations, isn’t expecting extensive gameplay testing or game design documents – right now, a fun and cute idea is all you need.

Ideas can be submitted at Sneables.com, where more information will become available this month.

The trailer for Dominon is pretty rad. I’m all for epic space battles and this does not disappoint! I’m sure that many fans, and newcomers will enjoy the trailer and new expansion. Check out the full trailer below!

Release Date: 18/03/2009
Audio tracks: ENGLISH 2.0, JAPANESE 2.0
Languages: ENGLISH & JAPANESE
Genre: Action/Adventure, Anime, Horror
Subtitles: ENGLISH subtitles
Number of Discs: 3
Runtime: 300.0 mins

Vampires. Pointy teeth. Suck your blood to survive. I’m very picky when it comes to watching anything that has vampires in them. Buffy was given a bit of a run – she got old pretty quick though. Then there was Angel, and I couldn’t say no to him – until it started getting weird. Before I go completely off-topic, I need to tell you I normally don’t like vampires in my Anime. However, I was surprised by how much I liked this series.

Black Blood Brothers starts off in the middle of a war in Hong Kong. The main character, Jiro, fights off a breed of vicious vampires called Kowloon (pronounced “Cool-awn”) Children. 10 years later, Jiro and his little brother Kotaro stow away on a boat that is headed for Japan.

They are travelling to The Special Zone, an area designated for friendly vampires to co-exist with humans (unbeknownst to them). The only requirement is that they must be invited by a member of the Order Coffin Company, and organisation of humans who monitor and control The Special Zone.

Kotaro doesn’t feel like sleeping the entire journey, and being a small vampire, he is curious about everything. So when his brother won’t get up and keep him occupied somehow, Kotaro goes for a bit of a wander. When he gets to the top deck of the boat, a showdown is taking place between the OCC and some rogue vampires.

When some bullets stray Kotaro’s way, he panics thinking the boat crew has discovered him and Jiro. However, Jiro is no longer asleep, having been woken by the fight upstairs. He makes a grand entrance in the middle of it all, alerting the locals to his presence.

After a few fighting words are shared between Jiro and the OCC, then Jiro and Kotaro, and then the two brothers end up taking a swim. They wash up on a beach the next morning where they are greeted by Mimiko, a negotiator for the OCC. Here we find out two important things: Jiro doesn’t exactly fare well in water, and he also can’t handle the sun.

When the two brothers have recovered enough to continue on their way to The Special Zone, Jiro informs Mimiko that he is an Old Blood which means he is over 100 years old. Black Blood is another term which is used to differentiate younger vampires from humans (who are known as Red Bloods).

Jiro (above, who is also known as Silver Blade) has come to Japan to help eradicate the existing Kowloon Children. Apparently he is the only one feasible for the job considering he had slain the Kowloon King in the war at Hong Kong. His old friend Cassa betrayed him by becoming a Kowloon Child, and is now trying to build a new clan to attack Japan and The Special Zone in particular.

As their time in The Special Zone progresses, Jiro and Kotaro (along with Mimiko) obtain more allies from within Black Blood groups and the OCC. They all come together to help Jiro in his goal to get rid of Cassa and the Kowloons, as well as to protect Kotaro and the Japanese.

Special Features include:

• Commentary from the Japanese Cast Members – Mikako Takahashi (Hibari), Kana Ueda (Swan/Alice), Ryoko Nagaota (Mimiko) and Hiroki Yasumoto (Cain) – and the original creator, Kouhei Azano.
• TV Spots – Japanese Versions
• Textless versions of the opening song “Ashita no Kioku” and the closing song “Shinkirou”.
• Trailers – Other Madman animated releases

Again, for a person who isn’t really interested in Anime with vampire content, I loved this. The humour, in particular, surprised me but that only made me like it more. The animation wasn’t overly graphic (and no sparkly vampires – shock!). I would definitely recommend that you give this a look. Funnily enough, I was disappointed to see the end! See you in a few weeks – I’m going to go watch it again!

© 2006 Kouhei Azano ? Yuuya Kusaka/Fujimishobo/BBB Partners. Licensed by FUNimation® Productions, Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

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Volume 1 of 6 (contains 5 episodes)

Release Date: 15/04/2009
Languages: ENGLISH, JAPANESE
Genre: Action/Adventure, Anime, Mystery/Thriller, Science Fiction
Subtitles: English subtitles
Runtime: 125.0 mins

“Darker Than Black” introduces us to a different version of Tokyo than we know – this Tokyo has a Hell’s Gate. I’m not exactly sure which place in time this story takes place, but it looks a little futuristic anyway.

The authorities of Tokyo are on the lookout for any person who is a Contractor – a being able to murder without empathy or a conscience. At the same time they are keeping the presence of Contractors a secret from the public (in order to avoid widespread panic I would imagine).

Contractors are as I mentioned – murderers. They are hired by people from all corners of the globe, some as spies but most are hired to kill someone for one reason or another. Contractors are also tied to a star in the sky. These particular stars appeared about the same time as the Hell’s Gate, and whenever a Contractor dies their star falls from the sky.

When they fulfil their contract, they need to make a payment of sorts. The main character, Hei, is a Contractor and when he finishes a contract his payment is to eat large amounts of food. Another has to count out rocks into a particular pattern, while others have to smoke or drink alcohol. So as you can see there are a number of ways in which they could suffer for what they’d just done.

Hei (pictured, bottom) is a Contractor, and has come to Tokyo under the guise of a Chinese exchange student. While he has essentially just been described as a murderer, it seems to me that he actually does have a conscience. Even if he does kill people, it seems to be other Contractors at this stage. He also has a few friends to back him up if need be.

Meanwhile, there is a group of police specifically monitoring the activities and incidents involving Contractors. They are aiming to apprehend an Contractors if they can. They are also keeping an eye on the Contractor/star coded BK-201.

The group is led by a woman known as Kirihara, who is also a top detective. She always manages to miss catching BK-201 (which we learn is Hei). It’s not that she’s not smart enough though, he’s just too quick.

As usual, we have some interesting special features to entertain us:

• Episode 2 Voice Commentary with Colleen Clinkenbeard (Chiaki) and Jason Liebrecht (Hei)
• Casting Auditions for Colleen Clinkenbeard (Chiaki), Luci Christian (Havoc), Jason Liebrecht (Hei), John Swasey (Huang), Kate Oxley (Kirihara), Cherami Leigh (Mai), Kent Williams (Mao), Julie Mayfield (Misuzu), Troy Baker (November 11), Mark Stoddard (Tahara) and Brina Palencia (Yin).
• Character Bios – brief summaries of Hei, Yin, Mao, Huang, Misaki Kirihara, Yusuke Saito & Yutaka Kono, Misuzu Oyama, Louis, Paul & Jean & Alain, and Chiaki Shinoda.
• Settings Gallery – Pictures and descriptions of settings where certain scenes take place, as well as descriptions on some of the creatures and equipment seen in the show.
• Textless versions for “Howling” (Opening) and “Tsukiakari” (Closing)
• Trailers for other Madman series.

I wouldn’t normally pick this up, but it isn’t as bad as what I had thought. When I say bad, I mean I don’t like violent anything but this show wasn’t terribly graphic. However, I don’t think this is suitable for anyone under 17 or 18 because there are a few drug and alcohol references – as well as the violence aspect. Then again maybe I’m a bit of a prude, but if you think you (or your teen) can handle that then I definitely think you should watch it.