Preview News, Preview Features

Just the two of us

We hope that you cope well in a crisis, because you’re going to need nerves of steel in order to navigate The Last of Us’ nightmarish vision of the future. A near-final build of the hotly anticipated PlayStation 3 exclusive demonstrates just how developer Naughty Dog intends to masterfully turn up the tension, as a slow...

Peyton the ice

It’s a good thing that Lost Planet 3’s set to release at the tail end of the summer, because you won’t want to play the Spark Unlimited-developed prequel when it’s cold outside. The third-person shooter takes place a long time prior to the events of the first game, with the snowy setting of E.D.N. III still trapped in the...

An arm and a leg

Soul Sacrifice, the nightmarish action title dreamed up by Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune, has already gained one stellar review in Japan, giving the PlayStation Vita a prolonged shot in the arm in the process. With the imminent Western release just a few weeks away, Sony’s released a gigantic playable demo for the title in both...

High and dry

Handheld to console ports are a common symptom of the end of a generation; an opportunity for publishers to squeeze a few final pennies out of an established install base while the bulk of its workforce quietly turns its attention to impending hardware. Much like MotorStorm: Arctic Edge and Jak & Daxter: The Lost Frontier before...

We brave seasickness for an in-depth look at Ubisoft's upcoming sequel

Cities are a thing of the past. Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, the next annual entry in Ubisoft's stealth-heavy series, will switch firm ground for the rumble of the ocean, as the franchise embraces pirate lore with a stumble and a swig of rum. Evolving the naval mechanics...

Back to the Cooper

There’s more variety crammed into the opening chapter of Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time than most games manage across an entire campaign. Within the first three hours of the PlayStation 3 sequel, you’ll have performed two heists, spent an afternoon fishing, and even completed a rhythm action mini-game in which an...

Pressen matters

Earlier this year, we were lucky enough to receive a behind the scenes presentation from DONTNOD Entertainment, where co-lead designer Philippe Moreau helped demonstrate the brawling and melee mechanics in Remember Me, its Capcom published third-person action-adventure. It was clear that Nilin, the acrobatic female protagonist, was...

Monster mash

Playing God of War: Ascension is a lot like riding a bike after a brief hiatus: for a few fleeting moments the gameplay feels foreign, but then everything clicks into place. Sony Santa Monica’s fourth outing in Greek mythology bashes you over the head with the many combos you’ve spent years perfecting, and then it invites you to...

Test drive

Ask any racing fan what their favourite gaming experience has been over the past five years, and there’s a good chance that Codemasters’ Race Driver: GRID will rank at the sharp end of their list. Since its release in 2008, GRID has developed something of a cult following, thanks in part to its strong racing heart and fine damage...

Down the line

The furore surrounding the introduction of new motion peripherals back in 2010 meant that the excellent Sports Champions got lost in the shuffle. Sony pushed the mini-game compilation as the first must-have title for the PlayStation Move, but post-release discussion almost always centred on the title’s technology rather than the...

Come out swingin'

There are three things we’ve come to realise while writing this preview for the latest Metal Gear outing from Platinum Games. First, we still can't type "Revengeance" into a text document without hating ourselves – it's not a word, it isn't cool, it sounds dumb. Second, we’ve learned that we’re okay with Konami releasing...

Blind man's buff

It’s difficult to discuss The Unfinished Swan without drawing comparisons to Journey. Just like thatgamecompany, developer Giant Sparrow has been taken under the wing of first-party powerhouse Sony Santa Monica. Furthermore, it has signed a three game exclusivity deal with PlayStation. Indeed, the only noticeable difference...

Muggle science

The outrage and controversy caused by Wonderbook: Book of Spells’ elongated E3 showing has made it difficult to discuss the augmented reality experience objectively. And yet here we have one of the most unique and commercially viable casual gaming products Sony has produced since the Eye Toy. The Harry Potter spin-off doesn’t...

Gore blimey

Over the course of the last few years, the Resident Evil series has been content to rest on its laurels, with some suggesting that it would only take one truly exciting survival horror title to come along and cast the once groundbreaking series into the annals of history. Each new title from the franchise has been presented with shiny...

Ice queen

It's been four long years since Level-5 announced its Studio Ghibli collaboration project, Ni No Kuni, during an interview with Japanese Famitsu magazine. In the time since then, Namco Bandai has been working hard to bring it to North America and Europe. So how are things shaping up so far? It was expected that a partnership with Studio...

Killing in the name

We didn't know much about Dishonored, Arkane Studios’ new game, until its first promotional trailer landed a week ago, sending the cyber-masses into feverish speculation. A few things about its concept and storyline could be gleaned from the teaser film: players will assume the role of Corvo, an Imperial bodyguard accused of...

Blast from the past or best left unearthed?

If anyone stands a chance at a Double Dragon revival, the 2D maestros over at WayForward are the most likely to pull it off in a convincing way. Between beloved revivals of Contra and A Boy and His Blob under their belt, new takes on BloodRayne and Batman and side-scrolling classics like