The game many are calling “Epic” is finally here.  God of War III is the last piece to the trilogy featuring ex-Spartan Kratos against… everyone else.  Greek Gods and Titans will have to face his Blades of Exile bounded by chains to his arms and dripping with blood.  The opening cinematics  preview flashbacks of Kratos’ previous adventures in God of War I and II.  The suffering he’s gone through, the chaos he has caused but most importantly the revenge he seeks is what keeps this warrior alive.  Given the name Ghost of Sparta and eventually dethroning Ares as the new God of War has not been a peaceful journey for Kratos.  You’ll battle Titans, go face to face with Greek Gods with plenty of blood to go around.  God of War III, developed by Santa Monica Studios concludes the trilogy with our hero Kratos, the new God of War, seeking what he fights for most, vengeance!  Will he (and Santa Monica Studios) earn the term, Epic?

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Spring training is finally here and it’s time to strap up your batting gloves and pine tar your bats because it’s Baseball Season for MLB 2K10. In their 10th year, 2K Sports revamped their fielding system and improved on their pitching mechanics then they previously used in MLB 2K9 only keeping the “hold and gesture” for pitching accuracy and quality of pitches. Developed by Visual Concepts, a new hitting system called Total Control Hitting is used flicking the right analog stick.  This means your swing controls become more timed than ever. For the first time, you’ll be able to create your own ball player in the “My Player” mode and groom yourself into a future first ballot Hall of Famer making your way up through your farm team of choice.  The noticeable enhancements from MLB 2K 9 are great.  But should you draft MLB2k 10 and let it try out for you?

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When I think of Aliens vs. Predator, I think of a battle between two alien species who are on completely different sides of the spectrum.  On one hand, you have the Aliens, with their unmatched superiority in numbers, speed, and ferocity.  On the other hand, Predators are the perfect assassin.  They can camouflage themselves while using various vision modes in order to pick out their opponent from its surroundings.  It seems like no matter what, they always seem to be pitted against one another, and it usually makes for an entertaining experience.

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The emotional driven, Heavy Rain, developed by Quantic Dream and published by SCEE is finally here after their teaser debut from E3 2006. Your morals will be tested immediately and you’ll quickly find yourself immersed thanks to the graphically charged cinematic storyline and unique decision based scenarios. The gritty camera scenes and musical scores add to this dark psychological thriller and you’ll swear you’re controlling movie actors.  But this is not the first psychological thriller directed by David Cage, he and Quantic Dream also developed 2005’s PS2 hit Fahrenheit (Indigo Prophecy in US). Five years have passed and now David Cage has the opportunity to present his latest masterpiece on the PS3. In Heavy Rain, your smallest decisions can change everything making each play one-of-a-kind and different every time. There are no right or wrongs, but instead choices.   Choices that come with risks and rewards.  Heavy Rain is an emotional rollercoaster blended fittingly with love, addiction, suicide, life and death. Just a bit of warning, unless your “numb” this game will consume you as a player while at the same time test you as a human being.

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While it may seem that Bioshock 2’s multiplayer was quickly tacked on so that 2K Marin wouldn’t have to endure gamers’ gripes about another single-player only Bioshock game, it really delivers. In a time when multiplayer modes are often an afterthought, Bioshock 2’s multiplayer is a great addition to the game and truly is a worthwhile, stand-alone experience. 2K Marin really put extra effort into this, making it alone worth the price of admission.

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I must admit, when a BioShock sequel was announced I had my doubts. I thought “how can they take such an unbelievably beautiful design and masterfully written storyline and make it better? What can 2K do to one-up themselves with the city known to fans as ‘Rapture’?” Well, kiddies, I give you BioShock 2. Big Daddies and Little Sisters return, amongst new and old friends and foes, to welcome you back to the city below the Atlantic.

What made this game so amazing? Well let’s start with the fact that you are no longer just a man. You are a Big Daddy! How bad-ass is that? Known only as Subject Delta, and thought to be dead, you return and begin your search for the Little Sister that was bonded to you ten years earlier. This particular little sister is immensely important to Rapture as she is being bred to be a “Utopian” or “the People’s Daughter,” somewhat based on Fontaine’s creation. Her name is Eleanor Lamb, biological daughter of Dr. Sofia Lamb, who just so happens to be the games primary antagonist. DUN DUN DUN!!! Ten years ago, Sofia orchestrated the abduction of Eleanor. During the event, Delta was hypnotized and forced to kill himself by removing his helmet and shooting himself with a pistol. Sofia took control of Rapture and all that is within after Andrew Ryan was murdered.

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Needing very little help, the action-adventure hack-n-slash genre just got whole lot better because of EA’s Visceral Games adaptation of The Divine Comedy starring Dante himself in Dante’s Inferno.  So far, action games are the rage this year with Darksiders and Bayonetta hitting first quarter.  But if you’re looking for originality, consider Dante’s Inferno a great clone instead.  Comparisons to Santa Monica Studios’ God of War have been made and with good reason.  With that, controversy is not something new for this EA game.  Heck, at E3 2009, EA themselves protested the creation of Dante’s Inferno and vowed to show us that hell isn’t all that great after all.  Real smooth EA! In turn, this ended up being a self-promotion move for Dante’s Inferno in peeking gamers interests.  Sure, DI is a copy and paste with a hellish skin overlay of Kratos and God of War, but don’t let that deter you from the great story and detailed visuals because this game is good, real good.  Hell Awaits…

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Travis Touchdown is your everyday otaku assassin living out of the No More Heroes Motel in Santa Destroy, California.  Some might consider his obsession with anime, professional wrestling, action figure collecting, and pornography borders on unhealthy.  Others would consider it’s what makes him unique among other assassins.  Regardless of what he does in his personal life, one thing is for certain: Travis Touchdown will kick your ass.

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The next-generation First Person Shooter, Massive Action Game or ‘MAG’ takes place in the year 2025 where a global war — The Shadow War — is in full swing.   Three Corporations battle for the same concepts… resources and global dominance.  Each network has their pros and cons and you’re asked to join one of them.  But choose wisely because this will be the only corporation you can play for going forward.  One character per PSN account.  Stripped of a single-player campaign and only playable online, just how will this FPS and their “claim to fame” of 256 online multiplayer hold up?

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In November of 2007, BioWare’s Mass Effect was released.  The years leading up to its release were full of promises of an RPG experience unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.  Stunningly beautiful graphics, a highly deep and rewarding dialog system, and a story that can change in the blink of an eye. That was just the tip of the iceberg.

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