Video Game Quick Hits 3/26/13

When you make an adventure game that becomes a bit of a surprise hit, taking home more than a few game of the year awards for 2013, what should Telltale do next? Well, make a second season, of course. Which is in development. In the meantime, the next best thing is to port the hell out of it and get it on every device possible. Having already released on PC, iOS, PS3, 360, and probably a few lesser known areas, what’s left for Telltale’s The Walking Dead Season One. I suppose there’s Android if that hasn’t already happened. There’s also PlayStation Vita. It will be coming to Sony’s handheld, sometime in 2013. No word yet on a specific date, whether it will be a full release or episodic, retail or download only, or whether it will have a cross buy to give people like me a Vita version for free, having already bought it on PS3. It seems like an obvious port, but I have to wonder about the target market. How many people own a Vita that haven’t already played this one? Is it just another shot at a platinum for trophy hunters / whores?

On a similar note, Limbo is also coming to PS Vita. The game was a hit on XBLA back in 2010 and came to PSN in 2011. Now it’s planned for Vita sometime in 2013. I have all the same questions for this one as I do for The Walking Dead? Who wants to play this but hasn’t?

Plenty of add-on information has been revealed for Borderlands 2. The sixth playable character has been revealed as Krieg. He’s a “psycho” class, an escaped lab experiment with a buzz axe. He’s coming in May for $10. The long-awaited level cap increase is scheduled for April 2nd, upping your players max level to 61 for $5 (or free with Season Pass). This will also include the Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode, essentially adding a whole new playthrough. Also, the fourth expansion campaign was teased at PAX East, showing Tiny Tina playing a board game, Bunkers & Badasses, in the Sanctuary with the Vault Hunters. This is purportedly the largest add-on to date and is coming in June.

If you’re a developer that’s cozy with Sony and releasing a new game today, what’s the best way to promote your new characters? The answer should be obvious, as it clearly was to Ken Levine. LittleBigPlanet is getting the BioShock Infinite Costume Pack in today’s store update for $5.99. This isn’t the first time Irrational has released Sack versions of their iconic characters. The original BioShock‘s Big Daddy and Little Sister are being joined by Booker DeWitt, Elizabeth, Songbird, Handyman, and Armored Patriot. Why do evil creatures all look so cute when they’re made from burlap?

Also coming to Littlebigplanet Vita is the Marvel Arcade Pack. This won’t come with any of the Marvel costumes, though they are still available separately. You will play as the featured heroes even if you don’t have the separate costume content. The add-on includes three new game modes: Hero Rush, Avengers: Ultimate Escape, and S.H.I.E.L.D. – Interceptor. Hero Rush sounds a bit like Jetpack Joyride with Sackvengers. Avengers: Ultimate Escape is a puzzle mode with a maze that changes depending on the character you choose. S.H.I.E.L.D. – Interceptor gives you a Quinjet and the weapons to gun your way through waves Chitauri invaders. The add-on will, of course, come with a plethora of stickers and other objects for use in your own LBP adventures. This one launches with next week’s store update for $4.99.

We reported last month that the long-running weekly DLC releases for Harmonix’s Rock Band would be coming to a close. At an event the night before PAX East opened, Harmonix revealed the final DLC for the game. A single song will be coming with the final update on April 2nd, Don McLean’s American Pie. The song, inspired by the deaths of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper in a single plane crash is a notable one to end this long story of over 4,000 songs in 275 consecutive weeks. It is, after all, about “the day the music died.” While I no longer plug in my plastic instruments on a weekly basis, my wife and I still tend to bust down a Tangled Shamrock jam session occasionally. I think I’ll be picking this up for old time’s sake and to say thank you to Harmonix for the ridiculous number of hours and dollars I’ve spent on my fake band. Well, that and I love the song. Plus I have to see if I can sing Weird Al’s Star Wars version about Anakin Skywalker.

I haven’t been too vocal about my distaste for the “new” PSN Store on PlayStation 3, but suffice to say that I hate it. Since converting the access to the store into an app that takes far too long to load (not to mention loading the individual pieces of it once you’re there) I try to avoid using it as much as possible. For a portal to spending money, that’s probably not the goal Sony had in mind. Thankfully, they released a web version of the store shortly after that allows me to browse and make purchases from a PC. This means I only have to load the clunky app to access my download list instead of wasting time navigating it. An even better improvement will be coming in May that finally catches up on a feature XBox 360 has offered for years. You’ll actually be able to select items to download from the PC store as well, ideally meaning you’ll never even have to launch that broken app. The groundwork for this addition is included in the recent v4.40 firmware patch and the v1.04 update for the store. It should be noted that this is only specified in the patch notes for the EU; I’m imposing my own hopes that it will apply to the US as well.

Much like pirate’s booty, there apparently are never enough special editions to go around. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag has no less than four versions already announced. The Uplay exclusive Black Chest Edition seems to be the gold standard, including a diorama of Captain Edward on the Jackdaw’s bow (almost two feet tall), steelbook case, artbook, official soundtrack, two lithographs, two canvas prints, all existing unlockable in-game content (single player missions, skins, and weapons), collector’s box, parchment world map and an original Black Flag replica. The next level down will be the Buccaneer Edition, expected to be a GameStop exclusive. This includes an Edward Kenway figurine, artbook, official soundtrack, two lithographs, in-game content, and a collector’s box. For those who like a little extra stuff but don’t need dioramas and figurines and aren’t looking to spend a lot of money, there’s the Skull Edition (steelbook case, artbook, lithographs, the soundtrack and DLC). The Special Edition looks to be the standard preorder version as it comes with just the downloadable content. Prices have not been announced on any of these bundles but I’m willing to venture a few guesses. For current-gen versions it should be the obvious $60. Probably upping to $70 for Skull Edition, $120 for Buccaneer, and somewhere in the $150-200 range for the Black Chest. All versions are set for release on October 30th, but you should get your order in soon if you want a fancy version.

The latest casualty of falling profits in the gaming industry appears to be Yoichi Wada, CEO of Square Enix. Wada joined Square in April 2000, becoming CEO with the Enix merger in 2003. Wada will be stepping down due to the company’s recent financial numbers (revenue will be approximately $175 million below expectation). Yosuke Matsuda, currently the Representative Director, will take over the CEO’s duty temporarily until a permanent replacement is named at the shareholders meeting in June.

It looks like the PlayStation 4 will have no lack of first-person shooters. In addition to the already announced Killzone title, GDC has revealed two more FPS for the next-gen console. Zombie Studios is bringing the free-to-play multiplayer action with Blacklight: Retribution and Lukewarm Media is bringing Primal Carnage: Genesis on Unreal Engine 4. Primal Carnage has dinosaurs. Lots and lots of dinosaurs. It will also blend open world and linear gameplay. No release dates were announced obviously, as we still don’t have a date on the PS4.