Tales of Warframe

Warframe is a free-to-play co-op third person shooter developed by Digital Extremes. Warframe was first released on March 25, 2013 for the PC. The community of the game was later notified that Warframe would also be released for the Playstation 4. Digital Extremes has also released a trailer for the future release on the PS4.

The game takes place in a massive world, allowing the player to travel to different planets and galaxies. The player controls warriors called the Tenno who use advanced armor with special properties, also known as Warframes. The Tenno are at war with the Grineer, the Corpus, and an alien race named the Infested.

The Grineer are human, though they may not look like it. Over many years of cloning, their bodies have decayed and have started to look more like a promitive species. The Corpus are heavily into machinery, using mechs and smaller robots to do most of their fighting. Infested were human at some point, but were changed by a virus or parasite. The Tenno are descendants of an ancient civilization of warriors from Earth.

The player is immediately immersed in the game from the moment they pick their first Warframe. The player is given the option of Excalibur, a melee Warframe, Mag, a ranged Warframe, and Loki, a stealth Warframe. After selecting which they would like to use, they are introduced to some of the basic controls by someone called Lotus.

The immediate story doesn't reveal itself, and research has to be done to understand what exactly is happening. The world is vast, but the information is just not there. Warframe's graphics are spectacular, an option to increase the graphics is also given to the players in the Options menu.

While it's partially true the player doesn't have to spend a penny on Warframe to access everything, there is a slight catch. Each player has a limited amount of weapons or Warframe slots that, once filled, stop them from making another weapon or Warframe. This can be remedied by either buying a slot or selling one of the items.

The game also introduces an interesting way of increasing the power of your weapons, Warframe, and skills. During a play through of any mission a player gains experience for both their weapons and their current Warframe. Also during a mission, a player may encounter and pick up an item known as a Fusion Core. These cores provide special skills or abilities that can be equipped to increase the overall power of the weapons or Warframe. To increase the power of the skills, a player needs to fuse skills together or with a Fusion Core, to level up the skill. This mechanic leads to a lot of grinding, so the player can obtain skills and Credits, in-game money, in order to increase their strength.

There are also beings called Sentinels that follow the Tenno around, once bought or crafted, that act as a secondary weapon or utility power. As of now, three different Sentinels can be built giving the player a sort of variety.

There are also currently thirteen Warframes, not including the Prime Warframes that certain players were

able to obtain during special events or donating a certain amount of money. These Warframes all have different special abilities that separate them from each other, and give the player a different play style depending on the Warframe selected.

All items in the game can be found or built with a blueprint that requires, sometimes rare, items, credits, and time. Because of this, it's a very attractive game for players who don't wish to spend money on a game, or just occasionally.

An interesting aspect about the developers, is that they stay really close with their community. Almost once every month they provide a Live Stream where the developers talk about the future of Warframe and even respond to questions or concerns the players have. All this week there will be official Warframe streams from E3, be sure to tune in if you are interested.

Monday's Live Stream 5:30 P.M. PDT / 8:30 P.M. EDT: Warframe and Spike TV allaccess.spike.com
Tuesday's Live Stream 3:20 P.M. PDT / 6:20 P.M. EDT: Warframe and Gamespot http://www.gamespot.com/e3/stage-2-day-1/
Wesnesday's Live Stream 11:35 P.M. PDT / 2:35 P.M. EDT: Warframe and Playstation Blog Livecast playstation.com
Wednesday's second Live Stream 5:10 P.M. PDT / 8:10 P.M. EDT Warframe and Machinima http://www.youtube.com/user/machinima
Thursday's Live Stream 1:00 P.M. PDT / 4:00 P.M. EDT Warframe and Twitch www.twitch.tv/twitch

Warframe can be a little confusing to start, as the game doesn't tell you all of the controls, but is fun regardless. It allows the player full customization, from weapons, to colors, to Warframes, and even helmets. Thankfully the publishers are working on bringing forth a better tutorial and a better way to tell the story of Warframe, to attract new players, so all we need to do is wait. As it stands, Warframe earns an 7/10 being highly addictive for a time, but unless you enjoy grinding this game may or may not be for you. Hopefully the changes that lie on the horizon will change things up a bit, making the game more interesting.

Breaking News: Jack Bauer as Snake, Ligntning's Return, and Dark Soul's 2

EVE Online and its sister game DUST 514 were both taken temporarily offline this week after a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack. EVE and DUST are separate MMO games that work together. Where as EVE is an MMORPG on PC centered around being a star ship captain, DUST puts you in the role of a mercenary in an MMOFPS for the Playstation 3. The attack began around 2AM on June 2nd. It took roughly 24 hours for the servers to fully recover. For more information click here.

The next installment of Final Fantasy XIII, entitled "Lightning's Return" was said to be released in February of 2014 this week. If you would like to watch the official trailer you can do so above. In other JRPG news, Namco Bandai announced "Tales of Symphonia Chronicles" this week. It will be an HD collection of both Tales of Symphonia, and its sequel, Dawn of the New World. Chronicles will be released exclusively on the PS3. Originally, Symphonia was a Gamecube exclusive when it was released in 2003, and New World was a Wii exclusive on its release in 2008.

During the preparation for E3, the Los Angeles convention center put up a very interesting billboard. The billboard said " Dark Souls 2," with Marth 2014" written below. Obviously we can expect to see the sequel for the player killing franchise early next year. We can also speculate that it will be released on current generation, as well as next generation consoles.

Since their announcement, fans have been excited for the new Metal Gear games, "Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes", and "Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain." However, soon after, it was revealed that the long time voice actor of Big Boss, and Solid Snake, David Hayter, would not be participating in these games. Instead, Keifer Sutherland, the star of 24, was recruited to replace him. Sutherland will not only be doing voice acting for Metal Gear, but will also be using motion capture to make the in game movements even more life-like.
Click here for more info.

Sony announced that they will be putting 2 free to play MMOs on the Playstation 4, Planetside 2, and DC Universe online. Planetside is an MMOFPS featuring massive battles on a constant battlefield. DC Universe is a superhero MMORPG where you can create your own hero and fight alongside popular superheroes like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. Also, some good news for Playstation Plus members, this is going to be the best month to be a member. June's free to play list for Playstation Plus features Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Saint's Row: The Third, Machinarium, Orc Attack, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, Little Big Planet Karting, and Uncharted 3 for Playstation 3, and for the Vita you can download Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward, and God Eater Burst. Keep in mind that these games are only free to play if you download them for as long as you are a Playstation Plus member. Source.

There's a new indie game on the way from Celsius Game Studios, called Drifter. Drifter is an open world space exploration game with an emphasis on trading. You take the role of a starship and can mine asteroids for ore, transport cargo between planets, hunt pirates for bounties, or even become a pirate yourself. It will be a sandbox game with a procedurally generated galaxy up to one hundred thousand light years across, and with the potential for tens of thousands of star systems. You can pre-order the game on their website here, which will also give you access to the Beta. You can also vote for the game on Steam Greenlight.

A new Skylanders game is coming this October of this year. Skylanders: Swap Force is coming to North America on October 13th, Australia on the 16th, and Europe on the 18th. Swap Force features special new Skylanders figures which have interchangeable parts. This allows for players to customize their own characters with different appearances and abilities. It will be developed on Playstation 3, Playstation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii, Wii U, and the 3DS. Source.

Upcoming Games Thief 4, and Saints Row 4, both released trailers this week. Both games look pretty epic, for different reasons of course. You can watch them above, and below.

That's all for this week's Breaking News. Check back next week for the breakdown of this years E3. Next week I'll be reviewing Grid 2, and continuing my Gamers vs Anita Sarkeesian series, if you would like to read part one, click here. Don't forget to subscribe for notifications whenever we post new content. 

Way Back Wednesday: 2nd Ignition

Welcome to Limit Break's first Way Back Wednesday. Starting today, and every Wednesday following, we will be posting a review from older systems. Starting with an old favorite of mine, Wild ARMs: 2^nd Ignition.

Wild ARMs 2, or 2^nd Ignition in Japan, is the second installment in the Wild ARMs series developed by Media Vision and SCE development studio Contrail on April 30, 2000. Wild ARMs 2 is a RPG where the player controls

several characters throughout the game. The game starts off with the selection of three characters. Ashley Winchester, a male gun warrior, Brad Evans, an ex convict and heavy ARMs user, and Lilka Eleniak, the party's mage.

For people who never picked up a Wild ARMs game before, ARM stands for Advanced Relic Machine or gun which is introduced in the first installment, Wild ARMs. In the second game, ARMs means the same, but has another meaning as well Agile Remote Mission Squad or in other words the party. Ashley and Brad can both use ARMs while being part of the ARMs, confusing.

Each character has their own set of powers, abilities, weapons, and tools that make them essential to the party as a whole. The battle system is a little complex, each character needing FP, Force Points, which are gained by being attacked in order to use some of their special abilities.

Once all three characters have been played, they are brought together by a man named Irving and leader of ARMs. From the moment the antagonists join forces, they are pit against a terrorist group named Odessa, a group bent on ruling the world of Filgaia. Besides the main antagonists, there are bosses that reappear and characters you will either love to hate, hate, or simply love.

The world of Filgaia could be compared to a fantasy western, between the catchy music, the state the world is in, and the use of guns. There are more advanced parts of Filgaia, and of course there is the magic aspect that comes together to make an unforgettable journey.

The story of Wild ARMs 2 takes place over two discs, both with different animated intros on each disc when the player loads their game. The graphics in the game, while not impressive to the current generation of games, are fun and really good for the time when the game was released.

This is one game I would suggest to anybody. It's classic, but amazing. Wild ARMs 2 has catchy music, strong character development to make the player care about their party and supports the overall story. While the disc version of Wild ARMs 2 is hard to find in working condition for a fair price, the game can be bought from the Playstation Network for all to enjoy. Wild ARMs 2 gets a 9.5/10 rating... close to perfection!

Comment below with the system you would like for us to select a game from for the next Way Back Wednesday! The comments help, both with material and to let us know how we are doing.

At My Limit: Gamers vs Anita Sarkeesian

This At My Limit post will be the first of three parts in a series talking about the controversy surrounding Anita Sarkeesian's Tropes vs Women in Video Games Youtube series.

Anita Sarkeesian is a pop culture commentator and feminist who started a Youtube channel called "Feminist Frequency" back in 2010. Since then she has made a series talking about popular tropes that are sexist against women. A trope is a convention or plot device frequently found in creative works. Anita's first series was about tropes in general media, and was released in 6 videos each roughly between five and fifteen minutes long.

In 2012 she announced that she would be doing another series about tropes, this time focusing on video games. Her announcement video for the series started quite the controversy. People from all over the internet began to bombard her with verbal harassment, and attack her website. The controversy lasted several months, and its still going on a smaller scale today. 

This series will be addressing the two videos she's released in this series, as well as the controversy surrounding them. Part three will then be my own opinions on sexism (both male and female) in video games.  I'll start with a basic summary of her first video for those of you who do not care to watch it , then proceed to the general reaction to her video, finally I will provide brief comments on the video itself and the controversy.

If you would like to watch her videos "Tropes vs Women in Video Games", here is Part One and Part Two.

Tropes vs Women: Damsels in Distress Part One Summary

Anita Opens with this statement, and I do believe that it is very important to take it into account while reading both this summary and my comments following it:

"This project will examine the tropes, plot devices, and patterns most commonly associated with women in gaming from a systemic big picture perspective. This series will include critical analysis of many beloved games and characters. But remember, it is both possible, and even necessary, to simultaneously enjoy media while also being critical of its more problematic or pernicious aspects."

Also, please keep in mind that I do not take credit for the ideas presented in this summery, nor do they necessarily represent my own views.

The first point Anita addresses is how female characters are usually put in back seat roles in video games. Her prime example of this is a game called "Dinosaur Planet". This game might seem new to you, mainly because it was never released under that title. Rare studios was developing Dinosaur Planet as an action adventure game on the N64. The game would feature 2 main protagonists, one of which would be a bipedal female fox by the name of Krystal. 

Near the end of development, the game was transformed into the third installment of the Star Fox franchise, and the focus was changed solely to the protagonist Fox. In this new game Krystal was only playable during the prologue, and was then captured and imprisoned for the rest of the game. Fox's goal was then to save Dinosaur Planet, and Krystal from the evil tyrant. Anita uses this example to show how, in video games, women are usually dis-empowered.

Krystal was transformed from a heroic protagonist to a damsel in distress. The "Damsel in Distress" trope is commonly used in story telling. Early examples can date back to Greek mythology, such as the story of Perseus rescuing Andromeda. It was even used in many films and television shows that are considered classics, like Popeye and King Kong. Video Games are not excluded from this, with legendary damsels Princesses Peach and Zelda.

The damsel in distress trope reduces the female character to a state of helplessness, requiring a hero who is typically male to rescue her. The damsel may or may not play the role of victim for the entire plot, and the hero might not be successful in rescuing her. The act of rescuing her, is not something that furthers the female character's storyline, but something that ultimately benefits the hero's story. This trope trades the dis-empowerment of a female character for the empowerment of a male character.

The problem with this trope centers around the subject object dichotomy, which states that subjects act, while objects are acted upon. Damsel in distress puts the protagonist in the subject role, and the damsel in the object role. This is a form of objectification of women, making them the goal or victory prize, and can be offensive because of how overused the trope is. Most games nearly portray the damsel as a possession that has been stolen from the hero. Damsel in distress isn't even really about the woman at all. She simply becomes an object in the center of a competition between men.

Similar to the damsel in distress, occasionally the hero may be captured and imprisoned. The hero then must use his intelligence, strength and skill to escape his captors. Unlike the damsel, the hero can, and does rescue himself, where as the damsel must be rescued by the hero. The hero's escape is usually an important growth point in proving himself heroic. Unfortunately the damsel's rescue, is just another trial for hero to overcome.

This became the go to plot device for many video game developers. It is almost as if it is a marketing plot to capitalize on adolescent male power fantasies. May of the games from the 80s and 90s which feature this trope are: Violent Storm, Spin Master, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Splatterhouse, Phelios, Arabian Fight, Rise of the Dragon, Ninja Gaiden 2, Final Fight, Final Fantasy, Altered Beast, Crash Bandicoot, Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness, and Kid Icarus.

Princess Zelda, from the Legend of Zelda franchise, is not completely defined by her role as a damsel. Yet she is still captured or otherwise dis-empowered in every game Legend of Zelda game she appears in. Zelda is quite helpful to the player, providing the protagonist Link, with useful tools, information, and opening doors that are otherwise impassible. Anita calls this variation, the "Helpful Damsel".

Zelda also has two other incarnations which are significantly more empowering. In Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, she disguises herself as "Sheik", a mysterious ninja who helps link and is fully capable of defending herself. However, when she reveals herself as Princess Zelda, she is captured in under three minutes. Tetra is a feisty, independent pirate captain. She adventures with Link for some time, and is then revealed to be Zelda. After this reveal, she is told that she can no longer adventure with link because it is "too dangerous", and must wait in the castle. She does so, and is eventually captured. Tetra does however help you in the final boss battle. Tetra appears in a second Legend of Zelda game, in which she is captured in the introduction.

The damsel in distress trope may have larger ramifications beyond characters and games. Video games are increasingly becoming a part of our social and cultural lives. This trope could add to the idea that women are weak, vulnerable and must be protected by men. This does not mean that it does, but popular culture does influence our thought process, and since it is a recurring trend, it could sway our perspective of women.

The Controversy

A Screenshot of Her Vandalized Wikipedia Page.

Since the release of her introductory video, Anita has dealt with a large uproar against her on the internet. People from all over started verbally harassing her. Some even emailed her photoshopped, or hand drawn images of video game characters performing sexual acts on her. Her website was hacked several times and brought down, and at one point, her Wikipedia page was edited to include a fake pornographic image of her and a demeaning description, as seen to the right. You may see the full, censored version here. The comments box on her Youtube videos became so disgustingly profane, that she deleted all comments and disabled them all together. Before deleting them, Anita took several screen shots of the comments and posted them on her website to show how crass these people became. Below I will include some censored versions of some selected comments.

"Why do you wear make up, if everything is sexism? Why don't you shave your head bald, stop wearing make up and huge slut earrings. You are a f*****g hypocrite slut."

"I hope you get cancer :)"

"f**k you feminist f***s you already have equality. infact you have better s**t than most males, be glad what you got b***h. also if you want equality, we talk to men like that too, so f**k off f****t... I mean lesbian"

"Video has more likes than dislikes. Step it up f*****s"

"Video games are about doing hard work, this men are a better choice you just went full retard"

"GOD, you sound F*****G BORING. i prefer to hit my balls TWICE with a HAMMER than going out on a date with you."

Gamers all across the internet have been going bat crazy over this video. None of it is justified. In fact most of this video was already information that other game commentators used previously. The difference: those commentators were male, and were not feminists. I guess the internet just placed a giant target symbol on her because of the stereotypical perspective on feminism. However, it does not appear that she is falling into that stereotype at all in this video. Most of the time, she is calm, collected and rather neutral.

Several video responses were also posted for the Tropes vs Women in Video Games videos. Several of the arguments against her involve the characters Lara Croft of the Tomb Raider series and Samus Aran of Metroid. First off, these are two examples, only a drop in the bucket to the number of games she lists in her video. Secondly, how are these good examples of strong, well developed female characters? Lara Croft is marketed at men. The most prominent parts of her body are her lips, breasts, and rear end. To most guys, she is just a pair of D-cups holding pistols. How about Samus? A nearly silent protagonist with neutral dialogue revolving around her missions. We didn't even know she was female until the second game, and that was more like a token plot twist. She wasn't well developed until Metroid Other M, and most fans hated that game.

Another key argument is that video games target audience is men, so female protagonists do not sell. How do we know if games with female protagonists won't sell, if we don't make games with female protagonists? You can't make money off of something you don't design. Besides, roughly half of the gaming market is known to be female, so there is a market for it. The recent Tomb Raider incarnation, with a new, better personality and character design for Lara, sold very well. The most recent game with a female protagonist, Remember Me, has been receiving poor reviews, but on the basis of it being short and linear, not because the protagonist is a female. Even though it has received a few bad reviews, it still sold very well. There is evidence that there is a market for well developed female characters, why aren't developers tapping into it?

- - -

Honestly, I don't understand why there is such a huge controversy over this video. I found it to be interesting and informative, and not the least bit hostile. I actually agree with a lot of the stuff that she points out in this video. I enjoy good stories that use the damsel in distress trope, but have also grown quite tired of seeing it anywhere, and can see how it can be viewed as offensive. Very few video games feature well developed female characters, whether they are primary or secondary. I also wish that there were more strong female protagonists, not only to add gender variety, but because it will also open up new doors for story telling.

What I find most offensive about this video, is the gamers reaction to it. Most of the people that responded to this video paint the gaming subculture as intolerant, ignorant, and immature. I don't think the fact that she's criticizing video games even remotely justifies what people did to her. In fact, a similar form of harassment happened when Robert Ebert, the famous film critic, stated that he didn't review video games because he didn't consider them to be on par with the storytelling in film. Really people, how can you expect the rest of the world to take us gamers seriously if you overreact every time someone says something critical about gaming?

Next week, I'll be reviewing Injustice: Gods Among us, the DC comics fighter developed by Mortal Kombat developer, Nether Realms. Also next week I'll be posting part two of Gamers vs Anita Sarkeesian, so you can read about her second video in the series, and my opinions on that. E3 is this weekend, so next Saturday will have tons of great news on upcoming video games, and the next generation of console gaming. Click the follow button on the right of the screen to subscribe for notifications whenever we post new content. We here at limit break would like to know what you think of Anita Sarkeesian's videos, and the controversy surrounding her. So, please, use the comments box below to tell us your perspective on the damsel in distress trope, and if you find it to be sexist.

Oh! I Play This Game... Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon

Did you ever wonder what the Ghostbusters movies would look like in the Mario universe? Well, it looks like Luigi's Mansion. Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon is an action adventure and puzzle game by Nintendo. It was released on March 24, 2013 exclusively for the Nintendo 3DS. This is the second game in the series which focuses completely on the lovable Super Mario Bros. sidekick Luigi. Luigi is tasked with clearing out various buildings of ghosts using a special vacuum cleaner known as the Poltergust 5000. It features both a single player story mode as well as a multiplayer mode which lets you team up with friends and work together to complete various challenges.

Story - 7

The Evil King Boo!

After successfully containing the ghost infestation in the previous game for Professor E. Gadd, a scientist who studies spectral forces, Luigi returns to his duties helping Mario. E. Gadd begins studying the ghosts and creates a way of controlling them called the "Dark Moon". Using the Dark Moon the professor is able to keep the ghosts in a docile, friendly state, and uses them to help with his research. This peace is short lived. The evil King Boo comes to E. Gadd's labs in Evershade Valley and shatters the Dark Moon into 6 pieces. Fortunately Gadd is able to retrieve one of them before King Boo's Boo minions hide the remaining pieces in various large buildings. Without the moon to control the ghosts, they return to their mischievous ways and begin haunting the surrounding areas. Once again Professor E. Gadd must enlist the help of Luigi to set Evershade Valley right.

Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon is a very cute and fun game. The story is fairly shallow, but it still makes for a very enjoyable experience. The entire game feels like a children's parody of the Ghostbusters films. At times you could even say it satires the survival horror video game genre as well. Though the plot lacks depth, it does not lack fun dialogue. Luigi and Professor E. Gadd interact quite often throughout the game. Luigi, like Mario doesn't have much to say, but E. Gadd's dialogue is rife with terrible puns. Overall the story is quite enjoyable, but like most games in the Mario franchise, it lacks good storytelling.

Audio - 8

Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon has a fun soundtrack that does a good job at setting a light but intense atmosphere. Most of its music is a combination of deep string and wind instruments, complimented by higher wind instruments in the background. This creates a light, but still eerie atmosphere, and sets up a good number of unpredictable jump scares. As for voice acting, since it is a Mario franchise title, it doesn't really have much verbal dialogue. However, this does not stop Charles Martinet from reprising his role as Luigi. Just as he does with every character he voices for Nintendo, he breathes life into Luigi, giving him his fun and quirky personality. Though there is a lack of voice actors in Luigi's Mansion, the few that are there are great in their roles.

Video -8

The Quirky Professor E. Gadd

The graphics for Dark Moon are not amazing. In fact, if I were to compare it to games on the leading consoles, or even the PS Vita, I would consider it pretty bad. This is factored into the score, but I am taking into account that this is still very good for the 3DS' capabilities. On the other hand, though the graphics may be on the poor side, like all Nintendo games the character designs are fantastic. Every ghost's personality is evident in the way it looks and acts. This gives the game the fun, cartoony feel that it is meant to have. Since the game is also on the 3DS it also has a 3D feature available. I only played a few hours in 3D, but it was very enjoyable seeing ghosts jump out of the screen. However, I must caution you to read the warning on the back of the box. Do not use the 3D feature for children under 7 years of age. It can cause damage to young eyes that are still not fully developed.

Gameplay - 9

Unlike most Super Mario games which are more focused on platforming, Luigi's Mansion spends its time on problem solving. Throughout the game you are confronted with many challenges, such as tracking ghosts through the various mansions, by passing locked doors by finding keys or ways around, memory puzzles, and puzzles that require you to utilize your gear effectively. Another aspect of the gameplay is capturing ghosts. Once you're used to it, it becomes fairly simple, but at first it is quite a challenge to figure it out. 

When you are sucking up a ghost with the Poltergust 5000, you must first stun the ghost by pointing your flashlight at it, then aim at the ghost with the vacuum. Once you have the ghost on the reigns, you must move in the opposite direction that it is trying to go to tire it out. If you hold it for too long you suck it in and get no reward, but if you time in right you can get bonus coins.Coins are used to upgrade your gear. After you have collected a certain number of them, your Poltergeist 5000 becomes stronger, and your Dark Light device can be used more. The Dark Light device allows you to reveal invisible objects that ghosts have hidden. It also allows you to stun some ghosts, including Boos. 

All New Ghosts on the Loose

In total there are 5 different "mansions" to explore in Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon. They range from large estates, to buildings over archaeological dig sites. Each of them are very unique and provide fun and interesting gameplay. On top of this, it also features a completely new set of ghosts. Some of them are large and brutish and deal more damage to you, others are more mischievous and can turn invisible or hide in objects. Aside from the single player story, you can also embark on the ScareScraper. The ScareScraper is a skyscraper which you can take timed challenges with up to three of your friends. You can hunt down ghosts as a group, race through each floor to find the exit, or track down the mischievous Polterpups. Each challenge can be set on various difficulties and can range from five to twenty five floors to explore.

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All in all, Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon finishes with an 8/10 which sounds about right to me. It is a great game, and lots of fun for the whole family. Dark Moon is appropriate for all ages, but it may be too difficult for children under the age of seven or eight. I recommend this game to any 3DS owner. I hope you enjoyed this review of Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon. Let us know what you thought of the game in the comments section below. Don't forget to subscribe for notifications whenever we post new content.

Tales of Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch

Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is a fantasy RPG released on January 22, 2013 for the Playstation 3. Ni No Kuni was actually first released on the Nintendo 3DS in Japan on December 9, 2010. After two years, the game was finally released for us all to enjoy. Ni No Kuni strongly comes off as a game specifically for children from the strange creature following you, like a new generation Pikachu, and the fact that the protagonists are children. I was hesitant to try the game at first, but once I started I couldn't stop.

Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is an epic adventure of a boy named Oliver. After a tragic accident, the boy falls into a depressed state only to find that his stuffed toy, Mr Drippy, is actually real! The self proclaimed Lord High Lord of the Fairies tells Oliver he is a wizard, and helps the boy in his quest. Mr Drippy is the main source of humor, having a bizarre dialect and being a complete goof, as well as being the player's permanent source of help.

The first spell Oliver learns, from the help of his Wizard's companion, takes him into a whole different world filled with magic, creatures, and an interesting assortment of characters. Soon after arriving in the new world, Oliver learns about Familiars, creatures that roam the world, and obtains his own Familiar. Both Oliver and the Familiar level up, becoming stronger, by fighting the other creatures all over the world.

As the story progresses, the player obtains the ability to “Charm” the creatures of the world and turn them into Familiars. Almost every creature the player encounters can be a Familiar. To some players, this can be a reminiscent of another game, Pokemon. So much, in fact, that the Familiars can evolve through use of special stones. The bare mechanics are similar in the way that creatures level, learn new skills and can also learn new skills through items. However, there are deeper mechanics separating this game from the Pokemon games.

When a Familiar evolves it goes back to level one, through a process called Metamorphosis.For those wondering why you would want to evolve, since the Familiar becomes level one after having already been level twenty or thirty, the creature is able to strengthen their abilities and learn stronger skills. When the Familiar reaches it's second Metamorphosis, the player also has to pick a path for the Familiar. For example, my favorite Familiar, Purrloiner changes into Cutpurrse and then has to be changed into either Puss in Boats or Puss in Bouts.

Each Familiar also belongs to a specific genus, or group, of Familiars. Each character in the party has a favored genus which, when used, increases the strength of the Familiar itself. Each genus also has a favored type of food which, when fed to the Familiar, increases their base statistic. Purrloiner likes chocolate, which increases the feline Familiar's strength.

Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is a cute game for the ages 10+. I thoroughly enjoyed the game, finding it to be one of the best RPGs on the PS3. The overall story is sad, a boy traversing through two worlds to save someone important to him, while he tracks down the Dark Djinn Shadar. While tracking the evil man through the fantasy world, Oliver meets people who have been “heartbroken”, meaning that a piece of their heart was taken by Shadar for defying him. Using his magic, Oliver now not only has to save the important person, but people around the world too! Shadar's evil magic does not only lie in the fantasy world, but also affects the people from Motorville, Oliver's hometown.

The game is beautifully animated, the characters are interesting though can seem lacking at times and the battle system is unique. The only very annoying part about Ni No Kuni is catching the Familiars themselves. RNG,which means Random Number Generator, is a cruel mistress for any RPG. Every time you defeat a creature, there is a percentage chance that you may catch the creature, changing it into a Familiar, after reaching a certain point in the game. RNG is the number that is randomly generated after the creature is defeated. Some players are extremely lucky in catching Familiars while others hunt Familiars for hours with no success.

There is one thing that really bothered me when I finished the game however. While being used to New Game + options, that wasn't the problem in this case. While the player can't return to the game with all the spells learned or Familiars caught, there is content locked to the player until after finishing the main storyline. This to me, seems to be a waste of time because the story, once over, is well... over. What more could attract the player when the main story is over, unless you are a perfectionist who needs to complete every single tiny aspect of the game, then this is for you.

Overall the game is a complete success in drawing in gamers once the game has started. The outside may make the game look childish, but it can touch the hearts of many. Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch thoroughly earns a score of 9/10. The game is absolutely wonderful and I enjoyed the journey enough to want to spread the word. Everyone should own Ni No Kuni. There is a beautiful world waiting out there, waiting for gamers to explore.

Breaking News: Conker's Return, Xbox One Debunk, and Future Titles.

Anyone remember the vulgar, drinking, red squirrel named Conker? Christopher Seavor, project leader of the Conker games, Conker's Bad Fur Day and the remake named Live & Reloaded, tweeted on May 25th about the need for a Wii U development kit for his studio. Christopher Seavor was not only the project leader, he voiced Conker and left Rare to start his now current studio, Gory Detail. It's possible that we could be seeing a return of the red squirrel sometime in the future for the Wii U.

Everyone has heard the shocking rumor that the Xbox One will be charging their players full retail price for any used game they happen to pick up. According to an article written by Brian Crecente of Polygon, the Xbox One wont require gamers to pay a fee to reactivate a used game, but it will require a regular online spot check to verify the authenticity of games being played. While this doesn't tell us much, Polygon's sources have also stated the company is also experimenting with special exemption codes that could be given to particular people without internet, such as active-duty soldiers serving in war zones.

Only to add to the confusion, during the week of Xbox One's unveiling, Microsoft officials gave conflicting answers about used games and online requirements. According to the official Q&A from Microsoft, the Xbox One does not have to be always connected, but does require a connection to the internet. Microsoft's Phil Harrison said that the console would require an internet check every 24 hours, only to be “debunked” later by Microsoft stating that is one potential scenario. It would seem that Microsoft has not settled on the time between checks, but there will still be some form of online check required to play games.

As far as used games go, according to Polygon's sources, the Xbox One will automatically authenticate a game using an encrypted code built into the disc when it's installed on the machine. That authentication is then verified regularly through an internet connection. When an Xbox One owner sells one of their games, or it is installed and played on another system, the game is then unauthenticated on the original machine until the disc is brought back and used to re-authenticate the installation. Polygon's sources also stated that there are no plans to charge gamers a fee to sell or reactivate a game. Microsoft's Larry Hryb released a blog, talking briefly, on the subject but did not state whether or not fees will be required. 

Monster Hunter 4 got its Japanese release date and trailer on May 31^st, being set for a launch on September 14^th along with two 3DS XLs that will come with the game. The trailer shows some terrifying monsters the player will come up against. Monster Hunter fans, be sure to check out the trailer below to see the new world and terrors that await you.

Nintendo's E3 2013 site is live, teasing which games you can expect to see from E3 Nintendo Direct on June 10^th. Noted on the site as 10 days, now 9, remain until the conference which will include the latest news and announcements from Nintendo, starting with the presentation on June 11^th. E3 coverage will continue with trailers, interviews, and more. A silhouette tease gave gamers a look into possible future titles, including Mario, Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD, Mario & Luigi: Dream Team, Pikmin 3, The Wonderful 101, and New Super Luigi U. Nintendo also previously announced that this Direct will replace the traditional E3 conference, confirmed to include Smash Bros., Mario and Mario Kart. After the presentation, there will be a Wii U software showcase at E3 where COO Reggie Fils-Aime and Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto will speak.

Scrolls, a new game from Minecraft studio Mojang, is just on the horizon after having been revealed more than two years ago. Scrolls is the followup to the smash-hit Minecraft. Mojang announced that an open beta will begin on June 3^rd and has also provided a mini guide that explains the basic mechanics. Scrolls offers opportunities to battle against the computer, but there will also be challenge and ranked matches against online opponents. Each player will build a custom deck from their library of scrolls and increase their abilities with items purchased with gold earned from online matches or in another currency called shards. While looking a lot like Magic: The Gathering, the presence of in-game currency suggests it will be a single purchase game. Check out the official site and the trailer below.

A lot of indie games have come to life with the help of Kickstarter. Double Fine has recently launched a new Kickstarter project to help fund Massive Chalice. Massive Chalice is described as a tactical strategy PC game on an epic fantasy time line, from the creators of Psychonauts, Brutal Legend, and Iron Brigade. Being launched only a few days ago, Double Fine has already acquired a large majority of the funds needed to back their project, currently at $635,036 out of $725,000. DoubleFine's Kickstarter project, check the site out to see more about Double Fine, an overview, and to donate money if you so wish.

That's it for this installment of Breaking News. This week there will be two reviews as well as a new weekly review starting Wednesday. Monday will be a review on Ni No Kuni, followed by another review on Tuesday and At My Limit on Thursday. Stay tuned, subscribe and comment to let us know what you think.