It may have ‘Far Cry 3’ in the title, but Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon couldn’t be further removed from last year’s adventure holiday gone awry.
Instead of rolling green fields and sandy beaches, Blood Dragon is set in a futuristic world coated in neon hues. By future we mean 2007 – it’s intended to be a parody, with purposely cheesy ’80s cut-scenes and a Saturday morning cartoon feel.
Or as one reviewer put it – “It’s like shooting a Daft Punk music videoâ€.
Reviews went live on Tuesday, ahead of its Wednesday release, and have been mostly positive. Eurogamer – who gave Far Cry 3 a resounding 10/10 – awarded it 9/10, while The Official Xbox Magazine and EDGE dished out 7s. GameCentral meanwhile thought it was worth a 6, claiming that although good value for money it’s a bit too dumb for its own good.
Rather than being an add-on it’s a standalone release which will set you back 1,200 MSP/£11.99 on XBLA and PSN. Remember, you can always give the trial a go if you aren’t too sure if you should head back to the future.
Soul Sacrifice on PS Vita is the week’s only other major release. When the teaser trailers went live late last year a few people jumped to the conclusion that it was going to be a Dark Souls spin-off. As pleasing as that would have been, it wasn’t the case. Soul Sacrifice does in fact have more in common with Capcom’s Monster Hunter. Perhaps this shouldn’t be a surprise seeing that ex-Capcom staffer Keiji Inafune was responsible for the game’s design.
GameCentral gave this four-player large scale arena battler a 7, while EDGE handed out a 6. They both agreed that the awkward script and terrible voice-acting does limit its storytelling potential. If you like the sound of it and haven’t pre-ordered yet – or don’t fancy popping down the shops – it’s going to be a not too outrageous £29.99 when it arrives on PSN this Friday.
Worms: The Revolution Collection on Xbox 360 and Outdoors Unleashed: Africa 3D for 3DS are the only other retail releases. The first Worms Collection did surprisingly well at retail, so it’s not much of a surprise that Mastertronic has put another one together. For £24.99 you get Worms Revolution, plus all three DLC packs, along with Worms 2 Armageddon and all five DLC packs. Although that may sound a little pricey, Worms Revolution is still 1,200 MSP on XBLA while the three DLC packs are 400 MSP each. Worms 2 Armageddon is knocking on a bit now, mind.
Outdoors Unleashed: Africa 3D meanwhile was originally due out late last year but the PAL release was delayed for unknown reasons. There are just three reviews on Metacritic, varying from Nintendo World Report’s 5/10 to a ‘B’ from Nintendojo. Sounds like it’s not as bad as it could it have been.
There’s certainly a lot happening on PSN this week, for PS Vita in particular. We can’t vouch for Farming Simulator given that the 3DS version felt rather pointless, but the lovely looking puzzle/adventure Machinarium is worth a download, especially at £4.79.
Then there’s Zombie Tycoon II: Brainhov’s Revenge for both PS Vita and PS3. We quite enjoyed the original – as PS Minis went it was rather ambitious. This sequel isn’t a PS Mini though and costs £7.99.
PlayStation LifeStyle gave it 7.5, praising the fact that for an RTS it’s pretty easy to pick up and play in short bursts. A zombie game that isn’t a FPS? Good Lord!
Next week: The Walking Dead (PS3, 360, PC), Persona 4 Arena (PS3, 360) and Mystery Murders: Jack the Ripper (3DS).