It’s the end of the month and for some it’ll be the first payday of 2013. So, there are plenty of games out this week, right? Nope, just three.
Luckily for those still paying off Christmas presents purchased with their credit cards, Hitman Trilogy HD and Omerta: City of Gangsters are both less-than-full-price releases.
The contents of Hitman Trilogy HD aren’t as old as you may think – Hitman: Blood Money was released on Xbox 360 not long after the console itself. The other two games it contains are Hitman 2: Silent Assassin – which was the first Hitman to arrive on consoles – and Hitman: Contracts. As an nice extra bonus, Hitman: Sniper Challenge is also included. This was originally Hitman: Absolution’s pre-order incentive, and a very decent one at that.
Reviews of the trilogy haven’t been exactly amazing so far, including a 6.5 from the US Official Xbox Magazine. “Both [Silent Assassin and Contracts] still feel plain compared to the newer releases, and the enemy A.I. is spotty throughout, but fond fans will appreciate the HD recap, original warts and all,†they said.
Grainger Games is the cheapest place for it at the moment – a not too shabby £14.99.
They’re also the cheapest place online for Omerta: City of Gangsters on Xbox 360, at £24.99. Although it may on first glance look like a low budget clone of LA Noire, it is in fact a simulation game with turn-based combat. It’s from the guys behind the Tropico city-building games, all of which were pretty good. A demo is incoming we believe.
Then we’ve got Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch on PlayStation 3. This is Namco’s long awaited Studio Ghibli RPG and reviews suggest it has been worth the wait. A 9.4 from IGN, 9/10 from Destructoid and an 8 from EDGE are just a few of the scores catching our collective eyes. “A familiar tale in a familiar genre, then, but this is a game full of youthful wonder, imagination and thoughtfulness,†said EDGE.
Kokatu posted a helpful tip a couple of days ago that might help you get started on this mammoth quest. It sounds like you’ll need a lot of time and caffeine to get through this one.
A collector’s edition is also being released, but from the looks of things it’s sold out already at most of the online retailers. Amongst other things, it contains a ‘Drippy plush doll’.
Downloads, now. There’s just one game arriving on XBLA, but it’s a good one. Skulls of the Shogun scored 9/10 from the Official Xbox Magazine. It’s a strategy game likened to Advance Wars, minus the grids. “In a year of Xbox Live Arcade essentials, this is right up there with the very best,†claimed their review.
On PSN there’s Let’s Fish! Hooked On from the developers of SEGA Bass Fishing, while Wii U owners get Zen Pinball 2 and a wealth of add-on content for it, ranging from £2.39 to £7.99. The few tables that we’ve played on the Xbox 360 version have all been superbly designed. There are even tables based on Marvel Avengers and Plants vs Zombies.
Next week: Dead Space 3 (PS3, 360, PC), Scribblenauts Unlimited (Wii U), BioShock Ultimate Rapture Edition (PS3), Sonic and All Stars Racing Transformed: Limited Edition (3DS), Fist Of The North Star: Ken’s Rage 2 (PS3, 360, Wii U) and Wreck-It Ralph (Wii, DS, 3DS).
A lot of American’s who preordered the wizard’s edition of Ni No Kuni had their orders cancelled due to a glitch in Namco Bandai’s e-tailing system. It seems a fair few have pre-ordered the European version to make up for the loss. This has inevitably led to most places now being sold out, but it’s still available here in blighty (if you look hard enough) but expect to pay over £100 for it.