Remember all those old school wrestling games like Wrestlefest, WWF Arcade, Sega Slam, and (more specifically) Nintendo’s Pro Wrestling? You know, how Pro Wrestling gaming used to be before we were spoiled with games like WWF Attitude, WCW/NWO Revenge, No Mercy, Fire Pro Wrestling Returns, and Smackdown vs Raw? Well Xbox 360 Indie developer Action has bought back that retro feel thanks to Action Arcade Wrestling. It’s got a small, but varied selection of wrestlers, and it’s easy to pick up and play. You can even edit your own wrestlers and arenas. There are several match types available including steel cage and tag team. While it doesn’t have the bells and whistles of other wrestling games, it does bring back that nostalgic feel that’s been missing from video game wrestling. At only one dollar (80 ms points), the price is right. By the way, tell your friends to support the developer as well, as word is he’s making a sequel.

While remakes, spinoffs, and re-releases of the demon summoning franchise Shin Megami Tensei series seem to be released every few months these days, for the longest time the releases were confined to Japan only. In Japan, the franchise is the third most popular RPG series after Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. However, the game didn’t hit U.S shores until almost a decade after its 1987 debut on the Game Boy, largely in part due to its religious themes and Nintendo of America’s stance against such material. Thankfully Sony, just beginning the recognize the popularity of RPGs like Suikoden, Vandal Hearts, and the upcoming FFVII, had few such restrictions.

The first SMT game to be released in North America was part of SMT spinoff series Persona. What’s so unique about this game, and much of the SMT series in general, was that the game didn’t take place in some sci-fi/fantasy timeline, but instead in Modern Day Tokyo. Instead of summoning demons, the characters summon figments of their psyche. Playing as your typical nameless RPG hero, you and your friends, a group of Japanese high school students, find yourselves at the center of some weird happenings after visiting a sick classmate. From there, it’s up to you and your crew to save the city from a demonic threat. You do most of the exploration in a first person view (at least until one of the many random encounters, this being an JRPG and all), while you go into an isometric view for battles and conversations. The game underwent several changes for its U.S release. It was re-named Revelations: Persona, and its cast underwent several changes to make them more westernized. In many cases, characters were given different faces. One character originally named Masao was renamed Mark and made into an African-American. Several places were also renamed as well, and some enemy names were changed in order to avoid referencing Japanese folklore.
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System Protocol One is a tower defense game with old-school style vector polygon graphics and a catchy techno soundtrack. Its unique plot is computer related, and everything in the game is in terms of computers. You are a security administrator charged with protecting his company’s system against viruses, which are the enemies that come across. By using cache (resources), you create a number of anti-virus programs (which are the towers you’ll build) to stop them. Just like any good tower defense game, you’ll have a variety of towers to use with a variety of different abilities. The game is quite challenging, and the tutorial is quite lengthy, which may intimidate players. However, the game is easy to pick up and play, and players who have a passing knowledge of Tower Defense games will have no problem playing this. Mastering it however, that’s a whole different story. It’s available for $10 on Steam, and of course they’ll have specials on it frequently.

Welcome, Poweteers, to a brand new original column where we explore the top (and bottom) 5 items we think are relevant to any of a variety of topics that span the imagination. Sit back, read, and respond!

The late Don Cornelius, the creator and the longtime host of the legendary Soul Train, the show which revolutionized black music television. Can anyone do the same for gaming?

This month is Black history Month, which is the 28 (or 29 if its a leap year) days out of the year to recognize the achievements and contributions Black Americans have made towards science, sociology, history, civics, and entertainment. That last one is especially important, as our people have made many advancements in the field of entertainment, and I’m not just talking about Spike Lee and Tyler Perry either. Since before the days of Motown, we have made unprecedented contributions to movies, books, television, video games, and even pop culture in general. Within this legacy is an untapped well of potential for video game companies looking to create the next big gaming hit. There have been attempts to tap into this well before, although with limited success, as seen in this week’s Maximum Letdown. Don’t get me wrong, I love EA’s Def jam fighters and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, but they don’t even begin to scratch the surface to what decades of movies, music, and literature can contribute to video-gaming, and don’t even mention crappy ‘thugsploitation’ games like 25 to Life and 187 Ride or Die. This list features 5 properties that are either created by Black Americans, or feature Black Americans in leading roles. I even give suggestions to what platforms they can be released on, as well as possible pre-order bonuses/downloadable content. Hey, if they can make games out of Desperate Housewives, then they can make games out of anything.
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I had really high hopes for this game. Obviously it wasn’t going to be the next Madden out the gate (or even NFL Blitz), but there was a lot to like about it, and for the right reasons. For one, it’s development team features several black female programmers, and the developer, Nerjyzed Entertainment is headed by a black female CEO. The company’s mission is to produce games which promote the more positive aspects of minority cultures. While BCFX is a good note to start on, it tends to fall flat during the execution.

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GOW II started and ended on a pretty intense note, so naturally, stakes were high for the follow-up, which would be Kratos’s PS3 debut. When we last left Kratos, he was leading the titans in a war against the gods of Olympus, who had betrayed him in the title. As you can imagine, things get crazy from the get-go, and players will be on the edge of their seats to see how the saga ends. The gameplay doesn’t depart much from the previous titles, and that’s a good thing. You even get to keep the relics you found in GOW II: The Wings of Icarus and Apollo’s Fleece. Don’t you hate it when you play a sequel starring the previous game’s protagonist and you lose all the cool stuff they had without explanation? You’ll also gain a host of new weapons, each with a magical power attached to it. Series staples such as quick time events, orb upgrading, and even the sex minigames return. God Of War III once again cements Kratos’s status as one of gaming’s biggest action heroes.

Seeing as how the cast of Street Fighter will go head to head against the cast of Tekken in a month, this week’s lost classics takes a look at another crossover, similar to the GiJoe/Mortal Kombat “crossover” from 2 weeks ago. This time, not only does Street Fighter meet Mortal Kombat, but it also crosses over with Wing Commander and Savage Dragon. No, Savage Dragon didn’t take on Shang Tsung nor did Ryu and Sub Zero take on the Kilarthi. Instead, this was a rather subtle crossover involving a mysterious character that showed up throughout TV adaptations all 4 franchises. What? You thought this was a video game? If only it could be.
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Yes, I know I’m asking for heat by covering what is perhaps the least loved Final Fantasy title since 7. However, despite it’s linearity, the game’s story is every bit as epic as the previous entries in the series. Final Fantasy XIII takes place within a place known as Coccon, a sky city which floats above a larger world known as pulse. The mysterious gods who keep Cocoon afloat have the ability to mark various humans, making them into thier servants. These servants, called L’Cie are given a task to complete. If they do, they turn into crystals. If they don’t, they become mindless monsters. A cruel government purges citizens who are suspected to be L’Cie, supposedly sending them to the Pulse. In actuality, they are being killed off in mass exterminations. The main character in this story is a woman named Lightning, whose sister was one of the L’Cie. In true Final Fantasy fashion, you run into other people, each with their own stories and complex relationships.
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