Orange Lounge Radio is reporting Activision plans to release the next version of Guitar Hero in just a few short months.

Activision has announced another sequel for the award winning music game franchise to distribution and retailers. Guitar Hero 80’s Edition will arrive on the PS2 in June on the 13th and will retail for $39.99. Of course, release dates always like to shift around, but as this is Activision’s initial printing of the date to distributers, hopefully this one will stick.

Guitar Hero 80s Edition was originally mentioned as a forthcoming PS2 release back in the January issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly, but official word has been mum since then.

Oh, and obviously this game will include only music from the 1980s. Because we really need more ZZ Top.

Activision’s Daniel Suarez has a few words with Superhero Hype about their next game, Transformers: The Game.

The game, which will launch on multiple platforms, is supposed to feature 9 playable Transformers and 7 destructable levels over 2 seperate Autobot and Decepticon campaigns. Of note is this comment:

We’re making a game that is for Transformers fans. Since the very beginning, we’ve been very conscious of the heritage of this brand and have worked hard to integrate characters, locations and even subtle acknowledgements to G1 anywhere we can. There are a lot of special surprises, unique elements and bonus features that fans will enjoy.

Considering the unlockable costumes in all of Activision’s Marvel games and the character variations in Traveler’s Tales’ LEGO Star War series, is there any chance we’ll see some alternate looks for the playable characters? I can’t very well expect full 1984 remakes of the whole cast, but I wouldn’t mind seeing Bumblebee’s goofy face returning.

See also: CVG and GameSpot‘s previews.

Thanks Dru!

Ever since 2000, Activision has made good use of the licencing rights to Spiderman, putting out some of the best games based on the webslinger. The video game adaptation to the second movie is no different. Taking a page out of Grand Theft Auto, Spiderman 2 features an open world design where players can websling thier way around New York city and stop crimes. (Although at times some of them can get pretty repetitive and lame) Players can earn hero points, which are spent on upgrades and new attacks. In typical gaming fashion, the game follows the plot of the movie while adding additional material from the comics. Along with Doctor Octopus, you’ll also run into Mysterio (the final battle with him ranks as one of the funniest moments in video games) Shocker, Rhino, and the Black Cat throughout the course of the game. Only bad spot is the lack of real unlockables, considering how much extra bonus stuff Activision has packed in the past. Instead you earn badges for doing a certain amount of tasks, which do nothing, except maybe as act as a precursor to Xbox Live 360 acheivements. Even so, Spiderfans owe it to them selves to check out this game.

The long awaited convention video.

We travel to Botcon, accomplish nothing, leave satisfied.

This past weekend at Botcon, while the last year of Transformers Cybertron weighed heavily on our minds, and the new Transformers Classics line captured our attention with every peek, there was little doubt that an unstoppable force was looming ready to make or break Transformers.
Thats force was without question, the 2007 Transformers movie from director Michael Bay.

First thing anyone saw after entering the gates to the convention was a giant fist with a countdown time to the 7-4-7 release date. A quick sweep around it, there was no doubt it was the hand of Optimus Prime.

Once inside, the Hasbro booth was supplying Autobot and Decepticon car magnets with 7-4-7 printed on them. All their reps seemed trained to dodge any movie questions.

Activision had a small booth promoting the new Transformers Game, which was officially announced for Xbox 360. I pressed the reps for info, but aside from mentioning it would be multiplatform and based on the movie, they had nothing.

On Saturday’s Hasbro panel is where news finally broke. Hasbro has historically allowed no cameras, audio or video during their panel, and this was no exception. Except that they reminded us AGAIN. Michael Bay had sent over an approx. 2 minute video from the set. Prime’s truck roared through the frame, Bumblebee out ran Barricade, and smashed through a window… and then explosions. Cars flying, a bus igniting and splitting in half, mixed shots of cast and extras running from a CG menace to be added later. When the lights went up, all anyone could do was demand it be played again. As we let out of the panel, it looked like half the fans in the room were on cellphones trying to reach anyone who wasn’t attending to let them know what they’d just seen.

This was easily the highlight, but not the end. Peter Cullen, the voice of Optimus Prime mentioned during his panel that he’s signed a 3 picture deal. That doesn’t mean we get 3 movies, but it does mean Paramount/Dreamworks want him available to do a Transformers 2 and 3. Cullen also announced the Make Prime Speak contest, where fans can submit a single line of dialog for the heroic Autobot leader. Submissions end on Oct 12, and voting begins on Oct 16, so if you want in, do it now!

Finally, Botcon 2007 has been announced at the Rhode Island Convention Center for June 28, 2007 thru July 1, 2007. This is significant for 2 reasons: Its in the backyard of Hasbro World Headquarters, and its mere days before the movie’s release. Nothing else has been announced, but I’d be surprised if the red carpet movie premiere isn’t right there.

Just got off the phone with Zac. He says the IDW panel just finished up. He didn’t mention much to me, but here’s some summaries at Allspark and TFormers.

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A new Villains trailer is available for the Marvel Ultimate Alliance game RIGHT HERE, and it’s actually pretty sweet.  It showcases a large number of villains, lists off some of the heroes, and shows off some of the battle locations in the process.

While all the heroes that flash by super-fast at the end are already listed on the official site, many of the villains shown are not, so here’s a rundown of who made an appearance:

• Doctor Doom
• Loki
• Fin Fang Foom (incorrectly spelled as FING Fang Foom)
• Blackheart (Mephisto’s son)
• Mephisto
• Mandarin
• Ymir (a frost giant, one of Thor’s enemies)
• Ultron
• Kurse (another Asgardian enemy of Thor’s)
• Ulik (a rock troll, ANOTHER Asgardian enemy of Thor’s)
• Arcade-Bot (presumably a robot of Arcade’s)
• and Galactus

So clearly, the game’s going to spend a decent chunk of time dealing with Asgardian problems, which hopefully means we’ll actually be in Asgard.  This is some good thinking, as it can lead to some scenarios and scenery which will be completely unique from not only the rest of the game, but from other comparable games (like X-Men Legends, or the upcoming Justice League Heroes). By the way, if you’re too lazy to poke around their site yourself, you can find a full listing of currently revealed heroes and villains after the jump.

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Although this is available on the three formats I mentioned above for $20 or less, this is mainly focusing on the Xbox version of the game. Wolfenstein 3-D was the start of two big revolutions in gaming.  It was one of the first games that bought home the actual WW2 experience, complete with zombies, mutant dogs, and a cyborg Hitler.  This is a feat that would not be achieved until years later with EA’s Medal of Honor (albeit with no zombies or cyborgs).  Secondly,  it was the birth of the genre we know as “First Person Shooters” or FPS for short.  Although it had it’s set of issues, (limited weapons and enemy varieties, repetitive levels, etc) this would continue to hold a special place in the hearts of gamers everywhere.Fast forward to 2002.  ID decided to revive it’s top two franchises in the FPS genre, Wolfenstein and Doom.  Return to Castle Wolfeinstein was the first out the gate, with many receiving it better than Doom 3.  Ton console version was even better, packing in several new features such as squad-based Xbox Live play, offline co-op, new prequel levels, and the original Wolfenstein as an unlockable.  Eschewing the silliness of the  past games, ID offers up a deep plot drawing upon the occult history of the Third Reich.  As BJ Blazkowicz, you fight your way to Nazi Germany to stop the resurrection of an ancient scientist.  With several weapons at your disposal, you must fight past Nazis, undead creatures, and evenexperimental  super soldiers.  

For WW2 fans looking for an alternative from the usual “Call of the battlefield of Honor archetypes”, this is a fun game to pick up.