What a year! 2011 brought its share of good games, bad weather (including a tsunami that devastated parts of Japan), and lots of changes for Famicom Dojo. Sean and Vinnk discuss what games they’re looking forward to in 2012, if the PS Vita is already a failure before it’s even been released in the US, and if the Wii U will be making its appearance before the end of the year.

[Listen to the episode after the jump…!]

Before Dragon Age, before Elder Scrolls, before Final Fantasy, before Zelda even, Dungeons and Dragons laid out the blueprint for fantasy RPG action. Everything from customizable characters, complex moral alignments, to skill development came from the pen and paper classic. Naturally, there have been many computer adaptations of the popular series, from Cloudy Moutain back on the Intellivision to Capcom’s arcade beat-em-ups. Neverwinter Nights 2, developed by Bioware and Obsidian, is one of the better games in the franchise, thanks to its length, depth, and user content generation tools.

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Wait! Before you bed one of the new hotties in the Normandy SR-2 crew, keep this in mind: your Mass Effect 1 romances are still active!

Find out about how (and why) Liara T’Soni is the only ME1 character you can pursue in Mass Effect 2 after the jump

[Read the rest of this entry…]

Women in gaming have made tremendous strides, both onscreen and off, behind the scenes, or playing the games. Fans of the Female Shepard in the Mass Effect series — male and female alike — encouraged BioWare to finally put her in their advertisements and materials just so that other gamers would know she exists. It’s 2011; are women still being overlooked in gaming? Sean talks to guest panelists Sindra and Megan about what it’s like to be such a minority in gaming culture, and discuss their favorite heroines from the aforementioned Shepard, to “Lady Hawke” from Dragon Age 2, Samus in Metroid, Alex Roivas in Eternal Darkness, and more! And Sean tries to avoid saying “that’s what she said” for almost an entire hour.

[Listen to the episode after the jump…!]

Tallis spills on her history with the Qunari as she and the Templar make their way after the Saarebas — right into a Dalish camp.

Read our thoughts after the jump: [Read the rest of this entry…]

Watch the first episode of this long-anticipated web series. Those who have played Dragon Age 2 in particular will see some familiar sights!

Check out a quick synopsis and review after the jump! [Read the rest of this entry…]

Here is the Dragon Age: Redemption trailer featuring Felicia Day. Consider me hooked.

Watch the full series after the jump:

Dragon Age: Redemption Episode Guide:
Episode 1 – Tallis [2011.10.10]
Episode 2 – Cairn [2011.10.17]
Episode 3 – Josmael [2011.10.24]
Episode 4 – Nyree [2011.11.1]
Episode 5 – Mercernaries [2011.11.8]
Episode 6 – Saarebas [2011.11.15]

The series is now over! What did you think?

Quick rundown:

• The Squad points system has been overhauled to offer more focused specialization for each power: area of attack vs. focused and powerful
• Apparently there is no one brave/stupid enough to go up against the Reapers (due apparently to indoctrination), but the return of this “fertile female” to the Krogans means they will join Shepard in the fight.
• Since no one is currently against the Reapers, that means all the Cerberus troops you fight against are allied WITH them somehow — not too surprising given the end of Mass Effect 2.
• Liara is totally wearing her Lair of the Shadow Broker outfit! Lazy? Or just continuity?
• Heat sink packs are still littered about this game. Oh well!
• Play controls haven’t changed much, but I often find myself rolling out of cover when I just want to stand up. Is there a better button for this?
• All of the usual biotic powers work the same way as the last two games, so warping the armor of the final piloted Cerberus mech was really no problem.

No, really! I turned to Vinnk after I was done and asked him if he was scared for me facing off against that huge machine.

All too easy.

VERY much looking forward to this in March 2012!