Playstation Plus Update - February 2013

February's Playstation Plus titles have been annouced this afternoon on the Playstation EU Blog. It is a pretty epic month for all you Plus subscribers. Another 5 games are to be added to the instant game collection and they are all amazing games. Lets start with PS3 titles avaliable on the 6th Feb.



Sleeping Dogs is first up and is a massive addition to the Instant Game Collection. Sleeping Dogs was one of  2012's anticipated games and it certainly didn't disappoint. Set in Hong Kong, follow the journey of undercover police officer, Wie Shen. As he takes on the Triads in quest for justice and revenge. Though as with all good Hong Kong thrillers, where will his loyalties lie? With the Police Superiors or his adopted Triad family? I reviewed this last year and gave it a superb 9/10



Next up is a nice surprise and a rest from all the guns and violence. Codemasters F1 Race Stars joins the collection. Its a nice little Kart racer, based around and featuring the stars of Formula 1 (obviously). I had a play of this at the EG expo last year and did seem lots of fun.



Finally, PS3 owners can also download Quantum Conudrum, a first person dimension changing puzzler, from one of the creators of the legendary Portal. So that should keep you guys busy!

Meanwhile Vita owners, do not worry! You have not been forgotten. February sees two of the best Vita titles added to the Vita Game Collection... for free!



Finally, Wipeout 2048 comes to European Plus line up. What can I say about 2048? It is beautiful, fast and fluid. It possibly is the greatest version of Wipeout to date (especially if you have the HD and Fury packs added to it). One last thing, it is rock hard , an immense challenge and it drives me insane! Pick it up on the 13th February and enjoy one of the best racers on the system.



20th February sees Lumines: Electronic Symphony added to the collection as well. Lumines is a fantastic puzzle game series that combines the block action of tetris, with the music and rhythm of amplitude. Its the kind of game where you turn on , tune in and lose hours of your life.

With all this good news, there must be some sad news. The following titles will be removed from the Plus service next week. If you haven't got them yet, now is your last chance!

6th February: BioShock 2
6th February: Ratchet and Clank All 4 One
6th February: Cubixx HD
13th February: Jet Set Radio
20th February: Pinball Arcade

Sleeping Dogs – review (Xbox 360)

 
Due to the violent content and strong language this game is not for Little Gamers

When Activision decided to can the latest game in their moderately successful True Crime series, I was more than a little annoyed. I had played the previous games and found them to an enjoyable and mature takes on the open world crime game. So the loss of a Hong Kong based episode on current generation hardware was met with bitter disappointment from the fans of the originals. Luckily, Square Enix rode in and snapped the game and the development up and Sleeping Dogs was born.

Imagine you are in a John Woo movie… Ok now imagine you are in a good John Woo movie and not any of the ones featuring John Travolta. I am talking about Hard Boiled, A Better Tomorrow or The Killer. These classic slices of Hong Kong action always had theme of friendship and loyalty. From the triad member with the cop brother, who he tries to protect, to the deep undercover cop caught between being a triad and a policemen. Sleeping Dogs takes this narrative and throws you into the shoes of Wei Shen, An undercover cop working for a special task force of the Hong Kong PD. Wei has a history with the local triad gang from his childhood growing up with them. So as he gains favour within the Triad gang, his true loyalties are tested.

So the scene is set and the game launches you head first into the action. The first hour of the game will see you chase down a rival gangs dealer, protect local businesses from thugs and engage in a few car chases to settle you into the life of a Triad heavy. Hong Kong is beautifully realised and the city looks amazing at all times of day. From the neon streets and alleyways to the glistening skyscrapers, Hong Kong is beautiful to drive around.

What Sleeping Dogs does well is borrow rather than innovate. It has borrowed some of the best elements of some the best games of this generation and merges them into one big open world action game. The free running of Assassins Creed, the combat system of Batman: Arkham Asylum, Gears of War’s gunplay, Max Payne’s bullet time, Just Cause’s stunts and Burnout Paradise’s arcade handling. Mix it all together and it all works beautifully. Hand to Hand to combat is the star of the game. The simple one button attack, one button counter system works well mixed in with some vicious insta-kill environmental attacks, make for a very brutal and realistic looking combat experience. Wei can learn new attacks by collecting Jade Statues for the local Kung Fu academy and he can enhance his fighting abilities by earning Triad points during missions. These points are awarded for how much chaos and violence Wei can cause during any mission. Equally Wei can acquire new gun skills and abilities by amassing Cop points, won by careful driving not killing as many people in your missions.

In order to stop players earning lots of money and buying the best cars in the game, Sleeping Dogs introduces a Face system. Certain vehicles and clothing require you to be at certain face level before you can purchase them. Face (or respect, I suppose) can be earned by completing favours for people around the city. From ditching cars into the sea for the insurance money, to singing karaoke badly, so a guy can impress his date. Street Racing and competing in local Fight Clubs can also earn Face. Levelling up your face offers perks and bonuses like having your own personal car valet, who will deliver your favourite ride to any location.

By the time the game introduces guns, you are hijacking cars at high speed from jumping from one to another. Shooting wave upon wave of gang cars and motorbikes in glorious slow motion explosive goodness. The shooting mechanic is good, but it seems to be a stop gap before the next big martial arts punch up. Most of the gunplay takes place in well-structured set pieces, with very little open world shooting to be done.

The driving and handling is wonderful. With a selection of over 60 cars and motorbikes, from low end scooters to high end executive motors to be driven. Each vehicle feels different and performs in a different way. There is a feeling about hand braking off the street into an alleyway in a pimped up sports car and then bombing down the narrow passages with the Police given chase that brings a huge smile to my face.

Sleeping Dogs borrows from Hong Kong Cinema and popular games and the result is one of the best open world experiences of 2012. I wouldn’t be surprised if this hits quite a few game of the year lists come the end of the year. With extra content and single player DLC coming this month. Now is definitely not the time to let Sleeping Dogs lie.

Verdict: 9 out of 10

Yippee! New Game Friday!

Headed into town today at lunchtime armed with trade ins and a purpose. It seems like ages since I did this and for a new Xbox game as well. So now I am the proud owner of...

So, hopefully I will get some time to do some chop socky in Hong Kong this weekend. 

Sleeping Dogs - HONG KONG WOWIE!

Before the Little Gamer turned up, I used to be a massive film buff. I was particularly fond of Asian action movies. As this brand of high velocity gunplay, kung fu and violence doesn't sit well with my wife and kids, I have not really watched any these films for about 5 years now.

Although the other week I treated myself and I watched The Raid: Redemption. What an amazing film and possibly one the best action films in years. Watching it though made me want to be able a videogame that was more like the octane-fuelled action films that come out of Asia.



Luck would have it, Sleeping Dogs is out this Friday and looks like it will fulfil all of my wishes. What once started out as True Crime: Hong Kong over at Activision, has resurfaced as Sleeping Dogs over at Square Enix. It is an open world crime thriller set in Hong Kong and features all the ingredients of action blockbuster. Awesome fight sequences - check, Hard boiled gunplay - check and high speed car chases - check.

You step into the life of Wei Shen, a deep undercover police officer trying to infiltrate one of the controlling Triad gangs. This leads you into the double life of trying to please your Triad bosses and also performing your role as a law enforcement officer. This kind of story is straight out of a John Woo film, well actually most John Woo films.



The game features a free flow combat system similar to Arkham City's and third person shooting in the Gears of War vein. If anything the game looks like a compilation of the best bits of the best games this generation and that is no way a bad thing. Sleeping Dogs looks like it could be at least as successful as the Just Cause franchise.



So roll on Friday and then head down to your local games emporium and check out this super dose of Hong Kong action.

Sleeping Dogs is available on Fri 17th August on (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC)

True Crime becomes Sleeping Dogs

One of the games I had been looking forward was True Crime: Hong Kong. I loved the True Crime games and  I was gutted when Activision announced that it was one of the titles scrapped in its cull of 2011.

Well, now it's back with a new name and publisher. Square Enix London and United Front Games have joined forces to bring the newly named Sleeping Dogs to a platform near you in second half of 2012. To go with the announcement is this amazing live action trailer to set the mood...



From today's announcement press release:


Sleeping Dogs catapults players into the role of undercover cop Wei Shen, tasked with taking down one of the world’s most fearsome criminal organisations from the inside... the Hong Kong Triads. As players explore the bustling and crowded Hong Kong island, through its neon-lit side streets and sprawling street markets, an incredible story unfolds of loyalty and betrayal, where Wei begins to question his own motives as he is sucked in deeper than he could ever imagine.


“From the moment you pick up the controller and experience the blend of driving, close combat and shooting you know you’re playing something fresh and a bit special,” said Lee Singleton, General Manager of Square Enix London Studios. “Sleeping Dogs has one of the best melee combat systems out there – it’s super brutal with devastating takedown moves, and when added to UFG’s proven heritage in driving games, a first class story and the vibrant backdrop of the Hong Kong underworld we get a fiery recipe with fun written all over it.”

So the end of 2012 is looking good as well. I look forward to getting some more information on this great look title.