Here's to spending your Halloween weekend in the company of good friends and family.

Happy Halloween from NLG! Hopefully your weekend is filled with lots of fun, candy, and scary movies and games.

Got any plans for the holiday? Let us know in the comments section below; and as always thanks for your support.

Tags: bats, halloween, horror, next life, next life gaming, nlg

Now that the bewitching time of Halloween is on for us Americans, I’m curious as to what everyone’s favorite games to play with a horror or Halloween theme are. For example, do you like Resident Evil, Doom 3, the Clocktower games, Alone in the Dark, etc.? Or maybe you have a favorite Halloween themed level from a non-horror game?

Love them or hate them I’m curious as to what everyone’s favorite Halloween and horror genre games are, so sound off in the comments below.

Tags: creepy games, halloween, horror, scary games

This week on the classic retro video game podcast “The Retro League,” the gang takes my suggestion from a couple weeks back to mention and discuss their favorite Halloween themed levels or horror games. They mention Friday the 13th, Resident Evil 2, and more classic games in this episode.

Check out the individual episode here, or their site here, just in time for Halloween.

Tags: classic gaming, halloween, horror, podcast, retro, retro gaming, retro league

Now that Rockstar has released their “Undead Nightmare” downloadable content the question I’m curious about is what dlc has been your favorite so far?

Do you enjoy the zombie killing of “Undead” the most? Do you enjoy the online gambling, racing, and stronghold modes of “Liars and Cheats”? Or perhaps you prefer the co-operative efforts of  “Outlaws to the End”? Or is the “Legends and Killers” pack enough for you?

I’m looking forward to hearing what everyone has to say, so sound off in the comments section below.

Tags: dlc, rdr, Red Dead, Red Dead Redemption, rockstar

Rockstar announced on their blog that this Halloween weekend there will be a double experience weekend for Red Dead Redemption, in honor of Halloween. From 1 pm EST on Friday until 11:59 pm EST on Sunday gamers will earn double experience. It looks like this will be for all online modes, although I’m sure it is also meant to encourage people to buy the newest dlc if they haven’t already.

So if you’re like me and want to level up but think the process is too tedious already, be prepared to be glued to your consoles this weekend.

Official Announcement

Tags: dlc, double experience, halloween, multiplayer, rdr, Red Dead, Red Dead Redemption, rockstar

Today the new dlc for Red Dead Redemption called “Undead Nightmare” is available for the PS3 and Xbox 360, retailing at $9.99 or 800 points respectively.

This comes hot on the heels of the free friendly free roam update which was added just last Saturday. Now griefers will become a non-issue as Rockstar has made you invulnerable to them.

Either way check out these new ways of playing the multi-player mode, and in the case of Undead, check out the new campaign as well.

Tags: 360, dlc, multiplayer, ps3, rdr, Red Dead, Red Dead Redemption, rockstar, undead, Undead Nightmare, zombies

“PlayView for Games” is a new effort from Sony of Japan launched on October 14th for the Playstation Network.

The first release cost 600 yen, and was called “Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G Monster Data Chishikisho.”  Sony has said that the PlayView service supports music and video, which can be incorporated into any downloadable strategy guide. Furthermore they plan on releasing guides for both the PS3 and PSP. However, this appears to be only for Japan, and not for other regions.

My thoughts: It seems unfortunate that this is only in Japan, as I’m sure some people in the U.S., U.K., and elsewhere would pay a small fee if it meant having instant access to a strategy guide for their favorite games right on their t.v. This could be especially good for rpgs where one could switch back and forth easily between the game and the guide to look at weapon or boss stats. Still, in order for anyone to adopt it is has to at least come out somewhere other than Japan. Is the rest of the world ready for it though? We may never know.

Sources:

IGN

Computer and Video Games

Tags: dlc, Japan, Monster Hunter, ps3, psp, sony, Sony selling strategy guides in Japan, strategy guides

Rockstar recently announced that the new Red Dead Redemption downloadable content “Undead Nightmare” would be available for download for the Xbox 360 and PS3 on October 26th. Just now however they have also revealed more about the game in another video which highlights the new online multiplayer mode.

Rockstar is taking fully advantage of the Halloween release date, as heard by the “spooky” narrator in the new video, who does his best Vincent Price impersonation as he describes the multiplayer mode.

Set up as a survival mode, during the “Undead Overrun” multiplayer mode players choose their weapons to fight off the invading horde. If they run low on ammo they can break crates or open coffins for more (and presumably find new weapons this way as well). In addition to using the already confirmed blunderbluss and torch, players will also have access to phosphorous bullets, which catch zombies on fire when shot at.

Zombies in the video run and creep along the ground, and appear to be more than eager to surround you. John Marston is seen in the video running from them, and they have no problem keeping up. It looks as if most of them will have some speed to them, although I wouldn’t be surprised if they slipped in some slow but powerful “tank” types.

It also mentions that you can revive your friend if you are quick about it, but it doesn’t say how long you have to do it or show exactly how it would be done. Presumably it will work similar to past dlc where you simply ran up to a fallen comrade and pressed and held a button to revive them.

Rockstar announced that there will be twelve new achievements or trophies to unlock, but only revealed five of them.

My thoughts: While the gameplay mechanics look similar to what we have seen with RDR content in the past, the new approach on zombies seem interesting. While I understand that there are plenty of zombie specific games and movies out there, there are few that are set in the Western period and setting that RDR is. It should also be interesting to play as some of the characters from RDR again. I’m looking forward to downloading this right away on October 26th.

What does everyone think? Are you looking forward to a zombie multiplayer mode in RDR?

Sources:

Official Announcement

RDR WiKi

Achievement list (spoilers)

Tags: campaign, dlc, ps3, rdr, Red Dead, Red Dead Redemption, rockstar, Undead Nightmare, weapons, xbox 360

Panasonic, one of the former makers of the ill-fated 3Do console in the 90′s appears to be at it again, this time with a portable.

Recently they announced The Jungle, their new gaming handheld designed exclusively for MMOs, or massive multiplayer online games. The device is a drab grey, and looks like a small laptop. It features a touch pad, a D pad, a full qwerty keyboard, and shoulder buttons.

Can Panasonic successfully enter the portable market with an MMO heavy device?

Although specs have not officially been announced yet, it is assumed that it will have some kind of HD display. Some suggest that the operating system may be Linux. The only game confirmed for it is Battlestar Galatica Online, an MMO based off the hit t.v. show.  Regardless of the exact details it is going to have to really excel technically to even impress someone, and even then it may still not sell.

When I first heard the news I was skeptical myself, and apparently I am not the only one. Billy Pidgeon, an M2 Research analysts says, “The Jungle is a highly specialized dedicated portable for a non-existent market. This is an unprecedented hardware strategy, and probably for good reason. If MMO players want to go more portable than a laptop, I guess this would be the way to go. Frankly, this looks like a non-starter.” Most of his peers seem to agree.

Check out PC World’s commentary (the url title says it all):

http://www.pcworld.com/article/206992/panasonics_jungle_online_gaming_handheld_doesnt_stand_a_chance.html

Industrygamers.com asked their analysts, who called it a non-starter, suggesting it will do little if anything:

http://www.industrygamers.com/news/panasonics-jungle-a-non-starter-right-out-of-the-gate-say-analysts/

In fact one of the few people who had anything good to say about it was Technologizer writer Jared Newman, and even he has his doubts:

http://technologizer.com/2010/10/05/how-panasonics-jungle-portable-game-device-can-survive/

A lot of things have to go right with this system, such as battery life, size and weight, third party support, cost, and if there is a subscription fee or not. Panasonic may

But of course you can always form your own opinion, so check out the site and official trailer at www.thejungle.com.

What do you guys think, will the Jungle sink or swim? Do you want a handheld like this for MMO playing?

Tags: 3do, announcement, battlestar galactica online, battlestar galatica game, handheld, jungle, mmo, panasonic, portable