It was a beautiful afternoon on Friday the 20^th May. The birds were singing, the traffic was humming and the sun was beating down on me as I strolled through the swanky city of Sydney. I was warm, I was comfortable and I was stoked to be heading to the Shadows of the Damned PR event. But as soon as I walked down those stairs into the small dark room lit by only a red glow, I immediately felt ill at ease. I was surrounded by industry luminaries, including American McGee and, of course, Suda51. Nervously I snatched at the first glass of champagne to pass my way and observed the place I was in under heavy lashes. I was excited, yet nervous, pumped, yet scared out of my brain. A simple staircase had transported me to a whole other world, but it wasn’t until later that I’d realise; “This must be what Garcia Hotspur feels like”. Read the rest of this entry »

NanoBITES captures those small but important morsels of gaming information that otherwise might slip between the cracks.

ITEM! More than six weeks after hackers brought the PSN to its knees, Sony has finally succeeded in bringing the PlayStation Store back online. You can log on now to enjoy long overdue content like imaginative Ubisoft platformer Outland.

ITEM! SEGA has turned to handheld specialist Griptonite Games to revive one of its most venerable franchises. Like the 1987 original, the latest version of Shinobi will be a side scrolling action game. Look for it on the 3DS in September.

ITEM! If you’ve reached the end of L.A. Noire but haven’t yet had your fill of hardboiled drama, Rockstar has you covered. Seven DLC packs are already available for the game and at least two more are on the way, one involving the arson unit, the other vice.

ITEM! Kinect titles have been a little thin on the ground of late, but Majesco is doing its bit to turn things around. As reported by Joystiq, the publisher has just announced Mind ‘n Motion and Take Shape, both of which are certain to have players flailing about like mad.

ITEM! House of the Dead: Overkill is coming to the PS3. Already a cult hit on the Wii, this foul mouthed light gun style shooter will boast new modes, levels and weapons, as well as Move compatibility. Publisher SEGA is aiming for an October release.

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With the release of Hunted: The Demon’s Forge imminent, publisher Bethesda Softworks has cranked out their most action packed preview yet. The trailer is set to a dark grunge-rock song that shadows it flawlessly, as we once again oversee a fantasy land beset with obscure monsters and expansive environments.

The cooperative element in the game is reinforced via the two main characters – a female elf archer and a burly male warrior. Developer InXile could almost be forgiven for delegating the main characters to slightly clichéd roles if the humorous banter in the trailer is anything to go by.

Blood and gore is a common sight, along with a healthy dose of violence thrown in. Between that and the sinister monsters on show it is evident that Hunted: The Demon’s Forge is a dungeon crawler not for the faint of heart.

Even those who aren’t impressed by fantasy-themed games should take a look at the trailer – the cinematography alone makes it worth the watch!

Hunted: The Demon’s Forge is set arrive in Australia on 360, PS3 and PC tomorrow.

THQ has issued the first teaser for its forthcoming sequel to Metro 2033. Metro: Last Light will see us return to the haunted subways of a post apocalyptic Moscow. There, we’ll grapple with claustrophobic conditions, unspeakable abominations and, perhaps worst of all, aging public transport infrastructure. Ukrainian developer 4A Games will again be in the driver’s seat.

The original title may have been a little rough around the edges, but it was also one of the more atmospheric shooters of 2010. Clearly cognisant of its shortcomings, THQ’s Danny Bilson has described it as a “flawed masterpiece” and has promised to deliver a “more polished” sequel with “more sophisticated gameplay.” While the original was strictly a single player experience, the new game will also feature a multiplayer component.

According to THQ, the story will centre on the battle to control a doomsday device, an odd goal given the city has already been blown to bits. Cinematic sequel Beneath the Planet of the Apes featured a similar motif. While THQ has not yet explicitly ruled out the inclusion of talking monkeys, it’s probably fair to say that we’re going to miss out in that regard.

Metro: Last Light is coming to 360, PC and (in another first for the franchise) PS3. Look for it in 2012.