As we celebrate our 10th Birthday here at Reticule Towers, we’re going to take a chance to look at our favourite games of the Reticule Years. There are few, if any, rules set for what we will write about. So hit the break, and see what we have chosen as Our Favourite Games of The Reticule Years. …
Welcome to The Reticule’s definitive roundup of gaming releases throughout December 2012. All release dates stated are for the EU, across all currently available platforms. Keep this page bookmarked for easy access, as we will link all previews and reviews when we post them on the site.
Still catching up with this months games? November’s release schedule can be found here.
4th
Guardians of Middle Earth
PS3
A shadow grows over Middle-earth as the greatest armies of the Third Age prepare for the coming battle. Take up arms in the clash over Middle-earth with the most powerful heroes from the greatest fantasy epic of all time. Form memorable and unlikely alliances with and against friends as the wildly popular Multiplayer Online Battle Arena genre comes to Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network.
RunSanity
iOS
Battlefield 3: Aftermath
PC, Xbox 360
Set amongst the shattered districts, streets and surrounding villages of a post-earthquake Tehran, Battlefield 3™: Aftermath depicts a continuing struggle for supremacy and survival amongst the devastation. With operational capacity severely compromised the opposing forces must adapt and engage in vertical and horizontal urban combat amongst the dust and rubble with cracks and fissures in the terrain providing unexpected cover and paths to objectives. Additional support comes in the form of heavily modified troop transports and civilian vehicles specially adapted to deliver deadly force to the enemy.
5th
Guardians of Middle Earth
Xbox 360
6th
Mass Effect 3 Trilogy
PS3
Shadow of the Game
PC
Time of Fury
PC
7th
Air Conflicts: Pacific Carriers
PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Agricultural Simulator 2013
PC
Nickelodeon Dance 2
Wii, Xbox 360
Paper Mario: Sticker Star
3DS
The Paper Mario: Sticker Star game is a flat-out epic new adventure, starring the Mushroom Kingdom’s most famous hero in an elaborate papercraft world. With the land positively packed full of stickers, Mario™ will collect and use them to fight off baddies, uncover secrets, and more. Fans of the Paper Mario series will discover all new gameplay elements new to the franchise, while newer players will enjoy a craftastic new twist on their favorite Nintendo hero.
12th
Hawken
PC
HAWKEN is a free-to-play, online, multiplayer, mech-based first-person shooter that puts you in the pilot seat of a giant robotic war machine. Customize and upgrade your mechs the way you want, then join your friends on the battlefield to rain destruction across HAWKEN‘s beautiful and immersive alien landscapes.
Iron Sky: Invasion
PC, PS3, Xbox 360
14th
Outdoors Unleashed: Africa 3D
3DS
18th
Wooords
iPhone
19th
WWE WrestleFest
Xbox 360
21st
Vektropolis
PC
Ahead of this year’s E3, the Into The Pixel judges have announced the 16 winners of this year’s competition. Chosen by a range of academics, artists and industry members with the support of the Academy of Interactive Arts and Scientists and Entertainment Software Association, the selected images come from a wide range of games across all the major systems and are, one and all, beautiful.
The first choice for me was one of great importance. It could mean the difference between life and death, the destruction of a whole civilisation or the lives of my crew members. At least that’s how important it felt. The decision of course was whether I wanted to keep the original Shepard on the front cover of my Mass Effect 3 box or flip over to the rather sleek looking reversible FemShep cover on the other side. I may come across a bit of stick for this but I changed to the FemShep cover, I didn’t think I would but until I saw it with my own eyes I had all but dismissed how anyone could even look at her. And that’s the essence of Mass Effect really. You may have watched your friend play or seen video footage of the game but until you play and make the decisions for yourself and deal with the consequences in your own way you will never really have experienced what the game is all about and it will hold no personal meaning to you. …
Even though planning your latest IP as a trilogy has been a fashionable thing to do during this console generation, Mass Effect 3 is a game that has truly been anticipated by some for the best part of half a decade. Despite of the needlessly late release of Mass Effect 3, many of the team have spent this weekend picking up where they left off, with the characters and choices they’ve carried forward from the two preceding games. Here are their thoughts and first impressions:
So, it’s Mass Effect 3 release week. Stick around for a team-wide first impressions article this weekend, with Kevin’s review to follow sometime later. But for now, here’s a little pre-release rage. …
Shenanigans are occurring in the pre-order market today, first up is an Origin only pre-order deal for Mass Effect 3 which is exclusive to the EU where you can get all the pre-order items in one hit for both Digital Deluxe Edition and the Standard Edition. Check out the pre-order page and rejoice in an outlet which will give you all the pre-order bonuses at once, no worrying about what special item you will miss out on. There have been lots of complaints about Origin, but this is a good move.
The second bit of pre-order action is for Sniper Elite V2. In this World War Two sniper love-in, we all know that the ultimate mission would be to kill Hitler, the only trouble? If you want to get the chance to kill Hitler in the game, you are going to have to pre-order it. The press release makes no mention of the mission being made available later to those who don’t pre-order. A decidedly bad move I think.
Thoughts on this pre-order malarky?
A few days ago I got the chance to take an early look at the Mass Effect 3 single player demo and all the glory that came with it. An updated levelling system, sharp graphics and some heart pounding action were just some of the highlights. Having played it to death however, it was time to move onto the much discussed and awaited multilpayer side of the Mass Effect 3 demo which was made available on the 14th for anyone who owns a Battlefield 3 online pass and will be available on the 17th for everyone else. The demo consists of two maps, all six available classes, three challenge modes and includes access to Xbox Live Gold for use only with the Mass Effect 3 demo for a limited amount of time. Bioware have not confirmed how long the free Gold access will last but they have made it very clear that it will be available only within multiplayer portion of the Mass Effect 3 demo. …
Mass Effect is on the horizon again and what better way to get worked up about saving the galaxy and making planet sized decisions with your favourite commander than to dig into the Mass Effect 3 demo. The single player section of the demo is in two parts and may be short and sweet but there is a lot to talk about and even more to get excited about. …
Freddie Prinze Jr. has been confirmed as the voice actor for Mass Effect 3‘s new character James Vega. In the video he talks about his real life inspirations for the character and his love for the series of Mass Effect, of which he seems a genuine fan.
He joins a host of stars who have signed up to do voice acting for Mass Effect 3 including: Seth Green, Adam Baldwin, Martin Sheen and Carrie-Anne Moss. The video shows lots of new footage from the upcoming Mass Effect 3 release but don’t worry, no spoilers.