New Fez gameplay emerges, since Fezzes are cool
While we take a few moments to work out what the plural of 'Fez' might be, let's all bathe in the delights of Phil Fish's marvellous rotatey spin-em-up platformer.
Review: Retro Racing (iOS)
While my wife watches Coronation Street I sometimes get in trouble for exploding in indignant rage at whatever's happening on the touchscreen I'm clutching, and that my mind is currently using as a diversionary tactic. The most recent c-word explosion came during a bout of Retro Racing and, indeed, a very poignant moment when drunken maybe-murderer Steve was accused of being a bad father by his OWN son. There was high drama indeed.
Hot Shot: Wonderputt
You may well have already spent a few mesmerised lunch-times sat in front of Wonderputt, but on the off-chance you haven’t – consider this an invitation to have bits of sandwich inelegantly falling out of your mouth today.
Tie-in Tuesday: Mass Effect – Infiltrator
It’s not every day that you can sit on a train shooting aliens in the head, and feel that you’re genuinely helping to save the Universe. Mass Effect 3’s Galaxy at War system, however, does exactly that. I haven’t even booted up my copy of ME3 yet, but I know that in some way the Intel I rummage out of Cerberus’ drawers in Infiltrator will help the war effort.
At home with: RedLynx and Trials Evolution…
Will Porter travels all the way to Finland to spend the day with the cheeky chaps crafting the physical wonders of Trials Evolution.
He doesn't wrestle any of them, but is certainly tempted.
The Fun Forecast: 12th-18th March
I am Michael Fish from the 1970s and I am magnanimous in victory. Lay down your weapons.
This week there are brief flurries of robots over Playstation and Xbox download services, alongside a strong downpour of Journey – so don’t go out without an umbrella or weak human emotions.
Bill Giles from the mid-90s will no longer trouble this glorious new era with base accusations of black magic. Onwards!
Preview: Mark of the Ninja
The fact that ninjas are awesome is one that video-games have largely forgotten. Shinobi doesn't get decent outings, The Last Ninja 4 isn't going to happen and I'm so useless at Ninja Gaiden that wherever possible I purge it from my mind. Slinking in from left to right, then, comes Mark of the Ninja – a side on stealth-em-up HookshotInc got their hands on during GDC.
Hot Shot: Derrick the Deathfin
One of the stand-out indie games of GDC has been the tale of Derrick the papercraft shark – a terror of the deep with a compulsion to jump through hoops while hoovering up half the underwater kingdom. His PSN outing is where Ecco the Dolphin and Joe Danger collide in a mess of gears, sprockets and dorsal fins – and is certainly a hot summer prospect for the download pipe of your Sony box.
Might Molyneux’s exit mean a new dawn for Populous?
During this year's GDC the news emerged that Uncle Pete has skipped through the doors of Lionhead and Microsoft for the last time.
So might EA and the Populous license come a calling?
Hot Shot: Circadia
Last night I attended a GDC 'Indie Mixer'. It was very exciting because everyone was drinking beer out of a 'keg' – just like in American frat house movies. Instead of people shouting 'Chug! Chug!' while girls in bikinis jumped around in slow motion, however, in this case awesome games like Circadia were thrust into my hands.
Tie-in Tuesday: Inspector Gadget’s MAD Dash
Today's Tie-in Tuesday was due to a short treatise on The Simpsons: Tapped Out but, seeing as its popularity has caused EA servers to meltdown and the offending article to be removed from the App Store, instead we're going with a franchise with a similar amount of clout. That's right kids: Inspector Gadget.
Hookshot vs Hookshot: Proteus
Two of Hookshot Inc's writers played the fascinating indie wander-em-up Proteus: taking in its sights, its seasons and the soundscapes that it builds. Both explored and pondered in isolation, and one liked it - and the other one flapped his arms and swore a bit.
