If I had to describe El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron in one word it would be ”gorgeous”. After seeing the game it probably wouldn’t surprise you to hear that El Shaddai’s develop was headed by Okami lead character designer Sawaki Takeyasu.  The brightly coloured, pastel ce-shaded visuals are a dead give away, and they just absolutely ooze style.

But is it more than just a pretty face? Hit the jump for my impressions.

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Every 25 minutes, like clock work, press huddle into a cramped screening booth replete with dark red velvet and stifling heat, to get a glimpse at Saint’s Row: The Third. To refresh the weary, THQ splashes a new 20 minute video of in-game footage on our faces. The video shows off more open world exploration, heavy duty/heavily insane weapons and ends with a bank heist.

Comparing the Saint’s Row series to GTA, as many do, is comparing two completely different series’ on opposite ends of the propriety spectrum. While GTA tends to inject more or less a realistic story line of gangs and guns, Saint’s Row uses these tropes for pure caricature. The new video shows that developer Volition, Inc. aims to widen this gap even more.

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Earlier this afternoon, I had the opportunity to sit down and play Capcom’s latest spinoff in the Resident Evil series. Capcom has partnered with SOCOM Confrontation developer Slant Six Games to push the series in an entirely new direction with Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City.  Together, they have created the franchise’s first third-person team-based shooter and it looks like it’s shaping up to be something special.

The game follows the Umbrella Security Service (USS) through the Raccoon City Incident – previously seen from the perspective of Leon Kennedy, Claire Redfield in Resident Evil 2 and Jill Valentine in Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. Operation Raccoon City features three-way competitive multiplayer between US Spec Ops, Umbrella security forces, and the infected threat of zombies and Bio-Organic Weapons. While at the Capcom booth I had the chance to sit down for a fifteen-minute single-player demo.

Hit the jump for my impressions.

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There it is ladies and gentlemen. The NGP is officially named the PS Vita. Vita, meaning “life” in Latin is easily the worst product name I have ever heard.

While this has been rumored for a while now, all of us here at Gamer Limit have hoped that it wasn’t true. But, despite the poor name, the features and games shown during the Sony press conference were quite promising. And at $249 for the Wi-fi version and $299 for 3G, it falls right in line with one of its competitors, Nintendo’s 3DS. Sad to think that is an acceptable price for a handheld these days. Oh economy, how I hate thee. Hit the break for a full breakdown of the PS Vita.

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After bringing back a ton of nostalgia with the Sly Cooper HD collection, there was nothing more that I wanted from Sucker Punch than to revisit the series. Thankfully enough, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time was announced during the Sony press conference. While the trailer didn’t tell us much, it didn’t matter to me. The fact of the matter is, SLY COOPER IS BACK!

HD remakes are a common occurence in the video game industry today. Well, it turns out we will be seeing more of our favorites transform into high-definition. This time, God of War‘s PSP games will be remade for the PlayStation 3 in what is called God of War Origins. And for the few of you out there that have invested in a 3D television, you will be happy to hear that it will support stereoscopic 3D.

While I enjoy this news, it is another bit of news they gave alongside of this that got me excited. After a ton of delay of the ICO/Shadow of the Colossus HD collection, it is finally going to be released the same month as God of War Origins in September. About… freaking… time! Can’t wait!

The demo opens up with Drake in truly Sam Fisher fashion as he stealths his way through a cruise ship. Everything from the environment, to the weather effects, to the sea looks absolutely fantastic. Naughty Dog continues to push the PlayStation 3 in each installment of this Uncharted trilogy.

As Drake makes his way through the cruiser we are shown some impressive stealth kills. Despite the lack of action in the beginning it is hard not to feel immediately drawn into what is going on. But, of course, the action picks up quickly as Drake draws his gun, makes use of a grenade, and blows a hole in the cruiser. The moment the water comes rushing in is the very moment I found my jaw dropping. But my words just can’t do this demo justice. Watch it for yourself after the break and enjoy a bit of special news for an opportunity to get your hands on the full Uncharted 3 multiplayer experience before the title’s release on November 1st.

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Today at their E3 2011 press conference Ubisoft showed off something that I didn’t expect in the slightest, Far Cry 3. It may have been far from expected, but dear God it’s something I’ve wanted for a long time as Far Cry 2 is easily one of my favourite games of the generation.

The Far Cry 3 demo shown off at Ubisoft’s keynote revolved around a man being captured by militants, given a pair of cement shoes, before being sent towards a watery grave. Narrowly managing to escape, the man then brutally kills several people with a knife before hijacking a helicopter that gets shot down by a rocket launcher. Intense!

The awesome demonstration aside, not much is known about the title yet aside from it being developed by Ubisoft Montreal, alongside Ubisoft Shanghai and Massive Entertainment.  Be on the lookout for Far Cry 3 in 2012.

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During Electronic Arts E3 2011 press conference two of its hottest upcoming titles’ release dates were announced. Battlefield 3 will be hitting shelves on October 25 for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC. We’ll be taking a look at the game in the upcoming days and will have a full preview of Battlefield 3′s E3 demo within the week.

Mass Effect 3 will be landing on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC on March 6 of next year. Additionally, the N7 collectors edition of the game will feature a hardcover Mass Effect book, a comic book, in-game appearance packs, an extended soundtrack, lithograph, N7 patch and instant access to the N7 Arsenal Pack, which includes four additional weapons, for a measly $79.99. You know you want it.

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Ever since the Tomb Raider reboot was announced in Game Informer, I was convinced that it would be exactly what the franchise needed. While the game looks absolutely beautiful and emits a dark, gritty feel, the demo shown at Microsoft’s press conference has me concerned. Nothing makes me roll my eyes more than the overuse of QTEs (quick time events) in games – a la God of War.

Despite my distaste for this outdated gameplay mechanic, I remain convinced that Crystal Dynamics will stay true to Lara Croft and the Tomb Raider franchise. The presentation is there, the set pieces seem to be there, and hopefully the gameplay proves to be more than what was shown. If it isn’t, the future of Tomb Raider will be more grim than ever. Judge for yourself though with a video of the demonstration after the break. Read more… »

Controversy! It isn’t an E3 without it. From what I saw during the demo of Modern Warfare 3 during Microsoft’s press conference at E3 2011, I truly question whether this demo was played live. While it isn’t really a huge deal, it is real fishy as you can see in the video after the break that the controller disconnects, pauses, and then what looks like a video input switch occurs.

Nonetheless, this demo of Modern Warfare 3 was full of some fantastic looking set pieces as it opens up with forcing a submarine to surface, infiltrating it, launching some missiles, and eventually escaping as battleships blow up around you and the skyline of Chicago in the distance is falling to shambles. What else can you expect from a Call of Duty title though? Be sure to hit the break for a little bit of extra news regarding Modern Warfare 3 and of course the aforementioned video.

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Yesterday, Sony released the Welcome Back program. Because the PlayStation Network was down for so long, Sony would like to apologize and offer users free games and additional content. Sony is offering PlayStation Network users the opportunity to download two titles for their PSP and/or PS3 (for a total of free 4 games).

Additionally, Sony is offering a free 30 day subscription to the PlayStation Network Plus service, while current PSN Plus members will receive a 60 day extension of their membership. For the full list of free games you can nab with the Welcome Back package hit the jump.

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