Video Games & VGM

"Your favorite 8-bit and 16-bit era games mashed into one!" is a bold promise for any developer to make, but it's one that Gamesbymo's A.N.N.E. project could possibly deliver if the seamless mash-up of space-shooter and exploratory platforming ends up being as fun to play as the short reveal trailer suggests.

I'm a tea drinker, but I'm drinking coffee this morning in honor of this new launch trailer for Deadly Premonition: The Director's Cut. Burned my lips but it felt so good.

Sometimes I wish my fashion blogs and my video game blogs would spend some time together. Unfortunately, video games are not quite as mainstream with the ladies as I'd like for them to be. So while there's no end of fashion-inspired-by posts for Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Les Miserables, or Firefly, for example, there are no fashion posts for what is easily the most stunning, theatrical, well written, and exciting game I've played this year.

Eiko Ishiwata of Aycomusic has arranged two new classic Final Fantasy pieces for acoustic instrumentation, unveiled at the 2013 Game Developers Conference in San Francisco.

Come join in the discussions or get feedback on your own compositions.

Anodyne is a 2D platformer that takes you on a journey filled with mystery and adventure while traveling through the protagonist's subconscious mind.

My favorite works of horror are all built upon the foundation of three solid principles: a strong sense of place, clearly defined consequences, and an ability to create expectations while simultaneously defying them. It doesn't matter if it's Halloween, The Colour Out of Space, or Silent Hill -- the medium makes no difference. These three elements are at the core of every work I consider to be truly horrifying, so it's with that in mind that the upcoming PC title Routine has piqued my interest.

In terms of creativity, particularly world-building, I find that the game developers that nail those the best are the Japanese and the French. So it comes as little surprise to see big Japanese publisher Capcom sign small French developer Dontnod and their debut action-adventure game, Remember Me. What is surprising is how instantly risky the game looks, though not necessarily because of creative ambition. Rather, does Remember Me even fit the label of "Capcom game?"

On the official Final Fantasy XIV forums, Naoki Yoshida announced that phase 1 of the games beta will begin February 25th. The team was hoping to have the roadmap for the games beta out mid-February, but this has come a little late. Read more at http://www.gamingunion.net/news/final-fantasy-xiv-a-realm-reborn-beta-starts-february-25th--8793.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+gamingunion+%28Gaming+Union%29#5B6sur7RCZ7Pj2sx.99

Another photo claimed to be of a PS4 controller prototype appeared today, bearing strong similarity to the photo which appeared yesterday. What newly shows up in this photo is what's apparently a 3.5mm audio jack situated on the side below the PS button. The photo can be traced back to the GameTrailers forum, although it's unclear if the poster was who genuinely took it.

Over at Indie DB, developer Turtle Sandbox has released a free alpha demo version of its in-progress artillery-RTS Cannon Brawl.

The Mega Man soundtracks are always top notch when it comes to musical quality. We'll analyze one of the best themes from the series. The Wily Castle Part One theme from Mega Man II. It's always been a favorite of the fans.

Nobuo Uematsu delivers a powerful soundtrack for the magical RPG Lost Odyssey. Though the soundtrack doesn't get much spotlight, Game Music Life will shed light on it. Using chillingly rock-related themes such as 'Space Distortion' from the soundtrack.

Cave Story is a freeware game that was released for the PC back in 2004. It's an awesome game with an awesome soundtrack. This is the eccentric theme, 'Pulse', from the soundtrack.

Sometimes live performances just all come together and work perfectly. They aren't the most technically impressive you've seen, the most in tune nor have the biggest effects. Utada United 2006 works because throughout it all Utada Hikaru rides an emotional rollercoaster and takes you with her through the highs and lows of what I consider to be her best DVD release so far.