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Why Japanese Developers Need New IPs Part 2Thu, Sep 2nd, 2010, 9:54 pm (EST) BY ADAM MALast time we covered what exactly is wrong in the mainstream Japanese gaming industry. The oversaturation of RPGs, longstanding titles that change very little, and of course the terrible attempts at reaching Western consumers certainly don't help much. There's really no reason for these developers (or publishers) to be so afraid of moving their products overseas, in fact there are a lot of great reasons to do so. The market is not only ready for Japan to take the lead again, they're almost begging for it. How do I figure? Allow me to explain. More » |
Things Older Gamers Like To Moan AboutThu, Sep 2nd, 2010, 7:32 pm (EST) BY BEN GRIFFIN
The gaming world has changed: videogames come on small, shiny things called CD's. A small child thousands of miles away in Korea can whip your ass at Starcraft II. Resident Evil is now considered to have bad voice acting. HD graphics have rendered the outside world obsolete. Hardcore gamers love EA and hate Activision. Yes, sir, the world has changed, and you can either nobly roll with the punches and embrace the future or sit in your favourite comfy, moth-bitten chair and bitch, bitch, bitch. These are some of the topics in gaming today that make old people feel cold and frightened. |
Top Ten RPGs Of This Generation... So FarSat, Aug 28th, 2010, 12:46 pm (EST) BY JORDAN DOUGLAS
This console generation has seen a remarkable shift in what it means to be a role-playing game. Elements that have traditionally been exclusive to RPGs - such as leveling/upgrading characters and equipment, branching, non-linear plots, and collectible items - have begun to be incorporated in numerous other genres, blurring the lines between them. However, the core RPG genre remains intact, featuring a wide variety of the best Western and Eastern game designers have to offer. This is Gaming Union's top ten RPGs of this console generation (roughly 2005 to present), in alphabetical order. |
Top Ten Development Studios Right NowThu, Aug 19th, 2010, 10:43 pm (EST) BY JORDAN DOUGLAS
Games have always been behind other creative mediums - such as film, music, and literature - when it comes to making consumption choices based on the team behind a product, as opposed to its franchise tag or brand. That being said, the "hardcore", enthusiast crowd has always had a deep appreciation and sense of loyalty toward the select group of studios that continually produce quality. Thankfully, that trend is slowly beginning to penetrate mainstream gaming. |
Madden 11 Pre-Launch: Top Five Series MilestonesMon, Aug 9th, 2010, 9:35 pm (EST) BY JORDAN DOUGLAS
In gaming, August goes hand-in-hand with the arrival of a new Madden game. It's the time of year that signals the upcoming end of a typically long summer drought in major retail releases. Madden 11 is upon us. To mark the occasion, we decided to chronicle some of the biggest milestones throughout Madden's storied past. |
The Best Games Of 2010... So FarFri, Jul 9th, 2010, 9:14 pm (EST) BY ADAM MA
I'll cut straight to the chase on this one, 2010 has had some phenomenal games. Most years start out a little slow and then wind up into a big bang, but honestly it's hard to imagine anything better around the corner aside from a few releases here or there. |
Reviews Round-Up (Nier, SSFIV, Monster Hunter Tri and More)Sun, May 2nd, 2010, 7:40 pm (EST) BY DARRYLIt appears as though we skipped a week, but never fear, as the Reviews Round-Up is back, ready to summarise an action packed week, which saw some top quality releases across numerous platforms. More » |
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Game Tester On Pranks, Horror Stories, And StereotypesMon, Apr 12th, 2010, 4:24 pm (EST) BY KYLE WYNEN
Working as a game tester in the minds of many gamers is a sweet gig; playing games all day, how can you go wrong? We sat down with Quality Assurance company, The Ant Firm, to talk about the various aspects of being a video game tester, last time covering the topic of why hardcore gamers don't necessarily make good testers. For the second half of our sit-down with The Ant Firm team, we talked about horror stories and pranks from the Quality Assurance Department (also know as home for game testers), and what it means to be a games tester as a career. |
Reviews Round-Up (Mass Effect, Cho Aniki, Relativity)Sun, Apr 11th, 2010, 9:48 pm (EST) BY COLINThe past week has been a relatively mundane one regarding game releases since most of the big boys are expected in the coming week or by the end of the month. Splinter Cell: Conviction, Super Street Fighter IV and Monster Hunter Tri, anyone? More » |
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Game Testers On Why Hardcore Gamers Don't Make Good TestersWed, Apr 7th, 2010, 2:36 pm (EST) BY KYLE WYNEN
Bugs, glitches and crashes in retail and downloadable games have made headlines more and more in recent months, in large part thanks to huge titles like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, and a number of others that have been plagued with bugs. This has left many wondering where the Quality Assurance teams, better known as game testers, have been. Are they asleep at the wheel? In fact, many gamers bet they could make better testers than those employeed by the bug-ridden AAA titles. Pondering this, we sat down with third-party Quality Assurance company, The Ant Firm, and ask them if the regular gamer could really make the grade and prevent the next Modern Warfare 2 fiasco. |
5 Franchises Where You Wonder 'What Happened'?Mon, Apr 5th, 2010, 7:25 pm (EST) BY NELSON
Gaming has become an increasingly important section of entertainment over the last few decades and as such there have been a vast amount of franchises that have flourished over time. Many of these have retained the elements that made them special to gamers while continuing to push forward and it's for this reason that they've stayed at the top of gamer wish lists. This isn't the case for all franchises though. |
Sony Must Learn From The iPhone, DS With PSP2Sun, Apr 4th, 2010, 8:44 pm (EST) BY JORDAN DOUGLAS
On March 24th 2010 the PSP celebrated its fifth birthday, and to mark the occasion we decided to look ahead to the next generation of PSP and outline what direction the handheld should take. The current PSP suffers from a lack of identity; much of its functionality is underused because of poor marketing and an unintuitive design. It has been overshadowed and out performed by innovations on the Nintendo DS, and has come under increasing pressure from new competitors - namely Apple's iPhone. The new PSP must learn from past mistakes and take notes from the competition if Sony wants to stay relevant in handheld gaming. |
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Why It's Safe To Have Faith In Ghost Recon: Future SoldierThu, Apr 1st, 2010, 6:14 pm (EST) BY ADAM MAMost long standing FPS titles are forced to go through a reinvention stage at some point. Like when the competition invents some new mechanic that must be copied, or when players are simply too tired of doing the same thing over and over again. Modern Warfare has changed the way the Call of Duty franchise looks and feels, the same way that Medal of Honor, Splinter Cell, and Halo have all been trying to revitalize themselves. But Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon series has been reinventing itself for years now, unlike the competition, and Future Soldier may be the fruit of all Ubisoft's labour. More » |
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How Voice Acting Has Changed The Video Games IndustrySat, Mar 13th, 2010, 3:58 pm (EST) BY FOZZIEVoice acting, as defined by Wikipedia, is the act of "providing one's voice to an animated character." Though its origin is unknown it's been safely lodged in the acting world for quite some time now. Disney, as many of you are well aware, has been well known for its animated movies and, more impressively, as a voice acting pioneer. Snow White (1937) was the company's first full-length animated feature film made and Adriana Caselotti voiced the movie's title character. More » |
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Hidden Gems: Dungeon Siege: Throne of AgonySat, Feb 20th, 2010, 12:47 pm (EST) BY COLINGaming Union's very on conscripted and self-proclaimed art director - that's me - is back with yet another hidden gem. Previously, I rambled on about a fun and addictive rhythm game for the PlayStation Portable known as DJ Max Portable. Now, from underneath the dusty rug, I bring to your attention Dungeon Siege: Throne of Agony. More » |
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Persona 3 Portable To Redefine PSP PortsSat, Jan 23rd, 2010, 10:56 pm (EST) BY SHAWNAnyone that has played Persona 3 can attest to the sheer length of the game, it's certainly not something that can be faulted as there is plenty of action, which is complimented by numerous cutscenes that come in both an animated and in-game format. More » |
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Hidden Gems: DJ Max Portable 2Thu, Jan 21st, 2010, 12:46 pm (EST) BY COLINOne of the wonderful things about being isolated in a military camp in the middle of nowhere is that I get a lot of free time to just, well, do absolutely nothing. Of course that's just being inefficient, which is why I always keep my PSP close at hand. Doing so allows me to enjoy a myriad of portable wonders five days a week and one of those wonders includes a humble rhythm game known as DJ Max Portable 2. More » |
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Can Knights In The Nightmare Really Work On PSP?Wed, Jan 13th, 2010, 7:07 pm (EST) BY SHAWNIn the latest issue of Famitsu, it was revealed that Sting would be releasing a PlayStation Portable port of Knights in the Nightmare, which was released in North America by Atlus last June on the Nintendo DS. More » |
Assassin's Creed 2 Can Stand Against Modern Warfare 2Posted on 2009/10/16 BY DARRYL
When Assassin's Creed was released in 2007 it instantly smashed records. After gaining the title of 'fastest selling new franchise ever to be released in North America' it then went on to sell around 8 million units worldwide on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It'd certainly be an understatement to say this surprised people, especially because of its love-hate relationship with the gaming media. For all those that loved the game, there were also those who honestly couldn't understand why it was receiving any praise. |
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TGS 2009 Awards: Best PSP GamePosted on 2009/10/07 BY DARRYLContinuing on with Gaming Union's TGS 2009 Awards, next it's the turn of Sony's hand-held device, the PlayStation Portable. Sony were at this year's Tokyo Game Show with a plethora of PlayStation Portable titles on show from a range of different publishers. Many of the titles were also platform exclusive, which is rather impressive More » |










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