The Devil gets his due this week, as old franchises are revived in the latest batch of videogame releases.
Diablo III: Reaper of Souls (PC)
‘Diablo III: Reaper of Souls‘ is the PC expansion to Blizzard’s successful loot hunter, ‘Diablo III‘. It continues the story (for five acts total) while adding a new Crusader class. It also kicks the level cap up to 70 while allowing players another passive skill, and adds an Adventure mode that dispenses with the story and lets players raid at their leisure.
Deception IV: Blood Ties (PS3, Vita)
TecmoKoei has revived the long dormant ‘Deception’ franchise with ‘Deception IV: Blood Ties‘. In a bid to free the Devil, his daughter will trap, torture and end as many would-be do-gooders as it takes to unbind the seal that has kept him trapped for three millennia. This could be a choice pick for fans of offbeat Japanese RPGs.
Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends Complete (PS4, PS3, Vita)
Back at the debut of the PS2, ‘Dynasty Warriors 2’ was the first game to really impress upon me the jump in console generations. Even with tweaks, however, the formula got a little stale by ‘Dynasty Warriors 4’, and each numbered title was re-released or remixed or some other thing. Still, it’s a great formula, where an epic battlefield (‘The Romance of the Three Kingdoms’ kind) presents players with multiple ways to sway the tide, including banishing 1000+ enemies. ‘Dynasty Warriors 8: Extreme Legends Complete‘ brings all of the released content for ‘Dynasty Warriors 8’ to the PS4 (as well as the PS3 and Vita), making this a perfect time to check back into the series.
Fez (PS4, PS3, PS Vita)
The arrival of ‘Fez‘ as a cross-buy title for the PS4, PS3 and Vita reminds of a time two years ago when the game first debuted on the 360. The quirky platformer is known for its pixel art, quad-plane world (like the four sides of a box), and many difficult-to-find secrets. I played through the 360 version without serious issue despite the concerns over some save-killing bugs, and don’t at all mind its addition to the three PlayStation platforms. It even has cross-save. Of course, the PC version has been out awhile as well.
BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma (PS3)
‘BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma‘ is the third game in the pretty fighting series. It adds five new playable characters and has a 30-hour story mode. This might be the last one for the PS3.
The Witch and the Hundred Knight (PS3)
The trickily named ‘The Witch and the Hundred Knight‘ is a Japanese action RPG produced by NIS. You play the as the fabled Hundred Knight under the direction of an evil witch master. It’s your assigned duty to help the witch expand her power… that is, unless you decide that maybe her evil is better left confined.
Alex
Diablo III Auction House goes away with Reaper of Souls too, doesn’t it?
Brian Hoss
Yes and no. They killed the Auction House and instituted a new loot system last week, and that applies to all Diablo III players, not just Reaper of Souls players. The new loot system (supposedly) cuts down on the overall amount of loot. There is now (again supposedly) less trash loot and more rare items.
William Henley
I haven’t played Diablo since the first one. Not sure why – I loved that game. I may have to check 3 out.
Tim Tringle
Should probably play Diablo II first but you’d have to do so on a virtual machine. Plus you would have to find a copy of the original too.
William Henley
Virtual machines don’t bother me, got a couple set up. I was hoping it was on GOG, but it doesn’t look like it. Looks like the game is on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00002CF9M/panandscathed-20
With its release date, looks like I may have to run it on a 98 or ME VM, unless there is an XP patch for it
Brian Hoss
I played through Diablo 2 a few years ago on XP without any issues. Even play co-op through LAN with all players on XP machines.
I recommend this version so that you get the expansion pack:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0002BQN7Q/panandscathed-20
You get the game on discs, but you can input the CD key on Blizzard’s site for digital ownership and then chuck the CDs if so desired.
William Henley
Ordered! At the link, it says it is Vista compatable, so if it is, it should work with 7 and 8. If not, XP VMs are easy to setup.
Dennis Lafontaine
Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but Diablo 3 Expansion Set for the U.S. release is a key code, no physical disc (??)
Brian Hoss
There’s a disc in the box, and a key that goes into your battle.net account. One of those items is required.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00FENJVOE/panandscathed-20