ZombiU Wii U

Released on 30/11/2012

• Editor's Choice - Best of Wii U at E3

  
  

  

  

  Wii U - Best of E3 2012

  More details were revealed at this year's E3 about the innovative Wii U package - that revised GamePad, those, err, 'asymmetric gameplay' opportunities - but really all we wanted to know was were its games looking any good?

  In a word (well, two) - yes actually...
  

  

  ZombiU

  Just when you thought the zombie genre was ready for a rusty shovel through its maggot-infested brains, Ubisoft unveiled its fascinating first-person take on said shuffling man-munchers with this Wii U exclusive. Set in London after an outbreak of flesh-eating freaks, head off on missions to help you make it through another day, harvesting vital supplies from a variety of locations ("Oh look, it's Big Ben! And oh look there, it's a Queen's Guard here to make a right royal Jubilee out of my internal organs..."). Using the Wii U'sGamePad screen as a 'Bug-Out Bag' containing maps, med kits and more, the focus is on a refreshingly hardcore survival experience with some genuine multiplayer innovations lurking, slobbering, in the shadows...
  When's It Out? TBA 2012

  

  Pikmin 3

  Noted for its exceptional graphics (best-in-show for the Wii U, we reckon), this charming sequel to the hit real-time strategy series will make its exclusive debut on the HD-powered console. As before, head out into an alien garden and make like an astronautical Alan Titchmarsh, dishing out orders to your band of cute critters, the plant-like Pikmin, and collecting fruit, bashing garden grizzlies and building bridges to explore a mysterious planet. With lush scenery, reassuringly familiar gameplay and some all-new characters, this is already shaping up to be a potential classic.
  When's It Out? TBA 2012

  

  NintendoLand

  Hoping to emulate the astonishing success of the all-conquering Wii Sports on Wii, NintendoLand moves out of the sports arena and into the theme park by packing in 12 mini-games that show off the diverse and eclectic skills of the GamePad and its screen. Five out of the mini-games were previewed at E3; for simple delights, Takamaru's Ninja Castle sees players hurling shurikens at onscreen ninjas by 'flicking' them virtually off the GamePad's screen. For multiplayer mayhem, Luigi's Ghost Mansion lets up to four Mii-sporting players armed with Wii Remotes, hunt (and be hunted by) a ghost in an overhead maze; said ghost being operated by a GamePad-wielding gamer.

  The catch? The ghost is invisible to the other players who can only 'feel' its presence through the rumble of their controllers. And the predictable result? Yep, panicked, hysterical gameplay as gamers wildly wield their torches about, trying to destroy the ghost with their lights - or more often than not, ending up fainting onscreen when the spectre spooks them from behind. A perfect example then of that 'asymmetric gameplay' Nintendo has been so busy banging on about - where the same game is a different experience for each player, see? We're sold on it and so will you be.
  When's It Out? TBA 2012

  Published: 21/06/2012

• Zombi U - Preview

  
  

  

  If there's anything that prevented the Wii from having truly stellar success, it was the lack of third-party support and the lack of anything meaty and mature for the more hardcore player to sink their fangs into. So here's something smart that's going to help the Wii U out of the starting blocks: a gritty, dark, survival horror game from Ubisoft, and a game with a healthy appetite for the core crowd that many believe Nintendo has under-served in recent years.

  Zombi U is, in fact, a melting pot of all that the core crave, with elements of Left 4 Dead, Resident Evil and, somewhat brilliantly, Dark Souls all being thrown together for what's unquestionably an eccentric bit of hardware. The result is something that promises to be, at the very least, one of the more interesting games of 2012.

  Undead Nightmare

  The setting's a London that's been struck by a catastrophic zombie outbreak. It's a backdrop that might be superficially similar to Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later, but in Ubisoft's handling the dark humour's a little more tongue-in-cheek, with a certain amount of Eurotrash working its way into the French studio's depiction of England's capital. Infected Beefeaters patrol streets that are lined with fish and chip shops, while double-decker buses and black taxicabs lie crumpled on pavements dotted with red telephone boxes. It's an outsider's view of London, but it's no worse for that.

  

  You're a survivor trying to work their way through this mayhem, fighting in a first-person perspective that only briefly switches to third person whenever there's a puzzle to be solved. Except you're not just one survivor - and it's here that Zombi U gets really, really interesting.

  As you crawl through the flotsam of the apocalypse, there's a palpable sense of danger that's helped by what is an exceptionally brave design decision for a game that's after the mainstream dollar: one single bite from the infected can kill you in an instant. And when your character's gone, they're really, really gone - turned forever more into one of the undead.

  Sweet Soul Music

  So you're forced to start over from the very beginning again, but there's a twist. Work your way to where your last character died and you'll be able to rummage through their belongings and pick up some of those hard-earned spoils to increase your chance of survival next time (though be warned - it's also perfectly possible that you'll run into your freshly zombified, older self).

  

  It has the potential to turn Zombi U into the kind of dread-soaked atmospheric experience that helped make Dark Souls - an unlikely inspiration, but certainly the most prevalent - such a huge critical success. Progression is made step by gentle step, and the horror that's been so lacking in recent zombie games is restored to its rightful place.

  There's also the issue of the Wii U hardware, and this is the least convincing part of the package right now. Zombi U certainly proves that Nintendo's new console is capable of producing first-person action games that are at least on a par with what we've become accustomed to on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, but the feasibility of a tablet enhancing that experience is a little less certain. You're asked to scan rooms and you're tasked with managing your inventory through the GamePad, though rather than adding to the immersion it simply breaks it, taking your attention away from the horror that's unfolding on the main screen.

  Fortunately, there's enough elsewhere that Zombi U gets right. It's a big-blooded, gutsy shooter that think a little bigger than what we're used to from the over-saturated zombie genre - and for the Wii U, it could be just the ticket that Nintendo needs to prove that it's got what it takes to play with some of the meaner boys in the console playground.

• Wii U horror game ZombiU features permanent character death

  Don't get too attached to the characters you control in upcoming Wii U survival horror, ZombiU. If you let them get munched, that's it. They're gone.

  "We wanted a realistic zombie experience," says senior producer Guillaume Brunier in a new developer video diary. "We want something you have never played before. When a character in your game dies, you don't get to play with him or her again, ever. You will only see him or her again as a zombie when you go after them to get your backpack back. We want players to feel the tension of one life. What would you do? How long would you survive?"

  ZombiU is set in modern day London, after a viral outbreak turns everyone into shambling brain-chomping ghouls. The aim, according to Brunier, was to bring back "old school survival games where fear is at the centre of the experience." The video showcases gruesome headshots and messy melee weapons, as well as a series of bloody confrontations in front of a desolate Buckingham Palace, with zombie guards in their iconic bearskin hats, and even a podgy British bobby hungry for flesh.

  The game will use the Wii U gamepad as a digital survival kit, with the secondary touchscreen operating as both map, inventory and radar. This, Brunier hopes, will "bring back the slow pace" that rival titles - presumably the more action-based Dead Space 3 and Resident Evil 6 - have abandoned.

  ZombiU is currently slated for release alongside the Wii U this winter.

  Published: 24/08/2012

• Everything you need to know about the Wii U launch

  Nintendo's new console, the Wii U, launches in the UK from November 30th and you can secure yours now from GAME from just £259.

  The console comes in two different packages. The basic edition comes with the 8Gb White Wii U console and the new touchscreen gamepad controller. It'll work with existing Wii remotes as well as the Wii sensor bar. If you don't have those, you can buy them separately in a starter pack.

  Alternatively you can opt for the premium black console, for £309.99. This comes with a 32Gb console and gamepad, plus a sensor bar, HDMI cable and membership of Nintendo's Premium Network which will allow you to earn points every time you buy Wii U software. The premium bundle also includes a copy of Nintendo Land, a cool minigame compilation featuring dozens of classic Nintendo stars.

  Finally, if minigames aren't your thing, check out the £349.99 ZombiU bundle with comes with a copy of Ubisoft's grisly horror game as well as a Pro Controller joypad.

  What else can you pick up on launch day? Seven games will be on the shelves, with loads more to follow in the following months. NintendoLand and ZombiU will be available as standalone games, of course, and no Nintendo console would be complete without a Mario game, so make room for New Super Mario Bros U. Platform fans can also look forward to the fantastic Rayman Legends, the sequel to the wonderful Rayman Origins and a Wii U exclusive. Those with a more hardcore mindset, meanwhile, will be able to take home Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, FIFA 13 and Mass Effect 3: Special Edition on launch day.

  If, for some reason, that doesn't keep you busy then the coming months will bring dozens more titles, including Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Wii U Edition, Transformers Prime, 007 Legends, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Assassin's Creed III, Batman: Arkham City Armoured Edition and Darksiders II.

  Published: 14/09/2012

• Ubisoft's ZombiU is slow, hard and definitely not Call of Duty with zombies

  Ubisoft would like you to know that its Wii U launch title, the London-based horror game ZombiU, is not an action game, and if you play it like one then you will die. Horribly.

  "The market is going towards more action games," creative director Jean-Phillipe Caro told Official Nintendo Magazine. "Call Of Duty is driving the market and everyone is going to Call Of Duty's market. When we had to work with Nintendo we had two screens to make a new experience."

  He goes on to explain how Ubisoft's developers struggled to find a way to use the second screen on the Wii U's GamePad as part of a fast-paced shooter as it was too distracting to keep looking at two screens. Eventually, they realised they needed to slow the game down, and put the pad's touchscreen to a more tactical use. Thus, the idea of a brutal hardcore horror game was born, but one where planning and patience were more beneficial than a quick trigger finger.

  "That's when we had the idea to make the GamePad our survival kit," Caro explains. "If you play like in Call Of Duty, you will die. You will have to learn how to use the GamePad as your survival kit. If you listen carefully to your GamePad, you will succeed because the game is hard."

  ZombiU is a launch title for the Wii U, and goes on sale on November 30th. There'll be a special ZombiU console-and-game bundle for those who can't wait to sink their teeth into it.

  Published: 20/09/2012

• Nintendo's Wii U will be region locked

  Bad news for anyone thinking of importing a Wii U console from America or Japan. Nintendo has confirmed that the console will be region locked, meaning that it will only play games from the region it was purchased in.

  This doesn't come as much of a surprise, given that the Wii, 3DS and DS have all been strictly limited to local software in order to cut down on importers bagging games early and cheaply.

  It does, however, mean that demand for the UK console will be higher than ever. The Wii U, which uses a new touch pad controller as well as the Wii remote, launches on November 30th in a variety of bundles. The basic console comes with 8Gb of storage and can be picked up for £259.99. The premium console, with 32Gb of storage and a copy of NintendoLand, is just £309.99.

  For the truly hardcore, the ZombiU bundle includes the premium console plus a Pro Controller joypad and a copy of Ubisoft's grisly horror game, ZombiU. All premium bundles also include a subscription to Nintendo Premium, which will allow you to earn points whenever you buy new games.

  The Wii U launches with a mouth watering line up of games. New Super Mario Bros U and Rayman Legends arrive on the same day, as well as touch pad enhanced versions of Mass Effect 3, Batman: Arkham City and Call of Duty: Black Ops II.

  That's Christmas sorted then.

  Published: 25/09/2012

• GAME goes to the Eurogamer Expo

  
  

  

  Last week, the GAME online team took a trip to the Eurogamer Expo in London's Earls Court to get our many hands-on some of the top games that we'll all be playing over the coming months.

  The atmosphere at the event was a buzzing and bustling as ever, with gamers coming from far and wide to get their first goes at everything from the Wii U to Assassin's Creed III to Dishonored - which alone had people queuing for over an hour to play!

  With plenty of the team there, we were able to get a chance to play quite a few games. Here's what we thought...

  

  Aliens Colonial Marines

  Tom
  Colonial Marines has been a long time coming. It was announced 4 years ago, and from the time we had during the Eurogamer Expo, for us the wait has been entirely worth it.

  We got to go hands on with the multiplayer side of the game. Taking up arms as the Marines, we strode into the dilapidated area of the complex on LV 426. It is clear, especially with this level, that attention to balancing the levels is key to how the multiplayer will work.

  There were plenty of places to fight back-to-back and funnel the Xenos through giving the marines a sporting chance, but also plenty of narrow corridors for Xenos to get up close, making guns useless, and dark areas for Xenos to avoid detection and hide patiently.

  The weapons for the Colonial Marines are taken from, and inspired by, the film Aliens. Set just 17 days after the events of the film Gearbox haven't taken liberty with the groundwork laid down by the 1986 film, Pulse Rifles sound and look like their movie counterparts, the shotguns have a similar look to the pulse Rifles, not everyone packs a sawn off in space for close encounters!

  And then there is the Motion Tracker, taken straight from the film, this will be your most used tool if separated from team mates. The Motion Tracker will detect movement around you and give the classic beep when an enemy is close by. Only problem here is that you cannot wield a weapon when tracking your foes, and if they stop moving they don't get picked up.

  You'd think that the marines, with guns and motion trackers, would be superior to the Aliens. This really isn't the case! The Aliens are quick, agile and can crawl through ducts and up walls to avoid gunfire or sneak up on unsuspecting prey. On more than one occasion during our playtime in ACM, we'd have aliens attacking from the front whilst a few craftier players crept up behind us and attacked with tails and inner jaws.

  Gearbox has done a great job with Aliens Colonial Marines by using sounds and files from the film to create an authentic "sequel" to Aliens.

  Marc
  The only Alien game I have enjoyed before was Aliens vs. Predator on the Atari Jaguar - the others have always disappointed. I approached with some caution, and, I'm very happy to say this didn't let me down!

  I also played the multiplayer map very much based on LV 426. We had to play as the Marines against the Gearbox team as the Aliens, and first of all we had to pick the arsenal that we wanted to use. There was a choice of five classes, one of which had the infamous radar on the assault rifle with a shotgun. I didn't find this straight away but when I did I was rocking and rolling.

  The sound effects were fantastic and sounded just like the film, and the screams of the Aliens were cool too. If I had been at home I would even have partaken in a bit of Hudson shouting" you want some too..." at the point when my screen was awash with my Alien bloodbath.

  But for me, the best thing was that we were told that whoever managed to the score highest would win a t- shirt. As a team, we had lost against the Aliens... but I won that infamous t-shirt! After walking away I listened to customers and their thoughts, and it seemed pretty unanimous that it would definitely be on our radar.

  XCOM: Enemy Unknown

  Damien
  Fans of the original 90s X-COM games needn't worry that this reboot would be moving too far from the RTS traditions. This is still very much a turn-based strategy game, but one that now shines with enhanced visuals and animation to realise the alien-infested world and the XCOM team tasked with protecting it.

  The mission I got to try out was short and sweet, ideal for the pace of turn-based combat, which in turn makes it ideal for RTS fans. The isometric view works great for moving and controlling your team, intercut with closer angles during firefights and to reveal key evidence.

  The pace may be a little slow for those alien (pardon the pun) to turn-based strategy games, but if you are a fan of the genre, this game will surely be a delight.

  

  Rayman Legends

  Robyn
  I Played this in co-op mode with Kirsten. I had control of the GamePad, which mostly showed a replica of the main screen with prompts to guide me what to press/drag/swish etc. I played the supporting role as Murfy while Kirsten took the lead character using the Classic Controller.
  
  It reminded me a bit of Super Mario Galaxy where player two takes a supporting role of collecting stars while player one gets all the key action, but much more interactive and a greater sense of involvement and contribution. We had a great laugh. It was my first time using Wii U but I think I got the hang of it ok! It was hard to sync up our actions and we gave up completing the level in the time we had, but I could imagine my 10yr old LOVING it - this is definitely one for the kids.

  PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale

  Damien
  Fast, furious and utterly bonkers, PS AS BR was another addictive treat. Four of us played together and just had huge amounts of fun trying out the different characters and levels where skill very much took a back seat!

  The four-player scramble battles were very much the best way to showcase this game, and the choice of characters and fighting styles made it so much more entertaining than a standard beat 'em up. Dante, Kratos and Cole McGrath proved to be the most powerful, but the real fun was to be had with the likes of Nathan Drake and Sweet Tooth, who take the infinitely fun choice of shooting their opponents.

  With the interactive environment as likely to take you out as the other players, and a kill vs death ratio determining the winner, this takes the best of beat 'em up battles, multiplayer mayhem and SONY's excellent cast of characters to form a game that will keep you grinning every time you play.

  

  Assassin's Creed III

  Robyn
  I'd never played an Assassin's Creed title before, despite my friends' insistence.
  I was lucky enough to have a go at both the demos - first up, Naval Combat. Starting slowly (and that's being very generous!), I had a darn good go at taking control of the ship and unloading several rounds of cannon balls onto my target. Well, most went in the sea, but I got the gist in the end... just as my ship rubbed up against the rocks for the last time. Next time...

  It was such a unique experience with fantastic movement that was so fluid on the water. I didn't think about it at the time but when I think back, I got a sense of being on the ship and movement up and down with the waves, a sense of slowness and heaviness. Very exciting and different, I'd really love to have another go, but perhaps without a queue of not so novice gamers stood behind me whilst I batter the heck out of the ship!

  After this, I had a chance to play the 'On Foot' mission demo where I had to make my character climb a cliff face to carry out his stealth mission and assassinate three enemies. I managed to get to two of them but unfortunately my time ran out before I could get number three. Again, next time...

  I was knocked out by the gameplay and the the quality of the graphics and scenery was breathtaking. As someone far more at home with 2D platforms or racing games, I can't wait to have another go.

  Need for Speed Most Wanted

  Tom
  Most Wanted by name, Burnout Paradise by nature, and 20 Years of Convention out of the Window!

  Most Wanted sees you getting behind the wheels of some of the sexiest cars in the world to then throw them around the City of Fairhaven and the best part, most of the cars are unlocked as soon as you put the disc in, you just need to find them. Driving in Most Wanted is similar to Burnout Paradise, but the cars have a more defined sense of handling, acceleration and speed since they are based on real cars, and they look stunning.

  As you blitz through Fairhaven with up to 7 friends, Autolog will document everything you do so that you can send challenges to your friends for almost anything you do.

  

  Far Cry 3

  Damien
  Bright. Warm. Totally immersive. This first-person sequel has crisp graphics and gameplay that really make you feel like you're on the island, with everything from the effects of the breeze blowing to making your way through leaves and branches moving and reacting realistically. This is a game that truly gives you a sense of being in the first person - and one that really should be played on a high-end PC!

  As one of the more popular games I was only able to get about 10 minutes playing, but during that time I was able to take several different turns and explore several different parts of the island. From lookout posts, to knife-throwing challenges, to hang-gliding and some very vicious guard dogs, the choices of location and action all within mere moments of the respawn point were massive. If the world was this open in just 10 minutes of playing, I can't wait to see what hours of gameplay can offer.

  Plus it was fun to do a first-person game with a bow and arrow for a change!

  

  ZombiU

  Robyn
  First person + dark moody screens + jumpy horror = too creepy for me!

  I declined to play this as I could easily predict I'd upset Nintendo when I launched the GamePad in panic! (I know this as I did exactly that when I first held a real mouse. Ok I was 5, but..)

  So I was happy to watch Kirsten, and I did actually squeal when she was suddenly rushed by Zombies coming swiftly out of the water. She'd been distracted looking at her inventory (as instructed by the game moments earlier), and I can deduce from this that you need to become familiar with the GamePad and get used to referring back and forth swiftly or you'll not survive long.

  I'd like to have a go at playing this in the safety of my own home... if I'm lucky enough for the big fellow in red to drop a black Wii U down my chimney this Christmas. Or at least invite someone with a stomach so I can sit behind the sofa with my cushion and watch them through my fingers!

  God of War: Ascension

  Marc
  Looked fantastic, and played fantastically well, too. It was easy to get to grips with, even for a player who has never played one before. Fast, frenetic and with satisfying button bashing - just what you want in a hack and slash game! The executions were as satisfying as ever and the bosses were amazing - a must for all PS3 owners.

  F1 Race Stars

  Damien
  It's very difficult to talk about this game without comparing it to Mario Kart. many karting games have tried to fill the gap for non-Nintendo gamers, but this may be the surprise title to pull it off.

  F1 Race Stars offers classic karting gameplay, with simple controls and all the fun, charm and addictiveness you'd want - they even manage to throw in the bonus boosts, invincibility and throwing-stuff-at-other-drivers that makes it more than just a racing game. The F1 roots are still on show - get hit too many times or push your car too hard, and you'll need to quickly drive through a pit lane to get back to full working order.

  The drivers and cars may lack the individuality you'd normally get in a game like this, but the tracks - cartoony courses that are like crazy golf interpretations of the real F1 tracks - more than make up for it.

  All in all, this is a fun, addictive karting game that has raced to the top of my must-have list this year. The surprise treat of the day!

  

  Dishonored

  Marc
  The most impressive game at the show for me was Dishonored. Great graphics and gameplay. The multiple ways to complete a level is a great idea, but it was the diversity in how you can go about those multiple ways that I loved the most. it's not just open-world levels, it's open-choice gameplay.
  Everybody walking away from playing it were talking about how good it was, too.

  Robyn
  I really liked the look of this - great visuals giving a real sense of place and intrigue. Watching the others play it, I wanted to get my hands on it too! The swimming was really realistic, and , the effects of the sun in the water as age tried to swim up wowed me, felt errr swimmy! But I wasn't expecting to see Corvo get eaten by a fish in the river!

  Damien
  As well as getting the chance to play games, the developer talks gave us a chance to learn a bit more about the games. For Dishonored, Arkane Studios' Christophe Carrier (Lead Level Designer & Audio Director) and Dinga Bakaba (Assistant Producer & Game Designer) took to the stage to provide a bit of background about the game, and to show that there really are two ways to play it.

  

  In their introduction, Christophe and Dinga told us that Dishonored came out of a love of the first-person game and its combination of stealth and action, and a desire to push the genre further. Gone is the rail-like direction of each level, replaced with a series of open-world levels, designed in a steampunky-style and inspired by plague-era London.

  But the biggest point of the game is the choice is gives the player. You can play it stealthily, hiding in the shadows, using your supernatural abilities for minimal combat and fatalities. Or you can go all-out action, with brutal kills and make use of a brand new arsenal of weapons.

  They proceeded to demonstrate this with the same level we'd played on the floor, with heor Corvo out to kidnap the Royal Physician (described as part da Vinci, part Rasputin) . First it was done with stealth, using back passages and rooftops, and possessing people rather than elimintating them. Or at least that was the theory - one mistake and the whole place was alerted to Corvo's presence and bit more force was needed than originally planned.

  The level was then played in full-on brutal fashion, where no guard was left undamaged (heck, even the maid got it!) and all skills were on display. Decapitation, hacking people limb-from-limb, setting razor mines and stopping time to avoid being shot and take your enemy out were all shown to bloody effect - and rapturous applause in places.

  A few extra tidbits came out of the Q and A session at the end of the demo - it is possible to complete the game without a single kill (except bosses). And, most tantalisingly of all - in the later levels, you'll find out that you're not the only one in Dunwall with supernatural abilities...

  Everything we see makes Dishonored more and more tantalising. Cannot wait to play it!

  Published: 05/10/2012

• Festive Gaming Getaways

  
  

  Five games ideal for escaping the Christmas madness

  

  As you'll no doubt be aware if you've walked down the high street recently, Christmas is coming. The season of hearty cheer, peace and goodwill to all. Except it never really works out like that, does it? Christmas can also be a hellish scrum of last-minute present shopping, fraught family get-togethers and children driven to insanity by toxic levels of sugar and chocolate.

  But don't fret! As gamers we have the perfect escape route at our fingertips. Fire up your console or computer, wedge a chair under the door handle and lose yourself in a game immersive enough to blot out the Yuletide yahoos outside. Thankfully, this season's blockbuster crop offers plenty of games with the sort of long term gameplay and enduring appeal needed to keep you sane until January kicks the door in. Here's our pick of the top five festive gaming getaways.

  

  Assassin's Creed III

  Formats: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC, Wii U
  Out: Now (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360), November 24th (PC), November 30th (Wii U)

  It's hard to believe the Assassin's Creed series has only been around for five years but it's quickly grown into a gaming giant, in gameplay as well as sales. This year's trilogy-capping epic promises to the be the biggest yet, an open-world romp through the American War of Independence that also brings to a close the modern day story of history-hopping hero Desmond Miles and his battle to escape the clutches of the Templars. With a vibrant rural community to build and upgrade, not to mention the prospect of commanding your own frigate in naval battles, this is a game with far more to do than just hiding in haystacks and stabbing people. And once you polish off the single-player story, there's the fantastic multiplayer modes - now so large they demand their own disc. Whether you want to roam the forests or battle online, this is a game that will keep you busy well into 2013.

  

  Football Manager 2013

  Formats: PC, Mac
  Out: Now

  Sports Interactive's evergreen soccer simulation has long been the gaming getaway of choice for footy fans everywhere. With its deep, intricate systems and canny knack for capturing the highs and lows, ebbs and flows of the beautiful game, it not only offers months of brilliant gameplay but also creates a compelling alternate reality where your sofa-bound frustration at real-world performance can be transformed into a vindicating "this is how you should do it!" sandbox, as you kick out the manager whose decisions cause you so much anguish and see if you can do a better job. This year's edition is even more detailed, but also comes with the much-praised Classic Mode, stripping the game down to the absolute basics and letting you power through a season in a few days. Perfect for some special alone-time while you wait for that turkey to digest.

  

  Halo 4

  Format: Xbox 360
  Out: November 6th

  We haven't been starved of Halo games, what with Halo: Reach in 2010 and the remastered Halo: Anniversary Edition last year, but the encroaching dark winter nights just haven't been the same without Master Chief, last seen drifting off into deep space at the end of Halo 3 in 2007. Well, he's back, and bigger and better than ever. Halo 4 marks the start of a new story arc - the Reclaimer Trilogy - and it offers multiple ways to spend those awkward hours between opening presents and trudging to bed full of pudding and sweets. A robust single-player campaign is also playable in four-player co-op, and the new Spartan Ops offers even more co-operative goodness, offering regular downloadable spin-off missions in a TV box-set style. And, of course, there's the multiplayer - one of the most rewarding and balanced online games around, now perfected and polished to keep pace with modern multiplayer expectations. This won't just keep you playing over Christmas, it'll keep you playing until Halo 5.

  

  ZombiU

  Format: Wii U
  Out: November 30th

  There's something grimly ironic about the fact that Nintendo's latest console is launching with a gruelling survival horror game alongside the expected cheery and colourful fare. After so many years of the Wii being the default family gaming system, fiendish souls looking to clear the lounge will certainly appreciate the ominous tone and brutal violence that ZombiU offers. Set in London after an undead apocalypse, the game uses the Wii U's tablet controller as a handheld inventory and survival kit, your only lifeline against the shambling, flesh-eating horde. The sight of brain-chomping British bobbies outside Buckingham Palace will scare grandparents away nice and quickly, but gory-minded youngsters may prove harder to shake off. The game's unforgiving difficulty - which includes permanent character death and the need to return to the scene of your demise and battle your zombified body to retrieve your backpack - should send them scurrying for something less taxing, leaving you free to endure the end of the world in blissful peace and quiet.

  

  Call of Duty: Black Ops II

  Formats: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, Wii U
  Out: November 13th (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC), November 30th (Wii U)

  November is Call of Duty month in the gaming calendar, and this year's offering isn't short of new ideas. The single-player campaign is split between flashback missions set in the 1980s, and stages set in the technologically advanced combat zones of 2025. In these futuristic sections, you'll undertake Strike Force missions which will impact the direction of the story. The horrific co-operative Zombies mode now has its own campaign and supports eight players rather than four. It's in multiplayer where COD has earned its stripes, however, and Black Ops II promises to shake up the enormously popular formula more than any previous game in the series. In come multi-team matches, pitting three or four forces against each other rather than the traditional two-sided battles. Combat classes have been made more fluid, allowing you to pick and choose the abilities and loadouts that suit your play style, while the scoring system has been tweaked to encourage more teamwork and objective-based success, rather than lone wolf soldiers and constant headshots. It's shaping up to be the pinnacle of an already enormously successful series, and if you're planning on sneaking away for a few hours of digital carnage on Christmas Day, you certainly won't be alone.

  Published: 02/11/2012

• Only the best will discover the twist in ZombiU, claims Ubisoft

  ZombiU is already shaping up to be completely unlike any other launch game for a Nintendo console. Unlike the cheery family fun of Nintendo Land and New Super Mario Bros. U, Ubisoft's first-person horror adventure is all about survival in the midst of a zombie-infested London.

  The game's already been compared to the none-more-hardcore Dark Souls in terms of challenge, as dying in the game means players have to retrace their steps and retrieve their inventory from their own dead body. This being a zombie game, your old body may not give it up without a fight.

  Now, Ubisoft has revealed that not only will the game come with a "thriller" storyline, but that there's a plot twist lying in wait. Only the most dedicated and successful players will find out the nature of the twist before the end of the game.

  "There is a twist," story director Gabrielle Shrager told Official Nintendo Magazine. "ZombiU is a thriller, but only the most persistent and best-prepared survivors will discover what the twist is before the reveal. I'm sure the first survivors won't resist the urge to spill the beans, but I hope others won't spoil it for themselves."

  Any guesses?

  ZombiU launches alongside the Wii U on November 30th.

  Published: 07/11/2012

• ZombiU - Preview

  
  

  

  If there's anything that prevented the Wii from having truly stellar success, it was the lack of third-party support and the lack of anything meaty and mature for the more hardcore player to sink their fangs into. So here's something smart that's going to help the Wii U out of the starting blocks: a gritty, dark, survival horror game from Ubisoft, and a game with a healthy appetite for the core crowd that many believe Nintendo has under-served in recent years.

  Zombi U is, in fact, a melting pot of all that the core crave, with elements of Left 4 Dead, Resident Evil and, somewhat brilliantly, Dark Souls all being thrown together for what's unquestionably an eccentric bit of hardware. The result is something that promises to be, at the very least, one of the more interesting games of 2012.

  Undead Nightmare

  The setting's a London that's been struck by a catastrophic zombie outbreak. It's a backdrop that might be superficially similar to Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later, but in Ubisoft's handling the dark humour's a little more tongue-in-cheek, with a certain amount of Eurotrash working its way into the French studio's depiction of England's capital. Infected Beefeaters patrol streets that are lined with fish and chip shops, while double-decker buses and black taxicabs lie crumpled on pavements dotted with red telephone boxes. It's an outsider's view of London, but it's no worse for that.

  

  You're a survivor trying to work their way through this mayhem, fighting in a first-person perspective that only briefly switches to third person whenever there's a puzzle to be solved. Except you're not just one survivor - and it's here that Zombi U gets really, really interesting.

  As you crawl through the flotsam of the apocalypse, there's a palpable sense of danger that's helped by what is an exceptionally brave design decision for a game that's after the mainstream dollar: one single bite from the infected can kill you in an instant. And when your character's gone, they're really, really gone - turned forever more into one of the undead.

  Sweet Soul Music

  So you're forced to start over from the very beginning again, but there's a twist. Work your way to where your last character died and you'll be able to rummage through their belongings and pick up some of those hard-earned spoils to increase your chance of survival next time (though be warned - it's also perfectly possible that you'll run into your freshly zombified, older self).

  

  It has the potential to turn Zombi U into the kind of dread-soaked atmospheric experience that helped make Dark Souls - an unlikely inspiration, but certainly the most prevalent - such a huge critical success. Progression is made step by gentle step, and the horror that's been so lacking in recent zombie games is restored to its rightful place.

  There's also the issue of the Wii U hardware, and this is the least convincing part of the package right now. Zombi U certainly proves that Nintendo's new console is capable of producing first-person action games that are at least on a par with what we've become accustomed to on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, but the feasibility of a tablet enhancing that experience is a little less certain. You're asked to scan rooms and you're tasked with managing your inventory through the GamePad, though rather than adding to the immersion it simply breaks it, taking your attention away from the horror that's unfolding on the main screen.

  Fortunately, there's enough elsewhere that Zombi U gets right. It's a big-blooded, gutsy shooter that think a little bigger than what we're used to from the over-saturated zombie genre - and for the Wii U, it could be just the ticket that Nintendo needs to prove that it's got what it takes to play with some of the meaner boys in the console playground.

  Published: 08/11/2012

• Editor's Choice - Pick of the Wii U Launch Titles

  
  

  

  
  
  

  

  Go on, admit it - we've all been sitting here drumming our fingers impatiently, waiting for the eighth generation of consoles to arrive. Both SONY and Microsoft have been biding their time, though, enjoying an extended run of six years for their current gen instead of the usual 3-4.

  It's fallen on Nintendo then to step up and release the 'latest spangly must-have', the Wii U that features some serious horsepower, HD capabilities and most intriguing of all, the innovative Game Pad, a tablet-like controller rich with potential for intriguing new gameplay possibilities. If you're lucky enough to snare a Wii U on its launch, the killer question is - what games should you actually get for it? Here are our recommendations:

  

  Nintendo Land

  The Wii had Wii Sports; the Wii U has Nintendo Land, a collection of 12 mini-games featuring an eclectic bunch of attractions. From multiplayer ghost hunts through to a Metroid-flavoured shooter, the package offers up the perfect showcase for the Game Pad's mass of features; its touchscreen, camera, gyroscope, microphone, joysticks and buttons all coming into play at some point. Think of Nintendo Land as a crash course in what makes the Wii U, well, the Wii U. In other words, a mandatory purchase and one best played with a bunch of friends.

  

  New Super Mario Bros. U

  It's a new Nintendo console so that's means the portly plumber is back, but this time in HD. No, there's none of the 3D awesomeness of Super Mario Galaxy, but what gamers do get is a refreshed and reinvigorated 2D extravaganza featuring classic Mario action mated to truly gorgeous graphics. Best of all, if the rest of the family insist on watching B-list celebs dancing or eating a kangaroo's private parts on telly, you can keep on playing via the Game Pad's screen itself.

  

  ZombiU

  We reckon ZombiU is the most intriguing of all the Wii U's launch titles mainly because it's so 'unNintendo'; a hardcore survival horror FPS, there's no candy-floss game worlds or cute 'ickle ghosts. No, just the living dead that want to suck the intestines out of your body like spaghetti out of a bowl. Set in London after a plague that... well, you can guess the basic plot... you must survive, heading out on missions to amass all-important supplies while fending off zombie attacks. The Game Pad adds a colon-quaking twist, acting as a second screen featuring the contents of your onscreen character's holdall; something that you must 'rummage' through live while zombies close in all around you up on the main screen. Clever, unique and scary stuff.

  

  Batman: Arkham City - Armoured Edition

  Now Nintendo's brought out a console with HD graphics and some serious hardware packed inside its diminutive shell, players are able to indulge in the kind of processor-hungry triple-A action that would have left the original Wii clutching at its chest, begging for heart surgery. Head out as the Caped Crusader (with Robin and Catwoman in tow) swinging through Arkham City on the trail of iconic villains including the brilliantly-realised Penguin and the perfectly-voiced Joker. One of the decade's best releases, this version features all the extra DLC plus Game Pad-specific gameplay additions (Holy earpiece, Batman!). A-bat-solutely essential! [You're fired - Ed]

  Published: 29/11/2012

• ZombiU - Review

  
  

  

  Here are a few modern myths about gaming: no-one makes scary games anymore, Nintendo games are all family-friendly, and launch games by Ubisoft rarely live up to expectation.

  And here's a game that dispels every single one of those. Released in tandem with Nintendo's strange new Wii U console, ZombiU is a terrifying, atmospheric and most importantly smart first-person action game, and it's one of the best horror games there's been for years. As a result, it's also one of the best reasons to get yourself a Wii U.

  ZombiU's a return to one of Ubisoft's older games, though you're forgiven if you haven't played it before, or if you hadn't even heard of it. Zombi was a 1986 release for the Spectrum, Commodore and Amstrad, and it was the French outfit's first ever game.

  Undead Again.

  There are similarities, though - you play as a series of survivors in a post-infection city, picking through the undead in a bid to stay alive above all else. And when everyone's after your jugular and there are few friendly faces, that's much harder than it sounds.

  London provides the backdrop, and it's an oppressive, atmospheric one. This is a caricature of the capital that's liberal with the details: Brick Lane backs up on to Buckingham Palace, according to ZombiU's curious geography, and it would seem that almost half of the population are Beefeaters.

  

  Inaccuracies aside, it's a great place to explore, full of the little dark corners that can really make a horror experience fly: abandoned supermarkets explored by torchlight prove especially chilling, as do the dark corridors of tube stations where dead commuters slouch in shattered train carriages. Or, perhaps, they're not dead after all. Best bop them on the head with a cricket bat just in case.

  Shooting For Six.

  Ah, the faithful cricket bat. It's often your best weapon, because ZombiU most definitely isn't a first-person shooter. Guns are unwieldy, vicious things, kicking back violently and proving hard to use effectively. So you're often better off with just a strip of willow; a nice couple of cover drives will see your foe to the floor, where you can deliver a big strong hook to finish them off before you break for tea.

  The cricket bat will also be the only real weapon at your side, for most of the game. Like any survival horror game worthy of the name, ammo's scarce, but there's more to ZombiU than that. You see, when you succumb to the grisly grips of the undead - and you will, and often - that's it for that character. They're dead. Finished.

  Well, not quite. You'll respawn in new flesh in the bowels of Shadwell Station (and ZombiU's got a great line in understated heroes - my best survivor was a drab 26 year-old recruitment agent in a Primark dress suit called Holly Willows), from which you're best advised to revisit the scene of your demise and see off the reanimated corpse of your former self. It's the only way you can be reunited with your inventory; otherwise it's just you, the cricket bat and six untrustworthy bullets for your pistol.

  

  In Your Head, In Your Heaaadd.

  The odds stack up over time, so you'll have to become more resourceful, more canny and just a little bit more nasty. A personal favourite technique involves throwing off a flare for a horde of enemies to all dumbly gather around, and then swiftly following up with a grenade chaser. It's crowd control at its best, and very messy.

  Even when you've got a pocketful of explosives, though, ZombiU's never anything less than scary. Ubisoft's use of the Wii U GamePad helps that cause - it's used, quite smartly, as a scanner to help you track down items, but even more effectively it's where you must look when you want to manage your inventory. With your attention torn away from the game world as you rustle around your backpack or through the belongings of an undead-again corpse, it becomes an unbearably tense experience.

  So ZombiU's real horror, and it's horror done really, really well. It's the kind of experience we haven't really seen since the early days of the Resident Evil and Silent Hill series, but it's delivered with lessons learned from the likes of Dark Souls. Against all odds, it's something of a modern classic.

  GAME's Verdict:

  The Good:

  • Properly scary
  • Smart mechanics
  • Great use of Wii U's idiosyncrasies

  The Bad:

  • Er, a bit too scary

  Published: 06/12/2012

As a valued customer we now offer you the facility to sign up to email price alerts. Please enter the price you want to be, or below, and if drops to that level we will let you know...