Deathspank Set to Return in 'The Baconing'

By Mark

Hothead Games, the team behind the Deathspank games is set to return and is bringing it's hero back in a game eloquently entitled 'The Baconing'.

So what's it about? Players will once again take control of Deathspank who is out to find the legendary 'Fires of Bacon'. Being described as a "Monkey Island meets Diablo experience" by developers falls in line with previous titles so fans shouldn't worry about any huge change to the game. 


A more in depth description comes straight from HotHead themselves:

"Battle four all new bosses like the Minorque, fight alongside a new sidekick named Bob from Marketing, tame an all new insane level of difficulty and visit all new locations such as The Forbidden Zone, The Forest of Tomorrow, Barnacle Lake and others as you seek out to find the locations of the infamous Fires of Bacon to once and for all destroy the evil power of the thongs."

The Baconing is set to release on XBLA, PSN and PC this summer and here's a trailer for those who can't wait to hunt for the Fires of Bacon.

Soundtrack to Portal 2 Now Free for All

By Mark

When playing through Portal 2 did you love the music that accompanied it? If so then Valve have pieced together a 22 song soundtrack that is available to obtain via its website.

This is the first of three 'aural stimulation packages' (or albums) and features all of those electro beats that you'll remember hearing when solving the many puzzles of the game and while the soundtrack wasn't a masterpiece in its own right, it's still pretty decent and free so worth a download. 

Aside from the album, there are also six ringtones for Android and iPhone that are free to download as well, so get yourself over to Think With Portals

First DLC for LA Noire News Coming Next Week

By Mark

More news that has come from the land of Twitter now, Rockstar are set to release the first proper news about the initial DLC package for crime-thriller title L.A Noire.

As far as we know it will be titled 'The Nicholson Electroplating Arson Case' due to a listing from Best Buy which said it was due to hit on June 21st.

I'm expecting there to be quite a lot of DLC for this game due to what was said to be cut, not to mention the fact that there were several 'departments' that we didn't experience in the original title. If you're still on the fence about the game check back for our review which will be up fairly soon.

Source - Twitter

No Lead Platform for Modern Warfare 3 - Infinity Ward

By Mark

Does knowing what lead platform a game is being developed for interest you? If so, you might be interested to know that Infinity Ward are saying that for upcoming Modern Warfare 3 there isn't a 'lead' for development.

What with the all the hullabaloo that has gone on in the past with some PS3 users claiming that the Xbox 360 iterations of the Call of Duty franchise tend to get preferential treatment, Robert Bowling (creative strategist at IW) has said that both versions are monitored closely for performance.

Speaking on Twitter he said that: "We don't have lead platforms, we develop each version alongside each other," and that the "Xbox 360 is running at same as PS3."

As far as the PC version of the title is concerned he had this to say: "is the one platform that receives unique optimisations", he also noted that the game will be"locked at 60 FPS which means it will never go below it, its can always go above 60 FPS".

Good to know for those fans worried about a somewhat inferior version arriving on their console of choice, time will tell though to see if this is the case.

Source - Twitter 

Shadows of the Damned pre-order incentive revealed

By Jonny

EA has just revealed the pre-order bonus for Shadows of the Damned and they're pulling out the big names for this one. With every pre-order, well every pre-order from Amazon or Gamestop, you will get access to the Shadows of the Damned soundtrack for digital download.

The soundtrack features 12 songs and as many of you may know, come from the critically acclaimed composer Akira Yamaoka, who did the fantastically creepy soundtracks for the Silent Hill games.

Shadows of the Damned is being developed by Grasshopper, who have some very big names in the industry on board including Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami. The game was recently delayed for two weeks by EA, which means the new release date will be June 21 in North America.

Next Three Fallout: New Vegas DLC Packs Revealed

By Mark

Following the original DLC pack 'Dead Money' will be three more entries each entitled: 'Honest Hearts', 'Old World Blues' and 'Lonesome Road'. These expansions will be launching simultaneously across all three platforms Bethesda has revealed.

The first package, Honest Hearts, sees the courier travel to the unspoiled wilderness of Utah's Zion National Park. However as things go inevitably wrong, the player is caught in a standoff between two tribes as well as two figureheads; these being a New Canaanite Missionary and the mysterious Burning Man. Decisions you make here will determine the fate of Zion. Honest Hearts will launch on May 17th for Xbox 360 and PC and May 18th for PS3.

Old World Blues will see the courier unwittingly become a lab rat in an experiment gone haywire, through this experience you will learn how some of the mutated creatures of the Mojave came to be. In addition to this there is an even greater threat described as you can turn on your kidnappers or help them defeat this unknown threat. Old World Blues is set for a June release.

Finally, in Lonesome Road, it all comes back to the beginning of New Vegas and the platinum chip the courier was tasked with delivering. The player is contacted by the original 'Courier Six' who is in fact a man named Ulysses; he promises to tell you the reason why he refused to take the chip in the first place provided you take on one last job. He wants you to go to the Divide, a place ravaged by hurricanes, severe storms and earthquakes. This DLC will be available in July.

All of these packages are priced at 800 Microsoft Points or £7.49 on the PSN or Steam/Direct2Drive. After Dead Money, I think Obsidian need to prove something with these next additions and they certainly sound promising enough. Once any other information/media comes our way we'll be sure to share it for now though, anyone excited?

Shadows of the Damned Dev Diary - 'Journey Through a Demented Underworld'

By Mark

Shadows of the Damned, the latest title being developed by Grasshopper Manufacture is shaping up to be an interesting title to say the least. The game follows the story of Garcia Hotspur, a demon hunter who heads off to hell to in order to take on the evils within to save his true love.

A noteworthy point about the title is that it's a collaboration between Resident Evil legend Shinji Mikami and Goichi Suda (Suda51) best known for titles like Killer 7 and No More Heroes. 

In this newly released dev diary we see the pair explaining the narrative and key features of the game, albeit with a strange choice of narrator. Aside from the usual game feature descriptions, there's plenty of gameplay to look at too so it's worth a watch if you're interested in the title.