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The very first thing I noticed when playing Legacy Tales: Mercy of the Gallows was the soothing, realistic sound of waves gently lapping, as if I were standing on a windy dock. That and the background music do a great job of setting the perfect tone for this pirate adventure. While the sound effects throughout the game are really great, I found myself wishing the narrator would speak a little faster. I found myself cutting him off and hitting "next" because I had already read the page and the narrator was only halfway through... come on already... I don't have all day! The graphics in Legacy Tales: Mercy of the Gallows are strikingly detailed and beautiful. Unlike other games of the genre, however, the screens took awhile to load. I thought maybe it was my computer but changing the settings or restarting didn't seem to resolve these issues, so the slowness appears to be game-based. The main characters, William van der Decken and his wife Isabele, lived long ago and are the subject of local folklore. The sea captain and his wife lived in a fairy-tale-like castle located, of course, on a dock. Read the full review at CasualGameGuides > Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Larry Hryb, aka Microsoft's "Major Nelson," has revealed what game cases will look like for the new Xbox One. The picture shown here is the box design for Forza Motorsport 5, which Microsoft Game Studios announced at the Xbox Reveal show on Tuesday. Turn 10 Studios is developing the racing game, which is the latest entry in the long-running Xbox series. What do you think of the new style? It's amazingly elegant and sleek, especially compared to the old model. Below is a look at the Forza 4 case. Read more at GameZone > Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

A new report, stemming from a "high-ranking UK industry source, has explained that the consumer won't actually be the one paying the £35 activation fee for a used Xbox One game. Instead, the retailer will be paying the fee, so you will only be forced to pay whatever the retailer is selling it for. Although you can bet that a £35 fee -- which Microsoft is said to still be deciding on -- can result in some pretty pricey used games. In essence, Microsoft will control the cost of used games because of this fee. If the activation fee -- which will go to both the publisher and Microsoft -- is too high, the retailer won't be able to offer the game for much cheaper. It's unclear if the fee will increase or decrease depending on time, but you can bet that pre-owned games will be a tad bit more expensive then they are now. Sony's plans for pre-owned games have not fully been explained either, but the source doubts we'll see something similar on the PS4. Read more about the Xbox One at GameZone > Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

You must think quickly to dominate Tetris Blitz for iOS and Android. Electronic Arts' newest game gives you just two minutes to achieve a high score. Where should tetriminos go? Which power-ups should you buy? No worries. You'll score tons of points by following these puzzle-solving tips. -Quickly form lines to build the Frenzy meter on the left. Filling it activates Frenzy Mode, which lets you form chain reactions that result in big-time combos; lines are worth double points. -Frenzy blocks allow you to make longer cascades. -Equipping power-ups before playing is the best way to score the most points. Tap the question mark next to each power-up for a description of what it does. You may equip up to three at a time. -A weekly power-up is available for a limited time unless you purchase it outright or use it a set number of times to permanently add the item to your collection. -Power-up blocks randomly fall into place, and you must form lines that incorporate these special tetriminos to activate them. -Unused power-ups will automatically trigger when time expires. -Like the Tetris Blitz Facebook page to receive 1,000 coins. Click here to see more Tetris Blitz tips > Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

With Madden 25 right around the corner, we decided to compile a list of some of our favorite tips and strategies that hold true in every Madden game regardless of the year, console, or skill level of the person playing. Use A Custom Playbook in Madden 25 With the ability to finally use a custom playbook in connected franchise mode in Madden 25, you no longer have an excuse not to use one (other than you are just lazy). Ask any pro Madden gamer how hard it is to stop over 300 of the best plays in the game consistently. It is a living nightmare that your opponent will have to try to defend. Unless you are in a Madden 25 league, tournament, or game that doesn't allow custom playbooks, create one and get comfortable with it. Pay Attention to What Your Opponent is Doing Does your opponent like to call a certain play when he comes out in a specific formation? Does your opponent only run to the side of the field with the most room? Is your opponent only calling pass plays? All 3 of these questions can often be answered by a resounding, "Yes!" You should be able to pick up on your opponents tendencies by the 2nd half. Once you pick up what your opponent is doing, you can dominate any Madden game, especially Madden 25, without using any specific tips or money plays. Focus on Defense While paying attention can help you win games, their will be times when you are completely outmatched and you really have no shot of winning. No matter what schemes or strategies you are using, nothing seems to work. 99% of Madden NFL players in this situation get frustrated and just give up by either quitting or mentally checking out. But it is at this point that the elite Madden 25 gamer would take out a pen and paper (or a tablet for those of you technologically advanced) and start taking notes on what your opponent is doing. If you can't stop it, chances are a large majority of other people you play won't be able too either. Mark down things like what formation it is, who the open receiver(s) is, when they come open, what routes every other receiver runs, and the timing of the play. Then after the game go find the play and head into practice mode to perfect it for yourself. At this point you have just turned one of the most frustrating moments of a Madden 25 game into an entire year of dominance. Every heard the saying, "Defense wins championships?" The same holds true in any Madden video game. The best professional Madden gamers win the big tournaments because of their defense. At the highest levels, everyone knows the same sort of tips, money plays, and schemes on offense. Those Madden 25 tips will be shared on Madden-School.com, Youtube, and other websites. Defense is generally harder to master and therefore harder to share. Offense will come to you if you follow the tip above this and just observe what works for your opponent and simply incorporate bits and pieces of other people's offenses into your own. Read more Madden tips at Madden School > Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Gamezebo Rating: Sometimes you play a game so simple yet so effective that it leaves you wondering why no one has done it before. Meet Super Puzzle Platformer Deluxe, a sort of Tetris match-3 and platformer mash-up that gives as good as it gets. With twinges of Spelunky in there too, this fast-paced, quick-thinking blaster will kill you every few minutes, and yet you'll keep coming back for more. The soundtrack is sublime, the controls are spot-on, and the challenge is very, very real. What I'm saying is, you're going to love this game.

The global War on Drugs is the four-decade-long policy of many western Governments, including the U.S. and Mexico, to stamp out the supply of narcotics. Now, developer Auroch Digital from GameTheNews.net is exploring the conflict with a new title for iOS, Android, PC, and Mac. NarcoGuerra is a strategy title that puts players in the role of the Mexican government. Using mechanics similar to the board game Risk, gamers must try to find and destroy drug cartels in a never-ending battle. “We’ve built a simulation based on our research about the reality of the War on Drugs,” NarcoGuerra lead designer Tomas Rawlings told GamesBeat. “[The game shows] how corruption and street price ebb and flow with police actions.  It’s up to the player from there [to decide] what they get out of the game, but most gamers I come across are smart people. I think they’ll figure out that to win this war to have to understand it’s not a war in any conventional sense at all.” Rawlings previously produced strategy title Endgame: Syria that used game mechanics to explore that nation’s civil war. Endgame: Syria drew some criticism for using real-life current events in a game, and Apple blocked its release on the iOS App Store. Rawlings feels that this is an unfair double standard. “In reflecting the world around us a singer might write a song, a filmmaker produces a documentary, and a journalist writes an article. As games developers we express our interests via games,” said Rawlings. ”Just because our form of expression is through games, this doesn’t mean we take the subject any less seriously. This game aims to engage players in the issue and get them to think about why this war is still going on despite the billions [of dollars] spent on it.” NarcoGuerra costs 99 cents. It is the first time GameTheNews is charging for one of its titles, and that’s because the group feels it is a premium experience. “The game is the biggest ‘newsgame’ we’ve created, which has taken a lot of time, effort, and expense,” said Rawlings. “All news organizations have to make income to pay staff — we’re no different in that respect.” This isn’t the first time video games have looked at the War on Drugs, but Rawlings feels it’s the first time an interactive title is investigating it with any nuance. “Games have covered this area a lot but never in a deeper sense that just good versus bad,” he said. “For example, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has the Favela level, but we don’t ask why is this fighting going us, just point and shoot. We wanted to delve a bit deeper into the why and a strategy game makes a great frame to do this.” In fact, just in making this game, Rawlings said he learned many things about the Drug War that he wasn’t previously aware of. “I assumed the solution was going to be in tackling consumption and not production and trafficking,” the designer told us. “But it turns out that consumption per person hasn’t really changed that much.  I also learned how violent and damaging this situation is for so many people.  Albert Einstein said insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Rawlings believes that by experiencing the decision making themselves, gamers might get a better understanding that the War on Drugs requires a fresh infusion of ideas. Filed under: Games GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here! .blurb-cat-games hr { margin: 10px 0 10px 0; }

Gamezebo Rating: The world of light and bright fairy tales has been turned dark and sinister as characters like Jack (from Jack and the Beanstalk) have been trapped inside books in Grimm Reaper: Hidden Tales. Once you’ve downloaded this free-to-play world onto your computer, though, all of the charm behind the game’s setup is quickly shoved aside in favor of all-too-frequent pay walls and repetitive gameplay.

I was wrong about something when I noted that RPG classic The Bard’s Tale was coming to the Green Throttle Arena: I suggested that the game was the 2004 console version from InXile Entertainment, and not the 1980s version from Interplay. As it turns out, the game actually contains both tales — the original turn-based trilogy, and the [...] Related posts: Throttling Up: Duke Nukem, The Bard’s Tale, and More Monster Tale Announced for Nintendo DS GameKlip Brings DualShock Controllers to Android

Managing Resources Cities require resources to buy them. Make extra matches on the resources you need to purchase the next city. Finishing levels quickly earns you the resource the game determines you need the most. Sweet! Every 20,000 points gets you an extra life. Try to link 5 tiles or more to get the maximum amount of points. Power ups Use fully-upgraded power-ups early so you can have time to refill it.That way you can refill it and use it again or save it for the next level. Don't use power-ups at the end of a level if possible so you can use it in the next round. If you only have 1 match to finish a level, match as many power-ups as you can and replenish your bonus so you'll have it for the next round End-Game In the harder levels, make matches in the hard to reach corners first. Hang on to your bonuses during the last levels since there is no bonus round to replenish them. Check out the full guide at CasualGameGuides! > Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments