Incoming! Week Commencing 26/03/12

So, last week saw some surprising review scores roll in for Ninja Gaiden 3, and some not so surprising scores emerge for Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City – and Kid Icarus returned to rapturous applause. This week we’ll see the return of classic horror franchise Silent Hill, and a new entry in the Ridge Racer series.

Here’s what to expect between now and next Friday…
 

RIDGE RACER UNBOUNDED

UK Release Date: Friday 30th March
Formats: PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Developer: Bugbear Entertainment
Publisher: Namco Bandai
In Ten Words: Drive, drift, smash, crash, wince, whoop, ride, slide, shunt, shift

The latest instalment in the long-running racing franchise sees a few significant deviations from established formula – specifically the increased emphasis on dirty driving to damage your opponents and smash through the environment to create shortcuts. The new mantra of “Drive, Destroy, Dominate” has an all-too familiar whiff of Burnout and NFS: Hot Pursuit about it (titles that Ridge Racer is bound to find itself compared to), but it could be the adrenalin kick that the series needs.

Multiplayer? Multiplayer is the backbone of any decent racer and Ridge Racer is no exception. The new option to create and share tracks brings an extra dimension to the multiplayer element

Special Edition Available? The Limited Edition features 3 additional cars (in the form of the Immortal, the Ghost and the Road Wolf), and 5 extra custom paintjobs (Pac-Man, Tekken, Galaga, Ace Combat and Soul Calibur)

Predicted Hit? Difficult to say with a Ridge Racer title. Some are hits, some are misses, and the wealth of new options and features will make or break this latest iteration
 

SILENT HILL: DOWNPOUR

UK Release Date: Friday 30th March
Formats: PS3, Xbox 360
Developer: Vatra Games
Publisher: Konami
In Ten Words: Survive prison life, survive bus crash, die in the dark

Another nightmare in everyone’s favourite creepy little town, and another protagonist stranded on a foggy night. No one ever gets stranded in Silent Hill at 2pm on a sunny afternoon, do they? This time it’s the turn of convict Murphy Pendleton, whose prison bus crashes en route to a new facility, leaving him and several other convicts and guards wandering the forbidding streets and wondering what the hell is going on. Featuring classic Silent Hill gameplay including underwhelming weaponry, mind-bending puzzles, warping environments and an ever-present sense of menace, Downpour is unlikely to change the standard formula much, if at all. But usually with Silent Hill, that’s enough to keep the fans happy.

Multiplayer? No

Special Edition Available? No – though there a few pre-order bonus packs. The ShopTo.net pack comes with a downloadable .45 pistol and baseball bat

Predicted Hit? It hasn’t set the world alight so far, but the brand itself is an enduring one – and no Silent Hill is ever the last Silent Hill
 

WARRIORS OROCHI 3

UK Release Date: Friday 30th March
Formats: PS3, Xbox 360
Developer: Koei, Omega Force
Publisher: Koei
In Ten Words: Hack, slash, activate special, hack, slash, activate special, and repeat

Spiritual sibling to the Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors series, the Warriors Orochi franchise follows a similar design template. Pitching your chosen “hero” general against legions upon legions of enemy troops, the backbone of the action revolves spamming light and heavy attacks until your special meter (or Musou) is filled, at which time you can unleash a Musou attack to wipe out whole swathes of gurning sword-fodder in moments. This iteration features a stack of new attacks, a “Restaurant Mode” where you can chat to other characters and build friendships between waves of slaughter and a “Bond” system that unlocks certain missions based on your actions.

Multiplayer? Yes, there’s a co-op mode available in addition to the usual versus mode

Special Edition Available? There are some pre-order bonuses available including, for some reason, Santa costumes for several of the characters. Really.

Predicted Hit? Unsurprisingly, Famitsu awarded Warriors Orochi 3 8.5/10. This is not an indication of quality in a Japanese game – though JustPushStart’s review cited an interesting story

Also released this week: Silent Hill HD Collection (PS3, Xbox 360), Rayman Origins (PC), Just Dance Best-Of (Wii), Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations (PS3, Xbox 360), Tiger Woods PGA Tour ’13 (PS3, Xbox 360)

Anything here yanking your particular crank? Tell us which games you’re looking forward to this week in the comments box below.

Words by Mick Fraser (Twitter: @Jedi_Beats_Tank)

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