The foundation for unique horror was laid by Silicon Knights’ Eternal Darkness back on the Gamecube, yet it was never built upon, which to this day feels like a truly missed opportunity. While other genres have advanced and grown, it seems horror has merely been merged into a sub genre of action. It seems strange that Nintendo’s Wii, a console geared towards family and children, is home to the most pure horror titles this generation. The Xbox 360 and PS3 have a massive void waiting to be filled in the horror genre.

Horror took a nose dive after Resident Evil 4 – with more and more horror franchises and IPs going the route of action-horror

There have been a few horror titles in the past that were fantastic, such as Monolith Productions’ Condemned. It didn’t depend on jump scares like some of the more recent horror titles (F.E.A.R. 2 and 3, I’m looking at you). Instead, Condemned offered an intense atmosphere and an impending sense of dread and mystery wrapped into one fantastically creepy video game experience. It also featured one of the most memorable final bosses of modern gaming. Condemned came out at the start of the current generation and seemed like a sign of things to come, however, things went a bit pear shaped.

Horror took a nose dive after Resident Evil 4 – with more and more horror franchises and IPs going the route of action-horror. Silent Hill was once the pinnacle of horror. Unfortunately, even that franchise fell victim to the idea of action-before-horror with the release of Homecoming. While this trend offered an aspect of horror, it wasn’t a very strong aspect and failed to scare due to the player being more than capable of defeating said horror with a pull of the trigger.

Today’s games offer no sense of menace anymore as the only horror titles available now tend to drive towards action. The player is placed in a position in which they are armed to the teeth and able to take on anyone or anything. Silent Hill: Homecoming felt almost alien from the rest of the franchise as Alex Sheppard could take out his enemies in a very effective manner. The player now has the advantage and thus the sense of terror and menace is instantly gone.

Even Condemned 2 went the way of action-horror with the game progressing into yet another first person shooter. This was a true sign that even the last beacon of genuine horror on the consoles was gone.

As action-horror games become increasingly popular, the question to ask is, are they all bad? The answer to that question is no. The F.E.A.R. franchise has done a decent job of combining horror and action into an effective mix. The first in the series was by far the best example of horror and action coming together. The horror in F.E.A.R. took inspiration from Asian cinema as it used creepy child demon Alma to jump scare and stalk players throughout the game. While the horror was quite reliant on jump scares, there was a decent amount of creepy imagery and audio that was spliced into the intense action. Although it wasn’t the horror that laid the scares on thick and fast in the fashion of classic horror titles, F.E.A.R. did manage to prove that both horror and action could be combined well on modern day consoles.

Another surprising title that also managed to bring elements from classic horror games to modern systems was Valve’s Left 4 Dead. While the game was fast and furious and didn’t contain any dark atmosphere, it did contain a broad sense of panic and doubt to whether you would survive or not. The world that Left 4 Dead was set in also contained some classic elements of horror with locations seemingly void of population (until the infected turned up) and the great use of audio (for example the screams of the Hunters that prowl on the rooves above you).

Of course, it would be unfair not to mention Resident Evil 5 (aka Resident Evil 4.5) when talking about combination of action and horror that works. However, Resident Evil 5 went slightly off course towards the end of the game and threw itself into all out action with little to no scares or even many horror elements.

The potential for fantastic horror is immense and there is a market crying out for it. Both the 360 and the PS3 have proven they can render fantastic environments and visuals that suck a player in and keep them hooked, yet both systems have not shown current generation horror at its finest.

With a few years left for the current consoles, perhaps there’s still hope for a true return to pure horror video games, a hope I cling onto.  There is a slight return of familiar horror franchises in the shape of Silent Hill: Down Pour and the Kinect title, Rise of Knightmares. Hopefully, those titles will bring the horror back.

Along with the trailer, TT Games have also released brand new screenshots for you to look over, the screenshots come in three flavours:

Nintendo DS:

Nintendo 3DS:

Xbox 360:

Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7 will hit Muggle stores November 18 for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PSP, Wii, Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS, and PC.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Other notable new-entries include Football Manager 2012 (no. 3), The Sims 3: Pets (no. 6), Rockstar’s Game of the Year edition of Red Dead Redemption (no. 36) and Dance Central 2  (no. 40)

Here’s the top ten:

1. Batman: Arkham City
2. FIFA 12
3. Football Manager 2012
4. Forza Motorsport 4
5. Just Dance 3
6. The Sims 3: Pets
7. Pro Evolution Soccer 2012
8. Rage
9. Zumba Fitness
10. Gears of War 3

The trailer shows some charming looking gameplay and at the end asks you to check out the Facebook page for more information.

The game is planned for release in November 2011 on Xbox 360, PS3, PC, PSP, DS, Wii, 3DS and Vita.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The first and more major update is the Automatic Download feature (PlayStation Plus only) which has now been renamed to ‘Automatic Update’ to suit it’s new purposes. As well as download updates for games it can now automatically sync trophies and upload game data to your online storage at schedule.

For those of you with 3D T.Vs you can now view digital 3D photos and 3D support can be enabled when you browse through a blu-ray’s special features. Lossless audio is also available for watching 3D blu-ray movies.

The XrossMediaBar has been modified a little, it now has a new category called ‘ TV/Video Services’ where you can now access apps you have downloaded such as the new BBC iPlayer app.

The PlayStation Store is the final place to be updated and it now lets you send a pre-written recommendation to a PSN friend via a new ‘Recommend’ button.

The student (named Chris Staniforth) played his Xbox for stints of 12 hours a day on games such as Halo. The father of Chris Staniforth had the following to say on the death of his son:

‘’ He lived for his Xbox. I never dreamed he was in any danger.

“As a parent you think playing computer games can’t do them any harm because you know what they are doing. Kids all over the country are playing these games for long periods – they don’t realise it could kill them.”

It’s clear to see the sheer level of ignorance on display, while some could be excused as mourning for his son the statements still made it to print by a very anti-games newspaper (at least ant-video games when it suits them).

The artlice goes on to highlight Chris was jobless by saying:

‘’Chris collapsed seconds after telling a friend how he had been experiencing a strange sensation in his chest.

The pair were chatting outside a JobCentre where Chris had an interview.’’

The JobCentre part could of easily been left out but of course this helped convey the negative image of video games, The Sun is famous for this kind of thing as well as telling bare faced lies. The article further goes on to show Chris was a healthy guy with no health issues what so ever and a clean health history. His father had more to say which comes off as slightly less negative, for example:

‘’ Over the years Chris had a whole range of different consoles, everything from PlayStations to Xboxes. I’m not for one minute blaming the manufacturer of Xbox. It isn’t their fault that people use them for so long. But I want to highlight the dangers that can arise. Playing on it for so long is what killed him – and I don’t want another child to die.”

The Sun also felt the need to force in the fact Chris mother and father had divorced (which is completely not relevant to the story). His father’s closing words on the subject are as follows:

“There’s anxiety about obesity and children not doing anything other than looking at computer screens. It’s pretty unhealthy.”

The Sun has clearly shown its negative stance on video games (and obsession sensationalism with) and has tried its best to give off negative portrayals of gamers (hence the pointless JobCentre name drop)  which is quite odd for a paper that features a game section each Friday, granted its awful but never the less it’s there. The Sun seems to neglect the issue that this was a case of a person lifestyle and choices, it also neglects to talk about parents taking responsibility for their off spring and educating them on life matters and a healthy life style….instead of using things (in this case video games) as a scapegoat.

Then again this is The Sun were talking about who have a long history of telling lies….just ask any football fan who was around during the Hillsborough disaster.

The Sun Report Cane Be Found Here

I guess we’ll just have to wait until that counter hits zero.

The release of Final Fantasy V will feature new CG cinematic sequences which are totally exclusive to the PSN edition, all the familiar mini games, battle system and other game elements will all be intact.

As of yet there is no release date.

In addition to the game, the TWISTED EDITION retail pack will include a copy of CTI Confidential – an exclusive 44 page hardback book packed with top secret artwork and concept illustrations; two deluxe Aya Brea Lithograph art prints; an exclusive Lightning in Aya Brea costume for use in the forthcoming PSP release DISSIDIA® 012[duodecim]™ FINAL FANTASY®; and a voucher offering the user a 50% saving on the purchase of the forthcoming release of FINAL FANTASY II when downloaded from PlayStation® Network.

About The 3^rd Birthday

The 3^rd Birthday is an engrossing new chapter for Aya Brea, the main character in the hugely popular PARASITE EVE® series. Set in New York in 2012, Aya is mankind’s last hope for survival against the powerful Twisted.

Combining all-action third-person shooter gameplay with rich character development, weapon customisation, awesome missions and a gripping suspense-filled story, The 3^rd Birthday delivers incredible visuals unmatched among portable games.

For more information on The 3^rd Birthday, please visit www.the3rdbirthdaygame.com

Take a look at the video below as Bryan demonstates the all new features, styles and tweaks present in this years edition of Smackdown vs Raw. Who will be the one thrown off the top of the Cell? Punk, Undertaker? Take a look at the most brutal match type yet.

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