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March has seen quite a few high-quality releases, with a few more to come before the end of the month. Because of this, you may think that the number of releases may slow down for April. If you think this, you are wrong and should be shot. If you think that there is only one game worth picking up coming out this month then you should also be shot. Not as much as those who think there are no games, but shot nonetheless. The number of released this month may be short but the quality means that April is most definitely a sweet month for gaming this year. There isn’t just one game coming out this month, but there is a game. A highly anticipated game. A game which, if it were released any other time than now would be game of the year, nay, century. Read on as we reveal the cracking line up for April.

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- Star Wars: The Force Unleashed - Here We Go… DS, Playstation 2, Playstation 3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360, N-Gage - 8th April -

Another biggun, Force Unleashed casts you as Darth Vader’s pet dog ‘Force’, who runs away while on a routine trip to the park. You must evade Vader at all costs while also attempting to collect all of 100 different snacks scattered across the universe. If only. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed sadly differs to the idea I pitched to George Lucas originally but It does (amazingly) still look fantastic. Force Unleashed appears to have similar gameplay to the Jedi Knight series, albeit with a few differences. For example in Unleashed you don’t play as a goody two-shoes Jedi . Instead, you fill the boots of Darth Vader’s secret cocker-spaniel apprentice, slaying all who are foolish enough to tread one step in your destructive path. On the topic of destruction, Force Unleashed introduces some exiting new technology which may revolutionise gaming as we know it, or fall flat and be laughed at. One of these exiting new technologies is Digital Molecular Matter (DMM), a technology which replicates physics of destructible objects - doors break like doors, metal bends like metal and James Woods breaks like wood, in a different way each time due to real time physics. The other technology is Euphoria (also featured in GTA IV) which allows for AI reaction to physics, meaning that people will dive out of the way of an approaching object for example, and will dive in a different way and direction every time, depending on the situation. Very Exiting.

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- Mario Kart Wii - Wii -11th April -

No surprised here, a Nintendo sequel… basically the same but with a bit more. The Wii iteration of Mario kart offers the same mindless optimism you’ve come to expect from the series, along with fast paced, crazy arcade racing action. MKWii contains a large choice of characters from the Mario universe, each with multiple vehicles to choose from. The game also features Online multiplayer, albeit stripped of any communication features bar pre-set chat options.

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- Okami - Wii -15th April -

Sadly delayed from last month. Still looks just as cool, hopefully improved from short delay. To quote last month…

” While sunglasses and Fonzies don’t feature prominently in this game, it still looks pretty cool. I didn’t pick up the original for PS2 but this port (programmed by ‘Ready at Dawn’, those kind folks who gave us God of War) looks to be a worthy port, hopefully making intuitive use of the remote.”

’nuff said.

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Oh, and last but not least…

- Grand Theft Auto IV - Xbox 360, Playstation 3 - 29th April -

Need I say more? The editor says yes. This is it, the big kahuna, the only game you’ll need this year, and it’s coming out in just over a month from now. It’s been delayed, and maybe that’s for the better - that’s no longer the issue as it’s nearly here. You’d better preorder this because we expect every games store in the world to sellout either on or before release day, this game is really that big a deal. Look forward to; Euphoria, meaning that people will have advanced AI which will react to physics; Ragdoll, which goes without saying and will go hand-in-hand with Euphoria; A more realistic approach, which should make a refreshing change and finally the humour which the series is so well known for. Check the video for a humerous clip which also shows off some of the underlying mechanics of this much anticipated game.

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And to leave you on a bloody fantastic note…

Tags: ds, gta iv, Mario Kart, Okami, Playstation 2, Playstation 3, psp, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, wii, Xbox 360

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 26th, 2008 at 1:34 pm and is filed under ds, feature, industry, ps2, ps3, psp, wii, xbox360. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.