As a cross platform release this week, we’re getting Disney’s Alice in Wonderland, inspired by the new Tim Burton movie. This game is not intended to be a tie-in, but rather a new story based on Burton’s versions of the classic characters. The Wii and PC versions will be over-the-shoulder adventure games, with a focus on exploration of interesting and well-rendered fantasy environments, while the DS version will be a platformer puzzle game. In both games, the players will be taking control of multiple characters from the story, rather than just Alice.
On the PC, Supreme Commander 2 will have a tough time living up to the expectations set by its predecessor. The first Supreme Commander was a surprise hit, appealing to real-time strategy and tactics fans as a well-balanced, and intuitively controlled game. One of its most interesting features being the infinite zoom capability, which allowed players to see the entire battle field filling the screen if they so desired, increasing the level of tactical control to previously unseen levels. This new entry takes place 25 years after the end of the first. Infinite zoom has been removed (though one may still zoom out much further than almost any other RTS game), and some new features like ‘experimental’ units and a simplified economy have been introduced.
A unique party game is coming to DSiWare this week. Globulos Party is a turn-based semi-tactical party-game, in which players compete with up to three friends in twenty different mini-games, most of which center around the strategic launching of globs. On each turn, the players each choose which globs to launch, in which direction, and with what velocity. Once everyone has finished making their decisions, all of the plans are revealed and the globs are launched. This mechanic is used to play things like soccer, hockey, snooker, pinball, and volley. A few of the mini-games, however, use other mechanics—like area control and stylus dexterity. The graphics might be kid-ish and silly, but the gameplay looks like it would be great fun for a group.
The Icrontic Spotlight Release this week is Mega Man 10 for WiiWare. After the success of the 8-bit Mega Man 9, Capcom is releasing yet another chapter in the low-res franchise. A mysterious disease has struck the robots of the world, turning them evil. Once again, our blue-helmeted hero sets out to defeat the worst of them in a series of power-stealing battles. Some new features have been added to this iteration, including an Easy mode for those who, like me, have never quite been able to make it to the end of a Mega Man game; the ability to play as Proto Man; and the availability of Time Attack mode on the first run through, for those who think the game is too easy without a time-limit.
Following is a list of this week’s announced North American releases:
PC
- Alganon
- Battlefield: Bad Company 2
- Clover: A Curious Tale
- Major League Baseball 2K10
- N.E.O. Online
- Silent Hunter V: Battle of the Atlantic
- Sins of a Solar Empire: Trinity
- Supreme Commander 2
Wii
- Alice in Wonderland
- Dart Rage
- Happy Hammerin’
- Major League Baseball 2K10
- Mega Man 10
- Spongebob’s Boating Bash
- Fatal Fury Special (VC – NEOGEO)
DS
- Alice in Wonderland
- Battle of Giants: Mutant Insects
- Deca Sports DS
- Flips: Terror in Cubicle Four
- Globulos Party
- Let’s Golf
- Major League Baseball 2K10
- Pet Pals: New Leash on Life
- Sonic Classic Collection
- Spongebob’s Boating Bash
- VT Tennis
Xbox 360
- Battlefield: Bad Company 2
- Lips: Party Classics
- Major League Baseball 2K10
- Toy Soldiers
PS3
- Battlefield: Bad Company 2
- Major League Baseball 2K10
- MLB 10: The Show
PSP
- Dante’s Inferno
- Lunar: Silver Star Harmony
- Major League Baseball 2K10
- MLB 10: The Show