New games this week

by Blake Snow on Feb 19th 2007 12:10PM

Arguably the biggest release week since Wii and PS3 launched, gamers have a solid lineup to look forward to in the coming days. Crackdown hits the 360 including Halo 3 Beta invites, Sonic and the Secret Rings attempts to restore credibility to the confused franchise on Wii, Virtua Fighter 5 graces the PS3, and the PC gets Supreme Commander. What's your money on?

Xbox 360:
- Crackdown
- NBA Street Homecourt

Nintendo Wii:
- Sonic and the Secret Rings

PlayStation 3:
- Virtua Fighter 5

PlayStation 2:
- Arena Football: Road to Glory
- Lumines Plus

Nintendo DS:
- F-24 Stealth Fighter
- Izuna: Legend of the Unemployed Ninja
- Meteos: Disney Magic
- Micro Machines V4
- Trioncube

PlayStation Portable:
- M.A.C.H.
- Metal Slug Anthology
- Monster Kingdom: Jewel Summoner

PC:
- Alien Shooter: Vengeance
- Backyard Basketball 2007
- Knights of the Temple II
- Left Behind: Eternal Forces Expansion Pack
- Maelstrom
- PureSim Baseball 2006
- Secrets of the Ark: A Broken Sword Game
- Supreme Commander
- UFO: Extraterrestrials
- War Front: Turning Point

Source

Tags: DS, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox-360

Reader Comments (49)

Crackdown FTW!

Wow... looks like a solid release week for all the platforms (except maybe Wii if Sonic is crap like the other recent Sonics).

Likely purchases for me will be Crackdown, VF5, and Trioncube if it's any good (wife loves puzzle games).

so why isnt NBA street homecourt coming out on PS3 that same week as the xbox360? arent they they exact same game?

Crackdown all the way.

I was wondering why they werent released same day also... i dont know..and havent seen any reasons anywhere on the internets.

But i will be picking up Crackdown and VF5 this week.

Crackdown FTW.

XBox 360 will have a good week. I'm guessing the PS3 needed some extra time with Homecourt to either make better use of the cell processor or because of the cell processor's complexity, however you want to spin it.

I'm curious about Crackdown. I haven't really followed it (no 360, no reason to), but it appears there are aspects of the game that are cell-shaded, similar to X-Men Legends. I'm hoping that's not the case, since the 360 should be able to do more than a cell-shaded cop-out. Can anyone clarify?

Damnit #1, you beat me to it.

Supreme Commander will get the best reviews, but Crackdown will have the best sales.

I'm torn between Alien Shooter: Vengeance and the Left Behind: Eternal Forces Expansion.

Just kiddin. Seriously jonesing for some Crackdown.

Crackdown here I come! :D

Ahh! This week is the release of the Left Behind explansion pack! How did I not see this? How did Engadget not comment on this directly? Glory be, this is fantastic.

/sarcasm

That is pretty neat that Virtua Fighter has Ryu on its cover. I might get it for the Street Fighter nostalgia.

"I'm hoping that's not the case, since the 360 should be able to do more than a cell-shaded cop-out."

Well, it is cell-shaded, but it looks very nice. It doesn't do it as much like simple cartoon graphics, but goes for a comic book feel. Everything in the game tends to lean towards this motif from the cell-shaded characters and heavily outlined cars to the lines left by bullets as they fly by. Another thing that I find nice about the cell-shading of this game is that, while they did a good job keeping it pretty nice looking, it probably frees up the processor to do other things. The physics in the game are wonderful, and the draw distance is nearly infinite. Honestly, the physics. Kicking a gang member in the head on the top of a building and watch him careen through the air to the street below is more satisfying than most things I've played recently.

I read somewhere that Crackdown isn't technically cell shaded... it has textured surfaces that are outlined. Something like that. Either way, I like the look and the demo is an absolute blast to play.

Leobebes, that's Akira and you know it. Ryu does NOT have that distinct Yakuza haircut. Oh wait, I forgot... "white gi = ripoff." In which case, man, it's pretty neat Street Fighter included the character from Kung Fu...

I have VF5 and Crackdown this week. Sadly, my 360 is in a repair center so Buddist Monk oh Kicking Ass, here I come.

As for the homecourt delay. No clue. It couldn't be because they were optimizing the code for PS3 (like Oblivion), this is EA after all. Hard work is only done when they DON'T have to pay the overtime. It slipped back to March 6th, which means it will compete directly with Motorstorm.... goodbye homecourt.

crackdown all the way!

I'm curious about UFO: Extraterrestrials.

I loved XCOM and if they did a good job "refreshing" it, this could be fun.

Sonic and the Secret Rings

hellz yeah

(i actually enjoyed most 3D sonics, with the exception of 3D Blast for Saturn and Shadow for PSXCube)

Ah dammit, Crackdown, Sonic and Supreme Commander. I didn't even realize these three were already coming out. Time flies when you work full time I guess. Now I might need to take some time off to play these.

@ #5:

i personally like the art style of the game, it makes it feel like a comic book, especially with how over-the-top everything in the game is. but for an explanation of the art style, check this out:

http://blogs.ign.com/Real_Time_Worlds/2007/01/10/42967/

Am I the only one who notices Left Behind: Eternal Forces expansion pack?

When does VF5 come out for 360? Also, is the HALO 3 beta in Crackdown for the US only?

Thanks?

Sonic looks incredibly fun. Looking forward to it.

Currently pirating SupCom. Hope its good.

(Yes, I do buy my games if I like em. I have a proud owned collection of over 20 PC games.)

...and I'm aware SupCom has a demo. And it sucked. But allegedly, the full version doesn't have crap AI.

I agree with you, tack. UFO: Extraterrestrials could be a fun one. I just went to their site to check out the pics, and it is sticking with the classic gameplay. It may not be the prettiest, but it may be the best strategic shooter since Jagged Alliance. (LOVED that game)

"I'm guessing the PS3 needed some extra time with Homecourt to either make better use of the cell processor or because of the cell processor's complexity, however you want to spin it."

Nope. Both versions are finished and reviews are trickling out (positive). Probably a small timed exclusive for Microsoft.

I've been playing the demo a lot this past week in anticpation; the game is dope. Somehow EA Canada manages to create a fresh and authentic simulacrum of playground basketball culture with each release of this franchise (at least, as authentic as you can get while pimping the NBA license); and be from CANADA.

Seriously, were do these guys get their inpiration from?

The new trick system allows my friends to hilariously mock my own style of play in real-world steetball (I'm often criticized for being overly flashy with my handles and generally dribbling too much).

Closest dribbling system I've seen so far that lets me creative in ways that refelcts my personality on the digital pavement -- and individualism is part of what street basketball is all about.

-Kimosabae

Holy hell, it's been awhile since I saw all those consoles on the same list for new games in any given week, bravo.

I thought that SSX Blur was coming out this week, on the 27. Am I mistaken, or did you forget? Either way, I want that game more than I want Sonic.

My opinion is mixed on Crackdown. The game seems to lack personality and has no humor, which are musts in Sandbox games imo. I don't like the shooting mechanics at all. The art style I like, sorta, but would have probably prefered a more realistic look. And the driving seems "off".

However, the physics and super-hero mechanics are just a blast. Your super strength for kicking dudes and cars through the air, as well as your ability to throw things a hundred feet, is tons of fun. Some people will absolutely love this game, and others will hate it. I will need a few hours with the full game to determine where I sit.

Picking up:

Crackdown, Supreme Commander, & Virtua Fighter 5

The rest can suck eggs.

You know, I'm probably the only person who had an absolute blast with Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. While Crackdown can't touch the pure carnage (that I've seen), sandbox games with superpowers does, in fact, own.

I would personally love to see a game like this where you build you own characters ala Saint's Row, upgrade your attacks and stats both through gameplay and "genetic research" and have it be completely open ended on how you save the day.

I can even imagine the first sentence on the back of the box. "It's a dirty city, but someone has to clean/purge it."

Well - looks like a busy week with Crackdown, Supreme Commander, and Sonic..

Dont have a PS3, so looks like I'll be waiting on the 360 version of VF5.

crackdown and a free halo faceplate at circuit city

For the guy who asked about SSX: Blur. You are correct about it being released on the 27th. The reason it isn't listed here is because the 27th is next tuesday. So it comes out next week. There yah go.

Wait, wait wait. Just to be clear, here...nobody actually WANTS Crackdown, do they? They just want it for the Halo 3 beta invite, right?

Anyhow, I'll pick up Sonic tomorrow. I picked a good week to take a week off of work, methinks.

"Nope. Both versions are finished and reviews are trickling out (positive). Probably a small timed exclusive for Microsoft."

My guess is that it takes longer to manufacture the Blu-ray discs. Aren't there only a few places that manufacture them, compared with the number of places that manufacture DVDs?

are you kidding me samfish? - Crackdown is just so damn enjoyable to play. The XBL demo was the bomb. Ive got mine on pre-order! the halo 3 beta jobbie is just an added bonus.

@36

Actually, many people want Crackdown for Crackdown. I personally don't care much about the H3 beta other than as an opportunity to get an early look at how the game will look and play. I've noticed that as the game has approached launch the talk about the beta has decreased and discussion of the actual game has increased.

I saw a review of NBA Street Homecourt that said the graphics were better on the 360 than the PS3 version. I'd be curious to know if this were true.

n2, in all likelyhood, it's true. Mainly because Homecourt was deved on 360 core with PS3 a secondary focus. Proper porting to PS3 takes time, effort, and a willingness to do both of the above. Since Sony hasn't created toolkits that just port PC and 360 code yet, it's not very likely EA is willing to go the extra 100 feet for the better results.

Of course if Cell wasn't such a bastard, we wouldn't have these issues but I digress.

I'm buying Crackdown for Crackdown, I couldn't care less about the Halo beta. The demo of Crackdown is the most fun I've had with a game for a while, kinda like the original THPS.

And about the 360 version of games looking better than the PS3 version, that's been documented a few times.

And I just thought Wiis would be buyable by the time SSX came out :(

You guys totally forgot about Chulip. After four years of delays, the game finally hit store shelves today. About time, I say!

JR

@26

Where was basketball invented?

CANADA

Who is the reigning MVP?

A CANADIAN

@45
Basketball was invented by a Canadian in Massachusetts.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basketball

WTF are you talking about? Canada didn't invent basketball; a Springfield Mass. PE teacher named James Naismith did, you idiot.

Canada's only significance (that I know of) in regards to basketall is that the first NBA game was played in Toronto between the Huskies and the Knicks -- that and they host a crap team in the form of the Raptors.

Those pieces of trivia still do little to address the fact that "Streetball" -- a term coined by mainstream media (or more specifically And 1) in an attempt to sell the culture to suburban white kids -- gestated mainly in the boroughs of New York.

The structured form and the street form are definitely NOT synonymous.

-Kimosabae

NjNets:

Thanks for the link. Guess we were both a little off (don't know where I got PE Teacher from).

Definitely more on point than that other guy.

-Kimosbabae

New games this week

Reader Comments (49)

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