Pendulo Studios may be best known for their comedic PC titles such as the Runaway trilogy, and The Next BIG Thing, but things are about to change. The developer is abandoning their comedy background for once, and are planning to release a new title that’s quite different. Their new game is called Yesterday, and it’s got a much darker tone.

In the game players will take control of John Yesterday, who is one of three playable characters in the game. John is sent out by a billionaire named Henry White to investigate a strange and deadly murderous cult. Beggars are disappearing one after another, and they’re returning as corpses that are completely burnt alive.

The screens look good, and show a beautiful art style. I am a sucker for investigative thrillers, and Yesterday is shaping up to be a great new title. Check out the new screens up above, and get ready for when Yesterday releases later this year.

You’ve had enough time to adapt to leading a gruff and heroic life in Skyrim. Slaying dragons, giants, and all manner of beast has filled up your time quite nicely. Surely though, you have never come across such a fierce beast as this Pegasus! Oh yea, and her name is Fluttershy.

I don’t know why we find these mods so wonderfully amusing, but it doesn’t seem to be getting old, as there are only more cropping up everyday. This one in particular will turn all of the horrid dragons into an even more terrifying Fluttershy, which yells a half-whispered “Yay” before pelting you with icy gusts and scorching torrents of fire.

It is sort of hilarious how much attention the My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic show has gotten, but hey, it gives you awesome mods, so no complaining. If you’re not so much of a Fluttershy fan, you can always opt for a Rainbow Dash mount instead, which looks somewhat similar to the one pictured above.

Back in February of 1989, there was a DC comics one-shot of an Elseworlds (alternate world with a known superhero) story called Gotham by Gaslight. Seeing that steampunk is a sort of melding of Victorian alternate history and sci-fy, this comic certainly fit the bill.

It is from this comic book that artist Julie Farrell drew her inspiration for some concept art for an Xbox game. It was for a pitch that Day 1 Studios was hoping would impress THQ about two years ago, but sadly didn’t make enough of an impression.

Seeing as we’re not ever going to get the game, we can at least drool over some images of what this amazing game would’ve been like. The pictures feature control diagrams, showing that there would have been grenades, and shooter aspects. Maybe if we make enough of a fuss, this game will show up in the future?

With its release just a month away, Trine 2 is looking better than ever. The proof is right above in a brand new batch of screenshots that have been released from the developer, Frozenbyte.

Trine 2 takes gamers on another adventure with the powerful knight Pontius, the swift thief Zoya and the crafty wizard Amadeus. The three heroes embark on a new adventure more fantastic than ever, where you will have to survive lethal traps and terrifying monsters, solve many physics-based puzzles and unravel an epic mystery during a challenging campaign that can be played either solo or in co-op with up to 3 players online or offline. Featuring stunning visuals, a masterful original soundtrack, and clever physics-based gameplay, Trine 2 is the perfect mix of old-school platforming action, original physics-based level design, and cooperative multiplayer fun.

The game is now available for pre-order on its website, and it’ll definitely be worth it to slap yours down. The screens above look amazing, and players who went through the first Trine will be more than excited to jump into its sequel. Also, don’t forget about the Collector’s Edition that was announced, which comes with even more for the fans.

Team Ninja has just released some brand new Ninja Gaiden 3 screens, and they look bloody amazing. Returning to the series’ beloved story of the Japanese dark hero, Ryu Hayabusa, Team Ninja infuses the same level of intense swordsmanship and a hardcore fighting skill set with a new deep story developed by famed writer Masato Kato.

The screens show not only the enemies that Hayabusa will face in the game, but the way the world consumes him as a whole. In Ninja Gaiden 3 players will experience a brand new way to embrace the world that’s created, all while bringing out the force that’s commanded by the Hayabusa blade. Enemies aren’t just nameless carriers in the game, they are each a living soul who writhes in pain as Hayabusa tears them limb from limb.

Check above for each of the new screens, and get ready for Ninja Gaiden 3 when it releases early next year. It will launch for both the PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles. It’ll be a great title when you’re in the macabre mood for dismemberment, don’t you agree?

As you can see above, brand new screens from Cyanide Studio and Spiders Games’ new strategy RPG Of Orcs and Men. Each team has spun their developmental flair into the working title. It’s still being polished, but these screens show that the developers are making much progress.

Of Orcs and Men immerses you into a brutal world at war, where the Empire of Men’s oppressive threat looms over the territories of the Orcs and the Goblins. Goblins are systematically persecuted and slaughtered, while Orcs not killed in battle are captured and enslaved. The game first puts you into the role of an elite Orc soldier from the legendary legion of Bloodjaws, a league of warriors deeply involved in the war opposing the Orcs and Goblins on one side to their persecutors, Humankind. As a veteran warrior who has seen the most brutal of battles, you are appointed by the Orc commander to complete a mission that could change the course of the war: kill the one man responsible for all of this bloodshed, the one who has, for years, exhorted the human masses to loath and fight the green-skinned people: the Emperor himself. A Goblin will soon join you to aid you in your mission, and he is everything the Orc is not. But you find that this works to your advantage as you fight on the battleground and off. Making advantage of their natural traits, they have their own skill trees you will develop. While the Orc focuses on power, reflecting his incredible strength, the Goblin will benefit from darker powers and stealth abilities, making him the perfect assassin.

So far the premise for the game seems solid, and from the screens I think it’s looking real good. Right now it’s set for a 2012 release date and will appear on the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360. As far as strategy goes, Of Orcs and Men puts a new spin on the genre itself, and blends a unique combination of talents to create a new experience for players. Keep this game on your radar.

If you played the Spyro games, you were no doubt excited to hear that a new Spyro game was on the rise. Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure definitely caught my eye because I grew up playing the lovable purple dragon, and bonded with him through the varying story lines of all the different games. This new-fangled game looked exciting and innovative, and it is, but it was not what I was expecting.

Story

The game is set in the world of Skylands, which is a magical world filled with creatures called Skylanders. Eon is one of the last Portal Masters, and has fallen, alongside the Core of Light, due to the workings of the evil Portal Master Kaos. The darkness Kaos brings has banished the Skylanders to another world entirely. Our world. In their journey here, they were shrunken and frozen (likely due to their traveling through space and time) and appear to be toys here. It your duty, the new Portal Master, to send the Skylanders back to Skylands via the Portal of Power to save the day by rebuilding the Core of Light to defeat Kaos. Throughout the game you need to find different components to rebuild the core, and help some of the creatures you meet along the way. A few familiar faces from the Spyro games pop up here and there, but this is not anything like the Spyro games of old. A new cast of characters, money, and moves have been thrown into the mix.

Gameplay

This falls under the genre of an action platform game. With an added peripheral and some toys, it may seem a bit labor intensive as you will be swapping out creatures mid-game, but is surprisingly enjoyable. As this is a kids game, everything does run a little bit slower, and is much more repetitive, but it doesn’t diminish the game if you have an ounce of patience.

The main aspects of the game are fetch-quests, puzzles, shooting, and fighting. It is a very linear game, so the outcome will be the same for every gamer, but it is in the characters that you play with where things become customizable.  There are 32 characters that you can control in all, and each have their own memory to track their level, skills, accessories, and money. This exuberant amount is broken down into 8 elements, with four different creatures in each. You do not have to have all 32 to complete the game, but if you want to finish the game at 100%, it is necessary to have one of each earth, fire, air, life, undead, magic, water, and technology element. There are “side quests” in the game that can only be accessed by certain elements, which are basically extra areas of loot and enemies.

You can blast through the game with only one character, but you won’t be able to get everything accomplished in the game. Instead you have to use each one accordingly, and try and build them up somewhat equally so they don’t suck if you need them in a pinch. Even if one of your Skylanders dies, you have other toys that will be at full health if you haven’t used them in the level you’re playing. Co-op mode basically takes single player, and makes it a thousand times easier. You can level up two creatures at once, and defeat enemies twice as fast! Versus mode is nothing to get really excited about as the maps for the three different modes are rather small.

Combat

You don’t have to have pristine aim or skills, as this is geared more towards kids, and doesn’t have pinpoint targets. Between each character, there are different styles of fighting of a pretty sizable range. There is no fear of falling of the sides while fighting, but enemies and loot can fall off the side and meet their demise. The only things that I would call difficult are the boss battles as they particularly long, and you are very likely going to go through a Skylander or two during it. Other than that, you can learn pretty quickly what moves are most effective, and easily plow through enemies. Most of the guesswork is taken out of things.

Conclusion

This game has quickly gotten me addicted, and made me sad at the same time. This is not the Spyro game I was expecting, as Spyro actually had no active role in the game whatsoever. Sure he was a playable character, but most of what I loved about the old games were the worlds, and the story continuity. This is completely new world, and not many of the same aspects were kept in this game.

I will say however, that the added peripheral and toys were possibly one of the best ideas for a game ever. If it exists, I have not seen another game that uses this kind of addition, and has done it correctly. Within 24 hours of starting up the game, I was out at the store completing a collection of the 8 elements, and have never been more excited about buying plastic figures.  The Portal would occasionally bug out if I was a bit too overzealous to swap out characters, but other than that it was pretty flawless. I was constantly wanting to get through levels for upgrades, and the ctuscenes were a bit of a treat since I was familiar with some of the voices (Krunk from Emperor’s New Groove, and Invader Zim). The plot line is interesting because it breaks the fourth wall by addressing you as a sort of omnipresent being as a Portal Master. This is a whole new way to approach interactive gaming, as you’re not just mashing buttons and seeing the outcome on the screen. You have to physically put characters into the game, and can choose which ones will receive your favor. There is a huge replay-ability as you can do a chapter select, and can redo levels with shorter times, find hidden treasures, and specials upgrades that you may have missed on the first round.

Fresh from the development team at Shinen, brand new Nano Assault screens are ready for your viewing. The screens show us a 3DS title that is reminiscent of old side-scrolling space shooters of the past. The real niche with the game? So far from the gameplay footage, Nano Assault looks like quite the unforgiving game.

In Nano Assault, players are tasked with stopping the deadly Nanostray virus from spreading and contaminating civilization. The game plays out as a fast-paced action shooter set within a vast cellular system that comes right off the screen in full 3D. You’ll control a microscopic Nanite ship that heads straight into the virus to tear it down.

Check out the screen above, and the gameplay video below. So far, Nano Assault looks like a promising title for the 3DS, and it’s one that I’ll most likely pick up. Get ready to play once it releases on November 22^nd.

If you’ve ever played Portal 2, you know how mind-numbingly fun those puzzles can be. At the very end of the game, after thwarting the most difficult concoctions that an evil super-genius computer can toss at you, you may be thinking that you are the master puzzle solver. However, what if you were given the tools to become a puzzle creator? Would anyone be able to escape your masterpieces?

The Portal 2 blog has given us a look at what the puzzle creator might look like once it’s all pieced together. Since they released the authoring tools from Portal 2 earlier in the year, over 700 player-created levels have been made. Once this Puzzle Creator is finished, who knows how many will be in existence.

You can create these puzzles quickly, and load them onto your Steam cloud so you can share with other online players. On the site, you’ll be able to rate, and comment on the levels you’ve played through as a critique for other puzzle creators. Will you be a benevolent creator? Or an evil mastermind?

We’re about a month away from the release from the final, finished version of Minecraft. To all of us, that basically means the little “beta” that has been hanging on it forever it going to fall off, but that doesn’t make us any less excited.

With the due date approaching, there are tons of updates that keep springing up all over the place. (Even with all of the court happenings that are going on as well.) It’s looking like the newest edition to the Minecraft family is the Dragon. The design guidelines that Notch is going by are, “If I can beat at all, it’s too easy.”

Doesn’t that just sound magnificent? We’re all going to be torn to shreds by a winged blocky creature. It’s going to be great!