Welcome back to the GearGames weekly video game release feature here at Gear Diary! This post holiday week is very light and has something that I can’t remember seeing in a very long time – no new releases for the Nintendo DS! While I’m sure there are some low-budget shovelware things popping out, no site I checked some up with anything new for the DS! My big pick for the week is the rebirth of the adventure game classic Monkey Island series! Telltale Games, who has produced two wonderful seasons of Sam & Max adventures are releasing the first of five chapters in their season of Monkey Island Tales, called Tales of Monkey Island Chapter 1: Launch of the Screaming Narwhal. They are offering a pre-order special for the season at TellTaleGames.com – sorry for the short notice – I just discovered it when I went to order it myself!

There are a few other solid releases this week, including the game I was excited for last week – the PC & PS3 release Trine from small Finnish developer FrozenByte, who were responsible for the fun top-down shooters Shadowgrounds & Shadowgrounds: Survivor. There is also a new entry into the Battlefield multiplayer game series, this time stepping back from the future into World War II with Battlefield 1943, arrives this week. And finally, the sequel to last year’s hit baseball game The Bigs looks to score another home run. Ouch … sorry about that! Anyway, check out the list!

• Battlefield 1943
• The Bigs 2
• BioShock & The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Bundle

• Battlefield 1943
• Trine
• The Bigs 2

• Tales of Monkey Island Chapter 1: Launch of the Screaming Narwhal
• The Bigs 2
• CID The Dummy
• Birthday Party Bash

• The Bigs 2
• CID The Dummy

• The Bigs 2
• CID The Dummy

• No new releases

• Tales of Monkey Island Chapter 1: Launch of the Screaming Narwhal
• Trine
• Street Fighter IV
• BioShock & The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Bundle
• ARMA II
• Memento Mori
• The Hardy Boys: The Perfect Crime

Some notes from last week:

• Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood (X360, PS3, PC)

- This turned out to be a fairly average game … like the original. Too short and too many flaws, but still a fun game in an under-served genre.

• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (pretty much everything)

- Another decent but unspectacular entry, with the handheld versions coming up much worse than in the past. Stick to the console versions on this one.

• Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (also on all systems)

- Sort of like the movie, this is a retread for little kids. But also like the movie … there are much better ways to spend your money.

• Trine
  - Well, as we see from this week’s list, rumors of an early release didn’t happen. Early reviews you might be seeing are likely using the shameful practice of doing a vague review based on the demo and giving an average score just to get there first and grab some hits.

To highlight a recent release in more detail: DemiGod is billed as a real-time strategy (RTS) game, but better described as an action-oriented RTS/RPG hybrid with a multiplayer focus. The game is highly competitive in nature as you are pitted against other DemiGods in a variety of combat modes. When I say ‘multiplayer focus’ what I really mean is that if you aren’t planning to play this game online or on a LAN with friends, don’t buy it. It is that simple – this is a game that knows what it is, and what it is is a multiplayer battle royale.

The premise is fairly simple: the mythical ‘All Father’ is dead, and it is up to the DemiGods to battle it out for favor and supremacy and become the new all-powerful leader. The game is based loosely around mythology of demigods, though there are fewer presented in the game than in mythology, and those present divide neatly into two categories that don’t accurately represent their historical descriptions. But the game isn’t out to be a history lesson, so the mythology just serves as a nice underpinning to move the game along.

Single player mode really is like a massive tutorial, as the AI is pretty decent and makes things fun, but remains static as you learn and progress and eventually presents little challenge. What makes the game work is multiplayer.

At this point, joining a multiplayer match is quick and easy. You can engage in simple one on one battles, or gather up several players on a side for some really crazy battles. Once you begin you immediately try to capture flags and gain experience and stat bonuses attuned to that flag, which will make your demigod and minions more effective. The game allows you to alter various settings which can drastically change the length and flow of the match. For a slow-paced beginning have everyone start fresh; otherwise you can give everyone gold and some experience and let them launch right into a much faster paced battle.

DemiGod is by design a game with fairly narrow appeal. It is action-centric, multiplayer-centric, and based around fast matches and not long-term investment. That said, it makes no pretense about being anything else. That is why I make a big point about the lack of tutorial and single player mode. If these things are a really big deal for you, skip DemiGod. The game is about learning how things work, about investing the time in becoming more adept at micromanaging your minions and conquering the relatively steep learning curve associated with mastering the frantic battles at higher levels.

The final thought I have is the amazing support. Stardock and Gas Powered Games are turning out updates frequently to help with balance and performance and who knows what else – because honestly I’ve yet to have a problem so I have no idea what they’re fixing. But this is the sort of game that is meant to last for a long time and keep players coming back for more – so patching issues and adding content is critical to keeping fans engaged. And that is a big part of my recommendation to buy – solid game, singular focus, great support combine to make a satisfying experience.

DemiGod is available for the PC through retail outlets such as Amazon, or on digital download sites like Impulse and a free Impulse account is required for multiplayer..

What I’m Currently Playing:
I was on vacation last week so I read a bunch but didn’t do much gaming … here is what I DID play!

• PSP: Crimson Gem Saga – I got myself quite engaged in this one as it is a pretty solid game … up until you find the first gem. Then it falls into a rut and I have spent entirely too many hours trying to capture the joys of the first dozen hours.
• iPod Touch: TradeWinds 2 – this game really does a great job of combining trade and combat in a way that is simple yet strategic, and has the difficulty grow gradually enough that you are never overwhelmed but always challenged.

So what are you playing? Chime in below!

Enjoy gaming!