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Square-Enix gives us an online hack-n-slash experience unlike anything we've seen before on a Nintendo handheld.

Nintendo’s struggles with their online strategy (if you can call it that) are widely known and widely reviled.  We’ve seen some slight improvements as the years click by, but it looks like Square-Enix might be the ones to teach the big N how to really do things right on the 3DS with Heroes of Ruin.  Square-Enix and design house n-Space picked the perfect sort of game to leverage the online functionality of the 3DS – a dungeon crawler.  Keeping far away from the frame-by-frame criticality of an FPS or fighting game, a game in the vein of Diablo should let Nintendo’s network stretch its legs without really angering the hardcore twitch gamers.  Although already released in Europe, Heroes of Ruin doesn’t launch in North America until July 17^th, and the online multiplayer is just one aspect that has us sharpening our swords in anticipation.

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Nintendo disappoints again and the crew does not take it well.

At this point, we've nearly reached the end of our E3 journey. Without being on the show floor to get our hands on the games, we've all just been spectating and deriving as much information as we can from those who are experiencing the show first hand. With another disappointing showing from Nintendo and a general lack of new items at the show, the conference is wearing on this crew's optimism.

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Who needs level design, differed gameplay, or strategy as long as you're ripping off a popular IP?

Army Corps of Hell is one of several games that have tried to replicate the successful Pikmin formula, but have failed miserably at doing so. Although the mechanics suffer from very few issues, the gameplay is excruciatingly repetitive.

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It's all about the co-op, baby!

Remember couch co-op? There was something special about having a buddy over, ordering a pizza, and flopping on the couch to marathon through a great game. That intimate kind of cooperative game play has kind of fallen by the wayside in recent years, thanks to the proliferation of stable online matchmaking. As remarkable an achievement as that is, nothing will replace the fun and energy of having a partner sitting right next to you as you triumph over a challenging game. The folks over at Obsidian haven’t forgotten about couch co-op; it’s the focal point for Dungeon Siege III, a game that is at its best when shared.

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