Gizmo Ground

Yesterday we told you about the announcement date of the PSP phone, and quite some time back we also mentioned specs although they are not really confirmed for sure. Today there are some more rumors (and this time we pray and pray some more, that these are only rumors) about the PSP phone not being able to play PSP games. It also says that the phone won’t sell under the PlayStation logo, but rather will be a part of the XPERIA family. 


This might not affect those who are only looking for a bad-ass phone, but it definitely surprises those who game on the PSP and we have seen good titles coming to the portable gaming device (for evidence, check the God of War review) Sony Ericsson has chosen to make a different set of games and these will be compatible only with the phone. The games should all be below $10 (approx Rs. 450). The device will probably be launched at the MWC 2011 in February andSony Ericsson targets a 500 US dollars (approx Rs. 22,900) retail price with 5 games included. 

So that’s about it for now. It's good that it runs on the latest Android, but not playing PSP games is certainly not cool! 

The Dead Space series is well known for two things – gratuitous amounts of violence and gore and its 'uh-oh I just soiled my underpants again' scares. Thankfully, both aspects of the game have been retained with the move to iOS platforms. Add in some serious technical wizardry and you have an action game that is without a doubt, a must buy.

Dead Space takes place nearly three years after the first game and leads up to the events of Dead Space 2. You play as an engineer by the name of Vandal who during his time aboard the ginormous space-station, the Sprawl, inadvertently causes a Necromorph outbreak. People die in horrific ways,come back as lumbering corpses and it’s up to you to end their misery. I mean that’s the least you can do right? 


Gameplay for Dead Space is near identical to its console counterparts. You skulk around the shadows, dismember nasty aliens and solve minor puzzles that generally involves fixing stuff or opening doors. Dismemberment not only looks hella cool but is also a strategic way to annihilate foes before they get too close for comfort. Throughout the campaign you'll regularly come across newer weapons, all of which can be upgraded using Power Nodes found across the Sprawl. 

The one aspect in which the iOS version differs drastically from the console version is obviously, controls. Using the iPhone/iPad’s touchscreen functionality, players can control character movements as well as the camera angle via invisible virtual joysticks of sorts. This takes some getting used to and I’ll be lying if I said I was comfortable with this sort of a control scheme but it then again, this is a drawback with nearly every third/first person action game on the iPhone or the iPad. Tapping on the right hand side of the screen will draw your weapon and tapping that same part again will fire a shot. Opening doors and picking up items is also a touch based affair and there were times during the frantic action when I ended up shooting stuff instead of picking it up or shooting at doors instead of opening them. 


There’s no doubt that gameplay in Dead Space is tense but there are instances when it gets a tad predictable. You’ll find yourself in a room and just as you’re about to leave, it gets locked down and you’re left fighting for your life against a wave of necromorphs. It was intense the first few times, but after that it just loses its charm. 

On the technical front, Dead Space delivers – and how. There were times when I found it hard to believe I was playing an iOS game. Environments look stellar,vare awesome and Necromorphs look as menacing as they did on your Xbox360, PS3 or PC. There are a few framerate issues on the 3GS platform but on the iPad, the game performed flawlessly.


I’m really glad EA went ahead and meticulously created a game from the ground up that’s fully capable of complementing its console counterparts. Boasting of stellar production values, Dead Space is not for the faint of heart, nor is it for the casual gamer. I may have had a few issues with the control scheme but that’s a small price to pay for slaughtering Necromorphs on the go. 

Zombies games have quite literally, been done to death by now. There are a few games like the Left 4 Dead series that have still managed provide gamers with a thoroughly entertaining experience, but the genre on its own hasn’t really evolved a lot. With Dead Island, developer Techland are traversing territory that’s never been explored, fusing multiple genres to create one ambitious game. Expectations are sky high but if they manage to pull it off, Dead Island could be the best game ever. And here are five reasons why.

It’s an open world zombie game


There are zombie games – and then there are open world games but never have the two genres crossed paths. This obviously opens up a whole new sub-genre of games that could be the best thing since sliced ham. Instead of simply moving from point A to B in a linear fashion, Dead Island will allow players to tackle any situation in a non linear way. And since the entire (fictional) island of Banoi will eventually open up, the possibilities are limitless. Oh and did we mention it’ll ship with four player co-operative play? Yeah, think about that for a second.

Focus on melee combat


Most zombie games hand you a plethora of weapons and encourage you to go carve up the undead but Dead Island will focus more on melee combat. This obviously makes matters a lot more intense as you’ll have to move in closer for the kill. And as Left 4 Dead 2 has shown us, bludgeoning a zombie to death is just plain awesome. In Dead Island, pretty much any melee object be it a pipe, an oar, a tree trunk and lots more could be used to hammer away at the undead. We also hope Dead Island go a bit more primal and allow us to set traps. That would be completely mental. 

Create and customize your Tools of Destruction


Even though Dead Rising 2 was frustrating, it did allow you to combine all sorts of weapons to create uber badass weapons. Dead Island will grant you somewhat of the same mechanic as well where you’ll have to craft various weapons to survive. Imagine fusing a machine and a harpoon gun together or combining a rocket launcher with a tree trunk. According to Techland, this particular mechanic will allow them to offer over thousands of weapons to the player, just like Gearbox did with Borderlands.

2011 may just as well turn out to be the year of the shooter. This once popular genre had been put on the backburner since the past two years but in 2011, it’s back with a vengeance. You have tons of new IPs in addition to the resurrection of one very, very special one. Let the good  time begin. 

RAGE (Xbox360 PS3 PC)


It’s the apocalypse once again and in true Mad Max or Borderlands fashion you must scour the land in your trusty buggy kicking ass, winning races and pillaging all sorts of interesting loot. This FPS cum vehicular racer with quasi RPG mechanics is also high on our “Most Wanted” list as it’ll mark the return of developer id Software after a seven year sabbatical.

Bulletstorm (Xbox360 PS3 PC)


Bulletstorm may not have the best plot on the planet but it’s definitely grabbed our attention with its balls-to-the-wall, over-the-top gameplay. The demo left us with mixed feeling as there is a slight chance that gameplay could get repetitive but then again, a game that lets you shoot people in the nuts can’t go too wrong right?

Red Faction: Armageddon (Xbox360 PS3 PC)


For reasons no one can fathom, developer Volition went ahead and introduced a survival horror element to Red Faction Armageddon. Thankfully the wanton destruction from Guerilla still exists so tearing structures apart should still be as enjoyable. Only now instead of angry soldiers, it’ll house creatures as well. 

Bodycount (Xbox360 PS3)


A spiritual successor to the highly destructive shooter, Black, Bodycount looks to up the ante with even more destruction. The pre-alpha gameplay clip released last year wasn’t too riveting but considering it was pre-alpha code we’ll hope the developers have used this time to apply a truck load of spit and polish. 

Crysis 2 (Xbox360 PS3 PC)


After fictional, lush tropical forests, the action has now shifted to New York city where players once again must fight off nasty aliens and hostile armed forces. And hey, even if you don’t own a bazillion dollar PC you can now play the game in all its limited glory on your PS3 or Xbox360 as the franchise will now be available on consoles as well.

Creative at CES unveiled their new gaming headset, the SoundBlaster Tactic3D Omega wireless. This headset will be compatible with PCs, PS3s, Xbox 360s and Macs.

What’s cool about this headset is that it doesn’t require any extra connectors in order to be used with these systems. Creative claims the technology is already integrated into the headset, so this means a painless setup and much ease of use. The headset comes with a detachable mic and voice/game volume controls.


Creative aren’t the first ones to come out with cross-platform gaming headsets, though. Astro, Tritton and turtle beach, among others, have been producing their headsets for a while now, but none of them are available in India and have to be imported here. On the other hand, since Creative products are widely available in the markets here, these headsets actually have a pretty decent chance of making it here.

We can’t wait to get our hands on and test these babies out. It’s priced at around Rs. 9,000 ($199) and we’ll let you know as soon as we hear something about the Omega making it to our shores.

Do you own a gaming device? Then you must be aware about How tedious is it to enter a text using a controller. But now no more worries, Circboard is here to help you out. Their new system will help you to the enter text. It is basically a onsreen keyboard.

Lets take an example of Xbox 360 controller. Circboard uses the joystick and 4 buttons to enter any character. Bumper button is used for both Space and Backspace. So basically you will use the default buttons to perform the task.

Left joystick is use to select group of letters and the right analog stick selecting the specific letter or you may also use “press” button. The left trigger helps you to type in Caps while held.

Well at first it will look a bit difficult but actually its easier and you will grasp it with time.

Crytek has been alerted that an early incomplete, unfinished build of Crysis 2 has appeared on Torrent sites. Crytek and EA are deeply disappointed by the news. We encourage fans to support the game and the development team by waiting and purchasing the final, polished game on March 22.