Pads & Panels

Gamers who still have not gotten around to trying out the action-packed zombie co-op romp that is Left 4 Dead will get a free opportunity to do so for a 24-hour period tomorrow on Steam. Valve announced that beginning at 12:01 a.m. GMT Friday, the PC version of Left 4 Dead will be available for free on Steam. The trial includes the recently released Survival Pack downloadable content, which includes a new game mode and two additional “Versus” stages.  There is no obligation to purchase, according to the release, and the game can be pre-loaded now, to avoid spending any of that 24-hour time frame downloading the title.

For more info, www.steamgames.com

Title: Berlin: City of Smoke – Book Two

Writer: Jason Lutes

Artist: Jason Lutes

Publisher: Drawn & Quarterly

Rating:

Review by: Bill Jones

Berlin: City of Smoke picks up one month after the happenings in Jason Lutes’ first Berlin collection, City of Stones. The second book compiles issues 9 through 16 of the two-thirds completed 24-issue series. This time Lutes takes readers from June 1929, immediately following the May 1 massacre that ended the first book, to the election of the Nazi Party to 107 seats in the German government. (more…)

Title: Berlin: City of Stones – Book One

Writer: Jason Lutes

Artist: Jason Lutes

Publisher: Drawn & Quarterly

Rating:

Review by: Bill Jones

Berlin: City of Stones collects the first eight issues of Jason Lutes’ Berlin, a planned 24-issue series of historical fiction taking place in Berlin from 1928 to 1933, during the decline of the Weimar Republic and rise of the Nazi Party. The book has many successes, including a great cinematic feel created by Lutes, but its biggest fault, with the big one-word title of Berlin, is that in its first eight issues it doesn’t give the reader a great feel for the city during this historic time. (more…)

Jonathan, the winner of our Rockstar swag contest, was kind enough to send us a picture of his daughter decked out in the Chinatown Wars t-shirt, holding a Gears of War 2 soundtrack and and in front of an Onechanbara poster we sent his way. (We tossed in a couple of extra things!) That’s a lot of M-rated game products for one little girl, but she is holding a sticker of the child-friendly and very awesome Ninjatown game, so…yeah. He said he sent the photo of his 4-year-old because he isn’t exactly photogenic, which we can relate to. He also pointed out that her name, Natalia Rahne, is a reference to both Black Widow and Wolfsbane. We have a feeling Jonathan is checking out the Wolverine movie this weekend, and hopefully getting his daughter into the hobby. Thanks for sending in the photo, Jonathan.

Title: The Godfather II

Platform: PS3 (Also on 360, PC)

ESRB Rating: M

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Developer: EA Redwood Shores

Rating:

Review by: John Gustafson

The original Godfather film is heralded as one of the best movies ever made, and its sequel, The Godfather II, as one of the greatest second installments. So naturally when the first licensed Godfather game was released, expectations were high…and it bombed. Godfather II manages to follow its film counterpart, but in a tragically misinterpreted way. It is worse than its predecessor. (more…)

Nintendo announced this week that in celebration of spring it will release a new “green” DS Lite Sunday, May 3. The bundle comes with a similarly colored lime green carrying case and a copy of Personal Trainer: Cooking.

Nintendo also not-so-subtly hinted that the package might make a good Mother’s Day gift on May 10, highlighting the included game, which includes more than 245 international recipes.

Amazon.com is listing the bundle at $149.99 with free shipping.

For more info, www.nintendods.com

Mickey Rourke, hot off his Oscar-nominated performance in The Wrestler, has been announced to voice the role of Richard “Demo Dick” Marcinko, a real-life Navy SEAL and found of SEAL Team 6, in the game Rogue Warrior.

Rogue Warrior is based off Marcinko’s novel of the same name, according to a release from Bethesda. The gamer embarks on a mission to disrupt a North Korean ballistic missile program, but a conspiracy is uncovered along the way that requires Marcinko to go on a covert operation in the USSR.

The game is being developed by Rebellion Studios for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC, and is scheduled to be released in the fourth quarter of this year.

For more info, www.bethsoft.com

Marvel’s X-Men, the animated show from the 1990s, got a release on DVD today in two volumes. The first volume includes the relentlessly aired “Night of the Sentinels” two-part debut, while the second volume includes the five-part Phoenix saga. John should have a write-up soon, but to help satiate the appetite and remind everyone how awesome the series was, a Disney Home Video rep sent a few video teasers our way. (more…)

Title: Moon

Platform: DS

ESRB Rating: T

Publisher: Mastiff

Developer: Renegade Kid

Rating:

Review by: John Gustafson

An FPS on the DS? Stop laughing, because Renegade Kid’s latest game to utilize the Renegade 2.0 Engine, Moon, is a notable title all DS owners should pay attention to.

Moon, telling the tale of an exploratory mission on that great big ball of cheese in the sky after alien structures are excavated sub-surface, pushes the limits of the handheld and serves as a reminder that players have yet to see everything that can be done on the DS. (more…)

Time to announce our latest contest winners…

For the Dark Horse manga, which ended last Friday, we selected Kimberly (IceeLady), of Vestavia Hills, Ala. She will be sent Gantz Vol. 1-2, Berserk Vol. 1-2, Blood+ Vol. 1-2, Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Vol. 1-2 and MPD Psycho Vol. 1-2 by Dark Horse Comics. (more…)