Some coverage of anything that's good and holy to come out this summer. Thanks to jarosh for the idea, and thanks to IGN for pretty much all of the info and pics.
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THE GAMES OF SUMMER 2006
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PC
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Civilization IV: Warlords
Release date: July
The main attraction of this expansion is the warlord unit (who provides combat bonuses to units) and introduces Stalin, Churchill among other world leaders. American's can build malls! (Article)
Dungeon Siege II: Broken World
Release Date: August
I guess with everyone anticipating Uwe Boll's rad movie In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale, you may have forgot that there's an expansion coming. It ends the story of Aranna, brings new clases, and content for all pre-existing ones. (Article)
GTR 2
Release Date: August
Racing sims are a dime a dozen these days, but it's always nice when something stands above the rest of the pack. Includes a true day/night cycle, a race that lasts 24 hours, systems that reccomend improvements in your driving technique, all sorts of neat graphical effects. Game on, I guess. Also coming to the 360. (Article)
Prey
Release Date: July
You can change the gravity and shoot shit. I don't see why that's not a formula for success. IGN says "The premise behind Prey is simple. A gigantic ship/being, called the Sphere, parked over our planet and started gobbling people up from all over the place. Frighteningly, nobody knows that's what is happening because the giant liveship also happens to be invisible to scans." It's also coming to 360. (Article)
Rome: Total War - Alexander
Release Date: June 16
More expansion packin' for the good souls who still play games on PC. But it's for a good game, so we all care. Self-explanatory, really... game centers around Alexander and his attempt to own the world. (Article)
Savage 2: Tortured Soul
Release Date: August
The first game had a small but dedicated fanbase because it was pretty innovative at the time. "In situations where the Commander player isn't doing his job well, the other players can now build their own structures. When you "spawn," you can do so as one of several character classes, like the defensive Predator, the offensive Summoner, the healing Chaplain, or a recon unit like the Shapeshifter." (Article)
Titan Quest
Release Date: June 26
In general, this is nothing more than a Diablo clone. It just so happens to make it a competent one, which should more than excite fans waiting for Blizzard to stop being dumb. Mythological Greece, Egypt, Asia, etc form a setting for this potentially awesome game. (Article)
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PLAYSTATION 2
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Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII
Release Date: August 22, 2006
Ok, this is basically a troll spot. I just felt like making fun of this game. IGN says a lot of the issues with the Japanese version have been fixed - tighter controls, targeting, more balanced AI and exclusive missions - but that's all bullshit. You know it, I know it. The game sucks. But it's from the FFVII world, and people sucked up that terrible FFVII movie so who knows. (Article)
Disgaea II: Cursed Memories
Release Date: August 29, 2006
What's to explain? It's a sequel to one of the best SRPGs ever made, and it's full of the sort of juicy yet super incremental improvements that only the diehard would ever care about. Endless hours of gameplay (IGN says 200+), cameos from all of Nippon Ichi's SRPG universe, and a new Dark Court system which rewards you for being evil. Oh yeah, this game is gonna rock so hard. (Article)
Madden NFL 07: Hall of Fame Edition
Release Date: August 22, 2006
There's one coming to every platform on earth, but I'll just cover the bases here. It owns the next-gen versions still, and should please any red blooded Madden fan the world round. As well as added control of your running game, the "Hall of Fame" edition comes with an extra DVD comes with video content that includes a Madden career retrospective. (Article)
Rule of Rose
Release Date: August 29, 2006
In this game, little underage girls run around doing erotic things and also creeping people the **** out. I can't vouch for the games quality - dark10x says it's a game worth checkin' out - but all I know is that it's creepy. Multiple endings and all. (Article)
Super Monkey Ball Adventure
Release Date: August 1, 2006
Also coming to GCN and PSP, but again I'll cover it quickly here because nobody really cares about this crappy offshoot. You solve puzzles and avoid obstacles in your precious ball that has a monkey in it. In Monkey Ball Kingdoms. yeah. (Article)
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PLAYSTATION PORTABLE
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Blade Dancer: Lineage of Light
Release Date: July 28, 2006
Let's be honest - this game is only on this list because summer is the dog days for portable systems. For every system, really, but most especially for portables. That said, it's from NIS America and it's an RPG. Since there are no noteworthy RPGs of any form on the system, really, it deserves only slightly more attention. The best thing is the cooperative network playing using PSP Wireless, if that's your thing. (Article)
Tekken: Dark Resurrection
Release Date: July 25, 2006
It's Tekken 5 with more shit, basically. Lots of mulitplayer modes, lots of customization and characters, incredible handheld visuals, new stages and then some. The wonders of the PSP in handheld form, fitting such magic into your hand. (Article
Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth
Release Date: July 18, 2006
It's exactly the same as the PSX classic, except with new CG cutscenes. Apparently it's not a great port either... but hey, it's still a port of one of the best games of all time, so it can't have all its power sucked out of it. Should be a nice gap filler until Silmeria. (Article)
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XBOX
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Painkiller: Hell Wars
Release Date: July 11, 2006
Heaven and Hell fight to the death in a crazy FPS. The highlight of this title is that it has online play, which should make any of the straggling Xbox owners who haven't upgraded to the 360 very happy. (Article)
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GAMECUBE
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Pac-Man World Rally
Release Date: July 2006
There's two reasons this is here. One, it's practically the only Gamecube game this entire summer outside of some sports titles. And two, it features the Prince of all Cosmos. I provided a picture of the only reason you should care below. (Article)
SP, Dead Rising, Star Fox DS.
