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Disabilities, Nintendo's Demo Play and a wishlist

New Super Mario Bros. Wii Screenshot

While I think Nintendo's Demo Play feature would be great for skipping the boring or poorly-designed bits of a mostly-good game, some people wonder if games getting their own players "unstuck" is the end of gaming as we know it. Others point out that this feature may be very useful for players with disabilities, who may find parts of a game completely impossible.

The Horror Geek presents: New Silent Hill: Shattered Memories trailer from GamesCom

Ah Sunday, a day for rest and relaxation–and apparently a day for no horror news.

I saved this clip of Silent Hill: Shattered Memories for a day just like today. The Wii-updating (I'm hesitant to call it a remake—it is technically a remaking of the first game, but it's bringing a lot of new elements to the table as well) of the classic survival horror game is looking pretty good. Don’t take my word for it, though, have a look at this new trailer for the title that appeared at GamesCom earlier this month.

Expect Silent Hill to hit retailers on October 13th for the Wii, PS2, and PSP—just in time to creep you out for Halloween.

Bayonetta includes one-switch mode for disabled gamers

As Gus Mastrapa writes in GameLife, Platinum Games's upcoming brawler Bayonetta will feature a mode which allows gamers to play through the entire game using a single button. The title, which will be released for the XBox 360 and the PS3, is, essentially, a mainstream one-switch game.

The Horror Geek presents: New Dante's Inferno teaser trailer emerges from the depths of Hell

Another teaser trailer—this time for a game instead of a movie.

This brand new clip for Electronic Arts' forthcoming "re-imagining" of Dante's Inferno debuted at Gamescom this week. I know most people only seem marginally excited for this game (which looks like a God of War clone and not nearly as spectacular as God of War III), but I'm still holding out hope. Maybe this new glimpse into what the game has in store for you will change some opinions.

Prepare to "go to Hell" on February 10th of next year.

The Horror Geek presents: Resident Evil Zero Gamescon footage

I have to be honest, this Wii version of Resident Evil Zero footage didn't exactly blow me away. It's been a long time since I played Resident Evil Zero on the GameCube, but I'd be hard pressed to spot any kind of difference between this version and the original. I kept thinking "how do I even know this trailer is new? They could have taken one from the GameCube release years ago and slapped a Wii logo on it and called it a day…"

That being said, I'm probably not the target audience for this title. Resident Evil Zero for the Wii seems to be aiming at folks who didn't have a GameCube, or just never got around to playing this game back in the day. That's cool—I guess. The title is set to sell at a reduced rated (30 bucks) and will feature Wii-mote controls. I'm not sure how that's going to work with the traditionally clunky Resident Evil interface, but I guess we'll all find out eventually.

There's still no official release date for this game, but it is supposed to be available before the end of the year.

The Horror Geek presents: BioShock lands a director

bioshock

I think we were all pretty excited by the idea of Gore Verbinski directing the cinematic adaptation of 2K Games' BioShock. Unfortunately, though, the global economy and other issues killed that dream and cast the future of the project into doubt—at least it did until last night.

Variety is reporting that director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo is currently in negotiations to take over the project.

While Fresnadillo isn't a household name, he did direct 28 Weeks Later—which was nice piece of apocalyptic zombie cinema. The style he displayed behind the camera in that film certainly gives me hope for BioShock.

This isn't official yet, but I'll keep you posted as details emerge.

The Horror Geek presents: New Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles trailer

This new trailer for Capcom's Wii-exclusive Resident Evil title (subtitled The Darkside Chronicles) debuted at Gamescon a few days ago. I was saving it for a slow news day—and lo and behold, that's exactly what today is.

This new clip is almost three minutes in length. It doesn't show any gameplay footage, but does spend a lot of time fleshing out the title's story. Truthfully, the story sounds like your typical Resident Evil tale—scientists playing god create horrible monsters who want to kill people.

I'm still interested in checking out the game. I have a weird fondness for the Resident Evil series' wonky narrative stylings and my Wii hasn't seen a lot of action lately. That will hopefully change when this game hits store shelves sometime this December.

The Horror Geek presents: New Ju-On: The Grudge Wii game trailer

Gamescon has brought us some interesting gaming news this week–but most of it has been mainstream gaming news and not horror gaming news. Despite this, I've managed to pick up a few odds and ends for my survival horror-loving brethren.

Here's the newest promo trailer for Ju-On: The Grudge—the video game adaptation of the popular Japanese horror film franchise. The game is headed to the Wii this October and maybe, just maybe, it'll finally give me a reason to turn my Wii on.

The trailer features the usual dingy visuals and moody music, but it also highlights some of the ways the Wii-mote will be used in game (it's a flashlight) and reveals that the game will score players on how calm they remain during the game's numerous scary moments.

Have a gander at the trailer and see what you think. Apparently, the game is set to retail for a mere $30, which should make it more appealing to gamers on the fence about whether or not they want to play it.

The Horror Geek presents: Resident Evil movie release date moves up

Resident Evil Apocalypse

Usually when I bring you release date news, it's a movie shifting it's release date farther away. Such is not the case with today's news about Resident Evil: Afterlife.

Comingsoon.net is reporting that the fourth film in the popular franchise will now hit theaters on August 27th, 2010. This is a shift forward of several weeks. As reported before, Paul WS Anderson will write and direct and Milla Jovovich will be back as Alice.

Please mark your calendars accordingly.

Demo roundup — Batman: Arkham Asylum, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood, Dawn of War II, Darkest of Days

Demo roundup — Batman: Arkham Asylum, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood, Dawn of War II, Darkest of Days

Today I downloaded the PC demo for the upcoming shooter Darkest of Days, which is a game that attempts to accurately re-create historical battles while taking minor liberties with the details, such as allowing you to carry an AR-55 assault rifle into the battle of Antietam. I couldn't figure out how seriously this game wanted me to take it, but upon completion of the demo, I can only say that I strongly support this slightly enhanced version of history being taught in our public schools.

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