FGN: Death Cargo, Collusion, And Bowser Super Strong?

Death Cargo

Ever thought Mortal Kombat just didn't satisfy your needs of blood and gore? Don't worry, Death Cargo will satisfy those needs.

Death Cargo is a 2D fighting game on the PC that aims to recapture the graphics and gamplay of 90's arcade / console titles, and improve them for the current generation. This fighter, much like early Mortal Kombat games, uses digitized models of real human actors as the in-game characters.

This game doesn't stop there, however. Death Cargo uses footage of real actors, (and some great looking special effects), for the finishing moves, or fatalities, if you will. They are insanely gory, and look like they've come straight out of an 80's horror movie.

Photos below are put in a spoiler for their graphic content and they are not suitable for the work place, children, or faint of heart. Viewer discretion is advised.

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According to the official Death Cargo website, this will be the first fighting game to offer endless content. After you download the initial title, that which comes with six playable characters and twelve stages, you will be able to download all future content for free. The website says that the development of the game will "never stop," and an infinite amount of characters / stages will follow.

The collector's edition can be pre-ordered now for €25.00 (roughly $35 USD), and comes with a ton of extra goodies. The game comes as a physical disc, and is expected to ship on February 28, 2014.

Collusion During Frosty Faustings' Blazblue Grand Finals

Frosty Faustings VI, Chicago's 2nd largest tournament, took place this past weekend and with it, a bit of controversy arose during the Blazblue: Chrono Phantasma grand finals. The two players, who happen to be brothers, made it into the grand finals set playing Carl and Platinum throughout the entire event.

Upon reaching grand finals, the brothers intended to split the prize money, and because of that, they both opted to play as Izayoi instead of their main characters. When asked by the tournament organizer if this selection was merely a button check, they replied saying that it was indeed an actual match, and admitted to colluding.

Shinsyn, the tournament organizer, decided to put his foot down, and had the two brothers play out the grand finals set using their actual characters. As a result of the collusion, the TO penalized the two finalists by taking away the pot bonuses, (originally intended for 1st and 2nd place), and awarded them to the 3rd place winner, whom he felt fought the hardest out of everyone who competed in the tournament. The 3rd place winner was given an extra $500 in pot bonuses.

Bowser Will Be Very Strong In Super Smash Bros Wii U / 3DS

In the latest issue of Famitsu magazine, Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai wrote a column that sheds a bit of light on the importance of game balance. With a new week beginning, Sakurai is back at work, currently adjusting characters, and mentions that Bowser is very strong right now.

"At the moment, Bowser is very strong. He’s really strong. Fans of Smash Bros. probably never saw him as too much of a strong character, but this time, his ability to knock others out is very strong," Sakurai said.

The Smash producer goes on to say that Bowser's smash attacks, special moves, and aerial attacks now pack a bit more oomph, and have an increased ability to send his opponents soaring through the air. According to Sakurai, this added effect feels great, and that particular feeling is something he is trying to focus on achieving with Super Smash Bros. Wii U / 3DS.

Although King Koopa's powerful attacks feel great, strong moves in the game are being carefully balanced in order to avoid having overpowered tactics. In order to get things just right, Sakurai says that the development team is spending plenty of time analyzing the stronger attacks in the game, making adjustments accordingly to see what works best.

“Doing things like simply "lowering the performance" can make games lose its fun. Additionally, making a strong attack weaker can take away from the "good feeling". By making adjustments that get rid of all advantages and disadvantages, it can turn a game into a mediocre one without any challenge.”

The Smash development team's approach at balance is a bit more strategic than that which is described above. Instead of simply weakening a strong attack's best qualities, the team is trying to keep the attack powerful, and add weaknesses in other areas. Making attacks more punishable, lessening a character's mobility, or increasing recovery times are just some of the ways the team is currently tweaking characters in order to keep their strong attacks strong.

The series creator also touched on game mode balance, saying that four player free-for-alls and 1v1 bouts are a bit more difficult to get right. As an example, Sakurai says that a move like Captain Falcon's Falcon Punch may work very well in a 4 player free-for-all, but may never land in a 1v1 match.

To close out his column, Masahiro dropped an interesting fact about Super Smash Bros. Brawl, saying that balance for the game started a whopping six years before the game actually released. He also assures fans that he and his team want to release Super Smash Bros. Wii U / 3DS as soon as possible, and give us the best Smash yet.

“The game balance of Super Smash Bros. Brawl started six years before its release, and it most likely goes back even further during its time of development, and it’s never been reformed even through the updates afterwards. We’re at a stage where we’d like to release the new title as soon as possible, and offer something more enjoyable than ever.”