Ratchet and Clank and Qwark and Nefarious

Today, Sony revealed Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One at its Press Conference at GamesCom 2010. What makes the game so unique is that it is the first title in the Ratchet and Clank series in which up-to-four players work together to fend off a common foe.

In case the name and purpose did not give it away, this title is pushing to be all about cooperative play, online or offline. Players choose from one of four characters familiar in the Ratchet and Clank universe: the familiar duo along with Qwark and Nefarious. As to why the bumbling Qwark and nefarious Nefarious are working alongside the heroic duo has yet to be divulged, but the Studio Director Chad Dezern says that one major reason sits in the humor in such a group working together, despite their obvious rivalries and clashing personalities.

Each character has their own arsenal of weaponry, and it appears from the trailer that cooperation will be the key for success in many ways: characters can link up together via electric whips or use each other to be propelled into the sky for more aerial attacks and vertical climbing.

The game, being developed by Insomniac's North Carolina division, is not scheduled for release until Fall 2011, but seeing more cooperative games is certainly a good sign for the future of multiplayer gaming.

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THQ Announces uDraw GameTablet for Wii

THQ has unveiled a new peripheral for the Wii: the uDraw GameTablet.

The uDraw GameTablet is a wireless drawing tablet which fits in a Wii Remote, providing not just the ability to draw into the game worlds themselves but also utilize the tilt and motion controls that the Wii Remote established.

With the tablet comes uDraw Studio, an art package in which people draw images using the tablet; the product can then demonstrate exactly what you did to get to the final image and save the final image as a jpg on your SD card. The game allows you to zoom in close for more detailed images, but for the most part, it is a My First Tablet graphics product, from that standpoint.

THQ demonstrated two other titles which use the uDraw GameTablet. One is Pictionary, which for those under rocks, is a game in which a player is given a word and must draw an image to replicate that word. The Wii title will add new challenges to the mix, such as drawing without looking at the screen. It appears to be more team-based than for individuals, but it could be an interesting party title in the future.

The other game shown was Dood's Big Adventure, in which players guide their character through simple platform levels, using both the tablet screen and the tilt from the Wii Remote. Players can also draw objects to help guide Dood through the wacky world he has to traverse. It reminds me personally of the Wii Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter, but with a peripheral twist.

THQ expects to support the product well into 2013, and with these titles, they seem to have quite a bit of coverage in the Wii fanbase.

uDraw GameTablet will launch this holiday for $69.99 with uDraw Studio bundled with it. Stand alone products from it will cost a cheap $29.99 a game.

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Square-Enix is getting Gun Loco

Square-Enix has announced a third-person action arcade shooter exclusive for the Xbox 360: a crazy-looking title appropriately named Gun Loco.

The setting of Gun Loco is in the far reaches of the solar system, where the worst, craziest criminals are sent. Instead of having them in the highest security prison possible, they are blasted into a prison planet given free reign and all the guns they can handle. Of course, the criminals do not want to stay on the planet, and so they are all killing each other to get out!

The characters are reminiscient of Twisted Metal, in that not a single one is as level-headed as they could be. They range from a gun-touting nutjob aptly named Nuts to a bunny-head wearing psychopath named Mifune. These odd character designs were all made by Kenny Wong, the co-creator of Brothersworker action figures. In fact, the models are scanned-in figures, rather than hand-modeled game characters.

The main gameplay elements appear to be a mix of Mirror's Edge and Third-Person Shooters. Players run their characters around the massive levels, sliding under or leaping over cover. While doing all of that acrobatic action, the players can aim and shoot at each other like the madmen they are. Of course, each character has their own special abilities, just to add a bit more insanity into the fast-paced shooter.

Gun Loco will be releasing exclusively for Xbox 360 in 2011, and the site will be launching this week on the 18th.

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