Author: Game Infliction

These days video games have gotten so complex, expensive, and time-consuming to develop that it’s apparently not worth the trouble of churning them out to coincide with every major movie release or hit TV show. While fully-fledged video game adaptations used to be commonplace for every major genre blockbuster, you’re now more likely to see some cosmetic DLC in an existing game like Fortnite. Meanwhile, few savvy licensors have taken a wildly groundbreaking approach with games based on their intellectual property: quality over quantity. Controversy aside, Hogwarts Legacy is the latest game to transcend “licensed game,” instead being received as a Very Good Video Game (…that just happens to be based on a licensed property.)

That said, if you don’t care about Harry Potter, your mileage with Hogwarts Legacy may vary. The same is true of Marvel, DC, Star Wars, et cetera, and if you flat-out hate what a game is about, it doesn’t matter how it plays. Conversely, die-hard fans may have higher expectations for games based on something they love, setting them up for disappointment.

Mostly though, what a licensed game is based on is what gets our attention in the first place, and our appreciation for the source material will allow us to overlook shortcomings that might otherwise be deal breakers. Here are a few licensed games that hold special spaces in the Beyond team’s hearts for better (or worse.)

Spider-Man 3 – Jada

Let me preface this with saying I love Spider-Man. It was one of my first comics and I’ve owned nearly every game at some point or another. Thankfully Spidey’s games have been more good than bad, unlike some other heroes, but that just wasn’t the case with Spider-Man 3, the official video game tie-in for the 2007 movie. Spider-Man 3 was a game many of us were seriously hyped for. We’d just gotten Spider-Man 2, one of the best Spider-Man games ever made, and with the addition of the symbiote suit, our expectations were justifiably high.

Now keep in mind this was 2007: the PS3 had launched roughly six months before Spider-Man 3 released and there were a few good games, but outside of Resistance: Fall of Man and Genji: Days of the Blade, there wasn’t really much in the way of good action or FPS games. I knew it was a risk seeing as how most movie tie-in games were laughably bad, but it didn’t stop me and countless others from shelling out our hard-earned cash for our favorite friendly neighborhood Spider-Man because the last one we got just three years earlier was so good. How could they screw this up?

I really wanted to like Spider-Man 3, so I gave it the college try (fitting since I was in college at the time), but it just didn’t really give anything back but disappointment. It was a step up from its predecessor in a few areas, like exploration, which benefited from the addition of subways and sewers, but for the most part it was underwhelming at best. The game’s bugs proved to be as much of a threat to the web-slinger as the boss battles, which were slow and uninteresting. Combat seemed to have taken a step backward, and the side quests ranged from barely passable to ‘I’m turning this off and going to bed’.

I did get around to finishing it eventually but it definitely made me pause before picking up future licensed games, so if nothing else Spider-Man 3 saved me from instantly buying more of those. Insomniac’s 2018 Spider-Man game proved the studio knows what they’re doing, and I have faith in the sequel – but if they announce another after that, you’ll have to forgive me if the words “Spider-Man 3” put my spidey-sense on edge.

Star Wars Super Bombad Racing – Josh

What even is a bombad? According to the Star Wars wiki, it’s a Gungan word that means ‘superior.’ So in essence, the title of this Mario Kart-clone is ‘Super Superior Racing,’ a title befitting one of the first video games I ever owned and sunk meaningful hours into.

The Phantom Menace was released right around the time I first started playing video games. And look, I’m not saying that either the movie or this game are good, but as a young kid looking to spend allowance money on media franchise products, there wasn’t much else.

In Star Wars: Super Superior Racing, you could play as bobble-head versions of all your favorite TPM characters in their own matching hovercraft-karts, slinging rockets and lightning at each other with randomized items. Was it better than Mario Kart? No. Was it as good as Mario Kart? No. Was I good at the game? Hell no. But I still sunk hours into it because it wasn’t a game that lived in its own universe.

The characters were all ones I recognized from the film (even Sebulba), and the race tracks were all locations in the Star Wars universe. And if I’m being honest, I probably would have never known the names of these planets were it not for this game. And while it was true that Mario Kart also is based on pre-existing Nintendo iconography, they were all still from Nintendo games; there was no multimedia crossover.

And that’s the magic of licensed video games. Even if you don’t really like the game, you’re going to enjoy it as a fan of the franchise since you’re consuming it in a new form. For me and SW:SBR, the experience was all more enriching since I wasn’t playing this game in a vacuum, and being introduced to gaming and Star Wars with this game was probably the reason I’m both a Bombad Star Wars and video game fan today.

Aqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro-Am – Akeem

This is a golf simulator disguised as an action-adventure game, beneath the cloak of a kart racer based on the Adult Swim show Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and was something that caught my attention when I was younger solely based on the name. Released on PlayStation 2 back in 2007, it’s just as quirky and weird as the animated series it was based on, combining various genres into one oddly entertaining package (if you’re a fan of the television series of course).

The entire voice cast reprised their roles for the game, which made traversing the game’s nine holes of golfing goodness all the more fun. It was as if you were playing an episode of the show, with quips from Master Shake, Frylock, Meatwad and other colorful characters from Aqua Teen Hunger Force.

Obviously it wasn’t really a crowning achievement for the PS2, with mediocre graphics and a play time of around 4-8 hours, but the fact it took these wacky characters and delivered a rather unique experience, much like Adult Swim itself, was enough. IGN gave it a 5 back in the day, but that didn’t stop me from buying it! I was ‘Sofa King’ excited to cue this one up and hit the golf course. It was my introduction to both golfing games and ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt, and sadly my only experience with either since. Just goes to show you the power of licensing – it can make you play something you otherwise might avoid.

Indiana Jones and The Fate of Atlantis – Max

When you’re a kid there’s no right or wrong way to get into a piece of pop-culture. Nobody accuses a six-year-old of being a fake Batman fan because their introduction to the character was a Batman pool toy or a pair of Batman pajamas rather than a copy of Year One or a Christopher Nolan movie.

I don’t remember if I’d seen the Indiana Jones movies the first time I played Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, the now-classic 1992 adventure game. I recall enjoying the movies when my mom rented them from the video store, but it wasn’t until I played the game that I really appreciated Indiana Jones as a character. If anything, it made me want to rent the movies all over again.

Fate of Atlantis, if you’re unfamiliar, is from the golden age of Lucasarts’ point-and-click adventure games. It’s got the same basic mechanics as Monkey Island and Day of the Tentacle, except it’s about Indiana Jones. As the name suggests, Fate of Atlantis centers around the search for the mysterious lost continent. Indy and his psychic companion Sophia Hapgood bounce around in search of clues, solving puzzles, and outwitting Nazis. One of the more ambitious things about it is its branching narrative; depending on choices made early on, the player is sent down one of three paths (wits, fists or team) that each feature completely unique challenges tailored to different playstyles. It might lack Harrison Ford and the music of John Williams, but it features an extremely passable Ford impression courtesy of Doug Lee and some charmingly faithful MIDI covers of the Indy score.

To a kid in the mid-’90s, some movies from the 1980s that take place before World War II might as well have been released in the 1930s. A game that came on a CD-ROM, on the other hand, was obviously a modern thing. At the time, the Indiana Jones franchise was barely a decade old, but Indy was nowhere to be found in the action figure aisle or in Saturday morning cartoon form, which made the archeologist seem completely archaic. Ironically, Bugs Bunny and Batman, characters who actually did date back to F.D.R.’s presidency, were everywhere. Like, you’d turn on MTV and they’d be there in Seal and R. Kelly videos. The ’90s were wild.

Anyway, the lack of any playground buzz surrounding Indiana Jones made The Fate of Atlantis seem like some forgotten relic I’d unearthed. It didn’t hurt that I had it for Mac, which usually got snubbed in the games department compared to my friends’ PCs.

As luck would have it, my fond feelings for this old game aren’t just a case of rose-colored glasses and fanboy nostalgia: in a lot of ways, Fate of Atlantis is the lost fourth Indiana Jones movie. It was directed by Hal Barwood, a contemporary of Lucas and Spielberg who’d been working with both directors since THX-1138 and Jaws respectively. He’d decided to try his hand at game development and after successfully translating The Last Crusade into a point-and-click adventure, Lucasarts let him tackle something original. The original plan was to adapt an unused Chris Columbus screenplay for a fourth Indy movie into a game, but Barwood scrapped that and we got The Fate of Atlantis instead.

The ‘licensed games’ developed by Lucasarts have always had a leg up, considering the licenses are basically in-house, and Lucasfilm started funneling money into game development long before most major movie studios considered games to be anything more than another merchandising arm.

By the time Kingdom of the Crystal Skull dropped into theaters with all the grace of an antique refrigerator, I’d gotten used to being underwhelmed by new additions to beloved Lucasfilm movie trilogies, but I ultimately walked away unfazed. After all, I’d already gotten a phenomenal fourth Indy movie. It just happened to be a computer game. The jury’s out on Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny but no matter how it turns out, just thinking about it has me itching to replay Fate of Atlantis. So, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some Orichalcum beads to collect.

God of War: Ragnarok developer Santa Monica Studio didn’t realise that allies spoiling in-game puzzles would be annoying for players wanting to solve everything themselves.

As reported by Games Radar, Ragnarok’s narrative director Matt Sophos and story lead Richard Gaubert told MinnMax that the feature, which fans voiced as a point of frustration, was an oversight of the development team.

“It didn’t get exposed to us really until after the game came out, because even when it had play tests we never saw feedback about the characters talking too much or spoiling things too quickly,” said Sophos. “The timing for the first hint was too aggressive and should have had a much longer countdown timer before something comes up”

“It wasn’t until the game came out and it was like, ‘well s**t’. If we’d known that we would’ve responded,” added Gaubert. “It’s not going to happen again.”

Despite the frustration expressed by players, the developers didn’t say whether or not a patch would be released that addressed the hint system, either by slowing it down or providing an option to turn it off completely.

This could be in part because Ragnarok was otherwise incredibly well received, having sold 11 million copies as of February 1. It also won several awards at the likes of the New York Game Awards, The Game Awards, and more.

In our own 10/10 review, IGN said: “God of War: Ragnarok is an almighty achievement and creates a new high that makes many of its peers look mortal by comparison.”

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer and acting UK news editor. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.

We are a week away from Sony releasing its second-generation VR headset, the PlayStation VR2, which promises a dramatic leap in performance and interactivity, as well as features we haven’t even seen in other consumer VR headsets such as eye tracking, higher resolution, haptic feedback, and adaptive triggers.

While PSVR 2 has a lot of advantages over rival headsets on paper, there is a distinct disadvantage of being a tethered headset in a market that has tilted more in the direction of headsets with their own processor and OS, which don’t require additional hardware to function (e.g., Meta Quest 2). But despite this, the PSVR 2 is setting itself up for success… just not in the way you think.

PSVR 2’s Path to Victory

The true measurement of success for PSVR 2 comes down to three things: how developers will take advantage of the new tech the headset offers, a strong showing of exclusive content, and, most importantly, meaningful long-term support for the PSVR 2. PlayStation VR 2 needs to have a solid stack of exclusive first- and third-party exclusives that will entice people to choose Sony’s new offering over its competitors.

The PSVR 2’s technology is impressive and a major upgrade compared to its predecessor. With an 110-degree field of view, 4K HDR, and support for up to 120Hz, the gaming experience is a nice upgrade over both its predecessor and the Meta Quest 2. Built-in eye-tracking will also be useful for increasing the resolution of whatever you are viewing when playing on PSVR 2. For example, First Contact’s upcoming project, Firewall Ultra, showed a teaser of gameplay that showcased how the headset’s eye tracking allows you to aim with your eyes to ensure the most realistic precision while playing. PSVR 2’s improved 4K resolution will definitely help with immersion too, making the interactive experiences that play out right in front of you more realistic.

Here’s a look at our latest Firewall Ultra gameplay clip from the #PSVR2 trailer that went live today!

We’ve been having a BLAST using the eye tracking features!

Of all the immersive new features announced, what are you looking forward to most? #VR #Immersive #PS5 pic.twitter.com/YtDRGA1Uib

— First Contact Entertainment | Firewall Ultra PSVR2 (@firstcontactent) February 8, 2023

Elsewhere, PSVR 2’s Sense Controllers bring the signature features of the PlayStation 5 DualSense – such as haptic feedback and adaptive triggers – into VR games. The controllers can detect finger touches too, and this technology can potentially add more immersion and help enhance the experiences to make them stand out from anything currently on the market.

While the technology is certainly impressive, it’s the software – the games, the interactive experiences and so on – that will be the primary measure of Sony’s success with VR. What good is the best VR headset if it doesn’t have the games line-up to support it?

While the original PlayStation VR had a strong showing in the first three years of its lifespan, with games such as Firewall: Zero Hour, Astro Bot: Rescue Mission, and Blood & Truth, by the time thePS5 was gearing up for launch, support for the headset fell off a cliff. Sure, games like Moss: Book II and NFL Pro Era were still released for the headset, but these eventually made their way onto other VR gaming headsets, some with more updated technology over what the original PSVR had to offer.

The PSVR 2’s launch lineup continues to grow ahead of release – at the time of publishing there are 42 games available on launch day, which is a big number. But when you take a closer look at the game’s coming, only three are true PlayStation exclusives: Horizon: Call of the Mountain, as well as free VR modes coming to Gran Turismo 7 and Resident Evil Village.

Avid VR gamers likely already own at least a Meta Quest 2 or PC VR and have no doubt already played many of the games confirmed for PSVR 2’s line-up. So while it’s a decent selection for those who’ve never played VR, or are upgrading from the original PSVR, it’s disappointing for those already into it.

Nevertheless, the arrival of PSVR 2 is a golden opportunity for Sony to improve and enhance console VR gaming and to place PSVR 2 in a position where it can share the spotlight with PlayStation 5. To do that Sony needs to ensure a solid and steady flow of games for PSVR beyond the first few years of its lifespan, similar to the first-party lineup for PS5, especially considering the headset retails for $549.99 – more than either the digital edition or disc-drive PS5 console itself.

Sony is already putting resources into this achieving this goal. First Contact is working on Firewall Ultra, due sometime this year, and Supermassive Games is readying The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR for a March 16 release. Those will help bring momentum in the first year of PSVR 2, and additionally there’s the VR mode for Resident Evil 4 Remake, which is an exclusive feature aiming to compete with Resident Evil 4 VR, which is exclusively available on the Meta Quest 2.

Lastly, another example of Sony’s renewed approach to VR is in the hardware. The first-gen headset required PS Move controllers, which were released during the PS3-era and were six years old when PSVR released. In contrast, the PSVR 2 supports brand-new, dedicated Sense Controllers not only designed for VR, but take advantage of its sister hardware to help better immerse you in games and help push VR gaming to new levels.

PSVR 2’s Stiff Competition

PSVR 2 is entering a very different marketplace than it did in 2016, thanks to its hefty price tag and the fact you also need a separate console that is still relatively hard to find, .

The Quest 2 is PSVR 2’s main rival and its most attractive feature is that it does not need any additional hardware: you just put on the headset, power it up, and start playing. And despite a rare price increase roughly two years after launch, the Quest 2 remains relatively affordable because it does not require additional hardware like a PC to get it working. Meta has appealed to the mass audience and its contributions to VR have helped it break into the mainstream, even if the games are still pretty niche compared to the broader gaming market. That’s not factoring in how many Quest 2 exclusives have come to the headset or are on the way either, most notably 2021’s Resident Evil 4 VR.

It’s inevitable the PSVR 2 will be compared to the Meta Quest 2, which is currently the most popular VR headset on the market. However, PSVR 2 has the backing of its manufacturer, a stable of first-party studios — some of which are dedicated to VR game development like Firesprite – and, over the last nearly 30 years, Sony has built a portfolio of in-house IPs that could make the transition to VR. Hopefully Horizon: Call of the Mountain is the first of many.

Truthfully, it’s unlikely that PSVR 2 not beat the Meta Quest 2, but frankly it doesn’t need to. While we could sit here and compare the two and how the Meta Quest 2 is arguably one of the most successful VR headsets ever created, comparing these two headsets is like comparing apples to oranges.

As February 22 approaches, I’m eager to see how the PSVR 2 performs with its launch lineup. But I am more invested in seeing if Sony will recognize the initial impact and potential PSVR 2 has to ensure it invests in its success in the long-term.

Taylor is the Associate Tech Editor at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.

Nintendo has announced that Wave 1 of Splatoon 3’s Expansion Pass will arrive on February 28, letting players return to the original Splatoon’s Inkopolis.

Announced in a tweet from Nintendo UK (below), the release date was shared just one week after Nintendo revealed the contents of the first DLC pack during a Nintendo Direct but neglected to specify anything beyond a spring 2023 release window.

Inkopolis, which was the hub area in the original Splatoon, will return in all its glory. Players can go shopping at all the classic stores, walk down their favourite streets, and see performances from Squid Sisters Callie and Marie during Splatoon 3’s Splatfest events.

? Attention Inklings and Octolings!

Head over to Inkopolis when the first wave of DLC from the #Splatoon3: Expansion Pass releases on 28/02!

Buy the Expansion Pass now: https://t.co/k7IbIVScrx pic.twitter.com/JR66QDOnem

— Nintendo UK (@NintendoUK) February 15, 2023

While Inkopolis as Wave 1 can’t be purchase by itself, players can obtain it alongside the rest of the Expansion Pass content for $24.99.

Though the remaining DLC is yet to be revealed fully, Nintendo did announce that Wave 2 will include a new mode called Side Order, in which players are seemingly tasked with painting a colourless word.

In our 8/10 review of the base game, IGN said: “Splatoon 3 takes everything that Splatoon 2 built and makes it greater with an abundance of smart changes and satisfying new weapons and bosses.”

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer and acting UK news editor. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.