What’s New In Games This Week

Once again, we’ve got a bunch of sequels on deck. One is straightforward and expected. Another is technically its own game, but a spiritual follow-up. And the third is the comeback of the year.

Madden NFL 12
[BoxTitle]Madden NFL 12[/BoxTitle] [WatchTrailer]http://heavy.com/games/games-videos/game-trailers/2011/05/madden-nfl-12-game-trailer/[/WatchTrailer] [BuyNow]http://www.gamestop.com/browse?nav=16k-Madden+NFL+12[/BuyNow]

Fans of virtual pigskin know the deal. It’s the only game in town that has the privilege of being able to tap into the NFL license. And thankfully, the folks at EA know what a heavy responsibility they bear. New additions this year includes 25 new plays, enhancements to AI, various rule changes that reflect real life developments, the ability to modify existing plays, new collision systems, throwing motions that are based upon the actual quarterbacks being depicted and even awareness for concussions! Enough for ya? Oh, did I also mention that all the actual mascots and cheerleaders are included? Yup. Plus, it comes out for virtually ever platform out there including. PS3, PS2, PSP, Wii, 3DS Xbox 360


Bodycount
[BoxTitle]Bodycount[/BoxTitle] [WatchTrailer]http://heavy.com/games/games-videos/game-trailers/2011/05/bodycounts-e3-2011-gameplay-trailer/[/WatchTrailer] [BuyNow]http://www.gamestop.com/browse?nav=16k-bodycount[/BuyNow]

Remember Black for the PS2 and OG Xbox that essentially was the Burnout of first person shooters? Well Black 2 never happened, due to differences with publisher EA, but all those folks ended up landing jobs at Codemasters, who are now publishing its spiritual successor, aka Bodycount. So once again, expect a barrage of bullets, shards of glass, and bits of building all about. Absolutely everything will be destructible, a promise made ever sweeter thanks to the added horsepower of today’s hardware. Oh, and thanks to today’s tech as well, more than one person can finally get blown to bits. Xbox 360, PS3


BloodRayne: Betrayal
[BoxTitle]BloodRayne: Betrayal[/BoxTitle] [WatchTrailer]http://heavy.com/games/ps3/2011/04/bloodrayne-betrayal-trailer/[/WatchTrailer]

Most of you might also remember BloodRayne, that third person action romp starring some sexy vampire chick that feed off Nazis or something like that. Great concept, rather blah execution. So give a bonus check to the person who figured it was a good idea to initiate a revival of the franchise by handing it over to WayForward, one of the best work-for-hire studios out there. Their idea of making her even sexier and actually awesome was turning her into a 2D babe and actually covering some skin. Trust me, it works. Helping along the way is the finely tuned, platform-esque bloodshed. And trust me, there’s still plenty of the red stuff. PS3, Xbox 360