Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4

Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Batman and Rock Band have all come alive through the colorful Lego blocks on consoles over the last five years. This time around, the focus will be on recreating the world of Hogwarts.

Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4 will be based on the first four books and films in the Harry Potter series: Sorcerer’s Stone, Chamber of Secrets, Prisoner of Azkaban and Goblet of Fire.

Much like the world of previous Lego games, Lego Harry Potter will allow the player to explore Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and areas around the school, casting spells, attending lessons and solving puzzles along the way. According to the Lego Harry Potter website, the game is the “largest, most detailed Lego game location ever built.”

Fans will be glad to know that the game still supports the drop-in, drop-out co-op style of play, and with more than 100 playable characters, Lego Harry Potter looks to support the same all ages appeal as the previous Lego games.

Those looking to play with others can have someone jump in at any time through the use of split-screen or they can head online in the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 versions to find a suitable accomplice there.

Although players start off with a spell-less Harry, making progress wins the ability to make potions and learn more spells, which in turn opens up more areas of Hogwarts to explore.

So whether you’re looking to explore the Forbidden Forest or be crowned champion of the Triwizard Tournament alone or with a friend, those looking to see all that Lego Harry Potter has to offer can pick up the game on Tuesday, June 29.

Naughty Bear

If less plastic blocks and more mischief is your thing, Naughty Bear is the way to go.

A brand new game by Artificial Mind and Movement, previously known for their work on WET, Naughty Bear is a game that can be as cute and fluffy as it is dangerous.

The story starts out on the Island of Perfection with all its bear inhabitants getting together for a birthday party – all except for Naughty Bear. This one particular bear was not invited to the party because he is too naughty, and even though he attempted to bring a gift to the party, the other bears laughed at Naughty Bear, forcing him to retreat back to his house in shame.

The game itself provides players with a sandbox-style world for them to explore, plan and finally, execute the rest of the bears in order for Naughty Bear to have his revenge.

Featuring over 30 unique environments and useable weaponry, Naughty Bear gives the player the ultimate choice in completing their goal.

Throughout the game, players will receive “Naughty Points” for harassing or taking down the fellow bears of the island. The more daring and devious the mischief, the bigger points a player will receive.

Along with its open-world single-player campaign, Naughty Bear also has four mischievous multiplayer modes. Jelly Wars pits one Naughty Bear against a team of bears that must attempt to survive the Naughty Bear onslaught, while collecting jellies to combine and create the biggest jelly possible. Cake Walk is a free-for-all game type where players have to hold onto a golden cupcake for the longest amount of time to be declared the winner.

Golden Oozy gives one player a powerful gun with unlimited ammo, the “Golden Oozy.” Players have to fight off the player with the Golden Oozy, and after taking him down, the gun is up for grabs for the next player to wreck havoc.

The last mode, Assault, matches two rival teams of bears with their own base. While one side attacks, the other defends their “Golden Bear” for one minute. After that, the game play switches with the opposite side defending.

Naughty Bear and all his devious shenanigans can be found in stores on Tuesday, June 29.

Must see of the week! Singularity

Raven Software’s upcoming first-person shooter, Singularity, might provide a change of pace to the rest of the games being released this week.

Singularity takes place during the 1950s, at the height of the Cold War era, where Russian experiments involving E99 (Einsteinium) have caused a catastrophe, which inevitably leads to a government cover-up.

Players take on the role of Captain Nate Renko, a Special Forces recon squad member sent in to investigate the mysterious island of Katoroga-12. Throughout the game, players will explore an ever-shifting environment as time constantly alternates between 1950 and the present day.

Although Singularity features weapons typical to a first-person shooter, the game also allows the player to utilize an artifact known at the Time Manipulation Device.

The TMD has five functions, with each allowing the player to achieve the desired effect, whether it is on objects and items or enemies.

Age Revert allows the player to manipulate an object or human through time. If the player encounters a broken bridge thought to be beyond repair, the TMD can be used to revert back in time to make the bridge useful again. The same goes for objects or obstacles blocking a player’s path or cover that an enemy is stationed behind. When Age Revert is used on an enemy, they can be forwarded in time and turned into a pile of dust and bones or reversed in time, returning to a primal state and attacking friend and foe alike.

Deadlock creates a sphere of energy that stops anything it comes in contact with. Enemy fire and projectiles are restrained once they hit the sphere or it can be used on enemies to freeze them in their tracks.

Impulse causes enemies to be batted around with pulses of energy, resulting in the death of smaller enemies while those already dead can be reanimated again.

Gravity allows the player to target an object and move it around, while freezing it in time. A rocket can be stopped in mid-air, allowing the player to prevent it from exploding at their position.

Chronolight, not unlocked at the beginning of the game, allows the player to view things as they were previously in other time periods in specific areas. With the use of Gravity, Chronolight will allow players to bring objects from the past for use in the present.

Players who can’t wait to see how the story unfolds on Katoroga-12 Island can expect to see Singularity in stores on Tuesday, June 29.