Skip to main content

Long read: The beauty and drama of video games and their clouds

"It's a little bit hard to work out without knowing the altitude of that dragon..."

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.

Out This Week - 08/07/11

SSFIV: Arcade Edition PC! Air Conflict!

Thank goodness it's the summer. When else would you get a game like Air Conflicts: Secret Wars? It's not even about secret wars! What a brazen beast! Secret Wars tackles the untouched topics of World War I and World War II. Oh they've been used before? Still, two wars for the price of one - no point separating them as they're basically the same aren't they? Oh they're not? Still, can't argue with an aerial combat game at budget price can you? Oh you can? Jolly good.

Nonsensical opening aside, there's bugger all out this week.

Most notably, Steam has secured a timed exclusive on the PC release of Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition. Fighting games are better with mouse and keyboard, always have been. Oh wait they're not?

Another game to look out for or completely ignore this week is Deadliest Warrior: Legends on Xbox Live Arcade. This is the game based on the tongue-in-cheek telly show that pits history's greatest fighters against each other, virtually. New combatants this year include Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace, who wears no underpants, and Shaka Zulu - a high-end restaurant in London.

We'll update the digital releases with eShop

This Week in Shops!

  • Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition
  • Developer: Capcom
  • Publisher: Capcom
  • Formats: PC

What is it? The final release in the Street Fighter IV series - a more incremental step forwards from Super Street Fighter IV. What does Eurogamer think? "A tempered update that lacks the immediate wow factor of its predecessor, but offers an extra layer of refinement on an already winning formula. Casual players can compare the new dragon punches, while the hardcore have sheets of revised frame data to analyse while coming up with fiendish strategies to beat the new dive kick shenanigans. A fitting end for what's been one of the most intense joyrides in gaming," wrote Matt Edwards in Eurogamer's Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition review.

15 minutes of SSFIV: Arcade Edition.

What Else?

  • Air Conflicts: Secret Wars (PC, PS3, 360)
  • Deadlist Warrior: Legends (XBLA)
  • Dead Block (XBLA)
  • Fortified Zone (3DS eShop)
  • Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp (3DS eShop)
  • Puzzle Fever (3DS eShop)

Chart Predictions!

Each week one of the team steps up to predict the UK all-formats chart. The following predicts the outcome for the week beginning Friday 8th July (to be reported on Monday 11th July).

Martin Robinson, Features Editor

"The big question is can Air Conflicts: Secret Wars, the week's sole physical release of note, really topple Zumba Fitness? Which is a bit of an easy one: no, no and once more no as the summer drought continues. With Wimbledon having once again fizzled out with nothing to celebrate for home fans, Virtua Tennis 4 will no doubt tumble as fast as David Haye on a Saturday night in Hamburg, but will that leave room for the current sport du jour, the Tour de France? Highly unlikely, and as much as I admire Cyanide's recently released sim it's unlikely to be troubling the top 40, meaning that next week's charts will make for familiar reading. A solid cinematic run could boost Transformers: Dark of the Moon, and as the post-release marketing starts to kick in for UFC Personal trainer I reckon the fitness title could also climb to the top 40's higher reaches."

  1. Zumba Fitness
  2. L.A. Noire
  3. Lego Pirates
  4. Transformers: Dark of the Moon
  5. UFC Personal Trainer

Last week, Eurogamer TV editor Johnny Minkley attempted to predict the future. Our fancy table below shows you, at a glance, how badly he did.

Position The Truth The Prediction Result
1 Zumba Fitness Zumba Fitness YES!
2 Lego Pirates of the Caribbean L.A. Noire NO!
3 L.A. Noire Lego Pirates of the Caribbean WRONG!
4 F.E.A.R. 3 Top Spin 4 RUBBISH!
5 Virtua Tennis 4 FIFA 11 EH-ORRRR!

Your Chart Predictions!

Last week you predicted that Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D would place inside the top 10. You were wrong, but not by much - 38 per cent voted top 10, while 35 per cent said 11th or below. The latter was correct - Resi Mercs 3D finished 21st.

This week it's the turn of Air Conflicts: Secret Wars. Where will it finish - on its nose in the ground or sky-high on cloud jubilation?