Comics Alliance: An AOL Comic Book Community

The holidays are right around the corner and gift buying is in full swing. I've already touched on which PSP Games to buy as well as outlining 20 video games any gamer would love and a few weeks ago I checked in with some books comic, video game, anime and manga fans would dig this winter and now it's onto Square Enix, or I should say new figures from the Square Enix store for Final Fantasy VII Advent Children and Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions. See in addition to being an avid comic, manga, anime and video game fan I love displaying that love with slick looking figures from my Power Master Optimus Prime to Inu-Yasha plush toys. So it's with this love I'm sharing some new figures from Square Enix with you. These are some of the latest figures, but check out the Square Enix Online Store for more, including jewelry and a few figures of Sephiroth that are just plain wicked. Now, onto the photo gallery, just click an image to begin.

Final Fantasy Figures Photo Gallery

Comic fans, it's time to celebrate: Conan the Destroyer has come to your game system, and it's not absolutely awful! With an epic story, expansive levels, gory combat and fair maidens aplenty, Conan is definitely worth a play. You might not want to buy this $59.99 eventual paperweight, but renting or borrowing the title is completely worth it.

I love carnage. I love blood. I love ripping people in half in glorious slow-motion cut scenes and being well-rewarded for my carnage factor. Naturally, I've been looking forward to playing Conan for quite some time. Being a sucker for God of War, I'd hoped that Conan's raw action, epic story and big-boobed maidens would be reminiscent of the series that remains one of the best of all time. I probably wished too hard. Let me break it down for you. You'll hear comparisons galore to God of War, and honestly, it is justifiable. The red, green and blue 'runes' used to power up your weapons, health and magic, (Yes, Conan, hater of Magic in the comic books, uses magic in battle for the game.) bear a striking resemblance to the red, green and blue 'orbs' used for the exact same purpose in God of War. You've got your context sensitive moves, your slow gratuitous dismemberments, t & a aplenty, and of course, larger than life boss battles. Unfortunately for us, despite all the similarities to the original franchise, Conan's imitation-as-flattery just doesn't work quite as well as the God of War series.

With the holidays fast approaching what do you get for the comic, anime, manga, gaming fan on your wish list that they may not be expecting ... a book. Below is a quick list of some book buys non-fans may not know about or really think about getting but are sure to be enjoyed when opened under the tree this holiday season. Remember there are tons of great comic collections out there, like the Dark Horse Hard Cover Star Wars 30th Anniversary books, but what I'm looking at below are those lesser know, off the wall books not falling into the graphic novel section. Agree, disagree, that's what we're here for so chime in.

Warcraft The Sunwell Trilogy Ultimate Edition – Tokyopop
What is It? All three volumes of Tokyopop's Warcraft manga collected and enlarged with a slew of extras. With art by Jae-Hwan Kim (King of Hell) and story by Richard A. Knaak (Dragonlance, Diablo) this is one nice collection. The story is in manga format and tells the tale of the Sunwell taking place in the World of Warcraft setting with familiar locations and characters making appearances.
What's So Special? Besides getting the hard cover and enlargement treatment readers are treated to an afterwards by Chris Metzen, VP Creative Development at Blizzard, a full color new intro to the manga, 8 pages of WoW history, Bios for Knaak and Kim along with unseen sketchers, nice little poster and for WoW trading card fans a special, limited edition card.
Who Will Like It? Video Gamers who like Warcraft or Fantasy games and Manga fans also into fantasy.

It's not just good; it's great to be a gamer this holiday season. A few weeks ago I outlined must-have PSP games for this holiday season, reviewing what each game is about and why a gamer would want it. After taking a step back and looking at the sheer volume of great games hitting this winter I just had to expand, to take on the Wii, DS, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. What I've come up with is a list of 20 games; some for each system that I feel must be in any gamer's library. Is there personal bias in this list, of course, has there ever been a list everyone agrees on? That being said I want to know what you as gamers think, where did I miss the mark, say Zelda on DS? Onto the list and the debate to follow ...

Editors Note: From reading comments it seems most of you think this list is only the games you see below. Click on an image, this is a photo gallery of games with 20 games total including many of those you say must be included. Click an image.

2007 Holiday Must-have Video Games

This holiday season give the gamer on your list a truly great game. Below I've compiled a list of the best PSP games out there, my opinion of course. Each of these games have hit the market this year, 2007. The PSP is starting to hit its stride with not only original games, but revamped ports of games from yesteryear. The price point on these games is also pretty easy on the old pocket books. I will say this up front, I love story. Chris Claremont got me into comics back in the 80's with his work on X-Men while Richard A. Knaak introduced me to the world of DragonLance with Legend of Huma (also made into a comic). That influence, the love of story flows into the games I'm touching on. There are no sports titles and only one puzzle game. Every game here has a story, one worthy of the printed page, ones to be enjoyed by fans of fantasy and sci-fi alike. Check out the games below, watch some video, read some reviews.

Happy Holidays, it's going to be one hell of a PSP X-Mas (or whatever denomination and such you celebrate) ...

Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions – Square Enix
What is it? The War of the Lions, an epic story tied to Square Enix Ivalice Alliance games (FFXIII, FFXII: Revenant Wings). The story of the forgotten hero Ramza Beoulve unfolds in a politically charged tale where family and country is torn asunder as the rightful heir to the throne is fought over. The action unfolds on the PSP battlefield as the classic strategy role-playing game is revitalized for a new generation. Originally released on the PlayStation with treatment on the Game Boy Final Fantasy Tactics has been revamped, filled with new content and fully realized as not just an update, a port, but a gaming experience that crosses console generations to shine as it's always done. What FFT on PSP is, is a truly memorable gaming experience not to be missed.
Why should you care? It's a true classic, and outstanding gaming experience with over 100 hours of gameplay, a deep and engaging story, brilliant character design and a franchise (Final Fantasy) and developer (Square Enix) always associated with excellence in RPG'ing. Recreated in 16:9 widescreen with never before seen cut scenes, a score by Hitoshi Sakimoto and Masaharu Iwata as well as added character classes, not much more to add.
Who will want it? Anyone who missed the boat on the original PlayStation version it it's iterations on Game Boy. This is one deep strategy game with great character design. If you consider yourself a serious gamer, have ever been interested in strategy or role-playing you cannot pass on this gem, a truly outstanding game that stands the test of time. So who should want it, PSP owners that's who. For you real die-hard fans, check out the miniature figures based on the character design of Akihiko Yoshida's design, whose illustrations have been recreated in game.

Naruto Uzumaki, star of the hit anime and manga line from Viz and star of numerous videos games is about to get the next-gen treatment on Xbox 360 with Naruto: Rise of a Ninja. What sets Rise of a Ninja apart from it's predecessors is its' the first title to appear on the Xbox 360, was developed from the ground up as an original title and is looking to take the gamer and drop them into an action adveneture game where the fighting is intense and the world of Naruto more detailed then ever seen before.

Gamers will get to explore the Village Hidden in the Leaves as well a the lands Naruto and his team visit in the anime and manga, but in much more detail as you guide the course of out mischievous ninja. In order to get even more detail, and way more excited about the game, I was fortunate enough to have Sebastien Puel, the Producer on Naruto: Rise of a Ninja answer a slew of questions I threw his way. Puel reveals more detail about the game and even teases at content to come. It's time to learn more about Naruto: Rise of a Ninja from Ubisoft ...

Q: Storyline wise, gamers get to journey with Naruto from the very beginning as he graduates from the Ninja Academy, but just how far will the storyline take us?

The story will take us until episode 80, that's to say the fight against Gaara. We decided to cover this story arch as we wanted to give players a real feeling of progression and achievement. Episode 80 is for Naruto the first time when he realizes his own strength and valor and that he really gets acknowledged by others. He does something of crucial importance for his community – by saving the Leave Village – and we wanted the player to feel this achievement at the end of the game.

Q: So it's safe to assume the story in the sequel to RoaN will pick up right after the originals ending?

First, you are assuming here that there will be a sequel to RoaN – we are not as far right now! But to answer your question, yes, it would make sense to start a sequel from this point.

Naruto: Rise of a Ninja Xbox 360 Screens

Sega has just released the first batch of screenshots for the video game based on the upcoming Iron Man feature film hitting theaters in 2008. The Iron Man video game is set to release in the Spring of 2008 on Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PSP, Xbox 360 and PC so no gamer or comic fan will be left behind when it comes to assuming the role of Tony Stark as Iron Man. The film features Robert Downey Jr. and Terrence Howard, and is directed by Jon Favreau and will hit theater on 05/02/2008.

Iron Man Video Game Images

Tokyopop is not your average manga publisher. They take, in my opinion, a lot of changes with Korean manwha as well as unknown artist in the United States to create a lineup of books that appeal to such a broad audience. They got some great triple-A titles any publisher would drool over (Princess AI, Clamp, Rozen Maiden, My-Hime, Gundam) and a slew of rising stars. Being an avid gamer I love the lineup of game based and inspired titles Tokyopop rolls out, and below I'm going to talk to you about three particular titles. Warcraft: The Sunwell Trilogy, Archlord and Kingdom Hearts II are sure satisfy anyone who's picked up these games yet stand alone very well, from the source material. Its game on, on the printed page.

Warcraft: The Sunwell Trilogy vol. 3
Take the fantastic are to Jae-Hwan Kim (King of Hell) and the elegant story-writing of Richard A. Knaak (DragonRealm) apply each to the rich world of Warcraft and you've got pure manga gold. This is volume three of the Sunwell Trilogy, a unique story spun in the world of Warcraft by Knaak and brought to life by the pen of Kim, and I'll say it again, pure gold.

The Sunwell is the source of all elven power, and it's missing. Volume three reveals what happened to the Sunwell, it's protectors and land it was entrusted too as well as where the Sunwell currently resides ... or should I say in whom (whoops, spoiler!) The story of Anveena, hunted for her ties to the Sunwell, comes to an end in volume 3 as she, Kalec (male blue dragon), Tyrgosa (female blue dragon) and Jorad Mace all find themselves in Quel'thalas, land of the elves, confronted by Lor'themar, an elven captain, and the siren (fallen elf) Sylvanas (hottie on the cover of volume 3). Everyone's fate if tied to the Sunwell, and the evil traitor Dar'khan who's trying to harness the lost power of the Sunwell.

Now I'm not going to go into too much more detail on the story as ... well I'd ruin it if I told you all the events occurring till now. I am not a World of Warcraft player, but for those who are you'll recognize locations and characters appearing in WoW. As a noob to the whole series I found The Sunwell Trilogy utterly enjoyable, easy to read and a true pleasure. The creative team behind this series has a great resume, and I hope to see them teamed up again soon. This is not a cheap cash-in on a hot license, this is a trilogy that stands so well on it's own it could launch a series of books, or maybe inspire more, more stories from Warcraft. If you consider yourself a Warcraft fan, buy this trilogy. If you like fantasy comics, buy this trilogy.

Q: The End of the Week Explosion didn't happen last week. HALO 3 made 170 million dollars in one day and the Explosion team was not immune to HALO fever. Seacord now has no corporeal form and exists only on Xbox Live. Due to these constraints, this week's Explosion consists entirely of transcribed wireless headset conversation. How's life inside the matrix, Seacord?

What's up bro? I think my retinas may have detached so if there are a ton of typos, well, now you know why. I can't say enough about HALO 3. I've all but given myself completely to my Xbox. My priorities have been completely restructured where HALO is now the most important thing in my life. If anyone out there doesn't feel the same way they just haven't played long enough. Such are the wonders of being single, unemployed and slowly developing arthritis in my hands. I no longer know how to interact with people in a social setting and can only converse with people through a headphone. It's has it's downside as my best friend in the real world is the McDonald's drive through guy.

Q: Nerdy TV shows are ruling the airwaves. HEROES, CHUCK, BIONIC WOMAN, MOONLIGHT and REAPER all premiered recently. Did you check anything out?

Like I've said before, I'm sold on Heroes and have TiVo'd Bionic Woman. I gotta admit I started watching Heroes more because 24 was awful last season. It's not starting off the best either. They are doing a great job of telegraphing some of the main story lines. I mean the one with Hiro is pretty obvious and who knows, maybe they'll throw a curve in there somewhere. Sometimes on this show I feel like they are too many story lines that they just conveniently wrap up. Last season I think Claire was brought a lot more in after her popularity skyrocketed. I don't really get what their doing with her now. Anyway as far as these other shows I'll probably only see them if my Xbox explodes. (which it might, no fan and 20+ hours of gameplay per day can't be good).

Before Empire Strikes Back, before Vader tries to turn Luke into his apprentice, there was another. LucasArts upcoming Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, hitting in the Spring of 2008 on most every console, tells the story of Vader's Secret Apprentice, a man he's tortured and trained to hunt down Jedi and do his bidding. Taking place between Episode III and IV gamers will be treated to a unique story where the battle between light and dark is waged on a galactic and personal level. A story where the Jedi still live, and Vader is the evil monster we were introduced to in Episode IV. Just who is this apprentice, where does he come from, where does he go, and how does The Force Unleashed tie into the Star Wars mythos? This is a new chapter in the Star Wars gaming legacy, one without LEGO's, without a Battlefront, one that takes gamers and puts them under the leadership of one of the deadliest Sith to roam the galaxy. For now sit back and watch as the developers give you some background on the Apprentice, support characters in the game and the story backdrop soon to be enjoyed by Star Wars fans everywhere. Get ready for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.

Chris Dooley and I headed over to our local mall's GameStop to check out the throngs of 'Halo' devotees and perhaps even pick up a copy of so coveted game. (Well, not really perhaps, I've had my copy reserved for some time ...) While there were the usual groups of kids that were 'too cool for school' there also were a lot of really genuine 'Halo' fans, ones that were psyched to chew the fat on Master Chief, the comic, and what they were going to do the second they got the game and went home.

This midnight launch pulled out all the stops. Chick-fil-A was on site, handing out three dollar sandwiches to whoever was feeling hungry. A huge candy stand was there offering delicious refreshments for only one dollar each. And then, of course, the piece d'resistance, Dippin' Dots. Seriously, how can you turn down ice cream at a midnight event?

The first question I posed to the willing gamer masses was, 'How long have you been waiting here?' Our answers had a wide range. One group informed me that they were waiting in anticipation since last night at Best Buy. Apparently they'd been misinformed that Best Buy was holding a midnight release last night. Sadly untrue. So from their perspective, they'd been waiting over 24 hours. The first group of Halo lovers in line had been waiting in anticipation since 6 O'Clock. It was around 11 O'Clock when we interviewed them. Their respective ages ranged from 14-16 and they were all SUPER excited about their soon to be third run in with the Chief.

As for 'Halo: Uprising'? The first group of people we talked to had different, but valid opinions. One fan said that the comic was good, but they needed to put in more Elites since they were such a huge part of the series. We don't disagree. Another fan told me that he loved Marvel so much that they could "hand him a turd" and he'd still read it. You GO, Marvel, that's got to be one heck of a compliment.

The 'Halo 3' Launch

Being a die-hard fan of the 'Resident Evil' video game series as well as the first 'Resident Evil' movie, I never lost hope that the film series would find its way after the action-filled, albeit completely lame second installment in the 'Resident Evil' trilogy, 'Resident Evil: Apocalypse'. While 'Resident Evil: Extinction' didn't quite step up as a contender to the original film, it held my interest with its deliciously bloody action scenes and its creative take on a post-apocalyptic world.

The film takes place two years after the initial outbreak in Raccoon City. As always, the evil virus-manufacturing company Umbrella was certain they'd isolated the virus and as always, they were deadly wrong. We meet up again with old friends Alice, Carlos Olivera and L.J, doing their best to survive in a world that has been enveloped completely by the T-virus. You see, not only did the T-virus affect the world's populations turning them into mindless creatures with a serious hankering for some glagnor's human grinds (It's a buncha-muncha-cruncha human!), it also affected the planet's ecosystem, effectively transforming the entire planet into a desert. The T-virus demands that no vegetation get away alive! While it's not explained in the film how oxygen still manages to be produced and our brave protagonists carry on with all plant life pretty much dried up, the barren wasteland does help to set the tone. It's a bleak reality, a bleak future. Earth's survivors have close to no hope, and almost no reason to survive. Enter plucky, yet no nonsense Claire Redfield, a character you'll remember from 'Resident Evil 2' and 'Resident Evil: Code Veronica X'. Played by Ali Larter, Claire's put together what seems to be the last convoy of survivors in America. They search for survivors, salvage remains and generally stick together, like any big, post-apocalyptic family should. While they're doing pretty well, their numbers are dwindling, though nothing like they will once Alice joins them. The convoy is headed to Alaska with hopes of finding a clean, uninfected land filled will hope, promise, love and ice blocks a-plenty. Yes, it really is that cheesy. Regardless, Claire Redfield's convoy is headed there, though not if Umbrella has anything to say about it ... DUM DUM DUMMMM!

Resident Evil: Extinction Gallery

Star Wars fans rejoice. Your gaming needs are about to be met with Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron. This is not some port or retread of a PS2 or PS3 title. Renegade Squadron is being developed by Rebellion, a UK based game development group responsible for such titles as GUN: Showdown and Rogue Trooper. Rebellion is a unique developer in that they also produce comics under the 2000 AD label with titles like Judge Dredd and Nemesis The Warlock. It's this tie to the world of comics, and the storytelling aspects that both gamers and comic fans should get excited about. Battlefront has been known for it's fun multi-player, a feature Rebellion expands on and enhances with a unique Han Solo storyline.

Sit back and get ready to learn about comics, games and geekdom from Rebellions creators themselves, Mike Burnham: Head of Production, Tim Jones: Head of Design and Mike Rosser: Lead Designer.

Q: How were you approached to develop Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron?

[Mike Burnham] Our business development team sat down next to a representative from LucasArts at a games conference a couple of years go. LucasArts just happened to be looking for a top quality developer for the next PSP Battlefront game. We had just successfully finished a number of high-profile PSP titles and are obviously huge Star Wars fans, so it seemed like a match made in heaven... and with a name like Rebellion, it was obviously meant to be!

Q: Were there aspects of the first Battlefront PSP title you've tried to keep in your game?

[Mike Rosser] The first title was very successful, so we tried to retain all that was good about it, and improve wherever we could, adding new content and features. On a general level, we tried to keep the fast and furious action that fans of the franchise expect. Being more specific, the game defaults to an improved control scheme that's new to Battlefront PSP, but we've also kept the 'Default' control scheme from Battlefront II PSP for returning fans.

Sexy video game heroine bouncing all over the place shooting baddies with duel-wield pistols. Sounds like Lara to me ... but wait, it's not! Say hello to Ruby, the latest gaming hottie taking up the good fight in Wet from Sierra Entertainment. Set to hit the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2008 Ruby looks to make gamers forget about any tomb raiding, if the price is right. Will she succeed? We'll find out in 2008, but for now check out this teaser on why you need to be excited about this new gaming bad@$$.

Halo 3 is about to take the gaming world by storm and is rolling out a marketing blitz worthy of any summer blockbuster movie. From Mountain Dew cans to custom controllers, novels, comics and more, Master Chief is going to be in gamers faces non-stop. McFarlane Toy's, long known for their outstanding quality and details in figure creation has unveiled images for the Halo 3 Series 1 Figures along with images of the Halo 3 Vehicle models.

The action figures, sure to grace many a TV, desk ... car dashboard, include Master Chief, Brute Chieftain, Cortana, Jackal Sniper and a 2-pack of Grunts (hey, they're tiny). The vehicles include the ever popular Warthog, Ghost and new Brute Chopper. While Halo 3 hits this Fall, these figures don't hit till early 2008 ... think March. If past Halo games are any indication then there will be no swain in the popularity of Halo, and with Halo Wars on top you'll soon be assembling your very own armies to battle it out. These ain't your daddy's Barbie sized G.I. Joe, this is the real deal in Halo merchandise. Now to tell you about each figure as you gaze longingly at the figures, here's the info from McFarlane's official press release ... enjoy.

Halo 3 Series 1 Figures