Safe House, the film starring Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds opens this Friday (February 10) and in anticipation of the opening, the good people at Universal Pictures have released a featurette showcasing behind the scenes footage of the intense fights that take place in the film.

One of the many highlights of the action-thriller is the close quarters hand-to-hand combat. Acclaimed fight choreographer and stunt person, Olivier Schneider (Taken, Unknown, The Transporter), trained Denzel and Ryan for weeks to get them prepared for the rigorous fight scenes. Olivier’s genius is also taken to the next level with the direction of newcomer Daniel Espinosa who takes viewers inside the scenes thanks to his up close and personal style of shooting.

Without giving away too much more, check out the “On the Set: The Fights” featurette:

Comic book nerds and videogame geeks rejoice! Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is almost here. A decade after the masses were strung out on hyper combos and triple tag team action, we’re within arms length of touching a product that is sure to make our jaws lock and hands shake with ferocity. At first glance the look of the characters in MVC3 are obviously updated and more visually enhanced than it’s predecessor, but the gameplay and overall feel are as smooth and fun as we remember them.  Combo hits, hyper combos and tag-team hyper combos are still as simple as Paris Hilton’s life. Things can actually be made easier when put on simple mode where special moves and hyper combos can be preformed with the single push of a button. Literally.

Hit the jump for more images and the rest of the preview

Expect some of the regulars and favorites to come back. Ryu, Wolverine, Chun-Li and Spiderman all return to fight alongside –and against each other– for the greater good. But expect some new faces as well. Chris Redfield (Resident Evil), Sir Arthur (Ghosts N Goblins), and Super Skrull (Fantastic Four) are just a few of the new characters that are all poised to make their MVC debut.  And don’t worry about beating the game in various ways with incredibly detailed methods to unlock secret characters. Just earn game points with every fight and post bail for whomever you wish to unlock. Oh, and by the way, also making a debut is the final boss who’s sure to make comicbook nerds and videogame geeks pants just a little bit tighter.

Marvel vs. Capcom 3 hits stores for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on February 15^th .–Omar Mazariego

During Comic Con Capcom announced what fighting game fans have been waiting for for years. Street Fighter X Tekken will finally come to fruition on PS3 and Xbox 360. Brought to you by the same team behind SFIV and SSFIV the game will include versus, training and tag team modes.

Hit the jump for screenshots from the game.

Capcom just released the street dates for it’s spring games. Check out the list of powerful games.

-Super Street Fighter IV will be coming to the Xbox 360 PS3  on April 27, 2010 in North America and April 30, 2010 in Europe. The follow up to the massively successful Street Fighter IV. There will be new characters, new ultra combos, new online modes, the return of the popular bonus stages. Super Street Fighter IV’s new characters include Street Fighter’s first Tae Kwon Do-styled fighter – the deadly female fighter Juri  plus classic Street Fighters such as Cody, Guy, T. Hawk, Dee Jay, Adon and more to complement the full roster of returning fighters from Street Fighter IV. There will also be new user-selectable Ultra Combos and advancements to the online gameplay and matchmaking.

Hit the jump for more of Capcom’s release dates.

-The Japanese hit title Monster Hunter Tri will finally drop stateside for Wii in April. The western release will feature two new twists. Monsters can fight underwater for the first time and there will be a new Story Mode to ease players into the world of Monster Hunter.

-Lost Planet 2 hits stores on May 18, 2010 for PS3 and Xbox 360.

-Final Fight: Double Impact will be released in April on the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live. This DLC will consist of two side scrolling old school classics Final Fight and Magic Sword.

Xbox 360

From Software

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Ninja games seem to never disappoint, can this one keep the trend going?

Ninja Blade is nice hack n’ slash game that liberally borrows from
past ninja-centric games and tries to form its own identity. On first impression, I’m sure hardcore gamers will dismiss it as a Ninja Gaiden
rip-off with it’s similar story set in modern-day Tokyo. The game
mixes fast hack and slash action and large scale boss fights with an
unthinkable amount of quick time events. As a gaming aficionado, I can
get past shoddy graphics and slacking controls if a game has an
engaging storyline and easy gameplay. Thankfully, Ninja Blade doesn’t
lack in any of those departments. The developer’s put out an amazing
looking game with simple controls.  Don’t you just hate when you HAVE
TO use every bottom on your controller or when you spend just as much
time configuring your controller’s scheme than actually playing the
game?

You play as Ken Ogawa, who, after an alien infestation takes
over Tokyo, as part of an elite ninja force you have to overcome the
massive beasts with the infamous Ninja Blade. Simple, but the
developer’s included the added twist of Ken’s father, leader of the
elite force, using the Ninja Blade against him and leaves Ken for
dead. Ken must now fight alone to eliminate the alpha worms in Tokyo
and restore peace to the city. It’s actually a pretty good Hollywood
flick, which seems to be exactly what From Software has produced.

What I liked most about Ninja Blade was the constant hordes of alien
attacks. Where most games throw one or two aliens at you in an area,
then you move on, Ken will take on hordes of baddies, dispatching them
in spectacular and bloody fashion, and then take a quick breath before
the next wave hits. Even better, the combat takes on three main forms:
hack-n-slash, gun turret sequences, and cinematic Quick Time Events.
None of the three are all that great, with the standard three swords,
two attack buttons, and a few projectile/area Ninjitsu attacks you can
upgrade as you progress. Thankfully,  Ninja Blade never sticks to one
strategy very long. You’ll slash or shoot through standard minions for
a couple of minutes (and its worth noting that you’ll be facing the
same four or five enemy types throughout the entire game) before
coming to a huge boss. An epic battle will ensue, where you’ll
identify patterns, avoid attacks, hack away, and make use of some
ridiculously over-the-top QTE “Todomes” (or finishing moves). Ever
since Resident Evil 4 and God of War popularized QTEs, they’ve become
a crutch employed by developers who want to make their games look
cooler than they really are. Many argue that they have you watching
games more than playing them. These boss encounters are where the game
really shines, so it’s a shame that even they fall prey to its
repetitive nature. Late in Ninja Blade’s ten-hour run, you’ll be
facing some of the same bosses again, albeit with a couple of new
wrinkles in their strategy.

Ninja Blade is about as average as it gets when it comes to an
action-adventure game and once it starts it doesn’t stop till you
reach the end credits, literally. You might want to consider a rental,
but if you’re in the mood to just slash some monsters and see some
crazy stuff, Ninja Blade delivers. –A.K.