Archive for October 7th, 2006
Inside Edition Exposé On Mario Bros.
In 1988 Inside Edition tackled hard hitting questions like “What is Mario’s last name?” This Bill O’Reilly intro’ed fluff piece on then still non-mainstream Nintendo and “fantasy game” Super Mario Bros. is classic, embarrassing stuff. The video is an absolute must see if only for the glorious flowing locks of Nintendo game counselor Ron Leingang.
Muchas gracias, Dom.
More Wii Retail Shots Reveal New Accessories
Can you taste it yet? Can you taste that delicious Wii launch right around the corner? If not, maybe these spy cam shots of the Wii endcaps for retail will whet your next-gen appetite.
The pics are from a Target warehouse, one loaded with Wii endcaps ready to be stocked with only the finest of Wii accessories. Get your (likely) first look at Wii dog tags, lapel pins, controller gloves, disc holders and all sorts of other nonsense you really don’t need.
In addition to the blurry cellphone photos, Engadget got their hands on a CompUSA pricing sheet. Wanna see how much retailers are paying for the Wii, the games, the controllers? It’s all there. Check it out.
Wii retail details: markup and endcaps [Engadget]
The Holy Grails Of Video Game Collecting
Wait. Holy grails? Isn’t that like naming your band The Lone Rangers? Shouldn’t there be only one? Whatever. Racketboy’s excellent Retrogaming site counts down the most sought after—meaning extremely expensive but not exactly good—video games from the last 30-odd years.
From the Intellivision port of Congo Bongo to the surprisingly rare Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega Master System version), prepare to be shocked at the financial limits people will go to scratch their collector’s itch.
I won’t spoil it for you, as the trivia contained within makes for entertaining reading. But when the #2 entry on the list, Kizuna Encounter (come again?), goes for over $10,000 to the obsessed rich you might just feel a hint of regret that you didn’t pick up some of these titles when they were knew. I’ll take comfort
Wii dog tags, Wii controller gloves, Wii money making schemes
Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Peripherals, Business
We’re queuing up a separate post about the markups on all this wonderful consumer cruft, but for now be satisfied with these glorious spy cam shots of Wii goodies awaiting placement in a shopping center near you.
Picking up some rubberized “controller gloves” might not be a bad idea, if you happen to get sweaty palms and want to keep your vases intact. (Don’t tell us to use the wrist strap. We don’t need no stinkin’ wrist strap. The Joystiq krew lives and plays dangerously.)
[Via Engadget]
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Spies report that the enemy has returned our salvo!
Filed under: Mac, PC, Retro, Online, Competitive Gaming
G. Karber thinks he’s funny. Actually, he might be right, based on our experience with his awesome text-based adaptation of Pong. But before you go and waste 30 seconds playing the game, read our review, in the style of “new games journalism:”
- Karber’s Pong is really rad! It has sweet grafix and when you win with your mouse it makes you’re score higher! LoL!
- We give it a 10. But since it’s free, we give it a 11! Our review goes to 11! LoL!
- You can make three moves. (1) Move your mouse up to click on “Move the great paddle up!” and then click your left mouse button and then wait a moment and then you will move the paddle up. (2) Move your mouse to click on “Hold the paddle steady!” and then click your left mouse button and then wait a moment and then you will keep the paddle steady! (3) Move your mouse to click on “Lower the paddle!” and then click your left mouse button and then wait a moment and then you will move the paddle down! The controls are very intuitive and show the potential for the innovative control scheme that comes with personal computers.
- It is PC and Apple Macintosh compatible!
- This is one you don’t want to miss.
- LoL!
[Via Retroblast]
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Invader X Mekanism Skateboards Are Totally Rad
French artist(e) Invader has made a name for himself with his mosaic bitmap “graffiti” found plastered all over the world. Invader even had his own shoe, which our fearless leader often struts around in to gain street nerd cred. Now he’s collaborated with Parisian skateboard company Mekanism once again to create a limited (there are three) series of skateboards with his trademark tiled treatment.
From left to right, the pieces are titled Matrix, Above the City, and Rubik, with the final of the three crafted from “repurposed” Rubik’s Cube pieces. The first two are created with more traditional tiles, with Matrix featuring mirrored eyes to differentiate it from the previous Matrix 100-edition series of boards from 2005.
The three pieces are for sale at the Mekanism web site, with detailed pics of each available for your ogling pleasure. No prices are listed, but I’m guessing that if you have to ask, you can’t afford ‘em.
Invader x Mekanism Skateboards [via Cool Hunting]
Retailers Prepping Wii Space
Kotaku reader Georage was kind enough to send some snaps from his local target, showcasing the forthcoming retail space for Nintendo’s Wii. Taking over the space formerly dedicated to DS hardware and software (where’d it all go?), there’s no mention of the word Nintendo at all.
With only 6 weeks left until launch day, expect to see Nintendo increasing their retail presence in a big way. A couple more pics after the jump.
Finally, the kids at Infendo also had a loyal fan send in a photo of a similar display case. Here it is for scale.
This is one time where a blog post fails to capture the excitement of a retail shelf sounding the arrival of the next generation of console.
Microsoft’s Japan-only Blue Dragon bundle [update 1]
Filed under: Microsoft Xbox 360, RPGs
If you’re wondering why us round-eyes ain’t gonna see a price break on the Xbox 360 this holiday, Japan might have something to do with it.
See, Microsoft has put together this sweet, Japan-only Blue Dragon bundle that probably ain’t gonna do much to enhance the company’s bottom line (read: it’s likely subsidized), but will (they hope) juice the 360’s pitiable sales in that country.
For just ¥29,800 (approximately $252 at the time of this writing), Japanese gamers will walk off with a basic Xbox 360, the Blue Dragon game itself, a limited-edition faceplate (aren’t they all?), and five Blue Dragon figurines, according to the fine folks over at Siliconera.
We’ve inserted images of the goods after the break.
[Update 1: Post comments have been locked as the bulk of comments posted were off-topic.]
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“Dmitri” and the anonymous source
Filed under: Culture
After numerous incidents of trolling “Dmitri” was banned from Sony Online Entertainment’s Star Wars Galaxies. During an in-game commitment ceremony of lesbian avatars “Dmitri” called them “anti-Patriotic,” “scum of society,” and “bunch of liberal, hippie, homo lovin’ scum.” In 2004 he also wrote, “No negros can walk this street by order of the furher [sic]” and “We’re dedicated to sending jedi to the gas chamber! Send a tell!” There is a laundry list of other incidents but “Dmitri” blames his banning on SOE having, “No room for individuals to have more conservative, traditional leanings … that’s unacceptable.”
Interestingly enough, for a man that believes so strongly in his conservative ideals, “Dmitri” requested to stay anonymous in a story regarding political protesting within video games for the November issue of Computer Games magazine. Computer Games magazine obliged him and Lara Crigger wrote the article A Tale of Two Protests. The piece examines the right-leaning “Dmitri” and the liberal Joseph DeLappe, who writes the names of dead soldiers within America’s Army as part of his “Dead in Iraq” project.
Anonymous sources hold a role in journalism, but that role is still debated in journalism schools across the country. Ideally they should never be quoted and only used to connect the dots of a story until the journalist can find a source willing to go on the record.
Features Editor of Computer Games magazine Cindy Yans says, “Sometimes they have a good point, but don’t want to give their name. I’m still kinda on the fence about it.”
Should “Dmitri” have ever been quoted in the first place? When journalists publish political ideas without a name to stand behind them, does this add fuel to the reasons games journalism is bogus?
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This Day in Gaming, October 7th
1999: EA releases Xena: Warrior Princess for PS in the US. Alright readers: we want confessions. Who owns/has played this game? And how is it? Because we TOTALLY need to laugh at you…err, with you. Oh, screw it. Yes, we will probably be laughing at you.
2002: Microsoft releases Blinx: The Time Sweeper for XBOX in the US. The game is promoted as ‘The Worlds First 4D Action Game’ because of its time-manipulation elements. Interestingly enough, the US version of Viewtiful Joe was released on the same day a year later. It’s a BIG day for fans of time.
2005: EA releases Black & White 2 for PC in the US. We think it should have been called Grey - not for symbolic reasons, just for faux literary-style depth.
Have gaming history, trivia, or famous birthdays you’d like to see in TDIG? Drop us a line at tdig@kotaku.com
Rumor: EB/Gamestop To Employees “Zip It!”
We received the pictured (and alleged) internal memo from a reader today, one that was designed to politely ask all EBgames and Gamestop employees who would like to remain employees to keep their online traps shut.
I’m a manager at a EB/Gamestop location and recently we recieved this great little scare notice to pass around the store. Basically it’s been sent in response to all of the news about the PS3/Wii Preorders, as well as to scare employees off from buying PS3’s and selling them online.
You can click here to see it full sized, but the gist of the internal communication is that employees should obey corporate communication guidelines and keep manager hearsay and company policies offline. Meaning, sending in memos like this and having us post them will most likely get you canned.
With EB/Gamestop employees generally being game enthusiasts, its not uncommon to see them posting all manner of info on message boards, often raising the nerd ire of their fellow posters. This more often than not means bad press for the company and their oft-considered slimy policies.
More rumor-mongering after the jump.
And in addition to a story about bootleg games that you posted a week or so ago. Recently we received a shipment from the home office of “resurfaced” dvds, which contained MANY bootleg movies that were taken in on trade, and reshipped out. When we contacted upper management regarding the selling of bootleg DVDs, we were given the same response of when bootleg Game Boy Advance games were taken by accident by an employee, “Does it look real? Well then you might as well [sell] it.”
That’s depressing, if true, and the exact reason I will absolutely never buy a pre-owned Game Boy Advance or Nintendo DS game on eBay or at my local specialist shop. Buyer beware, kids. Make sure you ask to inspect your games and discs before handing over your hard earned allowance and/or salary.
Gamestop Knowingly Selling Counterfeit Games? [Kotaku]
Raid with the big boys
Filed under: Mac, PC, Online, RPGs, Strategy, MMO
One of the most jarring transitions for players of massively multiplayer games like World of Warcraft happens when newbies realize that pick-up groups won’t help them acquire the game’s phattest lewtz (see figure at right, arrayed in full epic gear). When this happens, newbies either: (a) whine about how unfair it all is or (b) shut up and join a guild.
Still, newbs could use a little help making the transition. Luckily, a do-gooding Paladin by the name of Coriel thought of that with his guides (part one, part two) to end-game raiding in WoW.
Good luck. Don’t spend all your DKP on one drop.
[Via Joystiq's WoW Insider blog]
[Image source.]
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More Video Game Time = Bad Grades
Who’d have thought? Oh. Right. Everyone. According to a study published in the cleverly titled Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, found that students who played video games or watched television in lieu of actually studying or doing homework performed worse than students who did not. This is a quote:
“Our data support the recommendation that parents limit weekday television and video game time to less than one hour and restrict access to adult media by limiting exposure to cable movie channels and R-rated movies and videos,” wrote the study’s author, Dr. Iman Sharif of Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.
The number of students who had poor performance rose as weekday television screen time surpassed three hours and time spent playing video games rose past one hour on weekdays, found the study.
Wow. So, more time dedicated to beating hookers to death with a 9-iron might lead to poor school performance? Consider us stunned!
Too much time with TV, video games cuts school performance: study
How modders saved Oblivion [update 1]
Filed under: Hacks, PC, Microsoft Xbox 360, RPGs
Pixel Rage has compiled a list of user-made modifications for Oblivion that should never have been necessary (i.e. features that should have been in the game out of the box). Oblivion, for all its praise, is strewn with bugs and other maladies that degrade the overall experience. You might find that harsh and overcritical, but we think its warranted to hold a title that spent over three years in development (on an engine the developer had been using for almost eight years) to higher standards.
The modifications listed include:
- More realistic weather patterns, vegetation, and habitat, including the addition of birds and insects.
- Murkier, more transparent / realistic water effects.
- Light that shines through windows at night.
- Adding side effects to drinking too much wine (it’s about time we get double vision for dipping to much into Skingrad’s finest … ).
- Inventory list customization.
- Interjections of silence within the constant soundtrack (a clever way to add to the atmosphere).
- Unique icons for spells.
- Various quest-specific fixes.
It’s wonderful to see the community perfect the game, but what are Xbox 360 owners to do? When the “vampire cure” quest was found to be broken, PC users could fix the problem themselves, while console gamers were forced to reload an earlier save (or, in worst situations, restart the game). Bethesda is currently working on Fallout 3 using a variation of the same engine used in Morrowind / Oblivion; let’s hope they get the kinks out this time.
[via Penny Arcade]
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Kirby Squeak Squad Gets Official Site
Despite feeling generally underwhelmed by the whole Kirby Canvas Curse experience and having a general distaste for Kirby the character, I’m still wicked psyched about HAL’s pink puffball’s next DS outing.
Why the Kirby gushing after completing and then whining about Canvas Curse? It’s the gameplay videos, stupid! The official site has a very brief, but sugary sweet embedded look at the more traditional Kirby platformer.
The game will surely deal with some very adult issues, like Kirby coming to terms with having a piece of cake stolen, while bringing back old school air-swallowing, Kirby copying abilities, and new touch screen controls. The site doesn’t offer too much in the way of goodies (yet), but for those of you wanting a better look at the game who don’t mind a little Japanese, I recommend you check it out.
Kirby Squeak Squad Official Site (Japanese)
Good News? Diablo Trilogy Announced
Bad news? It’s a bunch of books. You know, Blizzard, I play games so I can avoid the crushing boredom of looking at black ink on paper, not so I can pretend to be literate. When I want to read something, it better be a game FAQ or an instruction manual.
In Birthright, the first book of the new Diablo trilogy, The Sin War, the eternal conflict between the angelic forces of the High Heavens and the demonic hordes of the Burning Hells has spilled over into Sanctuary — the world of men. Now, Sanctuary’s destiny, and that of every mortal soul, lies in the balance.
A must-read for gamers and fiction fans alike, The Sin War trilogy, written by New York Times bestselling author Richard A. Knaak, lays out the basic foundation for the lore of the Diablo universe. The second novel in the trilogy, The Sin War, Book Two: Scales of the Serpent, is forthcoming from Blizzard and Pocket Books.
Okay, I’ll admit to actually partaking in the occasional metaphysical detective novel or sociological non-fiction title. But please, I’m begging you, announce Diablo III so we can all move on with our lives!
Diablo: The Sin War: Book One: Birthright [Blizzard Online Store]
Full Auto Producer Drops PS3 Online Details
This week’s radiOPM podcast featured Full Auto 2 producer Mike Gallo from Sega of America who talked in great detail about the company’s upcoming PlayStation 3 exclusive launch title. The OPM guys prodded Gallo about the online portion of the game and what user experience we can expect when taking our PS3’s through a series of internet tubes.
We use Gamespy as part of our backend. And we do support your user profile, or whatever the final name for that’s gonna be for the [PlayStation 3], that’ll be what gets logged for stats.
OPM: SO WHEN YOU GO INTO NETWORK PLAY, YOU’LL SEE SORT OF A BROWSER?
When you first turn on the machine it logs you in automatically, I think you can change that in the settings. You have a user ID and an online profile, thats set up through the PlayStation, we don’t have anything to do with that. That’s all done through the PlayStation Network. When you log in and as long you have an ID and you’re an active online member, when you go to the online mode, you’ll get a menu option, you’ll get to pick ranked or unranked play, then you’ll see what games are available and then jump into one of those.
More about stats, what was dropped from the 360 version, and more after the jump.
OPM: AS FAR AS STAT TRACKING, IS IT ALL WITHIN FULL AUTO? IS THAT OUTSIDE?
When you play ranked play, your stats, pretty basic set of stats, wins, losses, will get uploaded to Gamespy. You’ll be able to see, I think we actually have it sortable by… its world wide and monthly or all-time, so you’ll get to see who’s ranked where. You’ll be able to access it from our Web site, as well, so you can look at those stats independently of the game.OPM: ACHEIVEMENTS ARE BIG ON 360, DID YOU GUYS THINK ABOUT THROWING IN THAT CONCEPT FOR THE PS3?
We actually do not have that in Full Auto 2. It’s a feature we had to regrettably not support, a lot of it was just because of that moving target with the development timeline, we had make sure our online modes and network play was solid before we added some of that other stuff. Unfortunately, that was one of the things we had to drop.
Bummer. Sounds like Sony won’t be requiring an Xbox Live level of standard feature sets for all online games, but at least the online portion sounds as simple to get into. Gallo also confirms that the game will run at 1080p, feature two-player split screen, pass on SixAxis control features, and a host of other sexy features.
Check out the full podcast for more.
Unsexy Wii Accessory Photos Surface
You know we’re chomping at the bit for everything and anything related to the upcoming next-gen hardware launches when we see Wii heavily watermarked photos of composite cables and say out loud “Coooo-UHL”.
This is not Nintendo fanboy bias talking either. I had the same reaction when I realized that the PlayStation 3 logo guidelines had been published.
But new photos of Wii anything are exciting. The downside here is that these photos are about as un-”sexy” as they come. No cool lighting, no dramatic angles, drab birch veneer backgrounds—kind of takes some of the shine off.
Make the jump for untreated photos of (in order of increasing boredom) the Wii sensor bar, nunchuk controller, console stand, power supply, and composite cable.
In case you missed it, these photos are courtesy of ChinaGBA. Thanks for the tip, creamsugar!
Weekly Webcomic Wrapup: October 1 - 7, 2006
Filed under: Culture, Online, Polls
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Game concept: Limbo
Filed under: Mac, PC, Adventure
Eliot from Hackaday tipped us off to the existence of this nifty concept trailer for game-in-development Limbo. The teaser trailer scores high marks for its beautiful art direction and suggestive physics, but then again, so did the trailer for Killzone 2.
Still, the game’s lead designer (Arnt Jensen) has crunched his way around the game block a few times, so we shouldn’t be so quick to assume that this won’t eventually become a real game, graphs be damned.
In fact, we’ll assume that this project will get done, and we’ll encourage you to join the effort, if you can code C++. Good luck!
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