Archive for November 2nd, 2006
BioWare Reveals Dragon Age For PC
1UP has the first screen and gameplay details of Bioware’s upcoming fantasy role-playing game Dragon Age from the newly re-launched and re-named Games For Windows (nee Computer Gaming World). Subscribers to the ink-on-paper version of GFW should start seeing their copies show up soon, if it’s not already in their hot little hands.
Gameplay highlights and design decisions from the game include:
The story is dark-much darker than the usual BioWare fare-and influenced by “realistic” modern fantasy like George R. R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones.
The game uses an evolved “tactical real-time combat” style of Baldur’s Gate, only in 3D-you queue up orders for multiple party members, pause the game when you need to think, and your party members will be able to execute coordinated attacks.
Some are calling Dragon Age a spiritual successor to the Baldur’s Gate series sans strict adherence to the D&D rule set. Plus it’s got dragons! And dragons be awesome!
Games For Windows Magazine Reveals Dragon Age [1UP]
PlayStation 3 Kiosks Hits Toys “R” Us In NYC
Destructoid’s Robert Summa, surely en route to scope out Tickle Me Extreme Elmo’s to shill on eBay this holiday season, got some footage and photo snaps of the freshly installed PlayStation 3 kiosk at the flagship Toys “R” Us in Times Square. The above video shows that the kiosks are equipped with (at the very least) a Motorstorm demo, but not all are currently operational. Check the D for photos not nearly as artifacted as that YouTube clip.
That’s right: start calling your local Toys “R” Us now and demand that they install a PS3 kiosk just for you.
PS3 playable at Toys R Us Times Square [Destructoid]
Fox McCloud Joins Super Smash Bros. Brawl Cast
At today’s portion of Nintendo World 06 taking place in Nagoya, Japan, the company showed off a new trailer, “comprised almost entirely of gameplay”, for the upcoming Wii fighter Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Included in that new trailer was an appearance by new Super Smash Bros. Brawl addition Fox McCloud as a playable character.
Fox joins Pit, Meta Knight, Samus (Sexy Time Zero Suit T&A Version), Metal Gear Solid’s Snake, and personal favorite Wario for the Wii brawler blowout.
Unfortunately, the game is not yet playable for the attendees of Nintendo World, but we hope to have trailer-watching impressions up soon.
The Best Pac-Man Joke Ever
I’m sorry, I just couldn’t help but laugh out loud at this perfectly executed pie chart. And it’s so rare that I do audibly giggle at a pie chart that I had no choice but to post it.
Hilarious pie-chart/video-game joke [BoingBoing]
EA Announces Tons of New Titles
During today’s earnings report, in which the company boasted of its $784 million quarterly revenue, EA CFO Warren Jenson let slip that a few new, if not entirely unexpected, titles would hit during the companys current fiscal year. I don’t think you’ll need to sit down for this one.
There will be another Lord of the Rings. There’s a new SimCity game in the pipeline and the next-generation version of Black. Those things alone are all new, relative to fiscal ‘07.
In addition to those titles, which may or may not hit before April 2007, the end of their current fiscal year, EA also has the Sims 3 in development, as well as Sims software built for the PlayStation 3 and Wii platforms. Gamers can also look forward to a new Road Rash game, as well as titles based on the Harry Potter and The Simpsons films.
EA also announced that they’re cancelling all future Madden and NBA titles. Kidding!
The Pikachu Circuit Bending Orchestra
Reader Chris tipped us off to the Pikachu orchestra today, a set featuring 12 theremin-esque Pikachu statues, these circuit bent instruments can be seen in action here. Sadly, that’s merely video of a single “Pikaremin” and currently no video of all 12 in action is online. We’ll keep looking though.
kaseoshacho’s photostream [Flickr]
Clips: Karaoke Revolution: American Idol Gameplay
Cool concept, but I’m not sure if it’s really going to hold water. I mean, I love the idea of having B-list musical celebrities pick apart your performance after a bit of Karaoke, but they don’t seem to say much that reflects on the gamer’s actual performance and why they hell are they talking about stage performance? You can’t control that at all. I would love to see the game reduce someone to tears though, that would be hilarious.
Wii To Support Custom Soundtracks? Cool!
The kiosk hounds of NeoGAF snapped a handful of photos of the up and running Gamestop Wii display units, only to uncover a heretofore unknown (possible) option for Monster Games racer Excite Truck.
Appearing on the sound options menu, the SD Card option, seemingly inactive here, leads us to believe that the potential for reading MP3’s from the memory card will at least be an option in one game.
Nintendo has made mention of MP3 playback previously, indicating that custom soundtracks would be available during Wii Photo Channel slideshows. This makes the muddin’ hayseed within want to fire up some Mountain or Skynyrd… hell, any southern rock will do… and pick up Excite Truck at launch. Curse you and your attractive feature set, Excite Truck!
Wii Kiosks [NeoGAF]
Today’s hottest game video: Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess Trailer
Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Action, Adventure, RPGs, Video
The top slot on YouTube today was occupied by Link and crew in a new Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess trailer. It barely managed to pass the second place winner, which was the intro video from the same game. If you ask us, the intro video is a bit more spine tingling, especially with the “Press A + B” menu at the start screen, *drool*. This trailer has no sound effects, no lines, just a (somewhat cheesy) fanfare-tastic soundtrack and lots of video goodness from the game. Link’s wolf transition looks a bit weak, but we’re hoping it’s just a trimmed down version in the vid.
The best comment on YouTube is from agent012 who says, ” wow the graphics are better than the gamecubes!” We’re still not sure if that’s sarcasm or honesty. Check out the video after the break and start jonesing.
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Today in Joystiq: November 2, 2006
Joystiquery
Today’s hottest game video: テイルズ オブ ザ ワールド
Joystiq Interview: Concerned’s Chris Livingston
Playing Dirty: That’s so gay
Joystiq Poll: Where do you read Joystiq?
Metareview - F.E.A.R. (Xbox 360)
News
The New Yorker on Will Wright (in 10,000 words or less)
Wii’s Zelda charms non-gamer, Wii Sports, others fail
GamePro Expo succeeds E3
Sacred 2 expected in October 2007
EA continues to exploit, charging $50 for Need for Speed unlockables
Zelda Twilight Princess trailer and title intro
EA partners with Def Jam records for cross-promotion
Fortune says the Wii name is “scary”
Industry professionals examine next-gen gaming concerns
Dell’s XPS 700 reviewed and PC gaming wars
Nintendo World tour stocked with 88 titles
From Silent Hill to rules and manners
Lost Odyssey hits Japan, demo-style
Miss Video Game competition
Castlevania film gets Rogue distributor
PS3 Ridge Racer: 9 minutes too long?
The XBL microtransaction tracker
Talk, talk, talk
Microsoft developer says Xbox 360 “equal in power” to PS3
Culture
Got cash? Bling that portable system
5 ways to avoid paying full price for games
Do you practice MMO superstition?
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1960 Corvette Wins Gran Turismo Awards’ “Best In Show”
Car owners from around the globe competed to have their auto featured in an upcoming version of popular racing game Gran Turismo at Sony’s 4th annual aptly named Grand Turismo Awards. The contest was held as part of the SEMA conference in Las Vegas. In case you are woefully uninformed, SEMA stands for Specialty Equipment Market Association which, if you ask me, is a terribly boring name for what is supposed to be the world’s largest auto show.
Craig Morrison and his 1960 Chevrolet Corvette beat out winners in five other categories for the coveted “Best In Show ” award and his car’s place in gaming history. Past winners have included an HPA Volkswagen R32, a 1962 Buick Special and a 2004 Honda S2000. Which GT game and platform the ‘Vette will show up on was mysteriously absent from the press release which stated that Sony was looking to “find the hottest car for its next Gran Turismo(TM) property on a PlayStation(R) platform.” The next GT game is set to be released on the PS3, but knowing the notorious tardiness of these titles, we may not see the winning car until the PS5 or later.
Next year I’ll be sure to enter my first car: a rusty old pumpkin orange ‘76 VW Camper Van with pop-up top that rarely starts and falls apart if you look at it wrong. Think I’ll win?!
Make the jump for the full press release.
1960 Chevrolet Corvette Wins ‘Best in Show’ at Fourth Annual Gran Turismo(TM)
Awards, Securing Opportunity for Car to be Featured in World Renowned Gaming
Franchise on a PlayStation(R) Platform
Hosted by PlayStation(R), Awards Ceremony Honors Automotive Excellence Among
SEMA Show Exhibitors
LAS VEGAS, Nov. 2 /PRNewswire/ — In an effort to find the hottest car for
its next Gran Turismo(TM) property on a PlayStation(R) platform, Sony Computer
Entertainment America Inc. held its fourth annual Gran Turismo Awards at the
SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) show in Las Vegas. Hundreds of
entries from the world’s largest auto show entered the competition in one of
five categories, the winners of which were in the running for the top honor.
In the end, the 2006 Gran Turismo “Best in Show” title was bestowed upon on
Craig Morrison and his 1960 Chevrolet Corvette.
Morrison’s Corvette will now be immortalized in the most realistic racing
simulation game for all fans of the best-selling franchise to enjoy. Gamers
can race award winners from 2003 and 2004 in Gran Turismo(TM) 4 which has sold
more than 7.6 million units to date worldwide exclusively on the
PlayStation(R) 2 computer entertainment system. Last Year’s winning Honda
S2000 will be making its first appearance in the Gran Turismo franchise on a
PlayStation platform soon.
“The Gran Turismo Awards has established itself as a perfect forum to
honor those automobile enthusiasts that share a passion for video games,” said
Kazunori Yamauchi, famed creator of Gran Turismo franchise and President of
Polyphony Digital Inc. “There is a strong parallel between the automotive and
gaming industries, and we’re excited to have an opportunity to celebrate that
through the SEMA show.”
About the Judging for the Gran Turismo Awards
Prior to the SEMA show, all exhibitors were invited to enter their car
into the Gran Turismo Awards. The Gran Turismo Awards honor five different
categories, including “Best Domestic,” “Best European,” “Best Hot Rod,” “Best
Japanese,” and “Best Truck/SUV.” From this group, one is saluted with the
coveted “Best in Show” award.
Judges consisted of various respected journalists and personalities in the
automotive industry. Judging for each category is based on the judge’s choice
for a car with well-balanced performance, style and speed. The “Best in Show”
award is selected by the famed creator of the Gran Turismo franchise
– Kazunori Yamauchi.
About the Gran Turismo Award Winners
Held November 1, inside the Hard Rock Hotel at Las Vegas hot spot, The
Joint, award winners and VIPs of the automotive industry held witness to the
fourth annual Gran Turismo Awards ceremony. In addition to the ceremony, party
guests were treated to live performances by iconic rock band Foreigner and
Pharrell Williams’ DJ, Jus Ske. Guests were also granted the exclusive and
enviable opportunity to test their driving skills on GT HD for the
PLAYSTATION(R)3 (PS3(TM)) computer entertainment system, three weeks before
the highly anticipated console goes on sale in the US.
In addition to his “Best in Show” trophy and “Best Hot Rod” award, winner
Craig Morrison will set a new standard for visibility among auto enthusiasts
as his vehicle will be drivable in a future Gran Turismo property. Other 2006
winners include:
“Best European Import” — Don Nicholson, for his 2008 Volvo C30.
“Best Domestic Automobile” — Tajai Das for his 2006 Pontiac Solstice.
“Best Hot Rod” — Craig Morrison for his 1960 Chevrolet Corvette.
“Best Japanese Automobile” — Leigh Guarnieri for his 2007 Honda Fit.
“Best Truck / SUV” — Daryl Klassen & Mike DeFord for their 2006 Hummer
H3.
2005 Best in Show winner Stephen Papadakis and his 2004 Honda S2000 are
getting ready for their video game debut. Past winners include Marcel Horn
(2004) and his one-of-kind HPA Volkswagen R32 and Ted and Sue Richardson of
Oregon (2003) with their 1962 Buick Special. Both cars from 2003 and 2004 can
be seen in Gran Turismo 4 for PlayStation 2.
The XBL microtransaction tracker
Filed under: Microsoft Xbox 360, Business
Microtransactions or: Death by a thousand paper cuts. Sure, it all seemed so innocent at first, but then we started having Oblivion horse armor, Kameo Uno decks and now EA’s Need for Speed: Carbon shows up exploiting the system to its full and most disgusting potential — oh wait, EA already did that charging for Madden tutorials. And how many are willing to pay and feed this exploitation?
A group of writers at GamerFeast created a microtransaction tracker and started keeping tabs. Guess who’s the top offender? (The list after the break) They’ve also broken everything down in spreadsheet form to review with a fine tooth comb, if you wish. It’s a great resource and know we’ll be checking back in again soon.
The top 10 (MSRP + Content):
1. Need for Speed Carbon - $94.97 - Electronic Arts
2. The Godfather - $90.79 - Electronic Arts
3. Chromehounds - $83.73 - Sega
4. Tiger Woods 07 - $74.23 - Electronic Arts
5. Oblivion - $74.11 - Bethesda
6. LotR - Battle for Middle Earth II - $68.74 - Electronic Arts
7. Prey - $59.99 - 2K Games
8. Call of Duty 2 - $54.98 - Activision
9. Lego Star Wars II - $52.49 - Lucas Arts/TT Games
10. Kameo - $39.99 - Microsoft
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More Halo 3 Details Surface
New multiplayer details have emerged from the French edition of the Official Xbox Magazine. After last week’s Swedish mag scans detailing the third Halo outing, we Americans are starting to feel a little bit slighted.
Some of the new multiplayer modes include:
Ninjaball, which - funnily enough - is about getting ahold of a ball, Elimination where the object is to kill off opposing team members [I'm sure there's more to it than that! - ed.] and Tankflag, which is basically capture the flag with an erm, tank.
The mag also has an early look at the anti-vehicle Spartan Laser and the inappropriately named Man Cannon. I think we already hear enough about “Man Cannons” on Xbox Live, Bungie. Can I put in a request for a rename here?
New Halo 3 multiplayer details [C&VG]
Halo 3 Details and Scans [Kotaku]
Fear Grips Capcom
Oh, the irony. Capcom, masters of gaming horror, are afraid. And not of zombies, vampires or any other card-carrying member of the monster squad. No, Capcom are wetting themselves at the prospect of something far more terrifying: next-gen games.
The admission comes as part of Capcom’s annual report to shareholders for 2006. Amidst the usual bombardment of figures, sales and cash-money are these two gems:
“Although…[360, PS3 & Wii]…will offer new ways of playing games and breathtaking graphics, there is some fear of diminished profitability due to the high development cost of these advanced systems.”
See? Fear. They’re shaking in their proverbial boots at the thought of losing a ton of money on next-gen games. So what are they going to do about it?
“In order to curtail development costs, we intend to implement a multi-platform strategy, marketing a single title for a number of different types of game consoles, thereby expanding sales and optimizing our profits.”
In case you can’t put two and two together, that means Devil May Cry on 360, and Dead Rising 2 on PS3.
Capcom Annual Report to Shareholders 2006: Continuing to Create ‘Entertainment Culture’
Clips: Tony Hawk Project 8 Gameplay
I am really impressed with the look of Electronic Arts’ Playstation 3 games so far. First Call of Duty 3, which is simply sublime, and now Tony Hawk’s Project 8, which looks pretty damn hot too.
PS3 Ridge Racer: 9 minutes too long?
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Driving
The Nintendo Nsider Forums are lighting up with glee (and spilling onto Digg) at how horribly terrific it would be if Ridge Racer 7 required a 5 GB install on PlayStation 3’s hard disk drive. Some generous (in favor of Sony) math calculates that the install would take 9 minutes and 46 seconds. The assumption is most PS3 games will require HDD dumps, forcing users to constantly install, erase, and reinstall — these data chunks would fill up the drives fast; certainly the 20 GB model.
Here’s what we know: Ridge Racer 7 will have an optional 5 GB HDD installation feature that’s in place to speed up load times. Currently, Ridge Racer 7 and Genji (4 GB install) are the only games known to include this option. While this will almost certainly change, there’s little reason to believe that HDD dumps will become a PS3 standard (unless you buy Sony’s “it’s not a console, it’s a computer” mumbo jumbo).
Anyways, waiting 9 minutes and 46 seconds for data to install isn’t as agonizing as we’d sometimes like to believe; especially if it’s a one-time (or once in a while) procedure. On that note, let’s wait this conundrum out for a while longer, watch how it develops.
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Castrated Wii Kiosks Hitting Gamestop
Just returned from my local Gamestop, where the store manager informed me that their Wii demo station would be arriving tomorrow afternoon, sans the Wiimote, which would be hand delivered early next week by their regional Nintendo rep. His store and one other would be the first in the Atlanta area to receive the kiosks, with other stores getting staggered shipments up till launch.
I can only assume that the rep has to personally affix the Wiimote for security reasons. All I know is getting a Wii kiosk without a Wiimote is liken to ordering a fully functional lifelike android only to find the genitalia are on backorder.
I’ll see if I can get grab some pics tomorrow. Not of the genitalia.
Rumor: MS To Offer HD Movie Downloads Via Live?
We’ve been hearing rumblings that Microsoft is getting itself deeper into the digital distribution biz—remember when they offered the Battlestar Galactica series recap earlier this fall?—with one of our tipsters sending us a bit of info via SHSIBAE that could possibly confirm that today.
Microsoft will begin offering downloadable HD movies later this month. At launch time- rumored to be around Nov. 22-over 1100 hours of video will be available to rent or purchase through an XBOX 360 connected to XBOX Live.
The rumor also mentions that rentals will run $4 for a 24-hour viewing period, with purchases ranging from $10-15, similar to pay per view and iTunes rates.
As the headline states, consider this a rumor for now (SHSIBAE who?), but also keep in mind that all Microsoft rumors have one thing in common: they’re always true.
Downloadable HD Movies via XBOX Live
Just Cause Sequel Announced
See that car? The one above? The burning wreck? Yeah. That about sums up critical and popular reaction to Just Cause.
Now, apparantly, there’s a Just Cause 2 in the pipeline. Avalanche CEO Christofer Sundberg says this is due to the first game’s “success” (granted, it has performed better in Europe than the US), confirms the return of swarthy Latino hero Rico Rodriquez and says the tropical backdrop will be ditched in favour of a *groan* “VERY large city environment”.
And despite the almighty “meh” this news will muster, this is in fact good news. Like it’s genre-mate Mercenaries, Just Cause is an awesome idea held back “only” by flawed execution. Give them a second chance to dedicate the game to next-gen hardware and iron out the kinks, and we might actually get that True Lies-sim we were promised.
Unless, that is, the game takes place in a very large city environment. Something tells me that’s been done before.
Just Cause 2 Development Revealed [Worth Playing]
Nintendo World 06: The Wii Line Up
Mr. Ashcraft is currently in a tiny Japanese sedan, cruising to Nagoya at top speeds, heading to day one of Nintendo World. What will he be playing? Probably Love & Berry DS all day, texting his wife every 15 minutes with updates on new outfits.
But what will other people be playing? Nintendo announced today that the following titles will be available for Wii wand wavin’ in Nagoya, Osaka and Tokyo:
- Wii Sports (Nintendo)
- Hajimete no Wii: Your First Step To Wii (Nintendo)
- Odoru Made in Wario [Wario Ware Smooth Moves] (Nintendo)
- The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo)
- Pokemon Battle Revolution (Nintendo)
- Excite Truck (Nintendo)
- Wii Yawaraka Atama Juku (Nintendo)
- Super Mario Galaxy (Nintendo)
- Fire Emblem: Akatsuki no Megami (Nintendo)
- Mario Strikers Charged (Nintendo)
- Mario Party 8 (Nintendo)
- Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Nintendo)
- Hajime no Ippo - The Fighting! Revolution (AQ Interactive)
- Call of Duty 3 (Activision)
- Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam (Activision)
- Caduceus Z: 2-tsu no Chou Shittou [Trauma Center: Second Opinion] (Atlus)
- Marvel: Ultimate Alliance (Activision)
- GT Pro Series (MTO)
- Need For Speed Carbon (EA)
- Elebits (Konami)
- Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors (Square Enix)
- Necro-Nesia (Spike)
- Bleach Wii: Hakujin Kirameku Rondo (Sega)
- Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz (Sega)
- Sonic to Himitsu Ring (Sega)
- Cooking Mama: Minna to Issho ni Oryouri Taikai! (Taito)
- Densha de Go! Shinkansen: 06 Sanyou Shinkansen Hen (Taito)
- Furu Furu Park (Taito)
- Swing Golf Pangya (Tecmo)
- Sudoku (Hudson)
- Wing Island (Hudson)
- Kororinpa (Hudson)
- Bomberman Land Wii (Hudson)
- Tsuri Master (Hudson)
- SD Gundam: Scud Hammers (Bandai Namco)
- Ennichi no Tatsujin (Bandai Namco)
- Tamagotchi no Pika Pika Daito-ryo-! (Bandai Namco)
- Dragon Ball Z Sparking! NEO (Bandai Namco)
- One Piece Unlimited Adventure (Bandai Namco)
- Crayon Shin-Chan: Saikyou Kazoku Kasukabe King Wii (Banpresto)
- Bokujou Monogatari Wii (Marvelous)
- The Dog Island (Yuke’s)
- Monster 4X4: World Circuit (Ubisoft)
- Rayman Rabbids Party (Ubisoft)
- Red Steel (Ubisoft)
- Virtual Console games
- Mii Channel (Wii Hardware)
Damn, that’s a lot of Nintendo games. I can’t wait to see how Dragon Quest Swords turns out. Hurry up with the impressions, Mr. Ashcraft!
