Archive for July 4th, 2007
Rubber: Let’s DS Facening!
And the non-games don’t stop! At least now, they’re bringing an interesting add-on peripherial. This August, Nintendo is releasing Otona no DS Kao Training (AKA Face Training). The game, co-developed by Fire Emblem devs Intelligent Systems, teaches facial exercises that make skin more elastic and help mold a prettier face.This beauty theory is called “facening.” Users try to mimic facial expressions and can see how close they are via the new camera peripheral that plugs into the GBA slot. That new camera add-on makes what could just another pedestrian non-game actually seem enticing. Really enticing.
Face Training [Nintendo via Game|Life]
Slip-Slidin Away: UK Drops Down World Development Rankings
As a child of the 80’s, growing up with C64s, Amigas and my PC instead of a NES or Atari, I always just assumed Britain was the epicentre of world gaming. And, hey, epicentre might have turned out to be a bit strong, but it was still punching well above its weight when it came to churning out top-shelf games. Cue the 1990s and it’s business as usual, with many of the decade’s defining titles coming out of British studios. Cut to 2007, though, and it’s a different story. A sad story, one of buyouts, studio closures and an overall decline in market share that has seen Britain drop from being the world’s #3 developing nation (behind the US and Japan) to #4, snugly behind Canada.
There’s a number of reasons for this, from the rest of the world simply “catching up” to the strength of the British Pound to a lack of government support that is seeing the industry flourish in other countries. This has prompted Minister for Creative Industries and Tourism Shaun Woodward to call (for the second time) for a games academy to be established in the UK:
Video games have become an incredibly important industry, but our superiority in this sector cannot be taken for granted. In the last six months the UK has slipped from the third largest manufacturer to the fourth - behind Canada. We need a games academy for graduate studies. We need to attract the right talent and fund and support the industry.
So long as they do something. British games were/are usually a little…different. Think Bullfrog in their day, or The Bitmap Brothers. Be a shame to lose that kind of influence on the market. If it’s not already lost.
Woodward renews call for ‘games academy’ [MCV, via The Guardian]
Easy Peasy: Metroid Creators Say Wii Development A Piece Of Cake
Being that it’s hardly at the cutting edge of graphics horsepower, and may or may not involve quantities of both duct tape and GameCubes, the Wii shouldn’t be too hard to develop for. And it’s not! Metroid Prime creators Retro Studios even say so:
The development environment is a cakewalk to work with, and we feel we took advantage of what the hardware has to offer. I’m partial to the bloom lighting, it’s a really nice effect, and we could never have done that on GameCube.
So…it’s just as easy to develop for…and is a better piece of kit. Wii developers, your excuses as to why 95% of games have looked shit-awful just went flying casually out the window, fell eight stories and smashed into a million pieces on the footpath, killing three innocent pedestrians and injuring a further seven.
Interview: Retro Studios [Play]
Rumble In My Jungle: UPDATE: Sixaxis Rumble Plot Thickens
UPDATE: Brice from PlayStation Magazine France just dropped us a line to let us know that the technology in question comes from a feature they ran with rumble-makers Immersion. Just Immersion, not Sony. So while it is indeed possible any updated Sixaxis would contain such technology, it remains speculation for now.
The Sixaxis, it’s not nailed down. Far from it. PlayStation Magazine France mag are reporting a rumour that not only will we be seeing a rumbling version of the control pad appearing later this year, but that the rumbling will be location-sensitive, with feedback coming not just from a single internal motor but from several different locations on the pad at different intervals, settings and speeds (ie triggers, thumbsticks, etc). If you’re worried this will blow out the cost of the controller, they also report that the technology is less expensive to build than the tech used in the Dualshock. Oh, and that it’ll be compatible with PS2 games via a PS3 firmware update. If (IF!) this all turns out to be fo’ reals, jolly good show, Sony.
PSM france reveals new info on PS3 SIXAXIS rumble [Maxconsole, via Engadget]
Help Me If You Can…: Australian Games Industry Still Feels Threatened
Cast your minds back a few months, and you’ll remember a little spat the Australian games and film industries were getting themselves into. Well, today, its ROUND TWO: FIGHT. The Game Developers Association of Australia (GDAA) have issued a public statement calling on the Australian government to start ponying up. Click on through for the full thing, but suffice to say they’re not happy with the lack of financial support the local industry receives.
The Game Developers Association of Australia (GDAA) calls on the Federal Government to commit to extending to the video game industry the 40% rebate which was recently granted to the film industry ” said Tom Crago, President and Greg Bondar CEO of the of the Game Developers Association of Australia (GDAA).
The video games industry in Australia is experiencing a serious fiscal inequity and imbalance compared to the film and special effects industry sector of the entertainment industry. The government is guilty of a serious neglect of one of the fastest growing industry in the creative and entertainment sector.
The video game industry in Australia is in a unique position to attract much of the current AUD$30 billion international industry and all that is required are sensible tax concessions for international investors - exactly what the exceedingly well looked after film industry receives.
By 2011, the worldwide gaming market will be worth $48.9 billion at a compound annual growth rate of 9.1% during the five-year period with the Asia Pacific region remaining the region with the highest overall spending on gaming during the period and reach $18.8 billion
in 2011, according to a PwC forecast.It is now critical that the Federal Government starts to recognise the economic contribution of the video game industry in Australia through its domestic sales of over $400m, export growth of over $100m, employment of over 2,000 young Australians (average age of game developers is 28).
“The Federal Government could do much to learn from the Canadian government which has created over 10,000 jobs in video game development over the last four (4) years though the right financial incentives” added Tom Crago and Greg Bondar.
We estimate that at present there are 8,500 people directly employed in the video game industry in Australia. (This is broken down as follows: Development: 2000. Publishing and Distribution: 1500. Retail & Sales: 5000.) With the production rebate extended to the game development industry we envisage that, skills shortages not withstanding, the number of people employed in game development in Australia could triple to 6000 within three years. We would also expect to see growth in the other areas of the industry.
It is not unrealistic to think that by the end of 2010 we could have 18,000 people directly employed in the video game industry in this country.
The GDAA now calls on the Federal Government to immediately review its commitment to the Interactive Entertainment (video game) industry by also extending the 40% film rebate to the video game industry.
Passionate stuff. The move already has the backing of the Victorian government, with Tim Holding, Victorian minister for Information and Communication Technology, saying
This is a very important change that we want to see the Federal Government make.Just as the Film Finance Corporation has been established to support the film industry, so too should there be a game finance corporation.
Which is all good stuff. You could make the argument that the Australian film industry is a piece of shit and needs more money too, but proportionately, the GDAA have a pretty solid case. If the film industry gets government cash to keep it afloat, it’s only fair games get some too. Especially since I’ve played more Australian-developed games in the last few years than I’ve seen Australian movies. And that I wouldn’t be alone in that regard.
Feature: Halo 3: Secrets Beyond the Beta
Thousands of people played the Halo 3 beta, but we played beyond. Here is GamePro’s recount of everything you have yet to see. Prepare to be mesmerized.
News: Microsoft to increase Xbox 360 warranty to 3 years
Microsoft announced on Thursday that it will increase the warranty of the Xbox 360 from one to three years due to “an unacceptable number of repairs.” The move is expected to cost the company more than $1 billion dollars for its most recent business quarter.
Screen Update: Halo 3
Equipment and weapons galore. Explore both the Covenant and UNSC arsenal in high-res detail.
Screen Update: The Club
We’ve got 31 awesome new screen shots!!
Screen Update: Vampire Rain
It’s raining vampires.
Screen Update: FIFA Soccer 08
FIFA gets its yearly upgrade in these FIFA 08 screens.
Review: Vampire Rain
Lots of effort goes into the creation of mediocre games, but man-hours of labor alone are no substitute for loving craftsmanship. You can tell when the developers just weren’t trying, and every aspect of Vampire Rain bears those revealing scars.
News: EA introduces new play modes for Wii sports games
EA unveiled on Thursday plans to offer two unique control modes for future Wii sports games made by the publisher. “Family Play” will enable simplified control schemes for casual gamers while “Advanced Play” offers more control for experienced gamers.
Screen Update: FIFA 2008
Ronaldmiinho makes his debut appearance in these FIFA 08 screens!
Screen Update: Ninja Gaiden Sigma
Ryu and Rachel are here, with more polygons than ever.
Screen Update: Darkest of Days
Be prepared to face the darkest days of our country in these screens!
Screen Update: The Club
Check out these 31, brand new screen shots!!
News: Microsoft to launch Xbox 360 Elite in Japan this October
Microsoft will launch the Xbox 360 Elite in Japan on October 11 the company said on Thursday, this despite the console’s struggling sales in the country.
News: Sony: PS3 “in a marathon rather than a sprint”
Sony officials said on Thursday that their soft selling PS3 is in a “marathon” not “sprint” race in a statement made to GamePro.
Always Bet On Black: The E3 2007 Kotaku Fantasy Betting Pool
What earth-shattering, fanboy spirit-crushing announcements will we see revealed at E3 2007? Will Sega finally announce the Dreamcast II with 3D glasses and R.O.B. support for a 2009 release? Will Sony drop the PLAYSTATION 3 price to 2000 Microsoft Points? Will Nintendo reveal they’re going third party? How many Xbox 360s will break down during the MS keynote? You’ve read our laser precise E3 predictions, now it’s time to bet on them. Woah. Woah! Throttle back, Turbo. We got some rules to discuss! So keep reading.
The rules, in order of importance.
1. You may make one comment and one comment only. This comment represents your wager and should not be used to discuss other’s bets. Any further comments beyond the wagering comment will disqualify you.
2. Do not add your own predictions to the list of bets. Please use the comments in Our E3 Predictions post for your own speculation.
3. You have 500 Kotaku Points to bet. The minimum bet is 50 KP per prediction, however, you can blow your whole load with a 500 KP bet.
4. All bets must add up to 500 Kotaku Points. Any bets totaling more or less than 500 will be thrown out. Check your math!
5. Place your bet like so:
100 KP - New Nintendo DS redesign. (20:1)
50 KP - Metal Gear Solid 4 will be playable. (10:1)
250 KP - PLAYSTATION 3 gets a price-cut. (3:1)
50 KP - Game Boy and Game Boy Advance games added to Virtual Console. (10:1)
50 KP - Microsoft announces Zune 2. (50:1)
What do you win? We’re not quite ready to reveal yet, but expect that whomever walks away with the most points not only scores internet credibility (approximate value is 1/10 of 1 cent) but will also secure a pile of E3 swag the likes of which may have never been seen. I’ve personally got plenty of coveted mystery stuff to give away. Don’t worry. We’ll make it worth your while.
Got it? Betting ends Sunday, July 8 at 12 AM EST (Saturday, July 7 at 9 PM PDT). Get to it! And good luck!
