Author Archive
China imposes anti-addiction limits on kids’ gaming
Filed under: PC, Online, MMO, Business
China’s estimated 18 million underage online gamers better enjoy their unfettered play time while they can. State news agency Xinhua is reporting on Chinese government restrictions that will limit internet gaming for minors starting July 15. The reasoning behind the limits? A National Children’s Center report that claims 13 percent of those young Chinese gamers — over 2 million players — are addicted to online games. Apparently, in this case, the good of the few outweighs the freedom of the many.
Reportedly, minors who spend more then three hours a day in-game will lose half their “earned credits” – five hours of gaming a day will lose kids all their credits. Possibly more chillingly, all online gamers will be required to provide their government ID number to confirm that they’re over 18. That’s right — Big Brother is watching you play games.
Previously: China to set three hour limit on MMORPGs
[Via Next Gen]
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Data shows Blu-ray leading high-def disc battle
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Business
Ever since two of the major console manufacturers picked sides in the high-definition movie disc war, gamers everywhere have taken an unnatural interest in the home video market. High-Def Digest has unearthed some new, detailed data on this battle from a recently leaked Sony report (PDF ZIP link).
As of March 18, the cumulative sales numbers show Blu-ray (844,000 total units) holding a slight edge over HD-DVD (708,600 units) in the United States. These overall numbers are less interesting than the historical trend, though — HD-DVD sales were strong through the end of 2006 but have fallen well below rising Blu-ray sales in 2007. Could the slow growth in PS3-equipped homes finally be having some effects on the movie market?
Worldwide dominance for Sony’s new format isn’t settled yet, though. Next Gen reports that a growing number of independent studios in Europe have decided to back HD-DVD to the exclusion of Blu-Ray. So if you like European art house flicks, the choice is clear.
Read - Sony Report Reveals First Look at Absolute Blu-ray and HD DVD Disc Sales Figures
Read - HD-DVD Winning the European Race
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RedOctane site: Guitar Hero 3 coming in Fall ‘07
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 2, Sony PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, Rhythm
It’s not quite an official announcement, but a posting on the Harmonix Suport Center site seems to point to a Fall 2007 multiplatform release for the inevitable third entry into the best-selling Guitar Hero franchise. Responding to a question about platform support for Guitar Hero 2, the RedOctane knowledgebase robot reveals that “Guitar Hero 3 for the Playstation 2, PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii are currently scheduled for release in the United States in Fall of 2007.”
We’ve long known that the new game was being planned for “every significant new platform,” and more recently got all-but-explcit confirmation of a Wii version, but we’re still kind of surprised to see the PS2 on that release list? Wasn’t that system supposed to shrivel up and die in the light of all this fancy new competition? Then again, it would be a shame to let all those original guitar controllers and potential customers to go to waste. Speaking of which, how are Harmonix and new developer Neversoft going to handle the controllers needed for a four-platform release. Will each system get its own specially designed guitar, or could the somewhat touchy Xbox 360 USB controller be modified to be a universal axe? You’ll know when we do.
[Image modified from ahjteam.com. Thanks to everyone who sent this in.]
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Beware the game funding credit trap
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Business
As game journalists, we here at Joystiq get a lot of press releases. As Americans over the age of 18, we get a lot of credit card offers disguised as once-in-a-lifetime deals. Rarely do we get both at the same time.
Enter PeachDirect, a direct marketer that today issued a press release pimping out the PS3 for the relatively affordable price of $20 per month. “This is the machine that everyone wants, and for such a low monthly price, it has never been so affordable,” says PeachDirect Executive VP Gary Bale.
So affordable? Not really. First of all, PeachDirect inflates the price of the 60 GB model to $649, and that’s before the $49 shipping charge. So, already, you’re $99 in the hole compared to going to your local game shop. A small price to pay for such a flexible payment structure, right? Not really. That generous $20/month plan comes with 22.98 percent APR strings attached, meaning it would take 55 months and over $466 in interest to pay off that PS3 at the minimum monthly rate.
We don’t mean to pick on the PS3 here — PeachDirect also offers the Xbox 360 and PSP at similarly “affordable” rates. The point is, no game system is worth going into debt over. Best to save up that $20 a month and endure the wait with a clean conscience and credit rating.
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Kit Kat: Your break from recursive MMOs [update 1]
Filed under: Culture, PC, Online, MMO
If you thought First Life was a brave new frontier on the uncharted expanses of video game comedy, wait until you see this European Kit Kat ad. I don’t want to ruin the ending, but let’s just say that Second Life citizens like to play computer MMOs too. What? The picture above gave away the punchline? Oh well. Have a Kit Kat.
Other Second Life jokes we’re waiting to see:
- Fourth Life: What do citizens of Third Life do when they’re bored? The hilarity never ends! Not to be confused with Forth Life, which is in your newspaper’s comics.
- Pi Life: Your life as a series of random, never-ending, non-repeating events. Alternatively, your life trapped in a circle. Alternatively, your life in a universe filled with pie.
- Half Life: Second Life, but with more guns. And crates.
- One Second Life: A game that only lasts one-sixtieth of a minute.
- Googol Life: A really long life. Not to be confused with Google Life, which is the life of a web addict.
- Zero Life: What the average Second Life player has. *rim shot*
[Update: How foolish of us. It turns out we posted this video last month. But was this a mistake, or a subtle reinforcement of the video's statement? Alright, it was a mistake.]
Continue reading Kit Kat: Your break from recursive MMOs [update 1]
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For Madden speed, it don’t get bester than Hester
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, Sports
Milestones in human speed:
- May 6, 1954: Roger Bannister runs a mile in under four minutes.
- June 14, 2005: Asafa Powell runs 100 meters in 9.77 seconds.
- April 5, 2007: ESPN reveals Devin Hester will have a speed rating of 100 in Madden NFL ‘08.
Not only does EA think Hester is faster than any other football player in history, the noted kick returner is set to become the first player to get a perfect rating in any stat category in the perennial football franchise.
Hester said he was honored by the, er, honor, but not exactly surprised — according to ESPN, “Hester has been known to have been lobbying members of the Madden NFL 08 development team for the top speed rating.” NFL players exerting undue influence on developers? We smell a scandal. Maddengate!
Our main question now is what will happen if someone faster than Hester comes along? Will EA create a 101 rating? Or will the 100 rating eventually become like a “perfect ten” game review — good, but not perfect?
[Update: Fixed the date above. Thanks Products]
[Thanks tevetorbes]
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Kansas schools ban Pokemon. NOT!
Filed under: Culture, Nintendo DS, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo Wii
This is your friendly neighborhood rumor debunker, letting you all know that, despite what you may have read presented as fact elsewhere, the Kansas school board has NOT banned Pokemon products for promoting evolution content, as was amusingly asserted in this Daily Gaming News article.
Evidence to this effect (in rough ascending order of persuasiveness):
- The AP and other national news organizations failed to pick up the story, despite obvious newsworthiness and popular interest.
- National news outlets also failed to pick up the supposed church-led “Pokemon burnings” that supposedly led up to the decision.
- The “Calvary Glorious Christ Church Militant and Triumphant Baptist Temple” mentioned in the article turns up exactly one Google result — the article itself.
- The Kansas School Board web site makes no mention of such an action.
- The ACLU web site makes no mention of the alleged lawsuit against the school board.
- The title bar on every page of Daily Gaming News includes the phrase “Seriously Satirical.”
- Everything on the Daily Gaming News site is an obvious joke, from a preview of Dentist Dentist Revolution to Latin textbooks containing a guild naming chapter.
Remember, just because April Fools Day is over doesn’t mean we can let our guard down when it comes to picking out fake stories. Eternal vigilance is the price we pay for accurate game news.
[Thanks, Keavin]
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USB storage coming to Wii? Not so fast …
Filed under: Hacks, Nintendo Wii, Business
The internet speculation machine has been gearing up of late over a recent press release announcing that Japanese middleware provider eSol has been selected to provide its “‘PrUSB/Host’ USB host stack” for use in the Wii. How to interpret this inscrutable piece of techspeak? Well, the release goes on to state that PrUSB/Host provides “optional Mass Storage class driver enables using USB flash memory, other mass storage device and digital camera as the external storage.”
Many sites (including our buddies at Engadget and Wii Fanboy) have used this announcement to speculate that Nintendo might be planning to announce USB mass storage support for the Wii in the near future. GamingTarget went so far as to say that USB storage on the Wii “looks like it will finally become a reality.” Nintendojo hedged its bets a little more, saying, “It’s not quite an official announcement of expanded storage possibilities for Wii just yet, but Nintendo now has the potential for such a statement.”
The only problem is, the Wii has always had this functionality, and Nintendo has always had the potential to make such a statement. Check out this copyright notice found on the inside of the Wii’s System Setup Operations Manual (from November, 2006):
“This product contains PrFile(r)2 FAT file system, PRmail client library and PrUSB/Host USB host stack of eSol Co. Ltd.”
That’s right … this days old press release is announcing a feature that was already in the Wii nearly six months ago. ESol isn’t announcing a new business deal or a new feature for the Wii — it’s simply trumping up an existing relationship in light of the Wii’s recent success.
We’ve contacted Nintendo for an official comment but, based on the evidence, we don’t think there’s reason to believe Nintendo has changed its current position that this is something they “could” explore in the future.
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Awards to recognize best in game media
Filed under: Culture
Most people with minimal literacy skills know good writing when they see it. But some people, tragically, are unable to distinguish the good from the bad in games writing. For those tragically handicapped people, help is on the way in the form of Britain’s Games Media Awards.
Sponsored by Intent Media (publishers of British trade mag MCV), the just-announced awards will be given out Oct. 11 in London’s Soho Revue Bar (not exactly the Kodak Theatre, but you gotta start somewhere). A dozen awards will be presented for everything from print publications to podcasts with winners “voted by the industry itself” according to the press release. We can only hope this means the journalism industry and not the larger game industry as a whole. We can see the potential blackmail now: “Oh, look who gave my latest game a bad review. I guess I know who I won’t be voting for at the GMAs this year.”
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Logitech blob-jumping advergame actually good
Filed under: PC, Business, Casual
When it comes to online advertising games, our expectations are decidedly low. Basically, if it’s better than whack the fly, we’re impressed. Those low standards notwithstanding, Logitech’s Jelly Jump is actually pretty good.
It seems incredibly simple at first — just use the arrow keys to jump around an on-screen keyboard, hitting the green keys as quickly as possible. But a variety of hazard keys and some clever level design means the action gets tough pretty quickly. The game automatically saves your progress for a later play session, which is good, because getting the best scores on all 50 levels might take a while.
Sure, there’s a coupon for Logitech keyboard if you get through the first ten levels, but we would play this game even without the promise of a good deal. And for an advertising game, that’s saying something.
[Thanks stupidiot]
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Army: Gamers can “take this to the next level” with military service
Filed under: Action, First Person Shooters, Fashion
The goal of the America’s Army game has always been to make military service seem more palatable to a generation of gamers. Now, the army is making that goal more explicit with a TV commercial pushing military service as “the next level” of military games.
The ad starts with a couple of gamers playing a Rainbow Six-alike game for a few seconds before the virtual soldier they’re controlling taps on the glass, startling them out of their revelry. “You look like you’re really into this,” he quips. “You ready for a real challenge?” An announcer comes in to encourage viewers to “find out what you’re really made of, and how far you can go” over a vignette of happy, action-packed military images. Viewers are encouraged to call in and get a copy of America’s Army and a “special interactive DVD,” whatever that is. Our military friend comes back at the end, asking the gamers and the viewer if they’re ready to “take it to the next level.”
Well, are you? Personally, we’re plenty happy using games to get the vicarious thrill of military service without the high risk of death and injury. See if you feel differently after watching the video below.
Continue reading Army: Gamers can “take this to the next level” with military service
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Pac-man + Mii = Pac-miin
Filed under: Retro, Nintendo Wii, Fashion
It doesn’t take much ingenuity to create Mii versions of celebrities like The Office cast, of The Big Lebowski, and some Japanese guys we’ve never heard of, but it takes some true inspiration to make the Pac-man face above, complete with frowning ghost facial hair. For those who doubt such a creation is possible with the Wii’s somewhat-limited palette of face-creation options, we’ve included a video of the process after the jump. As for us, we’re off to the barber and then the plastic surgeon to make this Mii-inspired dream a reality.
[Thanks Luis Camino]
Continue reading Pac-man + Mii = Pac-miin
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Man still beats machine at Guitar Hero
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 2, Microsoft Xbox 360, Rhythm
It’s a scary time to be a human. What with computers matching or improving on human performance in such diverse pursuits as chess and Wii Sports Bowling, the coming robot apocalypse may seem inevitable. But fear not, there is still one power that humans can lord over machines. I speak, of course, of the power to rock!
It’s not for lack of trying on the machines’ part, either. GarageGeeks‘ GuitarHeronoid makes a passable attempt at playing the game with its image-processing brain, human-like fingers, and shapely mannequin body. As you can see in the video below, though, the results are as of yet not terror-inspiring. More like pity-inspiring. Hey, robot, let us know when you can do better than this kid at PsychoBilly Freakout and we’ll stage some sort of rock off. Until then, we’ll be stockpiling E-bombs, just in case.
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A platform game with real platforms
Filed under: Culture, Hacks, PC
Experimental gaming these days is all about playing with reality. From virtual reality and alternate reality to augmented reality, more and more people are trying to merge video games and real life in interesting ways. Sebastien Schmieg’s art project/game Roy Block adds another term to this growing list: mixed reality.
Roy Block uses real life, handheld wooden building blocks as the platforms for an on-screen avatar. A hidden camera detects the blocks as they’re pressed against the tracing paper projection screen, translating their position and alignment to in-game data.
The “gameplay” in the project is pretty basic — just guide the periodically jumping Roy from one end of the screen to the other while avoiding floating enemies — but Schmieg sees the potential for more complex play by assigning different functions to each side of the blocks. Schmieg also has an idea for a version “as big as a wall … with blocks so big that you need both hands to hold one.” Would that be mixed reality exergaming? More buzzwords, stat!
Continue reading for video of the project in action.
Continue reading A platform game with real platforms
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Pre-April Fools warning: Trust no one
As you wander unsuspecting into your weekend, don’t forget that the craziest game news day outside of E3 (well, maybe not anymore) is coming up. That’s right, Sunday is April Fools Day, the one day a year where newsmakers and gamemakers everywhere stop making unintentional jokes and try to intentionally make up the most ludicrously believable fake stories that they can.
From BurgerCraft to real 1up mushrooms to cheat site shutdowns, no topic is safe. Heck, in the case of magazines, the actual joke can come in early March. Here are few tips to keep your coming weekend fool free.
- If it seems too good to be true, it probably is: We’d all love for Nintendo to suddenly give everyone who clicks a link a free Wii, but face it, it doesn’t seem too likely.
- Sourcing is important: If a blockbuster April 1 story comes from unnamed sources or a mysteriously dead web site, remain skeptical. The least they could do is forge some documentation for their joke; make them work for it.
- It’s Sunday: Big gaming news never comes out on Sunday. Then again, don’t be surprised if some sites wait till Monday to spring their foolishness this year.
- Sega is not re-entering the hardware business. Nintendo is not leaving it: Actually, this is good advice to remember year round.
- Your favorite classic Sega franchise from yesteryear is not going to suddenly reappear as a Wii-exclusive title: Oh, wait….
- When in doubt, don’t believe it: If the story pops up again in a week, you’re probably in the clear.
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Forget the field, watch the soccer match on your PSP
Filed under: Sony PSP, Wireless, Sports, Mobile
Back in my day, everyone brought their fancy new transistor radios to the ball game to listen to the play-by-play. And the players people didn’t wear their ball caps backwards, like you young’ns today! And Cracker Jack cost only a nickel! And certain folk weren’t allowed on the field, dagnabbit!
Well, the times are a-changin’, because soon people attending London Arsenal soccer matches will be able to get streaming stats and replays on their PSPs via a program called S.PORT (Back in my day, dots went at the end of sentences, consarnit). The program even allows live streaming of the game, for when you have to go to use the facilities (Back in my day, they weren’t called the “facilities.” It was called an outhouse, and it smelled awful. But did we complain? Noooooo.)
At this rate, soon you won’t even have to go to your local sports stadium to see the game. With all the technology and such these days, I bet someone’ll come up with a way to beam images of the game directly into your home, so you can watch from the comfort of your couch. Boy, won’t that be something.
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Europe gets Punch Out, other virtual console classics first
Filed under: Retro, Nintendo Wii
OK, we’re used to Japan getting cool stuff before us. That’s OK — they saved the game industry after Atari botched things up, so it’s only fair that they get Final Fantasy and Gundam games early. But now we hear that Europe is getting Virtual Console games like Punch Out, Legend of the Mystical Ninja and Dragon Curse before us red-blooded Americans. Doesn’t Nintendo know that Europe is supposed to get everything last? Maybe they can take some pointers from Sony on that score.
I suppose we shouldn’t be too mad about this, since all these games have been available for other systems for over a decade. But it’s the principle of the thing. We declared our independence from European mastery back in 1776, and yet those old-worlders still get to lord their downloadable classics over us hundreds of years later. It’s just not right!
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Seventeen Brits complain about Wii ad violence
Filed under: Culture, Sony PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Adventure, First Person Shooters, Business
Nintendo’s advertising efforts have apparently hurt the company’s kid-friendly image with at least a few Britons. An adjudication statement from Britain’s Advertising Standards Authority outlines seventeen distinct complaints over the animated violence in an ad for Twilight Princess and Red Steel. One complainant even thought the ad was “reminiscent of recent videos released by hostage-takers in Iraq.” Yikes!
Fear not, freedom-of-speech loving Brits; the Authority reviewed the content and determined that “the ad was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence. [sic]” Surprisingly, we have yet to hear any similarly official complaints about Sony’s excessively weird PS3 ad campaign. Apparently a creepy guy in a jock strap ranks below simulated sword violence on the British disturb-o-meter.
[Via VNUNet]
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Karaoke Revolution vs. SingStar: Which is tougher?
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 2, Sony PlayStation 3, Rhythm
The surface differences between SingStar and Karaoke Revolution are obvious. One uses the official versions of songs, the other uses covers. One has full music videos in the background, the other has animated 3D singers and environments. One has remained blessedly license-free, the other gave us the image of an uncanny-valleyified Simon Cowell that can never be erased from our minds.
But the surface differences don’t really matter in the end. What really matters is how well each game judges your vocal performances. After all, this judging is what separates the karaoke video game from the weekly “talentless hack night” at your local bar. When we noticed that SingStar Pop and Karaoke Revolution Vol. 2 both shared the Britney Spears hit “…Baby one more time,” we knew we had a definitive test on our hands.
That’s right: two systems, two games, two microphones, one performance. Which game would be more lenient on our awful singing? Continue reading to find out.
Previously: Joystiq Video: Karaoke Revolution Country
Continue reading Karaoke Revolution vs. SingStar: Which is tougher?
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WTF? R*, WRU PS3 GTA4? O! n/m.
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360
Are you sitting down? We’ve got some big news. We mean REALLY big news. This is huge! This is MASSIVE news! Are you ready?
There’s a page missing from Rockstar’s support web site.
Isn’t that incredible? What? You don’t understand why this matters? Well what if we told you the page that’s missing was for the PS3 version of Grand Theft Auto IV! That’s right! There’s a page for the Xbox 360 version but nothing listed for the PS3. Everyone’s talking about it. Well, some people are, anyway. Do you realize what this means?
What do you mean, “It could mean anything”? It obviously means that Microsoft is going to buy Take Two and take the exclusive rights to the Grand Theft Auto series away from Sony, thereby ensuring the Xbox 360’s dominance over this console cycle!
You’re still skeptical? Even with all this unassailable evidence? OK, what if we told you that Microsoft hinted through one of their blogs that tomorrow there would be another announcement on the order of the Xbox 360 Elite confirmation. Now do you believe us? Grand Theft Auto IV is going exclusively to Microsoft! Sony is doomed!
What do you mean it all sounds circumstantial? You really think this is just rumor-mongering and a big to-do over what’ll probably end up being nothing? Oh, please. How naive can you be. Don’t you know a hot story when it hits you in the face?
What’s that? You say you just checked and now there there is a page for the PS3 version? Oh. Well it wasn’t there before.
Look, just forget we said anything.
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