tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89129499840430408152024-02-07T11:50:59.290-05:00Skullivan on GamesK. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.comBlogger163125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-88307743735678496192008-06-06T12:44:00.004-04:002008-06-06T13:42:23.265-04:00Qore is Out, Shady Things AfootSo, Sony's new interactive video magazine <span style="font-style: italic;">thing</span>, Qore, went up last night and, as I had mentioned on Tuesday, I was debating purchasing an annual subscription. I held off because I kept hearing varying stories on whether you actually got Calling All Cars for free, or if you had to pay $2.99 for it, or if there was any promotion at all. No official site mentioned it at all.<br /><br />Turns out you <span style="font-style: italic;">do</span> get the game for free with an annual subscription, but in the meantime I learned something else: The big exclusive they are touting with this first issue is that you get access to the <span style="font-weight: bold;">SOCOM: Confrontation</span> public beta when it begins. Only, that isn't strictly true. You get access to the beta <span style="font-style: italic;">2 weeks</span> after it begins.<br /><br />So who gets to play those first 2 weeks? People who pre-order the game. So if you want access to the Beta you can either pay $2.99 for Qore and get in 2 weeks late, or you can pre-order the game for FREE (because you can either cancel your pre-order or the $5 will go towards your purchase) and get in at the start. What's wrong with this picture? If Beta access was invitation only this wouldn't be so bad, but when anyone can get into the Beta not only for free, but 2 weeks earlier, why would you pay $3? You wouldn't, which is why it's pretty crappy that Qore is being promoted this way. Anyone who shelled out the $3 for the beta just got, as they say, <span style="font-style: italic;">hosed.</span><br /><br />I thought Qore sounded fairly cool in and of itself, but this doesn't instill much confidence in me as far as future "exclusives".K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-50692310215692754892008-06-05T10:51:00.004-04:002008-06-05T11:23:20.757-04:00COD4 Back on TopCall of Duty 4 was unceremoniously knocked out of its long held position as Most Played 360 Game when Grand Theft Auto IV was released a month ago, but today it has reclaimed its spot while GTAIV has fallen to third place, behind Halo 3. In celebration, all COD4 players will receive double experience points when playing this weekend.<br /><br />To be honest, I was surprised it took this long. It was pretty clear that the game was topping the charts based mainly on people playing the single player game, so once they had their fill, unless they moved onto regularly playing the multiplayer, the game was going to drop like a rock.<br /><br />I have to hand it to GTAIV, keeping so many people involved in a single player game for a month is no small feat. Can it climb back to the top when the still mysterious "episode" drops in the Fall?<br /><br />[via <a href="http://iamfourzerotwo.com/2008/06/04/call-of-duty-4-retakes-1-spot-on-live-double-xp-for-all/">fourzerotwo</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-29714230384397093922008-06-04T15:55:00.001-04:002008-06-05T14:58:53.778-04:00MGS4 Is Eighth Game to Receive Perfect Famitsu ScoreBetween 1998 and 2007 Famitsu only awarded 6 games a perfect score of 40/40 (four 10's from four reviewers). In 2008 they have handed out two 40's already, the first to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Super Smash Bros. Brawl</span> and now to Hideo Kojima's magnum opus, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots</span>, which releases worldwide on June 12th.<br /><br />This marks the first time Famitsu has given two perfect scores in one year and also the first time a Konami title has received the honor (only Nintendo, Square, and Namco games have gotten perfect scores before).<br /><br />Also of note is that Famitsu has never awarded a perfect score to more than one game on any specific console. Will the PS3 be the first to buck this trend? <span style="font-weight: bold;">Final Fantasy XIII</span> is still on the way after all...The DS (which scored a 40 with Nintendogs of all things) is also still a viable system and has <span style="font-weight: bold;">Dragon Quest IX</span> coming later this year.K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-61823088997395349672008-06-03T21:24:00.000-04:002008-06-05T12:54:59.077-04:00Sony Launching Interactive Video Mag on PSNStarting Thursday, PS3 owners will have access to a new PSN service called Qore. What is Qore? Let me allow Veronica Belmont to explain:<br /><br /><embed src="http://crackle.com/p/Video_Games/Qore_preview.swf" bgcolor="#869ca7" name="mtgPlayer" play="true" loop="false" allowfullscreen="true" flashvars="id=2301774&mu=0&ap=0&ml=fi%3D%26fpl%3D297570%26o%3D12" quality="high" allowscriptaccess="sameDomain" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/go/getflashplayer" align="middle" height="325" width="400"></embed><br /><div style=""> From Crackle: <a href="http://crackle.com/c/Video_Games/Qore_preview/2301774/#ml=fi%3D%26fpl%3D297570%26o%3D12" title="Qore preview" style="overflow: hidden; text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold;">Qore preview</a></div><img style="visibility: hidden; width: 0px; height: 0px;" src="http://counters.gigya.com/wildfire/CIMP/bT*xJmx*PTEyMTI2ODM3OTU1MzEmcHQ9MTIxMjY4Mzg1MjEyNSZwPTEyMjE*MSZkPSZuPSZnPTI=.jpg" border="0" height="0" width="0" /><br /><br />So basically, it's the online equivalent of the now defunct Official PlayStation Magazine, complete with exclusive demos.<br /><br />Yes, that's right, there will be demos for certain games that will only be made available through Qore, which I'm sure is not going to go over well in some quarters.<br /><br />The first "issue" will be available sometime on Thursday for $2.99 and will give you access to the SOCOM: Confrontation Beta, whenever that begins. There is also an option to subscribe for a year (13 installments) at $24.99, which will also net you a copy of the PSN game Calling All Cars for a limited time.<br /><br />I'm debating signing up; at worst I get Calling All Cars out of it (which I've always wanted to try anyway) and I just don't resubscribe next year. I also like that Veronica Belmont hosts the show as she's more than just a pretty face; she actually knows what she's talking about, which is more than you can say for anyone hosting a show on G4.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://kotaku.com/5012570/sony-introducing-pay-for-demo-exclusive-content-gaming-program#viewcomments">Kotaku</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-31358631645865377492008-06-02T13:50:00.005-04:002008-06-02T14:18:32.606-04:00RUMOR: Microsoft Has Two Major 360 Titles Up Its SleeveCiting "<span class="text_article_body">well placed sources close to Microsoft" CVG is reporting that Microsoft will be revealing two more "big" 360 titles at E3, that will be a part of their 2008</span> lineup. Currently, two big Microsoft titles are in limbo: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Halo Wars</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Alan Wake</span>, but it's unknown whether the announcement will be for completely new games or a confirmation that these two will hit in 2008 after all.<br /><br />CVG further speculates that one of the titles may utilize the rumored 360 motion controller (how awesome would Halo Wars be if you could use a motion controlled pointer device!?) but I'd say that if Microsoft really does have a motion controller in the works, they'd be crazy not to incorporate it into all of their first party games to some extent. Certainly <span style="font-weight: bold;">Banjo Kazooie 3</span> as well as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Viva Pinata 2</span> will both use it considering Rare are the ones rumored to be spearheading development on the controller.<br /><br />In any case, it's nice to think there might be some surprise announcements at E3. Last year's press conferences were a joke. Now all we need is for Nintendo to pull out something more exciting than <span style="font-weight: bold;">WiiFit</span> and for Sony to show games that will actually be out by this time next year. And not just games like <span style="font-weight: bold;">InFamous</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Killzone 2</span> which they showed last year (and 2 years before that in Killzone's case). I'm betting <span style="font-weight: bold;">Final Fantasy XIII</span> will be a major part of their briefing. That game has got to be nearing completion, right? Right!? <br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=189998">CVG</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-39012278873056668312008-05-30T23:45:00.000-04:002008-06-02T13:49:25.490-04:00New Resident Evil 5 Trailer AstoundsGameTrailersTV premiered the new Resident Evil 5 trailer tonight and damn, does it look awesome. Hordes of zombies, huge explosions, and arguably the best graphics ever seen on a console. You don't have to take my word for it though, watch it below through the magic of embedded video!<br /><br /><br /><object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,0,0" id="gtembed" width="480" height="392"> <param name="allowScriptAccess" value="sameDomain"> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.gametrailers.com/remote_wrap.php?mid=34647"> <param name="quality" value="high"> <embed src="http://www.gametrailers.com/remote_wrap.php?mid=34647" swliveconnect="true" name="gtembed" align="middle" allowscriptaccess="sameDomain" allowfullscreen="true" quality="high" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="392"></embed> </object><br /><br />They don't show any kind of co-op gameplay but the female character at the end is presumably the mercenary that the second player will control.K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-75744817041278026242008-05-29T23:41:00.002-04:002008-06-02T12:02:21.288-04:00Steam Gets CloudySteamcloud! Sounds like some cool cyberpunk game right? Well, not exactly, but it's still pretty cool.<br /><br />Steamcloud is a new feature coming to Valve's Steam service which will let users store their game data server side. Save files, control configurations, in game preferences can all be stored online and retrieved through your Steam account.<br /><br />I'm not really a PC gamer, but I had hoped for similar features out of the 360 before it launched (particularly online save storage) seeing as we all shell out $50 a year for the service. Now that Steam is offering it up for free, it gives me hope that we might see it on consoles at some point.<br /><br />As time goes on MS is going to have to justify Live's annual price tag against the PS3's free service which is rumored to soon be adding a universal friends list as well as several other features that are currently 360 exclusive. Adding a Steamcloud-like feature would be one way to keep a leg up on the competition.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://kotaku.com/5011756/valve-announce-steamcloud-sounds-great">Kotaku</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-39146089891937471722008-05-28T14:08:00.001-04:002008-05-30T14:35:26.484-04:00Beyond Good and Evil 2 TrailerMichel Ancel didn't disappoint. His <a href="http://skullivan.blogspot.com/2008/05/beyond-good-and-evil-2-in-works.html">recent revelation</a> that Ubisoft hadn't yet greenlighted the sequel to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Beyond Good and Evil</span> that he has been in pre-production on for the last year whipped fans into a frenzy. They finally had confirmation that the long awaited sequel was in the works and it came with the caveat that it might not actually come to fruition.<br /><br />All that is in the past now though, as Ubisoft, as expected, officially revealed the first trailer for the game at its UbiDays event.<br /><br /><object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,0,0" width="500" height="319" id="gamevideos6" align="middle"><param name="quality" value="high"><param name="play" value="true"><param name="loop" value="true"><param name="scale" value="showall"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="devicefont" value="false"><param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"><param name="menu" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="sameDomain"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="salign" value=""><param name="movie" value="http://gamevideos.com//swf/gamevideos11.swf?embedded=1&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&src=http://gamevideos.com/video/videoListXML%3Fid%3D19058%26ordinal%3D%26adPlay%3Dfalse"><param name="quality" value="high"><param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"><embed src="http://gamevideos.com//swf/gamevideos11.swf?embedded=1&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&src=http://gamevideos.com/video/videoListXML%3Fid%3D19058%26ordinal%3D%26adPlay%3Dfalse" quality="high" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" play="true" loop="true" scale="showall" wmode="window" devicefont="false" id="gamevideos6" bgcolor="#000000" name="gamevideos6" menu="true" allowscriptaccess="sameDomain" allowfullscreen="true" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" align="middle" width="500" height="319"></embed></object><br /><br />Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot introduced the clip by stating that the trailer was rendered completely in the game's engine, which means this is going to be one purty game.<br /><br />It's interesting that they chose to only show Jade (the heroine of the original) from the back, which leads me to believe they probably haven't nailed down what she'll look like now that the visuals are much more realistic. In the original game, Jade looked a LOT like a cartoony version of Alyx Vance from Half-Life 2. They'll have their work cut out for them to keep her from looking too much like Alyx while still being recognizable as Jade outside of the context of the game. Green lipstick helps.<br /><br />No date or platforms have been announced but 360/PS3 are a lock based on the HD graphics of the trailer. Wii fanboys had been hoping it would be an exclusive to the little white box based on the fact that the original game reportedly sold best on GameCube, but it looks like it isn't meant to be. I wouldn't put it past Ubi to re-release the original on Wii, Okami-style though.K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-17216518505511982402008-05-27T13:40:00.000-04:002008-05-30T14:06:56.924-04:00Resident Evil 5 to Feature Co-op PlayIn an in-depth preview that has now been yanked from their site, GamesRadar dropped the bomb that <span style="font-weight: bold;">Resident Evil 5</span> will indeed include 2-player cooperative play. Apparently Chris Redfield will be accompanied throughout the game by a currently unnamed female mercenary that a second player can take control of at any time.<br /><br />RE5 is easily my most anticipated game of next year (or this year if it actually sneaks out) and I always love me some co-op so this is very cool news. I do hope that the co-op play is more than just a second person with a gun and is incorporated into the puzzles and such. I always liked the idea of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Resident Evil Outbreak</span> but Capcom didn't really deliver with that series. This is their chance to make up for it.<br /><br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.destructoid.com/resident-evil-5-to-contain-online-co-op-yes-please--87147.phtml">Destructoid</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-3566421875050022622008-05-23T12:21:00.003-04:002008-05-23T12:54:08.518-04:00360 DRM Fix Tool Coming in JuneOne major flaw with the 360's Xbox Live Marketplace is the way it handles Digital Rights Management (DRM). When you download a Live Arcade game or piece of premium content (say a Rock Band song) it is linked to both your GamerTag and the serial number of your console. What this means is that, if you ever get a new 360, either because your old one dies or you upgrade to an Elite, all the content you paid for on the old system will only work if you are signed into Xbox Live with the GamerTag that purchased it. No other profiles on the system will be able to access it and if you take your 360 to someone's house (perhaps for a Rock Band party) you'll need to hook it up to an internet connection or else all your content will be locked out.<br /><br />Needless to say, that's a huge pain in the ass, and an unnecessary one at that.<br /><br />Thankfully Microsoft has been listening and will be releasing a tool next month that will "allow you to better consolidate your licenses for downloaded content to a single Xbox and allow you the freedom to be able to play your content both online and offline."<br /><br />All I can say is: It's about damn time.<br /><br />Even if it turns out there really will be <a href="http://skullivan.blogspot.com/2008/05/whats-deal-with-360-spring-update.html">no dashboard update</a> anytime soon, this long overdue fix kind of makes up for it.<br /><br />What's interesting is that this DRM fix was one of the features listed on the <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2008/05/14/rumor-360-dashboard-update-to-support-game-installs-motion-se/">rumored spring update feature list</a> that leaked earlier this month. This lends a bit of credibility to that list, even though the whole thing reads like a fanboy wet dream and a fix to the DRM issues would certainly be high up on any such wishlist.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2008/05/22/xbox-com-tool-to-fix-xbla-drm-fiasco-next-month/">Joystiq</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-1433208105274601732008-05-23T11:07:00.006-04:002008-05-23T12:20:43.103-04:00What's the Deal With the 360 Spring Update?One thing 360 owners have come to expect over the last few years are the bi-annual dashboard updates that are released in the Spring and the Fall which add all sorts of new functionality to the console interface. Right around now is the time when the Spring Update would normally be released. Next-Gen is reporting that there will be no Spring Update this year, based on <a href="http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10620&Itemid=2&limit=1&limitstart=2">an interview with Xbox Live manager Marc Whitten</a>, however, as one Next-Gen reader pointed out in the comments, Whitten never specifically says that there will be only one update this year, just that "most users will not notice any significant changes to the dashboard this spring".<br /><br />This could mean any number of things:<br /><br />1. There will be a spring update, it just won't be as significant as past updates. This makes sense because as time goes on there are going to be less and less features they can reasonably add.<br /><br />2. There will be a sizable update, it just won't be in the Spring. Remember that the Fall Update <a href="http://www.xbox.com/en-US/support/systemupdates/default.htm">was released so late in the Fall</a> that it was very nearly the Winter Update. It would follow then that the next update might not be ready until early to mid summer, which would make it the "Summer Update". That of course begs the question, "Why didn't Whitten just say that the update wouldn't be out until the Summer?"<br /><br />3. Next-Gen is right and there won't be any kind of update until the Fall or later.<br /><br />I would hope Microsoft wouldn't go an entire year between updates while Sony constantly updates the PS3 firmware. I've always liked Microsoft's strategy better because not only is it something to look forward to, the updates are always virtually seamless. Anyone with a PS3 (or PSP which works the same way) will tell you that updating the firmware is a huge pain in the ass, made worse by the fact that Sony regularly releases updates that do nothing, but are required nonetheless.<br /><br />I'd like to think Scenario 2 is what will happen, but either way this definitely requires further investigation.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2008/05/22/microsoft-no-spring-dashboard-update-this-year/">Joystiq</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-66153741830518684722008-05-22T22:37:00.000-04:002008-05-23T10:54:24.777-04:00BioSHOCKER: PS3 to Experience Rapture this FallCan you believe it!? Bioshock is coming to PS3!!!<br /><br />Alright, this is only slightly more shocking then when Assassin's Creed was confirmed for 360, but regardless, it's great news for those poor bastards who only own a PS3 and whose PC is lucky to be able to run Firefox. Take-Two has already announced that Bioshock 2 will be released at the end of 2009 so this sets the sequel up to be a simultaneous multiplatform title.<br /><br />The full scoop is in the July issue of EGM, but currently the details are nonexistent. It's a safe bet that at the very least the game will have the bonus plasmids and increased difficulty option that the 360/PC version received as DLC, but I'd wager it'll have a bit more than that. Perhaps a third ending? One that doesn't suck?<br /><br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=189519">CVG</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-62108236746837597502008-05-21T10:08:00.001-04:002008-05-23T10:36:39.003-04:00Penny Arcade First 150MB+ XBLA TitleWell, we didn't have to wait long for the first game to break the previous XBLA glass ceiling of 150MB, as today's release of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain Slick</span>...blah blah blah, clocks in at the record breaking size of 165MB. That looks to me like the game would've been squeezed under 150MB with some added compression but the new size limit saved Hothead Games the bother.<br /><br />I gave the demo a run through and was rather impressed with the game, especially the awesome HD Penny Arcade art in some of the cutscenes and particularly the way the character you create is implemented into them. The battle system will be comfortable for anyone who's played a Final Fantasy game and it's actually a bit more frantic because it takes place in real time.<br /><br />Still, with reviews citing an average length of 6 hours (some people say it's 4-5, other say it's 6-8) along with an insultingly easy difficulty level for a game geared specifically at hardcore gamers (i.e. Penny Arcade readers), I just can't get over that $20 price tag. At $10 I would've bought it, beaten it already and likely been eagerly awaiting the next episode. At $20 all I can think is, "Well, there's supposed to be at least 4 episodes; that comes out to $80 for an RPG that even by the most liberal estimates will be about 30 hours, but more likely around 20."<br /><br />I'd gladly pay $40 for that game. $80? No way in hell. I don't even like paying $60 for retail releases that I can sell for cash later on. I'll wait for all the episodes to be released on disc for $40 next year. <a href="javascript:void(0)" tabindex="10" onclick="return false;"><span>Publish Post</span></a>K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-61763931041089417882008-05-20T14:34:00.005-04:002008-05-20T15:40:24.221-04:00Xbox Live Arcade Size Limit Raised to 350MBHere we go again. We <a href="http://skullivan.blogspot.com/2008/03/microsoft-wises-up-on-ssfiihd-and.html">learned a couple months ago</a> that Microsoft would be granting a dispensation to Capcom to allow it to break the 150MB barrier for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bionic Commando ReArmed</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Street Fighter II HD</span>. What we didn't know was how big those games were going to be. 200MB? 250MB? 500MB?<br /><br />Today, we know they're not going to be bigger than 350MB, as that is the new file size limit Microsoft has set for XBLA games.<br /><br />I find the timing of this revelation interesting because it comes only days after The Behemoth announced that <span style="font-weight: bold;">Castle Crashers</span>, which was infamously delayed for a year to take advantage of the previous increase to 150MB, has finally been completed.<br /><br />Now, it's all well and good that MS is increasing the size cap yet again, but honestly, why couldn't it have been raised to 350MB last year? Or even 450MB? The current 512MB memory cards could handle it. We all know that in another year's time we'll be hearing about it being raised to 700MB and MS will have a new 1-2GB memory card that'll sell for $50.<br /><br />I really hope that the timing of these announcements aren't a coincidence and Castle Crashers will be among the first to utilize the extra space. It was clear they really needed the extra 100MB so an extra 200 on top of that would no doubt have been a godsend. I can't imagine it's fun to repeatedly have the rug pulled out from underneath you. It'll be a real damn shame if the game isn't everything it could have been simply because of an arbitrary size limitation.<br /><br />Just as likely is that the announcement simply precedes the release of Bionic Commando ReArmed, the first game to break 150MB, which should be released any Wednesday now. Remember that <span style="font-weight: bold;">Castlevania: Symphony of the Night</span> brought with it the news of the fall of the 50MB barrier.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.xbox360fanboy.com/2008/05/20/xbla-file-size-limit-increases-to-350mb">XBOX360 Fanboy</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-65961414721291084972008-05-20T11:37:00.005-04:002008-05-20T12:00:37.871-04:00Splinter Cell 5 Catches a Major DelayAs <a href="http://skullivan.blogspot.com/2008/05/castle-crashers-development-wraps-up.html">one long awaited game</a> finishes development, another gets sent back to the drawing board. It's been so long since there has been any news on <span style="font-weight: bold;">Splinter Cell Con<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">v</span>iction</span> that I completely forgot about it. In fact, the last news on the game was the announcement that it and Haze (which comes out this week and scored an enthusiastic 4.5/10 from IGN!) had been delayed until 2008.<br /><br />The word is now that the title will be rebuilt from the ground up and won't see release until Christmas...2009. Possibly Spring 2010, a full 2 years away. Wow.<br /><br />Ubisoft Montreal certainly has a lot on their plate with the new Prince of Persia coming this Fall as well as the inevitable Assassin's Creed sequel. Something tells me we'll see AC2 before SC5.<br /><br />As with <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://skullivan.blogspot.com/2008/05/beyond-good-and-evil-2-in-works.html">Beyond Good and Evil 2</a>, the full scoop will likely come at next week's UbiDays event in Paris.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=189247">CVG</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-19730264236903692732008-05-19T15:37:00.000-04:002008-05-20T11:19:18.973-04:00Castle Crashers Development Wraps UpThe wait for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Castle Crashers</span> has been a long one. Originally scheduled to be released over a year ago, the game's developer, The Behemoth, decided to delay the game in order to take advantage of the 100MB of extra space Microsoft lovingly bestowed upon XBLA developers. So while the delay was painful, the end result should be a much bigger, deeper game. And now, the wait is almost over because the game is officially complete.<br /><br />The Behemoth's Dan Paladin wrote on the Castle Crashers blog,<br /><br /><blockquote>This game is undoubtedly the largest 360 XBLA game that has any kind of story; Large in scope, takes hours and hours to go through with your buddies. Lots of little treasures and secrets hiding around the levels, many unlockable characters all with a different feel<br /><br /></blockquote>Unfortunately, due to the way XBLA works: certification, fitting the game into the release schedule etc., it could still be a couple months before the game is actually made available for purchase.<br /><br />On the bright side though, what a summer this looks to be for XBLA: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Penny Arcade Adventures</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bionic Commando ReArmed</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Commando 3</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Super Street Fighter II HD</span>, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Braid</span>. Even with all the garbage that usually ends up released on a weekly basis, we shouldn't go more than a couple weeks without something really cool.<br /><br />It's nice to see that the Big Three have all realized that their online services are the perfect venue to combat the annual summer drought. 360's got a great XBLA lineup, Nintendo just introduced WiiWare, with games like <span style="font-weight: bold;">Alien Crush</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Eternity's Child</span> on tap for the Summer, and Sony has the intriguing looking <span style="font-weight: bold;">PixelJunk Eden</span> as well as the episodic <span style="font-weight: bold;">Siren: Blood Curse</span> coming to PSN.<br /><br />I'm looking forward to most of these games more than anything that's coming out at retail until <span style="font-weight: bold;">Too Human</span> hits in late August and my excitement for that has dropped dramatically in the wake of the <a href="http://skullivan.blogspot.com/2008/05/too-human-co-op-cut-in-half.html">complete neutering the co-op has gone under</a>.<br /><br />4-player co-op lives on in Castle Crashers!<br /><br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2008/05/16/the-behemoth-says-castle-crashers-is-finally-complete/">Joystiq</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-63669032555213583102008-05-16T16:41:00.004-04:002008-05-16T17:20:46.842-04:00Rock Band Euro Bonus Tracks Hit US TuesdayEA and Harmonix announced a while back that if <span style="font-weight: bold;">Rock Band</span> were to ever actually ship in Europe, it would feature 9 bonus tracks we didn't get here in North America. Well, it is finally shipping in Europe next week, so, in the interests of parity, all those bonus songs will be available for download through the Rock Band Music Store on this side of the Atlantic as well.<br /><br />It's an odd bunch of songs, mostly from bands you've likely never heard of, but MUSE's Hysteria is among them and that makes all the difference. I like Blur as well, but I live in fear of cover versions in music games.<br /><br />The full list is:<br /><br /><span>"Beetlebum" (Blur) (Cover version)<br />"Hier Kommt Alex" (Die Toten Hosen)<br />"Countdown To Insanity" (H-Block X)<br />"Perfekte Welle" (Juli)<br />"New Wave" (Pleymo)<br />"Monsoon" (Tokio Hotel)<br />"Hysteria" (Muse)<br />"Rock 'n' Roll Star" (Oasis)<br />"Manu Chao" (Les Wampas)<br /><br />Here's the video for Hysteria:<br /></span><br /><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DR2DpgV8fPw&hl=en"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DR2DpgV8fPw&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.destructoid.com/the-week-in-rock-band-dlc-european-bonus-tracks-come-to-north-america-86291.phtml">Destructoid</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-31517968521715447072008-05-15T16:15:00.001-04:002008-05-16T16:40:05.333-04:00Beyond Good and Evil 2 In the WorksUpon reading that headline you likely either shrugged your shoulders or had to pinch yourself to see if you were dreaming. It is, in fact, true though. Beyond Good and Evil (and Rayman) creator Michel Ancel has disclosed to French magazine JeuxVideo, that he and a small team have been in pre-production on a sequel for the past year. That's the good news.<br /><br />The bad news is, Ubisoft hasn't actually agreed to greenlight the game yet, so all the work Ancel and his team have done so far could just end up a giant could-have-been.<br /><br />I hope Ancel is confident that the game will end up in production because I really don't care to hear about how the game was *this close* to being made before being backburnered. That's just mean.<br /><br />We're in the midst of the now apparently annual "Gamer Days" that publishers started holding last year in the wake of E3's downsizing so maybe it will be confirmed at Ubi's aptly named UbiDays event. The E3 of old is gone, but publishers still like to announce stuff in May.<br /><br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.destructoid.com/beyond-good-evil-2-in-preproduction-says-french-mag-86097.phtml">Destructoid</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-84301907917778570152008-05-14T23:02:00.000-04:002008-05-16T16:15:19.163-04:00First Set of Free echochrome Levels Available TomorrowIt's only been two weeks since echochrome's surprise release but already it will be seeing the first of its promised download packs consisting of user-made levels.<br /><br />Starting tomorrow you will be able to download the pack, which will add 20 levels to the game's freeform mode. The levels will only appear if the difficulty is set to 2 or 3.<br /><br />Keep in mind that these levels will only be available until the next batch goes up, which will apparently be on May 22nd, so don't dawdle. No one likes a dawdler.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/2008/05/14/new-echochrome-user-created-levels-coming-soon/">PlayStation Blog</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-35061406295080538982008-05-13T15:09:00.004-04:002008-05-13T16:32:45.105-04:00Too Human Co-op Cut In HalfNo sooner do we get a set date for one of my most anticipated games of the last few years than we get news that the main feature I've been anticipating has been neutered.<br /><br />Yes, 4 player co-op in <span style="font-weight: bold;">Too Human</span> has been "scaled back" to only two players. Why, oh why?<br /><br />"The reason we did that is we looked at it, and the way the game is really frantic, and when you have a lot of guys zooming around, we weren't sure that would play out the best", says Silicon Knights' Denis Dyack.<br /><br />Which, to me, sounds like the engine couldn't handle all of that action with 4 players on the screen at the same time.<br /><br />I still have no doubt the game will be solid but I really think they are killing off its long term appeal by limiting the co-op play. There is a huge difference between playing with a partner and playing as a team. The game features five unique character classes, but that doesn't create much of a dynamic when only two people can play together.<br /><br />Regardless of whether this change really is in the best interest of the gameplay, it's still a huge disappointment for anyone who was looking forward to playing the game with a group of friends.<br /><br />Too Human is starting to look like it will be this generation's Fable: a solid game that ended up a disappointment because it was too ambitious and didn't deliver on its lofty promises after being in development for ages. I really hope that isn't the case.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.co-optimus.com/interview/38/page/1/Too_Human_Co-Op_Interview.html">Co-Optimus</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-57353010610184113192008-05-13T11:24:00.004-04:002008-05-13T12:10:21.309-04:00Too Human Gets Quickest Delay EverI just read over on IGN that Silicon Knights had finally locked down a release date of August 12th for <span style="font-weight: bold;">Too Human</span>, after announcing it for PSOne ten years ago. I returned to the page a few minutes later to get a source link and I'll be damned if the release date wasn't changed to August 19th.<br /><br />Microsoft's <a href="http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/splash/t/toohuman/">official Too Human page</a> lists the August 12th date but company reps insist that the 19th is the actual date. I don't know about you, but that's the fastest delay I've ever seen.<br /><br />You might say, "Well, one week isn't really a big deal." But then you'd remember that <a href="http://skullivan.blogspot.com/2008/04/brothers-in-arms-3-finally-gets-release.html">August is practically the new November</a> and there are a mess of huge titles dropping. It would definitely be in MS's best interest to get the game out earlier in the month and give it some space before other long delayed titles like <span style="font-weight: bold;">Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Mercenaries 2</span> release later in the month.<br /><br />In any case, it'll be great to finally be able to play a game I've been looking forward to for years (even though my anticipation has dropped off greatly). Now Silicon Knights has their work cut out for them to actually get the other parts of the trilogy out on the 360 before the next Xbox hits in 2010-11.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/872/872669p1.html">IGN360</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-56042229775119849642008-05-09T10:51:00.002-04:002008-05-09T12:22:26.031-04:00Bioshock Film Coming From "Pirates" DirectorYep, it's another game-to-film adaptation, only this time it's a franchise people actually care about, helmed by a director who isn't Uwe Boll. You know Gore Verbinski from the Pirates of the Caribbean films and also The Ring. He's not a bad choice.<br /><br />So will it turn out to be good? I doubt it, but it depends on what they do with it.<br /><br />If they try in any way shape or form to translate the story from the game into movie form, it will fail horribly. First of all, both endings to the game were terrible. Secondly, 75% of the story was told through the audio recordings you find throughout the game. That isn't going to make for very exciting cinema.<br /><br />What they really need to do is come up with an original story that takes place in Rapture, because let's face it, Rapture is what made Bioshock cool. Not the characters, not the immediate story you played out. It was the whole concept of a secret city under the sea.<br /><br />This is the problem with game adaptations though: they want to incorporate everything about the game into the movie, but when you start out with prerequisites like that, the script is going to suffer.<br /><br />Film-to-game adaptations work best when the game isn't directly based on a film. <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay</span> is a perfect example. It wasn't just good for a game based on a movie, it was a great game, period. It was actually much better than the movie it was based on. The same would be true in reverse if anyone would actually try it.<br /><br />Make a film that fits into the canon established in the game, not one that just retells the same basic story but rearranges everything to work better as a film. That's just a disservice to everyone. Fans will be pissed off about things that were changed and newcomers are getting a half-assed story because it is built around trying to incorporate as much from the game as possible instead of simply weaving an interesting tale.<br /><br />The worst part is, bad movies just give games a bad name. A game movie should make people want to go out and play the game. Instead, most (if not all) of them make people want to avoid it.K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-26092270445040502722008-05-08T11:25:00.003-04:002008-05-08T11:54:49.288-04:00No Public Beta for LittleBigPlanetAfter E3 last year, <a href="http://www.ps3fanboy.com/2007/07/21/littlebigplanet-is-almost-done-public-beta-in-a-few-months/">we knew a couple things about Little Big Planet</a>, or at least we thought we did:<br /><br />1. It was almost done.<br />2. There would be a public beta shortly before the game's release.<br /><br />Since the game never made it out last year and isn't being released until 15 months after E3 2007, we all know the first one was clearly incorrect. The public beta on the other hand has always been in LBP-fans minds because no matter when the game was going to be released, they'd get a chance to play it a month or two before.<br /><br />Unfortunately, like a 2007 release date, the Public Beta will not be coming to pass. There will still be a Beta, but access will likely be extremely limited and by invite only, much like the Beta for Home that has been going on for ages.<br /><br />The good news is, there is still likely to be a demo for the game, the bad news is, by the time the demo hits the game will probably only be a couple weeks away anyway.<br /><br />I'm very curious to know what exactly Little Big Planet will be like as a game, and not as software for creating your own game. The original plan for it was to release it on PSN and let the community "make the game"; after a while they would take the best of what the community had created and release that as a retail product. After a year of extra development time I would hope that the game will now feature its own significant single player campaign and will ship on a disc right off the bat.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.ps3fanboy.com/2008/05/08/littlebigplanet-open-beta-will-never-happen/">PS3 Fanboy</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-38091907631209478902008-05-07T14:05:00.004-04:002008-05-07T14:37:53.256-04:00id Announces Doom 4In what is certainly an overly premature announcement, iD Software revealed today that they have begun work on Doom 4. That's right, just begun. As in, they're looking for new talent to help make it.<br /><br />In other words, this game is YEARS away. To put it in perspective, <a href="http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/655/655726p1.html">id announced back in 2005</a> that they were working on a new Wolfenstein title that would be a timed exclusive for the 360 (which wasn't even out yet at that point). Fast forward almost 3 years and we don't even have a screenshot of the game.<br /><br />At that rate, Doom 4 will be released in 2012 and will be exclusive to the Xbox720. I doubt Doom 4 will drop off the face of the earth like Wolfenstein did but it couldn't possibly make it out any earlier than Fall 2010, which is essentially the beginning of the end of the current console generation. But then, Doom 3 came out at the beginning of the end of the last console generation, so I guess it's fitting.<br /><a href="javascript:void(0)" tabindex="10" onclick="return false;"><span></span></a><br />[via <a href="http://www.destructoid.com/doom-4-rears-its-hellish-head-looking-for-fresh-souls-to-bring-it-to-life-84984.phtml#comments">Destructoid</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8912949984043040815.post-72766206688422047112008-05-07T11:55:00.004-04:002008-05-07T12:25:06.710-04:00LittleBigPlanet, Killzone 2 Dealt DelaysIf you're looking forward to <span style="font-weight: bold;">LittleBigPlanet </span>or <span style="font-weight: bold;">Killzone 2</span> (and let's face it, if you own a PS3 you probably are) your wait just got a little longer for the former and a lot longer for the latter. Both were previously targeting a September release but now LBP will make it out sometime in October and the new date you can expect Killzone 2 to be delayed from is February 2009. I don't honestly expect it until March at the earliest.<br /><br />I never had any illusions about Killzone 2 actually seeing this side of 2008 anyway, it just didn't make any sense to release it so close to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Resistance 2</span>, and from hands-on reports with Killzone 2, it really needs the extra time if it is going to live up to the infamous target rendered trailer from 2005, which is kind of messed up when you think about it. This game was supposed to go toe-to-toe with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Halo 3 </span>and now <span style="font-weight: bold;">Gears of War 2</span> will be old news by the time it hits.<br /><br />[via <a href="http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3167693">1up</a> & <a href="http://kotaku.com/5007971/scee-littlebigplanet-delayed-not-coming-until-october">Kotaku</a>]K. Sullivanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888706847853185466noreply@blogger.com0