Mario Power Tennis Japanese Spots
- Scribbled on January 6th, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Game Videos, Nintendo Wii, Sports
For those of you waiting for the next Nintendo Wii Remote sports title, the Japanese television spots have appeared for Mario Power Tennis.
Click “Read more…” for another ad.
PS3 Played Less Than Classic Xbox?
- Scribbled on January 5th, 2009 by Derrick Schommer
- Filed in Industry News, Microsoft Xbox, Sony PlayStation 3, WTF
In a WTF moment, Neilsen Ratings shows more gamers are playing the classic Microsoft Xbox console than the PlayStation 3. While 9.7% of gamers are playing the Xbox 7.3% are playing the PlayStation 3 but Sony isn’t out of the picture by a long shot, having 31.7% of gamers playing the PlayStation 2!
Only 13.4% of gamers are playing the Wii even though it’s the hottest selling console on the market, showing the fury of the casual gamer it seems. It’s trendy to own a Wii but it’s not trendy to play it; it would be interesting to see how much of the 13.4% is Wii Sports.
We’re guessing there are more classic Xbox gamers playing their console compared to the PlayStation 3 because of the console cost. You can find a used Xbox for under $25.00 on eBay but the question remains, who wants a used Xbox? The audience for the PS3 is more hardcore, more elite and more rare compared to the cost conscious gamers in the larger game industry pie.
More than likely, in ten years, we’ll see most gamers playing the PlayStation 3 while Microsoft works to claim demographics on whatever their next console will be. However, we’re not so sure how many Wii gamers will be playing their current generation console in ten years. Probably very few given the two year old console still has a small amount of gaming public.
(Thanks, 1up.)
Microsoft Wants Radiant Silvergun
- Scribbled on January 5th, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Action, Arcade, Interviews, Microsoft Xbox 360, Retro, Xbox Live Arcade
In an interview with Treasure CEO Masato Maegawa, he revealed that Microsoft desired and continues to desire the shoot’em up game Radiant Silvergun on Xbox Live Arcade:
Oh, I think we’d definitely like to see it [Radiant Silvergun] out there. But the situation around that game is a bit different from Ikaruga, so I don’t know if we’d see it on Live. We did a lot with the Saturn version, too... Microsoft actually asked us if we could put it out. (laughs) We’re thinking about it, certainly, but it’s not as simple as just saying “OK, let’s put it up.” I mean, sure, with Ikaruga, we released it as is without having to do or add a great deal to the game and it was popular and well accepted for what it was.
But if you play Radiant Silvergun nowadays, it’s certainly aged in assorted ways, and I’m not sure they’re all good. (laughs)
The article also discusses Bangai-O Spirits and Ikaruga, as well as the upcoming sequel Sin & Punishment 2. Check it out.
Left 4 Dead Mods
- Scribbled on January 5th, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Mods and Total Conversions, PC, Shooter
Titled Screen has a nice compilation of current new skins and levels for the PC version of Left 4 Dead. Some are spurious, such as a Hunter wearing a powder blue Hello Kitty hoodie, or a The Hulk skin for the Tank. Some others are nice, such as the improved skin for the Witch.
The Next Mod is the “Detailed Human Witch” mod. It does nothing more then just add some color to the witch. I like to call it the Witch to Bitch mod.
While this may not look like it does much. In game it makes the witch look that much more scary.
There’s also a link for a new campaign, called “Farm of Death”, a “Blood Harvest” variant.
Jack Thompson Attempting to Overturn Disbarment
- Scribbled on January 5th, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Industry News, Legal Brief
Jack Thompson is like one of those little kids who just can’t understand when they’re told they’re not allowed at the adult table at Thanksgiving, as he’s attempting to get his disbarment overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.
…he’s fighting the Florida Supreme Court’s decision to disbar him from practicing law by petitioning the United States Supreme Court.
GamePolitics reports that Thompson filed for an extension to petition the court on December 18th, which Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas granted. Thompson now has until February 18th, 2009 to file his “petition for writ of certiorari” (which essentially means the Supreme Court justices will review it and decide whether or not to hear his case)
Good luck with that, Jack. We’ll also await the pronouncement of God’s wrath on the U.S. government when they tell you the same thing the Florida Supreme Court did: “Go away.”
Sony Denies Plans for Further “Restructuring”
- Scribbled on January 5th, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Industry News, Rumor Mill, Sony PSP, Sony PlayStation 2, Sony PlayStation 3
TheStreet.com is reporting that Sony told Bloomberg News they had no plans for further “restructuring” (corporatespeak for layoffs) in Europe that had been reported in the Times of London:
Company sources told the Times of London that operations across the electronics company are braced for a series of “sacred cow-slaying” measures that they believe will abolish or fundamentally alter many of Sony’s long-established business practices.
The report said the restructuring at Sony is likely to be announced after the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January. Most of the changes will occur at Sony’s domestic Japanese operations in the form of factory closings and the abolition of several major divisions.
Microsoft had also been rumored to have also been preparing for layoffs, though not in their profitable Xbox 360 division, as the recession continues to hit major business - and in turn, regular employees - hard.
GameStooge Awards: Technical Awards, Part II
- Scribbled on January 4th, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Game Genres, GameStooge Game of the Year Awards, Platforms
The third installment of the GameStooge Awards features Part II of the Technical Awards, which is the fun part. These Awards feature the stuff that don’t easily fit under any category, such as Best Expansion or Best Editor. This round also features our favorite section - the Worst Of categories in which we take revenge on the lame, the putrid, and the moneywasters.
The winners (or losers, as the case may be) are:
BEST ONLINE GAMEPLAY OF 2008
Left 4 Dead
(Runners Up: LittleBigPlanet, NHL 09, Rock Band 2, Saints Row 2)
You’ll notice all of these titles share something in common: they all excel at co-op gameplay. Left 4 Dead is the best of the group, and while it does have versus gameplay, it’s the teamwork with four people against a city full of zombies that makes this game sing. Speaking of singing, Rock Band 2 continues to be the party music game, and its improved online play just made it better.
Jonathon Howard’s Choice: Left 4 Dead.This game is just fun! Regardless of how you’re playing it - through Steam or on Xbox Live - creating and jumping into games is seamless and simple, and I’ve never had to worry about lag or timing out with it. Combine this with the excellent zombie-killing gameplay, and you have a winner, hands down!
BEST EXPANSION OF 2008
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
(Runners Up: Command & Conquer 3: Kane’s Wrath, Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor, The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria, Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir)
The 800 pound gorilla that is Wrath of the Lich King sold about a gazillion (well 3.2M) copies on its first day. Whether you’re a World of Warcraft fanatic, or if you’re someone whose sworn off the addiction, you have to be amazed at how much Blizzard can add to an already full game.
Jonathon Howard’s Choice: World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King. Despite hating the fact that everyone is a Death Knight now, this expansion really raised the game. A graphical overhaul, achievements, a new world to explore, an increased level cap, new job classes, the list of improvements go on and on. Despite strong showings from other MMORPGs WOW remains king of the MMOs, and WotLK insures it’ll stay King for a few more years, at least.
GameStooge Awards: Genre Awards
- Scribbled on January 4th, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Game Genres, GameStooge Game of the Year Awards, Platforms
We’d announced the Technical Awards on January 1st, now comes the Genre Awards, in which we take a look at the best games of each genre category. GameStooge writer Jonathon Howard chimes in with some of his own picks in categories he’s familiar with.
The winners are:
BEST ACTION GAME OF 2008
Grand Theft Auto IV
(Other Nominees: Dead Space, Devil May Cry 4, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Prince of Persia)
One of the hardest categories to decide on, with five strong nominees, but in the end, it went to Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto IV, just from the sheer scope of the game. Liberty City never looked so good, and while some preferred Saints Row 2 for pure manic fun, GTA4 was a game many spent hours exploring, with a crackling - if harsh - story and a new star in Niko Belic. One wonders if we’ll be seeing more of him, or if the next GTA is set in the 80’s.
Jonathon Howard’s Choice: Grand Theft Auto IV The game that was thought to be the defacto game of the year, but got lost in the avalanche of good games that arrived at the end of the year. GTA4 is a beautiful game, that suffers from old and tired gameplay.
BEST SHOOTER OF 2008
Gears of War 2
(Other Nominees: Crysis Warhead, Far Cry 2, Left 4 Dead, Resistance 2)
Another difficult category to judge, but in the end, only one game was truly deserving: Epic’s Gears of War 2. Despite a dodgy ending, Epic once again pushed the envelop in terms of graphics. However, it was the sheer humanity in the story that put the game over the edge - few shooters can make a gamer cry as this game did. Microsoft has its hands full, as it does not (yet) have exclusive rights to Gears of War 3.
Jonathon Howard’s Choice: Gears of War 2. I don’t know if this is the best shooter of the year. I just know it’s the only one I’ve spent anytime playing!
Dead Rising: Chop Til You Drop Trailer
- Scribbled on January 2nd, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Action, Game Videos, Nintendo Wii
Joystiq has posted the Japanese trailer for the Wii adaptation of Dead Rising, Chop Til You Drop. Enjoy the wackiness.
FEATURE: The Day Lord British Died
The recent news that Richard Garriott is again thinking of making a fantasy MMO - a return to his gaming roots - got my editor Jonah Falcon thinking, and he then got me thinking.
Thinking about a lost piece of MMO, actually gaming, history - it’s easy to forget now, amidst a sea of popular MMORPGs, just how revolutionary the genre is. It is also easy to forget that the genre didn’t start with World of Warcraft, it didn’t even start with EverQuest. No, MMORPGs started more than a decade a go back in 1997 with Ultima Online and Richard Garriott. iD Software originally pioneered on-line gaming with Doom 2 and then the Quake series, but computer RPGs were slow to follow their action counterparts into phone lines and then onto the still nascent Internet. It was Richard Garriott and his company Origin that moved RPGs onto the Internet with the Ultima Online, a spin-off of his popular Ultima series of computer RPGs, that largely stand as the exemplar for CRPGs even today.
It is hard to grasp today, when we’re all wired into the Internet all the time, through our computers, mobiles, GPS units, etc. How mindblowing the idea of a persistent multiplayer game was back in 1997; there had been other attempts at such a game but not with the graphics and game play that UO was offering. The game won numerous industry awards as well as 8 world records from the Guinness Book of World Records. All these accolades came out of a long series of testing. Origin began the game back in 1995 and the game was first shown at E3 in 1996. Origin invited gamers to join the alpha and beta tests of the game, and droves did. During late beta testing while Origin was stress testing their servers, the unthinkable happened. Near the end of the beta testing, Richard Garriott, as Lord British, began touring the servers with other famous Ultima characters to thank all the testers for their hard work. It was in one of these in-game meetings that a player managed to kill Lord British.
RETROVIEW: Yo! Noid (NES)
- Scribbled on January 2nd, 2009 by Derrick Schommer
- Filed in Platformer, Retro, Reviews
Can you tell the difference between Yo! Noid and Kamen no Ninja Hanamaru?
Yo! Noid was a commercial opportunity for Domino’s Pizza developed by Capcom. This retro style game revolved around Domino’s Pizza claymation style mascot, the Noid, as he adventures through fourteen stages of side scrolling action.
The game sound was much like any other 8-bit action platformer. It reminded me of the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the Nintendo Entertainment System, not the cool arcade one. Minus the turtles, Yo! Noid is a battle against Mr. Green, the Noids evil duplicate, a concept used in so many games; remember Shadow Link?
Unlike Link, Noid lost a life when he hit an enemy similar to the Super Mario Bros. style platformer but with a Yo Yo weapon. You could also gather smart-bomb type scrolls to clear the screen of all enemies, another classic side scroller arcade recipe. Yo! Noid brought nothing to the table in terms of uniqueness and relied on the standard recipe of side scrolling conflict.
Lord of the Rings: Conquest MP Demo on Marketplace
- Scribbled on January 2nd, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Action, Game Demos, Microsoft Xbox 360, Press Release, Xbox Live Marketplace
Xbox 360 owners will be able to enjoy what PlayStation 3 owners have been playing - the demo for the upcoming Star Wars: Battlefront-style game based on J.R.R. Tolkein’s masterwork, Lord of the Rings: Conquest.
Download The Lord of the Rings: Conquest™ online multiplayer demo and choose your side! Fight for either Good or Evil in the battle for Middle-earth!
Are you interested in this multiplayer battle game? Let us know.
Lord British Wants to Make Fantasy MMO
- Scribbled on January 2nd, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Interviews, MMO
Richard Garriott has returned from space newly emancipated from NCSoft to declare he wants to make a new fantasy MMO.
“After 25 years at Origin, the last thing I wanted to make was yet another medieval fantasy game. Now, after a very interesting break, I’m keen to get back into the fray and work on a new game,” he said.
And guess what he’s planning? “Probably medieval fantasy and probably online; there’s something very powerful about getting people together,” he told the BBC.
Garriott was the first to introduce the graphic MUD - what we now call MMORPGs - with Ultima Online, which is still going strong today. Tabula Rasa was a good MMO but failed to catch on - it’ll be interesting to see what Lord British does with a new fantasy MMO, because Garriott’s always tried to be different.
Related story: NCSoft Sued for Patent Infringement
Kid Gets Wii, Celebrates Quietly
- Scribbled on January 2nd, 2009 by Jonah Falcon
- Filed in Humor, Nintendo Wii
Well, not exactly. He goes completely batshit crazy - but hey, he’s a kid. I went nuts over my ColecoVision way back when.
POLL RESULTS: What Is the First Shooter You Loved?
Well, the poll results are cleared - the first shooter most of you folks loved first in your life was GoldenEye 007. I suppose that’s where most console gamers cut their teeth on shooters, because DOOM followed closely at #2, and that was where PC gamers got their taste. It’s interesting to note that Castle Wolfenstein was #4 with Duke 3D following at #5 (behind #3 Halo) - Quake was relatively nowhere to be seen, following Call of Duty, Half-Life, Counter-Strike and Gears of War. Call of Duty, Counter-Strike and Star Wars: Battlefront led the write-in votes.
28 of the over 1438 votes stated they didn’t like shooters. Losers.
Click “Read more…” for the full list.
