Nintendo has been selling the DS lit as though it were a drug to millions of hard core and soft core gamers. The Playstation portable has been a rudderless ship plagued with low quality ports of hit Playstation one and two titles with lackluster original IPs. Killzone liberation anyone ?
Nintendo rather then wait for its rivals at Sony or Apple (yes some consider apple's touch screens to be handheld gameing systems), to come out with the next generation of handhelds, Nintendo has instead chosen to release its new handheld (DSi), this Christmas in Japan.
We in the States and across the pond in Europe will likely see the new device hitting store shelves in early 2009.
The Nintendo DSi is an upgrade and not an outright revolution. It will play your favorite Nintendo DS lit titles (last gen compatible), but sadly shows no love for the Game Boy advanced generation of games which will not work as there is no port for said games.
The DSi will snap pictures with two different camera's, one facing outward (shown below), resembles the camera's found on apple's macbooks and is capable of take photo's 300,000 pixels large, which in lam ens terms equals out to 640X480 resolution.
The DSi will be able to store and playback music from an SD card which an be inserted into the right side of the DSi. In addition to matching the PSP in terms of audio capabilities, the DSi will also be able to download entire games for ($2-10), via a wi-fi connection from a virtual store. This is clearly a nod to the successful strategy Nintendo and to a lesser extent Microsoft have been employing with their Wii and 360 consoles, both of which have online stores chalk full of AAA, retro and indie titles.
The DSi is retailing for 18,900 yen, or about $185. Its more expensive then the DS lit and its really just an upgrade at the end of the day. If you really need the camera and audio capabilities then go for it, but if your existence will be rendered less fulfilling if deprived of your old GBA titles then feel free to sit this one out.
As for myself, I'll be giving my DS lit to a friend or relative the minute the DSi hits store shelves here in the US. The prospect of sticking it to gamestop by purchasing retro games online is just too tantalizing to ignore.
Bungie has released a trailer that shows a futuristic society blown to pieces in a flurry of asteroid type impacts. Is this a new installment in the widely successful Halo series or...something more ?
With Games for Windows and Windows Vista both being medicore at best and dismal 6 billion dollar failures (vista), at worst, Microsoft could concievably be looking to remedy both tragedies with a single silver bullet. Another operating system!
Windows 7 isn't due out till January of 2010 but if the screenshots leaked out by ThinkNext and referenced by both Wired and ShackNews hold true from now until then, the OS will both alert users that updates exist for games and include an "auto-update", feature removing the otherwise mundane task of manually updating.
Until fairly recently most journalists and avid video gamers had written off the land of the rising sun (japan), to be off limits or nearly so, given the difficulty forieghn companies have faced in a country that still shows a strong loyalty to for all its indigenous companies. Sony and Nintendo seem to just plain dominate the market, especially the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS, while the Playstation 3 caters to those with a need for more mature and gore filled titles (which you actually find in japan. Sorry USA.).
To buck this trend Microsoft cut prices on its consoles sold in a market where its had the hardest time getting market share. The ploy seems to have worked with 28,681 consoles sold to Nintendo's 27,057 consoles.
Adding to this impressive figure, Tales of Vesperia has become to Japan what the Halo series has been to America. While we prefer a good old fashioned FPS, the japanese are more inclined to opt for 40+ hours of play in an anime RPG. Tales of Vesperia caused the 360 to be sold out even before the price cuts were announced on September 11th.
Microsoft has finally confirmed what everyone has been speculating on for the better part of two weeks if not more. That the first of the next generation consoles will take a price cut. Obviously this is aimed at making the 360 more affordable and competitive with the nintendo wii.
The Pro system with a 20GB hard drive is now $299 down from 349.99 originally. Meanwhile the elite and arcade will continue to sell for $449 and $280 respectively.
The new SKU retailing at the pro's former price point of $349 will sport a 60GB hard drive (20GB more then the cheapest PlayStation 3), and be available in August.
The real issue here at L337 Gamer Review is why on earth anyone would fork over money for an arcade (formerly core), system ? It has no hard drive and comes with a wired controller and an ugly looking box. The damn thing is crippled (no ethernet cable, HD output (composite video cables instead), no headset or BACKWARDS COMPATABILITY).
Yet for just 20 dollars more you now can have all of what the arcade lacks. Even if your a dirt poor college student, you can scrounge around under seat cushions and come up with 20 bucks.
Recently Gamasutra ran an article in which Aaron Greenberg, director of product management for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live, makes the bold claim that wii owners are going to eventually "graduate", to Microsoft's system of choice: Xbox 360 weather it be arcade, pro or elite. My own personal view on this is that the hardware isn't relevant. I wouldn't consider chucking my 360 for a wii just like I wouldn't have considered chucking my xbox for a gamecube in the last console war. So do graphical might and huge price tags carry the day ? No.
While I am firmly rooted in the Xbox camp for this round of the console war, I and many others who own either 360's or PS3's carry around Nintendo's portable gaming system, the Nintendo DS. Why ? Well its because of software and innovative controls. There is a vast library of DS and backward compatible Game Boy Advanced games for us to splurge on, weather its pre-owned bargain bin favorites at game stop (or gamecrazy), or the endless number of new and sometimes over the top (civilization:revolution DS) releases coming out each month.
One could assume I'd be rooting for the Wii or even the PS3 looking at the console war long term. While I'll certainly be buying a PS3 to enjoy blue-ray goodness and a select few games (as well as a massive PS2 library), the wii is an entirely different matter.
While I jump for joy at the idea of a game like wii fit that gets us off our collective asses to do something beneficial for ourselves. I'm not pleased with the idea of rescuing princess peach AGAIN, or playing wiisports when I don't like sports to begin with and anyone thinking playing sports on a console makes them good at said sports in real life is as about as socially inept as they come. Need we tread down the humiliating path of Dance Dance Revolution yet again ?
Software is king, hardware is an important starting point that can easily become a non-starter assuming we don't have high quality games to play on the damn box's that we drop several hundred dollars for every new console war. The Xbox 360 according to Microsoft should have over 1000 titles by the end of 2008 and they are the only ones to make a big push for indie developed games through XNA. Almost everything that is coming out of any importance on the PlayStation 3 is also coming out on the 360. Lastly, while the people at Nintendo are attempting to make it easier to develop indie games through wiiware, more often then not there is a consensus that most of the games for the wii are garbage unless they are developed by Nintendo. The software conclusion is that Nintendo lacks third party games, Sony's PlayStation 3 lacks exclusivity like the PSP lacks direction and the Xbox 360 could be doing much more then it has been in terms of prices and making life easier for XNA developers.
Market share is another issue we hear on a daily basis, this is a little harder to look at since these numbers have a psychological impact. If most of jimmy's friends are playing with console B instead of console C, then he'll be tempted to jump ship (coward that he is), and buy console B and sell down the river is former console C. The rumored price drops for all of the 360 SKU's not withstanding, I think the Wii will be a strong contender in terms of sales and market share for years to come but ultimately turning out to be hollow in terms of reputation amongst anyone who buys more then one or two games a year (or gets mommy and daddy to do it). I'm looking to spend 500-1000 dollars on video games in 2008 and I'm nearly at the half way mark and its all software. No additional controllers or headsets (though they are the weakest link in the 360's hardware chain...besides the box itself of course).
So Mr.Greenberg and dear readers, while Microsoft would like to think it will see the same sales numbers as Nintendo, it simply isn't anything more then arrogant dilutions of grandeur over in Redmond Washington. The being said, Microsoft has had over 3 positive quarters of profitability on the Xbox 360 and a massive library of games that are competitive with games found on PC. In a world where PC gamers are becoming disaffected with hardware price tags, its worth noting that the 360 could well be the answer to this gameing segments pix elated needs. That is worth more then any graduation ceremony...even if the after party was ridiculously awesome.
So this being the 100Th L337 Gamer Blog post, I thought I'd ring it in with a ground breaking event...of sorts. While the gaming industry has been surpassing the total gross of the movie theaters (9.6 billion in 2007), for awhile now, its finally done the same to the DVD industry. The gaming industry took in 18.85 billion during 2007 while the DVD format (Blue-ray not yet important enough to warrant a comparison of any kind), took in 16 billion for 2007.
On a lighter note, I've just completed Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation, and will be posting a review in a day or so. Meanwhile I'm awaiting my review copy of "Alone in the Dark" as well as receiving a review copy of "DBZ burst limit", sometime in the same time frame.
Its fair to say that all I'll be doing is programming and gaming for the foreseeable future. SupCom review also coming next week.
Ensemble Studios, the developer that brought us the age of empire's series has released fresh screenshots of the upcoming console RTS, Halo Wars. Until the playable demo makes an appearence at E3 you'll just have to get by on these sweet screenshots.
Anyone who's watched Rooster Teeth's hit series red vs blue or played supreme commander can appreciate the utter hilarity the unfolds in these first two episodes of the series Supreme surrender. Watch and Enjoy.
Blizzard Entertainment has dropped what some are regarding as a bombshell and others (like the folks at Joystiq), have been prophesizing about these past few weeks. Diablo 3. While the opening ceremonies were getting underway at Blizzard's Worldwide Invitational tournament event in Paris, Blizzard broke the news and officially announced Diablo 3 to be in development, though like Starcraft 2, is lacking in a release date. My own two cents is that everyone at Blizzard is currently either tied up maintaining and expanding WoW or putting the finishing touches on Starcraft 2, and thus we won't see this third installment in the Diablo trilogy till sometime in 2009 or later.
The previous team to work on the Diablo series, Blizzard North being no more (they split up and some even got together to create the Hellgate: London, developer Flagship Studios.
In an age of Conan and WoW monopoly (sorry Guild Wars, I've been questioning NcSoft's commitment to gaming lately), what could this possible 2009 title offer us that we haven't already seen ? For starters, the game will feature a customized version of Havok physics which in lamens terms means that you'll get realistic objects and clothing along with destructible environments. Now if you can permanently alter the landscapes and return to do a little remodeling later on then I can definitely see not only replay-ability but also a fair amount of cheer from those of us who make it our solemn duty to create tricked out maps. Like all previous installments of the Diablo series, this one will be free and not carry a pesky and expensive monthly subscription fee. The most striking difference thus far though is the fact it will launch on both PC and MAC! Aside from being biased toward what I consider the best platform and computer available (not 100% given that yours truly using a macbook and not a Pro), its saying something about the change a few years makes to see the mac again being considered not only large enough a platform but also a profitable one that consumes and demands gaming software.
Until further notice I'll be awaiting an official release date on Starcraft 2 with Diablo 3 in the back of my mind as a game to check out this upcoming year. You may want to check out Blizzards official Diablo 3 site in the meantime
David Gardner and Phil Harrison have managed it seems to set atari on track to turn a profit by halving its net year to year losses in half. Net income loss was reduced from 159.9 million last year to 79.2 million this year, while operating loss improved from USD 95.8 million to 70.6 million) in the same period.
While Atari Inc in north america and infograms have merged and essentially become one entity, the overall bottom line has taken a hit as profits have dipped down from 473.5 million in 2007 to 352.2 million this year.
Now Alone in the Dark was delayed and this undoubtedly affected Atari's bottom line. The upcoming games Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit and Alone in the Dark are widely expected to sell well and lift Atari up to profitabality.
When will Atari be back in black ? The company has forecast a 12-18 per cent growth in net revenues for fiscal 2009, and is confident of becoming profitable at the current operating income level within 18 months and remain so on an annual basis after that.
Through a deal with Bethesda, Amazon has acquired the rights to sell Fallout 3: Survival Edition.
If your planning to break into the industry or just like to see how everything comes together to create the virtual world of Fallout 3, the survival edition comes with a "making of", DVD. Along with for mentioned DVD you also get an assortment of other exclusive goodies to wet your L337 appetite.
replica wrist-mounted clock
lunch box
hardcover art book
Of course Amazon's vice president of video game and software at amazon, didn't fail to show his elation at this turn of events.
"We're delighted to be the exclusive destination for Fallout 3 Survival Edition; this is a great example of the continually expanding selection we offer to gamers."
Meanwhile Bethesda Softworkss president, Vlatko Andonov put in his two cents by pointing out a fact many hardcore gamers have known for years. People buy rare collectors edition SKU's for the simple fact that it makes us feel like we have a part of history (literally in the case of World in Conflict's chunk of the Berlin wall).
"The Survival Edition offers gamers the unique opportunity to own a piece of video game history along with a collection of limited edition items – it's the definitive Fallout 3 package."
Release date: 10/7/08 Platforms: Xbox 360, PC (windows 2000, xp, vista), PS3
OK so while Resident Evil five does take place in Africa and thus the majority of the inhabitants (and thus zombies), are black. Its been suggested by some that the game is racist in nature due to its treatment of none-zombified africans as being "zombie-like", in nature and appearance. The fact that your a white guy also suggests racism in the eye's of some.
The other four Resident Evil Games all took place either in Europe or the United States, so this little change of scenery if anything adds a refreshing change to the overused setting that is the United States.
Jim Sterling of Destructoid correctly pointed out in an article that what all the hype and criticism of this game as being "racist", suggests is that racism is indeed prevalent. When someone See's only the color of a zombie's skin and forgets the fact he wants to eat your brains, something is seriously wrong with the world. In other news, Jack Thompson is not a hack lawyer and is not mentally deficient in every way conceivable.
Further confirmation that the video game industry is immune to the woes of other industry's during this recession has appeared in the form of Ubisoft seeking 900 new employee's. This wonderful piece of news was thrown into my lap by GameIndustry.biz, from which I have obtained the quotes to follow.
Breaking it down by the numbers, 500 recruits will go to Ubisofts newly established studios in Singapore, India and China While another 400 staff are added to the already successful and well established offices in Canada, Romania and once again, china.
"We have a dual priority of ramping up as quickly as possible in our newly created studios while also growing and keeping our leading position in our established studios," said Elham Mottahed-Asdaghi, communications manager for Ubisoft International Production Studios.
"We feel that the industry is relatively immune to the slowdown and we're not expecting that to change in the near future.
In the article two things stand out to me, the fact that the talent pool which depends on the education system was such a key factor and that in the case of Singapore, strong government made the difference for the upwards of 300 people who will be employed at the Ubisoft Studio.
"We've specifically chosen to establish teams in regions where there is a great system of education and therefore a continually refreshing pool of talent," he detailed.
"In our established studios, we were the pioneers in the region but our success has attracted competitors and so the competition for talent is tougher - but we work hard to ensure that we are attracting the best talent."
America is filled with thousands if not millions of young talented artists,programmers and designers who would gladly work for ubisoft but if ubisoft's lack of expansion in the US is due to a lack of quality education and despite the efforts of states like Georgia and Texas, lack of strong government backing for incentives to open up studio's here.
Meanwhile, Gameloft's Indian studio plans to increase headcount from 120 to 500 over twelve months after Ubisoft acquired them this year.
As for the expansion in china, last year Ubisoft opened a studio in that country with the intention to ramp up staff numbers from 10 to 200 within 12 months.
Mottahed-Asdaghi believes the combination of solid publishing credentials with creative and multicultural expression makes the firm an attractive prospect to recruits.
"We can offer a unique opportunity for international mobility, since we have dynamic studios in 19 different locations. Our corporate culture is to share our knowledge and our different cultural points of view in order to enrich our experience and therefore offer games that offer unique playing opportunities," he said.
"We encourage international exchange and creative freedom across the board. On the other hand, we are the second largest creative team in the world so our team members have access to solid publisher resources.
"In a way, we offer the best of both worlds - solid enterprise resources with a small developer, creative atmosphere," he added.
While Ubisoft is clearly an international not to mention FRENCH developer and publisher, its expansion is thanks in no small part to successful sales of its splinter cell and Prince of Persia series here in the US. The more recent smash hits that have been Assassins Creed and the soon to be Real Time Strategy game for the console, Endwar are only going to drive up revenue for the company but once again due largely to the US video game market being all but invincible to the recession we currently find ourselves in.
Well I don't often look at other start-up gamer journalistic blogs (though I should), something possessed me to do just that a few moments ago. I looked up L337 Gamer, both because of the similarity to L337 Gamer Review, and because the proper spelling "1337", is confused enough with L337, that it wouldn't affect the Google search too bad.
I've seen my competition and feel.....pretty damn good about my efforts through blogger. While Blogger may not be a flashy site like Joystiq or as professional as gameindustry.biz, its still light years ahead of the competition.
OK so this blog which is hosted by GoDaddy and the home page reads as follows, "All your gaming needs and desires from cheats to walkthroughs.". While I don't have walkthrough's, neither does this guy. His navigation bar gives you three options, home, upcoming games, forums. The homepage is just that little quote I listed above with unmet promises and a Gears of War vid featuring the song "behind blue eye's", by limp bizkit. The upcoming games section is thrown onto one big page and doesn't look appealing to the eye's with the month being mentioned after every damn platform (couldn't it just all be under a giant header "June" ?). Wii is spelled "WII", throw in another "W", and your likely to confuse the Wii section for section about world war 2. The forums don't work with the opera web browser,(or any of the other browsers that aren't IE or FireFox), so we can assume this blogger thinks we are back in 2006 when the only two browsers anyone seemed to pay attention to where FireFox and its evil corporate web browser competitor Internet Explorer (because some people assume that Microsoft = evil).
What I offer that he and others do not:
While its next to impossible. OK absolutely impossible, for one man to create a site or blog that can report and compete with the massive and well established big boys of gaming journalism like Joystiq and 1UP or even PC-Gamer. L337 Gamer Review isn't about competing. L337 Gamer Review is about one gamer and in time many gamers, writing reviews and reporting the goings on in the game industry. If I had to compare myself to someone it would be Jerry Yang of yahoo and fellow yahoo co founder David Filo. The two started yahoo out of nothing more then a few cobbled together PCs and servers in a trailer on the Stanford campus as a side project meant to categorize relevant sports data for their fantasy football competitions.
I recently received not one but two emails relating to Atari's upcoming Dragon Ball Z Burst and Alone in the Dark. I can't even begin to describe the feeling of joy I had reading those emails. Its those emails that keep me going and going the extra mile rather then burning out at the sheer immensity of the task. I for one would like to see Atari resurrect itself in much the same way Apple Computer was able to do so. Weather a company with a reputation for retro games of yest er year can do this is still in question but for some in the media and close friends to write off Atari is in my view a mistake.
If I had to sum up what I have that others in the same boat don't have in 3 words it would be, Content, passion and the presentation to get it out to fellow gamers.
The future:
In the future I plan to move away from blogger and create a fully independent blog and or news service for gamers. There are plenty of talented writers and fellow gamers out there who need an outlet for their views. I think L337 Gamer could be that outlet. As for design, I plan to implement flash in small amounts and then expand the sites interactivity as the share of potential viewers/subscribers with a high speed Internet connection not only expands (pretty damn big as is), but also as the amount of data expands beyond 100MB to 500MB over the next few years. Yes that means L337 Gamer is going to keep going throughout the summer, fall and make a huge splash in the spring of 2009.
While most states that pass laws involving video games (like 99.99%), have to deal with censorship launched by overactive lobbying groups with words like "family", and "concerned", thrown in, Georgia is proving to be a refreshing exception to this rule. Georgia's Governor, Sonny Perdue has signed into law the 2008 Entertainment Industry Act which is meant to attract investment and create growth in the states local entertainment industry.
The Act offers:
20% tax credit for productions including
TV
film
music video's
Commercials and Video games
Now all of the above are eligible for an additional 10% tax credit if they include an animated Georgia promotional logo within the finished product.
"We expect a significant increase in film and television projects, and Georgia will be the most competitive state in the country for video game productions," stated Bill Thompson, deputy commissioner of the Film, Music and Digital Entertainment Office, a division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development .
"Georgia is one of the few states whose entertainment incentives support the video game industry," Thompson said.
Personally I think its refreshing to see states like Georgia, which we don't typically think of as being as economically diverse as say California, Midwest or new England to be looking ahead at creative industry's to replace and expand beyond the old manufacturing jobs.
Game Trailer.com has provided us Red Alert universe veterans with a first glimpse of actual game play. The game play seems to keep things familiar for veterans while introducing a new layer of paint to the franchise. I'll have more information when I can release information from the beta. Can't wait to send the kirov's on a bombing run and unleash the awesome power of the chronosphere this October.
Grand Theft Auto IV has shattered Halo 3's record of being the fastest selling video game according to Guinness World Records. Grand Theft Auto claiming the title as the highest ever entertainment earner within the first 24 hours of release, selling 3.6 million units and generating 310 million dollars in revenue.
This achievement overshadows last years record by Halo 3 which generated 170 million dollars, Spiderman 3's 60 million dollars and the fastest selling book, Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows which brought in 220 million dollars.
Rockstar's 4 installment in the Grand Theft Auto series reached the 500 million dollar mark in its first week and has been topping the charts worldwide since its release (April 29th).
Amidst gas prices that are set to hit 4.00 dollars nationally by summer and a declining dollar, We here in the USA are showing that one industry will not only not go down but prosper. Forget china's 12% growth, video game sales are up 47% (1.23 Billion for the month of April). While Microsoft announced its 10 million mark for 360's sold to date, Sony is projecting to sell the very same number of PS3's this year. Not to be outdone the Wii has sold a shocking 9.5 million units and demand is still as strong as ever (just go out and try to buy one).
While GTA IV was key factor since it launched just two days before the end of month and racked up 2,850,000 between the 360 & PS3 versions, several other titles also did extremely well for the month according to sales data released today by the NPD Group
1. Grand Theft Auto IV (Xbox 360) - 1,850,000 2. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo Wii) - 1,120,000 3. Grand Theft Auto IV (PlayStation 3) - 1,000,000 4. Wii Play (Wii) - 360,000 5. Super Smash Brothers Brawl (Wii) - 326,000 6. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (PS3) - 224,000 7. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Darkness (DS) - 202,000 8. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Time (DS) - 202,000 9. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Wii) - 152,000 10. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (360) - 141,000
And here are the Hardware figures for April:
1. Wii - 714,200 2. Nintendo DS - 414,800 3. PSP - 192,700 4. Xbox 360 - 188,000 5. PlayStation 3 - 187,000 6. PlayStation 2 - 124,000
The Gaming Mecca that is Japan is home to many exclusive bundles, up until now there was some fear that Sony's MSG 4 PS3 bundle would be a strictly Japanese affair. Not so, according to Sony's Official PlayStation.Blog. The Limited edition PS3 Hardware Bundle will be available exclusively from Konami.com for a whopping $600.
What you Get:
40GB gunmetal PS3
matching DualShock 3 wireless controller
Metal Gear Online
exclusive Blu-ray disc with 2 hours of additional content (making of documentary + look at Hideo Kojima's Production team)
MSG4:Guns of the Patriots Limited Edition game
Pre-orders from a minuscule supply begin on Monday the 19th.
OK so we've seen the extensive presence of Mac and Apple products in movies like Accepted, Disturbia, Transformers and hell, the fruit sporting company has even had its computers make appearances on sitcoms like Sex and the City. O and lets no forget the endless number of News networks and sports casters who also use macs. The point is that Apple products have hit Hollywood and most other forms of media but not really made a dent in an industry far bigger then movies or news. VIDEO GAMES!
Yes there is the iPhone SDK which allows people to make games for the phone that is officially the crack cocaine of the tech world. Yes Aspyr makes games for the mac and the ipod has a long list of developers too.
But what about an ipod just being in the background. Well Metal Gear solid four will give you that and a little bit more as said device (a 5GB ipod), is not only is MP3 player of choice but also probably interactive. That's just my assumption. I mean its got to serve some purpose other then to just exist as an item on a list of tools for snake to whip out at his leisure.
The fact its a 5GB ipod leaves me wondering just how long Metal Gear Solid 4 has been in development. For all the hoopla Sony is giving the game and the amount of the time its taken to make Solid Snake re-appear as an old man in sore need Alzheimer's medication, Snake had better teabag the hell outta Master Chief.
Not to be outdone by yesterdays announcement by Nintendo that it had sold six million wii's in Japan, Microsoft announced it has reached (and surely passing as you read this), the 10 million mark here in the United States.
My initial reaction is that it was about damn time someone hit the ten million mark and I'm glad it isn't the wii. Why ? Well while the Wii has the casual game market down pat, if it had reached the ten million mark first then other console manufacturers would drink the kool-aid as though the four hundred pound jug of juice himself were stricken with hemophilia.
The "casual", gamer demographic while several times larger then the hardcore gamer demographic, is mostly made up of people who will purchase the wii or DS to play WiiSports (the game the wii comes with), or BrainAge for those moments on the bus or sitting at home when boredom threatens to take over a puzzle solving exercise or list of childish math problems is preferred.
The "Hard core" demographic by contrast to there casual counterparts glacial pace of game purchases, scoops em up like they are treasured commodities. The hardcore gamer will purchase 3-5 games a year if they are strapped for cash and rent out a couple dozen in the same period. The best case of both fusing to together in matrimony seems to be Gamefly, which is quickly becoming the Netflix of games. That's another story though.
Looking at the other numbers microsoft is no doube happy to flaunt in the face of Nintendo, its online service now could make for an impressive commercial reminiscent of the ones Blizzard used to make for World Of Warcraft. With 12 million online, how can you go wrong with xboxlive ?
Well considering Microsoft isn't differentiating between the gold members (who pay around 60 US dollars or the cost of one 360 game a year), or Silver members (who pay nothing and can't play multi player games online), the actual value of that number is up for dispute.
Microsoft to date has sold 19 million Xbox 360 consoles worldwide.
Sony meanwhile predicts it will sell 10 million PlayStation 3's this year, a million more then it sold last year and easily equaling Microsoft Worldwide sales. Remember that Sony currently retains the position for having the biggest console (anyone need a George Foreman grill impersonator?), and boasts the ability to play blue-ray (Sony's now victorious high end media platform).
For all the crap I tend to give Sony about Home (which Sony now admits was vaporware in its original second Life type form), or its game selection (which should be helped by Metal Gear Solid 4 coming out this year....finally), it could well become highly competitive platform at least as far as publishers are concerned.
Though Microsoft doesn't see it that way. "History has shown us that the first company to reach 10 million in console sales wins the generation battle. We are uniquely positioned to set a new benchmark for the industry," said Don Mattrick, Microsoft's senior vice president of Interactive Entertainment Business.
Ok, so I love Apple computer. I'm using one to write this blog,search the internet and create flash and dreamweaver files. If I'm the stareotypical machead that some would like to paint me as, then the news that Apple Insider gave us earlier today, that Apple has filed for patents on a 3D motion controller for the AppleTv should have me singing in the non-existant arizona rain right ? Wrong!
Just because Apple has filed the patents doesn't mean it will pursue a path that its already been down before and come out of with its tail between its legs. Pippin was the game system and 1996 was the year of its launch. Against the N64,Playstation and Sega's multiple consoles, it failed and closed up shop a year later.
You could argue that the Apple of today is an entirely different animal then its 1996 predeccesor. For one you've got the inspirational salesmen and apple evenaglest, "steve jobs", who's reality distortion field could do wonder for initial sales.
Secondly, Apple is flushed with cash from the ipods,macs and iphones that have been flying off the shelf. The stock is currently at 182 dollars and thats with the economy in recession. Itunes has even been projected to account for 25% of all the worlds music sales within a few years.
Not a bad position to be in....but.
Apple hasn't gone after the gaming market in a significant way. Apple's Macbook Pro's and Mac Pro desktop are the only real gaming machines and thats largely due to there graphic cards not being inadequate. Still upgrading and video card support have been issues with macs. Though the Mac Pro could be making some big inroads as a PCgamer cover story I read awhile back implied.
Yes some of the pushes toward dual releasing games for Mac and Windows by EA are impressive but when it comes to the console market, people are already flooded with choices and two of them dominate the high end (Microsoft & Sony), while the trusted brand that is Nintendo offers up basically the same product apple has gone ahead and patented. Motion sensory controls and and weak graphics aside, nintendo has the software to blow away whatever console or AppleTv add-on comes along.
GTA 4 has been eagerly awaited by the masses for months if not years (depending on your level of fandom or lack of enthusiasm for San Andreas). So I like any vigilant vigilantee made sure to preorder several months in advance, marked the day on my calender and pulled an all nighter to ensure I'd get a top spot in line before my local gamecrazy opened up at 10am on the 29th.
Why all the excitement ?
Ever since Rockstar released Grand Theft auto 3 back in October 2001, a key buzz word entered the gamers vocabulary and made developers readjust how they make games, "Sandbox". Where most games require you to progress in a linear motion toward a predestined conclusion that concludes the game. The whole notion of sandbox type gameplay is that you can ignore the main plot and just explore the virtual world, perform side mssions or just get something different out of the game.
The setting of the GTA series has revolved around three fictional cities, Liberty City (modeled off of new york), San Andreas (Los Angeles, San francisco), and Vice City (Miami). Liberty City is the Setting for Grand Theft Auto 4 and in returning to the setting of its hit predecessor Grand Theft Auto 3, a lot of attention was paid to making the realistic and detailed remake of New York City. Pedestrians drink in game knock offs of starbucks, there is a wall streetesg time square in the city as well, with hot dog vendors and fictional stocks displayed across massive outdoor screens. Its truely immersive and car jackings,shoot outs and copter crashes asid, gives you enough of a look at new york to consider moving there. If your up for taking a taxi everywhere (yes they managed to copy gridlock traffic and ideotic drivers as well.
Everything in moderation
San Andreas was a massive game when it came out and remains so. The whole sandbox mode was really taken to excess as you had to commute to locations and interact with characters set in a world more akin to being the Oblivion or Marrowind of the GTA series. Even with a noticably smaller landscape, Liberty City is still massive in terms of oppurtunities. Below are some stats.
52 Neighborhoods in 5 districts with 3 islands that can only be reached via a swim tailor made for olympic competitions. 19 Resturants serve you nourishment with everything from Burger shot to a fancy dinner while hot dog vendors and soda machines are also present in in unknown quantities throughout the game for a quick snack and the same health restoring goodness. When near a soda machine you can prolong shoot outs with police until you either have no more bullets or the machine is destroyed by a barrage of bullets.
There are four major shopping locations where you can customize what your character wears to his meeting with the mafia, prison breaks or to his date with the girl he met online.
Twelve Service locations provide everything from the internet (3 internet cafe's), car wash (4 locations), or getting your car repainted to not match the description the cops have at anyone of the five pay 'n' spray's.
Using the internet to answer emails,find dates and communicate with relatives is also one of the unique aspects of Grand Theft Auto 4. To my recollection I can't remember anything having as detailed a recreation of the internet in a virtual world existing on console (even if most of the sites are inactive dummy sites made to fill space on your browser).
If you wanted a night on the town or just a chance to get away from the game's story and enjoy yourself in a side game of pool or bowling, there are a total of 14 Entertainment/Nighlife locations. This includes 4 bars (where getting drunk really does impeed your movements), and two strip clubs (where 3 different levels of private dances in a backroom will leave you 200 dollars poorer). There is also a comedy club where you can catch cinematic antics that will either have you laughing or pressing the A button like mad to skip the torture that some would find comedic.
When it comes to a crime ridden cities like those found in the GTA series, its no surprise that they go overboard on Emergency services and the Liberty city of Grand Theft Auto 4 is no exception with 28 emergency services total (15 police stations, 7 Hospitals, Fire Departments). You can also car jack a police car to use its computer to police Liberty city yourself. Taking out Liberty cities most wanted is an in game achievement in and of itself (manhunt 15G, cleaned the mean streets 20G). Lastly you can also call for either an ambulance or liberty city's finest to come to your aid or to meet their end, by simply dialing 911 on your phone and choosing which service you would like.
Some other points about the geography of the game are that their are 16 points of interest, examples of which are "Funland","Soldiers Plaza", Broker Navy Yard and statue of happiness (Liberty City's version of the statue of liberty). There are 9 major bridges you can use to get to any of the major districts, an airport the size of of one of the districts (bohan), and 3 parks you can use to go for a jog or mug the snobby none-gamer pedestrians.
The Story
With Geography, realism and breathtaking scope, Grand Theft Auto 4 could be forgiven if its storyline was just average, as is the case with most games that manage to excell in everything but leave the narrative out of the equation. Grand Theft Auto 4 however shines. You play an eastern european immigrant, Niko Belic lured to america by tales of riches told by his cousin in Roman in emails but also the need to find a shady character from your past. You meet several character with differing personalities on your quest for answers and the american dream so espoused by your cousin. You can go on dates with girls and try your luck at the end of the date. Take either your cousin or friend to any of the resturants or places of entertainment to raise your friends positive view of you (if all friends have 90% view then its an 20G achievement). As you move up the criminal worlds social ladder, you'll see ever more impressive safehouses (one in each district), where you can save your game and see 6 in game hours fly by or opt to change your clothing. Through your cheap cellphone (which becomes more stylish 30% of the way in game), you can call friends,inquire about missions,recieve messages,login to multiplayer or confirm that a certain someone is sleeping with the fishes. By pressing start and going to the stats section you can see how long you've played but also how much of the game you've completed. If you just follow the story and ignore Brucies raceing missions, then you'll complete the game at about 60% progress. Even after completing the story mode though, you've still got 40% of the game content left to enjoy. It takes about 50 hours to complete the story campaign but doing it in 30 is an achievement.
Decisions, Decisions.
As a fan of Biowares Role Playing Games, I was thrilled that Grand Theft Auto 4 allows you access to different content based on your decisions in certains situations. You can for example choose to either kill certain people or let them go if thier promise to reform themselves has touched a soft spot in your heart. Be warned however that decisions have consquences, choosing to kill the rich guys friend may equal cash but it may also sever ties much the same way killing the rich or well connected guy by sticking to your principles leaves you financially strapped.
Whichever way you choose to go toward the end of the game, know that someone gets married, someone also bites the bullet and leaves Niko belic's life for good. One Choice, Two endings. Grand Theft Auto Delivers.
Galactic Civilization II: Twilight of the Arnor invading digitally April 30
Further proof that the retail industry can be skirted entirely for the digital distribution highway have been confirmed yet again. Galactic civilization 2 has finished and is published it last installement in the 3 part saga, titled “Twighlight of the Arnor”.
The expansion offers a retooling of the core gameplay, with additions to the tech tree’s for the twelve key space fareing races.
Well one of my reasons for considering a Playstation 3 just went out the door to go party in the lands of vapor ware. The closed Beta will be extended through summer and an open beta will launch this fall. I can remember when several months ago all the rage among anyone involved in Sony Sales was trumpeting Home and with good reason. If all goes well it would be akin to a sort of second life meets the Sims concoction that could have some people switching over or picking up the console based off of Home, alone.
However, the basic concept if it is indeed just a second life for console experience, seems to go in the wrong direction. Being able to pause my game and quickly check my gamerscore, achievements, messages and friends is a rather speedy process. It has to be when all a gamer wants is a simple yes or no as to who is online, what must he do to increase his gamerscore and weather or not his inbox has invites.
Hopefully this fall we get some answers about things like interface and in game use.. For now we sleep soundly knowing that all the time spent on development has produced an unfocused mess according to Sony Entertainments Presidents.
"We understand that we are asking PS3 and prospective PS3 users to wait a bit longer, but... we need more time to refine the service to ensure a more focused gaming entertainment experience than what it is today,"
Move over Duke Nukem, drop dead daikatana, there’s a new sheriff In town. He’s promising to make Live his bitch.
Spike TV’s Gametrailers TV, has secured the rights to air the very first footage of the Gears of War 2. Gears of War was an epic game but most would agree it was created to be a stand in until Halo 3 arrived. Though no one can deny it had a more intelligent method of gameplay involved then most First Person Shooters.
But the game is still very impressive and likely to sell extreamly well. If the hype and trailers are good (pinning everything on a demo), then sales could fall within the CoD4 – Halo 3 range, with the top dog presumably being the impossibly high yet presumptive GTA4 sales figures.
Game Trailers TV host Geoff Keighley said something that sounded as credible as saying the world is flat or that the earth is the center of the universe. “At Spike we are committed to delivering the biggest blockbuster videogame exclusives every week”.
Alright so the network that had Telia Tequila host a gamers event that was more about half naked girls then creativity, sales or any level of evaluation that matters, is committed to games, gaming and the blockbuster video games it somehow fails to see with its stereotypical lenses of ignorance and greed.
Portal was a wonderful game when the awards show Spike hosted was making evaluations on who to nominate and award what prize for w/e category. It’s still a good game even now. This didn’t matter however to Spike since it wasn’t part of some long running established series. These same people probably don’t understand why a HALO 3 either A) wouldn’t make sense or B), be in poor taste.
Spike: HALO 4 = $$$ = rateing if we show it on our channel = $$$ for execs at the top.
So while you’d think they’d care about capitalizing and marketing the shit out of said special event i.e the exclusive footage. They pull a move that would have Red Foreman screaming dumbass and threating steel toed boots up someone’s hind parts by airing the footage at 1AM EST?PST slot on May 9th.
I mean if we are all pimply headed teens who have nothing better to do then look at porn (thus loving girls covered gamer icons), and play video games. How exactly are we going to watch this at 1AM ?
The College kids in Game Trailers 13-24 demographic will no doubt be huddled around a large plasmas or sitting alone in their dorms studying for tests or too drunk to comphrend the images splashing across the screen (assuming they haven’t passed out).
While the last two paragraphs are filled with the stereotypical assumptions of tv executives and more then a few ignorant politicians, it goes without saying that this “exclusive”, footage will presumably appear on Xbox Live and GameTrailers.com (not to be confused with Spikes crudely contrived creation). I think I’ll get some sleep knowing I can watch the Gears of war 2 trailer at my leasure after I’m well rested enough to better appreciate its glory.
Anyone who’s enjoyed the prince of Persia series will now have a clue as to what the title for the next game in the series. And the winner is, “Prodigy”.
The creater/publisher Ubisoft has recently trademarked the title, “Prince of Persia Prodigy”, in relation to video game software.
Ubisoft announced in January that a new Prince of Persia game was in development. However to really get a handle on the situation we’ll have to wait till Ubisoft either confirms or denies at an upcoming San Francisco this May.
To paraphrase brother Cavil on Battle Star Galactica, "You know what really chaps my ass?". That quote could continue you on with the bit about manipulation just short of tyranny but I think either or would do just fine in this case. Censorship is what chaps my ass and its because it tyrannical manipulation of the media.
Sure you expect some level of censorship and grudgingly tolerate it, but here in America we are rather used to being able to express ourselves in a million different ways because freedom of speech is freedom of expression, weather it be through art,politics, or just telling someone higher up, to go fuck themselves. So you can imagine my reaction to Britain's Advertising Standards Agency (ASA), forcing Eidos Interactive to pull some *shocking*, ads out of magazines and off television.
First it was confusion that Kane and Lynch was apparently still such a big deal in Europe. I mean we in the States have since moved onto bigger and better things...a couple of them at least. We've been in salivating mode for the past 2 months over the upcoming release of the far more controversial Grand Theft Auto's latest installment.
Besides the fact the game is old news and being censored by a country who's freedom of expression isn't clearly defined or even protected, that nations game industry and design schools also lag behind. It was the details of the ASA's case against the ads that caused me to do a double take.
Excerpt's from Briton's Guardians newspaper:
The ad was used a double-page spread in Future Publishing’s computer game magazine Edge, while a second version appeared in the magazine Total Film…
Ruling on the Kane & Lynch poster… the ASA said it was “likely to be seen as condoning and glorifying real violence”, and was also irresponsible and “likely to cause serious or widespread offence”
We noted that the demographic profile of the magazines that carried the ads was predominantly adult males and that only a small number of children were likely to have seen the ads.
We considered, however, that the graphic and shocking image, which would be seen as condoning and glorifying real violence, was likely to cause distress to some readers and was unsuitable for children to see. We therefore concluded that the placement of the ads was irresponsible.
Now while the girl in the ad may be tied up, its not suggesting anything particular is going to happen. I mean the Game came out in November of 07 and had lackluster reviews and a just ok storyline. Sure one of your buddies gets black outs that result in several people be dead or maimed for life when he comes to, and yes Cops and inoccent bystanders get shot up. But I don't for a second assume the game is telling me to go kill someone just as I don't assume Harry Potter is telling me to practice magic or attempt to go airborne via broom out my second story window.
Of the hundreds of thousands of gamers in the UK and a total population of over 60 million, only 26 felt so shocked by the ad so as to file a complaint. If anything I'm assuming they probably belong to the same demographic that makes up people who join groups with "values","Concerned" and "Parents", in the name and then proceed to pass laws against something they don't understand. Which is an odd little repeat of history considering they belong to the generation of rock & roll and drug induced hippie flower power.
We just want to play our video games for a an hour or two (or 5), a day to relieve stress,explore a story or just enjoy ourselves and those around us. But with no real evidence other then 26 annonymous complaints of either shock or distate, the ASA believes these *controverial*, Kane and Lynch ads are "likely to cause widespread offence"
Censorship of idea's often has the opposite intended effect. When freedom of expression is curtailed, we see people being limited and ideas not being tried out for fear of some dystopian government imposing its moral standards upon we the people. Sales for a game thats largely fallen off the charts and out of the news in the US, could see a slight spike in the UK, though UK gamers have probably already had their jollies with the game and decided it was only mediocre at best.
As anyone who's studied for the SAT knows, its a necessary ill in life that lends itself to mind numbingly long hours of studying extended over several months to ensure weather or not your life is blessed with a good ivy league college education or that safety school you applied for *just as precaution*. With the slew of brain related games for the DS and a few for PSP, its a little surprising no one else has tried to create an SAT prep game until now.
Aspyr Media (makes games for the mac plateform), and Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions, have teamed up to produce a game that will help students study for the SAT through the Nintendo DS.
While Details are hard to come by, it will be out later this year on the PC and Mac Platforms alongside the Nintendo DS version.
I realised something walking into Costco in its last 45min before closing. I hate things. Like Cartmen and his theme park, I dislike lines. When it comes to the piss poor selection of video games that makes Wal-mart look like a f'n mall in comparison, I found myself confronting yet another deep simmering distaste. The distaste for bundles.
In a effect, a bundled video game system usually is an attempt by hardware manufacturers to sell more units by selling said units with what the company perceives to be the best possible game. What could go wrong ?
Starting with the premise of the age old tradition that goes as far back as duck hunt and the NES (or the more recent and far less fun Star Wars PlayStation Portable bundle), we find ourselves confronting the sheer morality of it. Do we as individuals let a company bundle a game system with a predetermined game and pay an increased amount even if we couldn't give two fucks about the said game. Maybe I want to play Brain Age or beat myself stupid with some puzzle based trifecta from hell. Really its about having the decision to do so.
The fact that we could go into a GameCrazy, Target or other retail chain and just buy a DS or PSP or some other platform, by itself and then choose where to spend what could well be no more then 10-20 bucks on our first game is an empowering fact gamers appreciate. If you don't think Bundles are a negative then need I remind you of Pokemon Snap Nintendo 64 bundle ?
We've all seen bundles that have either made or broken a company's attempt to sell us a game system. Costco aside from lacking in intelligent reading material (Liberal Fascist was piled high in the book section), or Intel based computers, threw the Zelda Bundle at you for 172 dollars. Since there weren't any DS's being sold by themselves in the otherwise massive retail store, the PlayStation Portable could well have looked competitive, what with the Renascence its been enjoying.
Leaving Costco stewing over the philosophical implications of Bundles, I realised something else. I dislike 95% of the people that shop at Costco.
The man responsible for the creation of Dungeons and Dragons (D&D), passed away in March. I didn't give proper respects to a fellow wisconsit (yes, the man was at his death a fellow cheese head), and a fellow midwesterner at birth (Chicago,Illinois).
He was the son of a swiss immigrant and a major contributer to gameing both off and on screen. Though we know him for D&D, his game set the ground rules on which Role Playing Games came to be based on and it was Dungeons and Dragons that was to baby boomer generation of nerds and techies what World of Warcraft is to us today. While Dungeons and Dragons has remained in its classic form, its also had a long life on everything from the Apple 2 to Dungeons and Dragons Online, a game I'm happy to have tried out on my MMO journey through the years.
Awards and honors:
Strategists Club's "Outstanding Designer & Writer" for the creation of D&D
Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design Origins Award Hall of Fame 1980
Four time winner of Games Day's "Best Games Inventor" (1979–82)
GenCon 2007 (40th Anniversary), Premiere Guest of Honor
Gary Gygax was tied with J. R. R. Tolkien for #18 on GameSpy's 30 Most Influential People in Gaming.
A strain of bacteria was named in honor of Gary Gygax, namely "Arthronema gygaxiana sp nov UTCC393".
ync Magazine named Gary Gygax #1 on the list of "The 50 Biggest Nerds of All Time".
SFX Magazine listed him as #37 on the list of the "50 Greatest SF Pioneers".
In 1999 Pyramid magazine named Gary Gygax as one of The Millennium's Most Influential Persons' ' "at least in the realm of adventure gaming."
Gary Gygax was commemorated in a number of webcomics, including xkcd's comic #393 "Ultimate Game", Penny Arcades "Bordering On The Semi-Tasteful", Dork Towers "Thanks for the Worldbuilding Rules", Order of the Stick #536, and GU Comics' "The Journey's End".
Blizzard Entertainment dedicated the 2.4.0 patch to World of Warcraft to Gary Gygax.
Job Titles:
1970–73 – Editor-in-Chief, Guidon Games (publisher of Wargaming rules and wargames)
1973–83 – Partner of TSR and then President of TSR Hobbies, Inc.
1983–85 – President, DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Entertainment Corporation
Co-Producer, Dungeons & Dragons animated television show
1983–85 – Chairman of the Board of Directors of TSR, Inc.; also President (1985)
1986–88 – Chairman of the Board of Directors, New Infinities Productions, Inc.
1988–94 – Creator/author under contract to Omega Helios Limited
1995–2008 – Creator/author under contract to Trigee Enterprises Corporation
1999–2008 – Partner, Hekaforge Productions
Role-playing games Boot Hill - role-playing elements in the Wild West, with Brian Blume, 1975
Supplements: Greyhawk (with Rob Kuntz) Eldritch Wizardry (with Brian Blume) Swords & Spells Accessories: The Book of Marvelous Magic (with Frank Mentzer) Adventures: B2 The Keep on the Borderlands
Mythus – (with Dave Newton), Game Designers Workshop, 1992 Mythus Magick – Book II of the MYTHUS Game (with Dave Newton), GDW, 1992 Epic of Ærth – Companion Volume to the MYTHUS Game, GDW, 1992 Necropolis – Adventure Scenario, GDW, 1993 Mythus Bestiary, Ærth Animalia – (with Dave & Michele Newton), GDW, 1993 Changeling – Weird Science Fantasy Role-Playing Game, published in part in Mythic Masters Magazine (see Periodicals) Unhallowed – Supernatural Horror Role-Playing Game (with Mike McCulley), GDW (manuscript, unpublished) 1992.
Rule books: Lejendary Rules for All Players - Hekaforge Productions, 1999 Lejend Master's Lore - Hekaforge Productions, 2000 Beasts of Lejend - Hekaforge Productions, 2000 World Setting sourcebooks: Lejendary Earth Gazetteer - Part 1, Hekaforge Productions, 2002 Noble Kings & Dark Lands - Part 2, (with Chris Clark) Hekaforge Productions, 2003 The Mysterious Realms of Hazgar – Part 3, (with Chris Clark) Hekaforge Productions, 2005 Adventures: Living the Lejend - Campaign Setting & Expansion for the LA Essentials Boxed Set, Troll Lord Games (2005) Forlorn Corners - included serially as a part of the Author’s and Collector’s Editions of the three core rules noted above (1999–2000) Hall of Many Panes – Module Boxed Set with D20 stats included, Troll Lord Games 2005 Lejendary Adventure Essentials - Primer Boxed Set for the LA RPG, Troll Lord Games, 2005
For Castles & Crusades, the Castle Zagyg series is a planned series of seven sourcebooks based on the Castle Greyhawk from Gygax's original campaign. For trademark reasons they are not actually published under the name of Greyhawk. Gary Gygax's Castle Zagyg: Yggsburgh Troll Lord Games, 2005 (ISBN 1-931275-68-8) Gary Gygax's Castle Zagyg: Dark Chateau (by Robert J. Kuntz) Troll Lord Games 2005 (ISBN 1-931275-69-6) Gary Gygax's Castle Zagyg: The East Mark Gazeteer (with Jeffrey P. Talanian) Troll Lord Games, 2007 (ISBN 978-1-929474-98-1)
A Challenge of Arms - (Chris Clark with Gary Gygax) generic adventure module, Inner City Game Designs, 1999 Ritual of the Golden Eyes - (Chris Clark with Gary Gygax) generic adventure module, Inner City Game Designs, 2000 The Weyland Smith Catalog - ("Joke" Magic Items), short version, Hekaforge Productions, 1999 Gygaxian Fantasy Worlds Series from Troll Lord Games. Volumes IV, V, VI, VII are edited by Gygax. Volume I Gary Gygax's The Canting Crew, explores the underworld of city life, "Gygaxian Fantasy Worlds, Volume II" Volume II Gary Gygax's World Builder, a collection of organized definitions, lists, tables and charts, (with Dan Cross) – 2003 Volume III Gary Gygax's Living Fantasy, Everyday Life, – 2003 Volume IV Gary Gygax's Book of Names by Malcolm Bowers Volume V Gary Gygax's Insidiae by Dan Cross 2004 Volume VI Gary Gygax's Nation Builder, by Michael J. Varhola – 2005 Volume VII Gary Gygax's Cosmos Builder, by Richard T. Balsley – 2006
Below are just a few of the video's found on youtube created by fans of D&D, as well as fellow techies and nerds. His death was the end of a wonderful and fulfilling life bringing joy to others through his creations. Before viewing the tributes to Gary Gygax let me just apoligize to who ever reads this for my not posting this on March 4th.
You Will be missed Gary Gygax.
Please Take a moment of Silence before watching the video's. Also make sure to watch them all in there entirity.
I'm a huge star wars fan. I collected the toy battle droids as a child and waited in the rain as a teen to see episode 3. Being the gamer that I am, I've naturally played several star wars games. Jedi Academy stands as my favorite PC title while Knights of the old republic has yet to be matched on the console.
Why no Star Wars: Empire at war ?
Simply put, the game wasn't all that. I know that sounds like a lame comeback but after playing through the games imperial campaign and several scenarios, it just didn't have re playability. The tortured mess that was Galactic Battle Grounds had me wanting to gag as we saw what age of empires II would've looked like if you'd had storm troopers instead of Teutonic knights.
Now Everyone is excited about Star Wars:Force unleashed, myself included. However it seems that like any profitable business Lucas Arts is whoring its creation out to anyone with a few dollars like some desperate pimp on the streets of the ghetto. When Everyone had a piece, what's really left of the original product we came to know and love ?
After you watch the video clip courtesy of GameTrailer.com, you understand that the DS version of Star Wars: Force Unleashed, looks extreamly shitty. Oddly enough the PSP version doesn't look too bad and even has some interesting goodies. Who doesn't wanna say "all too easy", after freezing a punk jedi in carbonit ?
The Wii version of the game doesn't look that bad but I think the third person perspective might ruin the immersion for some players. The actual physical activity will probably make up for this but anyone who knows the wii controller knows that what you do in real life isn't always duplicated on screen...if at all.
All three consoles managed good visuals but the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions reign supreme when it comes to graphical finesse. When your Professor asks you what you were doing on the 17th (release date 16Th of September), you'll answer with a cocky gin "unleashing the force!". Say that during Sex and prepare to be stuck playing with your wii.
I'm a strategy nut when it comes to my PC gaming. I've played Starcraft, C&C, Red alert series and even tried my hand at a few hex based games on Gametap. I went into Panzer tactics with a keen eye for any similarities between this strategy gem and my first strategy game (which revolved around world war two and all wars up to 1999), Steel Panthers.
To start off, you can choose from the any of the big players in the European theater. Germany, Soviet Union (Russia), Allies. While we don't see Japan anywhere in sight on this game, its not supposed to make an appearance, what with the lack of epic Japanese tank battles in world war two.
The German campaign is the easiest. You fight in all the major battles but also in less well-known battles. For example, when did your history professor ever mention Germany's invasion of Norway? So I was thrilled when the game didn't just go into the traditional Poland-France-Soviet union rout. The game developers definitely give you a history lesson or two with these little known battles.
The Soviet Campaign See's you doing what you did in the German campaign. The battles are bigger though and the odds are less favorable for you at first. Fight your way from the battle of Moscow all the way to the battle of Berlin. Again the attention to detail here was great as you get to command KV1's and Katusha rocket launchers. The whole campaign will have you seeing red and spreading the word about the game to your comrades. If they give you strange then suspect em off to Siberia. Enemies of the people just don't understand the sheer awesomeness of blowing up Hitler’s troops in the dead of winter.
The Allied campaign starts you off in Sicily and guides you through a number of missions such as the landings on pearl harbor. To save space the allied campaign has you taking charge of both American and British forces in missions. It’s the hardest campaign to win yet no less satisfying then the last two.
This game has been compared allot to advanced wars. This isn't a bad thing in the least. If you are a fan of the advanced wars series then you'll be both familiar and impressed by this deeper and more realistic look a like.
There are some things that Advanced Wars and Panzer Tactics have in common. Great battle scenes are one of them. Your top screen shows animated showdowns between tanks, artillery and air battles that have detailed 2D units slugging it out in cinematic showdowns for your viewing pleasure. Advanced wars however had a much more turn based system of combat where one side would fire off there shots and then the other side would return fire after taking the hits you dished out. With Panzer tactics, both sides are shooting at one another at roughly the same time and it feels much more realistic.
Details are another area where Panzer Tactics feels like a genuine real time strategy game, rather then having light, medium, heavy units, you get actual names for each of the units. each side has it own armored car, which looks different for each side and carries its historical name. Rather then have a truck, the Germans for example have Opel trucks with detailed pictures appearing next to the unit stats.
Just like Advanced wars you have to re-supply your troops, everything from fuel to ammunition has to be taken into account. If you run out of fuel or ammo then your units won't move, won't shoot but should make good target practice for your opponents troops. Another example of realism for the game would be capturing airfields and moving basing your aircraft there for quick strikes instead of expending boat loads of fuel on what are the SUV's of the game fuel wise to attack your enemy at the other end of the map.
Terrain like tree's, cliffs and even the roads all have an effect on game play. The most fun I had with the Russian campaign was taking advantage of old man winters mutual dislike of the Germans. Little things like cover and visibility play a big roll in deciding who wins the battles that decide who wins the war in Panzer Tactics.
One thing I found slightly odd was how in each mission you absolutely cannot lose five core starting units or you fail the mission. I can understand the developer wanting us to be cautious and smart with our units but anything you lose you can replace (if you have the fame points!), in much the same way you could buy units in Advanced Wars.
Overall I felt the game was a very big drain on hours to get through the missions let alone all the campaigns. The details and realism are a welcome improvement over the only other major strategy game on the DS, Advanced Wars. The time taken to complete the game and the fact you absolutely must have a stylus to protect your hands from an early onset of arthritis however take away from scoring this game a 100%. I'll settle on a 95% rating.
PRO's: realism, cinematic cut scenes, attention to detail. Hex based game play is familiar territory to strategy fans.
CONS: The game feels long and missions by themselves can go on for almost an hour or so each. Trying to play the game without a stylus genuinely hurts the digits. No real reason to fail a player for losing units they can easily replace.
My name is Al3x. As a newbie web designer and proficent BASIC programmer looking to get his A+ certification I've started this blog make a splash in the web 2.0 as opposed to just talking about it. I read a few hours worth of data off of various websites and discuss video games with friends on a constant basis. I'm currently limiting myself to reviews of 360 titles, pc real time strategy games and the occasional soundoff about my thoughts on the gameing and tech industry. I won't attempt to go over my head with something I may not be fully aware of since its unfair to both myself and you.
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