Archive | December, 2008
Filed under: Meta (about Joystiq) Now that all the gifts have been delivered, what's Santa to do but rock out to a Metal Xmas? Here at Joystiq HQ we're all equally discombobulated, having finally voted on our Game of the Year picks and now able to play anything we want this weekend -- except for those of us who visited their families and forgot to bring all three consoles, both portables (sorry N-Gage!) and an overclocked desktop PC. It happens. Alexander Sliwinski: Well, if the past couple days are any indication. I will be playing a lot more Rock Band with friends. Had a five-hour session last night and it looks like there's going to be more today. There might be some Smash Bros. Personally, when the family is gone, I'll be continuing on with Fallout 3. Although, I do want to get back into Sins of a Solar Empire. Christopher Grant: Enjoying some R&R, spending time in Albion, Prince of Persia's mythical universe (fun fact: nothing like Persia!), and The World Ends With You's intoxicating vision of Shibuya. Oh, and equivocating over my nominations for Joystiq's Game of the Year ... Griffin McElroy: While not wrestling with the massive registry errors currently tearing my computer a new USB port, I imagine I'll be playing with my holiday bounty: Chrono Trigger, MGS4 or Mirror's Edge. Kevin Kelly: I'm console-less while on vacation in Texas, reducing me to gaming on the iPhone. However, I'm happily playing the hilarious Amateur Surgeon game from Adult Swim. A pizza boy who does surgery on the side? Sign me up. I'm also playing the board game thrift store search. So far it's yielded me Can't Stop, Sunken Treasure, Triple Yahtzee, Othello, Ur (the Royal Game of Sumer... fancy), and this gem from 1975: Challenge the I.R.S. James Ransom-Wiley: AFG Jason Dobson: My son's fascination with Kingdom Hearts continues as we push to the end of the first game and prepare to take on the sequel. Enjoying it through his eyes makes the whole experience not quite so absurd. Justin McElroy: IDK Ludwig Kietzmann: I'm playing the Fallout 3 endurance game. Here's how it works: I put in the disc and see how long it takes until I want to play something -- anything -- else. Unfortunately, I'm getting worse at it. So much worse, in fact, that I now start playing another game before I've even inserted the disc. Oh well. Randy Nelson: Now that I've played through all of the GOTY contenders, my plan is to get some time in with each of my all-time top 10 games - and decide if that list needs some re-working based on the games of '08. Oh, also: MetalLittleBigPlanetGear. F. T. W. Ross Miller: Curious how much of an evil bastard I can be in Fable 2, and also need to return to a game I missed last generation -- Final Fantasy XII. I expect my free time to be completely eradicated. WRUP: Post-holiday confusion edition originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 26 Dec 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Mac, PC Normally we'd save this for Free Game Club, but it's Christmas Eve and we know a lot of you are reading this with family, away from your gaming PC and / or console of choice. If you need an outlet to vent your frustration, check out Left 4K Dead, an entry into the 2009 Java 4k Competition and, as the name suggests, a project no larger than 4KB in size. Unlike its high-end Valve doppelganger, however, you must face the zombie horde by your lonesome and armed with only one nondescript gun. The Director AI is also a bit loopy here, so think of the zombie and power-up placement as being ... random. And if you end up ignoring your loved ones today, don't say we didn't warn you. [Thanks, Josh]The best thing you'll play today: Left 4K Dead originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Dec 2008 12:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Mac, PC Normally we'd save this for Free Game Club, but it's Christmas Eve and we know a lot of you are reading this with family, away from your gaming PC and / or console of choice. If you need an outlet to vent your frustration, check out Left 4K Dead, an entry into the 2009 Java 4k Competition and, as the name suggests, a project no larger than 4KB in size. Unlike its high-end Valve doppelganger, however, you must face the zombie horde by your lonesome and armed with only one nondescript gun. The Director AI is also a bit loopy here, so think of the zombie and power-up placement as being ... random. And if you end up ignoring your loved ones today, don't say we didn't warn you. [Thanks, Josh]The best thing you'll play today: Left 4K Dead originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Dec 2008 12:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Culture, PC, Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Action Presenting Branching Dialogue, a weekly, wordy and often worryingly pedantic discussion of video game genres, trends and err ... stuff I didn't think to put in this introductory line. If there's one thing the year 2008 has proven adept at, it's polarizing players with titles that seem to generate more discussion than actual sales. Much like Assassin's Creed before it, Ubisoft's Prince of Persia has been viciously yanking people off fences, this time with simplified controls, Open-World Lite[TM] platforming and sassy, cel-shaded protagonists. The game's difficulty (or supposed lack thereof) has also come under scrutiny, with some tough-guy gamers lamenting the Prince's newly found and quite convenient resistance to death. I don't wish to argue with the complaint ... but I do want to pluralize it. "This game is not difficult," and, "You can't die in this game," are two very different accusations, and one of them is more than a little unobservant of modern conventions.I hate to break it to you guys, but death has been pushing up daisies for years.Continue reading Branching Dialogue: R.I.P. DeathBranching Dialogue: R.I.P. Death originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 23 Dec 2008 20:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Microsoft Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 and PSP play nice together, so we've always been a bit baffled as to why Microsoft hasn't created similar synergy between the Xbox 360 and its iPod-chaser, Zune. Now it looks like MS is taking steps to formally introduce the devices to one another - at least that's what one of its job postings suggests.According to CNET, Microsoft is looking to add a user experience designer to its Zune group, with a focus on the Zune user interface, Zune PC application - used to access the Zune Marketplace - and ... the Zune Xbox application? It could be that the company is working on a means to (finally) download, manage and transfer Zune Marketplace content on 360 to Zune (and vice-versa). MS has said that the New Xbox Experience will make it easier to roll out extension services (see Netflix and Photo Sharing) without the need for major system updates.[Via Engadget]Product zenergy: Microsoft making 'Zune Xbox app' originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 22 Dec 2008 20:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: PC EA has accepted the warm embrace of Steam and will begin using the digital distribution service. Following reports that Spore was crawling out of the primordial ooze to Steam, Valve announced today that several of the latest EA titles are available now, with many more coming over the next couple weeks. Available now: Spore Spore Creepy & Cute Parts Pack Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning Mass Effect Need for Speed Undercover EA Sports' FIFA Manager 2009 Coming Soon: Mirror's Edge Red Alert 3 Dead Space Sister site Big Download contacted EA to find out if older PC games would become available, but the publisher wouldn't comment. Also, in case you're wondering, EA games on Steam apparently don't install or use third-party DRM set-ups. According to Valve "the only DRM it uses is Steam itself."[Via Big Download]EA games roll onto Steam originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 19 Dec 2008 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: PC, Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Action Eidos and Warner Bros. have confirmed that Mark Hamill, the voice of The Joker in Batman: The Animated Series, will reprise his sadistically animated take on the Clown Prince of Crime in Batman: Arkham Asylum. Additionally, the Caped Crusader himself will be voiced by Kevin Conroy, recognized as the voice of Batman in numerous animated series and games. While we remain largely undecided regarding Rocksteady Studios' "graphically distinct" take on Bruce Wayne's alter ego (spoiler! - Ed.), today's news brings us dangerously close to being pulled off the fence as we continue to wait for Batman: Arkham Asylum to ship next summer for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.Batman: Arkham Asylum gets Hamill's Joker, Conroy's Batman originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 17 Dec 2008 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, RPGs Bethesda has released a patch for the PlayStation 3 version of Fallout 3 that not only adds Trophies, but manages to fix a particularly irksome bug that caused the game to hiccup whenever you received a PSN Notification (i.e. "SnakeFan292 signed off"). Our Sony-centric friends at PS3 Fanboy have a list of Trophies for your perusal. Seeing as Operation Anchorage is destined for Xbox 360 and PC only, this is probably the only Fallout 3 download PS3 owners can expect to receive for some time. Fallout 3 PS3 patch adds Trophies, squashes bugs originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 15 Dec 2008 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Mac, PC, Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360 Amazon has sent us over this preview of its "15 Days, 15 Video Games Deal" series for the weekend and Monday: Saturday, 13 Dec: World of Warcraft Battlechest is the headliner. If the past days are any indication, the other deals for Saturday will be somewhat related. Sunday, 14 Dec: Kickoff of a special deal on Ubisoft's successful (no, really) Petz, Imagine and Ener-G titles. Monday, 15 Dec: Saints Row 2 is the headliner. Additionally, on Thursday, December 18, Amazon's Goldbox deal will be PlayStation 3-centric. We'll have the Lightning Deal clues for you before then.Amazon's weekend game deals; all-PS3 Goldbox next Thursday originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 12 Dec 2008 14:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: PC, Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Action, Fighting, Video, GalleriesPrototype, better known as Crackdown + The Matrix + Superman seems to have a busted website that confronts you with an age gate, and then gives up all of its secrets like the wimpy kid during recess. It appears that these are images and videos they are assembling for a presentation at CES in January, but Happy Holidaze! You get it a few weeks early.Check out the new images from the game in the gallery below, and there are four new videos waiting for you after the break. Just hurry and do it now before someone comes to their senses and flips the switch. Either this is a brilliant marketing ploy, or someone's asleep at the keyboard.Gallery: Protoype: 12/09/08[Thanks Johnny Nobody]Continue reading Activision's Protoype site breaks, spills some assets on webActivision's Protoype site breaks, spills some assets on web originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: PC, RPGs, Business Michal Kicinski and Marcin Iwinski, co-founders of Polish video game publisher and distributor CD Projekt, were recently recognized by financial firm Ernst and Young, who named the pair Poland's "Entrepreneurs of the Year" as part of a contest the firm holds in 50 countries across the globe. The two were chosen for the success of their start-up company (which has become the largest games distributor in Poland) and for their first foray into game development, The Witcher, which has sold more than one million copies worldwide. In June, the pair will face off against finalists from the other 49 countries in an entrepreneurial battle royale -- the winner of which will earn the coveted "World's Best Entrepreneur" coffee mug. How prestigious!CD Projekt co-founders named 'Entrepreneurs of the Year' originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 06 Dec 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Microsoft Xbox 360 In its continuing and unyielding quest for world exclusives, Spike TV is adding another notch to its already pretty well-notched VGA belt with the "world premiere" of "The Lost and Damned," the first of two Xbox 360-exclusive DLC expansions for Grand Theft Auto IV.There's not much more to glean from this press release - "The Lost and Damned" will provide "new missions that offer an entirely fresh way to explore Liberty City with new multiplayer modes, weapons and vehicles; and a diverse soundtrack with additional music" - but we're imagining the actual reveal will be a little more ... revelatory. Find out December 14th at 9PM on Spike TV (or, alternatively, a couple minutes later on Joystiq). Gallery: Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned DLCGTA IV 'The Lost and Damned' to premiere at Spike VGAs originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: PC Talk about perfect timing: the economy is in the crapper; the holiday rituals are bleeding you dry; and your 486DX2 is having trouble keeping up during those late-night Left 4 Dead sessions. But don't lose hope! Our PC-inclined cousins at Big Download are giving away an iBuyPower Paladin F870-SB rig, sporting the latest Intel Core i7 processor technology, 1TB of hard drive space, 6GB of RAM, two ATI 4870 video cards, 8-channel surround sound, a Blu-ray drive and a 20.1" Sceptre widescreen monitor - worth approximately $2500. Don't want to drop any of your rapidly evaporating loot on something like this? Hit up Big Download to learn how to enter. You'll have until Monday, December 8th to get your entry in, so that's enough time to procrastinate just a little bit longer but not too long, okay?Big Download is giving away this gaming PC originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 05 Dec 2008 21:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: PC, Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Action, Video Starbreeze wasn't cooling its heels while it waited for word on a new publisher for The Chronicle of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, as evidenced by this first video of the game in all its current, two-games-in-one glory. We've seen it in action and can attest to the fact that, yes, it actually looks like this on 360 and PS3 (though it will also be hitting PC).The video features a couple of elements that we were especially impressed by. The first is a visual nuance, but one that speaks to the effort being put into the polishing of the final game. In the segment where Riddick hangs from a pipe and moves along it, hand over hand, there wasn't one iota of clipping - no "hand through wrist" glitching, nada. The look of the game is extremely solid. The new gameplay mechanics are impressive as well. The half-man, half-weapon characters in this trailer are "drones" - cyborgs created by the Dark Athena crew from the hapless passengers of ships they've raided. Riddick can kill these enemies and use them as human shields, while using the gun grafted to their arm to shoot. As you'd expect from a real body, it's difficult to push it forward, but dragging it's a snap (which factors into overall strategy). It's also possible to control these guys from a remote terminal, hence the red-hued POV you catch at one point during the footage. Download in HD (79MB) Riddick comes out of hiding in new Dark Athena video originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 04 Dec 2008 16:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Business While Sony and Microsoft dream of turning a profit on their consoles, Nintendo is doing just that. According to a new article from Forbes, the Big N makes $6 in operating profit from every Wii unit sold. Nearly 19 million units have been sold worldwide so far during 2008, earning Nintendo a tidy $114M in profit, taking that $6-per-system figure into account. That's not the extent of the interesting numbers in the article, though.Forbes points out that, while Nintendo is turning a profit on hardware, the fact that its top-selling software is all first party means it is losing out on serious revenue normally brought in via licensing fees. Still, according to its figures, the magazine claims that there will be in the neighborhood of 100 million more pieces of Wii software sold in 2008 (220M) than the nearest competitor, Xbox 360, at 125M (PS3 is on track for 120M). One has to wonder, though, how many of those Wii games will be snagged from a bargain bin, given recent analyst data. Forbes: Nintendo making $6 profit on every Wii sold originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 01 Dec 2008 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Monday, December 29, 2008
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